Monday, February 18, 2013 by GLOBAL MEDIA MIRROR LIMITED

Bellview faults AIB report on 2005 crash OLUSEGUN KOIKI

AVIATION CORRESPONDENT

he management of Bellview Airlines has disagreed with

Oduah

the Accident Investigation Bureau, AIB, on the primary cause of the plane crash of October 22, 2005 with 117 passengers and crew members on board.

Vol. 3 N0. 559

The reaction came barely 24 hours after the AIB released a report on its website stating the major cause of the crash about eight CONTINUED ON PAGE 5>>

Fuel scarcity looms as Warri refinery stops production P.4

Alison-Madueke

Monday, February 18, 2013

I was dead for 7 days, says Jonathan’s wife

N150

…tummy, intestines ripped open in nine surgeries I WAS BEGGING FOR IT (SURGERY) AFTER THE THIRD OPERATION BECAUSE I WAS GOING TO THE THEATRE EVERY DAY. I

GOD ALMIGHTY KNOWS I HAVE NEVER BEEN TO THAT HOSPITAL... I DON’T HAVE ANY TERMINAL ILLNESS. I DID NOT

DID EIGHT OR NINE OPERATIONS WITHIN ONE MONTH

GO FOR COSMETIC SURGERY OR TUMMY TUCK

Dame Jonathan on February 17, 2013

Dame Jonathan on October 17, 2012

German hospital last year, saying that she was actually dead while in hospital, but God brought her back to life. This was contrary to her CONTINUED ON PAGE 2>>

ROTIMI FADEYI ABUJA

irst Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, opened up yesterday on her admission at a

Africa, Latin America to produce next Pope –Benedict’s aide P.49

Beggars flee, as Lagos begins clampdown THE

BUSINESS SECTION

President seeks ks AGF’s opinion on delayed 2013 budget DMO offers N105bn worth of bonds P.6,A6

Free ree e insi iinside nside nsi ide de

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L-R: President, Christian Association of Nigeria, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, praying for President Goodluck Jonathan; his wife, Dame Patience and his children during the thanksgiving service for the First Lady in Abuja yesterday.

Gunmen kidnap eight expatriates, kill one STF operatives shoot two in Jos

Goldie’s ‘two men’ lay claim to her heart

P.2 P.8

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Monday, February 18, 2013

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Gunmen kidnap eight expatriates, kill one JAMES ABRAHAM, AZA MSUE AND EZEKIEL TITUS

unmen yesterday kidnapped eight foreigners and killed a staff of Setraco Construction Company working in Jama’are and Kafin Madaki local government areas of Bauchi State. The gunmen also attacked a police station and a prison in Jama’are, but the security men on duty opened fire on the attackers. Two vehicles were torched at the police station. National Mirror gathered that the gunmen attacked the police station and the prison yard about 2a.m. before heading for the construction firm where they killed a security man and kidnapped eight other workers. Although the police are yet to establish contact with the kidnappers, the state Police Commissioner, Mr. Mohammed Ladan, confirmed the attacks adding that his men exchanged gunfire with the hoodlums though no causality was recorded and the gunmen escaped. He said: “Yes, we have an attack on our station but our men repelled it in Jama’are and Kafin Madaki. They also attacked a prison in Jama’are and the security men at the yard also repelled the miscreants but they burnt two

vehicles in Jama’are police station. “The attackers also attacked Setraco Construction Company, killing a local security guard and succeeded in kidnapping six people”. The police boss, however, could not disclose the identities of those kidnapped but assured that the police had commenced investigations into the attacks He added that the details of the kidnapped persons would be revealed after investigations and urged the residents of the state not to panic. The Chairman of Jama’are Local Government Area, Alhaji Adamu Aliyu, has explained that the eight people kidnapped in Setraco Construction Company were expatriates. He told newsmen in Bauchi that “among the kidnapped workers were a Briton, a Greek, an Italian, while the remaining five are Lebanese, among them a woman and a girl.” Aliyu described the attack as unfortunate and advised residents of the area to remain calm and cooperate with the security operatives to fish out the culprits. In Jos, the Plateau State capital, a member of the Special Task Force on Jos Crisis, STF, has shot two persons. One of the victims, Mr. Wagley Dauda, who was confirmed dead yesterday, was a member of staff of the University of Jos while the other victim, identi-

fied as a driver, sustained wounds and was rushed to a hospital. The incident occurred at the Green Park, Nasco Quarters, in the state capital. National Mirror investigation revealed that Dauda was travelling along with the driver of an Opel Vectra car, Salisu Musa, with registration EW 336 AA This development created tension in the area as people hurriedly closed their shops for fear of the unknown. Confirming the shooting while addressing journalists in Jos yesterday, spokesman of the task force, Capt. Salisu Mustapha, said preliminary investigation revealed that the soldier at-

tempted to stop the driver who was driving against traffic while approaching his guard location and failed to stop and instead tried to forcefully manoeuvre his way out despite the soldier’s instruction for him to stop. He said the driver’s action was suspicious, forcing the soldier to shoot, adding that the shot pierced through the left shoulder of the driver and unfortunately hit Dauda on the chest. Mustapha added that the victims were immediately rushed to the Jos University Teaching Hospital, JUTH, for treatment by the STF personnel, but Dauda died in the hospital while receiving medical attention.

He also said the soldier had been arrested and was in custody, undergoing investigation. “It was an act of lawlessness exhibited by the driver who tried to escape and not subject himself to a security agent on duty,” STF spokesman said. The STF, therefore, appealed to citizens in the state to cooperate with security operatives at various duty locations, stressing the soldiers were deployed to maintain law and order and, therefore, needed the cooperation of the people of the state. It will be recalled that a member of the STF recently shot dead a police inspector in Tunkus Mikang Local Government Area of

the state after an argument at a check point. Meanwhile, the President, Civil Rights Congress of Nigeria, CRCN, Mallam Shehu Sani, has said that only the Boko Haram leader, Sheikh Abubakar Shekau, and representatives of the Federal Government will jointly declare the sect’s ceasefire. In an attempt to broker peace, Sani, who led former President Olusegun Obasanjo to Boko Haram’s enclave in Maiduguri, Borno State capital, said any ceasefire announcement by other persons should be disregarded. Speaking with our correspondent, Sani, while calling for ceasefire, however, CONTINUED ON PAGE 5>>

MOONIES: 3,500 couples from all over the world, many of mixed nationalities, who had met just days before, in a Moonie wedding organised by the controversial Unification Church at the Cheongshim Peace World Centre in Gapyeong, South Korea, yesterday.

I was dead for 7 days, says Jonathan’s wife CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

earlier claim that she did not undergo any surgery or tummy tuck at Horst Schmidt Klinic in Wiesbaden, Germany, when she left the country last year August. This is even as President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday said that the recovery of his wife from life threatening illness would put an end to the mystery of death of a leader or spouse at the seat of power in Aso Rock. On her arrival in the country on October 17 last year from Germany after about seven weeks medical trip, Dame Patience denied ever visiting any hospital in Germany, saying that she did not do any tummy tuck.

“I read in the media where they said I was in the hospital. God Almighty knows I have never been to that hospital. I don’t even know the hospital they mentioned. “I have to explain what God has done for me. I don’t have any terminal illness. I did not go for cosmetic surgery or tummy tuck. My husband loves me as I am and I am pleased with how God created me,” she had said at the airport on her arrival. But yesterday, the First Lady at a thanksgiving service at the Aso Villa Chapel said that her tummy and intestines were actually opened and she underwent

multiple surgeries. She told the congregation at the service which was attended by her husband and other top government officials that her corpse would have been brought back to the country. She said: “I remember when Chief Olusegun Obasanjo was the President of the country; I was close to his late wife, Stella. We worshipped together in this chapel. “It was a painful moment for me that time when she died and her corpse was brought here. “That was how my corpse would have been brought here. It was not an easy experience for me. I actually died; I passed out for more

than one week. My intestine and tummy were opened. “I am not Lazarus but my experience was similar to his. My doctors said all hope was lost. “A black doctor who is with us in this service was flown in from London when the situation became critical. It was God himself in His infinite mercy that said I will return to Nigeria. God woke me up after seven days. “I know that some people somehow leaked the information that I was dead. They are people that I trust and rely on. To them, I was dead and I would never return to the country alive. Some of them even sold off

my things. “I won’t say everything here. It is the Lord’s doing that I returned alive. When God says yes, nobody can say no. “People are always afraid of operation (surgery) but in my own case, while my travail lasted, I was begging for it (surgery) after the third operation because I was going to the theatre every day. “It was God who saw me through. I did eight or nine operations within one month. It was not an easy one. “The day I came back, I said God I have nothing to say, I offer myself to you. I will be doing things that

will touch the lives of the less privileged. “God gave me second chance because I reached there. He knew I have not completed the assignments He gave me. That was why I was sent back.” Speaking later at a reception, which held at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, the First Lady said her case could be correctly described in the words of King David which says, “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for thou art with me, thy rod and staff they comfort me. “It is, therefore, the grace of God, expressed in His CONTINUED ON PAGE 5>>

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Monday, February 18, 2013

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Monday, February 18, 2013

Provost, Adeyemi College of Education, Ondo, Prof. Adeyemi Idowu (right) and Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta/Chairman, Presidential Amnesty Programme, Hon. Kingsley Kuku, during the latter’s investiture with the Fellowship in Educational Development and Community Service at the 32nd convocation of the institution in Ondo State, at the weekend.

L-R: Deputy Corps Marshal, Research and Statistics, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Mr. Yemi Omidiji; Deputy Corps Marshal, Administration, Mr. Adei Abu; Rev. Israel Akanji; Corps Marshal, Mr. Osita Chidoka, and his wife, Chidimma, at the FRSC’s 25th anniversary in Abuja, yesterday. PHOTO: NAN

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

L-R: Dean of AVMCC and Bishop-elect, Ven. James Odedeji; Archdeacon, Ven. Funso Ogini; Bishop of the diocese, Rt. Rev Peter Adebiyi; Mrs. Emilem Ogini and Chancellor, Hon. Justice Babasola Ogunade, at the Inauguration of Amuwo Odofin Archdeaconry of Lagos West at Christ Church (Anglican), Amuwo Odofin, Lagos, yesterday.

L-R: South-East Chairman of the Campaign for Democracy (CD), Mr. Uzor A.Uzor; CD Chairman in Imo State, Mr. Everest Ezine, CD President, Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, Deputy President, Mr. Abdul Bako Usman and General Secretary, Mr. Solomon Sobade, at the 8th CD National Convention held in Lagos, at the weekend.

National News

Fuel scarcity looms as Warri Refinery stops production S OLA A DEBAYO WARRI

igerians may soon experience scarcity of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) popularly known as petrol following a disclosure that the Warri Refinery and Petrochemical Company (WRPC) have stopped production of petroleum product. National Mirror learnt that the development was sequel to the shutdown of the Fluid Catalystic Cracking (FCC), one of the strategic units of the plant responsible for the production of PMS. It was gathered that the problem of the FCC was compounded by the malfunctioning of its sister unit, the Reforming Unit (RU), which abruptly stopped functioning. Findings showed that the rotor of the compressor of the RU, which also aids production of PMS, was faulty, a development which made it difficult for the plant

to function effectively to produce petrol. The latest development in WRPC heightened the fears of worsening scarcity of petrol, especially in the areas serviced by the plant in the South-South, South-West, South-East and some parts of the Northern. A reliable source in WRPC told National Mirror that the rotor of RU had been imported by the management of the crude oil refining plant in order to fix the unit. It was gathered yesterday that the plant has been producing only Dual Purpose Kerosene (DPK) popularly known as kerosene and Automative Gas Oil (AGO) also known as diesel. The source said that the plant had not produced PMS in the last one week, a development which has raised fears about the steady supply of petrol to the areas serviced by WRPC. The source said: “WRPC has been partially shut down for a rou-

tine maintenance work on the FCC unit. The plant was not completely shut down, but I can tell you that that FCC was brought down. Even as we bring the FCC down, the Reforming Unit (RU) developed a major fault. “The RU, which also plays pivotal roles in the production of petrol by WRPC, was also shut down because the rotor of its compressor developed a major fault. We are expecting a new rotor because the management has ordered for it

from abroad. “The implication of these developments is that WRPC is not producing petrol in the last one week. The plant only manages to produce diesel and kerosene. The situation will remain the same until the FCC and RU are brought back on stream.” It was learnt yesterday that the management of the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company (PPMC), a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum

Corporation (NNPC), ordered major and independent oil dealers to source petrol from a private depot in Warri, while the crisis in WRPC persists. Chairman of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) in Delta State, Chief Akpos Edafevwotu, urged the management of NNPC to expedite action on the repair of the plant. Edafevwotu said the latest fate of the plant would worsen fuel deliv-

ery to consumers within and beyond, pleading that the trend must not continue. The Managing Director of WRPC, Mr. Paul Obelley, could not be reached for his reaction to the report. Obelley did not pick repeated calls to his cell phone by our correspondent. But reliable sources closed to his office confirmed the report, adding that the management was mustering frantic efforts to bring the plant back on stream.

NYSC rues quality of Nigerian graduates TOLA A KINMUTIMI A MINAH IBRAHIM

AND

he management of the National Youth Service Corps Scheme (NYSC) at the weekend re-affirmed its position that some graduates of Nigerian tertiary institutions are illiterates. Speaking in an exclusive interview with the National Mirror in Abu-

ja, Head of the NYSC’s Public Relations Unit, Mrs. Abosede Aderibigbe, corroborated the scheme’s Director General’s stance that some corps members are illiterates, saying they could hardly speak or write a simple sentence in English. Mrs. Aderibigbe said that experiences of the management during orientation camps where prospective corps mem-

bers are being screened indicated that some of them can hardly speak or write English language. She said: “Well, I agree with the Director General that some corps members cannot speak or write simple English. I have been a State Coordinator before and from my observation, some of the corps members cannot speak or write. “We don’t know how

they came about their results. When you now ask them to fill form, they find it difficult to fill the form. They will be copying other people’s data into their own form. “When we go through this during screening, we discovered that many of them have copied and when we bring out this prospective or registered corps out for questioning we discovered that they cannot speak.”

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

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Monday, February 18, 2013

Bellview faults AIB report on 2005 crash CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

years ago. The management of the defunct airline also accused the agency of allowing internal politics within it to distort and inject bias into its interpretation of the material facts of the accident. AIB, had in its report, indicted the management of the airline, saying the aircraft had some technical defects before it crashed. The Bellview Airlines, Boeing 737-200 with the registration number 5N-BFN had crashed at Lisa Village in Ogun State with all the passengers buried underground when the aircraft nose-dived to the ground and caused a crater. The aircraft, which departed Lagos for Abuja about 8p.m., disappeared from the radar of the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, after about eight minutes in the air. Before the AIB’s posting on Saturday, the mystery behind the accident had remained unresolved for close to eight years. The former DirectorGeneral of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, Mr. Fidelis Onyeyiri, was sacked by the Presidency shortly after another accident involving Sosoliso Airline aircraft occurred in

Port Harcourt on December 10, 2005, after the earlier crash. But a statement signed by the airline’s Corporate Affairs Manager, Mr. Terver-Uzer Luke, noted that in 2009, the management of AIB had circulated a draft final report with the reference number 2/2009 (BLV 2005/10/22) to the relevant authorities, including the state of design and its own management in 2009. Luke in the statement insisted that the report presented to it in 2009 had now been doctored four years thereafter without inviting it to comment on the fundamental alteration to the original report in accordance with the International Civil Aviation Organisation, ICAO, Annex 13. The airline’s management also refuted the AIB report on the qualification and experience of the pilot, saying that the captain was trained in the United States of America with over 10,000 hours flight time. It also denied that the crews were overworked by the management as presented by AIB, saying that the crew average duty time over six months was less than 90 hours per month and on the day of the accident, the crew had been

on duty for less than four hours. The statement also alleged that the report was geared to make Bellview the scapegoat with the ulterior motive of abandoning further investigation to find the true cause of the accident. It lamented that the agency had said in its report that the true cause of the accident was still unknown and still went ahead to make speculative allusions. The statement reads in part: “The captain of the flight had 1053.54hours experience in addition with over 10,000 hours and not the 153.45hours as erroneously stated on page 8 of the AIB report. “The captain was trained in the United States under

US FAA approved Training Programme and Facility. He had a valid first class medical with no restriction despite the allusion made by AIB. “The first officer had sufficient experience in line with regulatory requirement. We are surprised that AIB distorted these facts by intentionally understating the crew total hours on type to reach a false conclusion about the crew’s experience. Allusion to training records is pure speculative. “The crew was not overworked as abundance of evidence showed that the crew average duty time over six months was less than 90 hours a month and on the day of the accident both crew have been on duty for less than four hours.” It insisted that the air-

craft was dispatched and operated in accordance with the aircraft manufacturers approved maintenance manual and the minimum equipment list, adding that the state of design came to a different conclusion that was based on scientific investigation coupled with numerous laboratory analyses of the parts removed from the aircraft. Bellview management said that nothing on the aircraft as at the time of flight could have been a likely cause of the accident, declaring that AIB ignored the fact that the crew made no emergency call, which implied that whatever must have happened would most likely have been sudden and catastrophic.

“The explosive analysis was not conclusive as to the cause of fire, either prior to the impact or at impact, coupled with the fact that the accident site was not secured by AIB and most of the materials gathered for explosive analysis were of poor quality due to several days’ contamination. “The current report is not in compliance with ICAO Annex 13 standard recommended practices, which require AIB to submit the final report to the operator as the report we received in 2010 was fundamentally different from the report now in circulation. “Annex 13 also mandates AIB to attach to the report as an appendix, our written position which was made available to AIB in 2010.”

Gunmen kidnap eight foreigners, kill one I was dead for 7 days, says Jonathan’s wife Demolition of illegal buildings on Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s right of way in Arepo, Ogun State, yesterday.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2

said that violence could only end when the right approach was taken. He said: “First of all, I think we need to ask ourselves whether there was a ceasefire or not. And the ceasefire that I believe is the one that is declared jointly by the leader of the group, Sheik Abubakar Shekau and the representatives of the Federal Government. “But what we have was simply an announcement by somebody who purportedly presented himself as either a factional leader or the deputy leader of the group. “So, since that announcement, we have seen violence going on in different places. “Before that announcement, the same personality, Abdulrazeez, has made about three or four ceasefire an-

nouncements in the last seven or eight months and all have not stopped violence and give Nigerians a hope of peace.” Sani, who described VicePresident Namadi Sambo’s recent visit to Maiduguri as shameful and of no effect, said the VP failed to interact with bereaved families to understand the real situation on ground as he only commissioned projects. “It is quite unfortunate that for three years, hundreds and thousands of people have died; houses and properties worth millions destroyed. It is now that the vice president is visiting Borno State. “If David Cameron and Barack Obama could visit Afghanistan and Iraq even at the thick of the war and suicide bombings, there is no reason why the President should not visit Borno State.”

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2

kindness and mercy, and the supplications of you all that I stand before today, as a living testimony to the goodness of the Lord. “This is especially so when you remember that I emerged from a situation that could be said to defy logic and even challenged medical science.” With her experience and all what she went through, Dame Patience said Aso Rock Villa must be regarded as the nation’s centre of power and authority and not the devil’s playground. “It is our spiritual duty to sanctify and declare it the city of God, where only the will of God shall always prevail,” she said. The First Lady said she had decided to re-dedicate herself to the service of God, the Nigerian women, youths, children, the less privileged,

the vulnerable, the poor and the disadvantaged. She expressed gratitude to God, her husband, her mother and mother-in-law who were genuinely concerned about her and praying for her recovery. President Jonathan, who spoke at the thanksgiving reception, said that insinuations about the preponderance of mystery deaths at the seat of power were rife during his wife’s illness. He, however, expressed gratitude to God for keeping her alive, saying that “if anything had happened, there would have been different stories from false prophets and many other things would have followed. “We all know we will all die but the best time to die is not when you are serving your nation,” the President said. The Chaplain of the Aso Villa Chapel, Venerable

Obioma Onwuzumba, said that the belief that death usually struck one of the couple that occupied the seat of power in Aso Rock never came to pass in the case of Dame Patience. He noted that through fervent prayers, the enemy that wanted to put fear and obstacles in the way of the Jonathan’s family was put to shame. “We have a great story to tell today, the First Lady is hale and hearty,” Onwuzumba said. Songs and praises were rendered by different gospel artistes and the Aso Rock Villa choir at the reception. The First Lady, President Jonathan and other well wishers danced to the songs. Special presentation of the portrait of the President and the First Lady in joyous mood was later presented by

the Ministers of Land and Urban Development, Ama Pepple and that of Tourism, Edem Duke on behalf of members of the Federal Executive Council, FEC. Present at the reception were former Ghanaian President, John Kuffor; former Head of State, Yakubu Gowon, former First Ladies, Maryam Abacha, Justice Fati Abubakar, and wife of former Vice President, Titi Abubakar. Also present were Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu; Deputy Speaker, Emeka Ihedioha; Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Maryam Aloma Mukhtar; Governors Godwill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom), Olusegun Mimiko (Ondo), Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa), Theodore Orji (Abia) and Emmanual Uduaghan (Delta).

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Monday, February 18, 2013

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FG, Shell, Agip to begin $1bn Ogoniland clean-up UDEME AKPAN

he Federal Government has concluded plans to carry out environmental clean-up of the oil producing Ogoniland in Rivers State this year. The $1 billion clean-up,

scheduled to commence as soon as President Goodluck Jonathan signs the 2013 Appropriation Bill, is to be funded through three sources - NNPC/ SHELL /TEPN/AGIP Joint Venture, refineries and Ecological Fund. A top Ministry of Petroleum Resources official,

who confirmed the development in Lagos over the weekend, said the initial clean-up might be completed within six years to pave way for rehabilitation of oil facilities and eventual oil production. He said: “Under the government approved plan the NNPC/SHELL /

TEPN/AGIP Joint Venture that operated in the area is to contribute 80 per cent of the funds while downstream operators, especially refineries and ecological fund would provide five per cent and 15 per cent respectively.” The official said the project would be executed

Wife of Ogun State Governor, Mrs. Olufunso Amosun (middle), distributing food items to the beneficiaries of the UP Lifting the Needy, Food Outreach programme at Ijebu-Ode Local Government secretariat in Ijebu-Ode, at the weekend.

President seeks AGF’s opinion on delayed 2013 budget TOLA AKINMUTIMI ABUJA

resident Goodluck Jonathan may have directed the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) to furnish him with legal opinion on the provision of the constitution on the application of veto powers as it relates to his failure to sign the 2013 Appropriation Bill into law. The move, according to the Chief Economic Adviser to the President, Dr. Nwanze Okidegbe, is coming as the National Assembly has begun moves to re-open deliberations on

the budget with a view to passing into law without the President’s assent. It was reliably gathered that the President would want the AGF’s opinion on the pending budgetary impasse in order to be properly guided on what he needed to do urgently to resolve it and assent to the passed Appropriation Bill. This is even as the Presidency made clarification over some of the contentious issues in the Budget which has delayed its signing. One of these is the constituency projects injected into the Budget document by the legislators and the reduction in the personnel

estimates submitted by the Executives. Making the disclosure yesterday in Abuja, Okidegbe, said the Executive and Legislative Arms have however reached an understanding on how government operations would continue to function until the resolution of the contentious issues and subsequent signing into Law by the President. He clarified: “I want to start by stressing that President Goodluck Jonathan wants to sign the 2013 Budget as soon as possible if our discussions with the National Assembly lead to a resolution of certain

key issues. Remember that the Executive submitted the Budget to the NASS in October 2012. Nigerians were very happy about this because it was a refreshing difference from the delays we had got used to. We worked very hard to achieve this. So we definitely want budget implementation to begin as soon as possible so that Nigerians can start enjoying the many benefits in the budget . “The NASS returned the budget in December 2012. Upon review by the Executive, some grey areas were identified and needed to be resolved.”

PPP to transform Abuja Commodities Exchange OLUFEMI ADEOSUN ABUJA

takeholders are exploring the possibility of a Public Private Partnership, PPP, as part of strategies to make the Abuja Securities and Commodities Exchange, ASCE, a world-class institution. The stakeholders consist of the Technical Working Group, TWG, set up by the Federal Government to develop a new road map for the revitalisation of the Exchange. The Managing Director, Abuja Securities and Com-

modities Exchange, Mr. Yusuf Abdulraman, disclosed the plan on the sidelines of the election of new executives of the Commodities Brokers Association of Nigeria, CBAN, in Abuja. According to him, members of the TWG include the Minister of Trade and Investment, Mr. Olusegun Aganga, and other key ministers and heads of departments and agencies of the Federal Government such as the Ministers of Finance, National Planning, Communications Technology, Agriculture and Rural Development. Others members are the

Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, DirectorsGeneral of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Bureau for Public Enterprises. The TWG, Abdulraman disclosed, was currently mapping out modalities to revitalise the ASCE to enhance the country’s agricultural value chain. He said: “In order to achieve this, he (the minister) brought in experts from the Ethiopia Commodities Exchange and also sought the support of the World Bank. “They came in and looked

at what we have and then made proposals for which the minister had set up a committee known as the Technical Working Group.” Abdulraman said the TWG, however, agreed that private capital should be on the higher side so that the project could have less of public participation. Speaking after the CBAN election, the newly elected President of the association, Hon. Atine Shehu Kajiji, promised to partner the Federal Government to diversify the country’s economy by enhancing the agricultural value addition.

through the instrumentality of the Hydrocarbon Pollution Restoration Project, HYPREP, established last year to implement the recommendations of the United Nations Environmental Programme, UNEP, report on Ogoniland. He said: “We do not envisage many challenges as HYPREP has already open operational offices in strategic locations, including Port Harcourt to enhance easy and efficient operations.” The report disclosed that during aerial reconnaissance missions, UNEP experts observed oil pollution which was not readily visible from the ground, including artisanal refining sites. It added that information provided by Ogoniland residents about oil contamination in their communities supplemented official oil spill data supplied by the Nigerian Government and SPDC. The report also noted

that UNEP identified 69 sites for detailed soil and groundwater investigations. In addition, samples of community drinking water, sediments from creeks, surface water, rainwater, fish and air were collected throughout Ogoniland and in several neighbouring areas. “Altogether, more than 4,000 samples were analysed, including water drawn from 142 groundwater monitoring wells drilled specifically for the study, and soil extracted from 780 boreholes. “The UNEP project team further examined over 5,000 medical records and staged 264 formal community meetings in Ogoniland attended by over 23,000 people,” the report added. It stated that the samples were collected following internationally accepted sample management procedures and dispatched for analysis to accredited laboratories in Europe.

CBN implements sustainable banking principles JOHNSON OKANLAWON

o preserve ecosystem, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has commenced implementation of the Nigerian Sustainable Banking Principles. The principles are aimed at integrating social and environmental considerations into its operations, policies, processes, procedures and strategies, as well as provision of structural mechanism to support implementation at the industry level. According to the draft on the CBN website entitled, “Implementation of the Nigerian Sustainable Banking Principles by the Bank,” the principles will regularly engage all employees as CBN moves towards being a lowcarbon, resource-efficient and socially-inclusive bank. The CBN said that to provide the needed leadership, the Special Adviser to the CBN Governor on Sustainable Banking, Dr. A’isha Mahmood, was appointed to drive the apex bank’s sustainability process. According to the draft, the sustainable banking consists of nine over-arching principles for managing envi-

ronmental and social risk in business decisions, managing the bank’s own environmental and social footprint and safeguarding human rights. Others are promoting women’s economic participation/empowerment, promoting financial inclusion of communities and groups with limited or no access to the formal financial sector and meeting the imperatives for good governance, transparency and accountability. The draft added that the principles would also support capacity building in the sector, promote collaborative partnerships to accelerate sector progress and report to take stock of sector progress and attendant needs. The CBN had in September last year approved the adoption of sustainable banking principles by banks, discount houses and Development Finance Institutions, DFIs, in the country. It said the approval was in furtherance of the bankers committee’s commitment to deliver positive development impacts to the society while protecting the communities and environments in which financial institutions and their clients operate.

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Monday, February 18, 2013

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Monday, February 18, 2013

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Goldie’s ‘two men’ lay claim to her heart NGOZI EMEDOLIBE

s fans and friends of music artiste, Goldie Harvey, await burial plans for the sultry singer to be unveiled this week, two men who have seemingly been defining the character called Goldie have engaged each other in an outpour of emotions as a way of laying claims to the late singer’s heart. Although, the media had largely associated her with Kenyan musician, Prezzo, whom she met last year dur-

ing the Big Brother Africa reality show, the emergence of an Andrew Harvey, who posted wedding pictures of himself and the singer came as a bout of surprise for stakeholders in the music industry, who hitherto believed she was single. Andrew Harvey had disclosed that he was on the phone with Goldie even after her plane touched down at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, while stressing that the singer spent Christmas with him in Malaysia. According to him, the late singer’s dalliances

with Prezzo were just like ‘life in a movie’, even as he described the Kenyan as someone desperate for attention. “Our private life has nothing to do with work life, there has to be a balance. I was talking to her on arrival in Lagos before the fateful event. Prezzo was part of BBA game, just like in the movies, there was nothing to fear. “It dragged because the media dragged it, otherwise it would have died naturally. Prezzo will say anything to get attention.

People fall in love and it’s not impossible to love more than one person, but there are different levels. She liked him initially, but began to despise him and distanced herself as he tried to use her; she complained he was very manipulative.” On the other hand, Prezzo, after writing a poem where he described the death of the late singer as a proof that ‘God only takes the best’, disclosed that he was on a flight to Lagos from Nairobi on the day she passed on to celebrate Valentine with her.

According to Prezzo, he had a late night dinner date with her which prompted his trip to Lagos that fateful day. “She had already landed in Lagos from the US, where she had attended the Grammy Awards and was waiting for me to have a late Valentine’s dinner. We chatted for a very long time. “In fact, I had to cut her short as my flight was about to take off. However, I found it strange that it was Goldie’s driver who came to pick me up at the airport when

Repent of your sins, Oritsejafor urges criminals JOEL AJAYI ABUJA

Goldie with her husband, Andrew Harvey, in their wedding pictures posted on her husband’s facebook account.

MMA 2: Bi-Courtney secures victory against FAAN •Set to take over GAT KAYODE KETEFE

i-Courtney Aviation Limited, on Friday won a major legal victory which empowers it to take-over of the General Aviation Terminal, GAT, of the Murtala Muhammed Airport domestic terminal, MMA2. A Federal High Court, sitting in Abuja, struck out the suit filed by the Ministry of Aviation and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, over the concession of the terminal. The presiding judge, Justice A. R. Mohammed, described the suit by the ministry and FAAN as an abuse of the process of the court. According to a copy of the judgment made available to National Mirror, the judge held that the issue being claimed by the plaintiffs (Aviation Ministry and FAAN) had already been conclusively determined by Justice Anwuli Chikere, of the Federal

High Court in another suit with number, FHC/ABJ/ CJ/50/2009, decided by the same Federal High Court in Abuja. The court therefore stated that the present suit was not only unnecessary but also constituted a misuse of the judiciary process. Justice Mohammed further held that the pronouncements of his learned brother, Justice Chikere, in the said previous suit instituted by Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited, BASL, were binding on all agencies of the Federal Government. Justice Mohammed, who quoted from Justice Chikere’s judgment to support his findings, held that; “The parties named in Relief 7 are agents/agencies of the Federal Government. They are agents/agencies of a named principal that is the Federal Government. “Any order against the known principal binds the agents/agencies. The agents/agencies stationed

and operating at all airports terminal in Lagos State could not have operated without the support or approval of the Federal Government. “They are therefore restrained, prevented or prohibited from operating scheduled flights in and out of Lagos State from any airport terminal other than MMA2 or an airport terminal owned/operated by the plaintiff during the concession period as stipulated in the agreement. “It was also held by the Court of Appeal that by implication, the Federal Government and its agencies have their interest adequately represented by the AttorneyGeneral of the Federation, being the Chief Law Officer of the Federation.” “It was further held by the Court of Appeal that as an agency of the Federal Government, the 2nd plaintiff’s (FAAN) interest cannot be different from that of the Federal Government.” With this judgment, the coast is now clear for BASL

to take over the General Aviation Terminal, GAT, of the Murtala Muhammed Airport domestic terminal, MMA2.

usually it would be her receiving me. “I entered the house and decided to charge my phone. Then, I went on Twitter, and that was when I started seeing condolence messages coming in. By the time I landed, she was already dead. I think the relatives didn’t know how to break the news to me. It is still hard to believe this, but we leave it all to God.” Meanwhile National Mirror gathered that some close associates of Goldie’s in the music industry would begin work on a commemorative recording by tomorrow.

he President of Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, has called on perpetrators of heinous crimes in the country to seek God’s repentance, urging them “to receive the love of God and change their ways.” He, however, declared that “the full arm of the law would catch up with kidnappers, members of the Boko Haram Islamic sect, armed robbers and looters of public treasury, who refuse to repent among them.” According to him, Christians throughout the country should be their brothers’ keepers in the face of external aggressors, saying God should grant Nigerians the grace to love their neighbours as themselves. A statement issued yesterday in Abuja by his Special

Assistant, Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Kenny Ashaka, said the CAN President said these during his sermon at the Word of Life Bible Church in Warri, Delta State during the just-concluded Valentine Day. According to him, the best place to celebrate love is the house of God, adding that it was a way to touch and affect the lives of the less privileged and downtrodden in the society. Oritsejafor urged everyone to “speak up for the Christians being killed in the northern part of the country and those who are being oppressed elsewhere around the world who have no voice.” His words: “There are vulnerable people all over Warri and in your local communities, protect them and be their voice. There is no better way to celebrate love than in the house of God and with God, who is love Himself.”

This Day in African American History

February 18: On this day in 1688— Germantown Quakers Hold First Formal Protest Against Slavery in English America! The first organized protest against slavery in the Americas was organized in 1688

by four Pennsylvania Quakers from Germantown Meeting under the care of Abington (often called Dublin) Monthly Meeting. Gerret Hendericks, Derick up de Graeff, Francis Daniell Pastorius, and Abraham up den Graef

organized the protest and presented their opposition to slavery and the trafficking of human beings at a Monthly Meeting at Dublin in Philadelphia. In the document the Quakers use the golden rule to argue against such inhumane treatment of their fellow man regardless of the color of their skin, “we shall doe to all men licke as we will be done ourselves; macking no difference of what generation, descent or Colour they are.” Seeing the injustices of the slave trade they courageously took a stand against slavery based on their religious and moral beliefs.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

South-West

Monday, February 18, 2013

Beggars flee, as Lagos begins clampdown MURITALA AYINLA

eggars in Lagos State have adopted new strategies to ply their trade and escape the long arms of the law. This follows the government’s resolve to rid the state of beggars. Governor Babatunde Fashola had, last week, vowed to eradicate begging as an option for idleness or unemployment in the state, saying that the state, through its agencies, would intensify efforts in this re-

gard. To confirm government’s determination to rid the state of beggars, 39 people were arraigned and later remanded in prison for begging in the state. When our correspondent moved round the Lagos metropolis, some of the notable spots where beggars usually stay to collect alms were deserted. Many had to leave their wards to beg for alms on the roads while they went into hiding. Some of the beggars restricted their opera-

10 Ekiti varsity staff, 20 students in exam fraud ABIODUN NEJO ADO EKITI

t least 10 members of staff and 20 students of Ekiti State University, EKSU, have been fingered in examination malpractices in the ongoing Second Semester examination of the institution. The staff, both academic and non-academic, were said to have been involved in procuring fake permit to some students to enable them sit for the examination. A source said yesterday that “the affected staff members were collecting N3,000 from each of the students who have been owing the institution to facilitate fake examination permit cards, otherwise known as Green Cards, for them to be

able to sit for the examinations to the detriment of the institution.” According to the source, the affected staff members were enriching themselves to the detriment of the institution and exposing the students to shady practices. The university’s spokesman, Mr. Olubunmi Ajibade, confirmed that 10 members of staff and 20 students were caught in the fake examination cards fraud. Ajibade told journalists on phone that the affected staff and students would face disciplinary action. He added that members of staff found guilty would be sacked “after they must have faced the relevant panels, while the students involved in the scam would be expelled.”

tion to places of worship to avoid being arrested by the security agents. Meanwhile, mixed reactions have continued to trail government’s decision to rid the state of beggars. Some people, who spoke with National Mir-

ror, hailed the development, while others condemned the clampdown. The latter said the government was treating as kings social miscreants known as Area Boys, or Agberos, who violently extort money from commercial motorists, while

SEGUN KOIKI

he Director-General of Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, Dr. Harold Demuren, has decried the inadequate space for indigenous airlines to construct maintenance hangar at the airports To ensure that aircraft checks are regularly carried out in the country, Demuren urged the management of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, to make land available to the airline operators willing to build hangars and encour-

Demuren

to sensitise the beggars to the need to shun begging. On her part, Mrs. Shade Abisode flayed the government decision. She said the government had no “consideration for the physicallychallenged.”

Transport union’s clash: Court remands four in prison FEMI O YEWESO ABEOKUTA

n Ogun Magistrate’s Court III sitting in Isabo, Abeokuta, has ordered four people held in connection with the transport union’s violent clash in the state capital on Thursday to be remanded in prison custody. The accused, Abiodun

Sotomiwa, Morufu Alao, Adebayo Taiwo and Tosin Sayanolu, were arraigned before Magistrate M. A. Akinyemi on a four-count charge bordering on felony, breach of peace and intimidation. In a suit number MA/99c/13, the prosecution, Inspector Sunday Eigbejiale, told the court that the accused committed an offence punish-

able under sections 516, 81, 84 and 86 of the Criminal Code Law of Ogun State, Cap 29. According to the charge sheet, the accused conspired to commit felony and also engaged in an act likely to cause breach of peace within the Abeokuta metropolis. The police prosecution officer also said that

the accused committed the offences by challenging authorised users of Kuto Motor Park and engaged them in a duel. The accused, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges. The magistrate also reserved ruling on the bail application presented before him by counsel to the accused, T. O. Idris, till February 21.

L-R Senator Oluremi Tinubu; former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu; Mrs. Olubisi Osinbajo, mother of the former Lagos State Attorney-General, Yemi Osinbajo, Governor Babatunde Fashola, and his wife, Abimbola, at Mrs. Osinbajo’s 80th birthday ceremony, at the Cathedral of St. Jude, Ebutte Meta, Lagos, at the weekend.

FAAN must give airlines land for maintenance hangar –Demuren age them to do so. He said yesterday in an interview with journalists in Lagos that to avoid capital flight as a result of scheduled maintenance of aircraft, government must make it a deliberate policy to promote hangar development and

it was maltreating the beggars for soliciting alms. A postgraduate student of the University of Lagos, Abdul Mutallib Abubakar, who hails from Kano State, lauded the development, but urged the government

give airlines a lot of incentives for them to do so. Demuren noted that without adequate maintenance hangar facilities, the industry would still face safety challenges. According to him, overseas, maintenance hangars are seen all over the place. The DG regretted that the opposite was the case in Nigeria where a huge amount of money would be requested before a piece of land could be given to build critical safety facility. He said: “In America, they give land free for you to build maintenance hangar.

This is because it promotes safety. “The airlines should be given land because that is what it is meant for. And not when you want to give them land, you give them small land that they cannot expand. “I am saying this because for the future of Nigeria that is where we should go. “Do you know what happens? In other countries they have beautiful hangars. When the pilots come back at 7:00; 7:30pm, they are worn out. They just carry their bags to go home. They put everything in their techlog.

Amnesty, a boost to Nigeria’s economy –Kuku ABIODUN NEJO ADO EKITI

he Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, Mr. Kingsley Kuku, has said that the Amnesty Programme for Niger Delta former militants had impacted positively on the country’s economy. Kuku, who said the programme had made the South-South region safe for investment, explained that it had as well made the country attractive to foreign investors. He said some companies that relocated from Nigeria during the period of

armed struggle in the Niger Delta had returned courtesy of the new found peace brought by the programme. The special adviser spoke in Ado-Ekiti at the weekend shortly after he was conferred with the Distinguished Alumnus Award by the Alumni Association of Ekiti State University, AdoEkiti. Kuku said amnesty programme had redressed the drastic reduction in oil production occasioned by the vandalism, kidnappings, and other violent crimes which were rife during the armed struggle in the Niger Delta.

