Monday, October, 8, 2012 by GLOBAL MEDIA MIRROR LIMITED

Nigeria’s monthly phone bills hit N107bn –Investigations ONDO GUBER POLL COUNTDOWN TO

…as active lines reach 105 million KUNLE AZEEZ Johnson

Vol. 2 N0. 464

onthly expenditure by Nigerian telecoms subscribers has hit a whopping N107bn, National

Mirror investigation has revealed. The increase in the country’s subscribers’ exCONTINUED ON PAGE 6>>

October 20, 2012

PDP, LP trade words over call for transfer of SSS boss Propaganda won’t win election –Oke P.13

DAYS TO GO

Monday, October 8, 2012

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Protests over killing of 4 UNIPORT students THE UNFORTUNATE FOUR

Tekena

Chidiaka

Lloyd

Ugonna

Mubi massacre: Victims identified

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I AM SHAKEN; I AM OUTRAGED, I AM DEVASTATED, I FEEL MORTALLY WOUNDED –Oby Ezekwesili ISE-OLUWA IGE AND CHINEDUM EMEANA

tudents and indigenes of Wakrike in Okrika Local Gov-

THE

ernment Area of Rivers State yesterday protested the killing of four students of the University of Port Harcourt, UNIPORT, allegedly by Aluu vigilanCONTINUED ON PAGE 5>>

BUSINESS SECTION

World Bank tasks Nigeria, others on mgt of minerals’ revenue FG to give tax credit to boost foreign investment drive P.A5

Free inside nsi siide de

Flooded areas in Ogbaru Local Government Area, Anambra State, at the weekend. See more pictures on page 10

Bakassi: Adoke leads team to face ICJ Arepo: Police recover bodies of slain NNPC engineers

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President Jonathan visits wife in Germany

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Monday, October 8, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Monday, October 8, 2012

Photo News

Monday, October 8, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

L-R: Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Oduah; Special Assistant, Legal, Mr. Mac Jacob; Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi and Minister of Environment, Hajia Hadiza Mailafia, after a visit to flood-ravaged Ogbaru Local Government Area of the state, at the weekend.

L-R: Kogi State Governor Idris Wada; President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote; Executive Director, Dangote Foundation, Halima Dangote and Deputy Governor, Mr. Yomi Awoniyi, during Dangote’s address to flood victims in the state, at the weekend.

L-R: Prof. Yomi Durosinmi-Etti (OFR); Managing Director, Dizengoff, Mr. Richard Hargrave; Chairman, Prof. Koffi Duncan and former Vice-Chancellor, Obafemi Awolowo University, Prof. Wale Omole, at the launch of the Amiran Farmers’ Kit from Dizengoff, in Lagos, at the weekend. PHOTO: ADEMOLA AKINLABI

L-R: Former Nasarawa State Governor, Sen. Abdullahi Adamu; Executive Director, Public Sector, North, First Bank, Mr. Dauda Lawal; Group Managing Director, First Bank, Mr. Bisi Onasanya and former Zamfara State Governor, Sen. Ahmed Yerima, during First Bank’s Customer Engagement Forum in Abuja, at the weekend. PHOTO: ROTIMI OSASONA

National News

Bakassi: Adoke to lead FG’s legal team to ICJ Govt hires Tony Blair’s wife to prepare briefs

ISE-OLUWA IGE ABUJA

he Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Adoke (SAN), will lead a team of lawyers comprised of experts in international jurisprudence to the International Court of Justice, ICJ, at the Hague. The team is expected to argue Nigeria’s appeal seeking to set aside a controversial judgement of the ICJ, which ceded Bakassi peninsula to the Republic of Cameroun. However, a reliable source close to the Office of the AGF said yesterday in Abuja that Adoke would not canvass oral arguments before the court. The source did not mention the names of other lawyers in the Federal Government’s legal team, but confirmed that a British lawyer, Mrs. Cherie Blair, QC, had been hired to prepare the legal brief for the appeal. Mrs. Blair, QC, is the wife

of former British Prime Minister, Mr. Tony Blair. “I can confirm to you that the Federal Government will file the appeal within time. “I can also say that the team of legal practitioners convoked has already begun work. Nigeria is rejecting the entire judgment and the appeal is going to explore the new facts just discovered to nullify the verdict. “I can also tell you that the Federal Government legal team will not close its eyes to any useful material that may be available on the matter. “What I am saying in effect is that the Federal Government legal team will also scan through the brief being prepared by a Queen’s Counsel, Mrs. Cherie Blair, on the matter to pick any useful material from it,” the source added. Bakassi peninsula, an oil-rich enclave, was ceded to Cameroun by the October 10, 2002 judgment of the ICJ. With the verdict, the

Federal Government signed a Green Tree Agreement, GTA, with Cameroun, ceding the disputed territory. Although there has been growing clamour for the appeal of the ICJ judgement, the GTA signed by the Federal Government with Cameroun, the change, twice, in leadership of Nigeria since the judgement was handed down, have not changed the government’s position. In fact, Adoke was said not to be favourably disposed to filing any appeal until a few days ago after the Senate passed a resolution asking the government to file an appeal while pointing to the fact that the GTA had not been domesticated or ratified by parliament and therefore had no force of law in Nigeria. President Goodluck Jonathan had last week raised an advisory team to scrutinise the World Court judgement with a view to exploring possible areas of appeal.

The decision was sequel to a resolution made by the Senate through a motion sponsored by the Deputy Majority Leader, Abdul Ningi. On the importance of filing an appeal against the ICJ’s verdict, President of the Senate, David Mark, had said: “I think appeal is a line of action that should not be neglected because that is legal since Nigeria subjected itself to the court. “And if that is what is available through the court, we should also utilise it. I think that is the most appropriate thing to do at this point in time.” Article 61(5) of the ICJ reads: “An application for revision of a judgement may be made only when it is based upon the discovery of some facts of such a nature as to be a decisive factor, which fact was, when the judgement was given, unknown to the court and also to the party claiming revision, always provided that such ignorance was not due to negligence.” The Federal Government has until Tuesday,

October 9, to file a notice of appeal. Meanwhile, the nine Bakassi indigenes who filed a class action before a Federal High Court in Abuja to void the GTA treaty and compel the Federal Government to appeal the ICJ judgement said yesterday that they would not withdraw the case even when a notice of appeal had been filed by the government. They said they would not relax until their land was restored to them. The indigenes are Prince Imoh Ukpa Imoh, Messrs Godwin Ukpong, Christian Umoh, Anthony Achibong Ukong, Kingsley Edu, Etim Ekpeyong Ndong, Offiong Anying Ekpeyong, Bassey Okon Osua and Bassey Ikoedem Antiga. In a motion ex-parte application moved by their counsel, Mr. Festus A. Ogwuche, last Friday, the applicants wanted an order of mandamus compelling the Federal Government to occupy and take full legal and administrative control of the Bakassi peninsula.

Specifically, the motion, which was brought pursuant to Section 1 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Enforcement and Ratification Act Cap 10, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990, as well as Order 34 Rules 1(a), 3(1) and (2) of the Federal High Court Civil Procedure Rules, 2007 contends among others that the ICJ, “In reaching its decision, relied on: (a) Henderson-Flerichau Exchange of Notes of 1931, (b) The Anglo-German Agreement of 11th March and 12th April, 1913 and (c) The British Order-inCouncil of 2 August, 1946. “The ICJ gave the decision as though the territory is occupied by wild animals without any rights under municipal or international law, and treated the colonial declaration and communication as conferring absolute proprietary rights and obligations to the territory to persons or entities outside the people who for centuries lived and existed therein and of which the territory is their homeland.”

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News

Monday, October 8, 2012

Arepo: Police recover bodies of slain NNPC engineers T he Police yesterday said it had recovered the bodies of the three Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, engineers killed by suspected pipeline vandals in Arepo, Ogun State on September 8. The engineers were repairing a ruptured pipeline when they were murdered. Addressing newsmen in Lagos, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Friday Ibadin, who heads the Special Task Force on Anti-Pipeline Vandalism, said that the slain officials were a Deputy Manager in charge of Pipelines Right of Way, PROW, and two other engineers. The discovery was made in two shallow graves by the river bank where their assailants had buried them. Ibadin said his men combed the creeks near Arepo area for four weeks before they could locate the graves. “We found in a decomposing state, the bulletridden bodies of the three victims. “We learnt that the body of the local security guard employed by NNPC, Taye (a.k.a Dead Man), was cut into pieces and

disposed of,” he said. Ibadin said that the reports at the disposal of the police indicated that the team dispatched by Pipeline and Product Marketing Company, PPMC, a subsidiary of NNPC, successfully put out the fire by cutting off the product supply. “The team was on the verge of gaining access to the damaged point to commence proper assessment of the scope of work when the vandals killed three members and injured several others. “In the course of investigation, six suspects were arrested. We gathered from the confession of one of the suspects that he knew where the NNPC staffers were buried. “Initially, he took our team to a spot and after several hours, the bodies were not found. Two days later, he opened up and agreed to take us to the real spot. “It took six hours of sailing to get to the spot. We had 40 heavily armed men, and we took along a pathologist, a coroner, and the medical team from NNPC that eventually identified the bodies. “They took us to a place where they claimed they

bury non-natives. With the assistance of one Bosco, Peter Opidi, and the suspect, we were shown two shallow graves. It was there that we discovered the bodies and they have been deposited at a mortuary,’’ Ibadin said. The commissioner commended the gallantry of the Sector Commander, Onaghise Osayande, and his team, who recovered the bodies. Ibadin said that investigations were ongoing. Commenting on the

development, the Acting Group General Manager, Public Affairs Division of NNPC, Mr. Fidel Pepple said in a telephone interview that the Corporation was aware of the development. He said: “We are working with the security forces in this regard.” Pepple who sympathised with families of the slain engineers said the oil corporation will issue a full statement on the development tomorrow. With the recovery and

eventual reburial of the victims, the security agencies would now put in place measures to enable NNPC return to Arepo for maintenance of the pipeline. The corporation had said it would not return to Arepo until it received an all clear signal from the security agencies, which are expected to provide backup for the pipeline rehabilitation. The News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, reports that NNPC authorities

had attributed the ongoing fuel shortage in some parts of the country to the shutdown of the damaged System 2B pipeline, at Arepo, which carries one third of the nation’s daily fuel needs. The Acting Group General Manager, Public Affairs Division of NNPC, Pepple, had said that the pipeline was evacuating nine to 11 million litres of fuel from Lagos to Ibadan, Ilorin and the northern part of the country.

Members of New York-based Nigeria Liberty Democratic Forum during a protest that forced the Minister of information, Mr. Labaran Maku, to abandon the annual New York City Independence Day parade.

Protests over killing of 4 UNIPORT students CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

tes on Friday. The students that were killed were named as Tekena, Ugonna, Chidiaka and Lloyd. They were in their 20s. Two of the late students hailed from Wakrike while Chidiaka Biringa is from Owerri in Imo State. It was learnt that the victims were 100 and 200 level students. Two of them were studying Engineering; one was studying Theatre Arts while the course of study of the fourth student was unknown as at the time of filing this report. Video clips of the lynching have been posted online. The gruesome clips showed the students being stripped naked, beaten and hacked with cutlasses, before being set on fire while still alive. The protesters blocked the East-West Road and the adjoining NTA Road, leading to traffic gridlock and caused pandemonium in the community.

Many students of the university, living on and off campus, have packed their belongings and left in anticipation of more trouble. There were different accounts of what led to the administration of the ‘jungle justice’ on the students. The students were accused of being cultists who attacked family in Aluu raped a pregnant woman and killed the husband. Another account said the students stole a mobile phone and a laptop from a member of the community. Another account claimed that Ugonna, one of the victims, complained to his parents about frequent robbery incidents in his off campus accommodation and decided to put up with a friend. He was said to have joined his friend and others to collect a debt from somebody, which led to an argument. They started beating up the debtor but the Aluu people intervened, result-

ing in the lynching of the four students. Yet another account said the vigilance group caught the students with dangerous weapons, including knives and axes and had claimed that the victims had acted suspiciously. The Rivers State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ben Ugbuegbulam, said that the police had arrested 13 of those suspected to be involved in the lynching of the students. Ugbuegbulam promised that the police would ensure that all those involved in the lynching were apprehended. He regretted that law enforcement agents were not alerted in time, otherwise they would have been able to save the victims from the mob. The PPRO said the command got the information about 8a.m. on Friday but before policemen and men of the Joint Task Force,

JTF, got to the scene, the victims had been burnt with tyres ringed around their necks. The police statement reads: “The Rivers State Police Command unequivocally condemns the gruesome killing of four UNIPORT students on Friday by an irate mob from Aluu community. “The command sympathises with the families of the slain students and also appeals to them not to take the laws into their hands. “Students of UNIPORT are urged not to engage in any reprisal attack as such could lead to chaos and anarchy. “The command has commenced diligent investigation into the ugly incident and an amazing success has been recorded in that regard, as 13 persons, including the chief of the community suspected to have been involved in the repre-

hensible and barbaric act have been arrested, based on credible intelligence and video clips of the killings. “The suspects are being interrogated by crack detectives from the State Criminal Investigation Division, SCID. “The Rivers police command is unwaveringly committed to protecting life and property of people of Rivers State and will not rest on its oars until the perpetrators of the horrendous act are not only arrested, but also brought to justice.” The Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, IHRHL, has condemned the jungle justice meted out to the students. Meanwhile, Governor Chibuike Amaechi has ordered an immediate investigation into the killings. The state Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs. Ibim Semenitari, in a statement after yesterday’s emergen-

cy meeting said: “Governor Amaechi has ordered an immediate investigation into the killing of four students of the University of Port Harcourt. Already, investigation has commenced and all those involved in the killings would be brought to book.” UNIPORT Deputy Registrar, Information, said: “Right now, I am not in a position to confirm to you that the alleged victims are bona fide students of UNIPORT as is being widely speculated. “The alleged incident took place at Aluu village about two kilometres outside our main campus. “We do not have responsibility for security in Aluu communities which are beyond our jurisdiction. The relevant security outfits are working with our security dept to establish the true identities of the victims and what actually CONTINUED ON PAGE 6>>

News

Monday, October 8, 2012

VICTIMS OF MUBI STUDENTS’ MASSACRE

Lucky Emmanuel 1. Sebastine Bulus - Shot to death 2. Ishaku Joshu’a - Shot to death 3. James Joshu’a - Burnt to death 4. Lucky Emmanuel - Shot to death 5. Irimiya Yohanna - Shot to death 6. Adamu Dakkawa - Shot to death 7. Ben Jalingo - Shot, survived 8. Yunana Idirisu - Shot to death 9. Amsel Idirisu - Shot, survived 10. Dominic Yakubu - Shot, survived 11. Elkana Sardauna - Shot and cut, survived 12. Mohammed - Shot and cut to death 13. Bitrus Illah - Shot to death 14. Emmanuel Imo - Shot to death 15. Ahmed Maigiraya - Shot to death 16. Manasah - Shot, survived

Nishaku Joshua 17. Nimfas - Shot to death 18. Chimobi Ibo - Shot to death 19. Alassan Zamba Ghaji - Shot to death 20. Zamdayu Shuwa - Shot to death 21. Gajare Matakam - Shot to death 22. Christopher Gesme - Shot to death 23. Ahmadu Furfina - Shot to death 24. Eze Tigani - Shot to death 25. Yusufu Suleiman - Shot to death 26. Mohammdu Suleman - Shot to death 27. Aliyu - Shot to death 28. Ishaku Zambuk - Shot to death 29. Adamu Markus - Shot, survived 30. Umaru Suleman - Shot to death 31. Ezekiel Atchindal - Shot to death 32. Ayo - Shot to death 33. Umaru Shalilu - Shot to death

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Protests over killing of 4 UNIPORT students CONTINUED FROM 5 transpired on the day of the reported incident. “The Dean of Student Affairs is also working round the clock to establish their identities as students of Uniport. The University will certainly issue a statement once preliminary facts are laid on the table.” Meanwhile, former VicePresident (Africa) for World Bank, Mrs. Oby Ezekwesili, has advised the Federal Government to take issue of security of lives and property in the country serious, warning that the recent killings of students in Mubi and Port Harcourt could trigger a serious crisis. Ekwesili, who expressed shock over the separate incidents said she was devastated that some students of

UNIPORT were burnt and the killings videotaped in Port Harcourt. She expressed her shock during an interview with newsmen Her words: “I am shaken; I am outraged, I am devastated, I feel mortally wounded. “The situations in Mubi and Port Harcourt were terrible. Did you see the video-recording of how students were killed in Port Harcourt? Is this not the same country where it is emotionally difficult when you see a corpse on the street? “I am sorry. I am totally outraged like any decent citizen of a nation that we love. The killings were barbaric, mere savagery and very devastating. Some people are acting or behaving

as if there are no people in charge of the government. “Something is fundamentally wrong with our society: To see the dastardly mob killing of four misguided youths (Port Harcourt’s) who stole, sank my optimism. “Noo! Even in death, these four must get justice. My voice shall be heard on this. “What have we become? We used to be better than this. “What has psychologically traumatized our people? There is a fundamental problem; there is a breakdown in something that is proudly Nigeria. I cannot believe that our society has got to this level. We are broken, we need to be mended and nobody will mend it other than ourselves

“We are getting to the precipice and we need to pull ourselves back. “The government has to take full responsibility; it has to be in charge to prevent anarchy. The only way out is for the government to prove that it is really in charge. “We are a nation of 150 million people; we are not a small country. If the situation continues like this, we cannot survive a large-scale conflict. It does not do us good to befell into a nation of conflagration. “We have to watch it. A lot of countries that have had genocidal experience started like this. “We have too many problems to descend into a state of anarchy again. How can we all sit and watch impunity,” she added.

Jonathan visits wife in Germany ROTIMI FADEYI ABUJA

resident Goodluck Jonathan at the weekend visited his ailing wife, Dame Patience, in Wiesbaden, Germany. According to report monitored on Nigerian Television Authority, NTA last night, President Jonathan was accompanied by chaplain of Aso Villa Chapel, Venerable Obioma Onwurumba and Nigeria’s ambassador to Germany, Abdul Abuba-

kar. The First Lady has been on admission in the German hospital for over six weeks, while the nature of her illness was not disclosed. There has not been any official statement from the Presidency on the illness but her media aide, Ayo Osinlu said that the First Lady travelled abroad on vacation. There were no details of President Jonathan’s visit to Germany but he has since returned to Abuja.

Corps Marshal, Federal Road Safety Commission and President, West African Road Safety Organisation, Mr. Osita Chidoka (right) and Minister of Transport, Ghana, Mr. Collins Dauda, during the West Africa Road Safety Organisation meeting in Ghana, at the weekend. PHOTOS: NAN

Nigeria’s monthly phone bills hit N107bn –Investigations CONTINUED FROM 1 penditure came as the total industry active subscriber base hit 105.2 million at the end of August, 2012. Industry analysts had projected that 105 million target would be met in December 2012. The conservative estimated monthly expenditure was hinged on the current industry Average Revenue per User, ARPU, of N1,011 as estimated in a recent report by the Business Monitor International Limited, a global ICT research firm. ARPU is the financial benchmark used globally by telecoms companies to measure the average monthly or yearly revenue generated from an average subscriber and it is usually multiplied by the number

of subscribers to get the estimated household spending on telecoms services. Industry analysts including the immediate NCC Executive Vice-Chairman, Mr. Ernest Ndukwe, had recently predicted that active telephone subscriptions in the country would hit 105 million by December 2012. National Mirror gathered that monthly active subscribers base in the country had now hit 105.2 million at the end of August 2012, which was the latest subscriber data in the industry. The new subscriber figures were contained in the latest industry data for the month of August released by the Nigerian Communications Commission, telecoms industry regulator, which was obtained by Na-

tional Mirror at the weekend. With a monthly active subscribers of 105.2 million and an ARPU of N1,011, conservative telecoms subscribers’ expenditure on phone calls in Nigeria now stands N107bn. National Mirror investigation revealed that subscribers’ phone calls expenditure increased from N100bn in January 2012 when active industry subscriber base was estimated at 99 million by the NCC to reach N104bn seven months after in July when subscriber base hit 103 million. It was gathered that the N107bn expenditure also represented the average estimated revenue shared among the telecoms networks, comprising the Global System for Mobile

Communications operators such as MTN, Globacom, Airtel and Etisalat; the Code Division Multiple Access operators of Visafone, Multi-Links, Starcomms and Zoom-Mobile as well as the fixed line networks in the country. Meanwhile, further analysis of the data showed that Nigeria recorded impressive growth of over 1.8 million new lines on telecoms networks as total subscriptions in the country increased from 103.4 million active telephone lines in July 2012 to over 105.2 million at the end of August 2012. National Mirror, however, gathered that the increase in subscriber base from January 2012 till August 2012 had been contributed mostly by the

GSM companies, while the CDMA operators continue to witness month-on-month decline in active subscriber base. For instance, it was gathered that while active mobile subscriptions on GSM networks increased from 91 million in January to 101.4 million at the end of August, 2012; that of the CDMA operators declined from 4.4 million to 3.3 million during the eight months period. It was learnt that the GSM active subscriptions standing at 91 million in January, 2012, increased to 92 million in February and 94.5 million at the end of March. The GSM subscriptions continued an upward growth reaching 96.6 million in April and in May

2012, the figure 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. However, active subscriber base on CDMA networks declined to 4,031,820 million lines in February; 4,013,698 million in March and 3,904,846 million telephone lines in April. It further plunged to 3,718,153 in May; 3,541,355 in June and in July, it fell to 3,452,368 and finally to 3,347,716 at the end of August, 2012. On the fixed lines, the figure which stood at 688,333 million has, by the end of August 2012, reduced to 488,088 lines.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

News

Monday, October 8, 2012

Reps accuse Presidency of frustrating $800m Abuja rail project TORDUE SALEM ABUJA

he House of Representatives has blamed the delay in the take off of the Abuja rail line project on the Federal government. The Abuja mono rail system project which has been on ground for more than 10 years now, is expected to ease transportation in the Federal Capital Territory. The multi-billion naira contract awarded in 2006 is expected to link major satellite towns of the FCT with city centre, including the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport. But, members of the House Committee regretted that the 60- kilometre rail tract project may not meet the 2013 completion date due to the failure of the Federal Government to release its counterpart funds. Out of N106bn equivalent of the contract sum, the lawmakers regretted that the FG has failed to release a dime of the N4.2bn the National Assembly approved through the Ministry of Transport as government’s contribution to the project in years 2011-2012. The Chairman of the House Committee on FCT, Hon. Emmanuel Jime, made this known at the weekend when he led the committee members on oversight visit to major capital projects appropriated for by the National Assembly in the 2012 budget. Jime was reacting to the Project Manager of China Civil Engineering Construction Company

(CCECC), Mr. Yuan Young, the Chinese firm handling the contract, who complained to the committee that the failure of the FG to release funds slowed down pace of work. He told the committee that the development which forced his company to be indebted to the tune of N14bn had forced them to shift completion date from 2013 to 2015. He also expressed doubts over assurances given by government officials at the sites that rails would commence commercial operations in FCT latest 2015 despite current 20 percent work rate. Jime regretted the presidency’s attitude of not making funds available to contractors after appropriations. Jime said: “The issue still remains the counter-

part funding, because I assume that the Chinese loan is guaranteed at least from the information given to us and what the Finance Minister has been telling Nigerians. “The greater challenge now is in the counterpart funding from the national side of the coin. This is because the FCT is doing their best from the statutory angle, I have confirmed that. “The problem really is that the N2.1bn in 2012 budget from the national side has simply not been released till now. In this case, it is fair to say we don’t have any percentage we can record on the project as far as budgetary performance is concerned. “You will recall that this project is being funded by three compo-

nents, the national budget, the FCT budget and Chinese loan. If the loan is already guaranteed and the FCT has released some amount, but so far as national side of funding equation of this project is concerned, I think it is very clear to us as a House that nothing has been done by FG. “Don’t forget we have just two months to the end of the year, again that speaks volumes as to how the 2012 budget from the national side and our discussions as a parliament are ongoing. I think it is left for Nigerians to judge, when we speak about budget performance, what exactly is the House of Representatives in particular is talking about. In my own recollection, I think there’s so much that need to be done by FG.”

Alleged N44m fraud: Legal fees may stall Hembe, deputy’s defence EMMANUEL ONANI

ndications have emerged that the trial of the suspended Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Capital Market, Hon. Herman Hembe and his Deputy, Hon. Azubuogu Ifeanyi, may not continue today, due to what a highly-placed source referred to as “breach in terms of engagement by the 1st accused person.” The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is prosecuting Hembe and his deputy on a two-count charge of converting to their personal use N600, 000 being money allegedly released by the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) for them to travel to the Dominican Republic for a refresher conference in October, 2011. The offence is contrary to Section 308 of the Penal Code

Returning Officer, Prof. Fatima Sawa (standing) and Plateau State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mr. Habu Zarma., during the declaration of the Peoples Democratic Party senatorial candidate for Plateau North, Mr. Gyang Pwajok, as winner of the byelection in Jos, yesterday.

Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004. The embattled lawmakers, who have since been granted bail in the sum of one million naira each with two sureties in like sum, were scheduled to open their defence today; they gave indication of a “no case submission” in response to the allegations leveled against them by the anti-graft agency. However, there are fears that the lead counsel to the 1st defendant may not appear in court today. The nonappearance, it was gathered, will be to protest the nonpayment of his legal fees and other charges agreed upon. An impeccable source told National Mirror that, “The counsel to the 1st accused person will not be in court for the opening of the defence because the latter has not been paying for the legal services rendered to him.” When asked if the said accused may have gone bankrupt, he could neither confirm nor deny that. At the last adjourned date, the EFCC brought four witnesses to buttress its claim that the accused persons allegedly converted public funds into personal use. The first Prosecution Witness (PW1), who gave his name as Austin Adachi, a senior detective superintendent with the commission almost contradicted himself when in one breath he said, “Investigation revealed that $4, 095 was collected by each of the accused persons to attend a conference in Dominican Republic and that they did not attend the conference” and in another breath, he stated; “Available documents during investigation showed that the 1st accused person actually travelled.”

‘We’re yet to get House’s invitation on Otedola’s debt probe’ TOLA AKINMUTIMI ABUJA

he Managing Director of Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Mr. Mustafa Chike-Obi, said the intention of the House of Representatives to probe the deal sealed with Zenon Oil Chief, Femi Otedola, over forfeiture of property assets and monies totalling N141bn to defray his outstanding debt was a mere expression of the mind of an individual which, to

the best of his knowledge, is yet to get the nod of the House. He said if the House would embark on any probe, there are laid down procedures which must be followed, saying that as far as AMCON is concerned none of the laid down rules for such exercise has either been initiated by the House or any of its committees. Chike-Obi, who was responding to National Mirror’s enquiries on whether or not a notice to the effect of the proposed

probe had been served on his corporation, said what he had observed so far about the lingering rumour was that; “it is just only an individual, Hon. Zakari Mohammed, that had been speaking and an individual’s comments about a legislative assignment of the nature we are talking about could not be taken to be that of the House.” Though the AMCON boss did not rule out the possibility of a probe, he, however, pointed out that; “if a probe would

be embarked upon, it is something that will be passed as a resolution of the House which the appropriate committee will carry out. “The question is, has the issue been discussed at all in the House?” Chike-Obi advised that rather than asking AMCON about the probe, the appropriate quarters to which enquiries should be directed is either Hon. Zakari Muhammed or the House since AMCON was not in a position to know what the legislature is do-

ing about what had been reported in the media on the probe issue. Attempts by National Mirror to get the views of the Chairman of the House Committee on Finance, Hon. Abdulmumini Jubrin, on the matter did not yield results as he did not respond to calls and text messages sent to him. Similarly, calls to Mohammed’s phone indicated that it was switched off for several hours up till 6.30 pm yesterday. However it was reliably gathered that members of

the House were not in haste to take any measure to initial any probe on the Otedola/AMCON payment deals now in view of the volume of legislative work requiring their urgent attention. One of the legislators told National Mirror that even if any probe would be instituted; “it cannot be now when the House is seriously working round the clock on the implementation of the 2012 budget and also preparing for the 2013 Bill, which is slated for presentation by the President this week.