South West

Monday, February 18, 2013

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

APC doors open to progressive groups, others –Fayemi ABIODUN NEJO ADO EKITI

kiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi, has said that the All Progressives Congress, APC, will open its doors to other progressive platforms and interest groups outside the political parties in the new merger arrangement. Fayemi, who is the Chairman, APC Contact and Mobilisation Commit-

tee in the South-West, said individuals willing to be part of the new arrangement aimed at rescuing the nation are free to join the new party. In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Olayinka Oyebode, yesterday in Ado Ekiti, Fayemi said; “The APC will extend its mobilisation drive to socio-political groups with progressive bend in the bid to create a robust platform

that will work for the realisation of a better Nigeria.” According to the governor, the APC, a merger of the Action Congress of Nigeria, CAN; the All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP; the Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, and the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, is committed to the birth of a better Nigerian nation. He continued: “The birth of APC at a time Nigerians

earnestly yearn for accountable, responsive and responsible leadership is quite significant,” adding that the party would be fully dedicated to promoting the values of freedom, social justice, equality and solidarity. Fayemi, who said that Nigerians would be mobilised to join the party based on fundamental principles and core values, added that the new party would embrace the principles

of social democracy, with emphasis on the values of collective justice and individual freedom. “Our party will facilitate radical socio-economic and political transformation of the country. Our programme priorities shall be agricultural development, jobs creation, free education, infrastructural development, poverty eradication and rapid technological development.”

Ibadan Dry Port to be completed soon –Commissioner

Ekiti students decry selective bursary awards

yo State Commissioner for Trade, Investment and Cooperatives, Mr. Bayo Olagbenro, has said that the Ibadan Inland Container Depot currently under construction will soon be completed by the Federal Government. Olagbenro, in a statement issued in Ibadan at the weekend, also said that the project, located at Erunmu, in the state capital, has been upgraded from an inland container depot to a dry port to ensure better performance when it eventually takes off. He said work has resumed again at the port, with the putting in place of such facilities as roads, administrative blocks and the construction of stacking area for the goods coming in and going out of the port. While expressing Federal Government’s commitment to the quick completion of the port, the commissioner said he met recently with officials of the Federal Ministry of Transport, adding that they gave their words that efforts were on to put all the necessary facilities in place. Part of these, he said, was the extension of the rail line from Erunmu Railway Station to the port to ensure easy movement of goods to and from the port. Olagbenro also said that a broad-based committee, comprising all stakeholders has been put in place by the Federal Ministry of Transport to fast-track the take off of the project. According to him, the port, when it eventually becomes operational, will boost the economy of the state as it will create a lot of direct and indirect jobs and increase the revenue base of the state.

According to him, the APC manifesto will highlight strategic short, medium and long term programme initiatives to be undertaken by all governments produced by the party. The governor assured that the party would restore the values of federalism and the virtues of internal democracy in the quest to deepen good and democratic governance in the country.

ABIODUN NEJO ADO EKITI

L-R: Speaker, Osun State House of Assembly, Hon. Najeem Salam; Governor Rauf Aregbesola; Deputy Speaker, Hon. Akintunde Adegboye; Acting Chairman, Action Congress of Nigeria, Elder Adebiyi Adelowo; Hon. Mudashiru Hussein, representing Osun West senatorial district and representative of the Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria, Ejigbo branch, Pastor Paul Akinyemi. during the distribution of dividends of democracy tagged: Constituents’ Empowerment Scheme, at Ejigbo Osun State, yesterday.

Polio vaccines: ‘Northern leaders should retract statements’ TOBORE OVUORIE

ollowing the killing of nine health workers in Kano State and the three Korean doctors in Yobe State recently, foremost Virologist, Prof. Oyewale Tomori, has asked the Federal Government to compel traditional rulers and community leaders, who some years ago misinformed the people on the use of polio vaccines, to retract their statements. He said this will go a long way to achieve a poliofree society as people in the northern parts of the coun-

try that had earlier been misled about polio vaccines use, will no longer be suspicious of the drug. Speaking to our reporter at the Nigerian Academy of Science, NAS, the professor of virology went down memory lane, saying that the vaccination problems being encountered today in the north was as a result of the misinformation by traditional rulers years back and may not have to do with those journalists arrested. Last week Monday, four journalists who were alleged to be behind the chaos that led to the killing

of nine health workers in Kano state were arrested. Tomori said Nigeria had been having difficulties eradicating polio because the country has not shown enough commitment, adding that polio is not a science problem but a social one. “My heart bleeds as the polio vaccinators are being killed. Polio is not a scientists’ problem but social. The people who initially spread the negative news ought to be brought back to retract their statement, lest this continues and we might not have a polio-free country if we are not care-

ful about this. “It’s a big shame that our country is still among the last three countries to eradicate polio” he stated. According to the 2012 statistics released by the World Health Organisation, Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan are the only three countries yet to eradicate polio, adding that “they remain polio-endemic, down from more than 125 cases in 1988.” Polio is a highly infectious disease caused by a virus which invades the nervous system and can cause total paralysis in a matter of hours.

Aregbesola off to America to build partnerships ADEOLU ADEYEMO OSOGBO

sun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, would be on a working visit to the United States from today February18 to 25 to build partnerships that will deepen the state’s drive towards

positioning it as a model for pragmatic and sustainable socio-economic development. Director, Bureau of Communications and Strategy, Office of the Governor, Semiu Okanlawon, who made this known in a release in Osogbo yesterday, said during his trip, Governor Are-

gbesola will be speaking at several fora, showcasing the achievements and opportunities in Osun State as an investment destination in the global emerging market of Nigeria. The release added that the governor is scheduled to visit Boston, Pittsburgh, and Washington, DC to rub

minds and establish relationships with prestigious American institutions such as the Harvard University, Carnegie Mellon University, University of Pittsburgh, and Howard University in addition to Africans in the Diaspora in an effort to leverage global resources for Osun.

kiti State students in tertiary institutions have accused the state government of selective implementation of the state’s bursary system. The students said the state government is selective in the payment of their bursary awards. The students, under the auspices of the Federation of Ekiti State Students’ Union, FESSU, said they will not go back on their planned demonstration if the state government refuses to commence the payment of their bursary across the board by Wednesday. The students also gave the state government up till Wednesday to begin the process that would lead to the construction of an ultra-modern library complex for students in the state capital. In a communiqué by FESSU National Coordinator, Abajigin Olalere Victor, made available to journalists in Ado Ekiti, at the weekend, the body said it would no longer tolerate the state government’s overbearing influence in the disbursement of the bursary. FESSU advocated the “payment of bursary to all tertiary students in their institutions at once with a befitting flag off to be conducted by Governor Kayode Fayemi, rather than the alleged ‘kangaroo’ bursary being awarded the students in a selective manner.” In a related development, the National Association of Nigerian Students/Joint Negotiation Committee, NANS/ JCC, Ekiti axis, has elected a new set of executives for the 2013/14 academic session. Addressing journalists after the election at the weekend, the new Chairman, Oluwadare Bewaji, assured that he would champion students’ rights.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Monday, February 18, 2013

Okorocha moves to strengthen APC in South-East CHRIS NJOKU AND DENNIS AGBO

mo State Governor Owelle Rocha Okorocha may have begun moves to strengthen the All Progressive Congress (APC) in the South-East. He has, therefore, vowed to win South-East for the APC, as the state executive council at the weekend backed his decision to join the merger party, describing the move as visionary and timely. But in Anambra State, Governor Peter Obi and his supporters flayed Okorocha’s romance with the APC, saying that the Imo State governor “is bed mating with strange fellow against the interest of the founding fathers of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). Governor Obi, it was learnt, is spearheading a faction of APGA backed by the supporters of the late Ikemba Nnewi, Chief Dim Odimegwu Ojukwu, while Governor Okorocha is leading another faction of the party. However, the executive members yesterday backed Okorocha’s decision to join the APC during a closeeddoor meeting with political appointees and associates. The meeting was held at the Sam Mbakwe Expanded Council Chamber at the Government House in Ow-

Okorocha

erri, the state capital. It was gathered that the governor expressed optimism that APC would provide a formidable platform to enthrone good governance at all level in 2015. A source, who did not want his name mentioned, told National Mirror that Okorocha flayed the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for failing to tackle the nation’s socio-economic challenges in the last 14 years. The media aide to the governor, Mr. Ebere Uzoukwa, who attended the meeting, described it as fruitful and a significant step towards making APC a household name in Imo and South-East. He said: “You know that Governor Okorocha has been in Abuja following his deep involvement in the formation of the first ever mega party comprising the four leading opposition parties.

“As a leader, the governor deemed it necessary to brief members of the state expanded executive and other political associates on his participation and the level of progress so far made in building a very strong platform that will wrest power from PDP in 2015.” On the crisis rocking APGA in respect to the merger, Uzoukwa said: “The real APGA people otherwise known as APGA-APGA are part of the merger while the APGAPDP, led by the Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, will join later. We really understand his predicament and as an appointee of President Goodluck Jonathan, you do not expect him to declare open support to whatever move that is targeted at sacking the PDP.” The governor’s media aide added that Governor Okorocha had begun moves to strengthening the APC for victory ahead of future elections in the South-East. He said: “As I am speaking with you, Governor Okorocha, who no doubt is a beautiful bride in the merger, considering his popularity in the North and West and the massive support he has continued to enjoy in the South-East, has started consultations with other leaders and progressives from the zone.

Kidnappers abandon toddler to evade arrest CHRIS NJOKU OWERRI

embers of Asinobi family in Owerri, the Imo State capital, are celebrating the release of their two-years-old boy, Kasiyochukwu Chibuike Asinobi, who was abducted in his father’s bedroom while asleep. The celebration began the moment kidnappers released the boy to evade arrest by the police. The incident, which took place last Tuesday at the

Uratta Housing Estate in Owerri, turned out in favour of the family as the abductors abandoned the victim in the early hours of Saturday besides his father’s house. The police spokesman, Vitalis Onugu, said that the kidnappers had no option than to abandon the baby as the anti-kidnapping squad was closely monitoring them. Onugu said the suspected kidnappers, who had earlier demanded N4 million ransom from the victim’s father, Mr. Ifeanyi

Asinobi, abandoned him when it became clear that the police were already closing in on them. He said: “When the case was reported, we immediately sent a crack team of anti-kidnapping squad to the area to ensure that the suspected kidnappers did not escape. “It was the massive presence of policemen at the Estate that forced the suspected kidnappers to quickly abandon the child near his father’s house after two days.”

South-East

South South

Monday, February 18, 2013

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

We’ll sue FG to exhume Adaka Boro’s remains –Activist EMMA GBEMUDU YENAGOA

jaw leaders in the Niger Delta may take the Federal Government to court to get an order to exhume the remains of late revolutionist, Major Isaac Adaka Boro. The Ijaw ethnic stock wants a befitting burial for Boro in his community, Kaiama in Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.

An Ijaw activist who is the state Chairman of the Civil Liberties Organisation, CLO, Chief Nengi James, said in an interview with our correspondent in Yenagoa yesterday that this was coming 44 years after Boro was killed in controversial circumstances during the civil war and reportedly buried in a grave in Lagos. James, who is also contesting for the post of the Vice-President of the Ijaw

National Congress, INC, during the February 22 poll, said if voted into office, he would influence Ijaw leaders in the INC to sue the Federal Government, compelling it to exhume Boro’s corpse. The CLO chairman said Boro deserved a proper burial, including a hall of fame and others in his community. He said: “We are ready to sue the Federal Government in a competent court

of law and demand for an order directing the government to exhume the corpse of Adaka Boro. “We need to bring back home his remains and give him a proper burial in a home to be built. These are part of the issues I am pushing for if elected into the INC. “We need to ensure that prominent sons and daughters of the Ijaw nation contribute to such building and not play lip service to the

memory of Adaka Boro.” James tasked political office holders to support the Ijaw leaders in their renewed effort to accord the late hero a befitting burial and residence. The activist advised state governors in the Niger Delta not allow themselves to be used to scuttle a free and fair INC poll for the Ijaw nation. He said: “It is a traditional issue and we believe it will always attract some sort of political influence.

These governors don’t influence us, but we go to them. It always end up that he who plays the piper dictates the tune. “If those involved did not approach the governors, they will not intervene. But I will plead with the governors not to accede to the request of those seeking their support. They should be asked to campaign and convince the delegates of their sincerity and programmes.”

Governors’ Forum represents the masses, says Amaechi

L-R: Father of the groom and Chief of Staff to the President, Chief Mike Oghiadomhe; Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; and his Edo State counterpart, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, at the introduction ceremony for Oghiadomhe’s son, Omo and Omobolade Okeya in Emure-Ekiti, at the weekend.

Help us, Edo flood victims cry out

ictims of the recently flood disaster in Etsako Central Local Government Area of Edo State have appealed for help from government and other well-meaning Nigerians. The flood, which occurred five months ago, left most of the victims homeless and hungry. Investigation showed that most of the victims now squat with relatives and friends while some returned to manage in their ruined buildings and in tents. Some of the victims, who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, appealed for assistance from government and the wealthy in the society to come to their aid. They complained that they no longer have homes to lay their heads, adding that with the current economic hardship, “we now live from hand to mouth”. The victims said none of the promises made by the Federal Government and the state government had been fulfilled. Though they admitted

that they had received some measure of relief materials from governments, individuals and corporate organisations such as food stuff, the situation, they said was still very challenging because they lost virtually everything. A community leader in Ofukpo-Ekperi, Mr. Saliu Rufai, said they were yet to hear from the government as regards the assistant to help rebuild their houses. Another community leader, Mr. Joseph Oshigbele of Osomeigbe, said that government only came to take statistics of the houses destroyed by the flood. According to the community leaders, the hardship inflicted by the flood can only be understood better by anyone who visits the community to see things for himself. Rufai said: “As I speak with you, most of us are just struggling to resuscitate our farmland which was destroyed. “We have had to travel as far as Uromi in Esan North East Local Government

Area of the state to get farm inputs like cassava stems. “This is part of what the government promised us and we are yet to get any of it. “This is planting season for yam and by May, we will be planting rice and we have not got any of these farm inputs from the government as promised.” Oshigbele said the people were worried with this development and called on the

government to, as a matter of urgency, look into the promises made to the people. He said: “All we have got is the team which came to evaluate our damaged houses and also the fumigation carried out immediately the flood receded. “Aside this, my people are expecting soft loans to enable them get fully back to their occupation, which is farming.”

overnor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State has said that the interest of the people was the paramount focus of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, NGF. Amaechi said this on Saturday in Port Harcourt at a stakeholders’ meeting held as part of the National Good Governance Tour of Rivers State. According to him, actions taken by the forum are in the interest of the Nigerian masses. He said: “The governors are people-oriented. The governors defend the interest of the masses and will continue to stand by the people. “No matter how much they (detractors) sponsor articles in the newspapers we do not listen. “We can only listen if these things are coming from the people. The moment we hear the people’s voice, the governors will listen.’’ Amaechi said a peer review mechanism had been set up by the forum. “We are going to Anambra and Ekiti states very soon because they are

ready and we have a committee chaired by Justice Mohammed Uwais that will first do all the necessary work before the governors will go there. “There are governors who do not receive as much as we receive. There are governors who do not receive enough to pay salaries,’’ he added. The governor said his administration had built schools and hospitals in various communities in the state. He said one of the hospitals, the Kelsey Harrison Specialist Hospital for mother and child, was free for people of Rivers State and Nigerians resident in the state. Amaechi urged the Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, to persuade the Federal Government to refund the money the state spent in repairing and constructing some federal roads in the state. He also said that security had been restored in the state, and urged investors to come to the state as government would assist them to settle down.

Bayelsa education college, teachers’ institute take-off May –Dickson EMMA GBEMUDU YENAGOA

overnor Seriake Dickson has promised that the Bayelsa State College of Education and the Teachers Training Institute would begin academic activities in May. Both institutions are located in Sagbama and Bolou-Orua in Sagbama Local Government Area of the state. Dickson gave the assurance when he paid an unscheduled visit to the sites

of two institutions at the weekend to ascertain the level of work done on ongoing projects. The governor relocated the College of Education from Okpoama in Brass Local Government to Sagbama owing to lack of access road to the institution. At the Teachers Training Institute, Dickson directed the Commissioner for Education, Salo Adikumo, to speedily renovate another six-classroom block at the Community Secondary School, Bolou-

Orua, where the facility is sited to provide additional classrooms for the institute. The governor directed the commissioner to liaise with his Lands and Survey counterpart to acquire more land near the school to enable government build hostel blocks, refectory, recreational facilities and residential accommodation for Canadian and other qualified indigenous lecturers. Addressing the chiefs and people of Bolou-Orua, Dickson said his adminis-

tration gave teachers’ education a priority, stressing that its ambition was to provide quality education, which might not be actualised in the absence of competent teaching staff. He said: “I commend you people for your abiding support right from my days in the House of Representatives to date and for cooperating with the contractors. “Government has not received any adverse reports since the commencement of the projects in the community.”

Monday, February 18, 2013

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Politics

$67bn reserves: Ezekwesili’s challenge and public accountability

ACN decries Presidency’s lamentation over Yoruba marginalisation SINA FADARE

he Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has berated the Presidency for blaming the opposition over the marginalisation of Yoruba in the Goodluck Jonathan administration. The party in a statement made available to National Mirror yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed, insisted that the party cannot subscribe to the charade and phoney zoning formula of the PDP. Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Doyin Okupe had

on Thursday said that the “Yoruba people in the ACN conspired against the Yoruba to scuttle the election of a Yoruba as House Speaker.” But ACN argued that: ‘’If the PDP had indeed wanted a Yoruba as Speaker, the party should either have won enough seats in the South-West or used its majority in the House to push through its anointed candidate. Failure to ensure the election of its candidate is a reflection of the insincerity of the PDP about the zoning of the post to Yoruba and the gross indiscipline in the party.” ACN explained that the last option open to the PDP

would have been to support any other Yoruba for the post across party lines, adding that “we the ACN have very capable members in the House to serve as Speaker. But the truth is that the ruling party wants a PDP member, not a Yoruba, for the post.” “We are not surprised that the PDP easily acquiesced to the defeat of its Yoruba candidate for the post of Speaker of the House.

The PDP zoning formula is pivoted on convenience rather than principle. After all, the zoning was easily jettisoned to pave the way for Jonathan to contest as President,” it noted. The party argues that even if the PDP had not succeeded in giving the post of House Speaker to Yoruba in accordance with its so-called zoning formula, it could have rewarded them with known choice

ministries or other top appointments, instead of totally relegating a whole people into irrelevance in its scheme of things. The party therefore slammed the PDP for playing the ethnic card and crying wolf where there is none. “We are a national party and our spread attests to it. We have shown by supporting the election of Aminu Tambuwal as Speaker of the House that our agenda

is not sectional but national, and we have no apologies to offer for that. “Let the PDP continue to wallow in insufferable arrogance and disdain for the electorate, by sharing posts before elections are concluded. It is like sharing the parts of an animal that has yet to be killed. This is the stuff of which the PDP is made, and that is why it is crumbling now like a pack of cards,” Mohammed said.

Fashola’s 89% budget performance bogus, says PDP OLAJIDE OMOJOLOMOJU

he Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described the claims by the Babatunde Fashola-led Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) government that it achieved 89 per cent budget performance in 2012 as bogus and unfounded. The party described the claims as “deceitful, fraudulent and deliberately meant to fake performance.” The PDP said this in reaction to the ongoing project tour of the governor aimed at justifying the 89 per cent performance of the 2012 budget claims, asserting that the tour is a charade while the budget success claim only exposes the desperation of the ACN government to force mediocrity into governance in Lagos. The party in a statement by its publicity secretary, Taofeek Gani, said: “We are indeed not comfortable with the ACN running a propagandist government in Lagos, especially as Lagos is fast moving away from the ‘Centre of Excellence’ toga to becoming ‘Centre of Mediocrity’. Imagine the ongoing charade being referred to as

project tour and the claim that this administration attained 89 per cent budget success in 2012.” The party said that it was particularly surprised that Governor Fashola can boldly lay claim to such bogus success when his government has continuously plunged the state into local and foreign debts of well over N900 billion, despite that the state now realises over N40 billion naira monthly as Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and has collected over N16 trillion from the Federal Government since 1999. The PDP said that budget performance under former Governor Bola Tinubu and Fashola has never exceeded 45 per cent.

L-R: Senator Alkali Jajere; Deputy Governor of Yobe State, Abubakar Ali and Senator Ahmad Lawal, during a stakeholders’ meeting of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) to affirm the party’s merger in the All Peoples Congress (APC) in Damaturu, yesterday.

Jonathan won 2011 election without ACN’s input – PDP OBIORA IFOH ABUJA

he South-West Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said that there is no truth in the insinuations that the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) struck a deal with President Goodluck Jonathan to win the region in the 2011 presidential election.

This was part of the resolutions reached at the end of the meeting of the leaders of the South-West PDP convened by the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT) in collaboration with the zonal leadership of the party in Abuja at the weekend. In a communiqué signed by Shuaib Oyedokun and Olabode George, the South-West PDP said

2015: Drop your deputy, Biu youths tell Shettima FELIX NWANERI

orno State Governor Kashim Shettima has been asked to drop his deputy, Zannah Mustapha, if he is to gain the support of the people of Southern Borno in his second term bid. The Biu Progressive Youths Forum (BPYF) made the declaration at the weekend in Abuja after an emergency meeting,

during which it accused the deputy governor of mortgaging the fortunes of Biu people through unnecessary fraternity with the former governor of the state, Modu Sheriiff. The group said that Mustapha’s romance with the former governor “amounts to double loyalty, sabotage, lack of home support, naivety and unwillingness to key into Shettima’s vision to transform the state – a move which could backfire and further

cripple the area’s fortunes.” Alleging that the former governor marginalised Biu during his eight-year rule in the state, the chairman and secretary of BPYF, Usman Ibrahim and Dibal Isyaku, said they are not comfortable with Shettima contesting the 2015 election with Mustapha as his running mate, as his closeness to Sheriff is capable of making the area rejecting the new All Progressives Congress (APC).

the ACN’s contraption into the 2011 presidential election needed to be explained as it was fallacy. “It was considered imperative that the false and misleading notion that the ACN helped to secure President Jonathan’s 2011 victory in the South-West should once and for all be discountenanced and dismissed outright,” the communiqué read in part. The South-West PDP also resolved that litigations involving the party in the South-West require political solutions, saying: “The meeting expressed deep concern at the marginalisation of the zone in national affairs and leadership position despite being the first zone to adopt President Jonathan and urged for a meeting with the president on how to redeem this deplorable situation.” In its response, the ACN said it never claimed to

have directed its members in the South-West to vote for Jonathan in the 2011 poll. “There was no official instruction directing our members to vote for Jonathan in the 2011 election. Don’t forget that the presidential election was fought on ethnicity and religious sentiments. The election was massively rigged for the PDP,” ACN National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed, told National Mirror yesterday. He said the PDP statement has vindicated the opposition party that it didn’t take money from Jonathan to vote for him. “What they are saying is just to show that they are still relevant in the politics of South-West at a time their party is in crisis. But why is it taking them two years to come out and say we didn’t help them. It shows that they are insincere. Their position has vindicated us,” Mohammed said.

Politics

Monday, February 18, 2013

$67bn reserves: Ezekwesili’s challenge and public accountability INSTEAD OF JOINING

Nigerians would have preferred more than a mere denial of the weighty allegations levelled against the Goodluck Jonathan administration and its predecessor over misappropriation of the nation’s reserves, writes FELIX NWANERI.

ISSUES WITH THE

FORMER MINISTER... THE

ADMINISTRATION HAS DECIDED TO DIVERT THE ATTENTION

igerians are still at loss over what would have forced the Federal Government to decline the challenge to a public debate by the former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili on the $67 billion (N10.72 trillion) reserves allegedly misspent by the present administration and its predecessor. The former Minister of Education had accused the late Umaru Yar’Adua and current Goodluck Jonathan governments of squandering $45 billion in the foreign reserve and $22 billion in Excess Crude account, respectively, while delivering the recent convocation lecture of the University of Nigeria (UNN), Nsukka. She had said: “Six years after the administration I served handed over such humongous national wealth to another one, most Nigerians, especially the poor continue to suffer the effects of failing public health and education systems as well as decrepit infrastructure and battered institutions.” The Federal Government’s initial reaction to the allegation was to dismiss the claim, saying it was outlandish. Minister of Information, Labaran Maku, who declared the government’s position, said the statement betrays understanding of government’s finances considering the high positions Ezekwesili once held in Nigeria and at the World Bank. Maku told reporters that the statement by the former World Bank vice-president that the governments of late Yar’ Adua and Jonathan squandered $67 billion in reserves left by the Olusegun Obasanjo administration at the end of May 2007, was factually incorrect. He said after the administration of Obasanjo, the reserves rose from $43.13 billion in May 2007 to $62 billion in September 2008, but when oil prices fell from $147 per barrel to $31. 7 in September 2011 against the backdrop of the global financial crisis, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had to intervene to defend the value of the naira. Maku added that the excess crude savings, a component of the reserves, was then used to stimulate the economy to the tune of about $1 billion and that Nigeria had no need for foreign assistance in combating the meltdown, insisting that it was fallacious to say that the government dipped its hands into the foreign reserves as the government could not do that. An undeterred Ezekwesili, however, said Maku’s utterances “failed to respond responsibly” to her demand for accountability. She reiterated the authenticity of her claim and even went further by challenging the Presidency to a public debate

JONATHAN

NIGERIANS BY

RESORTING TO CHEAP BLACKMAIL AND VULGAR ABUSE

Ezekwesili

to put the records straight. She said: “I remain resolute in demanding full disclosure and accountability by the Federal Government on the issues of poor management of oil revenues -especially the Excess Crude Account and the Foreign Reserve Account. “The recent reaction by the spokesperson of the administration failed to respond responsibly to my demand for accountability. In my Convocation Lecture at the University of Nigeria, I had stated concerning the poor management of oil revenues as follows: “While most countries moved up the manufacturing and economic development ladder in my 50 years of existence, all I can say for Nigeria is that during the same period, I have known at least five cycles of commodity booms that offered us rare opportunities to use revenues generated from oil to transform our economy. Sadly, each cycle ended up sliding us farther down the productivity ladder. “The wealth and poverty of a nation never found a better symbol. I have already asked the Federal Government to a public debate of the facts raised in my speech. Such an open debate of facts and figures of oil revenue since 2007 would help situate public accountability as the centre point of our democracy. “In accepting to publicly debate the questions raised in my speech, the Federal Government would model the democratic culture of responding to citizens’ demands for accountability, especially at a time when the general public is eager for improvements in the good governance records of the administration.” The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Doyin Okupe, who responded this time, not only accused the former minister of grandstanding, but added that her call for a debate was purely a distractive tactics to cover the lies which she threw up. Okupe said Obasanjo only left $43.1 billion in the external reserves in 2007, contrary to the figures Ezekwesili churned out and that it was factually incorrect to

say that the reserves of the government were dipped into or misapplied, as the present external reserve under Jonathan was more than what Obasanjo left. According to him, within seven months late President Yar’Adua and Jonathan took over from Obasanjo, the external reserves rose to $51.3 billion. He further explained that as at 2008, the external reserve was $53 billion, $42.3 billion (2009), $32.3 billion (2010), $32.6 billion (2011), $43.8 billion (2012) and $45.3 billion (January 2013). He added that it is the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that has control over external reserve and not the Federal Government. He therefore averred: “It is obviously preposterous for Ezekwesili to be asking for a national debate on the outlandish and reckless disinformation she made to incite the Nigerian people against the government. This is a deliberately calculated, albeit, unsuccessful effort to bring the Jonathan administration into disrepute unjustifiably. “I regret to say that Ezekwesili should show dignity and character by letting the Nigerian people, whom she sort out to fool, know the source of her figures otherwise, she should be honourable enough to retract her statement and apologise to the government and people of Nigeria. Else, she should be regarded by all as a wilfully perjured individual not worthy of any respect or recognition whatsoever.” Logical as Okupe’s argument sounded, most analysts are of the view that nothing short of such response would have been expected from him in the first place, given his recent vituperations on critics of the Jonathan administration. They insist that the Presidency’s decline to confront Ezekwesili on a debate was a missed opportunity; especially for a government that has persistently claimed that transparency and zero tolerance for corruption are the hallmarks of it transformation agenda. What is the correlation between transformation and a public debate? Some may ask. A one-time gubernatorial candidate in Lagos State, Jimi Agbaje, had at the recent inaugural lecture of the January 9 Collective (J9C), insisted that transformational leadership creates an opportunity for those following to demand accountability from their leaders.

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Little wonder that human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), who threw his weight behind the Ezekwesili’s challenge, while reacting on the issue, said: “For goodness sake, let the Federal Government take up Ezekwesili’s timely and patriotic challenge, but the debate should not be limited to the withdrawal of US$67 billion from the Federation Account. It should be a debate on the reckless diversion of huge public funds and the gross mismanagement of the Nigerian economy since 1999.” Falana added that the government’s attempt to “divert attention” by accusing Ezekwesili of gross incompetence during her tenure as Education Minister may be an “unconscious” admission of guilt. His words: “Instead of joining issues with the former minister over the serious allegation of gross economic and financial crime, the Jonathan administration has decided to divert the attention of Nigerians by resorting to cheap blackmail and vulgar abuse.” He also stated that the government was convinced it would lose in the debate, hence its decision to turn the offer down. “It is a shame that the Federal Government has rejected a golden opportunity to call the bluff of the arrogant officials of the Obasanjo regime who are trying to hoodwink Nigerians to accept that the Nigerian neo-colonial economy was better managed when they were in power,” he said. Minister of Aviation in the Obasanjo administration, Femi Fani-Kayode, who dismissed fears of politics over the issue raised by Ezekwesili, said it was a pity that the Jonathan administration declined to take up the challenge for a public debate. His words: “I do not think that our government ought to have run away from the debating ring. They ought to have accepted the challenge of a rigorous public debate and allow the Nigerian people to listen to it and make up their own minds about who was right and who was wrong.” Blaming the fiscal indiscipline of the Yar’Adua and Jonathan administrations for the depletion of the nation’s foreign reserves, Fani-Kayode said that rather than resort to insults, intimidation, sponsored stories, persecution and baseless allegations against Ezekwesili and her like, the Federal Government should change its ways and display a greater degree of fiscal discipline and accountability to the Nigerian people. Interestingly, the brickbats by the opposing camps have prompted the House of Representatives to wade into the matter with the mandate on its Committees of Finance and Appropriations to investigate the allegation and report back within six weeks. The House resolution to probe the matter was sequel to a motion sponsored by Umar Bature, who informed his colleagues that there was need to investigate the former minister’s allegations “because of her World Bank experience and as Special Adviser to the President on Public Procurement as well as a two-time minister.” While Nigerians anxiously await the outcome of the House probe, there is a consensus that the issue should not end up as another case of crucifying the messenger while ignoring the message. The Federal Government should come up with a more convincing defence, if the citizenry is to take its accountability posture, serious.

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Views

Monday, February 18, 2013

That APC might not be a joke THE FISCAL HeartBeat

CALLISTUS

RELATIONSHIP AMONG THE TIERS OF GOVERNMENT WOULD

OKE

BE A DOMINANT

Callistusoke@nationalmirroronline.net 08054103275 (SMS ONLY)

FACTOR ON HOW

ince my last piece on the emergence of the All Progressive Congress (APC) titled Excitement, limitations of APC, a number of articles have followed to strengthen my conviction that the momentous realignment of political forces, which culminated in the birth of APC, might offer Nigeria the best possible opportunity for a leap forward in all indices of development. I am using might cautiously because there exists the remote possibility our new found hope could be unmet. Already, there have been cautionary tips here and there about a likely misplaced hope. The PDP national chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur heightened the déjà vu feelings spawned by these cautionary tips when he made apocalyptic prediction of our expectation giving way to frustration in the days ahead. “Don’t worry, this is not the first time Nigerians would hear about merger. Let elections come and everyone will see the problems within them. They will be torn to rags because of ambitions”. That was his prediction. We know he cannot be counted upon to

ith the commencement of the processes to mark the celebration of Nigeria’s 100 years of togetherness, Nigerians ought to be singing the song of arrival and victory. But rather than clanging cymbals and popping champagne, we should bury ourselves in self pity for not using our limitless potentials and possibilities to construct a true nation united in its diversity. We have been on this tortuous trajectory, not because we do not possess the wherewithal to advance, but because we lack the courage to begin from the numerous starting points of national construction. The problem with Nigeria is that we are too blessed to know the biggest blessing to leverage on! Confronted with so many options, we seem to be in the greatest dilemma of deciding the most cost effective and fastest means of reaching our promised land. We have been too busy at the national terminus of development fighting among ourselves on which of the routes does not have sharp bends and creaky joints and which of the trains have air conditioned coaches to travel in luxury to the extent that we all seem to be dragging the steering with the captain. The crises of nation building are not peculiar to Nigeria. Leadership, integration, participation, representation, resource distribution and allocation are issues that every diverse society has to contend with. It is in the management of these crises that we shortchange ourselves as sectional

FAR THEY COULD GO IN MEETING THE EXPECTATIONS OF OUR PEOPLE pray for APC success. But… Will ambition derail the lofty ideals of APC? I thought ambition ought to be subsumed under altruism. Could the altruism behind APC be a huge joke and only a smokescreen by those who covet political power? I am confused. The APCers told us they were on a rescue mission to save Nigeria. Could their messianic mission have been covertly driven by certain hidden agenda? Where do we stand? Assuming altruism is their overriding drive for APC, can we trust the state, oh the PDP, to sit idly for the APC forces to submerge it? Is INEC enlistable in any conspiracy to frustrate the APCers like was the case in the Second Republic? Our sad Second Republic experience should be a guide to the leaders of the new project. Recall that the governors of the

states controlled by Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN); Alhaji Ibrahim Waziri’s Great Nigeria People’s Party (GNPP); Mallam Aminu Kano’s Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) and Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe’s Nigeria People’s Party (NPP) caused the Progressive Parties Alliance (PPA) to be formed as part of the strategic move of the progressives to dethrone the ruling National Party of Nigeria in the 1983 general elections. Like the situation today, the leaders of these parties recognized that only in unity could NPN be upstaged. To actualize the objective, a move was made to transform PPA into Progressive Peoples Party (PPP). Though opposed by Mallam Aminu Kano, it was the Federal Electoral Commission (FEDECO) headed by Justice Victor Ovie Whisky that frustrated the move: the PPP was not registered! God forbid if there is a repeat performance 30 years after. Anyway let us subsume our worries under the more engaging push for the concretization of the APC persona. Cheeringly, a Progressive Governors’ Alliance (PGA), a coalition of governors of APC member states, has been forged. Like the PPA, it would be a forum for “co-operation and regular consultations” among the governors. No time to waste. The other good news is the unveiling of the manifesto of APC. Governor Tanko Almakura of Nasarawa State had the honour to do this last week. The well loaded manifesto is built round nine items: agricultural development, job creation, free education, affordable healthcare, infrastructural de-

velopment, adequate power supply, eradication of poverty and corruption and rapid technological advancement and industrialization. They are also promising to build an egalitarian society “based on the values of justice for all and individual freedom where everyone’s basic needs are fulfilled.” If I am permitted to some make few observations, I would say Nigerians would like to know the ideological label of the ‘new party’. I can detect some trappings of socialism. Or is it an amalgam of capitalism and socialism? It might be a good mix given the admixture of free marketers and populist theoreticians in the party’s top echelon. Nigerians, I dare say, should also like to see the content of the strategic enforcement framework for this well loaded agenda. The new politics are not going to be just about vague programmes and policies; there must be something on the funding aspect of the projects. And finally, whatever is said on manifesto and funding must be within the context of the awaited constitutional architecture. The fiscal relationship among the tiers of government would be a dominant factor on how far they could go in meeting the expectations of our people. Currently we have a system with an over bloated and inefficient federal government expropriating the bulk of our funds, while the states and LGAs remain mere appendages. The FG with so much money has had its creativity dulled; and some of the creative states are steeped in economic immobilism for lack of funds.

Nigeria: On the eve of our centenary vested interests take precedence over the collective national interest. What to do in our various ethnic cocoons and tribal camps that we have holed ourselves in since independence is to lower our garb of pride, remove the stained and dirty lenses with which we view one another from the distance and travel from our various primordial posts towards that national confluence and have the warm and affectionate handshake across the rivers Niger and Benue rather than posting fake letters and emails without the attachments of love and understanding. I believe the best options we have are not anything close to dissolution and disintegration as many disappointed patriots would prefer. They are not what marginalized and aggrieved Nigerians should contemplate, even though these seem the easiest way to meet their demands. In the final analysis, if we take the road to the Balkans, we will soon come to the table of negotiating reunification. The challenge we really have in Nigeria is the lack of will and weakness of structures and institutions required to build a strong nation. In our tribal confusion and ethnic viral infections, we acquired certain national immunity deficiency syndromes. In this scenario, what kills the nation is not the disease, but the arising depression from the stigma associated with the disease. But it is better to admit we have this natural and national virus and take the necessary cocktail of drugs, in addition to

THE CHALLENGE WE REALLY HAVE IN

NIGERIA IS

THE LACK OF WILL AND WEAKNESS OF STRUCTURES AND INSTITUTIONS REQUIRED TO BUILD A STRONG NATION following the strict dietary regime and have a new outlook to life, if we must live happily with our malaise. This is a national strategic management challenge, managing our diversity, our opportunities and our strengths while remaining conscious of our internal weaknesses and national threats. I have in earlier articles isolated a number of factors responsible for our national crises. Drawing from our colonial experience, one can say there was no sincere attempt by the departing colonial masters to nurture a true nation from the diverse and complex peoples aggregated into Nigeria. From the dawn of independence therefore, there is what I refer to as structural disaggregation or misalignment in the new nation, which gave room for uneven and unequal development. It is to be noted that the colonial government ran Nigeria with policy differentials and variation suitable to their own economic

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interests. So, before Nigeria attained political independence from Britain in October 1960, Nigeria had been a victim of policy inconsistency. The fallout of this misnomer is that the constituents of the new nation had begun to nurture animosity towards one another. In any case, our resolve for independence was not uniform, which explains why southern Nigeria attained self government earlier than the north. It is therefore, not surprising that on the eve of independence, Nigeria was birthed on a keg of gun powder waiting to explode. In less than two years of nationhood, the West was on the boil. Operation wetie was in the air. The Action Group, the mainstream political party in the Western Region, despite its famed cohesiveness and a coherent ideology, was penetrated and compromised. Chief Obafemi Awolowo, its leader lost in the political game, tried for treasonable felony, and jailed. Marooned in the Ita Oko Island, Awo had an uncommon bitter experience for true nationalists and resilient freedom fighters.

Editorial

Monday, February 18, 2013

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All the Facts, All the Sides All the Facts, All the Sides

A PUBLICATION OF GLOBAL MEDIA MIRROR LTD A PUBLICATION OF GLOBAL MEDIA MIRROR LTD BARRISTER JIMOH IBRAHIM, OFR PUBLISHER BARRISTER JIMOH IBRAHIM, OFR PUBLISHER

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Death of health workers in the North

ince 2009 when the militant Islamic sect, Boko Haram, forced itself on the consciousness of Nigerians, it has been killing spree of unimaginable proportions across the northern part of the country with over 3, 000 people killed at the last count and billions of naira worth of property destroyed. Events of the past few months have revealed a new trend in the terror war: the proclivity of the terrorists to move against soft targets. We reason within the context of the death of nine female health workers in Kano State on February 8 and the slaughter of three North Korean doctors in Yobe State two days later. The nine female health workers were on a routine polio immunisation exercise at Filin Kashu and Shargalle Health Centre, in Hayen Hotoro, in Kano metropolis when they were gunned down. Two of them were killed in Filin Kashu, and the other seven at Shargalle Health Centre. And for the Yobe State saga which occurred in Potiskum, one of the victims was beheaded, the other two had their throats slit. Characteristically, the two developments were greeted with anger and consternation throughout the world. For Islamic scholar, Sheik Ahmad Gumi, the killings were “sad,

THE CURRENT RELAPSE INTO COLLECTIVE AMNESIA HAS PROVED VERY COSTLY, SO ALL

FUTURE EXERCISES OF POLIO IMMUNIZATION MUST HAVE STRONG SECURITY BACKING abominable, barbaric and evil”, while a shocked United Nations’ Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon lamentably saw it as “unacceptable’’. The Federal Government, Northern States Governors Forum, Nigerian Medical Association, and indeed all Nigerians, condemned the invidious acts in very strong words. The killings might be reprehensible in every ramification, yet they offer the opportunity to evaluate the nation’s drive to arrest the pervasive insecurity in parts of the North; they equally expose the quality of thinking that goes into our various decision making processes; and most profoundly is the fact that the attacks would likely set the nation back in its push to eradicate polio. We should also add that the unwillingness by medical personnel to now take up jobs in some of the northern states will

be a victory for the militants. The Kano 9 is an unfortunate portrayal of the persisting misconceptions about polio vaccination in the North. We recall that in 2003 some Muslim leaders in the region halted the immunization exercise saying the vaccines were “corrupted and tainted by evildoers from America and their western allies”. That the opposition to immunization is still very strong shows how little has gone into reorienting the people into embracing it. To change this misconception, northern leaders must mobilize all critical elements in the region to embark on aggressive sensitization programme that would erase all known inhibitions to and fears of immunization. The current relapse into collective amnesia has proved very costly, so all future exercises of polio immunization must have strong security backing. No amount of monetary compensation can assuage the pains and traumas of death, especially of the nature now confronting us. Though we commend the Federal and Kano State governments, Aliko Dangote, Bill and Melinda Gate Foundations and other individuals and groups for demonstrated empathies to the families of the victims, such dollops and goodwill would have been unnecessary if the killings were prevented through appro-

priate security provisioning. We should not give in to terrorism, so the killings must not detract from our collective efforts to eradicate polio disease in the country. With 121 out of the 222 global cases of polio known, and sharing the dishonour of the only three countries left with serious polio afflictions with Pakistan and Afghanistan, nothing must stop the current drive to get out of this tainted club. It is imperative therefore, to design a new strategic enforcement framework with serious emphasis on security for the war against opposition to immunization and other measures to up our healthcare delivery system. The death of the three North Korean doctors, for example, would have been avoided if adequate security safeguards were put in place and implemented. It is a known fact that terrorists strike in times of security lax. We wish to restate it for the umpteenth time, the country is grossly under policed. This is why crime detection and prevention have become very problematic. The present centralized policing system has proved inadequate in meeting our security needs. There is therefore, the compelling need to have a rethink on the nation’s policing template. The American system where the different tiers of government are assigned specifics roles recommends itself.