South West

Monday, October 8, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Ogun community declares war against monarch FEMI OYEWESO ABEOKUTA

s the dust generated by some protesters demanding the removal of a traditional ruler in Onigbedu community of Ogun State is yet to settle, another community in the state has declared war on its monarch whom they accused of appropriating the collective wealth of the community. Dangote Cement Factory’s host community under the auspices of Ibese Community Development Representative Council

(ICDRC) alleged that the traditional ruler of the town, the Aboro of Ibeseland, Oba Joel Bamgbose, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the management of the cement company in his personal name rather than that of the community. The people of the community have, however, threatened to invoke the spirit of their deities against the monarch, Dangote cement, as well as other individuals involved in selling the collective patrimony of all sons and

daughters of the town. Speaking with journalists at the end of their meeting held over the weekend at UAMC Primary School in Ibese, Chairman of the association, Dr. Samuel Ajayi, said the MoU in possession of Dangote cement company did not emanate from the people of the community, but the one allegedly written by the monarch. The chairman further accused the monarch of commissioning one Dr. Hezy Idowu, to draft the MoU in the name of the traditional ruler for the

company. He also said that members of the ICDA has suggested that the name of the community, Ibese be replaced in place of Oba Bamgbose as stated in the MoU. “We explained further that if Kabiyesi should sign an MoU in his name, which will only mean that the benefits of the Dangote cement project in Ibese will be for Kabiyesi, Oba Joel Bamgbose alone and nothing for Ibese community, the land owners.” Ajayi while giving the

account of the incident, further lamented that even Dangote cement company has failed to comply with the necessary provisions of Section 116 (4) of Mineral and Mining Act, 2007, Cap 162 which stipulated that the company must employ at least 60 per cent of its workers from the community. While lamenting that there has not been any infrastructural development in the area since the time Dangote sited the company in the area, the community further alleged that 70 per

cent of the workforce in the cement company is Chinese as against the gazette agreement with the state government. The community revealed that all attempt to seek government intervention in the crisis has proved unsuccessful, alleging that the government has remained tight-lipped on the matter. It will be recalled that Ibese is the host community of the six million metric tonnes capacity of Dangote Cement Company.

Lagos disconnects staff from Internet access •Journalists also affected MURITALA AYINLA

L-R: Secretary to Ekiti State Government, Alhaji Ganiyu Owolabi; Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Dr. Eniola Ajayi and Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Hon. Funminiyi Afuye, during a news conference on the activities for the second anniversary of Governor Kayode Fayemi’s administration in Ado-Ekiti, at the weekend.

Ekiti teachers divided over competency test ABIODUN NEJO ADO EKITI

articipation in the Teachers Development Needs Assessment (TDNA) otherwise known as competency test organised by the Ekiti State government has divided teachers in the state. While the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), the umbrella body of primary school

teachers said its members should not participate in the test billed for today and tomorrow, the Academic Staff Union of Secondary Schools (ASUSS), comprising secondary school teachers, has expressed interest in the exercise. The teachers in both unions had erstwhile jointly criticised TDNA and shunned the exercise when the state government earlier planned

to conduct it for them, saying they had no confidence in it. The state government had through a radio announcement placed by the Ministry of Education and Technology directed teachers to appear for the examination today and tomorrow with their writing materials and passport photographs. While secondary schools teachers are billed for today, those in the primary section

Aregbesola tasks Nigerians on religious harmony

dherents of the many religions in Nigeria in general and in Osun State in particular have been called upon to live in peace and harmony with one another. Osun State governor, Rauf Aregbesola, made this call yesterday at the 42nd thanksgiving service of the Celestial Church of Christ, Osun Provincial Headquarters in Osogbo. Aregbesola, who was the special guest of honour at the ceremony, said all religions

preach oneness of God but have many ways of worshipping Him. The governor said people should worship God according to their religious dictates without creating hardship for others of different faith. He wondered why there should be crisis among the people in the worship of God in a society where everybody has constitutional guarantee to practice religion of their choice. “There should be no crisis

among Muslims and Christians as each worship the same God. “All religions preach good deeds, good character and good neighbourliness, no religion preaches evil. All religions enjoin their worshippers to do good deed irrespective of their religious differences,” Aregbesola said. He said what should be uppermost in the heart of everyone is the belief in God and should endeavour to worship Him with sincerity.

are slated for tomorrow. State NUT Chairman, Mr. Samuel Akosile, told journalists on phone yesterday that his union had not entered into any agreement with the government on the TDNA, saying the leadership of the union was still consulting. “It is not an agreement with the government; we have not agreed on it. We are yet to conclude,” he said.

agos State government has disconnected civil servants working in the state secretariat from its Internet facilities. The state had, three months ago, restricted its staff, visitors and journalists assigned to the State House from accessing the social media through its wireless Internet service. A source in the state Ministry of Science and Technology, who did not want his name in print, told National Mirror that the government probably took the step to curb the abuse of the facilities and to disconnect neighbouring residents and cyber-cafe operators who had been allegedly tapping from the government Internet server. Hence, only civil servants with special pin code log in to the Internet successfully while those in the office of the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and journalists assigned to cover the governor, were not spared in the disconnection. This development, however,

has seriously hampered the efficiency of both the civil servants and the journalists working in the place. Speaking with National Mirror, a staff in the state secretariat, who does not want his name mentioned, lamented how the development had hampered their work. His words: “I don’t expect the state government to go to the extent of totally blocking the Internet for us in this global age. “Fine, some people can use Internet modem but the fact must be told is that this is wrong in a place where over 10, 000 people work. Another staff in the Ministry of Information said; “It is unfortunate if journalists that government relies on to disseminate information are cut off from Internet use, what then should we expect from the government? “Like many others, we were just cut off from Internet service without notice. If the state is doing so for its workers to curtail idleness, what about journalists, what do they use for research?”

Fayemi to undertake federal roads repairs ABIODUN NEJO ADO EKITI

kiti State governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi is to undertake the rehabilitation and reconstruction of federal roads within the state to safeguard the lives of road users, ease traffic flow and as well attract investors to the state. Information Commissioner, Hon. Funminiyi Afuye, who said works were already ongoing on some

federal roads in the state, said the government would leave no stone unturned in its efforts at ensuring that the roads are in good condition. Afuye said at a press conference in Ado Ekiti at the weekend that; “the Ado-Ifaki road, the reconstruction of Ado Ekiti township roads and Ikere Ekiti to the boundary of Ekiti and Ondo States are part of the federal roads already being given a facelift in the govern-

ment’s efforts at reducing the sufferings of the people.” He said over 12 major roads in some strategic parts of the state are now ready for commissioning to mark Governor Kayode Fayemi’s second year in office. The roads, according to Afuye include: Ado-Ilawe -Igbara-Odo road, IgbaraOdo-Ikere, Otun-Iloro, Ikere-Ise-Eporo, Ode-Ikole, Ijan Ekiti-Ise road, Aramoko-Ido road, among others.

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South West

Monday, October 8, 2012

Nigeria won’t grow without eradicating corruption –Don FEMI OYEWESO ABEOKUTA

igeria may not know meaningful growth until the country’s policy makers confront corruption with a sincerity of purpose. A professor of Economics at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, OOU, AgoIwoye, Sherifdeen Tella, said this yesterday in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, at the special annual lecture entitled: “Cost of corruption on the Nigerian

economy.’’ The lecture was organised by state branch of The Muslim Congress, TMC. Tella, who is also the head of Centre for Applied Economics and Policy Studies, CEAPEPS, in OOU, said corruption, among other factors, was the bane of the country’s development which had stopped her from being ranked among the world powers. He said rather than harnessing Nigeria’s resources for growth in the present

democratic arrangement, corruption in high places had turned it to an instrument of enslavement rather than that of emancipation. The professor also said that a number of studies carried out in recent times confirmed that the depth of corruption in Nigeria seemed to be growing in the same direction with underdevelopment, adding that it was characterised by rising level of unemployment, poverty, insecurity and national decay every month.

Tella, however, expressed the hope that Nigeria would move forward and present a better future for generations unborn if corruption and sharp practices were eliminated. Another speaker, Dr. Tajudeen Yusuf, called for the total eradication of corruption and poverty. Yusuf asked the public to always remind political office holders of the trust of leadership entrusted on them rather than unnecessary congratulatory messages for patronage.

House of Reps’ll ensure completion of projects –Committee KEMI OLAITAN IBADAN

he House of Representatives has reiterated its determination to put an end to the era of abandoned projects, especially in the power sector by making sure money is released quarterly as scheduled in the budget. The Chairman of the House Committee on Power, Hon. Patrick Ikhiriale, gave the assurance in Ibadan at the weekend while leading other members of the committee on an oversight function visit to the Oyo State capital. The lawmaker, who said the House would henceforth put pressure on the Presidency to release funds on time for capital projects, said: “We will make sure that capital projects for a fiscal year are not carried to the next year.” Speaking against the backdrop of complaints by the Managing Director of Ibadan Electricity Distri-

yo State Governor, Abiola Ajimobi, has called for a constitutional provision that would empower the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, to appoint the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC. He also called for a review of the elements of fiscal federalism to allow states the control of the resources in their respective domains to encourage creativity and hard work in revenue generation. The governor made the call while delivering a lec-

bution Company, IBEDC, Mr. Mofoluso Oyesiku, that money was not released appropriately by the Federal Government for projects earmarked for the 2012 fiscal year, Ikhiriale said: “What we want to do now is to make sure that the capital projects in the budget must be completed before moving to the following year.” He said money had been appropriated for capital projects in the 2012 budget and the funds must be released accordingly and timely “because we must deliver the dividends of democracy to the populace and more so the power sector is where we have more challenges”. The chairman disclosed that all the committees of the House of Representatives were now on the field to assess the level of implementation of capital projects in the 2012 budget. “We will all submit our reports to the whole House after our assessment of all the capital projects, after which we will compel the Presidency to release funds

on time for the projects instead of letting them roll to the following year,” he added. Ikhiriale said some projects embarked upon by the National Integrated Power Projects, NIPP, would be assessed to make sure that they provide electricity to the populace and meet the expectations of Nigerians. Oyesiku solicited the support of the committee for ad-

equate release of the remaining capital budget. He said the total capital appropriated for IBEDC for 2012 was N1.39bn while N157.9m was released in the first quarter, no money was released in the second quarter but N322.3m was released in the third quarter, adding that the total amount released so far for the company stood at N479.6m.

NRC arrests 33 rooftop riders in Lagos OLUSEGUN KOIKI

he Nigerian Railway Corporation, NRC, yesterday announced the arrest of 33 passengers for riding on its trains’ rooftops. The people, who were arrested in a joint raid organised by men of the Nigeria Police, Railway Command and the Lagos State Task Force, Alausa, Ikeja, are all male within the age range of 25 to 40 years. The corporation said the culprits had been taken to the office of the Lagos Task Force, Alausa, for trial and might be sentenced to six months’ imprisonment if found guilty by the court. The Public Relations Officer of the NRC, Mr. Segun Esan, said in an online statement that all the suspects were arrested last weekend at Ikeja and Agege Railway Stations during the evening peak period. Esan recalled that the raid came barely two weeks after the NRC Managing Director, Mr. Adeseyi Sijuwade, warned the rooftop

riders while addressing passengers at Ebute Metta Junction Station. Addressing the passengers with the Commissioner of Police, Railway Police Command, Mr. Saba Moses Ndagi, in attendance, Sijuwade warned that the corporation would stop the rooftop riders and be made to face the law if caught. The MD added that the corporation would not allow anybody to commit suicide by riding on the rooftop or any exterior area that was not a passenger compartment on the train. He said: “The corporation has increased its passenger train frequency to 16 everyday of the week and therefore will not tolerate any passenger choosing to travel on any part of the train other than the passengers’ compartment area. “The NRC’s Police Command will, from time to time, continue to arrest ticketless passengers and all other persons that choose to use the trains in a manner that is not known to subsisting rules and regulations of the corporation.”

L-R: Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria, Osun State chapter and Head, Osun Province of Celestial Church of Christ, Superior Evang. Abraham Aladeseye; Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola; Prophetess Shade Kolawole and President, Customary Court of Appeal, Hon. Justice Gloria Oladoke, during the 42nd Adult Harvest and Thanksgiving Service of the church in Osogbo, yesterday.

Free polls: Empower CJN to appoint INEC chair –Ajimobi ture entitled; “Review and reform: Key elements and implications of Nigeria’s constitution review process,’’ at Chatham House, London, at the weekend. Ajimobi also suggested the inclusion of representatives of political parties with members in the National Assembly as members of INEC Board. He said: “INEC funding should be first line charge of the Federation Account as a mechanism for checks and balances. Only the recur-

rent expenses of INEC are at present excluded from presidential approval. “Extant constitutional provisions allow the President to appoint INEC Board that will superintend the election in which he is likely to be a candidate. INEC reports to the President. Its funding relies on the disposition of the President as well. “All these have serious implications for the independence of INEC and the possibility of having free and fair elections in the country.”

Ajimobi described the present federal system as ‘feeding bottle federalism’ in which states assemble monthly in Abuja for federal allocation which, according to him, does not allow for hard work. He noted that many of the milestones in many parts of the country were accomplished in the First Republic when states had more control of their resources. The governor also said that the removal of incumbents from the second term

elections would reduce the use of incumbency factor to undermine the democratic rights of other contestants within the political parties or in the general elections. Ajimobi threw his weight behind the creation of state police, saying that this would guarantee fast and immediate response to security challenges and allow for indigenous police service that would leverage on its knowledge of the local communities to detect and prevent crime.

He said: “The provision for state governors as chief security officers of their respective states is largely meaningless because the police do not report to them. “Valuable time is wasted in cases of security challenges because police authorities need to seek approval for action from the Federal Government rather than the governors who are on ground and who feel the impact of such security challenges.

South East

Monday, October 8, 2012

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Reps move to tackle flood disaster in 22 states CHRIS NJOKU OWERRI

he House of Representatives has resolved to carry out a comprehensive assessment of the flood disasters that ravaged 22 states of the federation last month. Deputy Speaker of the House, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, who disclosed this at the weekend while in-

specting some parts of Oguta Local Government Area that were ravaged by flood, said the damage done to these states by the unfortunate incident would be factored into the 2013 environmental hazard budget. He said the visit was to enable him have an on the spot assessment of the damage done by the flood for onward passage

to the House for action. Ihedioha, who donated cash of N800, 000 to the flood victims, regretted that both residual Houses and public institutions have been ruined, but promised that the legislative house would urgently engage the executive for immediate solution to the menace. “We are studying the

situation in the 22 states affected by the flood and we will engage environmental experts who will provide comprehensive information on the way out.” The deputy speaker, accompanied by the House Committee Chairman on Environment, Hon. Uche Ekwunife, Chairman, Banking and Currency, Hon. Jones

Onyereri and Deputy Committee Chairman on Gas, Hon. Gerald Irona, urged the flood victims to remain calm as steps would be taken to cushion their plight. Ekwunife and Onyereri in their respective responses sympathised with the flood victims and assured them of their various committees’ assistance.

Okorocha makes case for vocational education DENNIS AGBO ENUGU

mo State Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, has charged the authorities of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) to take vocational studies very seriously as a way of imparting new and enduring skills in their students. The governor urged the university to vigorously pursue the idea of creating a faculty for vocational studies to help equip undergraduates with the requisite entrepreneurial skills that will grantee self- reliance once they graduate. The governor gave the charge while speaking as a guest lecturer at UNN’s 52nd anniversary celebration, during the weekend. Delivering the lecture tagged; “Leadership and Nigeria at 52,” Okorocha eulogised the vision of the founding fathers of the university, saying they were motivated to establish a qualitative and functional education that is key to fighting poverty, ignorance and diseases. He called on the management of the university to uphold the ‘motto of the institution’ which talks about restoring the dignity of man, in all activities he embarks upon. Highlighting the essence of the occasion, the Joint Council/Senate Committee Chairman on the endowment of the institution, Chief Obinna Ayogu, said in 52 years, most structures in the university had either become obsolete or grossly inadequate owing to the large student population.

Flooded areas in Ogbaru Local Government Area in Anambra State at the weekend.

Lawmaker chides govs, warns of possible revolution CHRIS NJOKU OWERRI

lawmaker representing Ohaji/Egbema/Oguta/Oru West federal constituency in Imo State in the House of Representatives, Hon. Gerald Irona, has warned of possible mass revolution against the governors of the 36 states of the federation for their insensitivity to the plight of the people. He said 13 years after the restoration of democracy in the country; the governors had done nothing to provide basic necessities for the people. The legislator said was sad to note that the conditions of the masses have

continued to deteriorate, despite enormous resources at the disposal of the governors coupled with their appropriation of one third of the nation’s funds as security votes. Irona, who spoke at the weekend after inspecting areas affected by flood in his home town of Oguta along with the Deputy Speaker of the House and other house members, said that it has become inevitable for local government councils in the country to operate as a third tier government to enable them take full control of their allocations from the federation accounts. According to him, such an arrangement coupled with their proximity to

the local people would enable them embark on projects and programmes that would lift up the living standard of the people. “The governors are the problems of this country because one third of our money goes for their security votes in addition to the fabulous resources which they control yet those at the grass roots are not getting anything,” he said. He warned: “With the way Nigeria is going, if the leaders do not take time, the masses would one day rise against us and I will be on their side because we all are expected to give account of our stewardship to the people.” Irona, who is the deputy chairman of the house

committee on gas identified governance as a serious business that should be entrusted in the hands of serious minded individuals to avert a disconnection between the government and the people. He castigated the Imo State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (ISOPADEC) for its alleged insensitivity to the problems of the oil producing communities in the state. He also appealed to public-spirited individuals, international donor agencies, the NDDC, Red Cross, the Federal Ministry of Environment, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) to come to the aid of the flood victims.

Zik’s mausoleum: Obi of Onitsha, Ihedioha, others laud FG NWABUEZE OKONKWO ONITSHA

he Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Alfred Nnaemeka Achebe; Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha and former governorship candidate of the African Political System (APS) in the April 2010 governorship election

in Anambra State, Dr. Alex Obiogbolu have commended the Federal Government for approving money for the completion of the abandoned mausoleum project of the late first President and Owelle of Onitsha, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe. The trio spoke at the weekend during the 10th Ofala festival and 10th anniversary of the enthrone-

ment of Igwe Achebe as the Obi Onitsha, at his Ime palace, Onitsha. In their separate statements, Igwe Achebe said the people of Onitsha are elated and relieved by the decision of the Federal Government to complete Zik’s final resting place which previous governments in the had been playing politics with.

He urged President Goodluck Jonathan to match his words with action concerning the completion of the project, as the people of Onitsha, the entire South-East and Nigerians, who have respect for past leaders of the country that served meritoriously, will use the project to judge the performance of his administration.

Enugu teachers bemoan inadequacies of Chime govt DENNIS AGBO ENUGU

eachers in Enugu State have berated the administration of Governor Sullivan Chime for its inability to implement the payment of the 27 percent ‘Teachers Special Emolument Allowance’ in the state, saying that the non-implementation has tremendously reduced the motivation of the teachers. The teachers also lamented the state government’s inability to pay newly recruited teachers for about eight months and asked the government to also pay teachers’ gratuity and pension in good time rather than allow retirees to wait for two years before receiving such payments. The teachers also called on the governor to release the result of the 2011 promotion interview and implement the payment of the proposed rural teachers allowance to encourage teachers remain in schools in the hinterland. Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) Enugu State chapter, Comrade Chukwumaife Nze, said that the recommendation that the state should recruit more teachers is also of paramount interest to the teachers, lamenting the dearth of teachers in Enugu schools. “We are also talking about housing scheme and car loans for teachers,” said Nze. The chairman said proper motivation of teachers is paramount towards achieving the expected qualitative education that will reflect in the society.

Chime

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

South South

Monday, October 8, 2012

Global human trafficking business hits $32bn –UNODC SEBASTINE EBHUOMHAN BENIN

L-R: Delta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan; his counterparts from Benue, Gabriel Suswam and Nassarawa, Tanko Almakura, after a meeting held in Abuja with the Presidency and National Assembly leadership over the recent flood disasters across the country, at the weekend.

Flood: Jonathan’s kinsmen appeal for relief items EMMA GBEMUDU YENAGOA

isplaced kinsmen of President Goodluck Jonathan at Onuebum in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State yesterday cried out for relief materials to assuage their plight caused by the flood that submerged the area. The victims appealed to President Jonathan to alleviate their sufferings by awarding the re-construction of Onuebum- Otuoke Road to check the flooding

of the link road. Most of the displaced persons are now squatting in Yenagoa where the flood is not severe. The victims of Onuebum, Agbuara and other communities in Ogbia Local Government Area lamented that their homes have been submerged by the flood. Though the state government had converted the sports complex to a temporary relief camp for the displaced persons, it was learnt that the area may not

be able to accommodate the victims. Already the road leading to Otuoke from Agbura has been submerged as youths and women ferry their wares by speed boats and canoes to their villages. Otuoke is about 45 minutes drive from Yenagoa, the state capital. When National Mirror visited the area yesterday, vehicles could mot ply the road due to the flooding. A lawyer and displaced indigene of Onuebum, Ezekiel Azibanator, decried that

the victims had been living within the submerged area for almost two weeks. Describing the flood as a sad incident, Azibanator said the situation was causing sleepless nights to the affected communities. He said: “The flood has caused colossal damage to the lives of Ogbia people, particularly, my community, Onuebum. It has destroyed a lot of crops and aquatic lives, forcing schools to close down and villagers relocating to Yenagoa for safety.”

50 communities submerged in Isoko land –Delta SSG

ver 50 communities have been submerged in Isoko land of Delta State resulting in the creation of five relief camps for displaced person. Disclosing this yesterday, Secretary to the State Government, Mr. Ovuzuorie Macaulay, confirmed that over 6, 500 adults, excluding children, which far outnumber the adults, had successfully been evacuated and registered in the camps. Meanwhile, the Isoko nation has commended Delta State Governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan for the prompt action taken to rescue and rehabilitate victims of the floods ravaging the communities. Making the commendation yesterday during an emergency meeting of all Isoko stakeholders at Oleh, President General of Isoko Development Union (IDU),

Chief Greg Akpojene, said government’s prompt response and initiative had saved lives in the communities affected. The meeting was attended by Senator James Manager, member representing Isoko Federal Constituency; Hon. Leo Ogor, member representing Isoko North State Constituency; Hon. Tim Owhofere, NDDC Commissioner; Chief Solomon Ogba, Commissioner for Lands and Surveys; Sir Patrick Ferife, Commissioner for Women Affairs; Chief (Mrs.) betty Efekodha, Commissioner for Infrastructure; Mr. Orezi Esievo and Hon. Emma Okoro, among others Briefing the meeting earlier, Macaulay enumerated the efforts by the government to include setting up of five relief camps in Isoko with two at Ozoro, two at Oleh and one in Irri, adding that there was an ongoing

operation to evacuate more people from Ivrogbo jetty. He said that as at the last count, over 4000 people, excluding children are living in the camps while more are still being evacuated with the possibility of setting up another camp at the Enwhe/Olomoro axis of Isoko.

Stating that state resources alone cannot cope with the situation, the SSG said: “What we are doing has no political platform. We are all working for the general interest of the Isoko nation. I therefore enjoin all to see this as effort geared towards saving the lives of our people.

uman trafficking is a high turnover global trade generating not less than US $32 billion annually, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Statistics revealed that about 2.5 million persons are trafficked annually with the sexual exploitation of women accounting for the most common form of trafficking at about 79 per cent. The statistics did not, however, disclose how much Nigerian cartels rake from trafficking of fellow citizens. Giving a breakdown of the statistics to National Mirror at a stakeholders’ workshop on human trafficking and smuggling, UNODC Representative in Nigeria, Ms. Mariam Sissoko, described human trafficking as an old business that involves a long network of divers people and places.

Professionals reject proposed Toruibe State SEBASTINE EBHUOMHAN BENIN

forum of professionals drawn from across the Binis, Itsekiris and Ilajes has rejected the clamour for Toruibe State. The professionals said that creating the state would be tantamount to the stealing of the people’s land. The forum made its position known in a statement it circulated to the media yesterday in Benin, the Edo State capital. The statement was jointly signed on behalf of the Binis by a physician, Dr. No-

Let Bakassi people decide their fate –Bakare TEMITOPE OGUNBANKE

esidents of Bakassi should be allowed to decide where they want to stay between Nigeria and Cameroun, Convener of Save Nigeria Group (SNG), Pastor Tunde Bakare, said yesterday. Addressing a press conference yesterday in Lagos, Bakare said that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling which ceded Bakassai to Cameroun 10

years ago should be revisited for people of Bakassi to determine where they want to stay. He said: “I encourage Nigeria to appeal the ICJ ruling and part of the pleading should be let Bakassi people themselves decide where they want to be; whether in Cameroun or Nigeria. The Bakassi people are people with a voice and a destiny. Let them speak for themselves and let nobody decide for them. “ICJ cannot just decide for Bakassi people because

Sissoko explained that the UNODC as a United Nations entity that focuses primarily on the criminal justice element of transnational crimes, its work to combat human trafficking and the smuggling of migrants is underpinned by the United Nations Convention on Transnational Organized Crime and the protocol on trafficking in TIP and SOM. She said: “Currently, UNODC is in partnership with the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) in implementing a four-year project founded by the European Union under the 10th European Development Fund to the tune of 4.8 million euro. “The project is focused on promoting better management of migrants and will be implemented in six states that included Edo, Lagos, Benue, Cross River, Niger, Anambra and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).”

they are not cows, dogs and cats. They are human; they have their own mind, will and emotions, and they know where they want to be. If the people decide that they want to go to Cameroun, so be it. If they decide to be part of Nigeria, so be it. Let the people decide where they want to be.” Speaking on the forthcoming October 20 governorship election in Ondo State, the cleric called on the people of Ondo State to be vigilant and defend their votes.

sakare Igbiden; on behalf of the Itsekiris, Architect Andrew Eyimofe and on behalf of the Ilajes, Mr. Ola Omojuwa, a lawyer,. The statement reads: “We commend the National Assembly for deeming it fit to embark on this journey at a time that our nationhood is fast becoming threatened with all sorts of issues. We are particularly delighted that the proposed amendments to the nation’s constitution are going to touch very critical areas such as creation of states, fiscal federalism, devolution of powers, local government administration, Land Use Act, revenue formula and other areas of national interest. “However, we are compelled to mention that much as we share in this national optimism for a greater nation, the issue of state creation as it affects our people needs to be looked at critically. We are not against the creation of the proposed Toruibe State for the Ijaws wherever they want. But we want to put it on record that the proposed state as demanded presently is an attempt to annex our Godgiven lands in Benin, Itsekiri and Ilaje Kingdoms in the South-South and SouthWest respectively.

North

Monday, October 8, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Gunmen kill 22 in Maiduguri, two in Zaria INUSA NDAHI AND A ZA MSUE

rmed men suspected to be members of the terrorist group at the weekend slaughtered 20 people at Abbaganaram Ward of Maiduguri, the Borno State capital. Earlier on Saturday, a nurse, Daniel Lassa, of the El-Kanemi Warriors Football Club, and one of his sons, were shot dead at his Dikwa Housing Estate. Another son, who was also shot, however, sur-

vived the terrorists’ bullets. He was, at press time, being treated at the Intensive Care Unit of University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, UMTH. Also in Kaduna State, gunmen shot dead two people, among them a medical doctor, at relaxation spot in Zaria. They also critically injured another person. However, a resident of Dikwa Housing Estate said the gunmen who killed Lassa, came in a tricycle and trailed him to his house, before shooting him and his two sons about

2.35am on Saturday. He said that the gunmen, who slit the throats of 20 people at Abbaganaram Ward, might be those who killed the nurse and his son. Dikwa Housing Estate is about three kilometres east of Abaganara and on the Maiduguri - Dikwa Road. Confirming the incident, the Borno State Police Commissioner, Yuguda Abdullahi, said that gunmen launched attacks on the Dikwa Housing Estate and killed a nurse and one of his sons. Abdullahi said based on preliminary investigations,

the nurse was earlier issued with a threat letter to vacate his residence along with his family members. He said: “The suspects in most cases demand for money, after issuing the threat letters to innocent citizens, including top government officials, traditional rulers and politicians in Borno State.” The commissioner, however, denied knowledge of the Abbaganaram massacre, saying he was yet to be briefed on the incident. Also when contacted, the Joint Task Force, JTF,

spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Sagir Musa, said there was no killing in Abbaganaram. He said: “There is no reported killing in Abbaganaram. Whoever said so... it is totally untrue and baseless; as far as JTF, which is on ground to restore peace and order in the state is concerned, there is nothing like an attack in Abbaganaram throughout the week.” The killing in Kaduna

Boko Haram: Dialogue, the only solution –Northern leaders AUGUSTINE MADU-WEST KANO

Gombe State Deputy Governor, Mr. Tha’anda Rubainu raising the Unity Torch ahead of the National Sports Festival, in Gombe, yesterday.

Three Nigerian pilgrims die in Saudi Arabia –Official

he Head of National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, Medina Mission, Dr. Bello Tambawwal, has said that three Nigerian pilgrims in Saudi Arabia had died. Tambawwal disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, in Medina, saying the pilgrims were from Kebbi, Kano and Katsina states. He said the first was a pilgrim from Kano State, who died aboard the plane conveying him and others in the inaugural flight to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Tambawwal said the others died in Medina from illnesses but added that “both of them were in their ripe age at the time of their death.” He said the Nigerian mission was working hard to ensure that medical services were available to the pilgrims always by operating two clinics in Medina, which rendered services for 24 hours.

Police discover bomb factory in Minna PRISCILLA DENNIS MINNA

olice in Niger State discovered a bomb manufacturing factory allegedly owned by the dreaded Islamic sect, Boko Haram, in Maitunbi quarters area of Minna, the state capital on Saturday. The discovery, it was learnt, was the outcome of a search carried out by men of the Niger State Police Command based on a tip-off by one of the five suspects nabbed by the police in connection with the killing of three policemen at their duty post last week. It was also gathered that a team of armed policemen raided the quarters at 8.30pm, where the bomb factory was located at the back of a popular private school in the area. The raid led by an assistant commissioner of police from the state headquarters lasted for about two hours but no arrest was made.

However, some of the lethal weapons recovered in the building include two 1.5 grams of gas cylinder cans already set for detonation, 30 cans of disposable food beverage. Other items found are soft drinks stockpiled with explosives, 25 kilograms of fertiliser, batteries, remote control devices and other electrical gadgets among others. A police source said the team took its time to visit the place and carried out its operation carefully to prevent lost of lives, especially those of innocent citizens around the area that day. The source explained that though nobody was found in the building, all the weapons discovered were now at the police headquarters, adding the house used to manufacture the explosives belonged to a civil servant oblivious of what his property was being used for. “We found about 30 cans of soft drinks stuffed

with explosives, two gas cylinders, a 25kg bag of fertiliser, remote control devices, batteries and other electrical gadgets, but we didn’t meet anybody in the house.”

State, however, occurred barely a week after explosion rocked a hotel in Zaria and injured some people suspected to be commercial sex workers. A witness said that about 8pm on Saturday the gunmen stormed the relaxation spot on Enugu - Kings Road, Sabo Gari area of Zaria and shot the medical doctor whose name was given as Dr. Martins C. Agu of the Railway Staff Hospital, Zaria.

o end the spate of killings and bombings in parts of the country, the Federal Government must be ready to dialogue with the Boko Haram Islamic sect. Two prominent northerners and elder statesmen, Alhaji Tanko Yakasai, who was adviser to former President Shehu Shagari on National Assembly Matters in the Second Republic, and the Second Republic Deputy Senate President, Alhaji Abubakar Dan-Musa, said this yesterday. Yakasai said he would continue to pray for the adoption of dialogue by both parties. He said: “When recently it was reported widely by the media that the Federal Government has agreed to the issue of dialogue with the sect members, I was happy about the development and wished the gov-

ernment the best in this effort. I also prayed for the success of such move since I believe it is the only measure that can bring about peace and stability in the country in this circumstance. “I always believe in the powers of dialogue as the only way out, in a situation like this. Others have used it to achieve peace and there is no reason why it won’t work for us, especially where the application of force via the deployment of military might to deal with the situation has failed to yield positive result. “If the government got peace by dialoguing with militants in the Niger Delta during late Umaru Yar’Adua’s leadership, when he granted amnesty to the Niger Delta militia, I see no reason why they should not be patient and allow dialogue work in the Boko Haram case. So, my belief is that it is only dialogue and not force that can do the magic.”

Dangote donatesofN200m to Kogi flDangote ood victims said the group people homeless. ADEMU IDAKWO LOKOJA

he President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has donated N200m to the victims of flooding which has ravaged Kogi State in the last three weeks, destroying property and rendering several thousands

This is as four persons from Ajaokuta Local Government Area in Kogi State are still missing after the flood. Presenting N50m food items and N150m cash to the state government to mitigate the effect of flood at the Government House in Lokoja on Saturday,

and Dangote Foundation were deeply touched by the agonising experience of the people. He explained that he and the Chief Executive of Dangote Foundation came to sympathise with the people and the government over the natural disaster.

Adegbite: FG must improve healthcare delivery –Group A ZA MSUE KADUNA

he Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI) at the weekend called on the Federal Government to improve healthcare delivery in the country to prevent unwanted lost of lives. In a statement signed by

JNI Secretary General, Dr. Khalid Abubakar Aliyu, shortly after returning from a condolence visit to the family of the late Dr. Abdullateef Adegbite in Lagos, the organisation noted that poor health services and the quest for Nigerians to seek medical treatment abroad were re-

sponsible for preventable deaths of the citizens. The statement reads in part: “We want the government to ensure that our health institutions provide world class medical services while our health and medical personnel adopt best international practices to save lives.’’

NIGERIA @ 52

Monday, October 8, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Politics

Scrapping of Senate: Tinubu’s recipe for overblown govt

PDP, LP trade words over call for transfer of SSS boss COUNTDOWN TO

ONDO GUBER POLL October 20, 2012

DAYS TO GO

OJO OYEWAMIDE AKURE

he Olusola Oke Campaign Organisation (OOCO) yes-

terday said there was nothing wrong with the call for the transfer of Mrs. Betty Adokie, the Director, State Security Service (SSS), Ondo State Command from the state. It said there was no reason why the ruling Labour Party (LP) should defend the SSS boss if there was no deal between them. In a statement by its Deputy Director of Publicity, Rotimi Ogunleye, OOCO said any impediment to the peaceful, free and fair conduct of the October 20

governorship election in the state must be removed, adding that security operatives were not expected to engage in partisan politics. OOCO was reacting to the allegation of the Mimiko Campaign Organisation (MCO) that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) were plotting to unleash violence on the people of the state. The ACN had at the weekend through Idowu Ajanaku, the Director of

Media of the Akeredolu Campaign Organisation (ACO), called for the removal of the SSS boss in the state accusing her of bias. Only last week, the ACN had also called for the removal of the state Police Commissioner and other top officers of the command for similar reasons. But describing the calls as “reckless, dangerous and symptomatic of the desperation of the opposition in the state”, the MCO said it was a justification

of its strident cries in the past that the two leading opposition parties in the state were working together to unleash violence in the state. MCO’s Director of Publicity and Media Relations, Kolawole Olabisi, in a statement in Akure yesterday noted that the threat by the parties was very

ACN leaders not interested in Ondo resources OJO OYEWAMIDE AKURE

Former Permananet Secretary, Ministry of Defence, Major General Olu Bajowa, (rtd,) giving his blessing to the politcal aspiration of the Deputy Governoship candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria in Ondo State, Dr. Paul Akintelure when the latter paid him a visit in Lagos recently.

Propaganda won’t win election for LP – Oke

HAKEEM GBADAMOSI AKURE.

he Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the October 20 election in Ondo State, Chief Olusola Oke has said that no amount of propaganda by the ruling Labour Party (LP) would stop him from winning the election. Oke, who denied meeting with federal civil servants in the state to manipulate election results or to perpetrate any electoral malpractices, described the allegation against him as one of the catalogue of lies of the ruling LP against the opposition.

Disclosing this at OdeIrele in Irele Local Government Area of the state when his campaign train berthed in the town, Oke said the present administration has failed to fulfil its electoral promises to the people of the area. He, however, said an end will come to the LP deceit on October 20, noting that politics is not about propaganda but bringing dividends of democracy to the doorsteps of the people. He said the people of Irele have been deprived of real benefits of democracy, saying it is time to open up the local government area to attract economic advantage to the

instructive and must be treated with grave concern by the security agencies in the state. His words: “The statement is nothing but inciting and a clear declaration of a state of anarchy by these desperados who cannot win a ward in a free and fair election in the state unless through subterfuge.”

gun State governor, Ibukunle Amosun, and his Osun State counterpart, Rauf Aregbesola, have said that the leaders of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) are not interested in the resources of Ondo State but the progress of the Yoruba race. They were reacting to the insinuation that the national leader of ACN, Bola Tinubu, is eyeing the resources of the state and that is why he wants to install his stooge as governor. The governors, who spoke at Ore, during the third ACN senatorial rally, where the party leaders solicited for votes for its candidate in the October 20 governorship election, Rotimi Akeredolu, said none of the party leaders had ever requested for money from them or interfered in how they run their governments. Amosun said: “I have been governor of Ogun

State for about two years now. No leader of our party has ever requested money from me. My leader in the state, Olusegun Osoba, has never said I should give him one kobo. These people have nothing to say. “All the governors in the South-West, nobody asks us for money among the leaders. What they are doing is for the progress of the Yoruba race. If they are looking for money, they would not have been here. It is because of us and our children that they came here. “Asiwaju Tinubu always spends his money and his time. He has never received one kobo from any governor in the South-West. If anybody says these leaders collect money from us, God will forgive him. None of Asiwaju, Bisi Akande, Osoba, Adeniyi Adebayo and Lam Adesina has ever asked us for money.” Aregbesola, who was the one who invited Amosun to speak on the issue also said: “Asiwaju has never received money from me.”

people of the area. Berating the LP government for abandoning most of the developmental projects initiated by the former governor, Olusegun

Agagu, in the Southern Senatorial District, Oke pledged to complete all the abandoned projects to open up employment opportunities .

HAKEEM GBADAMOSI

PPA faults election debate group’s decision

AKURE

he decision of the Nigeria Election Debate Group (NEDG) to field only three candidates for the final debate on the governorship election in Ondo State has been faulted by the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA) in the state. The governorship candidate of the PPA in the October 20 gubernatorial

election, Omoregha Olatunji, said selecting only three out of the 13 contestants indicated that all other candidates have been automatically prejudged, even before the electorate decide who should be their governor. The NEDG had at the end of the second session of the debate for the gubernatorial candidates, announced that three candi-

dates would be selected for the final debate that would take place on October 11. Speaking with journalists on the NEDG decision, Olatunji queried the yardstick used in selecting the three candidates, saying: “There is no way that the debate group can drop the LP candidate because that is the ruling party, there is no way that the PDP candidate can also be dropped

because he is representing the biggest party in Africa and dropping the ACN candidate would not be possible because that is the major opposition party in the country. “If all these three are picked due to the analysis that I had made, it means other 10 candidates had been ruled out of the election even before the Election Day.”

Politics

FELIX NWANERI writes on the call for the scrapping of the country’s Senate by a former governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, to save the nation of huge cost of governance, which has triggered mixed reactions among stakeholders.

Monday, October 8, 2012

SCRAPPING OF SENATE

Tinubu’s recipe for overblown govt THE ISSUE OF

alls by most Nigerians for a cut in cost of governance got rather a radical backing recently, when the former governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, advocated the scrapping of the country’s upper legislative chamber, the Senate. Tinubu, the National Leader of the leading opposition party, Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and a former senator, while speaking at the 2012 annual conference and awards ceremony of Leadership Newspapers, stated that doing away with the Senate will go a long way in addressing the nation’s huge cost of governance and recurrent expenditure. He also argued that the House of Representatives is better placed at representing the people since its members are closer to the grassroots. His words: “We have kept complaining about the cost of governance and the recurrent expenditure, but we have never examined the structural problem of even the constitution that we are operating. “Why do we need two Houses of the National Assembly whereas the House of Representatives representing the smaller constituencies is enough in the same number of population? Why not get rid of the Senate for a slim and better legislative activity? Let us start examining that.” Expectedly, the call has sparked off mixed reactions from stakeholders and analysts. While many, particularly those outside the government see it as one that will apart from cutting cost, address the nation’s over-bloated democratic government, others, especially legislators view it as wrong move. To the lawmakers, the peculiarity of the Nigerian nation makes the proposal dead on arrival. Senate Leader, Victor NdomaEgba, argued that the bicameral legislature, which Nigeria operates, is adopted in heterogeneous societies to protect minority rights, as representation in the Senate is based on equality. His words: “A former senator and former governor is canvassing the scrapping of the Senate. If the worry of Nigerians is cost, the total budget of the National Assembly is N150 billion. That N150 billion, includes my salary, which they say is jumbo. My salary is no different from a minister’s salary or a Supreme Court Justice’s salary. Theirs is not jumbo, but mine is jumbo. “The N150 billion includes the salaries of members of the House of Representatives, it includes the salaries and emoluments of the bureaucracy, the staff. It includes the salaries and allowances of our legislative aides. It also includes the National Assembly Service Commission, both recurrent and capital.” He further explained that the amount is about three per cent of the national budget and therefore cannot be a problem. “The argument, therefore, cannot be reducing

SLASHING COST OF GOVERNANCE IS MORE THAN SCRAPPING THE

SENATE...

THE PROPOSAL IS SOMETHING THAT CAN BE CANVASSED AT A

SOVEREIGN

NATIONAL CONFERENCE

Tinubu

the cost of governance, because the entire budget of the National Assembly is what you have paid to one fuel importer in one very opaque transition,” he said. On the reason for adoption of a bicameral legislature by countries, he explained: “Why do we have bicameral legislature? All over the world, where you have large population, heterogeneous people, diversity of culture, you usually have two chambers because the lower chamber of the House of Representatives usually represent on the basis of population.” Some former senators, Kola Bajomo and Lekan Balogun, also faulted the call. Bajomo, who represented Ogun West in the Sixth Assembly, queried the rationale behind Tinubu’s call and likened it to that of a man trying to destroy a house he has laboriously built. He therefore urged the ACN leader to first drop the title of senator currently attached to his name as well as ask his wife, Remi, who is currently in the upper chamber to resign her position before he will have the moral justification to call for the scrapping of the Senate. He said: “The call by Tinubu can be likened to that of somebody destroying the house that he built. It is not so much of a fact that he was once a member of the Senate, his wife is also a senator. So, before he should call for the scrapping of the Senate, he should first of all drop the reference of him as a senator. He should no longer call himself Senator Tinubu and he should also ask his wife to resign.” To Balogun, Tinubu should come out clear on what he really intended by the statement, as he cannot talk of scrapping the Senate when the nation is practicising the American system of democracy. His words: “Tinubu may be looking at the British model of the parliamentary

system. What we have on ground is the American model. We can’t have an American model and still be talking of operating without the Senate. It is the upper house and designed to ensure checks and balances; to ensure that power is not used arbitrarily.” Founding chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Chekwas Okorie, told National Mirror that the issue of slashing cost of governance is more than scrapping the Senate, as the legislature, of which the red chamber is part of, is just a part of the system. He said: “The Senate cannot be scrapped and you said that you have reduced cost of governance because it is an integral part of the presidential system of government that we are practising. The president has no powers to scrap it and the Senate itself cannot by constitutional amendment scrap the body. The proposal is something that can be canvassed at a Sovereign National Conference.” Okorie’s argument may not be far from the truth, as the recurrent vote in this year’s budget of N4.8 trillion, is 74 per cent compared to 26 per cent for capital. Based on this, it is unclear then how a removal of the “tokenism of N150 billion” meant for the National Assembly will reduce the huge administrative cost? To some analysts, the truth is that a government that has budgeted N2.3 billion in just a little over two years, including N1 billion in 2012 for feeding the Presidency alone cannot be serious about cutting cost, as even the 25 per cent reduction in the basic salaries of public office holders announced by President Goodluck Jonathan earlier this year, had not made the desired impact. “Scrapping of the Senate to cut cost will amount to nothing as long as government is suffused with incredible profligacy. What are the allowances and other perks that public office holders receive, which is the core issue,” queried an analysts who asked not to be named. But convincing as the arguments, mostly that of Ndoma-Egba on the contentious

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

issue of minorities may sound for the justification of a bicameral legislature, though it is still contentious whether the Senate as a body based on equal representation has any record of serving them, those in support of Tinubu’s proposal questioned the rationale for holding on to a system that has left Nigerians poorer than they were some years back. They made reference to the recent political development in Senegal, which had its parliament vote in favour of the scraping of the country’s Senate as well as the office of vice-president considered too expensive for the West-African nation’s budget. This is expected to save the country $16 million (N2.4 billion) annually and would be deployed to deal with the impact of deadly floods. It will be recalled that the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mallam Lamido Sanusi, at a time insisted that the current structure of the country was unsustainable. According to him then a huge Federal Government, bicameral legislature, 36 states and 774 local governments was quite untenable. The Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), which backed Tinubu’s call, said scrapping of the Senate will go a long way to reduce cost which would be ploughed to programmes that would improve the social and economic condition of the people. The allowances of lawmakers are based on certain percentages of their salaries. For instance, hardship allowance is 50 per cent of their basic salary; constituency allowance is 200 per cent; furniture, 300 per cent; newspaper, 50 per cent; wardrobe, 25 per cent; recess, 10 per cent; accommodation, 200 per cent; utilities, 30 per cent; domestic staff, 75 per cent; entertainment, 30 per cent; personal assistants, 25 per cent; vehicle maintenance, 75 per cent; leave allowance, 10 per cent; severance gratuity, 300 per cent. “The Federal Government will be deceiving Nigerians if it says that it has difficulty knowing how and where to cut the cost of running government,” the National Chairman of the PPA, Mr. Sam Nkire, said, adding that public office holders needed not wait for more Nigerians to die of hunger, killed or displaced before realising the need to cut down on high government expenditure. Director of Communication, Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, Msgr. Gabriel Osu, who spoke in the same vein, believes that the Senate was not active. “Nigerians all over would never score them (senators) any mark at all. Tinubu is drawing our attention, that the representatives that were elected by the people are asleep, and I don’t believe he has said anything out of tune. “Apologies to the few that are serious and who know their onions; but, generally they are self-serving. They are not there. We hear more bills coming from the CBN or individuals, than the people who would legislate for us. The Senate is not alive at all,” the cleric said. Others, who saw Tinubu’s proposal as a food for thought, believed that beyond the proposal to scrap Senate, Nigerians should seize the opportunity of the ongoing constitutional amendment to ensure radical changes in the country’s political system, as 12 years into the current democratic dispensation has shown that there’s ample proof that full-time legislature is needless.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Views

Monday, October 8, 2012

Probing Mr. President’s thought process HeartBeat

CALLISTUS

OKE

Callistusoke@nationalmirroronline.net 08054103275 (SMS ONLY)

“

If an individual wants to be a leader and isn’t controversial, that means he never stood for anything”. This statement by former American president, Richard M. Nixon, convinces me that President Goodluck Jonathan might be deliberately using controversy as an instrument of statesmanship. You will agree with me he has a predilection for controversy. He stokes it as a matter of habit. Ask yourself if there is one federal policy issue in recent time that is not steeped in controversy. I do not think so. Remember that the President initially threw his weight behind CBN Governor Sanusi Lamido Sanusi’s planned introduction of the N5, 000 note. He backed down when he saw himself a loner as even the National Assembly denied him of the needed support. From that controversy, he moved to wake up the ghost of the January 2012 anti-subsidy protests. Our President had stirred the hornet’s nest, when he denigrated the organizers of the Occupy Nigeria anti-subsidy removal protests that literarily grounded the country more than nine months ago. Speaking on Tuesday September 18, 2012 during the 52nd Independence lecture in Abuja, President Jonathan had said the support for the protests was corruptly bought, say“

ing that the sponsors used food, drinks and other inducements to attract the horde of protesters that participated, concluding therefore, that the protests were not a true reflection of the reality then. Of course, Professor Wole Soyinka, one of the key faces behind Occupy Nigeria, wasted no time jabbing Mr. President and telling him he was both “lamentably alienated” from the true pulse of the nation and suffering from a bad conscience. The dust on this had not settled down when he went to New York and told a UN audience that Nigeria would respect all ICJ rulings on international disputes. Many interpreted his position to mean the end of the road for Bakassi people that have persistently kicked against the October 10, 2002 verdict that ceded Bakassi to Cameroon, and all those who have clamoured for appeal against the ruling. The pro appeal group includes the two houses of the seventh National Assembly. Five years earlier the sixth National Assembly had also in July 2007, when it was obvious that the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua would comply with the ICJ ruling, passed a resolution declaring the planned hand over of the peninsula to Cameroon illegal. Surprisingly, just last week when time was ticking away and the nation awaited with bated animation as the Tuesday October 9 deadline drew closer, Mr. President announced he was sold on the appeal option and went ahead to institute the machinery to actuate it before tomorrow’s ICJ deadline. The nation might have heaved a sigh of relief, but the worry is whether the time available is enough to do a thorough job. Policy analysts and scholars should be

POLICY ANALYSTS

AND SCHOLARS SHOULD BE WORRIED ABOUT THIS LACK OF COHERENCE IN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT’S

DECISION MAKING PROCESS worried about this apparent lack of coherence in the federal government’s decision making process. A situation where Mr. President turns 360 degrees at critical moments means either all is not well with the decision making apparatuses of the government or the President believes in following his heart, after all the buck stops on his table. On the Bakassi issue, Nigerians have consistently spoken through their representatives in the National Assembly that the ICJ ruling was flawed in every material sense and thus it deserves a revisit through an appeal; the Bakassi people, as victims of the ruling, never for once relented on their objection to the ICJ ruling and the 2006 Green Tree Agreement that gave force to it; and several informed Nigerians made powerful arguments against compliance with the ruling. I feel all this constituted the needed feedback that should serve as input into the final position of the government. President Jonathan’s dithering on the issue till the very late hour is both confounding and inexcusable. Moreover, denigrating the civil society leaders of the nation the way he did over

the January 2012 anti-subsidy protests shows that Mr. President does not really appreciate the objective reality of the Nigeria nation. He does not seem to understand the critical interplay of petroleum products and other indices in the living equation of Nigerians. If President Jonathan is an admirer of Nixon’s style of leadership, it is a bad imitation. The Nixon most people know was an unscrupulous politician and a disciple of Niccolo Machiavelli School of politics. The Watergate scandal that caused him his presidency tells it all. Leadership is perceptibly about a reciprocal relationship. In a restrictive political sense, you have a situation of a leader with commanding influence and a followership which looks up to him/her for direction and inspiration. The quality of leadership offered by the leader is judged by the positive results of the actions and activities it engenders; and the ultimate assessors are the followers! Nigerians know when to support their leaders and when to withhold such support. General Ibrahim Babangida is a living witness of such resoluteness on the part of Nigerians. When he wasted his political credits by his introduction of the enervating Structural Adjustment Programme, Nigerians reacted by taking to the streets. The hurried retreat of the military to the barracks in May 1999 was facilitated by the concerted anti-military confrontation started in 1993 against the annulment of the result of June 12 presidential election. President Jonathan had better read and learn the lessons from the history of Nigerians and their struggles. He should not take the people for granted.

Fear of fear births, slavery in freedom

ear is a spirit and those who respect it and accommodate it become its slave. The fear of failure is either the beginning of failure when improperly managed, or the seed of success, when dispelled. Freedom poorly managed leads to slavery, and independence prodigally managed leads to dependence on the less endowed. That is why today 52 years after a mismanaged independence, many Nigerians yearn for the good old days of colonialism and are even nurse the desire for trading self-rule for re-colonialism. This is not a piece of Jeremiah’s lamentation, though a clinical examination of lamentations births freedom from the vice grip of fearsome slavery. The good news is that Nigerians, irrespective of ethnic colourations, have the never-say-die spirit, which is the antidote to checkmate fear. That is why global rating institutions rate Nigerians as the happiest people in the world. Just read the daily newspapers for the massive sufferings in the midst of plenty, yet Nigerians still manage to crack jokes and make light their tribulations, and by so doing putting the demon spirit of fear in bondage. The fear of disintegration has spurred relentlessly the unity of the nation since independence 52 years ago and since the amalgamation of northern and southern Nigeria in 1914. So this year mark Nigeria’s 98 years of age.

What has kept the nation so far is the grace of the Almighty that packaged Nigeria, whose glorious destiny shall soon manifest, despite the assault of the spirit of fear. That is why the more the fear of disintegration, even after fighting a 30-month civil war (1967-1970), the more the hope of unity. In effect, Nigerians’ fear of disintegration still holds the country bondage to retrogression, failure, and disillusion, all of them the fruits of fear. After the Biafran civil war experience that ended 42 years ago, many Easterners have lost faith in the country. Even those who never experienced the war daily prepare for the day the nation would disintegrate. The good news is that many of them have waited in vain and are now wisely investing in properties outside their region. Regrettably, it is at this good turn that the northern political cabal that has dominated political leadership of the nation since independence, makes good its threats to make the country ungovernable just because a southern minority Christian won an election they swore would happen over their dead bodies, a self-fulfilling prophesy. The Boko Haram political weapon would fizzle out. So shall be the epidemic spirit of fear that has held the nation bondage in freedom. The proverbial Job in the Book of Life remarked that what he feared most hap-

THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT NIGERIANS, IRRESPECTIVE OF ETHNIC

COLOURATIONS, HAVE THE NEVER-SAY-DIE SPIRIT, WHICH IS

THE ANTIDOTE TO CHECKMATE FEAR pened. That is why the Great Book counsels repeatedly, “Fear not”, for it is devil’s greatest weapon to continue enslavement via a few politicians and businesspersons. 2012 is the year of judgment for those who turn glory to shame. For how do you explain the massive suffering in a nation blessed in excess with population, skilled manpower, and several underexploited natural resources, such as bitumen, oil and gas, fertile arable lands, rich coastline and waters? How do you explain a major global exporter of crude oil importing nearly all its refined petroleum needs and importing about 50 per cent of food requirements when its fertile lands can feed Africa? Why should Nigeria spend yearly N160 billion on 75,000 students in Ghana,

Roadmap SONI EHI

ASUELIMEN

soniasuelimen@yahoo.com, 08023459055 (SMS ONLY)

which has a fraction of her 175 universities? This is time for the electorate to stay awake and take their destiny in their own hands, banish fear to march forward instead of continuously looking back and confront their traducers by voting out failed parties and politicians, and violently resisting imposition of politicians as their leaders and obnoxious policies. Nigerians have halted the nation’s motion to progress by agreeing with the spirit of fear instead of purging it with positive thinking, using the wisdom of the WORD of God. Send your views by mail or sms to PMB 10001, Ikoyi, or our Email: mail@ nationalmirroronline.net mirrorlagos@ yahoo.com or 08164966858 (SMS only). The Editor reserves the right to edit and reject views or photographs. Pseudonyms may be used but must be clearly marked as such.

Editorial

Monday, October 8, 2012

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PUBLICLY OR SECRETLY... TO FULFILL ALL RIGHTEOUSNESS, THESE ARE WHAT I HAVE AT HOME AND ABROUD

Bakassi: Nigeria’s last opportunity

igeria’s hope of repossessing the Bakassi Peninsula which the October 10, 2002 judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ceded to Cameron was rekindled last week with indications that President Goodluck Jonathan has assembled a team to weigh the situation on ground and possibly file in the necessary papers for the ICJ’s review of its contentious judgment. It would appear, however, that the reluctant move by the Jonathan government is “in fulfillment of all righteousness” given the dust raised on the ceding of Bakassi to Cameroun in recent months by eminent persons, Bakassi indigenes themselves, the vocal public and the National Assembly. We recall that the Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, while speaking recently as a guest of the People’s Forum, a programme organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Abuja, stated that the Federal Government, shortly after the ICJ verdict in 2002, signed an agreement with Cameron not only to cede Bakassi to it in compliance with the ICJ verdict, but to assist in resettling as well as protecting indigenes of the peninsula who wished to remain in Nigeria. The minister had particularly expressed surprise that “this issue is coming up again”. Sadly, too, the FG’s move

INSTEAD OF DWELLING ON RECRIMINATIONS AGAINST

GENERALS YAKUBU GOWON AND OLUSEGUN OBASANJO FOR THE LOSS OF BAKASSI, THE NATION SHOULD RESOLVE NOT TO SPARE ANY EFFORT IN

RECLAIMING BAKASSI, IF IT IS STILL POSSIBLE to seek a review of the ICJ judgment is coming at the 11th hour, with a deadline of Tuesday October 9, 2012 (tomorrow) from the date of the ICJ judgment of October 10, 2002. Elating and psychologically uplifting as the FG’s sudden rise from its slumber may seem, how thorough the hurried steps to gain ICJ’s ears would be, with the nation’s legendary record in slipshod handling of sensitive cases, remains nondeterminable as yet. Nonetheless, it must be acknowledged that the last few months have witnessed Nigerians falling over themselves to register their strong displeasure at losing Bakassi to Cameroun. Members of the National Assembly were very resolute in their position

that the October 10, 2002 ICJ ruling was flawed in every material sense and deserved to be revisited. Indeed, experts had faulted the ICJ verdict for not taking into cognizance the interests of the Bakassi people. No plebiscite or referendum was held to enable the people choose where they wished to remain, whether in Nigeria or Cameroun in line with international convention and as was earlier done for the Southern Camerons, for instance. All these the FG should have taken into consideration long ago to enable it build a water-tight case on the reclamation of Bakassi, instead of the current last minute sweating already being criticized as an after-thought. Whatever may be the case, however, time is of real essence in the current FG engagement, and it is not on Nigeria’s side at all. If a legal team has already been assembled, which should be the case; it should get down to work, assembling all the relevant facts that can convince the ICJ that Nigeria really has a strong case. We recall that Chief Richard Akinjide, a former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice in the Second Republic, who was a leading member of the nation’s legal team to the ICJ, had described the October 2002 ruling on Bakassi as “50 percent international law and 50 percent international politics”, and had likewise qualified it as

“blatantly biased and unfair”, as well as a “complete fraud”. This seems the best time to get Akinjide, as well as other experts that felt the way he did, to throw more light on the loopholes that Nigeria can exploit in its current move to repossess Bakassi Peninsula. As has been widely canvassed, there may be no question of appealing the judgment or treating the matter as a fresh case. Only a review of the judgment seems possible. Consequently, the legal team saddled with the task of extracting a review of the judgment should concern itself with all new facts and circumstances that arose during and after the judgment, that were not known to the ICJ. Most importantly, perhaps, is the need to press for a plebiscite or referendum to enable the people of Bakassi to freely choose where they wish to belong between Nigeria and Cameroun in line with United Nations prescriptions. Had they been allowed to make that choice ab initio, the lingering bitterness and restiveness in the peninsula which culminated in their recent secession bid would probably have been averted. Instead of recriminations against Generals Yakubu Gowon or Olusegun Obasanjo for the loss of Bakassi, the nation should resolve not to spare any effort in reclaiming Bakassi, if it is still possible.