ON THIS DAY February 18, 2010 The U.N.’s nuclear watchdog, International Atomic Energy Agency, raised concerns that Iran might be developing a nuclear warhead. Its new director general, Yukiya Amano, suggested that Iran might be constructing a weapon. The latest report of I.A.E.A. board also confirmed that Iran had succeeded in producing 20 percent enriched uranium, making it closer to weapons grade.

February 18, 1965 About 500 people march in protest in Marion, Alabama to where a young Civil Rights worker was being held. They were stopped by Marion City police officers, sheriff ’s deputies and Alabama State Troopers, but during the melee that ensured Jimmie Lee Jackson shot James Bonard Fowler. He died one week later. His charge for first degree murder only came in 2007.

February 18, 1923 A startling wealth was discovered in the tomb of Tutankhamen in Luxor, Egypt. Vast number of treasures valued at over 15,000,000 pounds was discovered by Lord Carnarvon, an eminent British archeologist. Britain, America’s and Egypt laid claims to them. A likely compromise might be the treasures shared among museums in Britain, Egypt and America.

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Can Nigeria meet its Despite abundant water resources everywhere in the country, Nigeria is faced with problems of acute water shortage with its attendant consequences on human and economic life of the country. Will Nigeria meet her MDG target by the year By Semiu Salami

ast week, Sarah Ochekpe, Nigeria’s minister of Water resources raised a strong poser. Except the government is prepared to commit an annual budget of N360 billion in the next three years to address the water challenges facing the country, Ochekpe said Nigeria may not meet its Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of adequate water supply by 2015. According to the minister, who spoke in Abuja at a briefing on the forthcoming presidential summit tagged ‘Innovative funding of water sector in Nigeria,’ the sum will be needed annually for the next three to five years to meet the nation’s water supply and sanitation needs. “From the analysis carried out, we need about N360 billion annually for the next three to five years to meet the target of 75 per cent water supply and 65 per cent sanitation. The N360 billion is for the development of the water sector generally, because we require funding for almost every aspect. We need funding to carry out interventions in rural communities, hydrological services, integrated water services, working on dams, as well as for

our irrigational facilities,” she said. Ochekpe admitted that the country had been off track for some years in its bid to actualise the MDG on water supply, adding that the summit was initiated to put it back on the track, adding that the summit would aim to enhance cooperative funding for water projects and create opportunities for both local and foreign investors through PublicPrivate Partnerships. Ochekpe also said the target so far achieved, based on the road map for the sector, showed that Nigeria had about 66 per cent coverage for water supply and 40 per cent for sanitation. “But until we meet our real target, we will not rest on our responsibilities as a ministry,” she added. She explained that the significance of water for economic de-

velopment in any society could not be overemphasised; stressing that infrastructural improvement in the country would not be achieved without adequate supply of water. Sadly, this is not the first time that the government officials would be reeling out figures to buttress the fact that serious attention ought to be accorded the issue of the provision of portable water supply in the country. However, despite the repeated emphasis, the government has not accorded the sector the seriousness it deserves. For instance, in the 2013 budget that is still awaiting presidential assent, the water ministry was allocated a paltry sum of N47.8 billion. In fact, in its report, Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), a media network concerned with sanitation and water, has said

that 63.6 million Nigerians have no access to potable water. Nigeria’s MDG target was to supply 75 per cent of the population with safe drinking water and 69 per cent of the population with adequate sanitation by 2015, but according to WASH, less than 58 per cent of Nigerians had access to safe drinking water, with only 32 per cent

population having access to good sanitation. “At current rate of progress, the water target will be achieved in 2033, which is 18 years after the proposed 2015,” the group said in its recent report. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has also estimated that 361,900 people die yearly due to poor water and sanita-

Business Courage A Publication of GLOBAL MEDIA MIRROR LTD BARRISTER JIMOH IBRAHIM, OFR  PUBLISHER SEMIU SALAMI ADEJUWON OSUNNUYI TAYO ADELEKE

EDITOR STAFF WRITER SENIOR REPORTER

OLATOYE RAPHAEL SEYI OKUMODI

HEAD, PRODUCTION SENIOR GRAPHIC ARTIST

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water demand? tion condition in Nigeria while the United Nations Children Emergency Fund (UNICEF) also estimates that 194,000 children under the age of five die from diarrhoea caused by poor water and sanitation yearly. A 2008 survey of household without access to improved drinking water conducted by the water resources ministry showed that between 20 per cent and 80 per cent of residents in all the country’s 36 states lacked access to improved drinking water. The situation has resulted in high mortality from water borne diseases across the country. In Nigeria today, diarrhoea is believed to be the second largest killer of children, causing as many as 17 per cent of the deaths of those under the age of five. This is largely as a result of unsafe water and poor hygiene. Nigeria is blessed with enormous spread of inland freshwater and brackish (salty) ecosystems. Although the abundance of water varies with season and year, depending on rainfall, experts say the country is home to varieties of water sources spread across various locations from the coastal region to the arid zone. The country is served by about eight major rivers including the Anambra, Benue, Cross River, Imo, Kwa Iboe, Niger, Ogun and Oshun rivers. Estimated at about 10,812,400 hectares, these rivers make up about 11.5 per cent of the total surface area of Nigeria which is estimated to be approximately 94,185,000 hectares. The inland water system includes thirteen lakes and reservoirs with a surface area of between 4000 hectares and 550,000 hectares with a total surface area of 853,600 hectares which represents about one percent of the total area of Nigeria. In spite of this abundance, Nigeria is classified a water– short country, whose water resource is likely to reduce from 2, 506 cubic meters per year in 1995 to 1, 175 cubic meters in 2025, if not properly managed. Studies have shown that with the current pressure of rapid population growth coupled with poor management, the available resources of water are being depleted at a fast rate, a situation experts say seriously underlines the need for taking up integrated plans for water conservation and utilisation for every agro-ecological area to meet the increasing demands of irrigation, water harvesting, human

Sambo

Ochekpe

and livestock consumption, expanding industry, hydro-electric power generation, recreation, navigation and other uses. However, in what many have seen as a sign of government’s commitment, it recently launched a road map for its water sector with the target of achieving 75 per cent access to potable water for all Nigerians by 2015. The map is also expected to facilitate the improvement of Nigeria’s sanitation rating and ensure that no Nigerian child in the next few years trek long distances to carry water on their heads before going to school. Vice President Namadi Sambo who launched the road map said that government will ensure that by year 2015, 75 per cent of Nigerians have access to safe and clean drinking water and by year 2020, the coverage should increase to 90 per cent. The road map which is an articulated set of planned government intervention in the sector with inputs from the national water resources master plan, Jos declaration on water, and the various outcomes of the meetings of the national council on water resources, according to experts, remains government’s most articulated action plan to address the challenges confronting the water sector. It has the objectives of assisting Nigeria meet the Africa water vision by 2025 as well as ensuring that the percentage of Nigerians without access to safe and clean water was reduced drastically. The road map acknowledged that the Nigeria water sector is richly endowed with huge water

resources potentials. It also noted that Nigeria has an estimated 267 billion cubic meters of surface water and 92 billion cubic meters of ground water per annum, with over 200 dams with a combined storage capacity of 34 billion cubic metres. However, despite the huge water potentials, how come that well over 100 million Nigerians are still without access to water? Some analysts who spoke with Business Courage on the issue last week put the blame on the door step of successive government for their failures to formulate a concrete set of action plan for the sector, knowing that the country requires about 56 billion litres of potable water per day to meet domestic needs. Sambo said that government was determined to end the lack of access of Nigerians to safe and clean drinking through massive rehabilitation of dams across the country so as to achieve the target of achieving 75 per cent access to potable water for all Nigerians by 2015. He was optimistic that Nigeria would be able to surpass the 2015 target by ensuring that all shortfall encountered by previous efforts to make potable water accessible to the teeming populace of the country were addressed. Despite these assurances however, many Nigerians are still very sceptical about the ability of the government to adequately meet the water need of the vast majority of Nigerians. They particularly point to the meagre allocation of N47.8 billion allotted the water resources

ministry in the 2013 budget as a case in point. In the yet to be signed budget, only N32.8 billion is budgeted for capital project in the ministry that requires N360 billion annually for three to five years to be able to meet the set goal. In fact, most Nigerians no longer consider water provision as a responsibility of the government as boreholes and wells litter every nook and cranny of the country, not minding both the health and environmental hazards posed by the development. In many parts of the country, human beings and cattle struggle for water from stagnant ponds while children trek several kilometres daily to fetch water from streams for their household usage. In places like Makurdi, where the popular River Benue ran through, or Abeokuta, Ibadan in Ogun and Oyo States where they were bounded by the Ogun/Oshun River Basins, Business Courage learnt that residents have to depend on water vendors for their daily water need. The situation in Lokoja where both the River Benue and Niger met is even more pathetic as both the young and old have to source their drinking water from the mud in what used to be the famous confluence - the meeting point of Nigeria’s two renowned rivers. Observers in the sector have attributed the pathetic water situation in Nigeria to the fact that it is treated as a social service, giving to Nigerians free-ofcharge. So it has become very difficult to revive broken down boreholes as communities see

such facilities as governments and would not stake their resources into its upkeep. Dr Martin Eduvie, coordinator, rural water supply and sanitation centre at the Nigeria’s National Water Resources Institute, Kaduna is of the opinion that imposition of a compulsory water levy on Nigerians remains the only panacea to the country’s efforts to increase the access of Nigerians to safe and clean water. “We have bore holes in almost every community in this country to provide safe and clean water to Nigerians but there are not working, the only option to ensure these borehole supply water to Nigerians is to introduce a levy system where everyone that benefits from the services of such facilities pay for services rendered,” he said. But Adeyemi Fashola, a Lagos based water engineer said that the Federal Government is paying lip service to the water sector as it has failed to show real commitment to improving access to safe and clean water for majority of Nigerians. “Water issues is not on Federal Government’s priority list, interest is all about awarding contracts for water projects without supervising the contractors to ensure the contract are executed according to specifications,” he said. He said that broken down boreholes and failed water treatment facilities are everywhere, particularly in the rural areas but rather than concentrate on how to repair those facilities, he said the government is only interested in awarding contracts for new ones. BC

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An elixir for development Stakeholders brainstorm on the desirability of community broadcasting in the social economic development as the world marks the World Radio Day By Fortune Abang and Jamila Yakowa

adio communication has arguably played significant roles in the political and socio-economic development of various communities across the world. Its importance and benefits to mankind since its inception have continued to expand with the prevalent 21st century technological advancement. Radio communication has become useful and powerful, especially at the grassroots, so much so that the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) proclaimed at its 36th session that February 13 of every year is celebrated as the World Radio Day. Recognising radio information as a powerful tool for developing the grassroots and other socio-political programmes, therefore, the Federal Government has placed premium on promoting useful information through community radio. Pursuant to this, President Goodluck Jonathan at a conference of Africa Broadcasters (Africast), held in Abuja in 2010, directed the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to start issuance of licences for community radio stations. ``We have devolved to the commission the power to consider and issue the licences without further recourse to the presidency, provided such applicants have

met all the conditions stipulated by law,’’ Jonathan stressed to indicate commitment. In spite of the president’s declaration however, there have been renewed calls by media industry experts and stakeholders of civil society organisations for government to issue more licences to establish community radio stations. The stakeholders made the calls at the Community Radio briefing and Strategy Meeting organised recently in Abuja by the Democratic Governance for Development (DGD), a UNDP project in collaboration with Nigeria Community Radio Coalition. From the onset, the stakeholders’ expectation is, among others, to urge the government agencies and civil society organisations to evolve strategic framework for operating useful grassroots radio stations. The stakeholders at the meeting pointed out that licensing more rural radio stations would promote citizens’ access to relevant information. They recalled that they made the first call for an unhindered lawful access to establishing community radio in July 2003 in collaboration with the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters and Institute for Omeri Media and Society (IMS-

Nigeria) through initiating project to build community radio in Nigeria. The stakeholders also stressed the danger of not providing all the local government areas in the country with information about government’s policies and programmes and other social engagements. Dr Moutarda Deme, a stakeholder and Country Representative of DGD, said delay in granting licence for establishment of community radio could cause disconnect for people at the grassroots. He, therefore, advised that licence be provided to promote rural dialogue in the country.

``Community radio provides a voice for local people, promotes media pluralism, improves access to information and creates room for local decision-makers to be held accountable. As Nigeria progresses in its democratic development, if community radio is licensed, it will foster community dialogue and strengthen the integrity of the electoral process. It will also contribute to the transparency and accountability of governance institutions at the grassroots and facilitate citizens’ participation in governance processes,’’ Deme said. Supporting the call, Mike Omeri, Director-General, National Orientation Agency (NOA), described community radio to be grassroots medium of communication whose advantages outweigh its disadvantages. He enumerated some of the advantages to include value orientation and creation of job opportunities for the teeming unemployed youth. ``Community radio has a number of advantages; it can help transmit values that must have been forgotten, because it is a medium of records that can help to transmit consistently those values that have become part of our communities. Working with NOA, part of what we do is to pro-

mote Nigeria’s core values; we will put them together and develop contents that are tailored towards maintaining or even restoring what is lost,’’ he said. According to him, establishment of community radio stations is also expected to boost political education and ensure increased participation of the critical mass of people in democratic processes. ``As a grassroots medium of communication acknowledged worldwide, it could also be used as a means of facilitating participatory and democratic development in the country,’’ he said. In her opinion, Ene Edeh, Project Coordinator of Equity Advocates, an NGO, said women constituted major part of people living in the grassroots who did not have alternative to information than listening to the radio. ``Women empowerment is key to the development of any society; information heard on the radio has longer effect in the minds of people,’’ she said. Ede stressed the need for Nigeria to join other African countries to meet the yearnings of local communities by providing radio stations for information on government policies. Explaining the position of NBC, its Director-General, Yomi Bolarinwa, said that only communities that were duly registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission were eligible to apply for licence. In response to allegations that the commission had been very stringent in granting community radio licences to prospective operators, he said the commission had in the last 20 years licensed 402 operational broadcasters. ``The commission has licensed 13 Direct-ToHome (DTH), 33 Multichannel Multipoint Distribution Service (MMDS), 123 private radio and television and 233 public radio and television stations,’’ he explained. He however, stressed that the issue of community broadcasting and successful transition to digital broadcasting would be the major pre-occupation of the commission in the years ahead. According to him, community broadcasting is useful, while interested parties should approach the commission for details on how to establish one. All canvassed impediments to quick issuance of licence notwithstanding, the stakeholders hold the belief that government must provide a legal framework through legislation for the establishment and operation of community radio stations. In their views, if the rural dwellers have unhindered access to information, it will serve as a tool for bridging communication gap and address gender issues in the society. BC Abang and Yakowa work with the News Agency of Nigeria

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Enoh

Reps, CSOs to collaborate on budget processes, implementation By Tola Akinmutimi (Abuja)

he House of Representatives has given assurances of its readiness to collaborate with the Civil Society in furtherance of the collective aspirations to improve the efficiency of yearly budgets and translation of the capital budget allocations into socio-economic benefits of Nigerians. Speaking at a one-day Engagement on Budget Oversight, Reporting and Documentation forum organised by the Civil Society Legislative Advisory Centre (CISLAC) with support from Federal Public Administration Reform Programme Nigeria (FEPAR Nigeria) in Abuja, the Chairman of the House Committee of Finance, Honourable Abdulmumini Jubril; and his Appropriation Committee counterpart, Honourable John Enoh, noted that it was high time that the National Assembly and the CSOs worked together and developed mutual frameworks that would help in effective discussions, monitoring and evaluation of performance of yearly budgets. This, the legislators pointed out, would create the information channels that would enable stakeholders to effectively measure the performance of capital budgets in terms of their impacts on the grassroots and provide the two-way communication channels for improved involvement in the budgetary processes on yearly basis. The Finance Committee Chairman, who was represented by Dr Usman Mohammed, described the interactive session as healthy for National AssemblyCSOs collaboration towards

improved national budgets performance. “This event provides an opportunity for us to hear from the CSOs and know how best to improve our activities for a more effective budgeting. In democracy, the idea is to have transparency at all levels of government. We have been looking forward to dialoguing with the CSOs on fiscal policy legislation and implementation in our efforts to achieve better performance of the budgets. “The results of some of our efforts to ensure effective implementation and monitoring of capital budgets can be seen in recent remittances by agencies of unspent allocations in the budgets. This is one of the results of our monitoring and other oversight carried out on the operations of the MDAs. So, we foresee a situation where we can work together with the CSOs to improve the current level of capital budget performance”, he added In his brief remarks, the representative of the Appropriation Committee Chairman, Makwe Eric, spoke in a similar tone, saying that “any arrangement that will make the National Assembly work together with the CSOs in order to achieve improved performance of yearly budgets deserve all stakeholders’ support. So, coming here is a demonstration of National Assembly’s readiness to achieve this” Speaking on the importance of the forum in capacity building among key stakeholders interested in ensuring improved performance of yearly budgets, CISLAC representative, Kolawole Banwo, explained that the Centre organised the engagement forum to “see how we can develop a template with which the civil society as they engage the legislators can report budget issues in a manner that the legislators will find useful. “We know that civil society does a lot of budget work and the legislators play critical roles in the budgetary processes. There is need to do the collaboration and that can be done when there is exchange of information. “By the way the National Assembly operates and the way civil society operates, sometimes civil society can come with so many beautiful reports with key information but if they are not expressed in a way the Assembly will find useful, the information would not be fed into the budget process. so this meeting is to see how we can reach a unanimous understanding on how that information can be presented to the Assembly and they will find it useful”, Banwo added.

Jean-Louis Ekra, CEO, Afreximbank

Afreximbank to secure $140m facility for oil palm bay in Liberia

he African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) in Cairo, Egypt, says a Liberian and two foreign firms has appointed the bank to secure $140 million facility to develop oil palm bay in Liberia. Afreximbank said in a statement issued on Friday in Lagos that the bank would identify and approach suitable financiers to support the facility and fund it. It said that the mandate, signed in London, was to put Liberia in the forefront of becoming a leading West African palm oil producer. The statement quoted Dr. Benedict Oramah, the Executive Vice-President, Business Development and Corporate Banking of Afreximbank, as saying that the project would be located near Liberia’s deepwater port of Buchanan. Oramah said that the collaboration would offer an exciting opportunity for trade development in a region enjoying political stability and favourable conditions for oil palm cultivation. He said that the project would have a significant positive social impact on the local communities. According to the statement, the venture is between the Liberian Palm Developments Ltd., the Equatorial Palm Oil of the U.K. and BioPalm Energy, Ltd., a subsidiary of Singapore-based Siva Group Incorporated. It quoted Michael Frayne, the Chairman of Equatorial Palm Oil, as saying that the appointment of Afreximbank is an important milestone for the company. Frayne said that the appointment was a significant step in becoming a leading palm oil producer in West Africa. “The financing will provide the capital needed to support our (company’s)

long-term planting programme with cash-flow for the project. It will also have a positive impact on the local economy; directly benefiting the people of Liberia,” Frayne said. According to the statement, Equatorial Palm Oil Plc., a U.K publicly-listed crude palm oil producer with palm oil estates in Liberia, is founded in 2005. The company is focused on becoming a global, sustainable producer of high quality palm oil for regional and international markets. BioPalm Energy Ltd., is a 50:50 joint venture partner in Liberian Palm Developments Ltd. It is a subsidiary of the Siva Group, Singapore, which invests in oil palm projects around the world. The African Export Import Bank was established in October 1993 by African governments, African private and institutional investors, and non-African investors to finance and promote intra and extra-African trade.

Expert advises FG to establish ICT Statistics Agency

n ICT expert, Dr Idaresit Umoh, has advised the Federal Government to establish an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Statistics Agency. Umoh, the Accounts Manager, Information Connectivity Solution Ltd. (ICSL), who gave the advice in Lagos said that the agency would help to determine the level of usage of ICT facilities in Nigeria. Umoh said a database on ICT use could give the country an edge by improving governance and economic development. ``ICT is undeniably gaining ground, even in some remote corners in the country, but the exact figures and the impact of this increase are difficult to quantify. ``Few countries have official statistics on ICT and most of the available data are not comparable internationally. ``Developing an internationally acceptable ICT statistics database will boost Nigerian economy unprecedentedly,” she said. She said ICT statistics was necessary for identifying areas where governments could use the technology to improve and implement their development strategies. ``Quality data can help them define strategies for more advanced banking and financial services, e-government and e-business. They also help governments monitor their own policies and draw comparisons with other countries,” she said.

Umoh said data on ICT use would help companies, particularly the Small and Medium scale Enterprises (SME) to take business and investment decisions. ``Appropriate ICT strategies, for instance, can help them increase their productivity and competitiveness and participate more fully in national and international supply chains. ``Not only will this make the task of governance easier, but it would also help economists, investors and government monitor the digital divide between developed and developing countries,” she said.

Rivers to spend N74bn on monorail project

he Rivers Commissioner for Transport, George Tolofari, has said that the state government will spend N74 billion on its monorail project to ease traffic in Port Harcourt. Tolofari made the remark while conducting the team of Good Governance Tour, led by Information Minister Labaran Maku, round the project site. He said that out of the amount, N19 billion had been spent so far on the first phase of the project, covering 6.5 km. Tolofari said that all the equipment needed for the completion of Phase 1 had been acquired, including the train with seven coaches, out of which one would be dedicated to the handicapped. According to him, the second phase has five coaches. ``The monorail is designed in such a way that people from the town will park their vehicles at Lagos bus-stop and use the train to go wherever they want to go in the city. We are expecting that this first phase will be completed by September,’’ he said. The team also visited Kesley Harrison Hospital and Dental Maxillo Facial Hospital, built by the state government at a cost of N2 billion each. The Commissioner for Health, Dr Sampson Parker who conducted the team round the two hospitals situated in

Tolofari

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News Port Harcourt, said that they were referral institutions. Parker said that the institutions have the state-ofthe-art equipment with Kesley Hospital having 150 beds.

Abraham Nwankwo, DG, DMO

DMO offers N105bn worth of bonds

he Debt Management Office (DMO) has issued three tranches of Federal Government’s bonds totalling N105 billion to investors. The bonds have tenors of between five and 20 years. In its February bond auction summary posted on its Website, the DMO said that the five and seven-year tenor bonds would mature in April 27, 2017 and June 29, 2019, respectively. A breakdown of the offers showed that the five- year and seven- year bonds worth N5 billion each, while the 10 and 20-year bonds worth N15 billion and N20 billion, respectively. The five and seven-year bonds have a coupon rate or a total yield rate of 10.68 per cent and 10.96 per cent respectively. Also, the 10 and 20-year bonds are pegged at 10.80 per cent and 10.90 per cent each. The DMO said that Jan. 27, 2022 and July 23, 2030 were the maturity dates for the 10 and 20-year bonds. In September, 2012, DMO issued bonds worth N75 billion in three categories.

Expert urges LGs to train more women on ICT

he Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) has advised that more women in the 774 local councils of the country should be encouraged to acquire skills in ICT. Lanre Ajayi, the President of ATCON, who made the call in Lagos, said that many women in the country were not interested in ICT. Ajayi said that acquisition of such skill would enable more women to create wealth

for members their families, adding that it would also improve ICT penetration at the grassroots. According to him, governments at the grassroots should engage more women in the application of modern technologies since they are like the teachers in the home. ``Acquisition of ICT skill and access to online education by the women will help them to start their own ventures. They are also the providers of basic needs to their family,” he said Ajayi said that when a man is educated, an individual is educated, but when a woman is educated, a family and the country are educated. The ATCON boss advised governments at the grassroots to create Websites where information about their activities could be accessed by the public. He said that such a move would help to bridge the

Ajayi

digital gap by improving ICT penetration in the country, adding that such initiative would compel sizeable proportion of Nigerians to become internet compliant. ``The demand for broadband services will also increase massively if activities and services of government are available online. Furthermore, this will make information to reach the grassroots easily since people will now prefer to go online to search for valuable contents,’’ he said. Ajayi stressed that putting government services on the Internet would enhance the digital literacy of citizens.

Unachukwu who made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Port Harcourt last Friday, lauded President Goodluck Jonathan’s efforts to check illegal oil bunkering, but said that it was imperative for the government to deploy more advanced techniques to police the pipelines of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation. “The major issue we have concerning our pipelines in the country is the engineering lay out; if in the beginning these oil companies were asked to bury these pipes; I am not saying it would have stopped bunkering, but it would have helped in reducing the intensity as we see today. They should go back and bury some of these pipes deep down into the earth. It’s going to take an illegal oil bunkerer a lot of work to tap crude illegally from there. I think the government should invest more sophisticated technology of surveillance, not just physical surveillance on these pipes by the navy and some land army,” he said. Unachukwu said that countries like the US have developed such technology to police the border from illegal immigrants. “Even at 1. a.m., in the morning, they can see immigrants trying to cross the border, they can stop them. I believe that we can invest in this kind of technology over our pipeline network. Unachukwu, who attributed illegal bunkering to the corruption in the country, said that the act was driven by desperation for material acquisition. He said illegal bunkering was an act of economic sabotage by criminal elements. The president of the chamber of commerce, therefore, called on the nation’s security operatives to rise to the challenge of ending oil theft. According to him, another way of combating the illegality is to deal with all those found guilty of sponsoring illegal bunkering, including the buyers of stolen oil.

FG asked to deploy modern surveillance technology against illegal oil business

Union Bank transfers Legacy Pension to Administrators

nion bank of Nigeria Plc has continued the transfer of Legacy pension for Post 2005 Pensioners to their Pension Fund Administrators (PFA) in line with the Pension Reform Act (PRA) 2004. The PFAs will consequently take over full responsibility for Pension payments for affected Pensioners (excluding Pre2006 Pensioners) with effect from February, 2013. The affected pensioners have been informed via letters and SMS. In addition, a contact centre has been set up on the 4th floor in the Head office (Stallion Plaza) which can be reached via email legacypension@unionbankng. com or telephone - Jimmy - 08182574989 or Bolanle 08083174734 or on extension 2348 This exercise is a further push by union bank to ensure that it fully complies with the Pension Reform Act of 2004. On completion, this category of the union bank pensioners would have been integrated into what had been achieved with the current employees of the bank. It would be a continuous exercise until all the pensioners are covered.

Nigeria’s active phone lines grew 16 per cent in 2012 Stories by Kunle Azeez

he President of the Port Harcourt Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture, Emeka Unachukwu, has urged the Federal Government to invest in sophisticated surveillance technology to stem illegal oil business.

Emeka Emuwa, MD, Union Bank

Nnachukwu

umber of active telephone subscriptions in Nigeria on all telecoms networks increased by 17 million or 16.3 per cent in 2012. The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) which released the much-awaited overall subscriber base in the telecoms sector in 2012 put the figure at 113.1 million active telephone users at the end of December, last year. From active subscriber base

of 96.1 in January 2012, the industry grew its telephone subscriptions by 17 million to reach 113.1 million lines at the end of the year. Business Courage learnt that this represents an impressive growth of about 16 per cent, compared to a subscriber growth of 7.5 million recorded in 2011, which represents 8.4 per cent of the growth for the year. According to the NCC data, though active telephone lines were estimated at 113.1 million, operators’ installed capacity at the end of the year was 211.8 million, having increased from 173.6 million in January 2012. Also, Nigeria’s teledensity grew significantly from 68.68 per cent in January, 2012 to 80.85 per cent at the end of December, 2012. Teledensity is the percentage of the number of phone users per population at a given period of time and its growth is proportional to the growth in the subscriber base while installed capacity is the number of telephone lines telecoms networks can accommodate at a given period of time. However, the increase in subscriber growth has been driven mainly by the Global System for Nobile Communications operators including MTN, Globacom, Airtel and Etisalat, who have continued to be the big players in the industry. According to the NCC data, MTN Nigeria ended the year with 47.4 million active telephone lines on its network leading the industry as the biggest telecoms network in the country. This was followed by Globacom with 24.1 million subscribers; Airtel with 23 million while Etisalat which started operations three years grew faster to reach 4.9 million subscriptions, at the end of December, 2012. According to the latest official industry data for telecoms industry in 2012, the GSM active subscriptions, which stood at 91 million in January, increased to 92 million in February and 94.5 million at the end of March. The figure continued its upward growth reaching 96.6 million in April and in May; the figured grew to 97.5 million active subscriptions. In June, July and August, the combined active GSM subscriber base increased to 98.3 million; 99.4 million and 101.4 million respectively. The figure thus moved up to 107.3 million in September; 109.4 million October; 110.3 million October and 113.1 million at the end of December 2012. The Code Division Multiple Access, CDMA, operators

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Eugene Juwa,

such as Multi-Links, Visafone, Starcomms and Zoom Mobile as well as other fixed lines operators had their subscriber base crash abysmally in the year. According to the data, the CDMA networks experienced a fall in their subscriber base from 3.1 million in October to 3 million at the end of October, 2012. Similarly, fixed wired and wireless network operators also record a decline in their meager active subscriptions from 454,644 lines in October to 432,899 during the same period. However, active subscriber base on CDMA networks which was estimated at 4.4 million in January, 2012, hovered around slightly over four million between February and March but fell further to 3.9 in April. The figure further plunged to 3.7 million in May; 3.5 million in June and in July, it fell to 3.4 million and finally to 3.3 million at the end of August, 2012 and fell to 3.2 million, 3.1 million; three million and 2.9 million in September, October, November and December respectively.

Africa, Middle East to hit 850 million mobile users by 2017

here will be nearly 850 million mobile users in Middle East and Africa (MEA) by 2017, according to Cisco Visual Networking Index Forecast. It is also projected that nearly half of all cellular traffic globally will be off-loaded to fixed or Wi-Fi networks by 2017; while 4G is expected to support nearly 10 per cent of all mobile connections by 2017. According to the Cisco Visual Networking Index Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast for 2012 to 2017, in the MEA region, there will be 849,226,090 mobile users in 2017. The expected steady increase in mobile traffic is partly due to continued strong growth in the number of mobile Internet

connections (personal devices and machine-to-machine applications), which will exceed the world’s population by 2017. Other major highlights of 2017 VNI in the MEA show that mobile data traffic will grow 17-fold from 2012 to 2017, a compound annual growth rate of 77 per cent. In MEA, mobile data traffic will reach 861,298 terabytes (0.86 exabytes) per month in 2017, the equivalent of 215 million DVDs each month or 2,374 million text messages each second. In MEA, , mobile data traffic will account for 17 per cent of Middle Eastern and African fixed and mobile data traffic in 2017, up from 8 per cent in 2012. In Business Mobile Traffic 2012, MEA’s business mobile data traffic grew 1.7-fold, or 69 per cent. In Middle East and Africa, business mobile traffic will grow 11-fold from 2012 to 2017, a compound annual growth rate of 60 per cent. Business will account for 12 per cent of Middle East and Africa’s mobile data traffic in 2017, compared to 19 per cent at the end of 2012. Video in Middle East and Africa, mobile video traffic will grow 27-fold from 2012 to 2017, a compound annual growth rate of 93 per cent. Video will be 72 per cent of Middle East and Africa’s mobile data traffic in 2017, compared to 47 per cent at the end of 2012. Video reaches half of Middle East and Africa’s mobile data traffic by year-end 2012. Consumer Mobile Traffic in 2012, Middle East and Africa’s consumer mobile data traffic grew 2.1-fold, or 110 per cent. In Middle East and Africa, consumer mobile traffic will grow 19-fold from 2012 to 2017, a compound annual growth rate of 80 per cent. Consumer will account for 88 per cent of Middle East and Africa’s mobile data traffic in 2017, compared to 81 per cent at the end of 2012. During the 2012 to

Adegbonmire

2017 forecast period, Cisco anticipates that global mobile data traffic will outpace global fixed data traffic by a factor of three. Meanwhile, the study also highlighted major trends are driving global mobile data traffic growth. These include more mobile users, more mobile connection, faster mobile speeds, increase in mobile video, the projection that smartphones, laptops, and tablets will drive 93 per cent of global mobile data traffic by 2017.

Group petitions FG over influx arms at seaports By Francis Ezem

ssociation of Registered Freight Forwarders of Nigeria has raised fresh alarm over impending security danger in Nigeria over the decision of some terminal operators and shipping companies to commence cargo clearance for some big time multinational companies operating in the country. Experts had faulted Nigeria’s port concession programme, which they believe were hurriedly done without the basic legal and regulatory framework, especially given that the programme focused on attracting private sector investment into the port industry, with a view to growing it. The experts had argued that government ought to have put in place necessary legal instrument covering the transaction, which will also specify the role of every party in the agreement as well as creating an independent regulatory agency that that would monitor the private operators and also impose sanctions where necessary. The association in a fourpage letter addressed to the Ministerial Evaluation Committee of the Federal Ministry of Transport itemised the sins of the private terminal operators and foreign shipping companies their collaborators, which it said must be addressed urgently in order to avert imminent security danger in the country. The letter signed by president of the association, Dr. Frank Ukor reads in parts: Honourable chairman, we wish to congratulate you on this assignment given to your committee. It means the government has eventually decided to hear the cry of port users over very glaring lapses in the concession on the part of the concessionaires in Nigeria’s seaports. We hope the government will take

NIMET predicts excessive rainfall in Sokoto, Kebbi others

Umar

positive and decisive actions with the aim of getting the port concessionaires to adhere to the terms of the agreement”, the letter stated. The association noted that shipping companies and terminal operators now clear consignments for some clients, which it said might not be unconnected with the increasing importation of arms and illicit drugs into the country with the attendant negative implication for the security of the nation and the well being of the people. The letter said: “Shipping companies and terminal operators now clear consignments for very ‘big clients’. We wonder if it is part of the concession agreement. The security implication of this is unimaginable”. “No wonder arms and ammunitions, hard drugs and other undesirable imports find their way very easily into Nigeria because these containers are not scanned or examined because they are lifted from the vessels to the trucks and delivered to the warehouses of the owners”, the letter further alleged. AREFFN, which is the youngest association in the industry, also accused the terminal operators of flagrantly violating the concession agreement, especially in the area of investment in the procurement and acquisition of relevant plants and equipment and the development of the ports. According to the association, all these are going on due to the failure of the government to put in place necessary legal and regulatory frameworks that would have ensured that a commercial regulator was created to monitor the operators and ensure compliance with the terms and condition of the agreement. The letter said: “The absence of a port regulator to monitor the excesses of these foreign operators has manifested in most of the problems and challenges faced in the ports today less than 10 years after the completion of the reforms”.

he Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) has predicted normal rainfall in Nigeria during the year except in Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger and Kwara states, which it said might experience excessive rainfall. The Director-General of NIMET, Dr Anthony Anuforom, made the information known at the public presentation of the 2013 Seasonal Rainfall Prediction (SRP) and Nigeria Climate Review Bulletin in Abuja. He said the rainfall pattern in most parts of Nigeria was likely to be similar to that of 2012. ``However, some areas in the North-western parts of the country, which also fall within the catchment area of River Niger, the total rainfall predicted for 2013 may exceed that of 2012. ``Rainfall for 2013 is predicted to be normal over large areas of the country. The expected changes in the annual rainfall are well below normal in Abeokuta and above normal over Ibadan and Yelwa areas. `The predicted rainfall for the Northwest areas of Sokoto , Kebbi, Niger, Kwara and environs is likely to be above normal in comparison to 2012,’’ he said. Anuforom advised relevant authorities to use NIMET’s updates issued regularly to control possible adverse impacts. He said the forecast was not automatic as the predictions could change due to climate change. Anuforom said the volume of rainfall for the year would range from 420 cubic metres spread over 120 days in the extreme North-East to 2,980 cubic metres over a period of 290 days. ``These forecasts are statements of probability and are based on the available scientific knowledge and data. Man’s knowledge is still limited

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News and, therefore, some margin of error within tolerable limits is not unusual. The conditions that determine the rainfall pattern over Nigeria have become more variable due to the effects of climate change and global warming. This is a big challenge for atmospheric scientists all over the world. NIMET will continue to monitor the trend in all parts of the country and publish updates as the rainy season progresses,’’ Anuforom said. He explained that the early release of the forecast was to create good lead-time for adequate preparation against risks and hazards associated with weather and climate extremes. The Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Oduah, who was represented by Clement Dosunmu, the Acting Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, said weather information was important to humanity. She urged NIMET to fulfil to its mandate by ensuring that the information got to the end users in time. ``The information in these publications are useful for planning, decision-making and policy formulation, especially in those sectors of the economy that are sensitive to weather. It is expected that the early release of the 2013 SRP will enable all stakeholders apply the information in planning and executing their activities in such a way as to reduce vulnerability to climate extremes,’’ Oduah said.

Fixing power sector problems’ll take time, money, support of Nigerians - Minister

he Minister of Power, Prof. Nebo Chinedu, has blamed the problems in the power sector to long neglect, and said that it would take time, money and the support of all Nigerians to fix. Chinedu said this in an address at a one-day Power Sector Reform Technical Retreat organised by the Presidential Task Force on Power in Abuja He warned the department in the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) overseeing the systems operation to fix the frequent power collapse. ``I have observed, with grave concern, the increasing frequency in system collapse of our grid and hereby encourage the operatives in this segment in the TCN to be extra diligent and vigilant. I shall not entertain frivolous reasons for continued system collapse. Owners of this process must sit up or be prepared to face

Nebo

the music.’’ Chinedu noted that without improvement in power supply, development in the private sector would be jeopardised. He said that adequate power supply was the only option the country had to align with internationally acceptable standards, adding that improvement must be immediate. Chinedu urged distribution companies to carry out their duties effectively, stressing that any officers found sabotaging the revenue collection targets would be severely dealt with. According to him, government will not tolerate complacency and ineptitude of any company that builds up additional burdens of liabilities through misconduct. Chinedu explained that the retreat was to review and revise the original roadmap developed in 2010, in order to produce data which would be consistent with current and future challenges. Earlier, Dagogo Jack, the Chairman, Presidential Task Force on Power, said the 2010 version of the roadmap was an effective guiding tool for power reform, but that it needed revalidation to incorporate current realities. Patrick Ikhariele, the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Power, said that constant power supply would ensure security of lives and property. Ikhariele noted that the change in name from ECN to NEPA and PHCN had not guaranteed Nigerians uninterrupted power supply. He said the problem of the sector was shortage of generation, distribution and transmission. (NAN)

Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS), the Chairman, Festus Odimegwu, said on Friday. Odimegwu, represented by Dr Abiodun Owolabi, the Lagos State Director of NPC, announced the activity at a news conference in Lagos, saying the survey was conducted last in 1990, 1999, 2003 and 2008. According to him, the survey is designed to provide information on the demographic and health status of the Nigerian population. “It will provide detailed information on the levels and trend of fertility, family planning, maternal and child health as well as STIs, HIV and AIDS in the country. “Also, it is to measure the level of contraceptive knowledge and practise among rural and urban population in each of the six geopolitical zones and the Federal Capital Territory. “It will capture data on determinants of fertility, reproductive health of women, adult male and female mortality and to assess the food security of children under age of five and women,” he said. Odimegwu said that the survey would be conducted in randomly selected 40, 680 households in the 36 states and FTC. According to him, only women and men within the ages of 15 and 49 years will be interviewed in the selected households. He added that the field work would last four months from February15 till May 30. “Lagos represents the South-West; Imo represents South-East, Akwa-Ibom represents South-South; Nasarawa and FCT represent North-Central; Gombe represents North-East and Jigawa to represent NorthWest. The survey for all other states will start on Feb. 24,” he said. Odimegwu said 312 data collectors had been trained for the survey, while household listing and designing of questionnaire had been concluded to ensure smooth,

NPC commences National Demographic, Health Survey

‘New FCT water treatment plants for completion soon’

ork on the treatment plants of the Lower Usuma Dam in the Federal Capital Territory is to be completed soon to boost quality water supply, the acting Director of Water Board in the territory, Anto Jiniya said on Friday. The work requires integration of phases three and four of the treatment plant into the existing two phases. Jiniya, who made this known in Abuja when he inspected the dam, said ``we want to have this boost from the treatment plants so that the issue of inadequate water supply will be solved.’’ He said the new plants had been hooked on to the Gurara line to increase the supply of water. ``The problem of water will be solved as soon as the plants are completed. The only areas that will not get water are those where the pipes have not been laid, but the existing system where our pipes are in existence will see tremendous changes.’’. On the issue of nonreflection of payments made by customers, the director said that the board had reduced the number of banks from 15 to nine to handle receipts effectively. They include Diamond Bank, First Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank, Aso Savings and Loans and Zenith Bank Plc. Jiniya urged residents to pay their bills directly to the banks and not to officials of the board to avoid complications. The Site Operation Manager, Biwater Nigeria Ltd, David Murphy said the delay in the use of the treatment plants was due to a fault in the existing pipes resulting in leakage. He said repairs were being effected to ensure full operation in few weeks.

Stakeholders want more cassava processing plants

he National Population Commission (NPC) has commenced the field work for the 2013 National

accurate and reliable survey. He, however, appealed to Nigerians to cooperate with the interviewers by providing truthful answers to questions to ensure successful conduct of the survey.

Odimegwu

he Cassava Stakeholders Association of Nigeria (CSAN) has urged the Federal Government to expedite action on the establishment of 18

Adesina

cassava processing plants in the country. Femi Oke, the South-West Zonal Coordinator of the association, who made the plea in Lagos at the weekend, said the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, had promised at a meeting with the association in 2012, to set up the cassava processing plants. ‘’During a meeting held in 2012, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, promised that Federal Government will set up three cassava processing plants in each of the six geopolitical zones. I have not heard of any one functioning for now. Processing is very costly and it is a major constraint in the drive for cassava bread. You can imagine a plant drier is sold for N5 million per unit. Where do you expect a farmer to get such amount?’’ Oke asked. He said the farmers could only grow cassava and sold to millers on request. Oke said the farmers were complaining because the tubers could easily get rotten, if not processed or consumed after four days. ‘’I must say that farmers are not really happy with the present situation of cassava flour production, because if bulk of cassava is cultivated without use, it will get rotten. Farmers cultivate cassava based on request from cassava millers like Flour Mills Nigeria Ltd., they have been very supportive buying cassava tubers from our farmers,” he said. He, however, commended the minister for providing cassava cuttings free to the farmers in states like Adamawa where farmers could not easily grow cassava. Oke said the production of cassava flour for bread would not affect garri production. ‘’We produce cassava in excess in the country; cassava flour for bread cannot affect garri production. After all, it was due to the sufficiency in cassava production that the Federal Government sought to eradicate wastage and cassava bread was introduced,’’ he said. BC

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The Prince of Commerce He belongs to the group of people with the rags-to-riches story, whose rise to the pinnacle of their careers was charted by sheer determination, resilience and the can-do-it spirit. Today, his story has defied his background to put him in the league of Nigeria’s super rich. This is the story of Samuel Ogundele Adedoyin, a standard 1V school leaver, who sits atop one of the most diversified conglomerates in Nigeria By Salami Semiu

f being successful really has anything to do with one’s background, individuals like Samuel Ogundele Adedoyin, founder and chairman of Doyin Group of Companies, would clearly not have been counted among the privileged wealthy Nigerians. But here is he, a Standard Four school leaver, who tried to stow away to the United Kingdom but landed in Takoradi, Ghana in a container laden ship, emerging as one of Nigeria’s most successful business persons, with interests spanning manufacturing, real estate, hospitality, automobiles, energy and banking. Born in Agbamu, a small agrarian village near Oro, Kwara State where his parents hail from, on December 4, 1935, the young Adedoyin and his mother were moved to Lagos but he had to be returned to Agbamu. He attended St. James School, Ilorin, Kwara State, but after his Standard Four, he left for Lagos at the age of 11, where he joined his father, who then traded in bicycle parts, tools and some other wares. Before returning to Lagos to join his father, Samuel Adedoyin and his other siblings back in the village, worked on their father’s farmland. At that time, he was considered the laziest among the children, not paying too much attention to farm work. However, unknown to many, the young Adedoyin, even at such a tender age, had determined not to end up a farmer. Like the biblical Joseph, Adedoyin usually dreamt of becoming big and very successful in life. Though he had the picture of how rich he wanted to be in his head, he had no idea of how to do it or where he was going. It was this mindset that he carried to Lagos. However, despite his movement from the rustic and agrarian Agbamu village to cosmopolitan Lagos, Adedoyin kept the hope of becoming big aglow. With little exposure in Lagos, the youthful Adedoyin decided to Continue on pg A10

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seek greener pastures outside the shores of Nigeria, and to do this quite successfully; he knew he had to keep it secret from his parents, for he knew they would not allow him. At that time, the most popular mode of transportation was by water, hence, the young man left for Apapa port where he struck a bargain with some sailors to be a stowaway in a cargo compartment on a ship bound for England. However, luck ran out on him. Rather than England, the young Adedoyin found himself in Takoradi port in Ghana. Though he failed in his bid to go to England, Adedoyin, there and then, decided he would never return to Nigeria. He reached out to the Ghanaian immigration officer, whodetected him in the cargo and begged to allow him serve as his houseboy. While in Ghana as a houseboy, Adedoyin displayed uncommon loyalty, commitment and hard work, so much that in no short time, those traits endeared him to his master. As the relationship between he and his master blossomed, he approached the Ghanaian immigration officer again for a help. This time, not to be stowed away, but to be loaned two pound sterling to start a business, the request which his master obliged him. With the money, Adedoyin started business by hawking beef in Ghana. From beef hawking, he ventured into sales of exercise books. After sometime, he decided to move into something else. With savings from these two businesses, he moved into newspaper distribution, becoming an agent of Asante Pioneer, one of the early newspapers in the then Gold Coast. But not done with the earnings from being a newspaper vendor, Adedoyin decided to combine his newspaper distributorship with hawking of beef. While hawking the newspapers at dawn, he moved into beef hawking in the day and from this, he was able to save a little money with which he rented a shop, where he added another line of business, selling keys, hinges, padlocks and bolts. After three years in Ghana, at the age of 15, Adedoyin decided it was time to visit his parents back home in Nigeria. At that time, he had saved about 56 pounds. Expectedly, his bid to return to Ghana was scuttled by his parents, who insisted that he must stay back in Nigeria. To ensure that he did not run away, his father sent him back to Agbamu village and placed him under strict surveillance. Back in Agbamu, the young Adedoyin came face to face with the same reality that had earlier driven him away and compelled him to seek refuge outside the

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Before returning to Lagos to join his father, Samuel Adedoyin and his other siblings back in the village, worked on their father’s farmland. At that time, he was considered the laziest among the children, not paying too much attention to farm work

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country, farming. Unfortunately, as at the time he returned from Ghana, his mother was in the midst of a serious financial mess and he had no choice than to use all his three years’ savings in Ghana to defray his mother’s debt. Left with little or no choice, the young Adedoyin had to take up farming, planting maize. At 16, in 1951, his ‘international’ exposure had boosted his confidence level, being very outspoken with good oratory and with the track record of a returnee, he was well respected by the community. With these credentials, he was nominated as a councillor. For someone who had tasted the luxury of life and who, more importantly saw himself, not as farmer but a highly successful business person, Agbamu clearly was not where he bargained to end it. So, with the 48 pounds he made from the harvest in his maize farm, Adedoyin returned to Lagos and plunged fulltime into trading. He returned to Lagos in 1953, at 18 years old and settled for selling holiday bags and umbrellas, which he bought in large volumes from Indians, Lebanese and Europeans, using the name “Jeko Yemi Kale Oluwa” (let me be prosperous all my days, O lord). With this business in just one year, Adedoyin, at 19, built his first house, a 25- bedroom apartment at Mushin, Lagos State, which he rented out. He also bought a second-hand Volkswagen car and by his 21st birthday, in 1956, Adedoyin diversified his business into the sale of ball-point pens, garments, umbrellas and other popular goods. At the young age of 24 years, Adedoyin had fully conquered poverty and was comfortably on the way to realising the dreams he had a few years back. He became a millionaire at age 24 and built another house on Rumens Road, Ikoyi.

At the age of 30, he registered Doyin Investments Nigeria Limited. And rather than continue to import bags, umbrellas and shoes, he travelled to Italy to order for five Singer sewing machines with which he used to produce all types of travelling bags including suitcases and wallets, thus making his company, the first indigenous firm to produce handbags and umbrellas. He later went into motoring business, first with Doyin Motors that specialised in marketing Volvo cars and later with Starco that distributed Peugeot cars in the 1970s. In 1980, he further diversified into electronics, with the assembling of the Samsonic range, coined from his baptismal name, Samuel. A firm believer in the Nigerian project, he was of the view that Nigeria could only develop, if her businessmen stopped running after contracts and concentrated on developing the manufacturing sector. Today, the business he started with less than 50 pounds has metamorphosed into a conglomerate with turnover running into several billions of Naira and interest, spanning properties, manufacturing, foods, beverages, transportation, automobile and farming among others. For instance, Global Soap and Detergent Industries Limited, located along Asa Dam Road, Ilorin, Kwara State was Incorporated in 1984 as the first indigenous manufacturer of soap and detergent. It has five factories, a Glycerine Plant which processes a by-product of the soap plant to produce glycerine used by Pharmaceutical and Cosmetic industries. It is also used by toothpaste, medicament industries etc. There is also the Sulphonation Plant, commissioned in mid 1989 and produces a basic raw material for the manufacture of detergent using linear alkyl-benzene which is pur-

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chased from the petroleum industry, Kaduna, Nigeria. The Sodium Silicate Plant produces products which are used in making raw materials for soaps and detergents and also used for making batteries, textile etc. The Soap Plant produces vogue toilet soaps, bold, grand, laundry tablet soap and hiclean soaps while the detergent plant produces Flash, Whasrite, Superdeal brands, which have all won the NIS award for good quality. The other member of the group is Doyin Investments (Nigeria) Limited, located along Kilometre 21, Lagos Badagry Expressway, Okokomaiko, Lagos State. This set-up manufactures building and paint materials. It also produces (dyes) colourant for the soaps, detergents plus car paints. Consolidated Foods and Beverages Limited, also situated in the same industrial area with Doyin Investments has Tea Plants, Milk Plant, Bouillon Cube Plant, Fractionation Plant, Margarine Plant, Maize Mill, Beverage Plant, Plastic Bag Making Plant and Hydrogenation Plant Within the same industrial layout is also the Doyin Pharmaceutical (Nigeria) Limited, incorporated in 1989 and engaging in the research development, manufacture and distribution of ethical and over the counter drugs. Facilities in the factory include: -Air-handling facilities, Multi-gas channelisation systems, Power handling systems and Water generation and Treatment facilities with the most advance water distillation system in the world – ‘Pharmastil’ Each of the following plants in the company has the following products: -Pharmaceutical Plants, which manufactures pharmaceutical drugs in various forms such as tablets, capsules, syrups, ointments and injections; Bottle Water Plants, which produces “PRIME” table

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water in the size of 50cl, 75cl and 150cl.; Carbonated / Flavour Drinks Plant that produces ‘PRIME drinks’ and the Fruit Juice Plant, which produces PRIME juice. The PET Bottle Plant produces PET bottle for all the plants in the factory and also have potentials of moulding / blowing PET bottles on commercial scale. Until 2005, Adedoyin was also a proud owner of a bank, City Express Bank, but like he later admitted, his decision to invest in banking became a serious misadventure, and a big mistake which he has continued to regret. The Soludo Tsunami, which followed the 2004 banking recapitalisation exercise that raised the minimum capital for all banks in the country to N25 billion swept his bank, City Express Bank away. More than seven years after, Adedoyin insists that the Professor Charles Soludo-led Central Bank action was unfair, particularly to his bank. “Well, there was injustice in our case in the sense that before the CBN and NDIC took over City Express Bank, they came to audit it and I was exonerated by both regulatory authorities,” he said. Adedoyin protested the CBN action by filing a suit against both the CBN and NDIC but for four years, the case remained undecided. However, for a good spirited person which he is, Adedoyin withdrew the first suit against CBN and NDIC to allow for the settlement of the bank’s public debt. “Since I started my business with only 38 pounds, whatever I have lost in the bank was part of business hazard. I don’t allow such problem to bother me, because God gives and takes. Again, the fact that God gives me good health and gives me the ability to be able to diversify into other businesses, I give Him the glory. Banking is not the only business that one can flourish in,” he said. In fact, Adedoyin admitted

Today, the business he started with less than 50 pounds has metamorphosed into a conglomerate with turnover running into several billions of Naira and interest, spanning properties, manufacturing, foods, beverages, transportation, automobile and farming among others

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that it was a mistake for him to have gone into banking. “You know, I didn’t remember that as a chairman and founder, I cannot sign any cheque; I cannot withdraw anything as everything is left in the hands of the executive. But if things go wrong, they will blame it on the board. So I wouldn’t have been there. It was a mistake,” he said with a tone of regret. Adedoyin, who was at the time accused of insider related loans running into several billions of Naira made spirited efforts to clear his name, insisting that he only had about N500 million outstanding credit facilities ( which he submitted two prime properties to offset) as at the time the CBN wielded the big stick. Contrary to reports, the industrialist said that as chairman of City Express Bank, he did not grant loans amounting to billions of naira to family and friends but admitted that he authorised a loan to Dayyad Nigeria Limited whose chief executive is his son. Even at that, the Prince of Agbamu as the septuagenarian industrialist is called said the loan was backed by a local purchase order from Shell Petroleum Development Corporation as collateral and with a lien on the vehicles to be imported by the company. “I do not have cronies, I have been in business since I was a teenager and at over 70 years, I cherish my name and reputation,” he said. Though Adedoyin does not have the full benefit of higher education, he was able to build and grow his group of companies solely on indigenous manpower and skills. And he seems to fully understand the full dynamics of business and entrepreneurship. He knows when to invest where and when to pull out. Even as his investment profile blossomed, he never failed to realise how and when to beat a retreat when it becomes absolutely necessary to do so. It was this same strategy that he had consistently used to restructure his businesses, moving from a mere trading outpost to manufacturing. Like many businesses, Adedoyin has had some of his businesses crashing along the line, but he admitted that ‘‘wherever we fail, we try to re-build another one.” Like his failed attempt to sustain his banking arm, Adedoyin was also forced to dispose off his chemical plant in Agbara Industrial Estate, Ogun State. The plant, the first of its kind then produces alum for water treatment plants and sulphuric acid for usage by agencies like Power Holding Electric Company, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, the National Fertilizer Company and some private manufacturing companies. However, due to low patronage, the industrial mogul

was forced to dispose off a N2 billion plant for a meagre N100 million. Though Adedoyin would not admit regretting his lack of having higher education, but if there was something in his personal life that he would have done differently, it would be about education. Despite this shortcoming, however, he insists that God has taught him how to express himself in English. “I have been able to establish industries, employed graduates, master’s holders and so on. There is no where I have talked and I am referred to as an illiterate. All in all, it has been good. I don’t have any regret whatsoever because God has been good to me. And that is the reason why I will continue to thank God. As I said earlier, I left my parents at the age of 12, not knowing what I was going to be. I wanted to go to England, I got stuck in Ghana. I stayed, worked and was able to save 62 pounds. When I came back to Nigeria, I had to use my saving to settle my mother’s debt. I was back to square one and I went into farming. It was from farming that I got the 48 pounds, which I used to start my small scale business. Looking back, everything I have now belongs to God. Even before the banking crisis, I borrowed money to capitalize it. I owed the banks, and in a miraculous way, God paid all the debts as at today, I do not owe any bank in Nigeria again,” he said with a tone of satisfaction. Samuel Adedoyin belongs to the old generation of billionaires whose affluence and influence can still give today’s billionaires a run for their money. His contributions to mankind have attracted lots of recognition and awards globally. From professionals, associations, and government agencies, he has received awards like, Officer of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (OFR), National Productivity Merit Award, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah International Award for Excellence in Enterprise, amongst others. Adedoyin strongly believes in the industrialization of Nigeria, which he thinks that if well pursued, will lead to economic emancipation. He has contributed immensely to industry and economic services. His community development projects include provision of water, tarred roads, electricity, churches, hospital, post office, educational endowment fund for needy students, economic empowerment of the teeming masses, and above all, generation and provision of direct employment for over 2,000 Nigerians excluding suppliers and distributors. “I don’t have to blow my trumpet. But where I came from, I have tried to breathe fresh air into the environment. I want to keep to myself and that is how I live my life”. BC

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ThebuddingEntrepreneurs

The garment maker She studied English Language in the university but had undying love for garment making. After her university education, she ventured into bead making and training, but discovered early that she would not realise her dreams in that venture. So, she retraced her steps to her real passion and in just about five years, her dreams are gradually coming into fruition. This is the story of Olaide Ogunmade, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Nianto Uniforms

laide Ogunmade, a graduate of English language from the Lagos State University may be aptly described as a born entrepreneur who never felt the urge for working either in the private or public sector to earn salary and has never done so since graduating from the university. Ogunmade has always wanted to be free to do her things her own way, and this attribute dates back to her days in the university, when she started nursing the ambition of creating employment for herself and other people. Yet, this is a passion which she could not explain where it came from, as both her parents worked to earn money in their active days from both the civil service and the private sector. . “I never worked in my life and this is simply because l find it extremely difficult to imagine myself being caged to a place called an office to work and be paid salary,” she told Business Courage. As an undergraduate, Laide, as her friends call her squeezed out time to learn how to make dresses. First, she bought a small sewing machine with which she practiced on her own, and when her school was shut down for a period of about one year due to internal crisis, she took up a training with a sewing mistress on her street. There, she busied herself while a good number of her friends were loafing around, waiting for school to re-open. After graduation, in 1996, Laide decided to upgrade her knowledge in the business of fashion designing and thus registered at Vicky Tinanny, a fashion design training institute, located then at Opebi, Ikeja, Lagos. There, she learnt more about the business with a certificate to show for her efforts. But despite her love for making clothes, she still started out with bead making and training

people on how to make money in the business of making beads into necklaces and wrist bands, especially for women. “When I started making beads, I started getting the attention of so many people who would ask me to make jewelleries for them with beads. Before long, I started to get overwhelmed with the number of orders l was getting that I started turning down some”, she said. But that joy of being in a business which apparently was booming did not last long, as she suddenly realised that continuing in the business of making beads would not take her to where she wanted to be. The reality dawned on her, when on a fateful day, she paid a visit to one of her mentors to share with her the progress she had made in the business of bead making. “Obviously excited by my progress in the business, I told my mentor that I now re orders, as I could not cope with all the orders I was getting from my clients, and I was shocked when my mentor asked me “How much put together are all those orders. Can the money from all those orders buy you a piece of land?” she queried. And that was the turning point for Laide, as she told Business Courage that the encounter led her back to her first love, which is making dress. “After that encounter, as a Christian, I went to God in prayers, asking for direction. I realised that I needed to do something different. So, one day, I got the inspiration for me to start making uniforms, and as I was wondering how to start doing that, it dawned on me that God had already given me a mentor and my first client,” she reflected. As it turned out, her decision to go into bead making at the initial stage of her entrepreneurial exploration was only a stepping stone to fulfilling her dreams in garment making, as she met both her mentor and first client

Ogunmade

Management Principles

Tips on dealing with competition

ne of the first tasks for anyone trying to grow a business is to map out the competitive landscape. With a good understanding of the competition you face, you’ll be able to spot and exploit opportunities as they develop. Here are useful tips that would help you draw and refine your map, beginning with your earliest efforts to plan your new venture and continuing for as long as you stay in business. Become a customer Visit competing establishments in the role of a customer. Ask lots of questions and take notes. Get in touch with these companies via phone and the Internet. Checking out a firm’s ability to serve you will reveal a good deal about your competition, good and bad and teach you a lot about your own business. If possible, don’t just pretend to shop from competitors, buy something, or engage their services. It’s the only way to gain firsthand knowledge of what it’s like to do business with the company. Investigate your competition One of the best ways to gauge your competition is by taking a little time to investigate the people who run the company. If there’s an appropriate setting in which to meet your competition face to face, do it. Find out which schools they attend, previous work experience and how long they’ve been in the business. You also need to know what their strengths and weaknesses are as well as their reputation. These sets of information can help you anticipate your competition’s moves. Buy shares in your competitors If you’re competing against a publicly traded firm, consider buying a few shares of its stock. As a stockholder, you’ll receive regular updates on the firm’s financial results and business strategies, as well as information about the future plans of the company. There’s nothing unethical about learning about a company this way, and you may get invaluable information: where you’re most likely to face direct competition, differences between your firms, and new ideas and markets for growing your own business. Talk to your competitors’ customers Take an informal (or formal) poll of your competitors’ customers or clients. How did they originally choose where to spend their money? Why do they buy from your competitors? Is it because of the quality of the product or service, the price, the location, the customer support, or just habit? What do they dislike about a certain company? What do they wish that company would provide? Would they consider buying from you? If not, why not? If they would, what incentive might win them over?

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Monday, February 18, 2013

ThebuddingEntrepreneurs through the bead making business. Olubunmi Ajayi, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Lussano Apparels, who now mentors Nianto Uniforms in the business of garment making, was in Laide’s office to place orders for beads. “My mentor is a wonderful woman. She has never kept anything away from me. She is always willing to reveal every secret about the trade to me. I met her when she came to my office to ask me to make beads for her, and she has been very wonderful ever since”. Incidentally too, Olaide’s first client came to attend her training in bead making when she discovered that she was planning to resign her employment in the bank to run a school business. “I only told her that I can make her uniforms, and she gave me the opportunity to showcase what l can do. And today, by the grace of God, she has remained our client, and our businesses are growing together”. From a humble beginning, Nianto Uniforms, which specialises in making uniform for corporate organisations and public sector establishments among others, have more than 30 clients on its list. At the moment, the company, which is located at Ogba in Lagos State, boasts of about 20 Industrial Machines with 20 regular staff. At the beginning, however, Laide was the only staff of Nianto Uniforms, toiling all alone to make all the garments. Bogged down by pressure and the realisation that the business could not thrive all alone, she decided to rest the business for a while, until after she realised that it has to run as a company to flourish. But that did not begin until March 2008.

Expectedly, starting-up was not a bed of roses for Nianto Uniforms. As at the time the firm fully took off in 2008, Olaide could hardly afford to buy even regular machines. She revealed that but for financial assistance from relatives and friends; Nianto Uniforms would not have become a reality today. “I couldn’t get the fund to buy machines after l left Vicky. But fortunately, a lady was relocating from the country then, and I seized the opportunity to buy some of her machines. It was a lot of money but we borrowed money and we paid later. It was my first industrial machine. I bought and I kept it,” she said. He husband, she confessed, has been a key sponsor of Nianto Uniforms as he helped to fast track the process of setting up the business by helping the company to acquire the necessary equipment. “When I wanted to start the uniform busi-

Check public filings The nature of many businesses requires that companies disclose information to government agencies. Such disclosures are required to undertake public offerings, receive building permits, and register for patents or trademarks, and more. Many of those filings are public record and contain information about the company’s goals, strategies, and technologies. If you’re in such a business, you had to do this; so did your competition. Much of this information is public, and you’re entitled to see it. This can be a treasure trove of information about your competitors and about your market in general Attend industry conferences and trade shows Attending conferences and trade shows is one of the best ways to get to know your competition and the nature of your business on a larger scale. Your competitors’ representatives will be pounding their chests about their firms’ products or services. Take advantage of the opportunity to familiarize yourself with their product offerings and strategies, and how they sell themselves. What they are focusing on, and what they are not advertising? What new product or service are they pushing? Assess the competition’s goals The tactics that your competitors employ can be a good sign of their goals. A competitor trying to increase its market share might lower prices; a firm attempting to increase profits may cut costs; and a business that wants to accelerate sales growth might kick off a major marketing campaign. If you know your competitors’ goals, you’ll be better able to anticipate and respond to their strategies. Be aware of the potential for new competition There’s a good chance that a lot of other people are trying to meet the need your business is trying to meet at the same time. This is especially true if you start a business in an emerging market. A national chain may not have entered your region yet -- but what if it does? Likewise, companies that don’t currently compete with yours might shift their focus and pit themselves against your firm. You need to be ever vigilant and alert to other companies stealing your business and preventing your company from thriving Don’t delegate job of keeping up with competitors There are many jobs that it makes sense to delegate or hire out; keeping up with the competition is not one of them. This is too important. You might appoint someone to work with you on the task, doing research, tracking information, even brainstorming. But as the entrepreneur, you’re the one with the motivation, the knowledge, and the ultimate responsibility for understanding and acting upon information about the competition BC

ness, my husband sponsored me, and we were able to acquire some machines from some Chinese that were selling all sorts of fabric machines then. The funding was basically from my husband. My husband has really been supportive and he is also interested in the business. He can look at you now and tell you what size of shirt you should put on,” she said. Curiously, Laide has never borrowed from any bank, and it does not appear she is ready to look in that direction in the years ahead. However, like many other business owners in Nigeria, Nianto Uniforms has many challenges confronting it. “It has not been very rosy. Our number one problem is power as you can’t run any industrial machine without electricity. All our machines are industrial except for a staff that has refused to improve on himself who has continued to use the regular sewing machine. Getting fabrics for our clients has also been a bit challenging. There was a particular fabric which required a month for us to source. This is perhaps, because, we still go to the open market to buy our fabrics for now as we have not yet attained the level of importing fabrics direct from abroad”, she confessed. Besides the challenges of power, sourcing of fabrics among others, the biggest one for the Nanto Uniform which also is peculiar to the industry in which it operates is manpower. “These tailors are wonderful people but they can be very difficult to manage”, she said. In spite of this, however, she has devised the means to manage her staff for effective service delivery. She told Business Courage that her secret was to come down to the level of her workers. “What I do to keep them is coming down to their level. I take them as my own. They have free access to my office and we discuss personal issues as it regards their welfare and the company in general”. Since knowledge is germane to performance, she is not leaving any stone unturned to seek fresh information that will help promote the growth of the business. She has attended various refresher courses to update her knowledge. Notwithstanding the challenges militating against the growth of businesses in Nigeria, Nianto Uniforms believe they can reach the top. Her dream for the business in the next five years is to have a factory of her own and create employment for more Nigerians. Besides, she hopes to expand the scope of the business as she diversifies into events management. “In the next five years, I see myself in my own factory, which will be a three storey building. The ground floor of that building will be an Event Centre for people who need space to let for social events. We hope to have increased the number of staff in our factory to over 100 tailors with about 120 Industrial Machines to make uniforms in commercial quantity. “Sam & Sarah is our mirror, l know one day we will catch up with them and probably surpass them”, she added. BC

Personal Finance Tips on building a strong franchise

here are countless franchises that have failed due to fundamental mistakes in their franchising models. Their failures are an advantage to you because you can now learn from all the mistakes they have made. The following are tips to build a strong franchise. 1. Make sure your business is making money. Nobody will buy your franchise if it doesn’t make money. By selling your idea, you are ensuring “repeatability”, which leads to profitability. People should be able to copy your business because it is making money. If your business is not profitable, then you should fix that before even thinking about franchising. 2. Study your competitors. It is very important to know who is in the playing field with you. You should keep an eye on what their strengths and weaknesses are. This will allow you to stand apart from the crowd. 3. Make sure there is a market for your product/services. Conduct market research to see whether there is a demand for what you are selling. Prospective franchisees want to know that there will always be a steady market for the product/service. 4. Build a strong management team. Leadership is very important when it comes to building a successful franchise model. Your management team should consist of both qualified managers and consultants that have a strong knowledge of your industry. They should also have knowledge of unique business and legal aspects of franchising. 5. Secure your trademarks, service marks, and other intellectual property. Your success lies largely in your ability to distinguish yourself from competitors-to promise customers an experience they can’t get anywhere else. That’s why it is crucial to take the legal steps necessary to protect your trademarks, service marks, trade secrets, copyrights, business methods, process patents, and more. 6. Ensure that you have a solid buffer of money. It is very important to make sure that you’re well capitalized. Franchising often requires more capital than people expect. Whether you’re merely starting off, or in the final stages, making sure you are well funded is critical. It’s unwise to think that you will start making tons of profit in your first year. Royalty income will be minimal, and much of the income from franchise fees will be reinvested in training, marketing, and paying down debt. 7. Set up effective reporting and record-keeping systems. This helps you routinely evaluate the performance of your franchisees and ensures that royalties are reported accurately and paid promptly. 8. Establish a comprehensive marketing program. Franchisees will look to you for local, regional, and national marketing campaigns that increase sales. These campaigns should be based on the measurable successes of your own marketing programs. Your campaigns will be aimed at customers, of course, and also at new prospective franchisees, so you can keep your business growing. BC

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Business Courage

Monday, February 18, 2013

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Is cybercafe still profitable? Internet business centres, otherwise called cybercafés, may be gradually losing its appeal, no thanks to the ubiquitous internet services via the mobile phones. But can the influx of Smartphones really send cyber cafes into extinction? By Adejuwon Osunnuyi

few years ago, it was regarded as a money-spinning business for most of its proprietors, even as it serves as a very dependable source for most people who desire access to the internet. Cybercafé, a business centre where people pay to use the internet via desktop computers or in few cases, the laptops, are as ubiquitous as the number of people that can afford to set them up. Largely, the need for cyber cafes was on the high demand as not many could afford the high cost of access to the internet. As a matter of fact, students, professionals and even artisans, all pay ‘visits’ to the cafes regularly. Serving as another major means of generating employments, with just about five to 20 internet enabled-computer systems, names like Mega Cafe, True Internet, Fast Internet among others are scattered around major cities and towns in the country. Kunle Kukoyi, chief executive officer of Adtech Technologies is one of the people that have made significant earnings running cyber cafes. After an unfruitful job search, he, with the help of a relative settled down to run a cyber cafe business. Aside the fact that he gets good returns as a result of high patronage, the joy of being an employer of labour also gives him great satisfaction. However, sadly, the reality is that today, most of the cafes are closed while many others that are yet to do so are more or less tottering, counting their losses as a result of dwindling patronage. While several reasons have been offered for the failure of these enterprises, the influx of mobile phones and mobile internet technologies available today is perhaps, the major contributory factor. Basically, many of those who used to patronise the cafes seem not to be having any reason to do so again, as they now have access to the internet via their mobile phones. Nowadays, aside the proliferation of the highly-sought-after Smartphones like blackberry, Iphone,

Ipad and other internet enabled phones including the famous China phones, cheaper second hand or cloned computers have made the business of cyber cafes unprofitable as against what they used to be few years back. Also, the competition in the telecom industry has also led the telecom firms, in trying to out-do one another, have being offering cheap modems and internet access. Traders at the popular Computer Village, Ikeja Lagos, even now offer software that enables free internet access on laptops and mobile phones. For instance, when Business Courage requested from some people about when last they visited a cybercafé, one of the respondents, Paul Essien, a graphic artist said he does most of his internet browsing anywhere he goes on his phone. In the same vein, Clement Agugoesi, a computer engineer recalled that unlike in 2000 and 2001 when he used to go to cyber cafe, pay money to check his yahoo email, with high enthusiasm, now, he admits that, like many others, he browse the internet on mobile phones. “I also use laptop. I have not gone to a cyber cafe for over a year now,” he admitted. Lamenting his loss in recent time, Igohama Ebosetale, a cafe operator said that cyber cafe owners like him are very disappointed at the way things are turning out. “I am also running a cyber cafe. Five years ago, in my cafe, everywhere is always filled up but now, as you can see, it is always empty. In fact, the way I am looking at things, I am going to close my cafe as it is no longer lucrative. It is not only me; many other cafe owners are also doing the same,” he told the magazine last week. While mobile browsing is fast displacing cyber cafes, a quick glance at the traffic metrics website, Alexa.com reveals that the most visited websites in recent time have been Facebook, twitter, Yahoo, Google, YouTube, Live.com, Wikipedia, MSN, BBC. Basically, while the email used to be the most popular online activity in this part of the world, but social networking websites seem to be taking the lead. What is more interesting is

that, all the most popular websites have mobile versions. Typing facebook.com into a mobile web browser for example, automatically redirects one to a mobile version of the popular social networking website. The mobile websites are strippeddown versions but offer a lot of functionality, in a layout small enough to fit into tiny mobile phone screens. It is thus now common place to find people get busy with chatting, twittering, reading the news and more, from their mobile phones. With the increase in the Smartphones market, there is no doubt that Smartphones, as industry experts noted, are raising the stakes and pushing more possibilities into users’ hands, literally. For instance, the smartphone now have enough processing power to stream high-definition video and enough memory to download and store databases of music, photos and videos from the Internet. Most smartphones come with full QWERTY keyboards and thus making typing a pleasure as emailing, blogging, chatting can now be done virtually anywhere. Many industry analysts believe that cybercafé patronage

Bateson

in the country would continue to decline in favour of individual subscription as telecommunications operators continue to roll out cheaper and innovative broadband internet services. Ross Bateson, spokesperson for the Global System for Mobile Communication Association

(GSMA) noted that only 44 percent of users accessed the internet from a cybercafé in 2010 down from 82 percent in 2008, as workplace, home and mobile usage increased. “Cyber usage is declining in favour of individual subscription”, he said. Some analysts admit that this might have translated into revenue loss for operators of cybercafes and job loss for those who work in those places. An analyst who prefers anonymity believes the bulk of telecoms revenue was expected to come from mobile broadband and data services in the next few years. To this effect, he said mobile network operators are paying keen attention to data (internet) services as the new revenue generating stream. Zoom Mobile lend credence to this recently while announcing its re-entry into Nigeria’s telecommunications market. It said that it is now focusing primarily on data services. Chief Executive Offi cer of the company, Edwin Momife said in Lagos at the re-launch of the brand that while the voice business had become saturated, affecting revenue of operators, it has to an extent been making data services next growth opportunity for Telcos. Momife who observed that by 2016, there will be over 80

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million internet connections in Nigeria, said that “Smartphones, very soon, will get into the hands of ‘maiguards’; it will not be the exclusive preserve of the rich forever. But the prevalence of the mobile internet, notwithstanding, there are those who believe the business of cafes cannot be out-rightly phased out by mobile phones. According to them, all the cafes need to do is change their business model as time changes. Kukoyi noted, no matter what, people would still have the need to patronise the cafes. According to him, “phones don’t offer printing, binding, copying, faxing, games and big screens, competitions against friends, Karaoke e.t.c. So, with these needs still in place, the need to have the cafes around is still very much indispensable.” To stay in business, Kukoyi said what most cafe owners should try as much as possible to complement the cafe with a business centre, a game centre and a computer training centre which include learning centre on typing, Microsoft programmes computer courses. “Cafe business is seasonal like most businesses but with very little profit. The bulk of your profit goes into power and ISPs, the more speed required by you,

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Monday, February 18, 2013

the more you pay the ISPs. But, I have a policy, don’t ever close a struggling business, instead, try to sustain it by adding some other services.” According to him, “Almost all my customers own a laptop and MTN, Glo or Starcomms modern, yet, they always come

back to the cafe. The reason is that, not all of them have spiral binding machine, photocopy machine, ink or toner, scanner in one place. At least, something must bring them in, hence, modification is necessary.” Unlike many who are likely to blame their dwindling fortune on the ruinous cost of diesel, Odunayo Abiodun, another cafe operator said the problem with Nigeria and Nigerians when it comes to business is that nobody wants to think outside the box. “Everybody wants to do what Tom, Joystick and Harry is doing,” he noted. Cyber Cafe, he says, is still a profitable business in Nigeria for two reasons. According to him, “It will take a long time before there is light in Nigeria and it will take a long time for everyone in Nigeria to have internet access in their home. So if you open a cyber cafe in Nigeria, it will be profitable.” “Cyber isn’t the only business witnessing lull. Please we shouldn’t discourage people who need to start somewhere. It’s true that setting up Cybers are easier these days as the monthly rentals have even eased off too.” “Everyone has a gas cooker or a kerosene stove and yet we all still go to eateries or bukas? It’s not about the business not being lucrative, it’s about service being poor in so many cyber cafes. Slow download speed cramped and uncomfortable spaces etc, if I had the time to set up, I know it would make a lot of money. I have two 24 hour modems in my home, a blackberry subscription and yet, if I found a very fast cybercafe where could download at speeds of say 1MB per sec, I would go there and pay the price to download my large files of 7gb plus,” said Michael Adebayo. BC

Technotips

How to stop hackers from your network

nethical hackers are always looking for weaker points in a network system to hack the security system of your company and get hold of confidential and new information. Some such “black-hat hackers” derive a vicarious pleasure from wreaking havoc on security systems and some hackers do it for money. Whatever may be the reason, malicious hackers are giving nightmares to companies and organizations of almost all sizes. Especially, large corporate houses, banks, financial institutions, security establishments are favourite targets for hackers. However, this menace can be prevented to a great extent if proper security measures like those discussed below are taken at the right time.

*Change default password Some software has built-in password to allow the first log in after installation; it is extremely unwise to leave it unchanged. *Identify entry points Install proper scanning software programs to identify all entry points from the internet into the internal network of the company. Any attack to the network needs to start from these points. Identifying these entry points however is not at all an easy task. It is better to take the help of skilled ethical hackers who have taken special network security training to perform this task successfully. *Perform attack and penetration tests By running the attack and penetration tests, you can identify those vulnerable points in the network that can be easily accessed from both external and internal users. After identifying these points, you would be able to thwart attacks from external sources and correct the pitfalls that could become the entry points for intruders to hack into your network. The test must be done from both the internal as well as external perspectives to detect all the vulnerable points. *Configure firewalls A firewall if not configured properly can act like an open door for any intruder. Hence, it is vitally important to set the rules to allow traffic through the firewall that is important to the business. A firewall must have its own configurations depending upon the security aspect of your organization. From time to time proper analysis of the composition and nature of the traffic itself is also necessary to maintain security. *Implement and use password policies Use strong password policies by having passwords of seven characters which are of secure length and relatively easy to remember. Passwords must be changed in every 60 days. The password should also be made up of both alpha and numeric characters to make it more unique. *Use password-less authentication Regardless of the policies above, passwords are less secure than SSH or VPN keys so think about using these or similar technologies instead. Where possible, use smart cards and other advanced methods. *Delete comments in website source code Comments used in source code may contain indirect information that can help to crack the site, sometimes even usernames and passwords. All the comments in source code that look inaccessible to external users should also be removed as there are some techniques to view the source code of nearly all web applications. *Remove unnecessary services from devices You will not be dependent on reliability of the modules you actually do not use. *Remove default, test and example pages and applications that usually come with web server software. They may be a weak point to attack and as they are the same in many system the cracking experience can be easily reused. *Install anti-virus software Both intrusion detection systems and anti-virus software must be updated regularly and if possible on a daily basis. The updated version of anti-virus software is necessary as it helps in detecting even the latest virus. BC

Momife

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Business Courage

Glo introduces new pocket-friendly tariff plans Stories by Adejuwon Osuunuyi

lobacom has introduced five new subscriberfriendly tariff plans targeted at its prepaid customers. The telecom company said the new plans, Hi-Flyer and Talkfree have been introduced to address the needs of high value voice and data subscribers while the new G-Bam, new Infinito and new Gista which already exist, have been repackaged to offer more value to customers. Elaborating on the new tariff plans, Globacom’s Coordinator, Marketing, Adeniyi Olukoya said that the new tariffs will deliver more value to subscribers on the network. “Whether they spend more on calls or data, these new tariff plans will deliver more value as subscribers can make calls within the network for as low as 5k/sec and international calls for as low as 15k/ sec”, he said. Olukoya explained that subscribers on the Talkfree plan will enjoy 150 free minutes and 150 free SMS monthly while Glo-to-Glo calls on the plan will be at 15k/sec and calls to other networks will be at the rate of 18k/sec. To enjoy the fantastic Talkfree rates subscribers will pay a monthly subscription fee of N1,000 only. With the Hi-Flyer plan, customers who subscribe to any data plan from 200MB and above will enjoy calls to all networks at 18k/sec. Under this plan, the customers will enjoy the best data usage, unrivalled customer experience and flat calling rates to all networks. The new G-Bam tariff allows subscribers to call five loved ones at 5k/sec and call all networks at 18k/sec. Subscribers will also get 5M B free data daily to check their

Mike Adenuga, Globacom CEO

mails, browse Facebook, tweet and do other things on the internet after paying a subscription fee of N5 per day. “This rate is the best in the market as staying in touch with loved ones has never been cheaper”, Olukoya said. He also stated that the new Infinito tariff gives subscribers the benefit of keeping in touch with 10 loved ones on the Glo network at just 10k/sec. Subscribers on the tariff can also call other Glo customers at 20k/sec and other networks at the rate of 30k/sec. He explained further that with the new Glo Gista tariff, subscribers can make on-net calls at the rate of 15k/sec while calls to other networks will be at the rate of 30k/sec after the 1st minute of the day at 40k/sec. For all these new plans coming from the stables of Globacom, customers will enjoy international calls to the USA , UK (fixed), Canada , China and India at 15k/sec after the 1st minute at 25k/sec. In addition, they will enjoy 35 hours of free night calls every week. Olukoya said that the new plans are introduced in order to offer more choices and deliver more value to new and existing Glo subscribers who register for these special tariffs on the prepaid platform. “With these new pocketfriendly rates, we expect our subscribers to take advantage of the wider choices now available and freely connect with their family and friends without being worried about high tariffs and huge data costs”, Olukoya added.