ON THIS DAY October 8, 1974 Franklin National Bank collapsed due to fraud and mismanagement. At the time, it was the largest bank failure in the history of the United States. The bank was founded as Franklin Square National Bank in 1926 (but changed its name to Franklin National Bank in 1947). Arthur T. Roth joined the bank in 1934 as head teller and became its president in 1946. On October 8, 1974, it collapsed in obscure circumstances, involving Michele Sindona, renowned Mafiabanker and member of the irregular freemasonic lodge.

October 8, 1982 Poland banned “Solidarity” and all trade unions. Solidarity, full name: Independent Self-governing Trade Union, Solidarity is a Polish trade union federation that emerged on August 31, 1980 at the Gdansk Shipyard under the leadership of Lech Walesa. It was the first non– communist party-controlled trade union in a Warsaw Pact country. Solidarity reached 9.5 million members before its September 1981 Congress.

October 8, 2005 2005 Kashmir earthquake: Thousands of people were killed by a magnitude 7.6 earthquake in parts of Pakistan, India and Afghanistan. The 2005 Kashmir earthquake was a major earthquake centered in the Pakistan-administered Kashmir near the city of Muzaffarabad, and also affected the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It occurred at 08:52:37 Pakistan Standard Time (03:52:37 GMT). As of November 8, 2005, the government of Pakistan’s official death toll was 75,000.

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The contentious

Though generally considered to be the most strategic legislation that would help transform the oil and gas sector, the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) has remained enmeshed in controversies which have twice thwarted its being passed into law. Now, the fate that befell previous efforts appears set to consume the repackaged bill. Will the bill scale the evasive hurdle? By Salami Semiu

f the words of some principal officers of the National Assembly are anything to go by, legislative fireworks are expected to commence on the redrafted Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) in two weeks time, more than three months after it was forwarded by President Goodluck Jonathan. The bill sent to the National Assembly on July 17, is said to have taken into consideration, the previous one submitted to the sixth National Assembly, but which was reviewed and reworked to reflect what sources say was the entire spectrum of what “we considered will be the substantial strategic framework for the petroleum industry and the amalgamation of over 16 laws in the oil and gas sector, that will carry this sector for years to come.” Already, the Speaker of the House, Aminu Tambuwal, had stated at the resumption of the house from recess on September 18 that the passage of the PIB would be one of the major engagements of the House this legislative year. “Consistent with the Legislative Agenda of the House, there are bills that the House should attend to expeditiously. Such bills include constitutional amendment bills on the budget; the Petroleum Industry Bill, review of the Police and Security Agencies Acts, Bills to deal with unacceptably high unemployment situation in Nigeria,” Tambuwal had said. However, Business Courage reliably gathered last week that despite the assurances that the legislators have resolved to pass

the bill, deliberations on the PIB are expected to be subjected to more rigorous scrutiny that may ultimately alter the spirit and purpose of the original bill sent by the president. Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Emeka ihedioha blew the lid on this when he said that the bill will be properly scrutinised. “It will not come out the way it was sent to us. It will be scrutinised and modified. It will be made to look like what it has to be,” he had said. The assurances notwithstanding, an oil industry expert who spoke under anonymity last week expressed deep worries that the bill may run into serious hiccups on two fronts. According to him, some political leaders who feel alienated by virtue of the provisions of the reworked bill would not fold their arms and allow the bill passed without ensuring that their interests are adequately taken care of. Besides the political arm, the expert also believed that certain stakeholders, mostly from the International Oil Companies, (IOCs) may also kick against certain provisions of the bill, particularly with regards to the fiscal regime. Perhaps, these assumptions may be right after all. Business Courage learnt that some northern political leaders are already understudying the bill, with a view to unravelling how its provisions affect the region. Already, Chairman of the Northern States Governors Forum, Niger State Governor Babangida Aliyu, stated that the northern governors have identified many provisions in the draft bill that are detrimental to the people of the region and that the zone

would need to study the bill before taking a position on it, noting that they had noticed “many things” that will affect them negatively and that those things needed to be discussed. “We need to understand how to approach our members in the national and state assemblies. When issues like that come up, we need to discuss it so that the interest of our people who elected us will be protected,” he said. Sequel to this, it was gathered that the northern political leaders have already commissioned a committee headed by Ahmed Mosur, former Finance Minister to study the proposed bill and its implications for the people of the region. The committee was given 90 days within which to submit its report. As part of the efforts to have a common position on the bill, a select group of 51 “outspoken” legislators from the north recently converged on Accra, Ghana, during the just-concluded annual recess of the House to hold a conference on the PIB. A source said that the 51 members, including a principal of-

ficer of the House that met in Accra dissected the bill and took a position to either considerably water down some of the provisions of the bill or work against its passage. Part of the current bill said to be considered offensive to some include the provision that purportedly grants more powers to the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke. If passed as it is, the minister will also become the chairman of the boards of plum parastatals in the ministry, as

well as the boards of the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF), the National Petroleum Assets Management Corporation, (NPAMC) and the Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF). Furthermore, under the terms of the bill, Alison-Madueke will directly supervise the Petroleum Technical Bureau and the Upstream Petroleum Inspectorate, and recommend its officials for appointment. However, of major concern to the zone is what is considered to

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

EDITOR ASSOCIATE EDITOR STAFF WRITER STAFF WRITER SENIOR REPORTER

OLATOYE RAPHAEL SEYI OKUMODI

HEAD, PRODUCTION SENIOR GRAPHIC ARTIST

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oil bill

be an over indulgence of the oil producing areas, with the provision for the setting up of a Petroleum Host Community Fund (PHCF) to which all oil companies will pay 10 per cent of their profit from upstream activities, a provision which they claim will make several billions of Naira available for the development of the Niger Delta, in addition to the funds provided to the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and the Ministry of Niger Delta. Given these sentiments, sources say the revised PIB is not likely to be endorsed “as it is”, particularly by the northern political establishment and northern members of the National Assembly (NASS) if the Mansur’s committee establishes the fact that the bill unduly favours the oil producing states. Besides the political angle, analysts also insist that the PIB faces another uphill struggle from the business segment which already sees the reworked bill as unfavourable. Under the present arrangement, royalties are no longer part of the cur-

rent version of the bill, which is considered to be a negative for oil and gas companies. Royalties now fall under the petroleum minister’s remit, implying that the minister can set them at her discretion. The Shell Group, a key operator in the oil and gas business in Nigeria is already kicking, insisting that the draft PIB is not only lopsided, but will also frustrate current investments in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry and impede on the ability to meet set targets on power generation. The Country Chair, Shell Companies in Nigeria, Mutiu Sunmonu, who spoke at the Nigerian Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI), PIB Stakeholders Forum in Lagos said that “As it stands right now, the PIB will render all deepwater projects and all dry gas projects— whether for domestic or export markets— non-viable. The opportunities to monetise some of the world’s best gas reserves will be lost. The opportunities to kick-start the power sector— the key to economic growth— using easily accessible gas will also be lost,” he said. Sunmonu believes that the gas should be used to regenerate the power sector to provide reliable electricity for industrial growth, adding that if the PIB does not encourage the development of the domestic gas market, “none of this will happen and the consequences are almost unthinkable.” The Shell boss argued that “the PIB needs to address long term industry issues; for example, funding issues for Joint Ventures, JVs, where funding requirements have constrained production growth.” He noted that as desirable as having a strong national oil company is, it has to be one that can compete favourably, adding that “Any national oil company has to partner positively and, again, has to compete with those elsewhere that are also seeking external investment. NNPC has got to be able to fund its share of JV costs if it is going to attract such external investment and partnership.” The Shell boss further maintained that in spite of the issues generated by the PIB, what is required by the industry players is a bill that will “create a level playing field— one that is fair to all investors— big, small, new or old,” stressing that the bill should also provide “sufficient incentives for new investment to

fuel growth. He argued that “it is important to take local business challenges in Nigeria into consideration as well as the impact on existing investments made in good faith at current legal and fiscal terms.” Sunmonu insisted that, “what we have seen of the draft PIB to date does not indicate a bill that fits these criteria. And this is the opinion not only of the major players in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, but, as I mentioned earlier, industry analysts as well. What we have seen and what we know of the current draft PIB requires significant improvement to secure Nigeria’s competitiveness, and attract the required level of investment to enable exploration to increase Nigeria’s reserves and then foster development of the projects to monetise them.” However, a new dimension into what is fast turning into unending controversy over the PIB is what a source described last week as a clash with the Act that established the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI). NEITI was created to, among others, eliminate all forms of corrupt practices in the determination, payments, receipts and posting of revenue accruing to the Federal Government from extractive industry companies. Section 3 (F) of the enabling Act also empowers the agency to “monitor and ensure that all payments due to the Federal Government from all extractive industry companies, including taxes, royalties, dividends, bonuses, penalties, levies are duly made.” But the new Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) vested these powers to the Upstream Petroleum Inspectorate, one of the regulators to be created by the reform bill. Section 15 of the PIB saddles the Upstream Petroleum Inspectorate with the responsibility to compute, assess and ensure payment of royalties, rentals, fees and other charges for petroleum upstream operations as stipulated in the reformed bill. The PIB also empowers this upstream regulator to enforce the provisions of any enactments or regulations applicable to upstream petroleum operations made prior to the commencement of the PIB. As an oversight body, NEITI was not given the powers to enforce compliance with its remediation and anti-corruption

Alison-Madueke

Tambuwal

functions on either the regulatory agencies of the extractive industry companies. The sanctions provided for in the NEITI Act cover only giving false information or report regarding a company’s volume of

production, sales and income; delaying or refusing to give information or report; rendering false statement of account or failing to render a statement of account required under the NEITI Act, to the Federal Government.

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Cover It was also gathered that the PIB empowers the Upstream Petroleum Inspectorate to carry out its functions in a manner that conflicts with the provisions of the NEITI Act. According to the PIB, the Inspectorate has the powers to modify, extend, suspend and revoke any licence or permit issued by it pursuant to the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act. The PIB also empowers the Inspectorate to enforce licence, lease or permit conditions and the specific requirements of the Petroleum Industry Act. It will be recalled that what is today’s PIB was the fall out of former president Olusegun Obasanjo’s Oil and Gas Reform Implementation Committee (OGIC), set up on April 24, 2000 and headed by Dr. Rilwanu Lukman, former Honorary Special Adviser on Energy and Strategic Matters and later Petroleum Minister under the late President Umaru Yar’Adua. The imperatives for reform in the oil and gas sector prompted the late President Yar’Adua to reconstitute a new committee, also headed by Lukman, on September 7, 2007 which submitted its report on August 3, 2008 and was mandated to “transform the broad provisions in the NOGP into functional institutional structures that are legal and practical for the effective management of the oil and gas sector in Nigeria”. Under the new bill, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, (NNPC) is expected to be unbundled into different autonomous entities. One of these entities is the National Oil Company (NOC), which will assume some of its assets and liabilities. By the establishment of the NOC, the Federal Government

News FG imports 343,000 metric tonnes to tackle scarcity By Francis Ezem

trong indications emerged that the scarcity of petroleum products, especially Premium Motor Spirit, also called petrol rocking various parts of the country might soon be a thing of the past as the Federal Government imports 342,500 metric tonnes through the Lagos seaports. The product scarcity, which rocked the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja and environs about two months, had spread to Lagos and other states in the western parts of the country,

Lukman

Sunmonu

hopes that it can create a viable oil company to operate under commercial terms and will transform into a world class national oil firm in the mould of Saudi Aramco, Malaysia’s Petronas and Brazil’s Petrobras. It is expected that the NOC would compete for acreages with private multinational oil firms and other NOCs. NNPC was established by Decree No.3 of April 1, 1977, “for overall control of the oil industry,” and with additional responsibility of “exploitation, production, transportation, processing of oil, refining, and marketing of crude oil and its refined derivatives”. But the drivers of the cur-

attributed mainly to the vandalisation of the Arepo pipelines, which supplies the western states from the Atlas Cove Jetty. Imports statistics released by the Nigerian Ports Authority after the daily berthing meeting on Friday shows that a total of 15 tanker vessels laden with a total of 342, 500 metric tonnes of petrol are currently waiting to berth at the Lagos Pilotage District of the ports. Details of the vessels expected to berth at the district show that a vessel called MT Handy Tanker Marvel is expected to berth at the Single Buoy Mooring with a total of 32, 000 metric tonnes while MT Sear Rider has arrived with 28,000 metric tonnes waiting for discharge. Also, MT Oceana and MT Valor El-Abim have arrived with 15, 000 metric tonnes and 7, 5000 metric tonnes

rent oil and gas reform believe that over the years, the corporation has lost direction, as it assumed multiple and conflicting roles, with little progress in oil exploration and production. But in order to broaden the scope of ownership of the oil company and enhance corporate governance, the bill is proposing that the NOC be made public by way of listing on the NSE. If the PIB is passed as it is, the law will require the Federal Government to divest 30 per cent of its shareholding in the NOC and sell the shares on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). In the same vein, as part of

Andrew Yakubu, NNPC MD

respectively while MT Crete is waiting to be discharge of 20, 000 metric tonnes at the New Ocean Jetty. Other vessels expected to berth are MT Torm Gyda, which is to discharge 29, 000 metric tonnes at the Atlas Cove Jetty, MT Gunhild Kirk is expected to discharge 32, 000 metric tonnes at the Single Buoy Mooring while MT Posillipo has arrived with 30,000 metric tonnes of the product.

the nation’s drive to grow the hydrocarbon potentials in the country, the frontier exploration services sector has been strengthened through the movement of the unit under the direct supervision of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources under the Technical Bureau. This bureau is designed to attract critical professionals that will be able to focus on developing and design aggressive work programs to unlock the full hydrocarbon potentials in Nigeria. Also new proposal is designed to address the funding challenges of the unit in the NNPC and ensure adequate funds are appropriated annually for evaluating

the frontier inland basins in the country. This approach is similar to what is currently being practiced in other parts of the West, East and Southern African regions that have resulted to commercial hydrocarbon discoveries. With this new proposal all is now set to adequately explore the seven inland basins. For now, everybody seems to be keeping their strategies under wraps and until the full debate on the contentious bill begins throttle, no one can say with all certainty that the new PIB will scale the evasive hurdle. Will it or will it not? The debate continues. BC

Similarly, while MT Sti Matador Giken has arrived the Ibafon Jetty with 15, 000 metric tonnes of the product, MT Waba Intership arrived the Single Buoy Mooring with 30,000 metric tonnes even as MT Farandol has also berthed at the Single Buoy Mooring with 29, 900 metric tonnes of PMS. MT Oritsela, MT Ermar Intership have arrived the Single Buoy Mooring and Ibafon Jetty with 32, 000 metric tonnes and 20, 000 metric tonnes respectively. Also to discharge at Ibafon Jetty is MT Adventure laden with 15, 000 metric tonnes while MT Gavros will discharge another 15, 000 metric tonnes at the New Ocean Jetty; also in Lagos, thus bring the entire petrol shipments to 342, 500 metric tonnes. Meanwhile there have been insinuations that the current shortage of the products was artificially created by the government as a ploy to further

jack up the prices under a full deregulation of the downstream segment of the petroleum sector. Proponents of this speculation have argued that following the reaction and wide condemnation that trailed the petrol price increase from N65 to N97 per litre and the attendant strike actions especially by the civil society in Lagos, government might not want another round of such crisis. Investigations also show that many petrol stations have since been selling the products between N110 and N120 per litre in the last two weeks in Lagos and nothing has been done by the government to checkmate that. But the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has insisted that the scarcity was a result of ruptured pipeline in Arepo, Ogun State due to the activities of oil thieves, which had made distribution to certain parts of the country difficult.

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Devarajan

World Bank tasks Nigeria, others on mgt of minerals’ revenue By Tola Akinmutimi (Abuja)

he World Bank has advocated a more transparent management of minerals resource-producing countries’ earnings as a strategic option of improving the welfare of millions of their citizens currently being ravaged by the poverty scourge. Making the call during last week during a VideoConferencing session on the release of the Bank’s Africa Pulse, a bi-yearly analysis of issues shaping economic prospects in the continent, it’s Chief Economic for Africa, Shantayanan Devarajan, pointed out the need for governments in the affected economies not to fritter revenues from minerals exploration in the face increasing flow of incomes associated with recent new minerals discoveries. Specifically, the World Bank which led other experts on the discussion of economic prospects in Africa, canvassed the utilisation of such revenue accruals to the countries on critical areas of infrastructure, health, education, jobs and other areas that have the potential of reducing poverty levels. Despite the remarkable growth recorded in major economies which reflected that many of them may surpass six per cent GDP growth rate in 2012, the bank still warned the governments against mismanagement of their increasing incomes from minerals and commodities’ exports, since the fragility of the global economy is not yet over. “With the global economy still in fragile condition, Africa’s Pulse warns that Africa’s strong growth rates could yet be vulnerable

to deteriorating market conditions in the Euro-zone. In addition, recent spikes in food and grain prices are a cause for concern. “An unprecedented hot and dry summer in the United States, Russia and Eastern Europe led to reduced yields on both maize and wheat production worldwide. Africa’s Sahel region is already suffering from higher food prices, high rates of malnutrition and recurring crisis and insecurity. Furthermore, swarms of desert locusts and the ongoing conflict in The Sahel also undermine the region’s food security”, the bank chief warned. While using statistical data on mineral resources reserves in the affected countries and the income generation projection to drive home his points, Devarajan explained that “resource-rich African countries have to make the conscious choice to invest in better health, education, and jobs, and less poverty for their people because it will not happen automatically when countries strike it rich.” In addition to judicious utilisation of minerals and other commodities’ revenue, the discussants also advocated the need for the various governments to tackle corruption, enhance infrastructure and strengthen governance institutions in order to translate the huge socio-economic potentials of the GDP growth to improved well-being of their peoples.

FG to give tax credit to boost foreign investment drive By Stanley Ihedigbo

he Federal Government has announced a new scheme of tax credit aimed at encouraging an increase in the flow of foreign investment into the country. Minister of Trade and

Investment, Olusegun Aganga dropped the hint at the ongoing, second edition of the Nigerian International Investment Forum (NIIF) organised by the ministry in collaboration with the Commonwealth Business Council (CBC), Nigerian Investment Promotion Council (NIPC) and Image Affairs Nigeria. Explaining the new incentives packaged in the form of tax credits, Aganga said going forward, companies that had invested in the development infrastructural facilities such as the construction of access roads, power plants and water plants in the course of setting up their businesses were now entitled to tax credit of up to 30 per cent of the cost of generating the infrastructure. Aganga said the initiative was a temporary relief measure introduced by the Federal Government to help to cushion the debilitating effects of the challenges posed by the lack of infrastructural amenities in the country, which is a major setback to the inflow of investments into the country. Another phase of the tax incentives according to the minister, which is targeted at employment generation, provides tax reliefs for any employer that hires above 10 staff. The minister noted that for any 10 people employed by any company on a particular year, the employer gets tax credit for additional employments with more credits guaranteed if the employees are kept in the organization further than two years. “The federal ministry of works is currently working hard on the development of trade related infrastructure with a target time of completion of 2014. But before then, we have introduced measures to cushion the effect of infrastructure deficiency, one of which provides that any company that has invested in infrastructure will have tax credit of up to 30 per cent of the cost of generating the infrastructure,” he said. Aganga also noted that the Federal Government had concluded plans towards hastening up the process of company registration in the country to less than 24 hours as has been achieved in Abuja. He said the first step was to achieve the 24 hours target in Lagos, Kano and Enugu and then ensure that it became the norm even when “you are registering the company from any other part of the world”. He noted that the target for the achievement of the milestone would be 2013. The minister stressed that the question about investing in

Aganga

Nigeria was ‘why’, not ‘when’ and ‘how’, adding that all investors that had failed to invest in Nigeria in the past had always turned around to regret their decision. “Investors like MTN took advantage of the opening up of the telecommunications industry in Nigeria while other global players were indecisive. Today those who failed to invest in the sector blame themselves when they see what MTN is making from its Nigerian operation.” Aganga said Nigeria “is at the moment the preferred destination for investment in Africa and ranks number twenty-three globally,” stressing that this was an outcome of the effort of government to improve the business environment in the country. “Nigeria is now the preferred investment destination in Africa. According to UNCTAD’s most recent report Nigeria ranks number one in Africa in terms of net FDI flow recording 46 percent more investment flow in 2011 than it recorded in 2012 placing the country on the number 23 position globally,” Aganga said.

Sada

Minister cautions miners against hasty joint venture By Chidi Ugwu, Abuja

s the nation’s mining sector continues to witness influx of foreign investors,

the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Arc. Musa Mohammed Sada, has cautioned miners across the country to be wary of the foreign investors seeking to form joint venture with local miners. The minister who gave the warning during a courtesy call by the Miners Association of Nigeria said that careful understanding of the terms of agreement will ensure adequate protection of local miners’ titles. Arc. Mohammed Sada urged the miners to start bringing the joint ventures to be signed under the watchful eyes of his ministry to avoid a repeat of what is currently happening in the South African mining industry. According him, the crisis currently ravaging the South African mining sector was brought about because blacks sold their titles to the whites and lost the ownership of the mining business in their country. “I will advise that you start bringing your joint ventures to be signed in this ministry, this will protect the local operators. What is happening in South Africa is because the blacks are not owners of the mining business. This is what we want to avoid. We have people who would come after they had surrendered their title for a joint venture and we have issued certificate, they will come and ask us to council it because the other party is not respecting the agreement of the joint venture. But when they signed their joint venture we did not know, we do not know what is in the joint venture” he said. The group led by its National President, Sanni Shehu admitted that foreign investors are presently at different stages of joint venture negotiation with indigenous companies, and sought the minister’s cooperation for formalisation of the joint venture signing agreement. Shehu noted that the move was in line with the Public Private Partnership philosophy of the present administration, adding that his association has resolved to be actively involved in negotiations and signing of joint venture agreements of its members. Among other issues raised by the miners include the difficulties encountered in obtaining explosives which are critical raw materials for mining operations, and unlawful interference by some state governments. “Lawful use of commercial explosives should be encouraged and managed, as it is a major raw material for our members, especially those in Quarry and colour Gemstone. We therefore appeal to you sir

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News to simplify the processes for obtaining such a critical raw material” stated the group.

effective service delivery.

More oil marketers arraigned over subsidy fraud

FG trains 300 farmers on rice production in Edo

ore than 300 farmers were last Friday in Benin, the Edo State capital trained on rice production and processing under the rice value chain transformation agenda of the Federal Government. Wellington Omoragbon, the Federal Director of Agriculture in Edo, said the one-day training workshop for the farmers was aimed at increasing rice production and stopping importation of rice by 2014. Omoragbon said the training underscored the importance the Federal Government placed on rice in order to ensure food security in Nigeria. ``This training is to help farmers address food security challenges and encourage commercial and profitable agriculture. ``The training is also to prepare farmers to make more profit, while producing to meet the demand for rice in Nigeria,’’ he said. According to him, more than N1 billion was spent on rice importation everyday because every class of the society consumed rice everyday. Omoragbon said that rice production would further generate wealth for the nation and employment for the unemployed. He said, ``the training is also to tell the farmers the benefits that are inherent in rice production.’’ He, however, appealed to the farmers to key into the Federal Government’s growth enhancement programme, adding that the number of registered rice farmers in the state was very low. The director said that about 10,000 fertilisers had so far been given out to farmers under the growth enhancement programme of the Federal Government. He said the Federal Government was committed to ensuring food security through various agricultural programmes. Also speaking, the Edo Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Abdul Oroh, represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Edo Agricultural Development Programme (ADP) Henry Iyoha, commended the Federal Government initiatives on rice production. Oroh said that Edo was

Adesina, Minister of Agriculture

known for rice production due to its vast land, better environment and good climate. According to the commissioner, about N300 billion would be saved if importation is reduced and farmers are encouraged to go into massive rice production. He said the state government was committed to transforming the agriculture sector by paying its counterpart fund to various agricultural projects in the state.

NAPEP builds workers’ capacity to fight poverty

he National Poverty Eradication Programme says it will strengthen the capacity of its junior members of staff for a successful war against poverty in 2013. The NAPEP coordinator, Mukhtar Tafawa-Balewa, said this in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Friday. ``This programme has strategically commenced the re-engineering process in the personnel with setting the standards in programmes implementation,’’ it said. According to the statement, the staff members must imbibe the core values and ethics of service to the people as a way of delivering service effectively in the country. The statement noted that the Federal Government adopted the Servicom initiative as the engine for the ongoing public service reforms. It stressed the need to reposition public agencies to meet the development aspirations by delivering on their respective statutory mandates to the satisfaction of the citizenry. It said that the sensitisation programme would provide opportunities for staff members to develop their knowledge and promote service delivery efficiently. The secretary of the programme, Aliyu Gusau, said that the agency was determined to provide a conducive environment for staff members to ensure

he Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) last Friday arraigned eight oil marketers and five companies over alleged N3.7 billion fuel subsidy fraud. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the 13 defendants appeared before Justices Habeeb Abiru and Lateefat Okunnu of Ikeja High Courts. All the defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges of conspiracy, obtaining by false pretences, forgery and uttering. They were remanded in the EFCC custody pending the hearing of their bail applications. Ifeanyi Anosike, Emeka Chukwu and Ngozi Ekeoma alongside their firms -- Dell Energy Ltd. and Anosyke Group of Companies -- were arraigned before Abiru on an eight-count charge. EFCC prosecutor, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), said that they fraudulently obtained N1.5 billion from the Federal Government between March, 2011 and Jan., 2012 in Lagos. He said that the defendants obtained the money from the Petroleum Support Fund for purported importation of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) from Europe to Nigeria. Also arraigned before Abiru on an eight-count charge were Adamu Maula, George Ogbonna, Emmanuel Morah, Downstream Energy Sources Ltd. and Rocky Energy Ltd. They were alleged to have fraudulently collected N789.6 million from the Federal Government as subsidy payments for purported importation of PMS between Jan., 2011 and May, 2011. A.B.S Investment Company Ltd., Aro Bamidele and Abiodun Bankole were arraigned before Okunnu on an 18-count charge. Jacobs said that they fraudulently collected N1.3 billion from the Petroleum Support Fund for purported importation of PMS between March, 2011 and Oct., 2011.

Lamorde

All the accused persons were also accused of forging documents, including bills of lading, certificates of quantity, certificates of origin and cargo manifests, which they allegedly used in facilitating the fraud. The prosecutor said that the offences contravened Sections 1 (sub-sections 1, 2, 3) and 8 of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Related Offences Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria. He added that the offences contravened Sections 363 and 364 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State. The cases were adjourned till Oct. 9 for hearing in the defendants’ bail applications. NAN reports that the EFCC had in July and Aug. arraigned 20 oil marketers and firms over the same alleged offences.

Oil expert calls for speedy passage of PIB

mos Folarin, Managing Director of Betlog Oil and Gas Ltd., has urged the National Assembly to pass the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) as soon as possible. He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Friday that failure to pass the bill would mean “wasting anticipated investments in the oil and gas industry in the last eight years”. The oil expert expressed dissatisfaction with the “legislative protocols” on the passage of the bill and urged the National Assembly to pass it immediately in the interest of the nation. He said that a lot of investments had been diverted to other African continents, including Angola, as a result of non-passage of the bill. ``A lot of investments that are meant for Nigeria have gone to other countries and Nigeria is no more in the position it was in the 1970’s when it was the only major producer in Africa. ``Now Angola appears to have overtaken Nigeria in terms of inflow of investment and there are other countries in Africa that are discovering oil,” he said. Folarin, however, expressed optimism that Nigeria could recoup the losses with the passage of the bill. “Of course some stakeholders are benefiting from the status quo as they are gaining, while the country is losing,” he said. Folarin urged President Goodluck Jonathan and the Minister of Petroleum Resources to engage the leadership of the National Assembly in meaningful dialogue to ensure quick passage of the bill. He commended journalists for their efforts in projecting activities in the industry, especially on the PIB and urged them to do more detailed analyses on the derivable benefits from the bill.

Imo Govt urges tourism forum to woo investors

he Imo Government has urged the Business Tourism Forum to attract investors who would partner with the government in developing its tourism potential. The Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Ugochi Nnanna-Okoro, made the appeal when the executive members of the forum paid her a courtesy visit in Owerri. She said the ministry would invite capable investors to manage the Imo Concorde Hotel and Imo Blue Lake of Treasure Resort, Oguta, on lease basis. The commissioner said the the ministry had started packaging a Tourism Half Hour television programme, Tourism Guide and Policy, to boost the sector. She expressed the ministry’s determination to partner with professionals in the tourism sector, ``to move tourism to an enviable level’’ in the state. Nnanna-Okoro commended the forum for its effort to sensitise the public to the importance of tourism and documentation of tourism potential available in the 27 Local Government Areas. Earlier, the Chairman of the forum, Charles Nwankwo, said the visit was to intimate the commissioner of the existence of the organisation and its programmes. Nwankwo said the forum was a private sector organisation promoting tourism in the state through sensitisation programmes such as the television programme. He expressed the forum’s readiness to partner with the ministry in airing of the television programme, production of state tourism calendar, tourism guide and policy.