Etisalat’s Easywallet awarded best Mobile Money SIM application

tisalat’s Easywallet has been recognized as the ‘Best Mobile Money SIM Application’ by the grand jury of the Kalahari Mobile Money Africa

Monday, February 18, 2013

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Ammar

at the Third Mobile Money Expo Conference held at Oriental Hotel, Lagos last weekend. The Kalahari awards decided by an independent panel of experts are given to firms with significant contribution to the mobile financial sector and are likely to disrupt the market in the near future. The judges explained that this innovative commerce application by Etisalat Nigeria received the highest nomination for the Mobile Money awards and is built as a foundation for future innovative services across different channels. Easywallet by Nigeria’s most innovative telecommunications company, Etisalat Nigeria, is the first fully secured Mobile Money SIM Application for mobile money payments and transfers, offered to customers with the easywallet application installed on their SIM cards. Wael Ammar, Etisalat’ Chief Commercial Officer, said: “We cherish every award we receive, and this particular one represents a powerful recognition from the mobile money Africa community and demonstrates the support we have received from our partnership with leading Nigerian banks. This award also demonstrates Etisalat’s commitment to bring mobile money closer to our current and potential customers and drive the CBN’s Cashless policy by growing the use of Mobile payments and making it easy to use”. Etisalat’s Easywallet is a unique application which supports multiple languages - English, Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba and works across all makes and models of phones, smartphones and even tablet devices. Easywallet is compliant with all industry standards such as ISO-1 and guarantees adequate protection of customer information while carrying out mobile financial transactions across multiple Mobile Money schemes. Easywallet is currently working on an arrangement to include Paga, a mobile money operator as one of the accounts available on its application. The service currently has GT Bank mobile money, First Bank First Monie,

Zenith Bank and Stanbic Bank on the platform. Mobile Money Expo 2013 brings together top executives from mobile network operators, Banks, regulators, systems and application providers. This event showcased case studies on mobile payments, cards, micro finance and technologies driving mobile financial services adoption in Africa. The two-day conference tagged “Promoting Inter-operability” was aimed at Providing a platform for stakeholders to share experiences in all domain areas of mobile financial services covering regulation, technology, application, marketing, customer relationships, agency network and other innovative practices that will improve adoption of mobile financial services for shopping, remittances, micro finance, social payments and others.

has not been doing well in the smartphone space. UTV’s Indiagames offers more than 750 games across a variety of genres and Cricket, Casual, Bollywood and Action came out in front as the most popular genres. The top ten games made by Indiagames with respect to downloads on the Nokia Store include – DLF IPL 2012, Ra. One Genesis, Aladdin the new adventure, Monster Truck Dash, Phineas & Ferb, Cricket Fever Challenge, UP, Cars 2, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Lion King returns. Speaking on the feat, Vishal Gondal, Managing Director-Digital, Disney UTV said; “We are absolutely thrilled at crossing 200 million downloads on a single platform. This result clearly shows consumers love our content and the ability to immerse themselves in their favorite character or stories. These results charge our teams to continue to offer the best in mobile gaming to our users”. “The Nokia Store has gained prominence in the OEM stores market and has opened avenues for game development companies worldwide”, he added. Gerard Rego, Head Developer Experience, Nokia India said, “We are very excited at DisneyUTV Indiagames’ achievement of crossing the 200 million download mark on the Nokia Store. For a generation that is crazy about gaming, they have

Nokia store records over 200 million downloads

okia app store’s popularity has continued to soar as Disney UTV has revealed that its Indiagames app development house has crossed 200 million downloads on the Nokia Store. Seen as setting a new benchmark in the app world, this has been an incredible feat considering the fact that it had just crossed the 100 million downloads figure only nine months ago. Disney UTV’s Indiagames is the first company in the world to reach this milestone on the Nokia Store. Downloads were recorded from countries right around the world, with the top 10 countries being India, Brazil, Vietnam, Mexico, Indonesia, Turkey, Thailand, Pakistan, Russian Federation and Saudi Arabia. This figure represents the might of Nokia’s low-cost devices that still rule the roost in emerging markets and developed markets like the US are not included considering Nokia

Rego

been able to capture the right audience with just the content they need – be it cricket, bollywood or action. The novelty that they bring with their apps ensures the best gaming experience for all. Our Asha range of devices are offering many consumers their first internet experience and spurring data consumption. Success of DisneyUTV Indiagames’ portfolio on Nokia Store is a testimony to the fact that consumers across price points aspire for superior experiences on their devices.” BC

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Business Courage A17 33

Monday, February 18, 2013

Reflections with Semiu Salamii 07043280449 sms only

One budget, many hiccups L

ast year, when the National Assembly passed the 2013 Appropriation Bill, the feat was celebrated as a milestone which had for years, eluded Nigeria’s budgeting process. Since the advent of the current democratic dispensation in 1999, the 2013 budget was indeed, the first to be passed before the commencement of the budgeting year. Others before it had been bogged down both by late presentation by the executive arm and delayed passage by the legislators. So, it was understandable, when President Goodluck Jonathan was applauded for presenting the budget in October 2012 and the speed with which the National Assembly passed the bill about two months thereafter. However, that the budget was passed in December 2012 did not totally exclude the usual executive/ legislative brickbat that has for long remained a major sour point in our budgeting process as a nation. The first hiccup faced by the budget has to do with determining the appropriate crude oil benchmark, since Nigeria’s major earnings is predicated largely on the price of crude in the international market. While the executive pegged the crude oil price at N75 per barrel, the lawmakers insisted on a N79

benchmark and several months after the budget was presented, the issue of crude oil benchmark became the major sour point. However, as the lawmakers settled down for the budget consideration, the argument over what benchmark to be adopted simmered or so it seemed. Throughout the time the budget debate lasted, there was no significant area of discord to suggest that the final document will ultimately become a subject of intense controversy. Unfortunately, that seems to be the fate that has befallen the 2013 Appropriation Bill whose passage in December 2012 was heralded by pomp. The first sign that all may not be well with the passed budget started with the controversy over whether or not the budget had been transmitted to the Presidency or it was still with the National Assembly about a month after it was passed. As it became obvious much later, the National Assembly only transmitted the clean copy to the president on January 22, 2013. Naturally, no one expect Mr. President to append his signature just like that, especially when there are initial areas of conflict. Constitutionally, the President has up to 30 days after the budget was passed

and transmitted to him to either assent his signature or reject and return it to the National Assembly. Now, by my calculations, the constitutionally allowed 30 day grace has expired and the budget has neither been signed nor is it officially returned to the lawmakers. What has even made the issue of the 2013 budget rather strange is the way the whole issue about it is been shrouded in secrecy by both arms of government, thus giving room for intense speculations. About two weeks ago, some of the opposition lawmakers in the House of Representatives were the first to blow the lid over the troubled budget when they threatened to veto the president if he fails to sign the budget. They alleged that the budget has indeed, been returned to the lawmakers, the statement which was almost immediately countered by some principal officers of the National Assembly and the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). From information available, the 2013 Appropriation Bill passed by the lawmakers is currently being subjected to “structural adjustment.” The aim of the “restructuring,” it was learnt has to do with the need to ensure that the government’s plans to leverage the fiscal consolidation successes in the

past two years are not jeopardized. If information flittering in is anything to go by, substantial portion of the Bill may have been returned to the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), preparatory to government’s possible modification and re-presentation to the National Assembly for reconsideration. This is where my challenge lies, in the event that the modification which the presidency is working out is not in alignment with the bill passed by the National Assembly, will the document be represented to the lawmakers for ratification again? Should that happen, will the lawmakers be disposed to the process of going through the document again, even if it is just based on the executive’s comments and recommendations? Clearly, we seem to be getting back to the path we are trying to avoid initially, which is the consistent failure of successive administration in the country to achieve improved budget performance. Issues bothering on poor implementation of the 2012 budget had almost soiled the legislative/executive relationship in the early stage of the presentation of the 2013 budget. Now, with the first quarter of the year already running out, the tendency that the 2013 budget if it is eventually signed and its implementation commences will be better that those before it is very distant. Why do we always like moving in a circle as a nation? BC

The Stock Market last week

turnover of 4.249 billion shares worth N23.177 billion in 39,391 deals were transacted last week on the floor of The Exchange in contrast to a total of 3.572 billion shares valued at N24.692 billion that exchanged hands the previous week in 39,321 deals. The Financial Services sector continued its dominance as the most active during the week, contributing 76.53 per cent, 61.87 per cent, 60.51 per cent to the total equity turnover volume, value and number of trades respectively in 3.252 billion shares valued at N14.339 billion exchanged hands by investors in 23,835 deals. Unity Bank Plc from the Banking subsector, International Energy Insurance Company Plc and Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc of Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services subsector of the Financial Services sector was the most active during the week (measured by turnover volume). Trading in the shares of the three equities accounted for 888.791 million shares worth N700.617 million in 2,634 TOP TEN PRICE GAINERS

deals, representing 27.33 per cent and 20.92 per cent of the turnover volume recorded by the sector and total turnover for the week, respectively. The Conglomerates sector followed with a total turnover volume of 363.527 million shares worth N964.618 million in 2,053 deals. Similar to the previous week, volume in the sector was largely driven by the shares of Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc with a turnover volume of 355.103 million shares valued at N698.511 million in 1,610 deals. Also traded during the week were 339 units of NewGold Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) valued at N854,813 exchanged hands in 6 deals in contrast to a total of 539 units valued at N1.382 million transacted last week in four deals. In addition, 6,460 units of FGN bonds valued at N7.970 million were traded during the week in 21 deals. However, there were no transactions in the State/ Local Government Bonds and Corporate Bonds/Debentures sectors. See details TOP TEN PRICE LOSERS

below: Index Movement The NSE All-Share Index depreciated by 55.04 points or 0.17 per cent to close on Friday at 33,258.45. Also, the market capitalization of the listed equities depreciated by 0.15 per cent to close at N10.643 trillion. Three of the NSE sectorial indices depreciated: Bloomberg NSE 30, Bloomberg NSE Consumer Goods and Bloomberg NSE Banking by 3.81 per cent, 3.22 per cent and 4.40 per cent respectively, while Bloomberg NSE Insurance, Bloomberg NSE Oil/ Gas and NSE Lotus II appreciated by 4.19 per cent, 1.22 per cent and 6.03 per cent, respectively. The table below summarizes the movements in the NSE indices: Summary of Price Changes A review of the equity price movements indicated that 51 equities gained while 42 equities recorded price declines

and 104 equities remained constant. When compared with the preceding week, 73 equities gained while 18 equities recorded price declines and 106 equities remained constant Report on the OTC Market for FGN Bonds A turnover of 172.416 million units valued at N204.576 billion in 1,005 deals were recorded last week in contrast to 152.116 million units worth N174.109 billion in 912 deals recorded in the preceding week ended February 8th, 2013. BC

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Business Courage

Monday, February 18, 2013

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Behind d Wheels This page is open to sponsorship

2014 Mazda6: Simply intelligently T

he 2014 model is goodlooking and packed with innovation, but more importantly, it shows that Mazda knows how to design a car Fully updated with a fresh design, a new engine and a suite of modern technologies, the 2014 Mazda Mazda6 is aiming to make a splash in one of the market’s most competitive segments: full-size sedans, the traditional family car. That’s important for Mazda, because though the company is a perennial darling for enthusiasts, in the past it’s had some difficulty staying in the mainstream spotlight. Model line-up The next-generation Mazda6 will be produced in both sedan and wagon variants. The exterior design of the new model is a drastic revamp from its predecessor, a practice in stark contrast to Mazda’s competitors that ever so subtly massage their existing designs. Based on the brand’s Kodo design language, the new Mazda6 is at once unmistakably Mazda, thanks to signature elements such as the 5-point grille, and something entirely new, with a powerfully poised silhouette reminiscent of a Jaguar XF. It’s a highly stylized, eye-grabbing new appearance that is downright surprising for this segment. The new Mazda6 comes with a 4-cylinder SkyActiv engine, with a diesel option. This same SkyActiv classification is also applied to the chassis and body, both of which Mazda claim are designed for great efficiency. This isn’t hard to believe, because at 2,992 pounds, the new car is a whopping 337 pounds lighter than the current model. While this is all packed into a package that’s slightly smaller than its predecessor, it also is resting on a slightly longer wheelbase — an ideal layout for both driving dynamics and interior and storage space. Under the hood While the European 2014 Mazda6 range includes a 2.2-liter diesel and an entrylevel 2.0-liter gasoline engine, the latter will never make it

to the power-hungry buyers of the United States, because its outrageously high 14.1:1 compression ratio necessitates 91 octane. Instead, we’ll get the larger 2.5-liter 4-cylinder gasoline engine, which boasts direct injection and a still-crazyhigh 13.1:1 compression ratio. Pumping out 189 horsepower at 5700 rpm, it’s the most powerful SkyActiv mill to date, thanks largely to the extra half-liter of displacement. Matching this horsepower figure is a stout 189 lb-ft of torque, which peaks at 3250 rpm. Despite a fairly traditional design, clever engineering enables Mazda to achieve claimed fuel consumption figures solidly in the mid-30-mpg range. The 2.5-liter engine can be mated to a traditional 6-speed manual transmission with a typical Mazda short-throw shifter, or to an all-new 6-speed automatic. This new unit features a full lock-up clutch design that improves responsiveness, as well as paddle shifters and “kick down” throttle-pedal functionality. Both transmission options send power to the front wheels only. Also worth noting is the addition of Mazda’s new i-ELOOP system, which borrows some of the functionality of many hybrid vehicles by regenerating power through the vehicle’s braking system, enabling battery-free operation of the car’s electrical systems and improving overall efficiency. This capacitor-based system will be available as an option later in the model year. Inner space Like most cars in its segment, the Mazda6’s interior design doesn’t exactly push the envelope. Luckily, it still boasts a tremendously well-made interior, and despite a potentially overly mature design sense, it’s

rather attractive. As for features, the Mazda6 boasts a roster of expected specs suited to a high-quality modern sedan. This includes the obvious power equipment and a full array of available audio goodies, including an 11-speaker Bose system, USB and Bluetooth functionalities and steering wheel controls. Like many c a r s these

On the road There are some important impres-

days, the Mazda6 features two displays: a smaller one mounted in the instrument panel used for driver information, and a larger touch-screen system mounted high up on the dash for comfort, entertainment and navigation systems. Additionally, the new Mazda6 is packed to the brim with safety technology — available parking assistance and rearview camera systems, as well as front and rear collision detection and avoidance, radarbased adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning and so on. It’s fair to say it’s as loaded as anyone could ever expect.

sions to take away from the 2014 Mazda6. For starters, it feels great to drive, proving that Mazda isn’t just throwing around marketing buzzwords when it talks about a passion for driving. While many other manufacturers equate “sport” with extra badging or a different wheel design, Mazda really tries to build in sportiness from the ground up. Mazda6 has the same good steering as its siblings, a trait likely due to brilliant fine-tuning of the suspension — particularly the caster angle. Though the steering is a touch too light for our taste, it’s the best electric steering in this segment, with the possible exception of the Volkswagen Passat.

The Mazda6 is offered in three trim levels: Sport, Touring, and Grand Touring. The only engine choice is a 2.5-liter 184-hp, direct injection, SKYACTIV fourcylinder engine. Sport and Touring trims come standard with a six-speed manual transmission; a six-speed automatic is optional. On the Grand Touring trim the six-speed automatic is the only transmission offered. Available features, depending on trim level, include 19-inch wheels, HD radio, a eleven-speaker Bose audio system, blind spot monitoring system, an intelligent key system, a power moon roof, LED taillights, power heated leather seats, automatic climate control, and the convenience of Bluetooth. Standard safety features

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Monday, February 18, 2013

Behind d Wheels This page is open to sponsorship

designed include four-wheel anti-lock disc brakes with brake assist, electronic stability and traction control, a n d tire

pressure monitoring. For 2014, the Mazda6 has been completely redesigned with extensive use of SkyActiv technology, which focuses on improving fuel-efficiency. By the company’s own admission, the previous-generation 6 suffered a slight identity crisis at the hands of committee decisions and raging envy of roomier sedans. This time around, with virtually every model in the segment (the Nissan Altima, the Honda Accord, the Ford Fusion, the Chevrolet Malibu, to name a few) freshly redesigned and aiming for the top of the charts, Mazda has wisely chosen to go its own way—we’ll spare you the classic-rock metaphor on that one—with the 2014 Mazda 6 sedan, building precisely the car its engineers and product planners envisioned. According to Mazda, the 2.2-liter’s compression ratio of 14.0:1 is the world’s lowest in a

Autocare Improving your car fuel economy

production diesel engine. This enables the adoption of an allaluminium block, lighter engine components, and optimized combustion timing, that could make a run at dethroning VW’s TDI as the mass-market, family-sedan compression-ignition king. The direct-injected 2.5-liter, 16-valve Skyactiv gasoline engine performs with equal aplomb, exploiting its higherrpm capabilities to produce 189 hp at 5700 rpm. When called on to perform downshifts, the sixspeed auto responds smartly and delivers 189 ft-lb of torque at 3250 rpm, hustling the vehicle with relative ease. Only in the direct shadow of the diesel does the gasoline engine feel a little anaemic, and that’s primarily at low rpm. A balance shaft is employed to quell vibrations, and in contrast to the diesel, the gas engine features an ultra-high compression ratio for its engine type (in this case 13.0:1). Don’t tune out just yet, spendthrifts—Mazda says it will run fine on regular-grade fuel when it arrives here in the U.S.

compared with last year’s Mazda 6 self-shifter. Overall, the new transmission has been lightened and modified for less friction in pursuit of improved fuel economy. In use, it snicks from cog to cog smoothly and intuitively, with enough mechanical feel remaining that you don’t forget there’s a box full of gears on the other end. The electrically assisted steering is nothing if not consistent; from lock-to-lock, it responds in a perfectly linear fashion that makes navigating long sweepers a joy. Mazda engineers say they placed their primary focus on initial turn-in and self-centering when honing the steering, and they redesigned the steering knuckle to improve component rigidity without, they say, compromising other characteristics. Braking displays similarly well-balanced characteristics, with pedal travel directly commensurate with the vehicle’s speed reduction. Top-of-pedal response is crisp, and you can dial in the desired rate of deceleration with precision.

Engineering Is Believing Calibrated for linear, easy-tocontrol application, the throttle enables smooth getaways in both manual- and automaticequipped cars. There’s a kick down detent in the accelerator pedal’s travel at about 95 per cent; hold steady or back off slightly, and the transmission will stay in the current gear. It’s great for maintaining speed around increasing-radius or blind corners. Of course, one could just engage manual mode and select gears with the shifter or wheel-mounted paddles, but we’ll take increased vehicle control however we can get it. The manual gearbox is said to have been tuned with the Miata’s in mind. According to Mazda, the throws are shortened slightly and shifter length reduced by almost two inches

Animal Instincts According to Mazda, the new 6 is the purest expression yet of the brand’s Kodo design language. Compared with the androgynous styling of most cars in its segment, the 6’s aggressive fascia and front fender bulges look positively butch, and its profile displays more character lines. The 6 is the first Mazda to incorporate LEDs and a halo ring into the headlamp units, and both add an upmarket air. The styling theme continues inside, with most lines sweeping rearward. Generous applications of soft-touch plastics accent a clean, fairly minimalist cabin that we rather like. An eight-way-adjustable driver’s seat makes finding the optimal driving position a cinch. Rearseat passengers benefit from extra knee- and foot room made possible by thinner front seatbacks and widened openings under the front seats. A trio of round gauges (the rightmost is an info screen) appears front and centre in traditional fashion. In addition to the 11-speaker Bose audio (standard systems are slated to feature either four or six speakers), Bluetooth connectivity, and the usual assortment of iPod, USB, and aux inputs, the big technology news for the new 6 is Pandora integration. BC

hese days when pump price of petrol has remained sky bound, coupled with difficulties encountered in getting the commodity, it is important for car owners to seek out ways of improving their car’s fuel efficiency to maximise the number of kilometres they get from a full tank of petrol. Other than shopping around to find the best deal at the pumps, drivers often feel that their hands are tied when it comes to the high cost of petrol. However, there are plenty of changes you can make to driving habits to help your car run more efficiently – scroll down to see our top nine fuel economy tips.

Drive less, walk more It’s as obvious as it sounds, but the best way to save on petrol costs is to only use your car when you really need to. The best way to start is by leaving the car at home for short trips and walking, cycling or using public transport instead. Check your tyres Make sure your tyres are inflated to the recommended level – research has shown that car owners waste huge sum on excess fuel by driving with under-inflated tyres. Wear the right shoes Driving in heels or big, heavy shoes reduces the sensitivity needed to operate the accelerator. Wear a pair of thin-soled shoes to gain better control over how hard you accelerate and how gently you brake, both of which improve fuel economy and safety. Lighten the load Cut down on excess weight in your car by removing any heavy items from your boot before setting off. Take off bike and roof racks when you’re not using them in order to help reduce wind resistance. Stick to speed limits The faster you drive, the greater the fuel consumption and pollution. Research shows that driving at 70mph uses up to nine per cent more fuel than at 60mph and up to 15 per cent more than at 50mph, while whizzing around at 80mph can use up to 25 per cent more fuel than at 70mph. Drive slower and more steadily Driving fast increases drag on your car and the amount of petrol you’ll have to use. Avoiding rapid accelerating and braking is also one of the best ways to save petrol – smooth accelerating, steering, and braking reduces energy lost through suspension movement. Don’t leave the engine running If it’s safe to do so, turn your engine off when you’re caught in traffic, stopped or parked. Many drivers often like to ‘warm up’ the engine before setting off. This can waste petrol and cause damage to the engine, making it best avoided. Limit the air-con Air-conditioning can increase fuel consumption at low speeds, but at higher speeds the effects are less noticeable. Open the windows when it’s hot and save the air conditioning for motorway driving – having the windows open all the time increases aerodynamic drag, so you’ll waste more petrol. Care for your car Take care of your car by making sure it’s well-maintained and serviced regularly to ensure the engine is running as efficiently as possible. It also pays to check you’re using the right specification of engine oil. BC

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Business Courage

Experts back NSE’s sanction over late filing of results

ome experts in Nigeria’s capital market have applauded the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) over the recent fines imposed on 31 companies that failed to meet the timing requirements for the filing of their financial results. The NSE requires quoted companies to submit their quarterly or annual reports no later than 90 days after the end of the relevant period. Rotimi Akinwale of Citi Securities Limited (CSL) was of the opinion that the NSE action was aimed at improving the capital market performance. According to him: “We believe that this is an example of the NSE’s improving regulatory oversight and a new stringency in ensuring regulatory compliance which follows the appointment of new management two years ago. “We believe that this approach is important as the NSE seeks to deepen the capital market and attract capital inflows. He noted that as part of its broad objectives, the NSE was targeting a market capitalisation level of $1 trillion by 2016. David Adonri, Chief Executive Officer of Lamberth Investment Limited, noted that the rules and regulation guiding the industry must be enforced by the exchange in order to achieve its objectives. He explained that such measures

Adonri

were taken by the NSE to instil discipline in the market and to check mate future occurrence, adding that the fine should be applauded. He called on shareholders to question such fine at the annual general meetings and also prevail on the companies to submit their financial report on time, adding that shareholders are the owners of the companies and as such must be concern on how their monies are spent whether wisely or wrongly. BC

share. Cadbury dropped N1.29 to close at N37.28 while Total lost N1 to close at N137.01 per share. Conversely, Nestle topped the gainers’ chart, increasing by N5.08 to close at N835.23 per share. It was trailed by Glaxo Smithkline with a gain of N2.62 to close at N55.09, while Unilever gained N2.50 to close at N49.50 per share. Nigerian Breweries appreciated by N1.99 to close at N163.99, while NCR gained 79k to close at N16.75 per share. GTBank was the toast of investors, accounting for 62.58 million shares worth N1.56 billion traded in 361 deals, followed by Resort Savings and Loans, with a total of 43 million shares valued at N21.5 million exchanged in two deals, while Japaul Oil came third accounting for 39.84 million shares worth N39.004 million traded in 311 deals. BC

SEC to boost investment options with REITs

s part of efforts to deepen the Nigeria’s capital market, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), said it was in the process of enhancing investors’ choice through the Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). The commission said in a statement posted on its website that the move was aimed at giving investors wider room for diversification and the need to ensure increased participation of local and foreign investors in the market. The statement further said that the

commission had made some changes in its rules to deepen the REITs market. It added that some of the changes related to the use of trust deed to deal with the transfer of title issues and the redefinition of real estate to include SPVs, adding that the rule had been changed and the process would be finalised in the first quarter of 2013. This, according to the SEC would broaden the range of the portfolio and give both local and institutional investors more room for increased investment. BC

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Public service as national burden T

NSE’s turnover drops by 25.06 per cent he volume of shares traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) last Friday dropped by 25.06 per cent with 529.53 million shares worth N4.61 billion traded in 6,554 deals. This was against a total of 706.48 million shares valued at N3.94 billion exchanged in 7,564 deals on Thursday. The All-Shares Index, for the fourth consecutive day, remained on the downward trend, dropping by 0.25 per cent to close at 33,258.45 against 33,342.02 posted on Thursday. Also, the market capitalisation lost N25 billion to close at N10.642 trillion from the N10.667 trillion posted on Thursday due to price losses by some blue chip stocks. NewGold led the losers’ chart, dropping N31 to close at N2, 489 per unit. Dangote Cement followed with a loss of N2 to close at N145, while Lafarge Wapco lost N1.50 to close at N69 per

Monday, February 18, 2013

he recent discovery of 45,000 ghost workers on the payroll of the Federal Government’s Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs underlines the highly dysfunctional nature of the nation’s public service. It adds to the growing list of scandals that has become the hallmark of public administration machinery and again raises the question of how this country can be redeemed from the grasp of corruption, unbridled brigandage and impunity. The discovery, according to the Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Yerima Ngama, followed the commencement of the Integrated Personnel Payment System, IPPS, which captured the biometric data of government employees in 215 MDAs. According to Ngama, the 45,000 workers discovered not to exist had cut N100bn from the wage bill. The minister said he expects more ghost workers to be uncovered after the implementation of the IPPS in 320 MDA that are yet to be captured. Although the issue of ghost workers in not particularly new, this discovery is rather significant coming at a time when the government is trying to reduce its overheads. It is easy to predict that at the end of this exercise about 100,000 ghost workers would have been uncovered from a simple extrapolation of the current figures. What is baffling is how an employer can end up paying for services not rendered for years on end. Even past discoveries of ghost workers have not been followed up with thorough investigations into the how this came about. After all, there are senior officials in charge of compiling and verifying the wage bill The ghost workers syndrome is just one way of converting state resources apart from the familiar bogus contract inflation awards, inflation of contract figures, spurious overseas trips and other well honed methods of brigandage. This system has also resulted in ghost pensioners, which is why the government pension administration has also been enmeshed in one scandal on the other with reports of civil servants looting billions of naira meant to pay pensions. Yet for all looting going on, the public service is perhaps the biggest drag on the economy, just a bad as poor power supply as civil servants push up the cost of doing business by demanding huge sums for routine approvals and erecting other artificial barriers to smooth business operations. The situation could be traced to the late 70’s following the sense of insecurity that had enveloped government workers since the 1976

civil service purge, which saw top career civil servants and others “retired without benefits”. Subsequent generations have become much “wiser” and the trend nowadays is for public servants to “pension” themselves rather than wait for the government’s uncertain pensions. This, coupled with the outdated record keeping machinery of the civil service, is what had led to the falsification of payroll and pension records that allowed those in vantage positions to deliberately inflate the number of serving workers and pensioners that should be entitled to payments. This is what the biometric data capturing exercise, which had been delayed for years due to fierce opposition from within, is trying to address. Curing this evil will surely free up funds and narrow the gap between budgetary allocations for government overheads which currently almost triples what is available for capital projects at a time the country need huge investments in infrastructure, education and other social goods apart from saving for the future. It should also for part of a new effort to reform the civil service and transform it into an efficient driver of government business as it was set up to be. While the government is moving towards relinquishing to so-called commanding heights of the economy to the private sector, government policy formulation and implementation - the forte of the civil service – remains the ingredient for any meaningful progress to be made. In the Asian countries that have recently become economic powers like Singapore, Malaysia and South Korea, one sees the hand of government driving and pushing policies, and making the right decisions on investments in infrastructure that make investors come and stay. We can see the support for genuine entrepreneurship, dismantling of bureaucratic barriers and legal systems that guarantee sanctity of contracts. Here, the civil service, is now perceived as the shortest cut to wealth, which is why jobless youths and those already working in private sector firms are ready to pay N400,000 to scammers thinking they can secure employment in the Immigrations, Customs, NDLEA and the rest. The biometric data capture is obviously the first step on this road to reform. This country can no longer afford to deploy most of its resources supporting a relatively small population of citizens that cannot even justify pay. BC

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Business Courage

Monday, February 18, 2013

A21 37

NACCIMA lauds Oyo govt for transforming Ibadan Stories By Stanley Ihedigbo

he Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) has commended the Oyo State government for its transformation of Ibadan into a modern state capital, which will attract foreign investment and facilitate industrial growth. NACCIMA National President, Dr. Ademola Ajayi, who stated this during a courtesy call on the Governor in his office, said that the state is moving very fast on the path of transformation. “We also noticed that Oyo State, particularly Ibadan, the state capital, is getting cleaner and neater. We also want to

Ajayi

congratulate you on the commissioning of Secretariat-Bodija Bridge, which will ease movement of people of the state and improve on their living stan-

dard.” Ajayi, however urged the governor to give priority attention to the Chamber of Commerce and the Organised Private Sector in his state, adding that partnership between the state and the chamber will help to fast track industrial development of the state as well reduce unemployment. He also stressed that the private sector is the engine of any economy and therefore should be seen as partners in progress in shaping the state economy, while appealing to the governor for his continued collaboration with the Chamber of Commerce in the organization of annual trade fair/ exhibitions. BC

Indorama set to build Africa’s largest fertiliser plant in Eleme

he management of Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals Limited said on Friday that it had concluded plans for the construction of Africa’s largest fertiliser plant in Eleme, Rivers State. The Managing Director of the company, Manish Mundra, made this known when the National Good Governance Team visited the company in continuation of the tour of projects in the state. He added that the plant, designed to produce 1.4 million tonnes of fertiliser annually, would start production by the fourth quarter of 2015. He said that the plant, when concluded, would engage largely in the production of Urea, NPK and other types of fertiliser. Mundra said that the project, which would cost the company about 1.20 billion dollars, was part of the company’s programme of making Nigeria the largest petrochemical hub in Africa by 2017. He said that the fertiliser plant project would be handled by a Chinese company, Toyo Engineering Ltd and would get its feed stock from natural gas.

Mundra

Mundra, who stated that the project would be funded through lending from a consortium of Nigerian and foreign banks, said the project had already been over-emphasised by $480 million. He put the lending requirement for the project at $800 million and said that banks had already shown interest to invest in the project. On the progress made by the company since privatisation, he said that the company had recorded steady growth and improvements in all its operations since its take-over, adding that over $2.5 billion of foreign exchange had been saved

KADCCIMA trade fair holds 22nd Feb

aduna Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (KADCCIMA) , has announced its preparedness to hold the 34th edition of the Kaduna International Trade Fair (KITF) scheduled to start from Friday, 22nd February to Sunday ,3rd march, 2013. Speaking to newsmen in Lagos at the weekend about the fair with theme;”Combating security challenges and the way forward for Nigeria economic transformation,” the chamber’s Deputy President and the Chairman Organising Committee, Awwalu Makarfi, said that the chamber in preparation of the trade fair has made all the necessary arrangement to safeguard the life and properties during and after the event.

Ramalan-Yero, Kaduna State governor

Makarfi commended the effort of the government and its agencies, the contribution of religious and traditional institutions as well as those of numerous organisations toward restoring peace and development in the country. He noted that the serious security challenges which has

since 2007 while their cumulative investment amounted to about N575 million. Mundra added that the company had contributed immensely to the growth of the economy through the distribution of dividends to the shareholders of the company. He said that the company had distributed $229 million to the Federal government, $115 million to Rivers State Government, $38 million to six host communities and $13 million to staff of the company. Mundra said that the company had also remitted taxes to the tune of $168 million to the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Rivers State Inland Revenue Service and the Local Revenue Service. He said that the expansion plan also included the establishment of a 1.75 metric tonnes Methanol plant and the construction of an 84-kilometre pipeline linking the Onne port by 2017. Mundra said that the cumulative direct job creation capacity of his company’s investments would be about 6,000 people. BC confronted the country in the last three years has impacted negatively on the socio economic activities, particularly in the northern part of the country. He said that the choice of the theme for this year’s fair was borne out of the realities on ground and the chambers little way to appreciate and compliment government effort towards combating security challenges in the country. He said that the chamber has already received positive responses from both the local and international participants, which comprised industries, manufacturers, marketers and distributors to participate at the fair, adding that arrangements for participation of some companies from countries like Egypt, Iran, Niger Republic, India, Pakistan, Turkey and China are at advanced stages. BC

Market Indicators for Week Ended 15-02-13 All-Share Index 33,258.45 points Market Capitalisation N10,642,462,517,001.52 Stock Updates GAINERS COMPANY

OPENING PRICE

UNILEVER

47.00

49.50

5.32

ABCTRANS

0.60

0.63

5.00

52.47

55.09

4.99

1.21

1.27

4.96

15.96

16.75

4.95

GLAXOSMITH JOHNHOLT NCR

CLOSING PRICE

CHANGE

LOSERS COMPANY

OPENING PRICE

WEMABANK

CLOSING PRICE

1.70

CHANGE

1.53

-10.00

PRESTIGE

1.01

0.91

-9.99

ROYALEX

1.33

1.20

-9.77

ACADEMY

2.82

2.55

-9.57

UNITY BANK

1.05

0.95

-9.52

Inter-Bank Rates TENOR

RATE%(PREV) 08-Feb-2013

RATE%(CURR) 15-Feb-2013

CALL

10.2500 – 11.7500

11.0000 – 12.0000

OBB

10.0000 – 12.1500

11.0000 – 12.2500

Primary Market Auction TENOR 91-Days

AMOUNT (N’mn) 42057.31

RATE (%) 10.32

DATE 06-Feb-13

182-Days

60,000

10.50

06-Feb-13

364-Days

117219.06

10.60

06-Feb-13

Open Market Operation TENOR

AMOUNT (N’mn)

RATE (%)

DATE

125-Days

100000

11.50

08-Feb-13

132-Days

40,000

11.495

07-Feb-13

119-Days

30,000

13.50

07-Feb-13

Wholesale Dutch Auction System AMOUNT OFFERED

AMOUNT SOLD

DATE

$120m

MARKET DEMAND $120m

$120m

13-Feb-13

$180m

11-Feb-13

A22 38

Business Courage

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Monday, February 18, 2013

Honeywell Flour Mill Plc: Increasing capacity to boost earnings By Tayo Adeleke

oneywell Flour mills Nigeria Plc recorded an improved performance in its unaudited third quarter results for the period ended December 2012. All its top line measuring indices improved significantly during the period. However, growth in turnover was constrained by current milling capacity of 1,610MT/day, which is fully utilised at the moment as the company operates a very efficient flour milling operation with an average capacity utilisation of over 90 per cent, well above the industry average of 50 per cent. Bottom line was greatly impaired by huge cost and interests paid on borrowed funds even as both liquidity and profitability ratios were below acceptable standard figure in the industry. Honeywell Flour is a major flour milling company in Nigeria and was initially registered as Gateway Honeywell Flour Mills Limited on in 1985. However, in June 1995, a change in the company’s ownership structure led to a change of name to Honeywell Flour Mills Limited (HFML). The entry of the company into the flour milling industry in Nigeria redefined industry standards as its high quality compelled an improvement in the quality of flour products by other players in the industry. Over the years, HFMP has positioned itself as a market leader in milling, processing and packaging of flour and other wheat based products. After its initial public offer (IPO) in 2008, the company became a public liability company and was listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) in 2009. Business Strategies In the period reported, Honeywell Flour Mills forged stronger relationships with its distributors and strategic partners through several business-tobusiness engagement fora and initiatives aimed at improving its distribution network ahead of planned capacity increase. Honeywell Flour anticipates more impressive results and appreciable growth in the 2013 financial year when additional capacity from its 1,000MT/day twin mill facility, which is close to completion, will come on stream. This capacity increase of 62 per cent will take total milling

were key components in the bottom line drop in the face of improved revenues.

capacity to 2,610MT/day and will be reflected in increased sales and profit. To support its longer term aspirations, the company is looking to expand its growth platforms via the introduction of new brands, in the near term, that will participate in fast growing food segments to meet the needs of consumers. Honeywell Flour is one of the largest flour millers in Nigeria and its range of products include: Honeywell Superfine Flour, Honeywell Semolina, Honeywell Whole Wheat meal and variants of Honeywell pasta and Honeywell Instant Noodles. Performance Honeywell Flourmills’ third quarter results show a mixed performance with its earnings recording a 18 per cent growth. The company’s overall performance shows that the company is not yet strong but has a bright prospect for its stakeholders. Its unaudited third quarter 2012 result for the period ended 31 December, 2012 showed that its turnover had increased marginally by 18 per cent to N33.04 billion, compared with N27.95 billion in the corresponding period of 2011. Profit before tax increased by 0.87 per cent to N2.54 billion from N2.52 billion in the corresponding period of 2011. The tax provision which increased by 2.11 per cent to N823 million in 2012 brought about a profit after tax of N1.72 billion as against N1.71 billion in 2011. The result also indicates that the percentage of the turnover, pre and post tax profit in the third quarter of 2012 to the full year audited turnover, pre and post tax profits for the period ended March, 2012 are: 97.18 per cent, 65 per cent and 63 per cent respectively. Going by the current performance, the company may slightly surpass its previous year’s performance in the top line if the management can work harder in the last quarter. Meanwhile, the management has attributed growing turnover to the growing appeal of Honeywell Noodles and Pasta products. The highly popular ‘Bam Bam La La’ advert is an example of recent investments in marketing that drive sales of Honeywell Noodles and this has begun to yield progress in customer pull and the company expects more of this to be reflected in FY’2013 numbers

Oba Otudeko, Chairman, Honeywell Flour Mill Plc

Profitability Ratios/Earnings Return on equity (ROE) which reveals how much profit a company earned in comparison to the total amount of shareholder equity dropped from 9.61 per cent in the preceding year to 9.36 per cent in 2012. Both gross profit margin and PBT margin in 2012 decreased over the 2011 third quarter’s figures. Gross profit margin went down to 16.58 per cent, from 17.85 per cent while

profit before tax margin dips by 1.33 basis points to 1.7.69 per cent. The company’s total cost as a percentage of gross earnings stood at 83.42 per cent, up from 82.15 per cent recorded in the corresponding period of 2011. PAT margin currently stands at 5.2 per cent, down from 6.13 per cent in the corresponding period of 2011. A growth in the percentage of operating cost, general and finance costs which

Honeywell Flour Mill Financial Data

2012=N=(‘Nm)

2011=N=(‘Nm)

Turnover

33,041

27,946

Cost of sales

27,562

22,957

Gross Profit

5,479

4,989

Profit Before Taxation

2,542

2,520

Profit After Taxation Total Assets Operating Expenses Taxation Shareholders fund Interest Expenses

1,719

1,714

59,958

46,175

3,041

2,595

823

806

18,367

17,839

524

501

Current Asset

26,854

16,227

Current Liabilities

31,014

19,267

Fixed Assets

32,169

28,971

Current Assets-stocks

20,201

11,320

Trade Debtors

14,066

7,260

Trade Creditors

3,272

3,207

Sales Growth(%)

18.23

153183.40

0.29

587459.20

PAT Growth (%) Cost of sales (growth)

20.06

Profitability Ratios Return on Equity(%) Gross profit Margin(%)

9.36

9.61

16.58

17.85

Profit Margin(%)

5.20

6.13

Pre tax Profit Margin(%)

7.69

9.02

Current Ratio

0.87

0.84

Quick Ratio

0.65

0.59

Debtors(No of days)

155.39

94.82

Creditors(No of days)

43.33

50.99

Liquidity Ratios

Liquidity Another critical area that the management of Honeywell Plc needs to improve on is its liquidity. This is because both current and quick ratios fall short of accepted rule of thumb. The current ratio which expresses the relative relationship between current assets and current liabilities stood at 0.87:1 in 2012 compared with 0.84:1 in 2011. Similarly, quick ratio (acid -test ratio) which measures the debtpaying ability of a company also shows that the company would not be able to meet its financial obligation as when due. Quick ratios stood at 0.65:1, compared with 0.59:1 figure recorded in 2011 and 1.5:1 minimum value for a company with strong assets base. Trade debtors grew from N7.26 billion in 2011 to N14.1 billion (representing a 94 per cent increase) as trade creditors also increase in 2012 by two per cent to close at N3.27 billion from N3.21 billion. Further analysis shows that the company’s allow its debtors to make payment within 155 days (debtors number of days) while it took company 43 days to pay its creditors. This mean the cash could not remain with the company for longer and it makes fund unavailable for the management to do their daily transaction. Consequently, working capital stood at a negative figure of N4.16 billion from deficit of N2.99 billion in 2011. Assets Quality A review of the balance sheet of the company as at third quarter ended December 2012 showed that inventory levels improved from N4.96 billion to N6.65 billion, while fixed assets stood at N32.17 billion compared with N28.97 billion in 2011. Financial analysts also note a sharp increase in current assets, having moved from N16.23 billion in 2012 to N26.85 billion in 2012. Similarly, the company recorded a growth in Net Assets from N17.84 billion to N18.37 billion in 2012. Meanwhile, current liabilities increased by 61 per cent during the period under review. The figure moved to N31.01 billion from N19.27 billion 2011. Future Analysts are of the opinion that Honeywell Flour Mills has strong revenue growth potential and operates in one of the fastest growing sectors of the Nigerian economy. The additional milling capacity being planned by the company is also expected to support its earnings growth and reduce profit volatility in year ahead. The management of the company as well look towards expanding its growth platforms via the introduction of new brands, in the near term, that will participate in fast growing food segments to meet the needs of consumers and ultimately increase stakeholders earnings. BC

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Business Courage A23 39

Monday, February 18, 2013

STOCKWATCH Stock Exchange weekly equities summary as at Friday, Feb 15, 2013 SECURITY

PRICE (=N=)

AGRICULTURE/AGRO-ALLIED Crop Production FTN COCOA PROCESSORS PLC 0.56 OKOMU OIL PALM PLC. 61.63 PRESCO PLC 26.93 Fishing/Hunting/Trapping ELLAH LAKES PLC. NT Livestock/Animal Specialties LIVESTOCK FEEDS PLC. 2.13 CONGLOMERATES Diversified Industries A.G. LEVENTIS NIGERIA PLC. 2.00 CHELLARAMS PLC. NT JOHN HOLT PLC. 1.27 S C O A NIG. PLC. NT U A C N PLC. 50.00 CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Building Construction ARBICO PLC. NT CAPPA & D’ALBERTO PLC. NT Building Structure/Completion/Other COSTAIN (W A) PLC. NT G CAPPA PLC NT Non--Building/Heavy Construction JULIUS BERGER NIG. PLC. 66.00 ROADS NIG PLC. 10.07 Real Estate Development PINNACLE POINT GROUP PLC NT UACN PROPERTY DEV 16.35 Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) SKYE SHELTER FUND PLC NT UNION HOMES REAL ESTATE INV NT CONSUMER GOODS Automobiles/Auto Parts DN TYRE & RUBBER PLC 0.50 Beverages--Brewers/Distillers CHAMPION BREW. PLC. 4.15 GOLDEN GUINEA BREW. PLC. NT GUINNESS NIG PLC 290.00 INTERNATIONAL BREWERIES PLC. 23.75 JOS INT. BREWERIES PLC. NT NIGERIAN BREW. PLC. 163.99 PREMIER BREWERIES PLC NT Beverages--Non-Alcoholic 7-UP BOTTLING COMP. PLC. 47.50 Food Products BIG TREAT PLC NT DANGOTE FLOUR MILLS PLC 9.01 DANGOTE SUGAR REFINERY PLC 8.41 FLOUR MILLS NIG. PLC. 77.74 HONEYWELL FLOUR MILL PLC 3.09 MULTI-TREX INTEGRATED FOODS PLC NT N NIG. FLOUR MILLS PLC. 20.25 NATIONAL SALT CO. NIG. PLC 9.60 P S MANDRIDES & CO PLC. NT U T C NIG. PLC. 0.85 UNION DICON SALT PLC. NT Food Products--Diversified CADBURY NIGERIA PLC. 37.28 NESTLE NIGERIA PLC. 835.23 Household Durables BETA GLASS CO PLC. NT NIGERIAN ENAMELWARE PLC. NT VITAFOAM NIG PLC. 4.10 VONO PRODUCTS PLC. NT Personal/Household Products P Z CUSSONS NIGERIA PLC. 40.25 UNILEVER NIGERIA PLC. 49.50 Textiles/Apparel UNITED NIG. TEXTILES PLC. NT FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ACCESS BANK PLC. 11.70 DIAMOND BANK PLC 7.21 ECOBANK TRANSNATIONAL INC. 13.82 FIDELITY BANK PLC 3.20 FIRST CITY MONUMENT BANK PLC. 5.08 GUARANTY TRUST BANK PLC. 25.21 SKYE BANK PLC 6.13 STERLING BANK PLC. 2.80 U B A PLC 7.69 UNION BANK NIG.PLC. 9.39 UNITY BANK PLC 0.95 WEMA BANK PLC. 1.53 ZENITH BANK PLC 21.00 Insurance Carriers, Brokers & Services AFRICAN ALLIANCE INS. COY. PLC NT AIICO INSURANCE PLC. 1.05 CONFIDENCE INSURANCE PLC NT CONSOLIDATED HALLMARK INS. PLC NT CONTINENTAL REINSURANCE PLC 1.07 CORNERSTONE INS. COY. PLC. 0.72 CUSTODIAN AND ALLIED INS. PLC 2.35 EQUITY ASSURANCE PLC. 0.50 GOLDLINK INSURANCE PLC NT GREAT NIGERIAN INSURANCE PLC NT GUINEA INSURANCE PLC. NT INTERCONTINENTAL WAPIC INS. PLC 1.13 INTERNATIONAL ENERGY INS. PLC 0.50 INVESTMENT AND ALLIED ARN. NT LASACO ASSURANCE PLC. 0.50 LAW UNION AND ROCK INS. PLC. NT LINKAGE ASSURANCE PLC NT MANSARD INSURANCE PLC 2.60 MUTUAL BENEFITS ASSURANCE PLC. NT N.E.M INSURANCE CO (NIG) PLC. 0.95 NIGER INSURANCE CO. PLC. NT OASIS INSURANCE PLC NT PRESTIGE ASSURANCE CO. PLC. 0.91 REGENCY ALLIANCE INS. COY PLC NT SOVEREIGN TRUST INSURANCE PLC 0.55 STACO INSURANCE PLC NT STANDARD ALLIANCE INS. PLC. 0.50 UNIC INSURANCE PLC. 0.50 UNITY KAPITAL ASSURANCE PLC NT UNIVERSAL INS. COMPANY PLC NT Micro Finance Banks FORTIS MICROFINANCE BANK PLC NT NPF MICROFINANCE BANK PLC 0.99 Mortgage Carriers, Brokers &Services ABBEY BUILDING SOCIETY PLC 1.50 ASO SAVINGS AND LOANS PLC 0.50 RESORT SAVINGS & LOANS PLC 0.50 UNION HOMES SAVINGS&LOANS PLC NT Other Financial Institutions CRUSADER ( NIG) PLC. NT DEAP CAPITAL MGT & TRUST PLC 2.02 FBN HOLDINGS PLC 19.71 NIG SEW. MACH. MAN. CO. PLC. NT NIGERIA ENERYGY SECTOR FUND NT ROYAL EXCHANGE PLC. 1.20 STANBIC IBTC HOLDINGS PLC 15.00 HEALTHCARE Healthcare Providers EKOCORP PLC. NT Medical Equipment UNION DIAGNOSTIC &CLINICAL PLC 0.50 Medical Supplies MORISON INDUSTRIES PLC. 2.34 Pharmaceuticals EVANS MEDICAL PLC. 1.34 FIDSON HEALTHCARE PLC 1.70 GLAXO SMITHKLINE CONSUMER PLC 55.09 MAY & BAKER NIGERIA PLC. 2.32

NOTE NT=Not Traded on 15-02-13

QUANTITY

52 WK HIGH

52 WK LOW

SHARES OUTSTANDING

EPS

MOV. (%)

319 000 150 296 532 850

0.64 34.01 16.15

0.50 14.53 6.40

2 200 000 000 476 955 000 1 000 000 000

0.10 6.73 2.75

N/A 14.13 -0.11

0.50 54.00 26.96

4.26

60 000 000

0.00

N/A

2 131 700

1.70

0.48

1 199 549 736

0.11

-17.44

2.58

16 050 NT 338 435 NT 809 083

2.54 7.60 8.82 8.28 42.50

0.74 5.81 5.32 5.52 28.70

2 191 895 983 963 900 300 389 151 408 821 666 666 1 600 720 323

0.08 0.24 0.00 0.35 6.89

5.26 N/A N/A N/A N/A

1.90 NT 1.40 NT 50.00

NT NT

26.00 95.49

14.09 95.49

148 500 000 196 876 000

0.00 4.50

N/A N/A

NT NT

7.97 14.46

2.46 14.46

920 573 765 125 000 000

0.00 0.00

N/A N/A

NT NT

280 731 240

62.26 8.69

21.55 3.01

1 200 000 000 20 000 000

4.93 4.73

-1.49 N/A

67.00 10.07

NT 344 806

7.28 20.15

7.28 8.82

1 375 000 000

0.00 1.66

N/A 0.00

NT 16.35

NT NT

100.00 50.00

97.00 50.00

20 000 000 250 019 781

11.75 0.75

N/A N/A

NT NT

200 000

0.50

4 772 528 415

0.00

N/A

0.50

14 000 NT 221 519 311 310 NT 1 490 848 NT

4.63 0.68 265.00 12.83 3.20 138.85 0.97

2.23 0.68 186.00 5.23 1.61 72.50 0.93

900 000 000 272 160 000 1 474 925 519 2 112 914 681 562 000 000 7 562 562 340 126 000 000

0.00 0.03 9.46 0.25 0.00 5.08 0.00

N/A N/A -2.49 N/A N/A 0.30 N/A

4.15 NT 297.41 25.20 NT 163.50 NT

11 269

48.91

38.31

640 590 362

2.69

N/A

47.50

NT 264 088 10 248 843 2 211 757 6 354 690 NT 192 842 602 NT 3 500 NT

0.50 19.90 16.20 95.00 6.60 2.70 43.96 6.70 5.66 0.88 4.22

0.50 4.15 3.64 52.50 1.91 1.00 20.41 3.86 5.66 0.50 4.22

2 000 000 000 5 000 000 000 12 000 000 000 1 879 210 666 7 930 197 658 3 722 493 620 178 200 000

0.00 0.00 0.91 3.79 0.51 0.00 2.50 1.07 0.08 1.13 0.00

N/A -3.12 -0.94 -2.83 -7.49 N/A N/A 0.52 N/A 4.94 N/A

NT 9.30 8.49 80.00 3.34 NT 18.38 9.55 NT 0.81 NT

40 000 000 1 233 375 004 360 000 000

730 464 146 510

29.20 684.00

9.15 367.83

3 129 188 160 792 656 250

1.35 25.43

-4.09 2.49

38.87 814.96

NT NT 663 510 NT

15.58 42.66 6.75 3.67

10.03 34.39 3.01 2.66

63 360 000 819 000 000 300 000 001

3.90 1.61 0.54 0.00

N/A N/A -3.53 N/A

NT NT 4.25 NT

171 661 1 028 404

43.50 41.60

22.07 22.56

3 176 381 636 3 783 296 250

0.70 1.44

-0.47 0.14

40.44 49.43

0.97

0.57

843 284 027

0.00

N/A

22 677 437 10 258 782 4 172 137 12 797 850 679 110 625 62 583 688 6 738 349 12 532 197 34 740 601 2 277 356 19 403 098 19 896 237 17 215 150

11.70 9.27 17.05 3.20 8.30 20.30 10.17 2.91 5.21 10.07 1.92 1.75 18.20

4.76 2.01 9.97 1.14 3.04 11.64 2.73 0.97 1.64 1.96 0.50 0.50 11.70

17 888 251 479 14 475 243 105 9 873 614 567 28 974 797 023 16 271 192 202 29 146 482 209 13 219 334 676 12 563 091 545 32 334 693 693 13 509 726 273 33 675 576 085 12 821 249 880 31 396 493 790

1.42 0.90 2.81 0.43 0.60 2.10 0.71 0.54 0.67 0.00 0.00 0.00 2.09

-4.02 0.14 0.14 -3.03 -2.12 0.00 -2.70 -3.45 2.53 -6.10 0.00 4.08 0.00

12.19 7.20 13.80 3.30 5.19 25.21 6.30 2.90 7.50 10.00 0.91 1.47 21.00

NT 30 938 870 NT NT 3 958 181 1 197 050 5 000 669 20 000 NT NT NT 1 673 500 8 115 248 NT 27 809 NT NT 743 600 NT 11 942 400 NT NT 37 748 630 NT 250 000 NT 600 150 NT NT

0.50 1.01 0.64 0.50 1.20 0.50 3.51 0.50 0.69 0.50 0.50 0.80 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.61 0.50 1.93 0.50 0.66 1.11 0.50 2.35 0.50 0.52 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50

0.50 0.50 0.61 0.50 0.61 0.50 1.31 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.95 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.50

20 585 000 000 7 809 391 256 211 626 000 6 000 000 000 10 372 624 157 8 820 010 363 5 100 846 808 8 847 298 420 4 549 947 000 3 827 485 380 720 000 000 5 061 804 000 6 420 427 449 28 000 000 000 7 323 313 227 3 437 330 500 4 083 713 569 10 000 000 000 7 998 705 336 5 332 830 881 5 649 693 923 5 003 506 791 2 508 315 436 6 668 750 000 5 203 757 266 6 141 087 609 8 493 173 450 2 581 733 505 13 000 000 000 16 000 000 000

0.00 0.05 0.00 0.05 0.14 0.02 0.28 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.02 0.00 0.00 0.03 0.16 0.01 0.37 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.04 0.09 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.02 0.00

N/A 0.00 N/A N/A 0.00 0.00 0.00 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 0.00 N/A N/A N/A 0.00 -3.70 N/A 6.74 N/A N/A -11.65 N/A 0.00 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

NT 1.22 NT NT 1.03 0.58 2.04 0.50 NT NT NT 1.13 NT NT 0.50 NT NT 2.70 NT 0.89 NT NT 1.03 NT 0.53 NT 0.50 0.50 NT NT

NT 477 283

6.00 1.15

0.00 1.00

111 700 10 000 43 000 000 1

1.51 0.50 0.50 0.99

1.33 0.50 0.50 0.50

4 200 000 000 8 679 148 676 13 175 732 404 7 812 500 000

0.03 0.02 0.00 0.00

N/A N/A N/A N/A

1.50 0.50 0.50 NT

NT 160 000 12 702 043 NT NT 4 770 464 656 744

0.61 2.02 17.01 0.15 552.20 0.66 11.38

0.50 2.02 8.50 0.15 555.20 0.50 6.40

3 778 005 975 1 333 333 333 32 632 084 358 5 880 000 2 500 000 3 608 657 661 18 750 000 000

0.00 0.00 3.03 0.00 12.65 0.00 0.87

N/A N/A 0.82 N/A N/A N/A -4.76

NT 2.02 19.55 NT NT 0.93 15.75

5.31

5.05

498 600 908

0.12

N/A

386 456

0.50

3 553 138 528

0.00

N/A

0.50

157 327

10.54

7.39

152 178 750

0.06

N/A

2.46

8 526 3 952 872 127 728 1 921 000

1.45 3.20 39.00 5.61

0.50 0.76 19.30 1.62

486 473 856 1 500 000 000 956 701 192 980 000 000

0.00 0.44 2.62 0.20

14.53 3.66 15.74 4.50

1.17 1.64 47.60 2.22

N/A=Not Avialable

0.01 0.07

NT 0.95

SECURITY

PRICE (=N=)

NEIMETH INT PHARM PLC 1.25 NIGERIA-GERMAN CHEMICALS PLC. NT PHARMA-DEKO PLC. 2.30 ICT Computer Based Systems COURTEVILLE BUSINESS SLN PLC 0.50 Computers and Peripherals OMATEK VENTURES PLC 0.50 Electronic Communications Services MTECH COMMUNICATIONS PLC NT IT Services NCR (NIGERIA) PLC. 16.75 TRIPPLE GEE AND COMPANY PLC. NT Processing Systems CHAMS PLC 0.50 E-TRANZACT INTERNATIONAL PLC NT Telecommunications Carriers STARCOMMS PLC NT Telecommunications Services IHS NIGERIA PLC PREF SHARES NT IHS PLC NT MTI PLC NT INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials AFRICAN PAINTS (NIGERIA) PLC. NT ASHAKA CEM PLC 24.42 BERGER PAINTS PLC 11.90 CAP PLC 36.10 CEMENT CO. OF NORTH.NIG. PLC 11.85 DANGOTE CEMENT PLC 145.00 DN MEYER PLC. NT FIRST ALUMINIUM NIGERIA PLC NT IPWA PLC 0.78 LAFARGE WAPCO PLC. 69.00 PAINTS & COATINGS MANFACT.PLC NT PORTLAND PAINTS & PRDT NIG. PLC 4.75 PREMIER PAINTS PLC. NT Electronic and Electrical Products AUSTIN LAZ & COMPANY PLC NT CUTIX PLC. 1.67 NIGERIAN WIRE AND CABLE PLC. NT NIGERIAN WIRE IND. PLC NT Packaging/Containers ABPLAST PRODUCTS PLC. NT AVON CROWNCAPS & CONTAINERS NT BETA GLASS CO PLC. 9.51 GREIF NIGERIA PLC NT NIG. BAGS MANFACT. COY PLC 2.55 POLY PRODUCTS (NIG) PLC. NT W A GLASS IND. PLC. NT Tools and Machinery NIGERIAN ROPES PLC NT STOKVIS NIG PLC. NT NATURAL RESOURCES Chemicals B.O.C. GASES PLC. 6.55 Metals ALUMACO PLC NT ALUMINIUM EXTRUSION IND. PLC. NT Non-Metallic Mineral Mining MULTIVERSE PLC 0.50 Paper/Forest Products HALLMARK PAPER PRODUCTS PLC. NT THOMAS WYATT NIG. PLC. NT OIL AND GAS Energy Equipment and Services JAPAUL OIL & MARITIME SER. PLC 0.99 Integrated Oil and Gas Services OANDO PLC 14.00 Petroleum &Petroleum Products Distributors AFROIL PLC NT BECO PETROLEUM PRODUCT PLC 0.50 CONOIL PLC 23.10 ETERNA PLC. 4.49 FORTE OIL PLC. 14.26 MOBIL OIL NIG PLC. 125.97 MRS OIL NIGERIA PLC. 29.00 TOTAL NIGERIA PLC. 137.01 SERVICES Advertising AFROMEDIA PLC NT Apparel Retailers LENNARDS (NIG) PLC. NT Automobile/Auto Part Retailers R T BRISCOE PLC. 2.30 Courier/Freight/Delivery RED STAR EXPRESS PLC 3.54 TRANS-NATIONWIDE EXPRESS PLC. NT Employment Solutions C & I LEASING PLC. 0.56 Hospitality TANTALIZERS PLC 0.50 Hotels/Lodging CAPITAL HOTEL PLC 6.27 IKEJA HOTEL PLC 0.96 TOURIST COMPANY OF NIGERIA PLC. NT TRANSNATIONAL CORP. OF NIG.PLC 1.95 Media/Entertainment DAAR COMMUNICATIONS PLC 0.50 Printing/Publishing ACADEMY PRESS PLC. 2.55 LEARN AFRICA PLC 2.25 STUDIO PRESS (NIG) PLC. NT UNIVERSITY PRESS PLC. 4.96 Road Transportation ABC TRANSPORT PLCPLC 0.63 Specialty INTERLINKED TECHNOLOGIES PLC NT SECURE ELECTRONIC TECH.PLC NT Transport-Related Services AIRLINE SERVICES AND LOGISTICS PLC 5.76 NIG. AVIATION HANDLING COY PLC 8.10 ASeM CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Property Management SMART PRODUCTS NIGERIA PLC NT CONSUMER GOODS Food Products MCNICHOLS PLC 0.97 Personal/Household Products ROKANA INDUSTRIES PLC. 0.60 HEALTHCARE Pharmaceuticals AFRIK PHARMACEUTICALS PLC. NT INDUSTRIAL GOODS Electronic and Electrical Products NT ADSWITCH PLC. 1.63 NATURAL RESOURCES Metals W.A. ALUM. PRODUCTS PLC. NT OIL AND GAS Petroleum & Petroleum Products Distributors ANINO INTERNATIONAL PLC. NT CAPITAL OIL PLC 0.50 RAK UNITY PET. COMP. PLC. NT UNION VENTURES & PET. PLC NT SERVICES Apparel Retailers UDEOFSON GARMENT FACT. NIG PLC NT Food/Drug Retailers and Wholesalers NT JULI PLC. 2.76 ETF’s Sector ETF NEWGOLD EXCHANGE TRADED FUND 2 638.00

QUANTITY

52 WK HIGH

52 WK LOW

SHARES OUTSTANDING

EPS

MOV. (%)

3 331 460 NT 1 000

1.96 12.91 4.28

0.76 8.59 3.50

1 925 717 268 153 786 012 100 000 000

0.09 0.00 0.00

15.74 N/A N/A

1.08 NT 2.30

212 000

0.52

0.50

2 960 000 000

0.10

0.00

0.50

200

0.50

2 941 789 472

0.00

N/A

0.50

0.91

4 966 666 668

0.00

N/A

51 750 NT

18.28 3.59

13.12 2.41

108 000 000 492 825 600

0.00 0.01

N/A N/A

15.96 NT

750 000 NT

0.50 4.97

0.50 4.04

4 620 600 000 4 200 000 000

0.00 0.04

N/A N/A

0.50 NT

1.47

0.50

6 878 478 096

0.00

N/A

NT NT NT

2.25 3.50 0.50

0.00 2.46 0.50

4 400 000 000 4 893 594 400

0.00 0.00 0.00

N/A N/A N/A

NT NT NT

NT 3 220 251 309 824 370 148 1 737 334 969 966 NT NT 19 427 73 689 NT 323 447 NT

3.32 30.00 12.57 43.98 15.49 132.51 3.51 0.75 0.99 56.50 3.36 5.28 13.40

2.86 9.10 7.27 14.50 4.20 95.00 0.93 0.50 0.91 37.00 0.52 2.27 10.93

260 000 000 2 239 453 125 217 367 585 560 000 000 1 241 548 285 15 494 019 668 242 908 200 2 109 928 275 513 696 000 3 001 600 004 792 914 256 400 000 000 75 000 000

0.00 2.14 1.09 2.28 1.47 8.33 0.00 0.00 0.00 4.10 0.26 0.23 0.00

N/A -6.19 7.21 6.99 6.09 0.69 N/A N/A N/A -7.01 N/A N/A N/A

NT 26.03 11.10 33.74 11.17 144.00 NT NT 0.66 74.20 NT 5.20 NT

NT 114 120 NT NT

2.00 2.50 0.73 2.58

2.00 1.33 0.50 2.58

510 396 608 2 220 000 000 15 000 000

0.03 0.11 0.00 0.00

N/A 7.05 N/A N/A

NT 1.56 NT NT

NT NT 255 418 NT 3 405 555 NT NT

3.98 6.91 12.71 15.03 3.60 1.86 0.63

3.98 2.19 9.53 13.28 1.60 1.05 0.63

N/A N/A

42 640 000 6 215 000 000 240 000 000 199 066 550

0.00 0.05 0.05 0.90 0.24 0.22 0.00

N/A -7.27 N/A N/A

NT NT 9.50 NT 2.75 NT NT

NT NT

8.69 0.14

8.26 0.14

265 409 280 2 918 000

0.00 0.00

N/A N/A

NT NT

25 000 000 683 974 528

22 408

9.20

5.70

393 120 000

0.76

0.00

6.55

NT NT

7.75 12.39

7.75 10.55

75 600 000 100 000 000

0.00 0.43

N/A N/A

NT NT

40 000

0.50

4 058 989 226

0.00

N/A

0.50

NT NT

3.22 1.38

50 000 000 220 000 000

0.04 0.00

N/A N/A

NT NT

39 835 009

1.02

0.54

6 262 701 716

0.13

22.22

0.81

3 883 733

24.80

10.94

2 262 711 568

1.73

2.56

13.65

NT 29 764 1 713 447 591 411 044 50 297 10 551 1 639 112

20.71 0.70 41.89 5.59 28.69 163.50 72.00 240.00

20.71 0.50 19.61 2.12 9.12 111.51 32.29 125.00

125 487 475 3 716 976 579 693 952 117 1 249 162 828 1 080 280 628 300 496 051 253 988 672 339 521 837

0.00 0.00 0.47 0.61 0.00 6.11 3.62 14.63

N/A N/A 5.00 7.67 -14.46 4.59 N/A -2.83

NT 0.50 22.00 4.17 16.67 120.44 27.42 141.00

0.72

0.50

4 035 497 307

0.00

N/A

3.48

0.19

N/A

3 142 388

3.65

1.12

980 294 400

0.21

15.00

2.00

1 024 250 NT

3.67 6.40

2.11 3.28

589 496 310 198 819 763

0.58 0.25

-11.94 N/A

4.02 NT

1 820 900

1.64

0.85

865 808 912

0.08

N/A

0.50

16 500

0.75

0.50

3 211 627 907

0.01

N/A

0.50

10 000 1 688 409 NT 27 080 317

8.00 2.59 4.76 1.95

3.00 1.16 4.31 0.50

1 548 780 000 2 078 796 396 1 772 884 297 25 813 998 283

0.18 0.92 0.00 0.22

N/A -15.04 N/A 68.10

NT 1.13 NT 1.16

22 000

0.50

8 000 000 000

0.00

N/A

0.50

248 000 356 205 NT 256 520

3.68 8.00 2.92 6.82

1.64 1.94 2.78 3.09

403 200 000 771 450 000 425 641 111

0.14 0.29 0.01 0.50

N/A N/A N/A 9.98

2.82 2.30 NT 4.51

336 709

0.80

0.50

1 507 000 000

0.00

N/A

0.64

NT NT

5.15 1.88

4.90 0.80

236 699 511 5 631 539 736

0.00 0.03

N/A N/A

NT NT

201 260 1 097 099

2.78 11.75

1.54 5.15

634 000 000 1 230 468 750

0.38 0.81

N/A -0.37

5.50 8.13

1.43

1.04

45 000 000

0.12

N/A

11 000

1.02

201 885 335

0.00

N/A

0.97

500

0.60

30 000 000

0.00

N/A

0.60

0.50

24 898 850

0.00

N/A

NT 500

1.88

1.63

125 005 250

0.00

N/A

NT 1.63

0.50

6 650 000

0.00

N/A

NT 20 000 NT NT

0.21 0.50 0.31 0.63

24 200 000 5 857 500 000 15 000 000 98 600 000

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

N/A N/A N/A N/A

NT 0.50 NT NT

NT NT 16 000

0.50

20 000 000

0.00

N/A

3.05

2.76

194 700 000

0.00

N/A

NT NT 2.76

100

2 706

2 422

0.00

2 638.00

Monday, February 18, 2013

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

NICON PROPERTIES

NICON PROPERTIES LTD LIST OF AVAILABLE PROPERTIES FILLING STATION Description: A well landscaped, strategically located filling station with 4 PMS Pumps, 1 AGO, 1 DPK, with 6bedroom duplex, one station office, one Lube bay on land area of 1,600sqm 63 Accra Street Wuse Zone 5, Abuja Location: Price: N650m asking LIST OF AVAILABLE HOUSES ASOKORO Description: 8 nos 3 bedroom flats with 1 room BQ each and Swimming pool Asokoro, Abuja Location: Price: N1Billion asking Description: Location: Price:

A 2Nos. 5 bedroom duplex and a 6 bedroom duplex sitting on 1700sqm with C of O Nelson Mandela Asokoro, Abuja N800m

Description: Location: Price:

5 units of 4 bedroom detached houses with 1 room BQ each Asokoro, Abuja N850m

Description: Location: Price:

4 bedroom twin duplex with BQ Kwume Nkuruma Asokoro, Abuja 400m

Description: Location: Price:

5 bedroom duplex with I room BQ and 2 unit 3 bedroom flats good for embassy Hill Top House Asokoro, Abuja N450m

ASO DRIVE Description: Location: Price:

7 bedroom detached house with BQ with swimming pool (Vacant) Aso Drive, Abuja N800m

MAITAMA Description: Location: Price:

4 bedrooms Twin duplex, 2 sitting room with 2 rooms self contain Panama Street, Ministers Hill, Maitama, Abuja N350m

Description: 5 bedroom detached house Along IBB way Maitama Location: Price: N300m Description: 5 bedroom detached house with 2 rooms BQ Minister's Hill Maitama Location: Price: N280m GAMES VILLAGE Description: 4 Bedroom terrace duplex with ample land space for BQ Games Village Location: Price: N55m GARKI Description: Newly built 14 Nos. fully serviced 3bedroom flat on 1,346sqm KVA transformer and 80m borehole Garki 2 by old CBN with certificate of occupancy Location: Price: N1Billion asking Description: 3 bedroom Terrace Duplex (renovated) Area 2 Section 2, Garki Location: Price: N60m Asking KATAMPE Description: 6 Units of 3bedroom flats carcass (Roofing Stage) on 963,63sqm residential with C of O Katampe Main Location: Price: N 70m UTAKO Description: 4 bedroom detached duplex Utako, Abuja Location: Price: N75m APO Description: A fully detached 3bedroom bungalow, 2room apartment with private convenience Bethel Estate, Lokogoma Location: Price: N30m Asking Description: Location: Price:

5 bedroom detached duplex with 2 room BQ Apo (Power House) N130m Asking

GUDU Description: Location: Price:

Newly built filling station with 10 pumps Gudu N650m

WUSE DISTRICT Description: A detached bungalow and one storey building on 1hectre Wuse zone 5, Abuja Location: Price: N450m Description: Location: Price:

5 Bedroom semi detached house Wuse Zone 6, Abuja N250m

Description: Location: Price:

A block of 4 Nos. 3bedroom flats with a 3bedroom bungalow Wuse 2 N260m

Description: Location: Price:

A 5 Bedroom Duplex, 2 living room and 2 room BQ in built with C of O Wuse Zone 4, Vacant and New N260m

Description: Location: Price:

5 Bedroom twin Duplex with BQ Wuse II, Abuja N400m

For enquiry and inspection, please contact undersigned numbers:

NICON PROPERTIES LIMITED 63, Accra Street, Wuse Zone 5, Abuja.

08067770999, 08033203414 Email: niconpropertiesltd@gmail.com www.niconpropertieslimited.com

SUNNY VALE ESTATE Description: 3Bedroom semi detached Location: Sunny Vale, Abuja Price: N25m GWARIMPA Description: Location: Price:

5Bedroom semi detached rd 3 Avenue Gwarimpa, N65m

Description: Location: Price:

4Bedroom duplex, 2room Bq and gate house Garimpa N60m

KARU Description: Location: Price:

3bedroom Bungalow, 2 units of 1bedroom Bq with gate house FHA Phase 1 Karu, near Primus Specialist Hospital N20m

LAGOS Description: Location: Price:

Newly finished 5bedroom duplex (All en-suite) with Bq Osborne Estate, Lagos N200m

Description: Location: Price:

A new 4bedroom duplex (all en-suite) Magodo Estate, Lagos N70m

Description: Location: Price:

1.6hectre of land and A Ware-house on 25,000sqm with office Admin block, Generator House, Security hut and workers Canteen. 2 Dedicated Transformer, bore-hole and water treatment plant. Amuwo Odofin, Industrial Estate, Lagos N1.2 Billion

Description: Location: Price:

2 wings of 5 bedroom duplexes, each with 2rooms BQ Eric Emmanuel Crescent, off Bode Thomas Street, Lagos N130m

LANDS FOR SALE Description: 3000sqm Commercial with C of O Location: Close to PDP Secretariat Wuse Zone 5 Price: N300m Description: 1500sqm Residential land Location: Opposite Sokoto State Governor Lodge Asokoro, Abuja Price: N200m Description: 1500sqm Residential land Location: Gwarinpa, Abuja Price: N35 Description: Location: Price:

2450.84sqm Residential land Gwarimpa N120m

Description: 1560.73sqm Residential land Location: Garki Price: N80m TO LET Description: Location: Price:

2 Blocks of 6 Nos. 2Bedroom flats Akin Olugbade, Street Victoria Island, Lagos N4.5m

Description: Location: Price:

2 blocks of 6 nos. 3 bedroom flats (12 flats) Akin Olugbade, Street Victoria Island, Lagos N5.5m

Description: Location: Price:

Fully furnished 6 bedroom detached house Katampe Diplomatic Extension N6m per annum

VARIOUS OFFICE SPACES TO LET 1. NIGERIA -REINSURANCE BUILDING CBD, ABUJA 2. NICON BUILDING 55 AKPAKPAVA STREET, BENIN 3. NICON PLAZA, CENTRAL BUSINESS AREA, ABUJA 4. NICON HOUSE, INDEPENDENT LAYOUT ENUGU 5. 118/120 Broad street Lagos 6. Marina Lagos 7. 1 Barracks Road, Calabar 8. F/14 Cathedral Drive Enugu

Monday, February 18, 2013

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Law & Justice nationalmirrorlaw@yahoo.com

“A concurring judgement complements, edifices, and adds to the leading judgement” JUSTICE NIKI TOBI, RETIRED JUSTICE, SUPREME COURT OF NIGERIA.

NBA should investigate Yusufu’s plea bargain deal –B.O. Benson 42 Attorney-General, Lagos State, Mr. Ade Ipaye.

Attorney-General, Ogun State, Mr. Wemimo Ogunde (SAN).

Stakeholders seek stiffer sanctions against land speculators Why justice is blind? 46

How Madaki deposed Tukur, Emir of Muri 46

Worried by the menace of land speculators, otherwise called Omo Onile in Lagos and Ogun states, lawyers and stakeholders have asked the state governments to proffer tougher sanctions against these marauders to check their fraudulent activities. KAYODE KETEFE and KENNY ODUNUKAN report.

trader, Mr Nuru Lukman bought two plots of land five years ago in Ijoko area of Ogun State from the putative head of the land-owning family for the sum of N100, 000 per plot. The land had laid fallow for two years, when a problem reared its head. Some faceless people took possession of the land on the grounds that it had not been purchased from the authentic owners. After a lot of negotiations and series of meetings, the new claimers insisted the land should be re-purchased as the so-called Head of family who collected the initial payment had no authority to sell the land and that he did not share the money with other members of the family. They asked Lukman to pay N75, 000 per plot as the new fees, stressing that they had graciously reduced the money after considering his plight. Lukman weighed his options, then finally decided that instead of going to court to legally enforce his rights, he would pay the new fees. He did and thought the matter had finally been settled. But in 2010 when Lukman took loan to start development on the land, another unforeseen problem occurred. One day, when the workmen were busy with the foundation, a horde of armed thugs, called Omo Onile, invaded the site and stopped the labourers. They put up a claim that since they

were “Omo Onile”, they deserved to be settled (i.e. paid) before any developmental work could be carried on within the site. They eventually collected N120, 000 before releasing all the working tools of the labourers which they had seized. It was after this that they allowed the work to go on. Late last year, when Lukman wanted to construct the decking of the building, the Omo Onile appeared again, wanting to be paid again the sum of 200, 000. Lukman had to cough out the money once again for these land marauders, who had retreated, waiting patiently for the time he would begin roofing of the house so that they could turn up once again to demand another payment!

WE NEED TO HOLISTICALLY LOOK INTO THE LAW AND ENSURE THAT EVERY OWNER OF

LAND, WHETHER DEEMED OWNER OR STATUTORY

OWNER, SHOULD GO AND REGISTER IT

In his exasperation, Lukman told the National Mirror “I want the government to promptly do something about the Omo Onile menace, these miscreants are not rendering any service to the land owners, but they turn up whenever there is any developmental works to demand money they have not worked for. This problem is very serious and is discouraging a number of people from acquisition of land for any purpose. ‘’ Experiences like this are what Nigerians; especially Lagos residents are made to go through when attempting to acquire and develop lands. The menace of Omo Onile seems to have discouraged a lot of people from land acquisition and building of houses, for nobody estimates the amount of money that would eventually be sunk into such projects. A prospective landlord who spoke with National Mirror, Mr. Omowale Adetunji, said the menace of Omo Onile had made him to abandon his first land when he could not raise the kind of money they demanded. He added “When I wanted to start the foundation last year, they said I should pay them N200, 000. I did not have that kind of money in addition to the cost of the foundation. So, I had to abandon further work on the plot since then. What I want to do now is to acquire one of these parcels of land being advertised by the corporate organisations. “These organisations acquire hectares of land in developing areas and parcel it out plot by plot to interested buyers. There is no menace of Omo Onile with them. One other advantage is that only one Certificate of Occupancy (C of 0) is often procured by the organisations to cover the entire land mass, thus individual landlords would not need to waste time and money to acquire the CONTINUED ON PAGE 44

Law & Justice

Monday, February 18, 2013

NBA should investigate Yusufu’s plea bargain deal –B.O Benson

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Chief Babatunde Olusola Benson (SAN) is the former Vice-Chairman of Commonwealth Lawyers’ Association, ex-President, African Bar Association (ABA) and one-time President, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA). In this interview with KENNY ODUNUKAN, the 81-year-old lawyer speaks on corruption in the judiciary, the concept of plea bargaining and the Bar professional ethics, among other issues. Excerpts:

Can you compare the law practice in the past with the present and modern days? I do not know what is obtained in the Law School now. In our time; the first lecture was usually delivered by either the General Secretary of the Bar or the chairman in person. These leaders of the bar often times are invited by the Law School management and they will present a number of papers to the law students in the Law School. The first lecture is often a full length lecture on decorum. The first two lectures must come from the Bar leaders and I can give you some of the lectures I delivered in those days. Decorum is something that must be strictly adhered to and must be taken with ultimate priority by all practising lawyers. These days the reverse is the case, sometimes you can’t even identify some lawyers because of the way they are shabbily dressed. I recall former Attorney General, late Graham- Douglas, he was the chairman of disciplinary council then, I remember this young lady came and appeared before him then, she tied white beads on her bare neck. Douglas was furious with the way she was dressed, she looked at her and said “Mr. Director of the Law School ,this lady has failed, she will not be called to the Bar” she ordered her out of her presence. The lady was not called to the bar; at least I know she was not called to the bar with her mates. Her people had cooked, ready for party and you know most of them came from Calabar, regardless of pressures from all and sundry. She was not called to the Bar. Her relations and well-wishers went back home crying. Maybe she was called to bar in the subsequent year but I know she was refused that year. Another incident that I remember was that of a young man who came on attachment and appeared before Justice L.T Dosumu. Justice Dosumu was a very strict Judge then. The young man who was a law student, wore a mock jacket while in court .Justice Dosumu then asked while in court: who is that young man dressed like that in the Bar? Where do you think you are? Do you want to join the profession I am and you don’t know how to dress? Do you think you are in your mother’s market? He replied and said “I am a law student on attachment “Justice Dosumu scolded him bitterly and I think that earned him suspension because he was required to bring recommendation from the court he appeared before while he was on attachment. So, you can see the issue of decorum is not an issue that can be taken lightly in our profession.