Customs’ Apapa command generates N19.66bn revenue in September

he Apapa Area 1 Command of Nigeria Customs Service said last Friday that it generated N19.66 billion revenue in September, down from N23.42 billion recorded in August. The command in a statement by Emmanuel Ekpa, its spokesman, said that the amount generated in September was low due to lower imports. The statement said that the Federation

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News

Dikko

revenue was N10.89 billion, while the Non-Federation revenue was N7.92 billion. It explained that the Federation revenue comprised import duty of N9.09 billion, fees and others N4.24 million, while the Common External Tariffs fetched N1.79 billion. The statement said that Non-Federation revenue consisted of five per cent Value Added Tax of N4.15 billion, seven per cent Port Levy of N696.2 million, one per cent Comprehensive Import Supervision Scheme of N1.22 billion. Other components of the Non-Federation revenue are the 0.5 per cent ECOWAS Trade Liberation Scheme of N666.4 million, five per cent Sugar Levy of N1, 513, 20 per cent, Rice Levy of N1.19 billion and Iron Levy of N458, 553. It said that the sum of N853.74 million was realised from Negotiable Duty Credit Certificate issued to exporters. Ekpa told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the problem in parts of the north caused the decline in importation of goods into the country. ``You are aware that our revenue depends on the rate of imports. The importers cannot move their goods to the North because of the disturbances there. They have not yet been able to move the goods they imported,’’ Ekpa said.

DPR shuts filling stations in Ilorin

he Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has sealed three filling stations in Ilorin, Kwara State, for selling the product above the approved pump price of N97 per litre. The closed stations are: Super Oil, Mudra and Uni-Ilorin filling stations. Amos Jokodola, the state Controller of DPR, who confirmed this in an interview with the News Agency if Nigeria (NAN) in Ilorin on Friday, warned that more filling stations would still be closed. Jokodola said that out of the 10 filling stations visited by the DPR monitoring team,

three were found selling between N115 and N120 per litre. He told NAN that some of the filling stations had changed their pump price permanently from the approved price. The controller said that the monitoring exercise would be a continuous one to ensure that people get better deal and prevent sharp practises by the dealers. Jokodola urged members of the public not to patronise those selling above the approved pump price. He also advised those patronising black marketers to stop the act, saying that some of the fuel being sold by the black marketers were adulterated and could damage their vehicles. He urged members of the public to report any marketer involved in sharp practises to the department for appropriate action, adding that the department had been inundated with complaints about sharp practises of some marketers. He assured citizens that the DPR would intensify its monitoring to ensure that the commodity was sold at the official price.

Nigeria lacks credible marine accident data By Francis Ezem

igeria Association of Master Mariners, umbrella body of retired indigenous ship captains last week took a swipe at the maritime administration in the country over its failure to maintain a credible data on marine accidents more than 100 years after the sinking of the Royal Majesty Ship, also called Titanic and subsequent death of over 1,502 souls on board. The International Maritime Organisation had dedicated its 2012 edition of the annual world maritime day celebrations to the victims of the ill fated ship, a British passenger liner, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on April 15, 1912 after colliding with an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, the United Kingdom to New York. President of the association, Captain Adejimi Adu, who spoke recently, noted that the many years after the accident, which many maritime administrations including the IMO took advantage of to reform and review their safety standards, the Nigerian government has probably not learnt any lesson from that. The United States Senate and the British Board of Trade had following the accident carried out

Adu

extensive investigation, which brought about changes in maritime regulations for the implementation of new safety measures. Similarly, the IMO in 1914, two years after the accident came up with the Convention on Safety of Lives At Sea, which has since then undergone through various reforms and review and it is today regarded as the most important international treaty on safety at sea. According to him, though marine accidents would continue to occur, but noted that one good thing is that they can be prevented if adequate measures were put in place, especially in terms of keep information on the causes of such accidents in the past with a view forestalling a recurrence. Investigation showed that though there have been several cases of such accidents, which have gone unrecorded, there some striking ones that then caught the attention of the world, perhaps because of the kind of vessel involved or the level of casualty. Some of such major accidents include the case of MV Gurara, which sank along the coast of Portugal in 1989, killing the Captain and some crew members, MV River Majidun, owned by the defunct Nigerian National Shipping Line, which was so badly managed and therefore was sank by the management of Port of Las Palmas to save the port from the wreckage of the ship. Others include MV River Ngada, which left the Port of Lagos en route the Far East with a faulty overboard valve, which led to her taking in water and MV ECOWAS Trader ii owned by East West Coast Marine Services Limited, which was more or less a floating wreck. The president noted that there is a very long list of Nigerian vessels that have been involved in marine accidents with high casualty figures, which underscores the grave failure of the system as it concerns maritime safety in Nigeria.

‘There is hardly any record anywhere in Nigeria where one can find credible data on marine accidents. How then do we guide against re-occurrence or even evaluate our process and procedures’, he argued regrettably. As if to proffer solutions to marine accidents, he noted that empirical evidence shows that for ann accident to occur, two factors must be at play, which he categorised into human and equipment failure. According to him, the equipment comprise of the ship itself and her machinery while the human element consist of the Master and his crew, who sail the ship across the seasons on the one hand and the shore management, which provides necessary management support. He disclosed that over 75 percent of the accidents were caused by human failures, one of which was the outcome of the investigation of the sinking of Titanic, saying that over 90 percent of the Nigerian vessels lost was as a result of management failure as well as collusion with some crew members that lacked discipline and self-esteem. He however charged the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency to be alive to its responsibilities, being the only body allowed by law to ensure that the ships are safe,, manned by competent crew and that the equipment on them meet prescribed minimum standards. Main One boosts global footprint in new alliance.

Opeke

Main One boosts global footprint in new alliance By Kunle Azeez

ain One Cable Company, the premier communications services provider and data centre operator in Nigeria and Ghana has hooked to the International Data Centre Group (IDC-G), the first global data centre alliance, in the latter’s bid to add West Africa onto its global footprint. Located in its administrative offices in

Lagos, Nigeria, Main One Cable Company, West Africa’s leading communications services company operates its two data centres in its cable landing stations in Lagos and Accra. Main One data centres offer highly conditioned, secure, Tier 3 power rated rack space in rooms that are connected to a backbone, via diverse physical and logical network paths. The facilities are home to Main One’s 1.92Tbps submarine cable system connecting West Africa to the rest of the world. Beyond the existing facilities, the company is actively planning the construction of additional data centres in Lagos. Given this increased focus on the data centre business, Main One is pleased to become a member of the IDC-G alliance of world class data centers around the globe. Speaking on the alliance, Executive Chairman of International Data Centre Group, Guy Willner, said that “Main One, led by Funke Opeke, who really is an exemplary visionnaire, has made a great impact on the African market, especially in Nigeria. We cannot be more pleased to have such a major player in West Africa on board.” Opeke, said, “The alliance with the International Data Centre Group will create knowledge sharing platforms which we can leverage to further strengthen our data centre operations in West Africa. In addition, the business networking opportunities will further help raise the awareness of the tremendous opportunities for data centre operations in West Africa”. She noted that Main One is a wholly Africanowned communications Services Company delivering international connectivity and world-class broadband services to companies in West Africa. Backed by its open access, 1.92 Tbps submarine cable system and a state-of-theart Internet Protocol NGN backbone network, Opeke said Main One delivers wholesale communication services to Telecom Operators, Internet Service Providers, Governments and Large Enterprises in the region. “Furthermore, the company has leveraged its growing regional terrestrial network, world class data centre facilities, and partnership with Tier 1 upstream carriers for Internet Connectivity to ensure the reliability and affordability of its services and has gained recognition within two years of operation as a preferred wholesale communications service provider in West Africa.” BC

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Global News

Jacob Zuma

Shell fuel deliveries hit by S. Africa strikes

hell said on Friday it could not honour fuel delivery contracts around Johannesburg because of a two-week truckers’ strike and police shot dead a striking miner, taking the death toll in two months of South African labour unrest to 48. The rand fell two per cent to within sight of a threeyear low against the dollar as investors pulled back from Africa’s biggest economy amid fears the ruling African National Congress (ANC) is powerless to manage the spreading labour unrest. President Jacob Zuma has been criticised for his low-key response to the most damaging bout of industrial action since the end of apartheid, especially after police killed 34 strikers at Lonmin’s Marikana platinum mine on August 16. In a speech to business leaders late last Thursday, he put a positive spin on the situation, stressing that since the end of white-minority rule South Africans have shown “the capacity to overcome difficulties when we work together”. “We should not seek to portray ourselves as a nation that is perpetually fighting,” he said. However, with an ANC leadership run-off looming in December, Nelson Mandela’s 100-year-old liberation movement is preoccupied with its own divisions and Zuma is unlikely to take any action to stabilise the economy that could upset his political allies in the unions. “In the build-up to the election, the government is unlikely to come out with any clear policy directives,” said Simon Freemantle, an analyst at Standard Bank in Johannesburg. Reflecting such concerns, Moody’s cut South Africa’s credit rating two weeks ago, and the intensifying strikes in the mining sector and elsewhere are raising very real fears of a big hit to already sluggish economic growth for this year. Finance Minister Pravi Gordhan has already said he will have to cut his 2.7 per cent growth forecast for 2012 when

he delivers an interim budget on October 24. More than 75,000 miners, or 15 per cent of the workforce in a sector that accounts for six per cent of output, are out on unofficial strikes and tensions with security forces and mining bosses are running high. On Friday, protesters in a shanty town near the Amplats mine barricaded streets with rocks and burning tyres, watched by a contingent of more than 30 riot police backed by armoured vehicles. Earlier in the week, strikers torched an Amplats training centre and two conveyor belts, making it harder for the world’s biggest platinum producer to restart operations when it does manage to resolve what is already a three-week standoff. AngloGold Ashanti, South Africa’s biggest bullion producer, has lost virtually all local production due to wildcat strikes, while rivals Gold Fields and Harmony Gold have also taken a hit. The mining sector unrest has shaken investor confidence, and signs of it spreading into manufacturing - which accounts for 15 per cent of output - and an expanding truckers’ strike have caused even more alarm. “There is fuel available across the country, so the issue is not fuel supply, but the challenge is delivering it safely to our retail sites,” oil giant Shell said after invoking a “force majeure” clause that allows it to break contracts due to situations beyond its control. Other petrol companies are holding their breath, especially around the commercial hub Johannesburg, but have not yet followed Shell’s move.

Malawi slashes 2012 growth forecast

alawi expects growth of just 1.6 per cent this year from 4.3 per cent forecast earlier due to lower output in the agriculture, manufacturing, fisheries and forestry sectors, central bank governor Charles Chuka said. “On the basis of the estimates we knew in the first quarter of the calendar year, we had estimated GDP would grow at 4.3 pct but we now know after the second round of crop estimates in particular that we are looking at 1.6 percent growth this year,” Chuka told Reuters late on Thursday.

Morocco eyes 4.5 per cent growth in 2013

orocco’s government expects the economy to expand by 4.5 per cent in 2013, gaining pace after projected

Nizar Baraka

growth of 3.4 per cent this year but its budget deficit should decline only marginally, official media reported on Friday. In remarks carried by state news agency MAP, Finance and Economy Minister Nizar Baraka said the government aims to cut the budget deficit to 4.8 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2013 from five per cent projected by the government for this year. The government had not previously given estimates for 2013. Morocco has been hit by drought and the economic slowdown in the European Union, its main trading partner. Europe is also the main source of tourists for Morocco and of money transfers from the two million Moroccans living there. Anxious to avoid the kind of unrest seen in other parts of the Arab world and worried about increases in global commodity prices, Rabat last year raised public sector wages and has more than trebled funds for food and energy subsidies to over $6 billion. The North African country ended 2011 with fiscal and external deficits slightly above six per cent of gross domestic product. GDP totalled around 817 billion dirhams. The central bank, however, forecasts a budget deficit of between five and six percent of GDP in 2012, higher than the budget minister’s forecast of five per cent.

offshore banking. The government has a growth forecast of 3.2 per cent for this year, lower than a previous figure it had of 3.6 per cent in June. “We expect private sector investment to drop further by four per cent in 2013 compared to -3.3 per cent this year. This will have an impact on growth as well as the global economic context which is not showing any sign of recovery,” Renganaden Padayachy, economist at the business chamber, told a news conference. The private sector is expected to invest some 58.7 billion rupees in sectors like textiles, tourism and manufacturing this year. Last month, Mauritius’ statistics office said manufacturing was expected to grow 1.1 per cent from 2.2 per cent in 2011, while the key textile sector was expected to decline by 2.7 per cent after high growth of 8.0 per cent in 2011. Construction was seen declining by 1.2 per cent after negative growth of 2.0 per cent in 2011, it said. Mamood Cheeroo, the Chamber’s secretary general said in an environment where business confidence is down the value of the rupee and interest rates are factors that could impact on the level of private investment. The chamber said inflation would rise to 5.5 per cent in 2013 on the back of rising commodity and petrol prices from 4.5 per cent this year. The Bank of Mauritius holds its benchmark repo rate at 4.9 per cent last month to fight against inflationary pressures. Mauritius’ annual average inflation rate fell for the ninth straight month to 4.4 per cent in September. Year-on-year inflation was 3.9 per cent, according to Thomson Reuters Calculations. Average annual inflation has been falling since December 2011, when it was at 6.5 per cent. It was 4.6 per cent in August.

Mauritius GDP growth to slow further in 2013 US jobless rate in conomic growth in surprise fall

Mauritius will slow to 2.9 per cent next year hurt by a fall in private investment and the global slowdown, the Indian Ocean Island’s chamber of commerce said on Friday. The business chamber also cut its growth forecast for 2012 to three per cent from 3.9 per cent in May, citing negative impact from a strong rupee. The island is pushing to rely less on Europe, its main source of tourism revenue and a major market for its textile, sugar and services industry, and has been branching into information technology, business outsourcing and

he US unemployment rate fell last month to its lowest rate since January 2009, figures from the Department of Labour have shown, surprising analysts who had been expecting a small rise. Last month’s rate came in at 7.8 per cent, down from 8.1 per cent in August. The latest data also showed that the US economy added a further 114,000 jobs in September, slightly more than markets had expected. The US jobs market is a key issue in the presidential election race. When the

Barack Obama

unemployment rate was last this low, President Barack Obama was about to take office. However, economist Sean Incremona of New York-based company 4Cast said the latest data showed that the US economy remained subdued. “Generally, we are still seeing a mixed underlying picture that is neither too impressive nor terrible,” he said. Fellow economist, Omer Esiner, of Rhode Islandbased Commonwealth Foreign Exchange, was more upbeat. “The headline of the day is clearly the drop in the unemployment rate, which was a big surprise,” he said, adding that “There is something in these numbers for everyone. The rise in the participation rate shows somewhat of a real improvement in the labour market.” The latest official data showed that the construction sector added 5,000 jobs last month, while the number of people working in government jobs rose by 10,000. However, the biggest gain was record in the healthcare sector, which added 44,000 jobs in September. The Labour Department also used the release of the September data to revise up how many new jobs were created in both July and August. It said that 86,000 more jobs than first calculated were added across the two months. Separate official figures released at the end of last month revised down by how much the US economy had grown between April and June. Gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter grew at an annualised rate of 1.3 per cent, down from the previous estimate of 1.7 per cent. Analyst Ron Florance, managing director of Wells Fargo Private Bank, said that the latest data continued the “trajectory” of a weak US jobs market. “We continue to increase jobs but not at a rate that is fast enough to significantly change the unemployment picture for American workers,” he said. BC

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A rag-to-riches Entrepreneur

By Bamidele Obafemi

his primary education at the Roman Catholic School, Okada, now known as St. Gabriel’s Primary School Okada, and when he moved to Benin, he enrolled finally at the Benin Baptist School, now known as Emokpae Primary School on Mission Road in Benin City. However, most instructive in the story of Osawuru’s “migration” from Okada to Benin was the fact that his father’s death exposed him to teething live challenges, even at such a tender age. While in Benin, Gabriel served as a house help to Samson Aiwekhoe Idahosa, a Forest Guard at Okada who enrolled him at the Benin Baptist School. At Benin City, Osawaru’s life materially did not witness any noticeable improvement. The situation remained hard, apparently worsened by the death of his father who though could not provide the basic requirements when he was alive, but who nonetheless, remained a strong motivator to the young Gabriel. The young Osawaru seemed to have lost out on all sides. There were moments he could not even meet up with the payment of his school fees of two shillings and six pence and had to travel to Okada for it. He disclosed the details of this particular episode which was however, just one of several. He left for Okada with only

orn on September 11, 1934 to the late Josiah Oviawe and Madam Okunozee Igbinedion in Okada village, in the present Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State, Gabriel Osawaru Igbinedion is the only surviving child of his parents. In fact, his name, Osawaru, which means ‘The Messenger of God’, was a direct reference to the fact that he cheated death many times at infancy. As the only surviving child, his parents showed him love and care but lacked the economic power to provide the basic necessities of life for him. However, though his parents lacked the financial means to give him even the primary education, the rare leadership qualities of his father rubbed off positively on him. In fact, like he later admitted, that was the foundation stone upon which he built his survival and eventual success. His father, a titled chief, took the bold initiative to establish a new Okada village before he died. Josiah Oviawe Igbinedion in a move to strategically position his community for the good days he saw ahead, convinced his folks to move Okada Village five kilometres away from the forest and relocate it near the new road that was then under construction by the then government. Incidentally, it was the same Okada community that the young Osawaru has made the centre-piece of his development agenda. After his father’s death, the young Gabriel moved to Benin city, to continue his education. Moreover, his movement to Benin was necessitated by the fact that at that time, Okada Primary School offered free tuition up to class three only. Thus, pupils who began school at Okada eventually ended up in Benin, the capital city of Edo Sate, the then Bendel State and Gabriel was one of them. He had began

Igbinedion

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He is a pace-setter, whose guiding philosophy is to live to win. A courageous personality, not even the abject poverty of his parents would deter him from reaching the heights he set out to attain. As an entrepreneur, he floated the first indigenous motor company and assembly plant, private airline and university in the country. He believes that being prepared for failure is the antidote for success both in life and business. This is the grass to grace story of Gabriel Osawaru Igbinedion, the Esama of Benin.

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six pence in his possession which he expended on transport and food. At Okada, he spent the best part of a month in search of two shillings and six pence which took him out of school; and when eventually he was able to get it, he did not have enough money to return to Benin City or even to eat on the way back. He had to walk. On most occasions, he had to do odd jobs to pay for his education. And so, in Benin City, living for him was not in any way pleasant. Financially, his life was as difficult in Benin as it was in Okada and psychologically, it was even worse because of the gap created by the untimely death of his father. Schooling in Benin, nevertheless, exposed the young Igbinedion to numerous challenges: the challenge of his academic work against the background of competition with colleagues of comparative advantage; the challenge of mixing with friends from more affluent backgrounds, the challenge of adjusting to city life from the background of rural upbringing and the challenge of serving under the disadvantaged position of a house help. The records and investigations reveal that Osawaru’s academic ability did suffer some setback as a result of his change of environment. Academically, he was a match to his colleagues, but he had difficulty in properly measuring up because of extraneous factors. While most of his colleagues were regular at school, the young Igbinedion spent the bulk of his time scouting for school fees and maintenance allowance. Outside the school, he possessed several other qualities which a number of his contemporaries did not seem to have. At that tender age, he had acquired a rare capacity for leadership. Popularly known as “Ovbiebo” because of his features and fair complexion, he was very neat, strong willed and selfasserting and was always first at manual labour. Most of his colleagues and contemporaries depended on him for assistance in manual labour and for such assistance, he was usually compensated with a farthing worth of yam porridge, popularly known as Ikpowo. He was also good in sports, particularly in football. He was said to have exhibited a great degree of selfconfidence and independence. These qualities earned him the position of General Monitor and as such, was exempted from labour and other burdens, qualities that eventually made up for whatever shortcomings he suffered as a result of the difficulties he experienced. Against the environment of the harsh economic situation, the young Igbinedion plodded on relentlessly. From his primary education at the Baptist School in Benin City, he moved over to Eko Boys’ High School

Lagos, where he was admitted with three others from Benin city. In Lagos, the young Osawaru lived with Ben Edemakhiota. Needless to stress that his Lagos academic sojourn was adversely affected because of lack of funds. He had the zeal to learn but his capacity and ability were marred. The will was there but the problem of finance remained an endemic one. His academic life in Lagos, apart from the financial aspect which had become a recurrent variable, did not present as much of a challenge as that in Benin City. But he had to cut short his education and returned to Benin in 1954 for what he prefers to refer to as circumstances outside his control. He had no money to continue with his education and since he had no meaningful financial assistance of any sort and had to cater not just for himself but also his family members, the idea of gaining employment became most paramount. He returned home and eventually became employed as a probationary teacher at Okoro II village. It was at this period that his mother became anxious that the young Osawaru should take a wife. His mother was instrumental in securing for him, a wife from Usen, her home town, Oredola Maria Agho, who bore him four children Lucky, Bright, Patience and Philomena. Osawaru soon became bored with the rural environment and before long; he sought and secured another job in Benin City, this time, as an office messenger at the City Council. He admitted that his attraction to city

Monday, October 8, 2012

life influenced his decision to quit teaching and to opt for any job including that of a messenger in the city. Although he was “never officially employed as a messenger”, he served in that capacity at the Council. His friends at the time confirmed that the young Igbinedion displayed qualities that made the humble job appear an honourable one. He dressed neatly, usually formally, and the general outlook he wore made it easy for him to associate freely with personalities of much higher substance. He had a personality carriage that far outweighed that of his colleagues on the job and before long, he became engaged in other assignments that brought him out into the limelight. As a messenger on a monthly salary of £3:16s (three pounds and sixteen shillings), he also served in the Local Adult Education office, where he became involved in the circulation of an adult literacy campaign newspaper “Ebe Ukpalaghodaro” (Progress Book), introduced in 1955 by the Education Department to eradicate illiteracy in Benin Division. Patronage of the paper was poor because of the lack of effective coverage of the area by the organisers of the programme. Although they were supplied with motor cycles for the purpose, some of them could not ride the motor cycles; and some others who could, had no license to do so. This was where the young Igbinedion again showed leadership qualities. Before long, he identified the problem and confronted same with his usual

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determination. He borrowed a motor cycle, dressed neatly in his shirt and tie, and travelled around all the adult education centres, playing the role of an Adult Education Officer. He visited school heads, regularly addressed teachers and pupils alike that the newspaper which sold for one penny per copy was compulsory for all. By this strategy, the sale of the paper increased tremendously to the extent that the Benin Divisional Council won for two consecutive years, the Western Region’s Adult Education Cup for effective campaign against illiteracy. This phenomenon was to become a trait in his future life in his quest for survival in a very competitive world. So, from the position of a council messenger where he functioned as a rural education promoter, Gabriel Osawaru Igbinedion enrolled into the Nigeria Police Force in January 1959. His joining the Police Force was preceded by an incident which he had himself found relevant to record in an

‘

interview. He was helped into the job by one Kizor; a Benin based Senior Superintendent of Police whom he met during a festive occasion at the Oba’s Palace in Benin. Kizor and Justice Stephen Peter Thomas who was also at the occasion were both interested in a beautiful bird and not quite conversant with the local customs, had each requested the young Osawaru Igbinedion to help catch the bird. Justice Thomas promised Osawaru £2 while Kizor offered to recruit him as a Constable in the Nigeria Police Force. Osawaru opted for Kizor’s offer after consulting with a neighbour, one Osarogiuwa. He successfully caught the bird for Kizor and in return got a place at the Southern Police College, Ikeja as a trainee Police Constable. This particular event showed a trait of consistent luck on the part of the young Igbinedion. But before he began the training for the new position, an incident happened that registered indelibly in his mind till

While most of his colleagues were regular at school, the young Igbinedion spent the bulk of his time scouting for school fees and maintenance allowance

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date. His mother died on November 26, 1959 and the situation in which he was when his mother died, and his immediate approach to the problem created by the death can best be represented in his own words. “When my mother died, I had only two pence. I was then at No. 14 Lagos Street, Benin City. I went to Monday who was a cotenant and a trader at Oba Market. I told him what happened to my mother and before he could say anything, I picked up one black shirt. He requested for the money. I told him I would pay later. From there, I went to the Police Headquarters in Benin to inform Kizor who gave me £6. I left and went to Justice Peter Thomas who gave me £2. I bought a coffin at Erie Street. I hired a lorry and took my mother home for burial”. However, the death of his mother opened a new phase in Osawaru’s life struggle. He was now an orphan who had no brother or sister to look up to, or associate with. Nevertheless, the young Igbinedion had to plod on. He moved on to the Police College determined, in spite of all, to survive. At the Police College, he maintained his usual features. He was strong, athletic and intelligent. The pressures at home had waned considerably giving way to a new life in the young man. He made friends, and as usual, he did not find it hard to mix with those in the upper echelon of the Force. His years of service in the Nigeria Police Force 1959 - 1963 were eventful ones. He served in Agodi, Ibadan and Oshogbo Police Commands at the Traffic Division, Investigation and Control Departments, where he exhibited some of those qualities consistent with him. During this period, he made new friends both in and outside his official duties and met or reopened contacts with some of the old ones. On hand to be of assistance to him during this

Igbinedion and Nelson Mandela of South Africa

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period was Kizor who posted him to the Traffic Division. It was also at this time that he became acquainted with, and married a Scottish lady, Irene Kiernan, the Principal of Queen’s School, Ede, the mother of Peter Osawaru, Okunozee, and Ehi, who was to play a paramount role in moulding his life. Nonetheless, the job of a Policeman soon became less and less interesting to the young man whose life outlook was far beyond what his rank in the Police force could offer. It was not surprising therefore that after four years in the Force; Igbinedion began to contemplate widening his horizon. He decided to quit. Apart from the poor pay by the Police, his marriage to Irene appeared to have influenced his decision in that it introduced fresh challenges and opportunities into his life. So, he veered into the private sector. Osawaru’s first port of call in the private sector was the Leventis Motors Company, where he was appointed Sales Representative for the distribution of Mercedes Benz cars and Lorries. He worked hard and excelled in his new job resulting in his being asked to organise and operate the company’s area sales office of the newly created Mid-west Region early in 1964. Back to Benin City his home base, Igbinedion utilised to advantage, his understanding of the area, bringing the new branch into prominence in less than two years. He operated the sales department of the company from the sitting room of his house. By 1966, Leventis Motors took the leadership from Armels Transport Company Limited, as the principal distributors of Mercedez Benz cars and Lorries in the then Mid-west state and Osawaru Igbinedion had been promoted the Sales Manager. The unique marketing strategies deployed by Gabriel helped to promote the activities of the

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On May 7, 1992, Igbinedion made history in the aviation industry when he became the first blackman in the world to purchase a Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet which was commissioned by the then head of state, Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, and the late Augustus Aikhomu

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Leventis Company and project him as an astute businessman, as well as to challenge top management staff of the company to greater productivity. On the other hand, the rise and successes of Igbinedion within a short time in the establishment was seen as a threat to some of the senior staff. It was at this point that Igbinedion, having identified his entrepreneurial ability, decided to end the foreign monopoly in the Nigerian motor industry by pioneering an indigenous motor company. The final break came in 1968. The year 1968 marked a significant turning point in the business endeavours of Igbinedion. On leaving Leventis Motors Company Limited, he established his own motor distribution outfit; Mid-Motors (Nigeria) limited which was the first indigenous motor company in the country. The Mid-Motors company formed the foundation stone of Igbinedion’s business empire, the Okada Group of Companies which comprises

several business ventures including aviation, shipping, banking, education, soft drink manufacturing, hospital and medical research, agriculture, holiday resort development, radio and TV communications and oil exploration. The same year, 1968, the Mid-Motors Nigeria Company Limited began to market Japanese built Hino vehicles and Polish manufactured Nedion Fiat cars in the country. The business deal was preceded by an agreement between the Mid-Motors Company and the Japanese Hino Motor Factory of Tokyo, giving Mid-Motors the sole distribution rights in Nigeria. From motor vehicle distribution, Igbinedion went into vehicle assembly. In June 1972, Mid-Motors commissioned a £3 million assembly plant with a capacity to assemble 16 Hino trucks weekly, and within six months, it assembled some 400 trucks and tipper lorries. The company which started with an initial investment capital of £2,500 in November 1968, had by June 1971, a share capital of £1.3 million. The Managing Director of the new company, Igbinedion, made it a point of duty to send his employees annually on six month attachment training with the Hino Company Tokyo, Japan, in order to sustain a good crop of trained personnel for the new company. Moreover, as part of his business tactics, he seized every available opportunity to advertise the products of his company to the public. He took delight in organising motor exhibitions for businessmen and other likely consumers of Hino vehicles. In 1983, the Esama of Benin decided to take his transport business to a new height and Okada Airline was birthed. Between 1983 and 1984, the Airline witnessed a remarkable increase in its strength. The

domestic coverage of the passenger aircraft which had been restricted to mainly the Lagos Benin - Enugu - Port Harcourt axis was given a face lift with additional planes and improved services. Within the same period, the Airline branched out to air cargo services to meet the growing demands of air cargo industry. The year 1985 ushered in an even bigger success story for the Okada Group. In August of that year, four aircraft, comprising three Aerospace BAC 1-11 and one Shorts 330 planes were bought and put into internal service. On May 7, 1992, Igbinedion made history in the aviation industry when he became the first blackman in the world to purchase a Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet which was commissioned by the then head of state, Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, and late Augustus Aikhomu. Besides his transport business, the multi-million naira Igbinedion Education Centre is a testimonial of his love for the development of human capital in Nigeria. However, the area of Igbinedion’s investment that deserves even more attention is the Igbinedion Hospital and Medical Research Centre situated at Okada. The project was commissioned on May 4 1993, still by Babangida represented by the late Aikhomu. The ultra modern hospital comprises 600 beds including a 150 bed maternity ward, 80 V. I. P. suites and four presidential wards. The staff of the hospital rank as some of the best trained in their respective fields anywhere in the world, while the medical research centre is adorned with comparable modern facilities to undertake a most up-to-date training for medical research personnel. The centre has amenities for advanced diagnosis of various illnesses. But from all indications the Hospital and Medical Research Centre can hardly be a profit yielding project. It is evident that Gabriel Igbinedion has provided one of the most important social amenities bordering more on philanthropy. Going by the huge investment expended on the infrastructure and the equally colossal amount invested on equipment and other facilities at the hospital and the medical research centre, it is obvious that running the concern on the basis of immediate financial gain is impossible. Though Okada Air and the Mid-Motors are no longer operational, the Esama of Benin and a Commander of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (CFR) who recently celebrated his 78th birthday still has a strong grip on the business world with his investments in education, media, health sectors of the economy among others still yielding good dividends for him. BC

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ThebuddingEntrepreneurs

The web entrepreneur After several failed attempts at realising a dream of becoming an entrepreneur of repute, Jason Njoku, a Chemistry graduate from Manchester University by chance stumbled on a lifetime business opportunity which in two years got his name on the prestigious young millionaire list of Forbes magazine. iROKOPartners, brainchild of this British -Nigerian national, is believed to be worth $30 million at the moment. By Bamidele Obafemi

ason Njoku, 31, launched out into the business world very early in life. Njoku, who describes himself as the hardest working man you ever met, belligerent, dynamic, and focused, grew up in a working class area in South East London and went to a comprehensive school. He was the first person in his family to ever attend a university. He graduated with a degree in Chemistry from the University of Manchester in 2005. His ambition was to become self reliant and in search of fulfilment, he tried his hands on not a few businesses which include among others blog network, publishing, a T-shirt company and web design venture. But he failed to make impact in all these and the reason for these failures is simple- he lacked the necessary experience as an aspiring entrepreneur to run a viable business and on the other hand, he failed to hit the target. Njoku shared his own personal story about failure, mistakes and success. “I spent good three years making every mistake there was to make about how to run a business”, he said. “I ran out of friends who would lend me money. I was forced to stop”. At a point, he was forced to move in with his mum, an action which he described as humiliating. Incidentally, that decision to go back home to share a flat with his mother turned his life around. He noticed a

paradigm shift in her mother’s TV viewing habits from western movies especially Eastenders (a long-running popular UK soap opera) to watching Nigerian movies (Nollywood films). Njoku, an internet geek would then offer to help her mother source for Nollywood movies on the internet and other sources but realised the films were in short supply. Interestingly, Njoku’s passion for the internet, coupled with the discovery he made that Nollywood was not properly distributed among the Diaspora, ultimately led to the birth of iROKOtv in 2010. Njoku’s immediate response to the opportunity that threw itself at him in the process of helping his mother get a nice time at home was to cash in on the opportunity. His idea was to create a service company which will stream Nollywood movies online, so they are accessible to anyone with an Internet line, anywhere in the world. That was the beginning of iROKOPartners, now a multimillion dollar global business which took off from Njoku’s bedroom. Couple of months after the project started, Njoku then realised that operating from a bedroom would not take him anywhere, and he decided to give it all it takes. “Yes, I could watch a bunch of Nollywood movies on DVDs at home, no problem. But to actually purchase the movies and have knowledge of the industry, which is quite fragment-

ed, I had to totally immerse myself in the arena”, he confessed. Njoku however took the ultimate decision about the new business in 2010 when he decided to leave his mother in England to return to Lagos to pursue his dream. Though he was criticised at the time, the move eventually proved to be the smartest he ever made. On arrival in Nigeria, he made up his mind to drop the toga of having studied in the United Kingdom to mix freely with operators in the Nigerian film industry so as to make quick progress. “Nollywood moves at lightning speed and business are conducted fairly informally, so being thousands of miles away

Njoku

at the end of a phone line was never going to work. I had to be in Alaba Market, where the business of Nollywood is conducted. I had to be on movie sets, I had to be building relationships—so I got on a plane and moved to Lagos,” he confesses. The success which Jason Njoku had envisaged that made him quit the shores of England for Nigeria has not been elusive as the simple dream of making available Nollywood films available online for Nigerians in the

Diaspora has grown beyond his imagination in just two years. This is because, the company which was established in September 2010 with its headquarter in Lagos, Nigeria, now has a branch in London, United Kingdom. Today, iROKO Partners, besides movie streaming, now offers a range of online products including web named iROKOtv focused on Nollywood Film productions, and ‘IROKING’, a Nigerian music streaming plat-

Management Principles

Competitive Analysis Tips

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. Discussed here under 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 competitors 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

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ThebuddingEntrepreneurs

form. Other web brands floated by Njoku and his partners at iROKOPartners include iROKtv, NollywoodLove and YorubaLove which operate on the YouTube video platform. iROKOPartners, according to reliable sources, is the largest licensor and leading distributor of Nollywood movies (both English and Yoruba) online. A smart entrepreneur, Jason Njoku, going by experience realised that for him to go very far with this new business con-

cept, he would need people who believe in his idea to fly, so he readily accommodated a friend, Bastian Gother, who, according to him, having realised the hidden potential lurking in the dream at the very early stage of the business, offered to invest in the business. He invested his life savings, of about $100,000 into the company and from there, the business took off. They were able to buy films and IT equipment as well as invest in the infrastructure needed. However, the major financier of the business has been a US-based hedge fund, Tiger Global, which invested a whopping $8 million in the dream of Njoku. This was what he told Forbes.com about how he was able to get the attention of Tiger Global to boost his business. “Strangely enough, I never wrote a business plan. I never had to pitch to any VCs. I wasn’t even fundraising. After our story was told by Sarah Lacy (formerly of Techcrunch), FORBES, CNBC Africa, Variety and CNN we were inundated with funding inquiries and offers. All inbound. Tiger Global Management, a $9 billion NYC based venture and private equity fund, led the round; they believed [in] our vision. A very simple vision: bringing Nigerian entertainment online. I have always been of the opinion if you build something totally awesome. Investors will find you.” Of course, the impact of the

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? 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 Have a broad definition of competition Your competition includes anything that could draw customers away from your business. For example, movie theatres compete not only with other cinemas, but also with restaurants, live music venues, theatre, television, video rentals, and video games. Try to see the choice from the perspective of your client or customer; how would you choose to spend your precious time and money? What motivates you to go in one direction or another? What impediments stand in the way of customers choosing your business? BC

investment of Tiger Global in iROKOPartners, according to Njoku has been tremendous as the company has grown into a full-fledged business with over 110 staff in offices across three continents - Africa, Europe, and North America. “It’s grown into a fully-fledged company very quickly,” adds Njoku, “thanks to the hard work of a brilliant team and also thanks to external funding we received from the US-based Hedge fund, Tiger Global. Much of the $8 million we secured has been ploughed into building the company, purchasing content (movies and music), hiring new staff to focus heavily on business development and setting up international offices in London and New York. With his eyes set on a remarkable future, Jason says he is exploring the possibility of moving into the TV and cable channel arena in the US, which is currently his biggest market. “We’re also looking at other African entertainment markets, seeing whether or not they would benefit from the same sort of interactive, simple and internationally popular platform we’ve provided Nollywood with. Though the future is still some distance ahead, the present has been very rosy for Jason Njoku and his partners, as the business has dealt fairly well with them. The immediate evidence of prosperity from the business is his recognition as one of Africa’s 10 youngest million-dollar entrepreneurs as published by Forbes Magazine recently. Being a private company, he would not declare the worth of iROKOPartners but he gave insight into the company’s financial strength by simply reeling out available figures. “As a private company, we can’t really disclose revenue at the moment, but I can share some impressive data: We reached 560,000 registered users in less than seven months. We have viewers in 178 different countries. Eighty-one percent of our registered users return weekly. We have streamed more than 10 million hours worth of film. Forty-five percent of our traffic comes from the UK and U.S. We have had more than 13 million visits from over 2.5 million unique visitors”, he disclosed. Meanwhile, the major source of revenue for the business at the moment as disclosed by Njoku, is corporate advertisement. But a new line of income has been created which bothers on getting viewers to subscribe for latest movies for only five dollars per month. “Nollywood films plus online distribution equals big money”, Njoku enthused. The story of Njoku remains a classic case of several unsung, highly enterprising and stupendously rich Nigerian budding entrepreneurs. BC

Personal Finance The biggest challenges for start-ups Finding a great idea olid business and management skills are the keys to longterm growth, but every successful business begins with an inspiring idea. When brainstorming the product or service that will make your fortune, start-up guru Steve Blank suggests that it is important to consider whether your product solves a problem or helps people connect with one another. Successful start-ups find a way to do either of these things better than their competitors do.

Writing a Plan and sticking to It After the inspiration comes perspiration. Put your vision into words in the form of a thorough business plan. The essential elements of a plan include, among other things:  A market analysis: This describes your niche in the economic food chain. What does your industry look like? Who are your competitors?  Company description: Present a clear vision of who you are, what you do -- and most importantly, who you serve.  Sales and marketing plan: How will you interest consumers in your product, and how will they purchase it?  Life cycle of your product or service: Describe what you are selling, how customers will engage with it, and how you plan to bring them back to do repeat business with your company.  Funding request: Develop a pitch that will appeal to investors. Writing a business plan is a way to translate your big dreams into baby steps. It’s not the most exciting part of masterminding a start-up, but a good plan can attract investors and give you a road map to come back to when the details of executing your vision become overwhelming. Just remember that your business plan is a living document, not set in stone. You will confront challenges that you plan does not account for, incur unforeseen expenses, and tweak your product to meet customer needs. You don’t get to consult a crystal ball when writing a business plan, so don’t be surprised if it doesn’t have all the answers. Brace-up for losses before profitability It’s conventional wisdom that you should expect to lose money for at least a year before your start-up turns a profit, or at least breaks even. But it’s also important to figure out how much you’ll need to spend to get off the ground. When budgeting how much capital you’ll need to launch your business, account for: •Start-up expenses: If you need to hire a lawyer to help you incorporate or comply with regulations that are a start-up expense. So is hiring a graphic designer to develop a logo, or contracting with a marketing firm to plot out a marketing plan. • Start-up assets: These are purchases that you need to run your business, which you must buy before you can open your door, launch your website or meet with a client. Start-up assets include machinery for heavy industry, computers and servers for a web start-up, and inventory for a retail outlet. • Start-up financing: Entrepreneurs notoriously underestimate the amount of capital they should raise. How much will it truly cost to cover your start-up expenses and assets? Entrepreneurs launch start-ups because they believe that their idea will one day save the world and earn a fortune along the way. They sometimes forget that they’ll need something to eat in the meantime. But when budgeting for those salad days, remember that you’ll need something to live off of, as well. If you can’t afford your living expenses, you can’t afford to run your business. Positioning for growth If your start-up is successful, you might expand to new markets or broaden your product line -- and that will probably mean hiring more employees. But sometimes, the biggest barrier to growth isn’t lack of funding or demands for your product, it’s building a strong internal organization of people who are working towards the same vision. Developing an efficient system begins with documenting everything you do. Running a start-up is a hectic work, but take the time to capture records and organize them. Keep detailed spreadsheets of sales and expenses. Track how you spend your time so you have a baseline for how long various projects take. Organize forms you use repeatedly so that they are easy to find. Save every client file so you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. If you follow through with organized record keeping, you will have a far easier time delegating responsibility to new team members, enabling you to continue delivering a great customer experience as you expand. BC

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Are Mobile Apps taking over the Web? Industry experts predict the extinction of open browsable internet as the world are joining the mobile app frenzy, including more Nigerians. By Adejuwon Osunnuyi

obile devices, sometimes called handheld computers, handheld devices or simply handhelds are taking the world by storm. Before now, computers, taking up the space of an entire building floor, seem to have now become small enough as to be integrated into the machinery of a mobile phone. To many, computers have indeed changed lives and the way world is seen today. But more importantly now is the threat that mobile application is creating for the open browsable internet. Through the mobile application, simply known as apps, the open browsable internet as we know it seems to be going extinct. Now portable and even more powerful than their less mobile predecessors, mobile devices are taking over almost all aspects of life. Latest reports show that mobile data traffic has increased by 4,932 per cent over the last three years while there will be over one billion “heavy mobile data users” by 2013. As per the rules set by giants like Apple, Google, RIM and Microsoft, a mobile application is the software that users download from an app store on their devices. A mobile app / software can make use of all the features of a mobile device. It can use phone’s camera, accelerometer, GPS, NFC, web, compass and other features. Mobile software is developed for specific Operating System (OS). It means that if its developer wants to run it on other OS, he will need to build a separate code. When designed by professional developers, mobile software provides great experience. The most trustworthy place for downloading any types of mobile software is an app store, such as iTunes, Google Play, etc. Once installed in the device, you can use it even without the internet. They also give a brand impression as their icons are always visible in the screen of mobile. They quickly

get loaded and generally deliver fast performance. Across the world, mobile apps have brought about radical changes in the way online users share information in the last two decades. Its popularity has been increasing while its steady growth cannot be overemphasised. Today, with millions of mobile technology users worldwide, the growing demand for new mobile apps every day has not been surprising at all. According to Flurry, a mobile analytics firm, daily time spent in mobile apps surpassed desktop and mobile web consumption for the first time ever. Flurry measures the time people spend in apps through its own direct analytics using public data from comScore and Alexa. Instead of the more open and generic web sites, apps have turned information sharing into a closed, exclusive and limited experience. Imagine an online world without the web anymore and everything is accessed through mobile apps. Indeed, mobile apps are everywhere and can be used for almost anything. Online users are now moving into smartphones, tablets and other portable devices. And thus, we now find mobile apps for banking, news, games, travelling, weather, stores, restaurants, and many more. And it keeps on coming! With this astounding development, some people are asking if there’s still a need for web. Like it has been in most part of the world, it is becoming obvious that Nigerians too would not want to be left behind in the mobile app frenzy. This is more so as findings have revealed that Nigerians are currently more enthusiastic for mobile apps appreciation than mobile websites. In a recent report put together by world’s largest independent mobile ad network, InMobi, a deck on usage and preferences of the mobile web

and apps in Nigeria confirmed Nigerians’ preference for mobile apps, as three out of five users have paid for a mobile app. In the deck which contains some interesting facts and figures on mobile web and apps usage in the continent’s largest internet market, Moses Kemibaro, sales director for InMobi said the research conducted with 1007 respondents in Nigeria recruited via the InMobi Ad network, is an avenue to redirect minds of local apps developers. Adding that the industry requires that those who look forward to establish business or revenue through mobile apps or mobile webs should know what an average Nigerian thinks and how they can take advantage of that. “We want them to understand the usage and preferences; where Nigerians are concerned in terms of mobile apps; Nigerians’ attitudes, opinions, expectations, etc.,” he said. According to him, 60 per cent of the respondents preferred mobile apps to mobile web in which of the number, 63 per cent are young adults between the ages of 18 and 24; 68 per cent of whom are mothers. Through the research work, Inmobi, a global leader in the mobile technology space ascertained that social media and entertainment with 81 per cent each are the mobile content accessed most regularly followed by games (73 per cent), news (70 per cent), sports (55 per cent), Finance (40 per cent) and shopping (38 per cent). “In terms of generating revenue through mobile devices, as far

as Nigeria is concerned, social media, entertainment, news and sports are areas one needs to focus on,” the Inmobi sales director advised content developers. Specifically, Facebook, WapTrick, Google and Yahoo are said to account for 50 per cent Nigeria’s favourite mobile websites. Perhaps, over 35 other sites formed part of the research. While Waptrick and Google tied as respondents’ favourite destination for accessing mobile content at six per cent, Facebook came out tops at 27 per cent. Facebook, 2go and Opera Mini were ranked highly as Nigerians’ most visited mobile sites. On most useful functions in

Kemibaro

mobile apps and mobile sites, 91 per cent of the respondents are willing to patronise the apps and sites to share contents with friends and family; another 91 per cent for excellent graphics; 89 per cent go for them based on simplicity; 87 per cent said regular updates on those apps and webs met their fancy; 79 per cent are captured for location based features and 65 per cent appreciate the hardware integration. Dennis Kimani, an app developer seems to be enthusiastic about the new development. As he puts it, “It’s amazing to see how apps have grown to such an extent that there’s now an app economy. This is where many jobs are being created

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Technotips

solely by apps.” According to him, “I am happy that mobile devices have become the trend nowadays. Some of these apps are very helpful. And people are demanding more apps every day.” To Jessica Adeyemi, a student of University of Lagos, it is not surprising that the mobile apps are now gaining more popularity because, “What you can do in your PC, you can actually do now on your cell phones, that is how the mobiles are effective and updated,” she noted, stressing that a lot of applications are very useful nowadays and that’s why people are very dependent in using applications. “Even children start using different kinds of applications as toy or means of education,” she said. Chukudi Ikida, a Business Development Executive with a Lagos-based firm said there are so many mobile apps that he has become addicted to. “Nowadays, I cannot even imag-

ine how I would manage without using my mobile phone. I think that in several years, the tablets and mobile phones will replace the Pc’s, as they are getting smaller and more efficient,” he said. Anthony Adedoyin, a software developer told this magazine that “The main benefit which comes from the mobile application is that it is very convenient. So it comes easy for users to use it from anywhere. It will also help to reduce the bandwidth consumption and server load which is very advantageous for any company.” According to him, “The great thing with mobiles is that, they are mobile. You can access email accounts, play games or even work on your mobile phone nowadays. It is not strange that mobile applications are taking over the web. Most software developers have turned their interest in developing applications for Androids and other operating systems for mobile” A finding of a new report from Finnish mobile analytics company Zokem, which also provides a comparison of how Facebook and Twitter fare in the mobile world, claims that native data applications already capture 50 per cent of all data traffic in terms of volume (packets), and 46 per cent of data usage in terms of time spent accessing content. “Whereas mobile Web browsing is still growing fast, interestingly the use of native data apps is growing even faster, thanks to app stores and a constantly increasing number of pre-embedded easy-to-use mobile data apps to be found in today’s smartphones”, says Dr. Hannu Verkasalo, executive chairman of Zokem, who says that only a few years ago, Web browsing was about 70-80 per cent of smartphone-driven Internet usage, but now it seems to be changing. “App stores, combined with a variety of non-browser based data applications pre-embedded in today’s smartphones, are now driving the growth of the mobile Internet,” added Verkasalo. “There is still a lot of usage inside the Web browser. However, as mobile consumption patterns get richer, and people learn to require more and

more functionalities, the native applications in most cases provide the best user experience. Take your Android phone as an example; do you want to access YouTube with your browser if you have a shortcut on your home screen for the brilliantly working native YouTube app?” Apparently, many are wont to ask, is this the beginning of the end of web browsing? Are mobile apps actually slowly and successfully eclipsing the web? Obviously, it might be difficult to conclude for now. There are still many with contrary viewpoints. The reason is simple. The majority of apps most people use on a regular basis are really just portals to the web. Apps like Facebook, a Twitter client, an email client, maps, and weather, they submitted, are all just front ends to the Web. So where do you draw the line? Frankly, it doesn’t really matter. Until apps have the full functionality that the web offers, the reality, they said is that they won’t take over. It’s just a more convenient way, in some instances, of getting what you want from your device. Even if you do manage to build a great app that gets, say, a million downloads, statistics show that only about 10,000 of those downloads will end up getting used. That’s nothing compared to the kind of traffic a good mobile website can get, not least because it’s much easier for people to find your site by using any search engine. The most obvious difference is that an app is usually downloaded from iTunes or the Android Market, whereas a mobile site can run on any phone with a browser. If you just have an app, only those who are able to download the app have access (that is, assuming your app met Apple or Google’s app store requirements in the first place). It is believed that it may be too much to ask a first time customer to download an app when they only plan to make one purchase. On the other hand, a regular customer could well find an app very convenient versus typing in your URL on a tiny keyboard. Another definite upside of mobile websites is that they update automatically and don’t require the customer to download the latest update if you come out with a new version. The key differences are that, mobile sites (on the Web) don’t need to be downloaded. They are available to all, easier to build, and don’t need approval. Apps, on the other hand, can take advantage of native handset applications like a camera, gyroscope or push notifications. Clearly, there are many differences between the two and each has its advantages and disadvantages. If combined, the two can create a powerful boost to any organization. BC

Things to look for on a Computer

omputers are becoming more and more important in everyday life. Computers are everywhere, like them or not. For work, for amusement, for searching some useful information and to use it to contact with others. Besides keeping people connected and allowing the free flow of information, computers are used by every business and government agency to help record keeping, complex computations and personnel use. There are many things you can do with a computer. You can control your house from a computer. You can make money from a computer. But before you purchase one, here are some tips you need to have in mind. 1. Gigahertz: Gigahertz can be defined as the number of cycles per second of a processor. The top industry speeds are around 4.0 ghz or gigahertz (4 billion operations per second). Unless you are an advanced gamer playing a very high end game you will not need 4 gigahertz. The average user needs approximately 1.6-2.4 gigahertz, anything in that range should be adequate for basic online games, videos, music, and most software. 2. Hard Drive A hard drive,HDD,or hard disk is the part of your computer that stores all your files. The average netbook comes with 160 gigabytes of memory while the average laptop has around 320. Most users will never need more than 160, and considering how cheap external hard drives are hard drive space should never be an issue. 3. Accessories Some businesses offer you the option to add “accessories” to your order, but usually if you shop around you can save money on these accessories. The accessories they offer range from cases , extra batteries, chargers, keyboards/mice. 4. Ram/Memory RAM or random access memory is a form of data storage similar to your hard drive. To explain simply RAM is one of the things that determine how fast your computer will run applications, and start programs. If you plan on running games or very intensive software you will need at least two gigabytes of memory/ram. 5. Webcam/Microphone/Input Devices I would wish you luck in finding a laptop or netbook that does not have a microphone or webcam. The type of webcam or microphone should not really go into a computer purchase. 6. Usb Ports So if you have ever hooked a mouse or keyboard into a netbook/laptop then you have personally used a usb port. Most netbooks/laptops come with three usb 2.0 ports, but occasionally they only have two. The issue with using two is if you have a mouse/keyboard plugged in you have to unplug one to use a usb flash drive or printer. So your best option is to get three usb ports. 7. Card Readers There a lot of different types of cards that store data, but the two most commonly used ones are SD and micro SD cards. Every laptop/netbook on the market has an SD card slot, but very few have micro SD card readers. 8. Battery Life Now, battery life is a very important factor when choosing a laptop/netbook. If you travel often you’re going to want a much longer lasting battery than say, someone who rarely travels. Depending on how often you cannot keep your laptop/netbook plugged in easily will determine how important battery power is. The length of laptop/netbook batteries is between 3-8 hours; this is usually advertised. 9. Screen Size The preferable screen size really depends on your uses, but the recommend size is about 14-15 inches. If it is any smaller some programs/websites may not display correctly, but if it’s too big the laptop could be too heavy to carry around. Statistically the cheaper laptops have smaller screens. 10. CD-Drive Not everyone needs a cd-drive, but if you do then you should not buy a netbook because the fundamental difference between a laptop and netbook is that netbooks have no cd-drives. Remember you can buy an external cd-drive for less than N10,000. BC

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Business Courage

NCC debunks frequency band racketeering claims Stories by Adejuwon Osunnuyi

he Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) has debunked an allegation that it sold a frequency slot belonging to the Nigerian police to a private firm, Open Skys.news. The allegation carried by a national daily also insinuated that the current leadership of the Commission has issued frequencies to Smile Communications without due process. In a statement issued by the Head, Media and Public Relations, Reuben Muoka and made available to Business Courage, the Commission said that the story in its entirety lacks basic understanding of frequency allocation and its processes involved, resulting in unsubstantiated information capable of misleading the public and industry stakeholders. According to Mouka, the frequencies allocated to Open Skys and Smile Communications are in two frequency different bands, which followed due process for similar frequencies at the Commission, and began since 2009. He noted that the Frequency spectrum allocated to the Police by the Commission is still intact and has not in any way affected by the allocation. “The current Executive Vice Chairman of the Commission, Dr. Eugene Juwah, did not initiate the allocation of the aforesaid frequencies, having resumed in July 2010, while the process began since 2009. Even after resumption at the NCC, Dr. Juwah has strictly followed the due process of issuance of licenses and frequencies,” Mouka said. The Commission further noted that “in the case of Open Skys, its allocation process began in 2008 following a Presidential directive to the Commission for allocation of a portion in the 450 MHz to NIGCOMSAT. A request which the Commission’s Board acceded to on the condition that NIGCOMSAT, be-

Juwah

ing a government agency, must seek for private sector partnership before qualifying for such allocation. Upon compliance and submission of the name of Open Skys, the company applied for the license and frequency in 2009.” “Note that the use of 450 MHz for commercial telecommunications was approved by the National Frequency Management Council (NFMC) on Nov 5, 2004. After this approval, occupants in this band like the police, Shell PDC, Agip, Chevron, and some others, were relocated to specific portions of the band from where they had indiscriminately occupied. The Nigerian Police was specifically on 18th of October 2005, approved to be moved to 469.375 – 469.975 MHz / 459.375 – 459.975 MHz of this spectrum. Open Skys, in which NIGCOMSAT has interest, were to pay the police for the relocation cost estimated at N350 Million, which from our records, and was complied with,” he said. According to him, the allegation of racketeering with any frequency belonging to the Police and allocation to a private company is false. Currently, he said that the Nigerian Police, Shell, AGIP and others still have allocation on the different portions of the 450MHz Band. In the case of Smile Communications Ltd, he said the company was in 2009 awarded a Unified Access Service License (UASL) for ten years, till June 30, 2019, a Private Networks Link, PNL and a Spectrum in the 850 MHz Band for implementation of the licenses, having applied since 2008.

Etisalat offers N1bn monthly airtime in the 9ja free credit promo

tisalat Nigeria has introduced a N1 billion free airtime offer for its subscribers to call all networks as part of Nigeria’s 52nd Independent Anniversary. The promotion, which gives new and existing subscribers 50 per cent and 20 per cent respectively of all their recharges for 30 days respectively commenced on October 2 and runs till the end of the year. Director, Products and Services, Lucas Dada explained that the revamped 9ja free credit promo is the company’s way of offering freedom to its customers as part of the country’s celebration of the 52nd independence anniversary. “We pride ourselves as being a network that gives its subscribers the freedom to talk without any limitations and this was marked by our launch into the Nigerian market in 2008 with our famous 0809uchoose campaign, offering our custom-

Monday, October 8, 2012

Dada

ers the freedom to choose their unique set of phone numbers and since then we have kept to our promise of delivering innovative and world class products and services, promotions and events which continue to change the lives of all our customers,” he said. Director, Marketing Segments and Strategy, Oluwole Rawa said that having spent about four years in Nigeria, the amount of support and encouragement that Nigerians have given the company has been nothing short of inspiring. He said, “Within a span of almost four years, Etisalat has grown an impressive subscriber base of over 14 million which is remarkable in terms of growth compared to any networks in Nigeria”. He added that as a result of the achievements of the past four years, Etisalat seeks to reward its subscribers with the biggest airtime offer in the country. Through this promo, Etisalat is offering both new and existing subscribers 50 per cent and 20 per cent bonus credit respectively for total recharges over a 30-day period for calls to all networks. Customers also get a 10 per cent bonus when they register using the Etisalat e-top up. He further urged Nigerians to seize the opportunity to be a part of this exciting new offer.