There are also significant improvements in the practice of law these days. During my time, the practice is merely narrowed to ligation and some few aspects, but these days, the practice has gone to many areas, Now, you have lawyers in Taxation, Oil and Gas, mining and some other areas. Technology has also changed the face of law practice and justice administration and due to that; administration of justice system is fostered. So, things are completely different. I remember even when I qualified as a lawyer over 50 years ago and I took over my uncle’s chambers, I found that everything ought to change. At that time, it was manual typewriter and I thought well, we should look for something else. As at 1959, the computers were not there, but there were certain attachments to the manual typewriters and, you know, we had just returned from England with all those ideas. It is like a printing machine. When you moved from that into the computer age, everything became computerised and that was not happening before the advent of computer. Now, this thing in your hand (tape recorder), you can put in your pocket and so, when you are talking you are recording everything. We didn’t have that in those days.

Is there any improvement in the practice of law these days?

PRACTISING LAWYERS

Can you remember those who you started with in the legal profession? Well, when I was called to the Bar, I remember the likes of Honorable Justice Bolarinwa Babalakin. He is retired as justice of the Supreme Court. We qualified on the same day and we did exams on the same date. Honourable Justice Morenikeji Onalaja, Alhaji Femi Okunnu. We used to call ourselves ‘16 of June’, because we were called to Bar on June 16, 1959. So many of them are still doing very well in life. Some are still practising. As a renowned lawyer, how do you feel being conferred with the exalted title of “SAN”? Well, during my time, only five lawyers were appointed yearly and given the rank of SAN. And that is due to the fact that there are few lawyers then. But today, we have thousands of lawyers. These days, I

DECORUM IS SOMETHING THAT MUST BE STRICTLY ADHERED TO AND MUST BE TAKEN WITH ULTIMATE PRIORITY BY ALL

Benson

think the standards for achieving the rank have been up-graded. I had the opportunity of practising law for 50 years; I have practised law as it should be because I have not added anything to it. I had always been either in court, tribunal or arbitration, which relates to the practice of the law. So, I want to feel fulfilled in my chosen career. In between, I have played politics mainly in the profession, as treasurer of a branch, being the General Secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), President of the association, Chairman of African Bar Association and Vice- Chairman of Commonwealth Lawyers’ Association. Do you still practice as a lawyer and is your law firm still handling matters in court? I have had the opportunity of practising law for 50 years. When I became 70 years, I stopped going to court. I am 81 years now and to the glory of God, I

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Law & Justice

Monday, February 18, 2013

WE HAVE SEEN LAWYERS BEING SANCTIONED IN THE WESTERN COUNTRIES BUT LAWYERS IN

NIGERIA WHO COMMIT WORSE OFFENCES THAN IBORI’S LAWYER ARE WALKING FREELY

have produced two lawyers. One of them is now handling my chambers ,that is, Idowu Benson. And by the grace of God ,he will soon become a SAN and I think he is over eleven or thirteen years in practice. The other one, the elder sister, is an excellent judge of the Lagos State High Court that is Justice Olubunmi Femi-Adeniyi. When I started as a young lawyer, I had to lead a very big chambers of my uncle (T. O. Sobowale Benson & Co). On attaining three years at the bar, I had to sit down as head of chambers to handle cases all over the country. Our chambers based on mainly Insurance matters, which was all over the country. I had to travel far and wide in the country. There is no part of Nigeria that I have not been to. I remember my first appearance in the Supreme Court was what you may call a case which was given to us by the government. I have practised for 50 years and that is good enough. Are there Judges that you admired their judgements while you were in active practice? Yes, Honorable Justice Yinka Ayoola, J.I. C Taylor, these are fantastic lawyers and Judges, I also admired Justice Sigismund Lambo, who is a very close friend of my uncle and he went to a lower Bench as a Magistrate. Justice Lambo and I had had series of cases in which I defeated him and he also had his ways. Shortly after few practice for some years, he went to the Bench and became a judge of the High Court of Lagos State. Whenever you are appearing before him, you can be sure you are meeting a very sound Judge who has full knowledge of the law and justice administration procedures. He was an intelligent and very versatile judge. He delivered his judgements with all sense of calmness, yet with great insight. Justice Lambo was one of those who encouraged me to study law because he was staying with my uncle. What is your view on allegation of corruption and abuse of professional ethics by some lawyers? I can recall an incident when Mrs. Hairat Balogun had to deal with a lawyer, when I was a counsel to the University of Port Harcourt. Their legal adviser, who had practised law for seven years, suddenly wanted to do his postgraduate studies, which he had to submit his script. So he went back to the Law School to forge his script and they asked him if he had ever been convicted or sent out of the university. He answered

no to the questions. So when he was submitting his papers, he now went and dubbed it with white ink. Mrs. Balogun had to testify that when she signed the papers; there was no tip-ex on any of them. His juniors in the department found out and wrote petition against him and he was arrested. He is presently in jail. He went into the university with false document; he left there after being sent out of the polytechnic. He went to Jos and then went to the Law School with such a document. There are so many of such in the legal profession. We have what is called the ‘Disciplinary Committee’ and if you see what comes out there, you will just be sorry for this profession. In our days, there was no Law School. When we apply to the Inns of Court, they will send our application to Nigeria and they must paste it in every High Court of the area where you come from, so that people could see. You can hardly find the issue of corruption among lawyers then. Femi Falana (SAN) at a lecture titled “Nigeria, Failling Nation: where are lawyers?” mentioned the story of Chief James Onanefe Ibori, the immediate former Governor of oil- rich Delta State. A Judge in Asaba, Delta State found Ibori, strangely though, not guilty in barrage of allegations of misappropriation of public funds, outright embezzlement of State’s fund and other grievous offences, which can be likened to crime against humanity, the same Ibori, who through his Nigerian lawyers pleaded not guilty in Asaba later pleaded guilty in United Kingdom. He further disclosed the judgement of Justice Christopher Hardy in a London court. The Judge said to Bhadresh Gohil, a partner at Airlington Sharma solicitors and James Ibori’s lawyer: “You have brought shame to your family, your profession and your country. You were a solicitor of the Supreme Court and holding out as a man of integrity. It is sad the real villains are in Nigeria, but this fraud required special expertise and you lent yourself to it “Justice Hardy sentenced Barrister Gohil to seven years imprisonment for conspiracy to defraud and money laundering, as well as sharing proceeds of crime. We have seen lawyers sanctioned in the western countries but lawyers in Nigeria who commit worse offences in form of unethical practice, more than Gohil are walking freely. We need to have something like that in this country. We have, in the past as a member of the Bar disciplinary committee, sanctioned several lawyers including SANs who have erred in ethical issues. I can remember a matter that was brought to the committee by a learned colleague at the Bar who complained about a particular SAN, whom he gave his property to let out and thereafter instructed him to let it out for just one year. The owner of the property was given an ambassadorial position, but revealed that he might be removed any time and, however, urged the learned SAN to rent it out for only one year but the SAN defied his instruction and rented the property out for more than a year. When he brought the issue to us, we looked at the facts of the man and found the SAN guilty. We did not stop there; we sanctioned him and dealt with him seriously. However, I don’t think the discipline is enough. We also had SANs who are men of integrity. I remember vividly a recent issue in which the counsel of Wale Babalakin (SAN), Mr Ebun Sofunde (SAN) withdrew from his case. Sofunde withdrew from the case because Babalakin allegedly kept him in the dark over the suit he (Babalakin) had filed at the Federal High Court, Lagos, seeking to stop

his arraignment at the state High Court. If he (Sofunde) had continued with the case, he could have been breaching professional ethics and he would have been sanctioned. The Nigerian Bar Association should take the issue of professional ethics seriously and ensure that the integrity of the Bar is sustained. Some lawyers have been saying that the powers exercisable by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) as the National Judicial Council (NJC) chairman are wide? What is your position on that? I do not agree with that position, the power of CJN as the chairman of NJC is subject to the constituted law. As a lawyer, he is subject to the rules of the council, if he abuses it, there are constitutional provisions that will deal with him. A panel can be set up to investigate the abuses. So, to say his power should be whittled down, is trying to deprive the CJN of his constituted right. What is your view on the pension scam thief, John Yakubu Yusufu, sentenced to two years imprisonment for stealing N32 billion with the option of N720.000 fine? We have introduced what is totally strange to our justice system, plea bargaining is completely strange to our system. The plea bargain system, again, drew the ire of Nigerians with the recent conviction of Yusuf John Yakubu, a former Assistant Director of the Police Pension Board. Yusufu had been accused of embezzling N32.8 billion from the funds he was meant to oversee. The accused entered a guilty plea and by the time Justice Mohammed Talba gave his ruling, many of those who heard it started to doubt if Nigeria would ever be free from corruption. The Judge ordered the forfeiture of 32 choice assets acquired by Yusufu and sentenced him to six years imprisonment, two years for each of the three counts the accused faced an option of N 250,000 fine for each count. Yusuf paid the fine before leaving the courtroom and left as if nothing happened. He became a free man once again, thus fuelling speculations that plea bargaining in the Nigerian justice system gives offenders a legal backing to enjoy the rest of their loot after some might have been forfeited to the government. In fact, from what I heard, the EFCC said that they don’t know anything about it, they are the prosecution and the strange thing is that the man pays immediately. This clearly shows that something is missing. This is a matter the Bar association should take over; they should investigate the case and come out with the truth that the world can relate with.

Law & Justice

Monday, February 18, 2013

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

‘Govt should use law to curb fraudulent act’

Ubani

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 41 C of O.” The Chairman of Council, Association of Housing Corporations of Nigeria (AHCN), Dr. Ifenna Chukwujekwu, however, urged land buyers to take some preliminary investigative measures. He advised buyers to request for the survey plan of the land to be purchased to determine its genuineness and its registration with the Surveyor- General’s office, adding that buyers must ascertain whether a red copy of the survey plan, duly signed and dated by registered surveyor, is submitted, Chukwujekwu said. “Request for other documents on the land. If the land has a document such as Certificate of Occupancy or Registered Conveyance, you will need to conduct a search on the document to ascertain its mortgage status whether it has been used as collateral for mortgage. “You must ensure that you sight the original title documents and that the property is free from any legal encumbrances before any payment is made. Land buyers must conduct an independent research and investigation on the original family or own-

Ayorinde

THE CONDUCT OF LAND SPECULATORS OR HIJACKERS IS

SO FRUSTRATING, SO MENACING AND FRAUDULENT; IT

AMOUNTS TO A CRIME ers of the land by ensuring that he is dealing with all representatives of the family involved.” In his view, the former Second VicePresident, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Mr. Adekunle Ojo, said “My observation is that the Obasanjo’s regime, for obvious reasons, made the Land Use Act (LUA), which took away from others what they had. ‘’A lot of people encountered problems from the so called “Omo Onile”. What Obasanjo did was to just bring up the Land Use Act, which was never resolved to be included in the constitution. It was smuggled into the constitution. Government has used this several times to acquire land un-

Fawehinmi

duly and we ended up having a situation of somebody who stole and who handed it to another thief because it is like you took from the people who has it and sell it to your cronies. What the Act seeks to achieve is to deal with the Omo Onile syndrome, it is like we have created two sets of Omo Onile now. Ojo suggested the need to holistically look into the law and ensure that every owner of land, whether deemed owner or statutory owner or any form of owner, should go and register it.” National Mirror also spoke to a number lawyers on the issue. A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Bolaji Ayorinde said, “The menace of Omo onile is part of the corruption in the system. It has happened to me too, I once purchased land and I was later told by the person who made contact with the vendor that I needed to develop the land very quickly or else, the vendors would sell to somebody else and I would lose the property. “Of course, I resisted such illegal and uncivilised suggestion. What we really need to do is to stand firm on the law. If you give up your right, then the infringement on your right becomes the norm. If you are rightly

in possession of a property, you have a constitutional guarantee of that right, if you are disturbed, you take the matter to court. If such disturbance bothers on criminal activity, you report it to the police.” Another lawyer and publisher of the Squib magazine, Mr. Adesina Ogunlana said “The menace of land speculators is more of a sociological problem than a legal problem for now. There is absolutely nothing one can do about it, except the government is serious about dealing with them. Our clients complain a lot about their menace, but more often than not, we settle out of court because the court process itself is so slow that even our clients cannot afford that luxury of time” The eldest son of late human rights activist, Chief Gani Fawehinmi, SAN, Mohammed , bemoaned the problem of Omo Onile and tasked the Lagos State AttorneyGeneral and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Ade Ipaye, to look into the issue. “The problem is real; the law can be used to correct the present situation. Let the Attorney-General of Lagos State look into the matter. The Chairman of NBA Ikeja branch, Mr. Monday Ubani, said “The conduct of land speculators or hijackers is so frustrating, so menacing and fraudulent. I think Lagos State had recently made a law that makes selling of a piece of land to various people a crime. “Why people don’t often subscribe to court process is because it is very slow and sometimes takes a lifetime. The land speculators often come with different applications to delay the process. ‘’In the new Lagos law, however, provisions are made to register your properties with the government and that will restrain any rogue to resell it. I also urge people with landed properties to register with Lagos State Government.’’ Ubani said the state government deserved commendation for criminalising the act of reselling the land by land speculators.

Lack of effective laws threatens criminal justice system –Agbakoba FRANCIS FAMOROTI

ormer President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Olisa Agbakoba (SAN) has identified lack of adequate effective laws in the country as the major factor responsible for the seeming helplessness of the court in the criminal justice administration. He said the criminal justice system appeared to have been overwhelmed by the level of corruption in the country due to the weakness of the existing laws. By this position, Agbakoba has joined other eminent lawyers in the country to advocate the need for the overhaul of the nation’s criminal justice system. The ex-NBA said the review of the old and weak laws was necessary to enable the Nigerian courts handle effectively the anti-graft cases in the country. Agbakoba explained that the sen-

tence imposed on the Police Pension Fund thief, John Yakubu Yusufu, was found ridiculous by the people because the country’s penal laws are old and obsolete. He spoke with some journalists in Lagos shortly after the opening ceremony of the Second Federal High Court Judges’ Forum organised by the Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON). According to him, ‘’one can blame the inadequacy of existing laws for the seeming helplessness of the nation’s criminal justice system. The system seems to have been overwhelmed by the level of corruption in the country, because the existing laws are weak.’’ Notable lawyers, Mallam. Yusuf Ali (SAN), Chief Nathaniel Oke (SAN) and Mrs. Funke Adekoya (SAN) among others, had last week called for review of the country’s criminal laws. However, Agbakoba canvassed the same view and suggested a comprehen-

PRIORITY SHOULD BE GIVEN TO CASES FILED BY

AMCON

sive overhaul of the country’s laws to enable it cope with today’s reality. He commended the initiative behind the forum, which was meant for the judges to closely examine the newly introduced AMCON Practice Direction 2013. The forum, the SAN said, was part of effort to further educate the judges on ways of better handling AMCON cases and ensuring that they were speedily determined. Earlier, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Ibrahim Auta, who unveiled the practice direction at the opening session of the forum, urged judges to treat AMCON and other related cases with dispatch. He said priority should be given to

cases filed by AMCON as is being accorded to cases relating to fundamental rights, money laundering, rape and kidnapping. Auta, however, noted that the fact that AMCON organised the forum did not mean that “we (the judges) should close our eyes to all that AMCON files.” He said plan was in the offing to ensure that cases filed by AMCON were sent to judges in other jurisdictions outside Abuja and Lagos, where the cases are currently concentrated. Auta also advised judges on how exparte applications by AMCON should be handled. AMCON’s Managing Director, Mustafa Chike-Obi said the forum was meant to help strengthen the operations of the court and lighten the case docket of judges. He expressed the hope that the forum would become an annual event, where legal issues would be discussed exhaustively.

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Law & Justice

Monday, February 18, 2013

Christians have right to wear cross to work –Court rules Foreign

British Christian woman suffered religious discrimination when British Airways told her not to wear a visible cross over her uniform, a top European court has ruled. However, three other British Christians lost related religious discrimination claims at the European Court of Human Rights. According to CNN, British Airways violated the article of the European Convention on Human Rights that guarantees freedom of religion when it stopped employee Nadia Eweida from wearing her cross openly, the court said. Eweida said she experienced discrimination from 2006 to 2007, when she started displaying the cross while working as a

United Kingdom member of check-in staff. She was first sent home and then offered another role where she’d have no contact with customers. She refused to take it. The airline changed its policy on uniforms in 2007 to allow employees to wear religious or charity symbols, at which time Eweida returned to the check-in desk. In its ruling, the court weighed Eweida’s desire to show her religious belief against the airline’s wish to project a certain corporate image. “While this aim was undoubtedly legitimate, the domestic courts accorded it too much weight,” it said, referring to British Airways’ position. However, the court found that three other British Christians who argued they’d been unfairly dismissed from their jobs had not been subjected to religious discrimination. They are nurse Shirley Chaplin, who

ustitia otherwise known as the Roman goodness of Justice is usually armed with sword and balance scales. She is most often depicted with a set of scales typically suspended from her right hand, upon which she measures the strengths of a case’s support and opposition. She is also often seen carrying a double-edged sword in her left hand, symbolizing the power of Reason and Justice, which may be wielded either for or against any party. Since the 15th century, Lady Justice has often been depicted wearing a blindfold. The blindfold represents objectivity, in that justice is or should be meted out objectively, without fear or favour, regardless of identity, money, power, or weakness; blind justice and impartiality. The earliest Roman coins depicted Justitia with the sword in one hand and the scale in the other, but with her eyes uncovered. Justitia was only commonly represented as “blind” since about the end of the 15th century. The first known representation of blind Justice is Hans Gieng’s 1543 statue on the erechtigkeitsb-

also wanted to wear a cross at work, registrar Lilian Ladele, who declined to register gay civil partnerships, and Gary MacFarlane, a relationship counselor who did not want to give sex therapy to same-sex couples. In the case of Chaplin, the court ruled that the concerns of hospital managers for health and safety outweighed the nurse’s desire to wear a cross visibly in the workplace. The cases of the registrar and the relationship counselor had been fairly considered in the national courts, the court said. “In each case the employer was pursuing a policy of nondiscrimination against service-users, and the right not to be discriminated against on grounds of sexual orientation was also protected under the Convention.” The parties in the cases have three months in which to lodge an appeal. The Christian Legal Centre, which directly supported Chaplin and MacFarlane, issued a statement saying the ruling “raised questions about the future

Why justice is blind?

runnen (Fountain of Justice) in Berne. Instead of using the Janus approach, many sculptures

UK Attorney-General, Dominic Grieve

involvement of Christians in professional and public life.” McFarlane said he was “amazed” by the court’s decision, and added that there had been no need for him to be dismissed from his job.

simply leave out the blindfold altogether. For example, atop the Old Bailey courthouse in London, a statue of Lady Justice stands without a blindfold; the courthouse brochures explain that this is because Lady Justice was originally not blindfolded, and because her “maidenly form” is supposed to guarantee her impartiality which renders the blindfold redundant. Another variation is to depict a blindfolded Lady Justice as a human scale, weighing competing claims in each hand. An example of this can be seen at the Shelby County Courthouse in Memphis, Tennessee. Thus, the personification of justice balancing the scales of truth and fairness dates back to the Goddess Maat, and later Isis, of ancient Egypt. The Hellenic deities, Themis and Dike were later goddesses of justice. Themis was the embodiment of divine order, law, and custom, in her aspect as the personification of the divine rightness of law. Culled from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Events

L-R: Managing Director, Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria, (AMCON), Mr. Mustafa ChikeObi; Chief Judge, Federal High Court of Nigeria, Justice Ibrahim Auta; Executive Director, AMCON, Mrs. Mofoluke Dosumu and Justice Okechukwu Okeke, at the Second Federal High Court Judges’ Forum in Lagos last week.

L-R; Mr. Olugbenga Ibrahim, Mr. Simon Anasudu and Mr. Tunde Adewoye, at the reunion meeting of the members of the 2009 class, Master’s of Law (LL.M ) programme, Faculty of Law, Lagos State University (LASU) in Lagos at the weekend.

Chief Babatunde Benson (SAN) and his wife, Olabisi at the Bar dinner of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Ikorodu branch, recently.

Mrs. Funke Adekoya (SAN) and Chief Olorunfunmi Bashorun at the bar dinner.

Law & Justice

Monday, February 18, 2013

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

How Madaki deposed Tukur, Emir of Muri When the Military Governor of the defunct Gongola State, Col. Yohanna Madaki, removed Alhaji Umaru Abba Tukur from office as the Emir of Muri, about 27 years ago, the latter urged the law court to quash his deposition. In the ensuing legal tussle, the Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Court of Appeal that the Federal High Court had no jurisdiction to determine the matter. FRANCIS FAMOROTI reports.

lhaji Umaru Abba Tukur was installed the 11th Emir of Muri in Northern Nigeria in 1966. In August 1986, about 20 years into his reign, he had a running battle with the then Military Governor of the defunct Gongola State, Col. Yohanna Madaki. The bickering between them led to Tukur’s removal as the Emir of Muri and Chairman of Muri Emirate Council. On the Nigerian map today, Muri is in Taraba State. To Madaki, Tukur was sacked for his wrongdoings and misconduct as the Emir of Muri. The military governor also ordered that the deposed Emir should be banished to Mubi, an ancient town in the present day Adamawa State. Tukur on the other hand, reasoned that his constitutional rights had been breached by the military governor and he filed an action at the Federal High Court, Kano, against the state government seeking among others; An order quashing his deposition as the Emir of Muri, dated the 12th day of August, 1986, made by Col. Madaki, Military Governor of Gongola State. The thrust of Tukur’s claim was that the said order violated his fundamental rights guaranteed by section 33(1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1979 as amended, (hereinafter referred to as the ~Constitution’) in that he was never given the opportunity of being heard before the said order was made nor given any notice of misconduct pertaining thereto, let alone particulars thereof; Besides, he said that the conditions precedent to the exercise of the powers of deposition by the Military Governor under section 6 of the Chiefs (Appointment and Deposition) Law, Cap. 20, Vol.1 Laws of Northern Nigeria, 1963, applicable to Gongola State not having been satisfied rendered the said order null and void and of no legal effect. He further asked that the said order having been purportedly made pursuant to section 1(1) (d) of Decree No. 17 of 1984, was void ab initio and not applicable to him since he was not an employee of the Jalingo Local Government Council as envisaged by the said Decree, nor could it be said that he was in the public service of Gongola State within the meaning of the said Decree, being a traditional and or natural ruler. He also prayed for a further declaration that his detention from August 12, 1986 in a Government Lodge, Yola, by the Military Governor aforesaid was without any justifiable cause whatsoever and constitutes a further violation of his fundamental rights as enshrined in section 32(1) of the said Constitution. Besides, Tukur asked for a perpetual in-

Tukur, the deposed Emir

Muhammadu Mafindi- 9th Emir of Muri

MADAKI ALSO ORDERED THAT THE

EMIR BE BANISHED TO MUBI, DEPOSED

AN ANCIENT TOWN IN THE PRESENT DAY

ADAMAWA STATE

FAMOUS CASES junction restraining Madaki, Military Governor of Gongola State, his agents and other such representatives from howsoever interfering with his liberty and rights as guaranteed by Chapter IV of the said Constitution except in a manner prescribed by law. Subsequently, the state government filed an application challenging the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court to hear the case on September 5, 1986. The application was dismissed. In his ruling, Justice Babatunde Belgore, of the Federal High Court, dismissed the preliminary objection and affirmed jurisdiction over the matter. Specifically, he ruled that the jurisdiction of the court was not ousted because the issue was not under Decree No 17 of 1984. Dissatisfied with the decision, the Gongola State Government appealed to the Court of Appeal in Jos. On June 21, 1988, the appellate court unanimously set aside the ruling of the lower court and held that the Federal High Court had no jurisdiction to try, entertain or determine the chieftaincy matter. Aggrieved by this verdict, Tukur filed a notice of appeal at the Supreme Court. On September 12, 1988, he filed a second notice of appeal. Tukur’s lawyer, Mr. Gally Brown- Peterside (SAN) led a team of other attorneys while the state government was represented by Mr. Tayo Oyetibo, among others. The Supreme Court noted that at the hearing of the appeal, Tukur abandoned the first notice of appeal. The notice of appeal dated 12th September, 1988 contained only one ground of appeal which, without the particulars reads: ‘’The learned Justices of the Court of Appeal erred in law by misconstruing the

full import of the jurisdiction conferred on the Federal High Court by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1979 as amended, to try cases dealing with fundamental rights, in its Chapter IV thereof, when they held as follows:The Federal High Court has no jurisdiction to entertain, determine or grant the reliefs claimed in paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Respondent’s claim either separately or in combination with the other aspects of the Respondent’s claim in other paragraphs notwithstanding the alleged violation of the fundamental rights guaranteed by section 33(1) of the Constitution. The question naturally arises for determination having regard to that part of the decision of the Court of Appeal complained of. This centred on whether the Federal High Court has jurisdiction to determine and grant any of the reliefs claimed by the appellant in that court.’’ During the hearing of the appeal, seven justices of the apex court heard the case. They are, Justices Andrews Obaseki, Augustine Nnamani, Adolphus Karibi-Whyte, Chukwudifu Oputa, Salihu Modibbo Alfa Belgore, Abdul Ganiyu Agbaje and Phillip Nnaemeka-Agu. In its judgment, the Supreme Court in a split decision of 6 to 1 delivered on September 5, 1989, dismissed Tukur’s appeal. Of the justices listed above, only Justice Karibi-Whyte dissented. The lead judgment was read by Justice Obaseki, who observed that ‘’Turning to the reliefs or orders claimed by the appellant, I will take them one by one. The first relief is an order quashing the deposition of the Emir of Muri. This relief can only be granted by the Gongola State High Court as the claim involves a determination of a chieftaincy

question as defined in the Chiefs (Appointment and Deposition) Law. Ground one of the three grounds of the application is that the order violates section 33(1) of the Constitution, i.e., the right of fair hearing. It is more germane to say that the order was made in violation of the right of the appellant to fair hearing. ‘’The second ground which is non-compliance with section 6 of the Chiefs (Appointment and Deposition) Law, Cap. 20, Vol.1 of Northern Nigeria, 1963 applicable to Gongola State is not a ground which the Federal High Court has jurisdiction to determine. The third ground is that section 1(1)(d) of Decree No.17 of 1984 is inapplicable to the appellant. The issue raised by this ground is not within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court. Accordingly, the apex court held that the Federal High Court therefore had no jurisdiction to grant the prayer to quash the deposition order. Justice Obaseki said ‘’In the instant appeal, the chieftaincy question being a fundamental issue which the Federal High Court has no jurisdiction to entertain, the Court of Appeal therefore erred in law in holding that the Federal High Court has jurisdiction to hear and determine prayers or claims No.3, 4’ 5 and 6 of the claim and in remitting them to the Federal High Court for hearing and determination. ‘’The appeal fails and the cross-appeal succeeds. That decision is hereby set aside and in its stead an order striking out the entire suit for want of jurisdiction is hereby substituted.’’ He added. The apex court said the Gongola state government was entitled to costs in the appeal fixed at N500.00 in the court, N200.00 in the Court of Appeal and N200.00 in the High Court.’’ The Supreme Court declared that ‘’the appeal fails and it is dismissed. The crossappeal succeeds and is allowed.’’ Justices Nnamani, Oputa, Belgore, Agbaje, and Nnaemeka-Agu, concurred with the lead verdict. Justice Karibi-Whyte dissented saying the Federal High Court had jurisdiction to hear the matter. Madaki’s decision to depose Tukur did not to go down well with the military regime, which also sacked the governor later. Today, Alhaji Abbas Tafida presides over the traditional emirate of Muri as the Emir of Muri in the northwestern Taraba State.

Monday, February 18, 2013

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Community Mirror Those who claim to be doing what they are doing in terms of terrorism in the name of Islam are on their own. They are not doing anything for Islam or Muslims, but for themselves. SULTAN OF SOKOTO, MUHAMMAD SA’AD ABUBAKAR

Pregnant woman dies from incense fumes DANJUMA WILLIAMS GOMBE

ragedy has struck the Bogo Area of Gombe metropolis, as a pregnant woman was alleged to have died from inhaling toxic fumes, even as five others, including her husband, Mohammed have been hospitalised. According to the hospi-

tal physician, Dr. Esan, the patients were brought in unconscious, while the deceased was suspected to have died as result of inhaling toxic fumes from burning incense. “We are yet to clearly establish the cause of death, even as some patients are now getting better. The only thing we could detect is toxic fumes inhalation; we are trying to

find out what really caused it. Whether from other sources or from burning incense discovered in the deceased’s house,” he said. Dr. Esan said the deceased was pregnant and that could have reduced her body immunity. One of the survivors, Bilyaminu, said before the incident, they all watched a football match with Mohammed

and his wife in the latter’s room. When they left, a friend ran to inform them that Mohammed’s wife has suddenly taken ill and that some people were praying for her in the house with incense. He said, “When I got there, I noticed my friend and his wife were shivering, and after some minutes began shivering and I started shouting and later became unconscious.

He said it took the efforts of neighbours who rushed to the room to rescue them, as all of them became unconscious. “I was the only one who regained consciousness, but could not walk,” he said. When contacted, the state Police Public Relation Officer, ASP Fwaje Atajiri, said he was not aware of the incident, even as he promised to investigate the matter.

SURE-P recruits 3,000 youths JAMES DANJUMA KATSINA

A man riding on a motorcycle loaded with jerry cans on Gwallameji road in Bauchi.

PHOTO: NAN

hairman of Katsina State Implementation Committee of SURE-P, Garba Kurfi, has said the programme has so far recruited 3,000 people across the 34 council areas. Kurifi said some local governments had more people selected for the programme than others due to larger population and consideration for number of urban and rural communities. He said 30 percent of the jobs were reserved for women, 20 percent for those living with disabilities and 50 percent for the youths. He said the e-accounts of the beneficiaries were currently being processed and would be forwarded to the head office for documentation. Kurfi said the youths will be engaged in jobs such as roads rehabilitation, teaching in primary schools as well as home management for women. He maintained that every council area would select three communities for such projects and that the beneficiaries are over 18 years of age but not more than 35 years old. He said the programme is aimed at creating employment for the unemployed youths as it would prevent them from indulging in social vices.

Akwa Ibom to reactivate model motor parks TONY ANICHEBE UYO

our major motor parks in Ikot Akpe, Idiabong, Ikot Ukpong and Itam in Uyo metropolis are to be reactivated. The commissioner for transport Bassey Dan Abia, stated this at a stakeholders meeting with transport business operators in the state. Abia said, apart from causing traffic problems, the illegal parks also deprive the state government of revenue as he called on stakeholders to cooperate with the ministry to get the parks functioning,

as a way of restoring sanity to traffic situation in Uyo. The commissioner expressed satisfaction at the manner tricycle operators’ conduct themselves on the road, saying the ministry has introduced a data base for automatic registration of vehicles in the state. Speaking, the commissioner for Housing and Urban Renewal, Emmanuel Enoidem said the meeting was to brain storm on how to decongest the capital city and called for decorum to be maintained by all. He said the government is developing motor parks for use by the citizens, and the

effort would bring decency in the transport system. On his part, the Commissioner for Environment and Mineral Resources, Prince Enobong Uwah, observed that it was not proper to operate illegal motor parks, when they were model parks that should be put to use. The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Ekpenyong Ntekim said the meeting has availed people in the transport sector the opportunity to adhere to plans to relocate to modern parks, adding that the Uyo Capital City is managed by the state and not the local government.

Also speaking, representative of Itu Local Government Chairman, Mr. Michael James Etim said, Itu would continue to support the state government’s vision to relocate motorists from unauthorised places. The Chairman of Uyo Local Government, Otuekong Ekerette Ekpenyong said the reactivation of the motor parks would not be successful unless government opens the ring roads, as he advocated the handing over of motor parks to local governments for management The State Chairman of NURTW, Mr. Uwem James, appealed to the government to provide vehicles for the

parks when operational, even as chairman of tricycle operators, Mr. Sammy Edem pleaded that they should not be banned. Other stakeholders include the sector Commander Federal Road Safety Commission in the state Mr. Fedelis Ozakwue, representative of the Uyo Capital City Development Authority. In his remark Permanent Secretary Ministry of Transport Barr. Offiong Udofe thanked the stakeholder for their useful contributions and expressed optimism that the uncommon transformation of the government would be sustained in the transport sector.

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World News

Pope blesses thousands at St. Peter’s Square

“We are not like all other countries. We are more threatened, more challenged, and therefore we have to ensure the proper activity of our security forces.” ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER, BENJAMIN NETANYAHU

New pope will be African or Latin American –Benedict’s aide PAUL ARHEWE,

WITH AGENCY REPORTS

ardinal Kurt Koch, a close aide of Pope Benedict who will cast his vote for the next leader of the Roman Catholic Church, says there is no reason why the new pontiff cannot be African or Latin American. Koch, head of the Vatican department that deals with Christian unity and relations with Jews, also said he had had no doubt that Pope Benedict would resign rather than rule for life, and said , in a report from Reuters that future popes would be free to do the same. “The challenges of the Church in the world are very different on different continents: in Africa, in Asia, in Latin America. The question is ‘where will the challenges be greater, on which continent, should it be a pope for, above all, Latin America, for Africa ...,” Koch told Reuters in an interview.

“I can imagine taking a step towards a black pope, an African pope or a Latin American pope. I can imagine this.” Koch, 62, a soft-spoken Swiss, will be one of the 117 cardinals under the age of 80 who are eligible to enter a secretive conclave to elect the next pope that is expected to start in mid-March. There has been much speculation in the Church on whether the man to succeed Benedict should be a non-European, which would be a first in more than a millennium. While the Church in Europe is polarized and has dwindling congregations, the Church in Africa is growing and in Latin America it remains large and vibrant despite inroads by Protestant evangelical groups. There are several leading candidates from outside the Old Continent. Latin Americans include Brazilian Odilo Scherer, archbishop of

L-R: Cardinal Kurt Koch and Pope Benedict XVI

the huge diocese of Sao Paulo and Argentine Leonardo Sandri, who works in the Vatican and whose parents are of Italian origin. Peter Turkson from Ghana, head of the Vatican’s justice and peace department, is often

Libyans mark second revolt anniversary

ecurity forces are on high alert across Libya as the country marks two years since the start of the revolt that toppled Muammar Gaddafi after four decades of authoritarian rule. Borders have been closed and some international flights suspended amid fears of a new outbreak of violence. The anniversary of the uprising that ended with Gaddafi’s killing in October 2011 comes as Libya’s new rulers battle critics calling for a “new revolution” and accusing them of failing to usher in much-needed reforms. It also comes a day after security officials said they had arrested four foreigners in Benghazi on suspicion of being Christian missionaries and printing books about Christianity. On Friday, thousands of people gathered in the main cities of Tripoli and Benghazi to celebrate the initial February 15, 2011 protest that ignit-

ed the revolt two days later. There is no official programme for yesterday’s anniversary, but the authorities have taken steps aimed at preventing any violence on a day when spontaneous celebrations are expected. Libya’s borders with Egypt and Tunisia were closed from Thursday for four days, and all international flights have been suspended except at the airports of Tripoli and second city Benghazi - the cradle of the “February 17 revolution”. Ali Zeidan, the coun-

try’s prime minister, said the measures were taken to avoid “any bid to undermine Libya’s security and disrupt celebrations marking the anniversary of the revolution”. Checkpoints have also been set up across Tripoli and in Benghazi. Opposition groups are demanding that former Gaddafi regime officials be barred from holding public office, and a leaflet circulated in Tripoli calls for a “popular revolt” and civil disobedience to bring down the current regime.

The anniversary celebrations come as Libya’s new rulers battle critics calling for a new revolution. PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES

PHOTO: AP

tipped as Africa’s front runner. There is a thriving Church in the Philippines, the largest Catholic country in Asia, birthplace of one cardinal who is often mentioned as a candidate, Luis Antonio Tagle.

French, Malian forces take control of rebel’s town

undreds of French and Malian soldiers have retaken the jihadist stronghold of Bourem, a town where many radical Islamic fighters were believed to have fled, officials and witnesses said Sunday. Militants launched two suicide attacks last week on a checkpoint leading into Gao on the road from Bourem, raising fears of a protracted insurgency in northern Mali after French and Malian forces initially dislodged them from Gao without much resistance. About 1,000 forces from France, Mali and other African countries are now in the town of Bourem, according to a French military official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t permitted to speak to press. The joint military operation was launched Saturday afternoon as part of the ongoing effort to secure Gao, where the radical militants invaded one week ago and exchanged gunfire with Malian forces for hours. “As the general has said, the jihads are always close,” the official said. While Gao has been restored to relative peace in recent days, officials say the ousted fighters are just on the other side of the Niger River, from which they launched last week’s assault when they arrived in wooden boats.

WORLD BULLETIN Man killed assembling bomb before Kenya political rally A man was killed when the bomb he was apparently trying to assemble near a Kenyan primary school before it hosted a presidential candidate’s rally exploded, police said yesterday. Residents heard a blast late on Saturday night in the eastern frontier town of Garissa but police said they only identified the site of the explosion caused by an improvised explosive device (IED) at a primary school field yesterday. Martha Karua, the only female presidential candidate in the March 4 vote and among the lower-ranked contenders according to most polls, had been expected to speak at the grounds on Sunday afternoon, regional police chief Charlton Mureithi said. “Our initial assessment reveals the man was trying to set up an IED near the dais, but killed himself as the device exploded on him, ripping his body into pieces,” Mureithi told reporters. The open field also lies next to an army camp in a town used as a support base for Kenya’s military mission in Somalia. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the intended attack, police said. Karua kept her date with her supporters in the town but spoke from a different venue.

24 convicted in killing of Moroccan soldiers A Moroccan military court convicted 24 Western Saharan activists on Sunday for their roles in the killing of 11 soldiers at a protest camp in 2010, and gave nine of the defendants life sentences. The long delayed trial revolves around the sensitive issue of Morocco’s annexation of the mineral rich Western Sahara region in 1975. In October 2010, thousands of Western Saharans set up a protest camp in Gdim Izik just outside the main city of Laayoune to demonstrate against their marginalization in favor of Moroccans from the north and to demand jobs and housing. The Polisario, an Algeria-based group fighting for the independence of the Western Sahara, maintains the camp also had political demands and was part of a popular revolt for independence. After negotiations with the protesters broke down, security forces went to clear the camp on Nov. 8 and were met by armed resistance. Eleven soldiers and two Saharans died in the fighting in some of the most serious violence in the region since it was annexed by Morocco in 1975.

World News

Monday, February 18, 2013

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Pope blesses thousands at St. Peter’s Square P ope Benedict XVI blessed the faithful from his window overlooking St. Peter’s Square for the first time since announcing his resignation, cheered by an emotional crowd of tens of thousands of well-wishers from around the world. Smiling broadly, Benedict raised his arms outstretched to the massive crowd in his second-to-last Angelus blessing before leaving the papacy. A huge banner in the square read: “We love you.” The yesterday appointment is one of the most cherished traditions of the Catholic Church, and this moment is one of Bene-

dict’s last opportunities to connect with the Catholic masses. The pope’s voice was strong and clear as he looked into hazy sunshine over the square packed with at least 50,000 pilgrims, whom he addressed in Italian, English, French, German, Polish and Spanish. Benedict made no direct reference to his stunning decision to step down on Feb. 28. But in his comments to Spanish-speaking pilgrims he asked the faithful to “continue praying for me and for the next pope.” And he thanked the faithful for their “affection and spiritual closeness.” The crowd broke out into

Ecuadorean president favoured to win re-election

cuadoreans cast ballots yesterday with President Rafael Correa, a dynamic, polemical economist, highly favoured to win a second re-election. His leftist government has won broad backing from the lower classes as it leads Latin America in social spending as a portion of the economy. Correa’s leading opponent, former Banco de Guayaquil executive president Guillermo Lasso, trailed Correa in pre-election polls by more than 20 points in the field of eight candidates. Correa, 48, has brought uncharacteristic political stability to an oil-exporting nation of 14.6 million people that cycled through seven presidents in the decade before he first took office in 2007. He won re-election in April 2009 after voters approved a constitutional rewrite that mandated a new ballot, and he would be legally barred from

running again following a victory yesterday. To avoid a runoff, Correa needed a simple majority or 40 percent of the vote plus a 10-point margin over the No. 2 vote-getter. Correa, a graduate of the University of IllinoisChampaign, focused his campaign on increasing tax revenue and social services. Lasso promised to be friendlier to foreign investment, lower taxes on job-creating companies and roll back elements of what Correa calls his “21st century socialism,” such as a 5 percent tax on capital removed from Ecuador. A champion of big government in the mold of Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez but less radical, Correa has endeared himself to the lower classes by making education and health care more accessible, building or improving 7,820 kilometres (4,870 miles) of highways and, the government says, creating 95,400 jobs in the past four years.