Nokia, CoCreation Hub open applications for Growth Academy

aving successfully completed the pilot edition of the “Nokia/CCHub Growth Academy”, global leader in the manufacturing of mobile devices Nokia, in partnership with foremost social innovation centre in Nigeria, Co-Creation Hub (CCHUB) are calling for applications for the sophomore edition of the academy program. Head of Ecosystem and Developer Experience, Nokia West Africa, Teemu Kiijarvi, stated that the ‘Nokia/CCHub Growth Academy’, which is aimed at accelerating Nigerian mobile software companies in growing, is a first of its kind busi-

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ness accelerator programme in Africa dedicated to providing intensive continuous hands-on support to help early stage mobile technology start-ups grow into high growth businesses and build world class mobile applications for the Nokia platform regionally and globally. The three-month intensive programme runs in three parts - Capacity building, Product Development and Launch. Each start-up undergoes hands-on prototype development and structured training with modules such as business model development, project implementation plan and lean product development. Tailored technical training and support will be provided by Futurice, a global training organization with expertise in mobile application development and user driven design. During product development each start-up is complemented with the best of resources such as one-on-one mentorship, project implementation plan; and market research support to ensure that solutions meet specific market needs. The last phase of the programme is dedicated to product testing, pilot launch and value redesign based on initial customer feedback. Each startup will also pitch at an open Pitchfest to the wider community and investors as part of the final product launch. The programme seeks startups with brilliant ideas to address market needs in finance,

Kiijarvi

education, healthcare, agriculture, small business development, environment, inclusive technology, entertainment. The applicants would need to have developed a working prototype in Java ME (J2ME), have at least two core members, including a lead developer and should be willing to commit three full months to developing their idea on the program

MasterCard partners Flying Dove to support cashless Nigeria

asterCard, a global payments and technology company, has announced its

Ojomuyide

first collaborative relationship with a local Nigerian retailer, Flying Dove Limited – authorized distributors for Sony Corporation and owners and operators of Sony Centers in Nigeria. Through the collaboration, MasterCard will incentivize its cardholders to make use of electronic payment solutions, thus supporting the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) move towards a cashless economy. The joint venture between MasterCard and Flying Dove Limited, signals the first cashless initiative of its nature in Nigeria for MasterCard. The collaboration supports MasterCard’s vision to accelerate the move towards more convenient and safer payment methods for consumers, and to then showcase the success of the collaboration to the wider Nigerian business sector. Omokehinde Ojomuyide, country manager, West Africa, MasterCard Worldwide commented, “MasterCard cardholders will qualify for a five per cent discount on the purchase of any item at Sony Centers across Nigeria. In addition, and as part of the alliance with MasterCard, Sony Center staff will undergo card acceptance and fraud prevention training. We will also be supporting Flying Dove by marketing the discount offer, further showcasing the benefits of moving towards electronic payments to our cardholders.” Ashok Jain, Managing Director for Flying Dove Limited added, “Working alongside MasterCard has allowed us, as a retail leader in Nigeria, to further solidify our position in the local market. Our vision is to help make payments in all of the Sony Centers more convenient, easierand safer for customers and the Sony Center staff.” Ojomuyide noted that the key stakeholders in the success of the cashless initiative are the financial sector, consumers and businesses. “Strategic initiatives such as our collaboration with Flying Dove Limited will assist each stakeholder to better support the CBN, in its quest to drive the development and modernization of the Nigerian payment system.” BC

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Monday, October 8, 2012

Reflections with Semiu Salamii 07043280449 sms only

Oil and unending cycle of corruption

ike a colleague said last week, talking about the issue of corruption in Nigeria is like whipping a dead horse. Yet, as sad as this may sound, it only clearly explains how bad we have degenerated as a nation. That corruption pervades and has permeated all strata of our national life is like stating the obvious. The cankerworm has regrettably become more of a national identity with little or nothing done by those whose responsibility it is to nip the national malaise. Despite our huge natural resources, outright corruption and corruptive tendencies have deprived us of the opportunity to use these massively endowed God-given resources, particularly in the oil and gas sector to significantly transform the lives of Nigeria and Nigerians. Other nations that are not as richly endowed as Nigeria are miles ahead of us in developmental strides. Regrettably, corruption in Nigeria appears to have no boundary. Not even the multinationals appear to have immunity against this, no thanks to their ever willing local collaborators. A recent reports by the Nigeria Ex-

tractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) that some international oil and gas companies are frustrating it by refusing to cooperate with it in the disclosure of needed facts is a clear attestation of how bad things have become. Top officials of NEITI have alleged that some oil and gas majors have failed to provide their report to NEITI. For instance, it was gathered that three companies are yet to furnish the agency with the required information for the 20062008 audit period. Sadly too, some of these multinationals are beginning to get craftier than their local collaborators. Already, it is being alleged that some of them are capitalising on the dispute between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Production Sharing Contract (PSC) operators over the calculation of the PSC royalty and petroleum profit tax liabilities, to withhold comprehensive information needed for the audit of the oil and gas sector. Most oil and gas companies, it was gathered, had declined to report wellhead or field measurements of production offshore terminals. Besides, some of

the companies provide data on their tax liabilities, which could not be reconciled with their audited financial statements. In a recent report, NEITI said oil producing companies operating in the country owe the Federal Government $9.81 billion (about N1.5tr) in underpayment and non-payment of taxes on their operations. The reports reveal that the Federal Government earned a total sum of $269 billion (N41.96tr) from the oil sector within the period 1999-2008. Within this period, $92 billion was received from oilspecific taxes; the sum of $5 billion from non-oil specific taxes from oil companies, while $172 billion was received from the sale of government equity crude. Despite these huge earnings, however, NEITI was able to ascertain that the revenue loss due from under assessment/under payments has remained outstanding not just out of the refusal of the companies and covered entities to pay, but also, if not more, by the fact that the concerned government agencies have not made sufficient efforts to recover the funds. Now, is it not curious that a country that is in such a dire need of investible funds to address the growing infrastruc-

tural decay in the country is having such a huge sum locked up somewhere and nobody is making serious effort to free it? It is rather intriguing that relevant government agencies responsible for the custody and management of extractive resources’ revenue, such as the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS), Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) have refused to take practical steps to recover the outstanding money. Clearly, Nigeria still has a long way to go especially with regards to addressing the issue of corruption. This is one fact that everybody agrees to but which no one appears prepared to confront. Zero tolerance to corruption has become more of political slogan in the country with which successive administration has used to hoodwink unsuspecting citizens, yet, it is the same political elites and their collaborators that have been found to be the worst culprits in this game. At least, that is part of what the recent revelations that flowed from the oil subsidy probe has brought to fore. BC

Reaping bounties from non-compliant firms By Festus Okoromadu

he Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) said it has raked in over N33 million from over seventy companies for failing to comply with various postlisting requirements of the Exchange. A breakdown of the sum shows that nine companies were fined a sum of N3.310 million for what the Exchange called “Dissemination of information to the media”, three companies fined a total of N4.139 million for “Publication without NSE’s Written Approval in 2012” and over seventy others the sum of N25.626 millilion for falling to file their accounts on time. According to the latest X- Compliance list released by the NSE last week, “Quoted companies on the Exchanges are required to file their Quarterly accounts within 45 days after the end of the Quarter in accordance with Appendix 111 of the Listing Rules”. The statement further noted that, “The Sanctions for non-compliance with periodic financial disclosure obligations are clearly spelt out in Appendix 111 of the Listing Rules and the Exchange will protect the integrity of its Rules”. The offences for which the companies were found guilty were classified into four main categories tagged schedule seven, eight, nine and ten. First Bank of Nigeria Plc was made to cough out N2.1 million for publishing a notice of extra-ordinary general meeting without getting a written approval from the NSE. Similarly, Unity Bank Plc was slammed N1.544 million for publishing a notice of divestment of holdings of the bank from its non-banking subsidiaries without written permission from the NSE. Multiverse Plc which completed the list on Schedule Eight was fined the sum

Oscar Onyema, DG NSE

of N496, 125.00 for publishing without the NSE’s permission appointment of directors. According to the Exchange, “Quoted companies are required to obtain prior written approval before publications are made in the media”. “Every company that is listed on the Exchange is required to provide the Exchange with timely information to enable it efficiently perform its function of maintaining an orderly market”, the statement added. Confirming the panellized quoted companies payment of the fines, the Exchange stated that, “The companies listed in schedule seven and eight contravened the provision of the Listing Rules. The Exchange applied

the sanctions prescribed Rules and the companies have discharged their financial obligations accordingly”. On schedule seven the list of defaulters include Mobil Oil Plc, Lafarge Wapco Plc, Guinea Insurance Plc, Transnational Corporation Plc, Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc, Wema Bank Plc, Neimeth International Pharmaceutical Plc, Honeywell Flour Mills Plc and Diamond Bank Plc. They were fine various amounts ranging from N1million to N100, 000.00 for publications without NSE’s written approval in 2011. A total of sixty-five companies where fined various amount in the list tagged schedule Nine with Learn Africa Plc paying the highest amount of N571,

428.57 for failing to present her 2010 audited account on time while Dangote Flour Mills Plc came second with a fine of N567, 142.86 for the late submission of the 2010 audited accounts in addition to defaulting in the first, second and third quarters of 2011. The duo of Access Bank Plc and Unilever Plc were fined N4, 285.71 each for failing to file their second quarters and the 2010 audited account respectively. A scan through the list shows blue chip companies such as Total Nigeria Plc, Conoil Plc, Oando Plc, Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, Dangote Cement Plc, First Bank Plc, Ashaka Cement Plc, Cement Company of Northern Nigeria Plc, Scoa Nigeria Plc and R.T Briscoe Plc fell short of meeting the NSE post-listing requirement. Meanwhile, the President of the Council of the NSE, Aliko Dangote appears to have defaulted more than others as all the four companies where he has majority holdings and quoted on the Exchange were found wanting and fined. His companies paid a total of N1, 193,314.29 to the coffers of the Exchange as fine to rescue Dangote Flour Mills Plc, Dangote Sugar Plc, Dangote Cement Plc and National Salt Company Nigeria Plc from further sanctions during the period. On schedule ten a total of eighteen companies were found waiting with Costain West Africa Plc topping the list by paying N2.850 million for falling to submit its audited accounts for the year ended March 31, 2011. John Holt Plc was fined N1.7 million, Cornerstone Insurance Plc N1.5 million, Conoil N1.2million and C & I Leasing Plc N1.050 million while the other paid less than one million naira for late filings of accounts. BC

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Monday, October 8, 2012

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Behind d Wheels This page is open to sponsorship

Unveiling the new

brands with EcoGuide cluster uses dual liquid crystal display (LCD) screens on either side of the center-mounted speedometer. Watch the display grow leaves as your short-term driving efficiency increases. As your longterm driving becomes more efficient, vines and more leaves are displayed. It lets you track the powertrain’s operation — hybrid drive, electric drive, gas engine plus instant and average fuel economy.

The 2013 Escape

The 2013 Escape he 2013 Escape has an eco-friendly side. For example, there are two available EcoBoost® engines that are designed to be efficient. In fact, the 1.6L EcoBoost engine delivers 33 highway mpg, the best automatic highway fuel economy in its class.* Seat cushion and head restraint foam is derived from soybeans. Carpet in all models is produced using a blend of post-industrial fibers and post-consumer fibers derived from recycled plastic bottles. Even the shape of the Escape and the use of the Active Grille Shutters help make the vehicle more aerodynamic for enhanced fuel economy.

Aerodynamic design Escape wasn’t designed just to look great – it was also styled to reduce air resistance. Standard Active Grille Shutters* also help by cheating the wind. When closed, they help to reduce vehicle aerodynamic drag caused by air travelling through the radiator. Environmentally conscious The cushions and head restraints in the 2013 Escape use bio-based polyurethane foam derived from the oils of various plant seeds such as soybeans. More than 10 lbs. of scrap cotton from jeans, sweaters, Tshirts and other items – material that otherwise would be sent to a landfill – is used in soundabsorption material. The carpet in all models is manufactured

from a blend of post-consumer and post-industrial polyester fibres, which reduces the need for new raw materials and helps eliminate waste. The post-consumer fibres are derived from recycled plastic bottles. In total, about 25 recycled 20-ounce bottles are in the carpeting. So no matter what colour your Escape is, it will always be green. Standard six-speed Select Shift Automatic® transmission When equipped with the optional 1.6L EcoBoost® engine, this transmission helps the 2013 Escape deliver best-inclass automatic highway fuel economy.* The standard SelectShift transmission helps the Escape achieve a class-leading 33 highway mpg. It also adds a little fun to your drive. A switch on the gear shifter knob lets you easily and quickly shift gears without having to engage the clutch. FUSION The Fusion is available in four bold models. 2013 Fusion S, 2013 Fusion SE, 2013 Fusion SE Hybrid and 2013 Fusion Titanium From power plants that enhance efficiency to an aerodynamic design and seating that utilizes recycled material, the 2013 Ford Fusion is designed to be environmentally conscious. The Fusion Hybrid and the Fusion Energi are each powered by a combination high-voltage electric motor and 2.0L Atkinson-cycle I-4 gasoline engine. A 1.6L I-4 EcoBoost® engine is designed to be fuel-efficient

without compromising on power. There’s also the available Auto Start-Stop that shuts the engine down when you come to a stop and seamlessly restarts it when you release the brake. Very smart. Just like the 2013 Ford Fusion. Hybrid Performance The Fusion Hybrid maximizes performance. At lower speeds, it can travel in electric mode. When the gas engine does kick in, at higher speeds or when passing or merging, the transition is seamless. The Fusion Hybrid also features visual aids to help you drive more efficiently. The SmartGauge®

FUSION

Fusion Energi The new Fusion Energi is designed to be efficient, thanks to combining a high-voltage battery and electric motor with a gasoline engine. The high-voltage lithium-ion battery pack provides enough power to operate in all-electric mode for short commutes. Thanks to plug-in capability, you can charge the battery using a 120-volt outlet. Or you can use a 240-volt outlet, upgraded with electric vehicle supply equipment. To lessen any concern you may have about driving range, when the battery is depleted or more power is required, the vehicle functions as a traditional gaselectric hybrid. The Fusion Energi also features a Regenerative Braking System, allowing it to capture kinetic braking energy and store it for later use. 1.6L I-4 EcoBoost® Engine The available new 1.6L EcoBoost in-line four-cylinder engine combines three different technologies – turbocharging, direct injection and twin independent variable cam timing

(Ti-VCT) – to enhance both performance and efficiency. The available Auto Start-Stop could help you reduce fuel costs and lower vehicle emissions. Engine features include: • All-aluminum construction • Direct fuel injection • Single turbocharger • Piston cooling jets for durability Environmentally Conscious Seating The standard cloth seats in the Fusion Hybrid feature a fabric made with REPREVE®*— a fiber using 100 per cent recyclable materials that could potentially have otherwise ended up in landfills. In addition, the seat cushions and head restraints use a bio-based polyurethane foam derived from the oils of various plant seeds, such as soybeans. Regenerative Braking When you apply the brakes in a conventional vehicle, kinetic energy is lost to heat due to friction. During braking in the Fusion Hybrid and the Fusion Energi, however, regenerative braking recovers more than 90 percent of this energy and sends it back to the battery pack to be stored for later use. Aerodynamic Design Active Grille Shutters* are designed to help reduce air resistance and increase efficiency. When closed, they help to reduce the aerodynamic drag on the vehicle caused by air traveling through the engine compartment. If you were to

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Monday, October 8, 2012

Behind d Wheels This page is open to sponsorship

Autocare Understanding the dash / instrument warning lights The check engine light. Every new car now comes with OBD-II On Board Diagnostics 2. This is a faultregistering system connected to sensors all over the car, engine, fuel and emissions system. When the check engine light comes on, it can mean many things. There is something like 4,000 unique OBD2 codes that can be stored. Handheld OBD2 diagnostic tools can be plugged in to the OBD2 port which is normally under the dash on the driver’s side. These tools can read out the fault code and/or reset the system to contain no codes.

Ford Taurus

view a vehicle in a wind tunnel, you would see air getting trapped beneath it, creating drag. To help reduce this drag, which creates resistance that slows the vehicle and reduces efficiency, the underbody in the Fusion is shielded.* With the available Auto Start-Stop, you could save money in fuel costs and reduce vehicle emissions. When the vehicle comes to a stop in city driving, the engine is automatically shut off. The engine seamlessly restarts the instant your foot leaves the brake pedal. Optional with the 1.6L EcoBoost® equipped with automatic transmission. With the available Auto Start-Stop, you could save money in fuel costs and reduce vehicle emissions. When the vehicle comes to a stop in city driving, the engine is automatically shut off. The engine seamlessly restarts the instant your foot leaves the brake pedal. Optional with the 1.6L EcoBoost® equipped with automatic transmission. Ford Taurus With chiselled good looks from every angle, the new Taurus appears more aggressive and assertive than ever. Sharp, clean lines accentuate the new hood design, drawing your eye to the bold new grille. You can sense immediately from the design of a great car what you’re about to experience at the wheel. The new Ford Taurus Wide and Assertive Stance Ford engineers have given the new Taurus a wide stance and refined the suspension

tuning, delivering stable, confident handling on the corner. New Grill Dynamic, angular lines draw your eye to the bold new grille. Pictured is the Taurus SHO grille with its unique Piano Black mesh design. Projector-Beam Halogen Headlamps Projector-beam halogen headlamps are designed to focus more of the light beam in front of the car, providing excellent brightness and range of visibility. With the standard autolamp on/off delay controls, you can set the switch to the automatic mode and the headlamps come on when the lighting diminishes. Also, available on the Limited and SHO models are auto high-beam headlamps that detect vehicle light sources and activate the high beams when no automotive headlamps or tail lamps are detected. When lights are sensed, the system returns to the low-beam setting. Light-Emitting (LED) Tail lamps

Diode

Full light-emitting diode (LED) tail lamps are an important feature of the new Taurus. Not only are LEDs sharp in appearance, but they illuminate faster and are brighter than conventional incandescent bulbs. They also consume less energy Unique Spoiler The new Taurus offers a distinct rear spoiler on the highperformance SHO model. While definitely sporty-looking, its aerodynamic properties help contribute to efficiency and stability. SE, SEL and Limited models feature an integrated spoiler design. Dual Exhaust A dual exhaust system with chrome tips adds a sporty flair to the sculpted rear lines of the Taurus SE, SEL and Limited models. The Taurus SHO is engineered with a true dual exhaust system, meaning that each of the engine’s two exhaust manifolds has its own exhaust pipe, reducing back pressure and enhancing horsepower BC

The service engine light / Maint Reqd light. This might indicate “Service”, “Service Engine” or “Maint Reqd”. It’s an indicator that you’re getting close to a scheduled maintenance interval. On some cars it’s as simple as counting miles before it comes on, whilst on others it maps engine temperatures, oil temperatures, air temperatures and other indicators of probable stress to tell you when it might be time for new oil or a service. In most cars this can be overridden or reset by you, the owner. The electrical fault light. This warning light is different in every car but normally it looks like a picture of a battery, similar to the picture on the left here. You’ll see it come on and go off when you start your engine as part of the car’s self-test, but if this light comes on and stays on, it means the electrical charging system is no longer working properly. Brake warning light 1 Most cars nowadays have a brake warning light on the dash. Its purpose is to alert you that something is wrong in the braking system somewhere. If it comes on, check your owner’s manual to find out its meaning. The brake warning light doesn’t have a standard meaning; it could be used for multiple purposes. For example, the same light may be used to show that the hand brake is on. If that’s the case and you’re driving, you ought to have noticed the smell of burning brake dust by now. Brake warning light 2 If you’ve got an ABS-equipped car, you also have a second light - the ABS light. If it comes on, get it seen to as soon as possible. It means the ABS computer has diagnosed that something is amiss in the system. It could be something as simple as dirt in one of the sensors, or something as costly as an entire ABS unit replacement. Coolant warning light This is normally the coolant level warning light. If this comes on, it means that the level of coolant in your radiator is low and needs topping up. DO NOT OPEN THE RADIATOR CAP WHEN THE ENGINE IS HOT! The coolant system is pressurised and it could easily release pressure and spray you with boiling coolant. Do it when the engine is cold. Top up the system with either a pre-mixed coolant bought from a shop, or with distilled water. Oil warning light Typically this light will come on if your oil pressure is too low. Low oil pressure is serious and if you continue to drive with this light on, eventually your engine will die. Low oil pressure can be caused by a failed oil pump, a blocked oil filter or strainer in the sump or by low oil levels - for example if your engine is burning oil. BC

A20 36

Business Courage

Monday, October 8, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

On your next visit to the land of peace...

Ghana

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re there for your financial interest

ENERGYBANK

...supporting your aspirations +HDG 2IĂ&#x20AC;FH GNAT Heights, 30, Independence Avenue, Accra www.energybankghana.com Contacts: info@energybankghana.com +233302234033-4, +233302234309

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Business Courage

Monday, October 8, 2012

A21 37

ABBUCIMA, foreign firms partner to establish cement factory in Abia

he Abuja Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (ABUCCIMA) says it will build a cement factory in Abia in partnership with foreign firms and the state government. Dr Solomon Nyagba, the Director-General of ABUCCIMA, said this on Friday at an event to mark Abia Special Day at the ongoing 7th Abuja International Trade Fair. According to Nyagba, arrangements are almost concluded as work will start very soon, adding that Abia was investment-friendly as the state government was ready to provide assistance to investors. ``Abia is a good place for investment because the government is willing to provide good incentives to investors. The state has huge deposits of limestone for cement at Arochukwu and we and our partners from abroad are working at actual-

ising a cement factory there. Limestone exploration will start in three months time,’’ he said. Nyagba said the chamber was making serious efforts to transform Abia from a civil service state to a commercial hub and private sector-driven territory. Samson Orji, the Commissioner for Commerce and In-

Nyagba

dustry, said Abia had become an investor’s destination, adding that Aba, the commercial hub of the state, had become ``the city with the least number of unemployed people in the world as everybody was engaged in one enterprise or the other’’. Orji said that efforts were been made to ``establish desks for manufactures in Aba so that their products will be branded in their names’’. According to him, the state has a one-stop shop to ease registration of investors among other incentives. Okechukwu Aguwa, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Commerce, said the state was in a hurry to develop hence the provision of economic and social infrastructure. ``We are building industrial centres, industrial clusters and housing estates to impact on the lives of the people.’’ BC

Nigeria yields rise on profit-taking after index boost

igerian bond yields rose last week on profit-taking following Nigeria’s inclusion in a benchmark JP Morgan government bond index, but they are expected to decline in the coming weeks. Nigeria’s inclusion in a JP Morgan government bond index last week prompted profit taking as investors sought to capitalise on recent gains, pushing yields higher. Yields are expected to drop in the weeks ahead as Nigeria sees the full benefits of its addition to the JP Morgan Government Bond Index-Emerging Markets, but the market could remain

volatile in the short term. JP Morgan estimates that the index inclusion could translate into at least $1.5 billion in inflows into Nigeria’s bond market. “The outlook is still that the bonds are going to trade lower in terms of yield,” said Steve Osho, a trader at Stanbic Bank. “But for now, we’re going to see some volatility across the curve. As some guys are trying to take profit, other guys are trying to enter the market.” Monday, the first day of Nigeria’s inclusion in the GBI-EM, was a public holiday but yields began to climb in the following

days. On Thursday, the June 2019 bond rose by up to 21 basis points to 13.31 per cent. It closed at the same level on Friday. The April 2017 bond closed at 13.67 per cent on Friday, compared to 13.32 per cent a week ago. Yields fell around 300 basis points after JP Morgan announced the inclusion on Aug. 14. Nigeria has a weight of roughly 0.72 per cent in the GBI-EM and three bonds, maturing in 2014, 2019 and 2022, have been included as they are the most liquid. BC

FBN Heritage Fund records 13.1 per cent growth

nvestors in the FBN Heritage Fund are counting gains accruing from their return on their investment, following an impressive price growth recorded by the fund in the last two years as well as projections for future growth by market watchers. An analysis of the fund’s performance since listing on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) in April 2008 at N100.00 showed that it moved from a bid price of N89.28 in 2010 to N101.01 at the close of business last week. This represents a growth of N11.73 or 13.13 per cent price appreciation. A further review of its price movement showed that the fund closed the 2011 financial year with a bid price of N90.10 compared to the corresponding year’s bid price of N89.28. In that year the fund outperformed the NSE All-Share Index by about 6.1 per cent generat-

ing a return of 0.92 per cent as opposed to the NSE ASI, which declined by 5.18 per cent. According to the fund manager, Michael Oyebola, the firm has its sights firmly placed on ensuring further reward for investors as the fund manager had a while back restructured the portfolio to help investors harness the opportunities available in the equities market and money market. Oyebola explained that the restructuring facilitated the freeing up of investment capital for application to other investment assets. “For the money market, we positioned ourselves to take advantage of the high interest rates on both tenured deposits as well as Treasury Bills and continue to ensure that we achieve the best return possible on investments made within the confines of the asset allocation as prescribed by the

Trust deed and the investment policy of the fund.” “Our set target was to achieve the par (N100.00) value of the fund to reward investors who had remained loyal to the fund and we continue to be encouraged by the performance growth so far and believe that we are not far from where we want to be. Our promise is to ensure above benchmark returns for investors in the years ahead,” he added. A review of its second quarter performance showed that the fund had a positive return of 4.02 per cent during the quarter ended June 30, 2012 as against the 4.59 per cent return of the NSE. Year to date (YTD), the fund had a positive return of 6.02 per cent as against 4.19 per cent for the NSE ASI. The FBN Heritage Fund is an openended SEC registered mutual fund. BC

Market Indicators for Week Ended 05-10-12 All-Share Index 26,448.61 points Market Capitalisation N8,421,415,798,721.81 Stock Updates GAINERS COMPANY

OPENING PRICE

NESTLE

CLOSING PRICE

CHANGE

601.65

615.00

FLOURMILL

63.00

64.99

1.99

CADBURY

26.25

27.56

1.31

139.05

139.85

0.80

15.97

16.75

0.78

NB ASHAKACEM

13.35

LOSERS COMPANY

OPENING PRICE

NEWGOLD

2729.00

CLOSING PRICE

CHANGE

2695.00

-34.00

MRS

32.29

30.68

-1.61

UNILEVER

43.00

41.81

-1.19

OKOMUOIL

36.50

35.70

-0.80

OANDO

13.41

12.74

-0.67

Inter-Bank Rates TENOR

RATE%(PREV) 27-Sept-2012

OBB

10.1500 – 12.2500

RATE%(CURR) 03-Oct-2012 10.1500 – 10.5000

CALL

10.5000 – 15.0000

10.2500 – 10.5000

Primary Market Auction TENOR

AMOUNT (N’mn)

91-Days

21,839

RATE (%) 12.70

26-Sep-12

DATE

182-Days

59,081

13.00

26-Sep-12

364-Days

23,783

13.05

26-Sep-12

Open Market Operation TENOR

AMOUNT (N’mn)

76-Days

100,000

14.00

RATE (%)

28-Sep-12

DATE

77-Days

100,000

13.97

27-Sep-12

70-Days

50,000

13.70

25-Sep-12

Wholesale Dutch Auction System AMOUNT OFFERED

AMOUNT SOLD

DATE

$200m

MARKET DEMAND $178m

$178m

03-Oct-12

$200m

26-Sep-12

A22 38

Business Courage

Monday, October 8, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

University Press: Growing sales despite harsh operating environment By Tayo Adeleke

niversity Press Plc recent audited report attests to the management’s commitment to shareholders in term of consistent dividend payment. Averagely, in the last five years, the company has paid over 50 per cent of its earnings as dividend, ranging from 30 kobo to 40 kobo. Besides, the company was able to improve on its performance in 2012, having experienced a decline in 2011. The company’s turnover grew from N1.87 billion to N2.08 billion while net profit had 7.58 per cent increase from the previous year’s figure. Meanwhile, for the first time in the history of the company, the management has hit N2 billion sales landmark. Founded in 1949 under the name, Oxford University Press Nigeria, University Press Plc has grown to become one of the oldest publishing companies in Nigeria. At incorporation, as a public liability company in 1978, the company had an authorized share capital of eight million Ordinary Shares of 50 kobo each. It was quoted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange on August 14, 1978. University Press Plc is an indigenous company with specialty in business of printing, publishing and selling of books in areas of educational and general titles. It has 19 integrated sales networks across Nigeria and one in Ghana. Performance University Press growth trend continue as the company delivered a good performance in all top line parameters in the financial year ended March 31 2012. The management increased the company’s turnover by 11 per cent from N1.87 billion in 2011 to N2.1 billion in 2012, while gross profit stood at N1.1 billion from N1.03 billion in 2011. As a result, the profit before tax increased to N343.5 million from N326.6 million. Net profit moved from N211.4 million in 2011 to N227.4 million in 2012. Another milestone achieved by the company that is worth of note is the N2 billion turnover for the first time in the history of the company. The breakdown of the company turnover shows that N702.1 million, representing 33.72 per cent of turnover came from Western Zone sales, N500.3 million (24.03 per cent of turnover) from Eastern Zone, N877.04 million was realized from Northern region of the company and N2.67 million was earned from export sales. UP Plc has consistently grown revenue

11.90 per cent in 2011. Cost efficiency University Press results showed unimpressive cost effective management and a strong pull for productivity, with the proportion of total costs to overall turnover moving from 82.49 per cent in 2011 to 83.48 per cent 2012. Total staff costs rose from N278.02 million in 2011 to N293.12 million in 2012, signifying an average cost per employee of N0.974 million in 2012 as against N0.894 million in 2011. Total number of employees had reduced from 311 in 2011 to 301 in 2012. Average pre-tax profit per employee increased from N1.05 million in 2011 to N1.14 million in 2012. University Press cost of sales increased from N845.76 million to N997.91 million in 2012 while interest expenses close at N9.17 million from N5.17 million.