President Rafael Correa casting his vote in Quito, Ecuador, yesterday. PHOTO: AP

People gathering in St Peter’s square as Pope Benedict XVI leads his Sunday Angelus prayer at the Vatican, yesterday. PHOTO: REUTERS

cheers and wild applause. The pope gave particular thanks to the “beloved inhabitants of the city of Rome,” a possible hint at the title he will take after retirement. The Vatican has suggested he may be called “emeritus bishop of Rome.” The traditional noon appointment normally attracts a few thousand pilgrims and tourists, but city officials prepared for a

crush of people seeking to witness a moment of history. “We wanted to wish him well,” said Amy Champion, a tourist from Wales. “It takes a lot of guts to take the job and even more guts ... to quit.” From yesterday evening, the pope will be out of the public eye for an entire week: A meditation service at the Vatican marks the be-

ginning of the traditional Lenten period of reflection and prayer. Rome threw on extra buses and subway trains to help deal with the crowds, and offered free shuttle vans for the elderly and disabled. While cardinals elect his successor next month in a secrecy-steeped conclave in the Sistine Chapel, the 85-year-old Bene-

Funeral for Pistorius’ girlfriend slated for Tuesday

he family of Reeva Steenkamp said yesterday her body was back in her hometown of Port Elizabeth after the model and reality TV contestant was shot dead inside the house of Oscar Pistorius. A private funeral will be held on Tuesday. Adam Steenkamp, the brother of Pistorius’ late girlfriend, told The Associated Press “Reeva is back home.” The family said that

Steenkamp, who was shot multiple times and killed at the double-amputee Olympic athlete’s home early Thursday, will be cremated in a ceremony closed to the public and the media in the city on South Africa’s southern coast. Pistorius was charged with her murder and is expected to make a second court appearance — also on Tuesday — for the start of his bail hearing. He remains in custody in a

police station in Pretoria ahead of that hearing. The 29-year-old Steenkamp was seen laughing and smiling on South African television Saturday night after national broadcaster SABC chose to air the first episode of a reality TV show in which she was featured. Her family said it did not oppose the program being aired because Steenkamp wanted people to see it and a short tribute to her was shown before the episode.

Ex-Israeli foreign minister on trial for fraud

he trial of Israel’s former foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman, on charges of fraud and breach of trust has begun in Jerusalem. The charges relate to his alleged involvement in the promotion of Israel’s former ambassador to Belarus. Mr Lieberman, who stepped down after the charges were filed in January, pleaded not guilty on all counts. He heads the Yisrael Beitenu party, which ran on a list with Likud to win last month’s elections narrowly. However, the list only won 31 seats in the 120-strong Knesset, and Likud’s leader, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is currently trying to forge

a workable coalition. The BBC’s reporter says this trial could determine Mr Lieberman’s future in politics. Prosecutors allege the politician intervened to promote Zeev Ben Aryeh, the former ambassador to Belarus, to a post in Latvia. They say it was a reward for a tip-off about a separate criminal investigation he was facing. Our correspondent says that if Mr Lieberman is found guilty and sentenced to more than three months in prison, he would be forced to spend seven years out of government and give up his parliamentary seat. Yesterday he was making a brief appearance before a panel of three

judges at the Jerusalem District Court for a procedural hearing to enter his plea and set a future court date.

dict, the first pontiff to resign in 600 years, will be in retreat at the Holy See’s summer estate in the hills southeast of Rome. After several weeks, he is expected to move into a monastery being refurbished for him behind Vatican City’s walls and lead a largely cloistered life. The Vatican hasn’t announced the date of the start of the conclave, but said on Saturday that it might start sooner than March 15, the earliest date it can be launched under current rules. Benedict would have to sign off on any earlier date, an act that would be one of the last of his nearly eight-year papacy.

Couples attend mass wedding in South Korea

outh Korea’s Unification Church has held a mass wedding, with 3,500 couples from 70 countries tying the knot. The ceremony on Sunday was the first since the death of its leader and founder, Reverend Sun Myung Moon. About 20,000 church officials and followers gathered at Cheongshim Peace Centre in Gapyeong, south of Seoul, and 7,000 of them exchanged wedding rings. The organiser said the event was to promote world peace and break down barriers between races. According to the church, about a thousand new couples tied the knot, while more than 8,500 couples from all over the world participated via a live-streamed broadcast. The Unification Church claims millions of members worldwide. Moon, its founder, died of complications from pneumonia last year, aged 92.

Kosovo celebrates five years of independence

thnic Albanians in Kosovo are celebrating the fifth anniversary of their declaration of independence from Serbia with a parade of police and armed forces in the main square of Pristina, the capital. It’s the first time such forces have been used in a parade since the end of the 1998-99 war with Serbia. Kosovo’s lightly armed Kosovo Security Force paraded on Sunday in armored vehicles alongside

fire fighters and special police units wearing masks to conceal their identities. The NATO-trained force has 2,500 members and wants to become an army, but alliance members such as Greece and Spain oppose that because they reject Kosovo’s independence. Ninety-six nations have recognized Kosovo’s independence, but Serbia claims the territory as its own. The European Union is currently mediating talks between the two former foes.

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Again, 15 die in two incidents in Kano AUGUSTINE MADU-WEST KANO

ragedy was again recorded in Kano State at the weekend, when 15 persons were killed in two separate incidents that occurred in Kumbotso and Takai Local Government Areas of the state. While five children of the same parents were burnt to death when their family house in Kumbotso, headquarters of Kumbotso Local Government Council Area was engulfed by fire, 10 others lost their lives in an auto crash on Saturday night in Takai community, where 10 others were killed in similar circumstances about a week ago when a Volkswagen Gulf car collided with a heavy duty vehicle, roasting all the passengers on board when the cab caught fire. Saturday’s auto crash in Takai brings to 20 the number of people killed in auto crashes in the area in one week. The five children, who lost their lives in the Kumbotso inferno, have been identified as the children of Magaji Tambaya, the dean of the faculty of engineering, Kano State University of Science and Technology. They were said to have been burnt beyond recognition in the midnight fire at

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Monday, February 18, 2013

their WRECA residence in Panshekara, located in the suburb of the city. Kano State Fire Service officials told journalists in that “the fire incident, which occurred at the official residence of the lecturer, was reported at about 1.50am on Saturday.” Head of Operations, Kashim Musa Bichi, said the cause of the fire could not be immediately ascertained, adding that it was not easy for his men as they faced difficulties put outing the fire. Disclosing that investigation into the fire incident has commenced, Bichi appealed to the residents to handle issues related to fire with care. In another development, 10 people were feared dead in an auto crash, which occurred on the Kano-Takai road, while scores sustained varying degree of injuries, when a Toyota Hiace passenger bus collided head on with a J5 Bus on Saturday on the Kano-Kari federal highway. The head of the fire service said “the bodies of the victims have been taken to Dan’masara General Hospital, near Dutse, Jigawa State.” However, Bichi cautioned drivers to always obey traffic rules and regulations while plying the highways, stressing that “the carnage we have witnessed in recent times are mostly avoidable.”

70 PDP lawmakers, others set –Senator to join APC •Says new party won’t disappoint Nigerians INUSA NDAHI AND AZA MSUE

t least 70 Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, senators and many others from other political parties have concluded arrangements to join the new All Progressives Congress, APC, ahead of the 2015 general elections. Alhaji Alkali Jajere, the senator representing Southern Yobe senatorial district disclosed this during the weekend. Jajere stated this in Damaturu, the Yobe State capital while answering questions from journalists after their ANPP stakeholders/supporters meeting to endorse the much talked-about merger. “As I am talking to you, we have received a lot of commendation and support

from over 70 PDP serving senators, among others, and very soon they will join our new party, the APC,” Jajere claimed. He said with the merger that has received much commendation from patriotic Nigerians, he was optimistic that the new party will wrest power from the PDP come 2015 elections. Jajere said with the rate at which Nigerians are suffering from poverty, corruption and injustice under the PDP government, many people from across the country are ready to offer their unflinching support to the new party for a change. He said this was because the people are aware of the many problems bedeviling the nation since the PDP came on board in 1999, which they seems not to have solutions to. He added that

the merger will surely enable them bring an end to PDP’s monopoly on power. The senator therefore asked for support from all members of the ANPP from his constituency, the state and the country in general in order to correct all the wrongs perpetrated by the ruling PDP at the centre and indeed in the states where it holds sway. On whether the merger will fail due to clash of interests, the lawmaker said this only exists in the imagination of the opposition and of course on the pages of newspapers. It will be recalled that the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN; the All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP; the Congress for Political Change, CPC; and the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, merged recently to form the All

Progressives Congress, APC. Meanwhile, the ViceChairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Customs, Trade and Immigration Matters, Ibrahim Bello, yesterday said the merger party, the APC will give Nigerians the new face of democracy. Bello, who represents Igabi federal constituency, Kaduna State under the platform of the CPC, urged the four major opposition parties to sustain the merger arrangement in the interest of masses. Bello said this during an interactive forum organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, Kaduna State council; he said who becomes the presidential candidate ahead of the 2015 elections is not an issue at the moment, adding that the APC has enough time to plan for that.

Plateau recorded N6.9bn IGR in 2012 JAMES A BRAHAM JOS

he Plateau State government yesterday said it generated N6.9 billion internally last year. Chairman of the Plateau State Internal Revenue Service, PSIRS, Mrs. Rauta Jat, told journalists yesterday in Jos that the feat was a “testimony to the hard work and commitment of the service. Jat’s words: “We have never generated this much at any time. It is a clear testimony to our dedication, commitment and hard work.” The statistics showed that the bulk of the revenue came from the Pay As You Earn, PAYE, scheme which accounted for about N5.27 billion, while N1 billion came from Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs. Jat added that N190.8 million was collected

from road taxes and that 24 million came from direct assessment.” She said the highest monthly collection was recorded in March, last year during which N826.4 million was collected. She continued: “It is our belief that if this tempo is maintained, we will hit the N1 billion monthly revenue target this year.” Jat said that new measures had been put in place to plug all loopholes hitherto exploited to defraud the state, while strict compliance with tax laws will also be ensured. The chairman reiterated the government’s determination to begin the collection of ground rents and capital gains so as to shore up the revenue profile of the state. “I am sure that by the time such taxes are introduced, we shall surpass the N1 billion target we set for ourselves,” she said.

Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima (left) and Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria, Malam Lamido Sanusi, during an official visit to the governor in Maiduguri, yesterday. PHOTO: NAN

UN lauds NEMA’s risk reduction campaign OLUFEMI ADEOSUN ABUJA

he United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, UNISDR, has lauded the efforts of the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, in creating public awareness towards disaster risk reduction strategies. According to a statement by the spokesman of the agency, Mr. Yushau Shuaib, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction, SRSG, and the UNISDR Chief, Margareta Wahlström, made the acknowl-

edgement at the just concluded fourth Africa Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in Arusha, Tanzania. Commenting on the loss of 363 lives in the massive flood disaster of 2012 in Nigeria, a country of about 170 million people, Margareta was quoted to have said; “We are aware of the aggressive campaign by NEMA on disaster risk reduction. “The efforts are encouraging and their proactive measures are commendable, but the country needs to move beyond Early Warning to Early Action this year to consolidate on the success of the campaign.

“Disaster risk reduction is central for all African countries and is essential to building resilience to disasters. “The will to mitigate the impact of disasters is evident across the continent from the ongoing detailed risk profiling of every district in Ethiopia to the successful early warning systems which Mozambique demonstrated in recent weeks as flood waters engulfed large parts of the country.” Meanwhile, speaking on Nigeria’s preparedness for the anticipated heavy rainfall in some parts of the country this year, the Direc-

tor-General of NEMA, Muhammad Sani-Sidi said: “In line with the Hyogo Framework of Action and the Africa Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Strategy and Programme of Action, we have initiated more consultations with respective institutions in ensuring that what needs to be done is done to avoid preventive calamities this year. This year will witness more capacity buildings of response agencies and volunteers and probably heavy sanctions and penalties for those found wanting. We have no reason to tolerate failures,” he said.

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Monday, February 18, 2013

ASUUasksUNILORINtohonourNICjudgement KEMI OLAITAN IBADAN

ational President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Dr. Nasir Fagge, yesterday urged the management of the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) to obey the judgement of the National Industrial Court (NIC) sitting in Lagos which sacked the institution’s union executive led by Prof. Wahab Egbewole. Dr. Fagge stated this in a statement he personally signed and made available

to journalists in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital. He said with the sacking of the ASUU executive by the judgement of the NIC delivered by Justice O. A. Obaseki-Osaghae, the only recognised executive is the one headed by Dr. Taiwo Oloruntoba-Oju. It will be recalled that the national leadership of ASUU and UNILORIN have been battling over recognition of the authentic executive with the institution’s management backing the Egbewoleled executive. Ruling on February 13,

2013 consequent upon the suit filed by the national leadership of ASUU, NIC declared the Egbewole-led executive as illegal and unconstitutional. Fagge also flayed the UNILORIN management for withholding the salaries and entitlements of the reinstated ASUU 49 lecturers despite court order. He said withholding the lecturers’ salaries portends danger for the country’s education sector. Fagge also flayed the threat to lives of academic staff at the Rivers State University

of Science and Technology (RSUST) owing to face off between ASUU and the university’s administration. He said: “We have reasons to believe that the lives of our members in that university are perpetually in danger. For instance, Dr Felix U. Igwe was recently abducted at gun point and taken to an unknown destination only to be dropped off later. We wish to reiterate that if anything happens to any of our members at RSUST, we will hold the university administration and the state government responsible’’.

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Kogi reiterates commitment to MoU for development OYEWALE IBRAHIM LOKOJA

he Kogi State Government has reiterated its commitment to honour all the memorandum of understandings it entered into as one of the measures to develop the state. The government said it is ready to partner with reputable organisations and stakeholders to propel the state’s rapid development. Governor Idris Wada spoke at weekend while inspecting a project at the state polytechnic in Lokoja. Wada said that the Korean Government had agreed to construct a vocational centre in the polytechnic, adding that the vocational centre would be a great assistance to the institution and the state in general The governor, who was represented by his deputy, Yomi Awoniyi, commended the contrac-

tor on the pace of work, expressing satisfaction that the project, which will provide sufficient lecture rooms for learning, would be completed on schedule. Commending the Korean Government for its support to the state, Wada promised to look into the problem of water and other areas not covered by the memorandum of understanding for the project. In his address, Mr. Mike Eze Uwadiegu, who spoke on behalf of Jang San, the Consultant to the Korean International Cooperative Agency, facilitator of the project for the South Korean Government, pointed out that the project would be delivered on schedule. Uwadiegu, however, solicited the state government’s support in the area of water and other areas not covered by the memorandum of understanding.

Nasarawa merges primary health services IGBAWASE UKUMBA LAFIA L-R: Deputy Vice-Chancellor, University of Jos, Prof. Ibrahim Musa; Acting Registrar, Pharmacists Council of Nigeria, Mrs. Gloria Abumere and the university’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Hayward Mafuyai, at the 32nd induction/oath taking of pharmacists held in Jos, at the weekend. PHOTO: NAN

Air Force decries deplorable school condition A ZA MSUE KADUNA

he Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Base at the weekend decried the state of structural decay of its children school, calling on Kaduna State Governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero to come to its aid. The Commander, 335 Base Services Group Nigerian Air Force, Air Commodore Musbau Soladoye, spoke at the Base Socio-Cultural Ac-

tivities (BASA 2012) held at the Group Training Parade Ground in Kaduna. He said the school, which accommodates children of civilians and host community, had been in deplorable condition over the years. Soladoye said since 1980 when the school was built and handed over to the then Kaduna Local Government Area, no single structure has been added. He said: “The school is in a bad shape and in a dire need

of repairs. The late Governor Ibrahim Yakowa had, last year, visited the school and promised to look into the situation, hence the need to remind the current governor to come to our aid.” Soladoye described BASA as an annual regimental activity that offers officers and men of the command opportunity to create relationship among them and the host community. In his remark, Governor Yero commended the effort

of the NAF for establishing the NAF children school and promised to personally visit the school to find solution to its plight. Yero said: “I am aware that the school is facing some challenges and I will want to personally go round to see for myself if time permits. “The school, not only provides basic education for children of the Air Force personnel alone, but also caters for children of civilian who are your neighbors.”

Varsity education meant to raise global leaders –VC OYEWALE IBRAHIM LOKOJA

niversity education is expected to raise global leaders empowered to be positive agents of change, wealth creator who seek out opportunities and create opportunities for others. The Vice-Chancellor of Salem University, Lokoja, Prof. Joseph Adebola Fu-

wape, who spoke at the 5th matriculation ceremony of the institution at weekend in Lokoja, the Kogi State capital, said that Salem University was established with a vision of raising leaders who are spiritually and mentally alert to make impact on the generation. Fuwape said that the institution admitted about 189 students who would be empowered and released as

global leaders to be positive change agents. According to him, 125 students had been admitted into College of Peace and Social Science, 30 into College of Natural and Applied Sciences, while 25 into College of Information and Communication Technology and nine transferred students from other universities. The vice-chancellor ad-

vised the students to be focused and strive hard for distinctive achievement in their academic studies, asking to shun distraction and complacency. He said: “As you have put your hands on the plough, you must not look back. You must have a strong desire to attain excellence, be determined and diligent to be the best God has destined you to be.”

he Nasarawa State Government has approved the centralisation all its primary health services under one umbrella as demanded by the National Primary Health Agency (NPHA). The state Deputy Governor, Mr. Dameshi Barao Luka, stated this when a team of the technical working group for the development of 2013 to 2015 strategic plan for routine immunisation visited him at the weekend in Lafia, the state capital. Members of the technical team were in Nasarawa State for a threeday workshop on the strategic plan for routine immunisation. The deputy governor said: “That informed our decision to bring Dr. Janet Angbazu from the United States to help us develop that agency. And she is working hard to bring together all the primary health centres that were hitherto under the supervision of local government areas so that they will operate

under her agency.” Luka said that Nasarawa took immunisation issue serious, particularly immunisation against polio, adding that the state was among those rated polio-free in the country. He, however, said that the recent detection of one or two cases of the disease in the state is currently being tackled headlong as the committee on immunisation had begun move to contain the situation. The deputy governor assured health workers of their security, saying: “You can see that we have continued to maintain our peaceful co-existence with one another. So, there is no need to panic but have that assurance that your safety is guaranteed in Nasarawa State.”

Umaru Al-Makura

Monday, February 18, 2013

Sport

People see an icon in David Beckham. I see a thorough professional who is willing to make impact

Chelsea, Samsung hold dream clinic

- PSG COACH, CARLO ANCELOTTI

Emedolu wants president’s promise fulfilled

Wrestling: NWF nudges FILA to persuade IOC

he Nigeria Wrestling Federation (NWF) has urged the International Wrestling Federation (FILA) to intensify efforts at ensuring that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) does not remove wrestling from the 2020 Olympics. NWF President, Austin Edeze, said in a statement at the weekend in Lagos that failure to rescind the decision would jeopardise the existence of FILA. It said that if the decision was not reversed, it would have a negative impact on the achievements that FILA had recorded over the years. It called on FILA to be more proactive, especially in its dealings with the IOC, to avoid future occurrences which could embarrass its affiliate wrestling federations. The IOC had adduced reasons to buttress their actions, which according to them, spawned from the “low rating of wrestling in global participation and popularity.” The IOC had also cited that wrestling “lacked ethics and rules for its technical officials,” as well as an “absence of medical officials on the FILA Executive Board.” But the NWF statement noted that the reasons given by the IOC were unfounded and appealed for the decision to be rescinded. It, therefore, said the removal of the sport from the 2020 Olympics would be devastating to the athletes and lovers of the sport in the country. It noted that wrestling was included in the first modern Olympics in 1896 and that the sport had performed exceedingly well in all ramifications. The statement described the sport as an all-inclusive event which provided global opportunities, irrespective of geography, race, gender or physical characteristics. It said wrestling had more variety of nations that had won medals, compared to several sports in the Olympics, adding that about 344 athletes took part in wrestling at the London 2012 Games.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

2004 Athens Olympic Games bronze medallist, Uchenna Emedolu, at the weekend appealed to the Federal Government to fulfill the promise made to him by former President Olusegun Obasanjo. Emedolu said in Lagos that Obasanjo had promised him a plot of land and naming a street after him for winning the 9th IAAF World Cup in Spain in 2002. He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the appeal had become necessary because the promises made to the Super Eagles for winning the 29th Africa Cup of Nations were fulfilled. “The promise was made by former President of Nigeria,

Olusegun Obasanjo, after I won the 9th IAAF World Cup in Madrid, Spain in 2002. I was told that a street will be named after me and that a piece of land will be given to me. “But up till now, I have not received anything. I use this medium to ask the Federal Government to look into the promise of the former president in 2002,” Emedolu said. The Olympic bronze medallist said he was glad that some of the promises made to the Super Eagles were being fulfilled and hoped that something similar should be extended to him. Emedolu added that other sportsmen and women should also be encouraged like the Super Eagles.

Delta cancels Keshi’s stadium contract

pleted soon,” the governor said. He, therefore, invited the Founder of Our Daily Manna Devotional who officiated at the Asaba Manna Prayer and Anointing Service, Dr. Chris Kwakpovwe, to pray against spiritual inhibition stalling the progress of the project. Uduaghan regretted that many people were hinging the slow progress of work at the stadium on the cemetery within the project site and therefore enjoined the Man of God to invoke the spirit of God on the stadium site to neutralize any negative spiritual inhibition. Packing sand from the site, Founder of the Daily Manna Devotional, Dr. Chris Kwakpovwe, prayed against any negative force stalling the completion of the stadium. “I bind and completely destroy every negative force holding back the progress of the Stephen Keshi Stadium. I bind all arrows pointing to destroy this good project and all negative tendencies will return to senders a thousand times,” he prayed.

EVEREST ONYEWUCHI

T Uchenna Emedolu

Fashola seeks 36 scouts for Eagles MURITALA AYINLA

agos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, at the weekend called for the engagement of 36 coaches from all the states of country to scout for talent for the Super Eagles’ coach, Stephen Keshi. Fashola, who made the call during a reception for the team at the Lagos State House, Ikeja, said he discussed the initiative with Keshi during their recent meeting. “It will help Keshi in carrying out his duties effectively if he has one coach in each of the 36 states, fully funded, assisting him to discover hidden talent,” the governor said. “Sponsors who have identified

with the Eagles’ AFCON success can also fund the talent hunt and I think in the long run we can also achieve building a local league that we can truly call our own which should have a Chief Executive Officer from the private sector with a board that comprises owners of clubs that are run with private capital rather than government money.” Fashola also decried Nigeria’s poor representation in the Confederation of African Football (CAF), calling on the country’s football administrators to get the politics right so that Nigeria could benefit as African football power house. “We should also dissuade ourselves from calling for a new Eagles’ coach each time the team wobbles as this does not augur well for continuity,” he counseled.

he Delta State Government has terminated the contract for the multi-million naira Asaba Township Stadium under construction, named after Super Eagles’ coach, Stephen Keshi. Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan who announced this at the Asaba Manna Prayer and Anointing Service said he had directed that the contract be re-awarded and completed within six months time. Uduaghan explained that the contract was terminated to ensure the speedy completion of the stadium which has been re-named Stephen Keshi Stadium and avoid the project becoming a white Elephant one. The governor promised that he would complete all on-going projects and gave assurance that there would be no abandoned projects in the state before he handed over in 2015. “l have told God that l am not going to leave any abandoned project in this state. We have been having challenges with the contractors in charge of this stadium. It was about becoming an abandoned project, but this will not happen because it will be com-

Keshi

Sport

Monday, February 18, 2013

Chelsea, Samsung hold dream clinic

T/Tennis: Kids chase Adeboye lollies

AFOLABI GAMBARI

YEMI O LUS

he inaugural edition of the Pastor Enoch Adeboye U-20 Table Tennis Competition holding from February 25 to March 2 will have competitors jostling for N6 million, the highest prize money offered by a table tennis sponsor. President of the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF), Abdulwahab Omotose, who revealed this to National Mirror yesterday, said the federation hoped to raise players that would replace oldies Segun Toriola and Funke Oshonaike, among others. “The competition will take place at the Redemption Camp and as the first edition, we look forward to making it a grand one,” Omotose said, adding that his administration had ensured increase in competition since its inception in 2010. “We shall have at least six competitions this year and this include Aso Table Tennis Championship which started last year as well as the G-12 Competition holding in Taraba State, comprising of 12 states in the north while the Reach Out Nigeria Table Tennis Championship organized by Christ Embassy Church will also enter its fourth edition this year.” The RON tennis event attracted N500, 000 prize money at its inception in 2011 and was increased to N1million last year.

Why Keshi shone in SA –Chukwu

Prejuce Nakoulma of Burkina Faso battling with Ogenyi Onazi of Nigeria during the Final 2013 Orange Africa Cup of Nations match between Nigeria and Burkina Faso

AFOLABI GAMBARI

ormer Nigeria international, Christian Chukwu, has said that Super Eagles’ coach, Stephen Keshi, succeeded at the Africa Cup of Nations 2013 in South Africa mainly because the latter was courageous to take risk. Chukwu, who spoke with National Mirror in Lagos yesterday while reviewing the AFCON contended that Keshi’s predecessors, whom interestingly he was one, had lost the courage to rebuild the team around motivational players. “Taking risks is the hallmark of good coaches all over the world,” Chukwu said. “Keshi did exactly that in South Africa, even though he knew he did not have the

Pistorius

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

he mystery over South African sprinter Oscar Pistorius’s role in the killing of the model Reeva Steenkamp deepened yesterday amid a series of claims and counter-claims about what happened at his home in Pretoria last week. South African newspapers reported a series of details about the case, citing “sources close to the investigation”, although the police denied the information had come from them. Respected City Press

Chukwu

required support and would be sacrificed if things went wrong. “Consider that 17 of the 23 players we paraded at the competition had not participated in previous Nations Cup and that alone made the team vulnerable.” Chukwu, who coached the national team from August 2002 to June 2005 while guid-

ing Nigeria to a third-place finish at the AFCON 2004 finals, however applauded Keshi’s effort to turn around the 2013 squad to ultimate success. “Keshi has made the world believe that there is a lot of talent in the domestic league. This can eventually affect the league positively in such a way that our future national team would be built around players at home and we can return to our formidable status.” The 1980 Nations Cup-winning Eagles’ captain appealed to the Interim Management Committee of the Nigeria Premier League to leverage on the performance of NPL players at the 2013 Nations Cup to resolve all issues that delayed the kick-off of the 2012/13 season.

nglish Premier League’s former champion Chelsea has signed a pact with Samsung Electronics West Africa to hold Samsung-Chelsea FC Dream the Blues Youth Football Clinic at Onikan Stadium, Lagos. National Mirror learnt that the clinic, which offers opportunity to learn football and life skills in a two-day event anchored by four Chelsea coaches, is the local version of Samsung’s global Corporate Social Responsibility project. According to the Managing Director of the company, Brovo Kim, the clinic will encourage youths from nine to 13 years of age to develop their football dreams. “The initiative is an expansion of SamsungChelsea programme which has already benefitted 5, 000 youths across the world,” Kim said. “Nigeria has a lot of promise was exemplified by the recent wonderful performance of the Super Eagles at the African Cup of Nations and we are committed to discovering and nurturing these talented footballers,” he added. Meanwhile Jep Mallam of SOS Village, Isolo and Moses Oyediji of Compassionate Orphanage, Igando have been selected for a training programme with kids from other parts of the world holding at the Chelsea Club House and are expected to proceed to London soon. “We are really impressed by the success of the programme and we believe it will proceed to other parts of Nigeria in the near future,” Head, Corporate Marketing, Samsung Electronics West Africa, Donald Etim, said, while commending the Lagos State government and the Nigeria Football Federation for its support.

L-R: PR Manager, Usman Imanah, Head, Corporate Marketing, Samsung West Africa), Donald Etim, Managing Director, Brovo Kim, Vice Chairman, Lagos State Football Association, Azeez Tade with participants and Chelsea coaches at the Samsung-Chelsea FC Dream the Blues Youth Football Clinic in Lagos

Pistorius: Twists, turns enter case …Girlfriend set for cremation

newspaper reported that a bloodied cricket bat found at Pistorius’s home was the central piece of evidence against him. Citing sources close to the investigation, the paper said Steenkamp’s skull was crushed and police requested that Pistorius undergo drug tests. City Press also reported that Pistorius called his father soon after

3.20am last Thursday and asked him to come to the house. Pistorius was allegedly carrying Steenkamp, who was wearing a nightdress, down the stairs when the father arrived; even the paper dismissed the theory that Pistorius mistook Steenkamp for a burglar before attacking her. Meanwhile, eNews Channel Africa has presented a narrative in

which CCTV footage showed that Steenkamp arrived at the house at 6pm on February 13, with neighbours claiming to have heard arguments between both, as investigators believed the couple were together in bed at one point. It was thought that Steenkamp moved to the bathroom and was shot through the door, possibly at close range, the

channel reported, saying Pistorius had then called a family member but not the police, who were alerted instead by neighbours. Pistorius, who last year became the first double amputee to compete against able-bodied athletes in the Olympics, remains in custody after being charged with murder. He is due to apply for bail at a court hearing in Pretoria tomorrow, the same day that Steenkamp is set to be cremated at a private service.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Sport

Monday, February 18, 2013

Why I broke Drogba, Kalou’s hearts –Mikel Super Eagles’ emerging superstar, John Obi Mikel, has revealed that his next target is to make another history by winning the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup in June after AFCON glory in South Africa, which he says ranks above the Champions League trophy he won with Chelsea in Munich last year. He tells MTNFootball.com that he will draw inspiration from his Eagles’ first Nations Cup triumph Igiebor

Did you believe from the onset that Nigeria will be champions again in South Africa? We had it at the back of our mind to win right from the training camp in Portugal. We were driven to write our names in gold, make Nigerians happy and with hard work. In the end, God made it possible for us. After the first two games, where the Eagles drew with Burkina Faso and Zambia, millions of Nigerians lost hope in the team... There was no point in the competition that I, for one, felt we won’t win it. I told you before we went for the tournament that there are no small teams in football again. I knew it won’t be an easy task for us, so we prepared for it and kept believing in ourselves even when things looked difficult. To what would you attribute Nigeria’s triumph in South Africa? Firstly, I will say God. We were also determined, worked hard and were united as one big family fighting for a common goal together. The spirit was so high and we just didn’t see ourselves losing and t h a t kept us going till the end. There was no division

whatsoever in the team. How did you feel when you came face-to-face with your former Chelsea teammates and friends, Salomon Kalou and Didier Drogba? It was great to be together again after a while. I missed Mikel them, but I

broke their hearts (laughter). Well, I had to do it because I needed the trophy (laughter again). How would you rate the Super Eagles after that success? We won the Nations Cup and we are African champions. So, we are the best! The team kept improving game after game because we have a lot of new boys in the team and we were getting on well. We will keep improving. It was a good performance overall. Which was your toughest game in the game? All the games were tough, but let me pick the final game against Burkina Faso as the toughest. The Stallions really gave us a good fight even more than they did in our opening group match. What can you say about the 2013 Nations Cup as a whole? It was a great tournament. The organisation was superb, the standard of play was good. It was a great experience. How did you feel with the way the fans reacted upon your arrival in Nigeria? I felt loved and I appreciate them all for their love. I will keep doing my best to make them happy and for them to continue to love me, Chelsea and the Super Eagles. Were you disappointed you were not named as player of the tournament? No hard feelings because my mission to the Nations Cup was accomplished. I dreamt of winning the trophy and now I have got it. I would have loved an additional award, but it was not a big deal. What next after the AFCON success? I am back in London with Chelsea, so I am focused on helping my team do well. As for the national team, the next competition we will feature in is the FIFA Confederations Cup in June. It will be nice to win that and add to my medals’ collection. It will be another history for Nigeria and the continent. Above all, getting ticket to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil will be vital as well.

Passport hitch delays Igiebor IKENWA NNABUOGOR

uper Eagles midfielder, Nosa Igiebor, may have his return to Spain held on a bit more due to issues that arose from his passport at the weekend. The Real Betis star was on his way back to base on Saturday when he ran into a hitch in Frankfurt, Germany, where his flight had a stop-over. He was subsequently turned back to Nigeria to sort out his passport issues at the Spanish Embassy. Igiebor’s Norwegian-Nigerian agent, Atta Aneke, confirmed early yesterday that the player was on his way back to Nigeria to sort out the problem associated with his international passport. ‘’The truth is that on Saturday morning Nosa was stopped in transit in Frankfurt, Germany,” Aneke said ‘’Apparently, he needs some documents from the Spanish Embassy in Ni-

geria-a stay permit. This is not the first time Nosa has traveled out of Spain since his switch from Hapoel Tel Aviv last summer.” Igiebor was part of the Super Eagles squad which beat Venezuela in an exhibition match last November. ‘’It might be within a time frame that he had to have processed the papers, or he just met an immigration officer that was strict. But he is doing all he can to talk to the Spanish Embassy to enable the papers to be processed quickly,” Aneke further said. Real Betis appears to have lost patience with Igiebor who was desperately needed by Coach Pepe Mel for yesterday’s trip to Espanyol. The Nigeria international could be available for Betis’ game against Malaga at home weekend. CCL RESULTS Rangers

3-0 Sporting Do Principe (W/O)

Pillars

5-1 Olympic Bangui

Pirates

5-0 Djabal FC

Primeiro

4-2 Adema

Zanaco

3-2 Mbabane Swallows

Jamhuri

0-3 Saint George

Tusker

4-1 St. Micheal Utd

Olukoya athletes listed for African meet YEMI OLUS

resident of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), Solomon Ogba, has stated that talent discovered from the 3rd D.K. Olukoya U-18 Athletics National Championships would represent the country at the 1st Confederation of African Athletics (CAA) Youth Championships holding in Warri, Delta State from March 27 to 31. The Olukoya event will hold at the Yaba College of Technology from March 6 to 9 to kick start the 2013 track and field season. Ogba, who made this disclosure yesterday at the unveiling of the competition in Lagos, commended the sponsor’s gesture while calling on other religious leaders to emulate the financier in the quest develop sports in the country. “We are taking the youth and junior competitions seriously because we believe that they are the future of our sports,” the AFN chief said. “We decided to use a tertiary institution as venue of the competition in order to encourage the athletes to em-

brace education as well while we hope to use the competition to select athletes that will represent Nigeria at the firstever African Youth Championships in Warri. The championship, which used to be U-20 event, is taking the format of U-18 for the first time in order to build a solid background for the up and coming athletes. “We decided to make it U-18 this year because we wanted to lay emphasis on the cadet programme which is meant to graduate into the junior level and then the elite category in the nearest future,” AFN Technical Director, Navy Commodore Omatseye Nesiama, who also attended the unveiling ceremony, said. “We spoke to the sponsor and he consented because he knows the import of this category,” Nesiama added. Some of the talent discovered from previous editions have graduated into the senior category and are competing in our circuit. The duo of Omolara Omotosho and Bukola Abogunloko were included in Nigeria’s Olympic team to London where they competed in the 4x400m.

WORLD RECORD

Largest flag draped Vol. 03 No. 559

N150

Monday, February 18, 2013

The largest flag draped is 65,975 m² (710,148 ft² 142 in²) which is 325 m (1,066 ft 3 in) in length and 203 m (666 ft) in width and was achieved by Ashraf Makarem in association with the Lebanese Army & Khaled Othman, in Rayak, Lebanon, on 10 October 2010.

Echoes of a Pope’s unfulfilled programme

fter the hectic festivities of Christmas and the New Year, January is usually a relaxed period in the Vatican. Even the Holy Father would take time to cool off and re-energize. Not so this year. The writing was on the wall – the Holy Father has been under tremendous stress and he is ready to resign!! Right from the day after New Year, the Vatican has for want of a better expression – been on full alert. Much of it has to do with the planning for the Pontiff’s 86th Birthday which comes up on April 16, 2013. The Holy Father has chosen that day to rededicate himself and re-adorn himself with his proper title: SERVUS SERVORUM DEI (The Servant of the Servants of God). Another dimension to the task was provided by Pope Benedict’s personal anguish

ed Bull President, Christian Horner, has sent a potentially ominous message to the Triple World Champions’ rivals by declaring that his team heads into the new season feeling more relaxed than ever. Milton Keynes squad

Guest Columnist

Randle

and dismay over a new global epidemic – senseless killings. It all goes back to September 11, 2001 when the world stared in disbelief and utter shock at “9/11” – the devastation of the twin towers of the World Trade Centre in Manhattan, New York, USA. This was accompanied by the attack on the Pentagon, Washington DC. By the time the carnage was over 3,000 people had perished. In July 7, 2005 in London which had been a haven of peace, bombs went off in underground train stations and buses. 2012 followed with the same pattern of senseless killings in Afghanistan; Syria; Mali, etc. Even in post-apartheid South Africa, 34 protesting miners were shot by the police. In Nigeria, the victims of the terror unleashed by Boko Haram run into thousands and we are still counting. This Pope is determined to make a difference by grabbing the bull by the horn. The root cause of it all is MALICE. The Vatican will launch a global initiative against malice. 2013 has been declared the “Year of Faith”. The official announcement from the Vatican reads as follows: “Pope Benedict XVI’s fourth encyclical, is scheduled to be published during Lent. It is dedicated to the subject of Faith and released to coincide with the year of Faith. The encyclical will be used by the Pope to offer encouragement to a world in crisis. It will follow three other encyclicals during this pontificate: two on the other theological virtues of charity, Deus Caritas Est (2005); and hope, SpeSalvi (2007); and a “social encyclical” – Caritas in Veritate (2009).” The Holy Father has insisted that re-

A MAJOR ITEM ON THE HOLY FATHER’S DIARY COMES UP IN

OCTOBER WHEN

HE IS EXPECTED TO CANONIZE

802 HOLY

MEN AND WOMEN IN THE SAME CEREMONY gardless of the turbulence, the Vatican must remain cool, calm and collected. Response to whatever crisis erupted was driven by the strategy of restraint and forgiveness. Absolutely no heightening of tension or the instigation of false alarms; definitely no vengeance. The huge challenge is whether the policy can be sustained in 2013 without running the risk of decimating the Catholic folk. The new strategy is anchored on the realization that even Faith requires a “stimulus package” and “bail out” funding. The ultimate question is whether there is a debt ceiling with regard to our relationship with God. Can we owe him so much and yet refuse to acknowledge it or pay? The Holy Father does not intend to cool his heels in the Vatican brooding. He is already committed to visit Rio de Janeiro in June for World Youth Day. There may also be visits to Panama and Colombia, but these are yet to be confirmed. Everything

depends on whether he chooses to stay or quit entirely. What has been officially listed is that Pope Benedict XVI will hold two consistories of new cardinals this year. The number of cardinals under the age of 80, the only ones eligible to vote for a new Pope, will be 10 short of the maximum limit of 120 by October 19, 2013. February and October are the months selected for the cardinal-making events. In addition, in May the Pontiff will welcome all the Church’s ecclesial movements in St Peter’s Square.. Regardless, the Pope is determined to demonstrate that he is firmly in control. A major item on the Holy Father’s diary comes up in October when he is expected to canonize 802 holy men and women in the same ceremony – 800 martyrs from Otranto, Italy massacred in 1480 out of hatred for the Christian faith. Included in the list is Mother Laura, the first Colombian saint and a Mexican nun, Mother Maria Guardalupe. The major thrust of the Pontiff’s strategy of reaching out is to tackle what the Vatican describes as “spiritual fiscal cliff.” The departure of Miguel Diaz, the American Ambassador to the Holy See has left a critical gap. He has returned to academia. The new American Secretary of State, and former presidential candidate, Mr John Kerry has authorized a search warrant for a candidate who is a close ally of President Barak Obama or at least sympathetic to his policies while at the same time, he (or she) must also enjoy the confidence of US catholic bishops and be acceptable to the Holy See, especially whoever succeeds Pope Benedict XVI. The Chartered Accountants who have been protesting in St Peter’s Square over the over-domineering posture of the four largest accounting firms and non-payment of their gratuities and pension have found a sympathetic ear and caring soul in the Vatican Bashorun Randle (OFR, FCA) is Chairman & Chief Executive JK Randle Professional Services Postscript: The piece was written before the Holy Father announced his resignation.

Sport Extra

F1: Horner sounds Bull warning cemented its place in the Formula 1 record books last year by becoming just the fourth team in history to win three Constructors’ Championships on the spin, with star driver Se-

bastian Vettel also clinching his third straight drivers’ title. The Red Bull’s sustained run of success means the team will inevitably start the forthcoming campaign

as the favourite for both championships again, with its initial preparations having got off to a trouble-free start at the Jerez test last week. “Winning three title

doubles in as many years is a big thing, but motivation is sky high,” Horner said yesterday. “We’ve got great strength in depth here as everyone knows what the targets are and everyone’s delivering NFFRed President, Aminu Maigari what’s expected,” the Christian Horner Bull’s boss added.

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