Olalekan Are, Chairman, University Press Plc

at an average of 32 per cent quarter-on-quarter with gross and net margins at five years average of 22 per cent and 17 per cent respectively. Value for Investors In view of its performance and the company’s commitment to deliver optimal returns to its teeming shareholders, the board of directors has paid N150.993 million, which is 35 kobo dividend per share. Business Courage observed that the company has consistently paid dividend in the last five years and the current payout, coming at a time when the company admittedly went through harsh operating environment is significant in many ways. The company paid 30 kobo in 2008, 35 kobo in 2009, 40 kobo in 2010 and 35 kobo in 2011. Overall, the management has paid out N1.80 from N3.23 earning for five years, representing 56 per cent of cumulative earnings. Profitability University Press Plc was able to maintain its balance between increasing top-line indices and rising operating costs, leaving the company with marginal decline in profitability. Down the line, gross profit margin dropped to 52.07 per cent from 54.76 per cent in 2011. Pretax profit margin reduced from 17.51 per cent in 2011 to 16.52 per cent in 2012 while the company recorded 0.4 basis decline in net margin from 11.3 per cent to 10.90 per cent. Meanwhile, the company’s

Chairman, Olalekan Are has attributed the dip to increase in operating cost as a result of fuel subsidy removal. The company’s distribution expenses stood at N470 million from N452 million in 2011. However, return on equity inched up by 0.37 basis points to 12.27 per cent from

Liquidity The fixed assets of the company in the review period recorded a decline from N1.064 billion in 20111 to N1.02 billion in 2012 despite management’s claim of additional assets worth of N70.3 million. This was claimed to have been spent on the purchase of motor vehicles, equipment and buildings. Current assets increased by

University Press Plc Financial Data TURNOVER

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

NGN ‘000

2,082,124 1,868,291 1,923,978 1,614,137 956,945

Profit before Taxation

342,512

326,631

410,367

336,400

240,700

Taxation

-116,085

-115,256

-133,544

-95,039

-77,186

Profit after Taxation

227,472

211,375

276,823

241,361

163,514

Dividend declared

150,993

143,803

119,836

104,856

44,938

Fixed assets

1,019,540 1,064,364 531,250

539,280

451,622

Current assets

1,662,797 1,342,915 1,490,953 1,209,694 962,350

Liabilities

-832,577

Total net assets

1,849,760 1,773,326 1,257,363 1,100,376 963,871

BALANCE SHEET

-633,953

-764,840

-648,598

-450,101

SHAREHOLDERS’ FUNDS Share capital

215,705

179,753

149,759

Share premium

175,507

211,458

241,416

Capital reserve

1,442

1,422

Fixed assets revaluation surplus

658,115

685,115

209,725

23.83 per cent to N1.663 billion in 2012 compared with N1.343 billion in 2011. Meanwhile, the company reduced its liabilities during the review year as current liabilities dropped by 0.26 per cent from N774 million in 2011 to N772 million in 2012. Current ratio grew by 0.41 basis points to close at 2.15:1 compared with 1.74:1 recorded in 2011. The company’s shareholders’ funds also increased by four per cent to stand at N1.850 billion in 2012 as against N1.773 billion in 2011. With zero debt in 2012, equity funds amounted to about 88.86 per cent of total income in 2012, a decline from 94.91 per cent in 2011. Are, confirmed that the board had not taken any loan since he assumed office as chairman of UP Plc over ten years ago, ascribing the progress made to the useful support from shareholders. Unaudited Q1 Performance A cursory look at the company’s performance as at three months of ongoing financial year shows an improvement over the previous year it terms of sales. For instance, the company’s turnover increased from N142.29 million in 2011 to N177.7 million as at first quarter ended June 30, 2012. Similarly, as at three months, gross profit moved from N79.7 million to N95.598 million, while administrative expenses closed at N84.09 million from N83.53 million in the first quarter 2011. However, just like the previous year, the company recorded a loss after tax of N66.87 million, down from loss of N72.709 in 2011. Total current assets were N1.36 billion while current liabilities stood at N517.06 million. Shareholders’ funds dropped to N1.781 billion in first quarter from N1.850 billion achieved in audited year ended March 31 2012. Future The company’s chairman, Are has re-assured shareholders that the company is well positioned to face the challenges of the future and come out stronger as it has the human capital, latest information technology, wide distribution network facilities and experience to do so. “I am therefore confident that next year will be better than the one under review” he concluded. The company also plans to partner with government and government agencies to produce vocational rich curriculum textbooks that meet up with the practical requirements of employments which will make youths less dependent and transform them into young entrepreneurs and innovators. BC

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Business Courage A23 39

Monday, October 8, 2012

STOCKWATCH Stock Exchange weekly equities summary as at Friday, Oct 5, 2012 SECURITY

PRICE (=N=)

AGRICULTURE/AGRO-ALLIED Crop Production FTN COCOA PROCESSORS PLC NT OKOMU OIL PALM PLC. 35.70 PRESCO PLC 15.28 Fishing/Hunting/Trapping ELLAH LAKES PLC. NT Livestock/Animal Specialties LIVESTOCK FEEDS PLC. 1.58 CONGLOMERATES Diversified Industries A.G. LEVENTIS NIGERIA PLC. 1.38 CHELLARAMS PLC. NT JOHN HOLT PLC. NT S C O A NIG. PLC. NT U A C N PLC. 40.06 CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Building Construction ARBICO PLC. 9.88 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. 29.00 ROADS NIG PLC. 10.60 Real Estate Development PINNACLE POINT GROUP PLC NT UACN PROPERTY DEV 10.92 Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) SKYE SHELTER FUND PLC 100.00 UNION HOMES REAL ESTATE INV NT CONSUMER GOODS Automobiles/Auto Parts DN TYRE & RUBBER PLC 0.50 Beverages--Brewers/Distillers CHAMPION BREW. PLC. 3.62 GOLDEN GUINEA BREW. PLC. NT GUINNESS NIG PLC 277.20 INTERNATIONAL BREWERIES PLC. 14.00 JOS INT. BREWERIES PLC. NT NIGERIAN BREW. PLC. 139.85 PREMIER BREWERIES PLC NT Beverages--Non-Alcoholic 7-UP BOTTLING COMP. PLC. 39.00 Food Products BIG TREAT PLC NT DANGOTE FLOUR MILLS PLC 8.25 DANGOTE SUGAR REFINERY PLC 5.25 FLOUR MILLS NIG. PLC. 64.99 HONEYWELL FLOUR MILL PLC 2.30 MULTI-TREX INTEGRATED FOODS PLC 1.05 N NIG. FLOUR MILLS PLC. NT NATIONAL SALT CO. NIG. PLC 5.91 P S MANDRIDES & CO PLC. NT U T C NIG. PLC. 0.70 UNION DICON SALT PLC. NT Food Products--Diversified CADBURY NIGERIA PLC. 27.56 NESTLE NIGERIA PLC. 615.00 Household Durables BETA GLASS CO PLC. NT NIGERIAN ENAMELWARE PLC. NT VITAFOAM NIG PLC. 3.40 VONO PRODUCTS PLC. NT Personal/Household Products P Z CUSSONS NIGERIA PLC. 25.77 UNILEVER NIGERIA PLC. 41.81 Textiles/Apparel UNITED NIG. TEXTILES PLC. NT FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ACCESS BANK PLC. 8.51 DIAMOND BANK PLC 3.60 ECOBANK TRANSNATIONAL INC. 11.00 FIDELITY BANK PLC 1.87 FIRST BANK OF NIG. PLC 15.52 FIRST CITY MONUMENT BANK PLC. 3.15 GUARANTY TRUST BANK PLC. 20.15 SKYE BANK PLC 3.26 STANBIC IBTC BANK PLC 7.30 STERLING BANK PLC. 1.59 U B A PLC 4.70 UNION BANK NIG.PLC. 8.41 UNITY BANK PLC NT WEMA BANK PLC. 0.50 ZENITH BANK PLC 17.10 Insurance Carriers, Brokers & Services AFRICAN ALLIANCE INS. COY. PLC NT AIICO INSURANCE PLC. 0.68 CONFIDENCE INSURANCE PLC NT CONSOLIDATED HALLMARK INS. PLC 0.50 CONTINENTAL REINSURANCE PLC 0.76 CORNERSTONE INS. COY. PLC. 0.50 CUSTODIAN AND ALLIED INS. PLC 1.38 EQUITY ASSURANCE PLC. NT GOLDLINK INSURANCE PLC 0.50 GREAT NIGERIAN INSURANCE PLC NT GUINEA INSURANCE PLC. NT INTERCONTINENTAL WAPIC INS. PLC 0.60 INTERNATIONAL ENERGY INS. PLC NT INVESTMENT AND ALLIED ARN. NT LASACO ASSURANCE PLC. 0.50 LAW UNION AND ROCK INS. PLC. 0.50 LINKAGE ASSURANCE PLC 0.50 MANSARD INSURANCE PLC 1.96 MUTUAL BENEFITS ASSURANCE PLC. 0.50 N.E.M INSURANCE CO (NIG) PLC. 0.52 NIGER INSURANCE CO. PLC. 0.50 OASIS INSURANCE PLC NT PRESTIGE ASSURANCE CO. PLC. 0.52 REGENCY ALLIANCE INS. COY PLC NT SOVEREIGN TRUST INSURANCE PLC 0.50 STACO INSURANCE PLC 0.50 STANDARD ALLIANCE INS. PLC. NT 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 NT Mortgage Carriers, Brokers &Services ABBEY BUILDING SOCIETY PLC NT 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. 0.50 DEAP CAPITAL MGT & TRUST PLC NT NIG SEW. MACH. MAN. CO. PLC. NT NIGERIA ENERYGY SECTOR FUND NT ROYAL EXCHANGE PLC. NT HEALTHCARE Healthcare Providers EKOCORP PLC. 5.05 Medical Equipment UNION DIAGNOSTIC &CLINICAL PLC NT Medical Supplies MORISON INDUSTRIES PLC. 5.19 Pharmaceuticals EVANS MEDICAL PLC. 1.19 FIDSON HEALTHCARE PLC 1.14 GLAXO SMITHKLINE CONSUMER PLC 38.00 MAY & BAKER NIGERIA PLC. 1.61

NOTE NT=Not Traded on 05-10-12

QUANTITY

52 WK HIGH

52 WK LOW

SHARES OUTSTANDING

EPS

MOV. (%)

NT 366 621 192 000

0.64 33.00 16.15

0.50 14.53 6.40

2 200 000 000 476 955 000 1 000 000 000

0.00 8.23 1.69

N/A -3.54 1.87

NT 37.01 15.00

4.26

60 000 000

0.00

N/A

1 082 800

1.49

0.48

1 199 549 736

0.04

-1.86

1.61

707 127 NT NT NT 2 209 687

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

0.21 0.30 0.00 0.35 7.03

3.76 N/A N/A N/A N/A

1.33 NT NT NT 40.00

51 000 NT

26.00 95.49

14.09 95.49

148 500 000 196 876 000

0.00 4.50

N/A N/A

9.88 NT

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

298 140 15 500

62.26 8.69

21.55 3.01

1 200 000 000 20 000 000

4.11 3.66

5.45 N/A

27.50 NT

NT 102 000

7.28 20.15

7.28 8.82

1 375 000 000

0.00 1.66

N/A 0.00

NT 10.92

2 000 000 NT

100.00 50.00

97.00 50.00

20 000 000 250 019 781

11.75 0.75

N/A N/A

100.00 NT

49 515

0.50

4 772 528 415

0.00

N/A

0.50

104 948 NT 275 739 251 400 NT 2 109 411 NT

4.63 0.68 255.00 7.28 3.20 122.30 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 12.04 0.07 0.00 5.21 0.00

N/A N/A 6.62 N/A N/A 2.08 N/A

3.44 NT 260.00 12.98 NT 137.00 0.89

34 883

48.91

38.31

640 590 362

3.15

N/A

39.00

NT 4 415 217 8 502 782 414 192 772 467 100 000 NT 687 103 NT 269 000 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 1.21 21.48 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 40 000 000 1 233 375 004 360 000 000

0.00 0.00 0.59 3.60 0.36 0.00 1.20 0.81 0.16 1.13 0.00

N/A -3.51 5.21 5.38 0.88 N/A N/A 2.43 N/A -11.39 N/A

NT 8.55 4.99 61.67 2.28 NT NT 5.77 NT 0.79 NT

2 060 923 78 398

29.20 500.00

9.15 367.83

3 129 188 160 792 656 250

1.24 21.21

15.07 6.03

23.95 580.00

NT NT 4 127 844 NT

15.58 42.66 6.75 3.67

10.03 36.19 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 11.11 N/A

NT NT 3.06 NT

1 330 522 289 440

43.50 36.45

22.07 22.56

3 176 381 636 3 783 296 250

0.51 1.32

1.86 -0.71

25.30 42.11

0.97

0.57

843 284 027

0.00

N/A

91 554 358 13 050 731 462 662 14 167 855 21 162 323 2 218 755 12 553 024 8 932 847 1 707 215 4 571 930 8 611 612 3 782 171 NT 450 000 5 003 932

11.10 9.27 17.05 3.20 16.12 8.30 17.81 10.17 11.38 2.91 4.40 10.07 1.92 1.75 16.70

4.76 2.01 9.97 1.14 8.50 3.04 11.64 2.73 6.40 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 32 632 084 358 16 271 192 202 29 146 482 209 13 219 334 676 18 750 000 000 12 563 091 545 32 334 693 693 13 509 726 273 33 675 576 085 12 821 249 880 31 396 493 790

0.63 0.00 2.61 0.19 1.37 0.60 0.59 0.39 0.54 0.43 0.01 2.20 0.00 1.34 1.41

-1.28 4.35 -1.08 6.25 4.51 -1.56 5.22 2.52 1.39 -0.62 4.44 11.98 0.00 0.00 4.91

8.62 3.45 11.12 1.76 14.85 3.20 19.15 3.18 7.20 1.60 4.50 7.51 0.50 0.50 16.30

NT 17 873 306 NT 2 500 11 437 800 7 100 23 064 000 NT 32 561 494 NT NT 540 000 NT NT 12 600 20 590 1 000 66 480 092 800 000 3 145 112 100 300 NT 1 763 468 NT 40 000 50 200 NT 1 000 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 0.09 0.00 0.06 0.10 0.01 0.27 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.06 0.00 0.02 0.02 0.10 0.00 0.08 0.10 0.25 0.01 0.02 0.11 0.03 0.10 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 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 0.51 N/A 0.00 N/A N/A -3.70 N/A 0.00 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

NT 0.57 NT 0.50 0.71 0.50 1.40 NT 0.50 NT NT 0.61 NT NT 0.50 NT NT 1.95 NT 0.52 0.50 NT 0.54 NT NT 0.50 NT NT NT 0.50

NT NT

NT 2 000 1 011 000 NT

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 0.10 0.00 0.00

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

NT 0.50 0.50 NT

78 000 NT NT NT NT

0.61 2.02 0.15 552.20 0.66

0.50 2.02 0.15 555.20 0.50

3 778 005 975 1 333 333 333 5 880 000 2 500 000 3 608 657 661

0.00 0.00 0.00 12.68 0.05

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

0.50 NT NT NT 0.63

1 000

5.31

5.05

498 600 908

0.12

N/A

5.05

0.50

3 553 138 528

0.00

N/A

50 000

10.54

7.39

152 178 750

0.00

N/A

5.19

250 667 4 066 830 36 060 355 225

N/A=Not Avialable

1.45 3.20 29.65 5.61

0.50 0.76 19.30 1.62

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

0.19 0.27 2.41 0.21

3.48 4.59 5.56 -2.42

1.15 1.09 36.00 1.65

SECURITY

PRICE (=N=)

NEIMETH INT PHARM PLC 1.38 NIGERIA-GERMAN CHEMICALS PLC. NT PHARMA-DEKO PLC. NT ICT Computer Based Systems COURTEVILLE BUSINESS SLN PLC 0.50 Computers and Peripherals OMATEK VENTURES PLC NT Electronic Communications Services MTECH COMMUNICATIONS PLC NT IT Services NCR (NIGERIA) PLC. 13.77 TRIPPLE GEE AND COMPANY PLC. 2.41 Processing Systems CHAMS PLC NT E-TRANZACT INTERNATIONAL PLC NT Telecommunications Carriers STARCOMMS PLC NT Telecommunications Services IHS NIGERIA PLC PREF SHARES NT IHS PLC 2.37 MTI PLC NT INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials AFRICAN PAINTS (NIGERIA) PLC. 2.86 ASHAKA CEM PLC 16.75 BERGER PAINTS PLC 8.01 CAP PLC 29.00 CEMENT CO. OF NORTH.NIG. PLC 5.20 DANGOTE CEMENT PLC 118.50 DN MEYER PLC. 1.27 FIRST ALUMINIUM NIGERIA PLC NT IPWA PLC 0.70 LAFARGE WAPCO PLC. 56.25 PAINTS & COATINGS MANFACT.PLC 1.95 PORTLAND PAINTS & PRDT NIG. PLC NT PREMIER PAINTS PLC. NT Electronic and Electrical Products AUSTIN LAZ & COMPANY PLC NT CUTIX PLC. 2.23 NIGERIAN WIRE AND CABLE PLC. NT NIGERIAN WIRE IND. PLC NT Packaging/Containers ABPLAST PRODUCTS PLC. NT AVON CROWNCAPS & CONTAINERS 1.99 GREIF NIGERIA PLC NT NIG. BAGS MANFACT. COY PLC 1.81 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. 5.69 Metals ALUMACO PLC NT ALUMINIUM EXTRUSION IND. PLC. 10.55 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 0.61 Integrated Oil and Gas Services OANDO PLC 12.74 Petroleum &Petroleum Products Distributors AFROIL PLC NT BECO PETROLEUM PRODUCT PLC NT CONOIL PLC 20.68 ETERNA PLC. 2.21 FORTE OIL PLC. 10.20 MOBIL OIL NIG PLC. 115.00 MRS OIL NIGERIA PLC. 30.68 TOTAL NIGERIA PLC. 130.00 SERVICES Advertising AFROMEDIA PLC 0.50 Apparel Retailers LENNARDS (NIG) PLC. NT Automobile/Auto Part Retailers R T BRISCOE PLC. 1.71 Courier/Freight/Delivery RED STAR EXPRESS PLC 3.39 TRANS-NATIONWIDE EXPRESS PLC. NT Employment Solutions C & I LEASING PLC. 0.50 Hospitality TANTALIZERS PLC NT Hotels/Lodging CAPITAL HOTEL PLC NT IKEJA HOTEL PLC 1.17 TOURIST COMPANY OF NIGERIA PLC. NT TRANSNATIONAL CORP. OF NIG.PLC 1.15 Media/Entertainment DAAR COMMUNICATIONS PLC 0.50 Printing/Publishing ACADEMY PRESS PLC. 1.94 LEARN AFRICA PLC 2.11 STUDIO PRESS (NIG) PLC. NT UNIVERSITY PRESS PLC. 4.11 Road Transportation ABC TRANSPORT PLCPLC 0.50 Specialty INTERLINKED TECHNOLOGIES PLC NT SECURE ELECTRONIC TECH.PLC NT Transport-Related Services AIRLINE SERVICES AND LOGISTICS PLC 2.16 NIG. AVIATION HANDLING COY PLC 5.92 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. (%)

423 782 NT NT

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

20.00 N/A N/A

1.15 NT NT

30 000

0.52

0.50

2 960 000 000

0.08

0.00

0.50

2 941 789 472

0.04

N/A

0.91

4 966 666 668

0.00

N/A

14 498 5 011

18.28 3.59

13.12 2.41

108 000 000 492 825 600

1.82 0.00

N/A N/A

13.77 NT

NT NT

0.50 4.97

0.50 4.04

4 620 600 000 4 200 000 000

0.00 0.00

N/A N/A

NT NT

1.47

0.50

6 878 478 096

0.00

N/A

NT 1 000 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 2.34 NT

4 000 1 198 240 1 000 25 851 457 525 61 935 13 456 NT 500 343 627 50 000 NT NT

3.32 30.00 12.57 43.98 15.49 132.51 3.51 0.75 0.99 48.05 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 1.60 0.15 1.76 1.83 8.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.74 0.16 0.39 0.00

N/A 10.93 0.00 0.35 6.12 -3.66 N/A N/A N/A 0.45 N/A N/A N/A

2.86 15.10 8.01 28.90 4.90 123.00 1.06 NT NT 56.00 1.90 3.46 NT

NT 439 148 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 0.90 N/A N/A

NT 2.21 NT NT

NT 55 484 NT 2 357 539 NT NT

3.98 6.91 15.03 3.60 1.86 0.63

3.98 2.19 13.28 1.60 1.05 0.63

25 000 000 683 974 528 42 640 000 6 215 000 000 240 000 000 199 066 550

0.00 0.15 0.90 0.22 0.30 0.00

N/A N/A N/A -5.24 N/A N/A

NT 2.09 NT 1.91 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

70 000

9.20

5.70

393 120 000

0.93

-4.85

5.98

NT 5 000

7.75 12.39

7.75 10.55

75 600 000 100 000 000

0.00 0.13

N/A N/A

NT 10.55

10 000

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

3 298 317

1.87

0.54

6 262 701 716

0.16

3.39

0.59

2 129 747

78.97

13.95

2 262 711 568

7.47

9.83

11.60

NT NT 38 795 199 240 221 608 36 656 60 000 17 312

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 5.98 0.88 0.00 13.06 4.08 11.22

N/A N/A 4.97 -8.68 -2.86 0.00 N/A 0.00

NT NT 19.70 2.42 10.50 115.00 32.29 130.00

1 570

0.72

0.50

4 035 497 307

0.00

N/A

0.50

3.48

0.19

N/A

81 040

3.65

1.12

980 294 400

0.22

-8.06

1.86

187 900 NT

3.67 6.40

2.11 3.28

589 496 310 198 819 763

0.63 0.26

13.00 N/A

3.00 NT

1 657 120

1.64

0.85

865 808 912

0.20

N/A

0.75

0.50

3 211 627 907

0.01

N/A

NT 344 722 NT 30 436 700

8.00 2.59 4.76 1.82

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 12.50 N/A 0.00

NT 1.04 NT 1.15

10 000

0.50

8 000 000 000

0.00

N/A

0.50

266 815 119 125 NT 201 741

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 #VALUE!

1.57 2.01 NT NT

81 232

0.80

0.50

1 507 000 000

0.00

N/A

0.50

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

12 000 374 917

2.78 11.75

1.54 5.15

634 000 000 1 230 468 750

0.38 0.81

N/A 2.96

2.17 5.75

1.43

1.04

45 000 000

0.12

N/A

11 000

1.02

201 885 335

0.00

N/A

500

0.60

30 000 000

0.00

N/A

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 NT 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

A24 40

Business Courage

Monday, October 8, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Monday, October 8, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Law & Justice nationalmirrorlaw@yahoo.com

“Let us do our best and our best is to facilitate the speedy hearing of cases.”

– JUSTICE NIKI TOBI, RETIRED JUSTICE OF THE SUPREME COURT OF NIGERIA

Lagos beautification law in stakeholders’ court We had better judges in the past –Oditah 42

Western Region crisis: How Awolowo, Akintola parted ways 46

Celebrating Adegbite, exAG, Western Region 45

Governor Babatunde Fashola

The new Lagos Parks and Gardens Law has elicited reactions from the stakeholders and residents in the state. KAYODE KETEFE, Assistant Head, Judiciary writes.

new law tagged ‘Parks and Garden Law 2012’, recently becomes the latest in the series of legislation that are coming out in torrents from Lagos State lawmakers apparently in their bid to transform the state into an ideal, orderly and thriving mega city. Like its “predecessors” the Road Traffic Law 2012 and the new Tenancy Law, 2011 which have generated sustained controversies (with the former having spawned litigation) this new law, commonly known as “Beautification Law” is provoking the greatest furore and controversies of the lots. While the law features a number of provisions which might be described as “moderate”, it sparked the “mother of all controversies” by containing a provision mandating all the landlords and tenement occupiers in the state to beautify the perimeter areas of their properties with flowers and landscaping or risk six months imprisonment! There is however the option of fine of N250, 000 for the defaulting landlords, thus, it is only

Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Adeyemi Ikuforiji

when they refuse or prove unable to pay the fine that custodial sanction becomes operative. Apart from this much- publicised provision, the P and G Law created a number of other offences relating to misuse or abuse of the parks and gardens in the state. These offences include walking on lawns and gardens instead of designated walkways; urinating, spitting or defecating in any area of the parks, gardens or opens spaces. Other offences include loitering or soliciting for illegal purposes, smoking, distributing controlled substance or engaging in disorderly conduct. Littering, polluting or dumping litter or refuse in any park or garden also constitute offences which are sanctioned with punitive measures under the law. Failure to control animals or allowing defecation; or engaging in unhygienic use of

BEAUTIFY THE PERIMETER AREAS OF YOUR PROPERTIES WITH FLOWERS AND LANDSCAPING OR RISK SIX MONTHS IMPRISONMENT

fountains, pools or water in the parks, gardens and open spaces are also prohibited with stiff penalties. Promptly after the law was made, the Lagos State Government swung into action by inaugurating the agency called the Lagos State Parks and Gardens Agency, (LASPARK) that would monitor and oversee the implementation of the law, Upon inauguration, about 128 landscaped and beautified sites and 14 parks were handed over to the agency while Mr. Olukunle Sotade was appointed as the inaugural General Manager. As a result of sustained public outcry that greeted the new law, the state government, through both its Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Ade Ipaye and the Commissioner for the Environment, Mr. Tunji Bello, sought to allay the fears of Lagosians both on the issues of intent of the law and the way it would be implemented. Bello gave further insight into the provisions of the law when addressing newsmen shortly after it was made. He said “It is now mandatory for tenement/owners and occupiers to landscape and beautify the perimeter areas of their properties. “A violation of this would attract N250, 000 or the amount the state would incur if it decides to carry out the beautification, or six months imprisonment or other non-custodian CONTINUED ON PAGE 44

Law & Justice

Monday, October 8, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

We had better judges

Prof. Fidelis Oditah is a United Kingdombased Nigerian lawyer. He is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and has attained the prestigious rank of a Queen’s Counsel (QC). A first class scholar and an alumnus of both the Universities of Lagos and Oxford, UK, he has an extensive legal practice in Nigeria and UK. In this interview with WALE IGBINTADE and CAROLINE CHUKWUKA, Oditah speaks about the decline in the standard of legal education and the quality of judgements in Nigerian courts, among other issues. Excerpts.

How will you assess legal education in Nigeria? I think the standard of education generally has declined and I believe this is not peculiar to Law; it is something that cuts across all sectors of education in Nigeria. In fact, you might say it cuts across all tiers of education: primary schools, secondary schools, universities. But to answer your question precisely, yes, I think the standard of legal education has declined. Is this attributable to the quality of teachers and lecturers in the educational institutions? I think it would be simplistic to attribute to the decline in the standard of law education the quality of lecturers or the lack of quality lecturers. I believe that it is a combination of factors. The first is the decline in the quality of secondary education which means that when people come to the universities to study Law, they don’t have the numeracy and literacy skills which they would have acquired in primary school. I have heard a lot of debate on whether law students should be made to study English in the first year. I think that those discussions are entirely misplaced; you need to ensure that people acquire the skills which they need at different stages. So, when you are in primary school, you acquire basic numeracy and literacy skills which you then build upon when you are in secondary school. When you come to the university, you are there to acquire knowledge in particular area like History, English, Insurance, Law, Medicine, among others. That is not the stage that you start teaching an adult who is supposed to be studying for a medical degree what is the difference between a noun and a pronoun or what a verb is or what an adverb is, those are the things you should have learnt in primary school. To pull the threads together, it appears to me that the decline that one is witnessing is a function of a general decline and, apart from that, it is also a function of inadequate funding of these institutions. There are hundreds of universities in Nigeria today or uni-factories as they call them, because they are just producing certificates as opposed to highly specialised and general knowledge about particular subjects. Not long ago, the immediate past CJN advocated that Law should be a second degree programme. What is your take on this? I don’t understand what the thinking behind it is, but I know about the debate whether Law should be a second degree programme. In a general sense, if one had studied English or History, Psychology or Philosophy before coming to Law, you would expect him to appreciate better what Law is all about. That is not because there is any intrinsic merit in Philosophy, English or History grade; it is simply a function of the exposure to another discipline which the person has had for three or four years. If for example, I had studied Journalism before coming into Law, there might be some knowledge and skills which are transportable from my Mass Communication study to my legal study. But whether or not I need Mass Communication first before I study Law is a different proposition. I don’t agree that you need a first degree before you study Law.

Oditah

I THINK WE HAD FAR BETTER JUDGES IN THE PAST THAN THE PRESENT The Americans do it, the Europeans generally don’t, there is no evidence that the Americans are better than the Europeans or the English who do not insist on Law as a second degree. On the contrary, what I have found in England is that people who have studied English, History, Mathematics, Medicine can turn to Law by doing a one year conversion course and some of them are the best lawyers. If you go to UK Supreme Court, over 50 percent of them did not study Law, they came to Law via the one year conversion programme. So, at the time where people are trying to shorten the length of time required to qualify, we are trying to elongate it. Someone does four or five years to acquire a basic degree and then he comes back to Law to do another four or five years. By the time you finish, you are almost thirty and you should be ready to marry and have a family, whereas you are just about to come out with your law degree and then you go and attend the Law School and maybe you also do youth service. But, assuming you would gain something by doing so, what is the quality of the judges you are going to be making submissions to when you come out very learned after 12 or 13 years? Some of whom know very little and they are going to be the decision makers. So, your submissions may be brilliant, but they don’t understand it. You may have acquired all those degrees, but they don’t understand what you are saying to them, how does that helps anyone? The numbers are just too many coming into the profession and the general quality are declining. We have the same problem in the practice, we try to recruit and we find out that some of the young stars who come to us with very good academic and post- university certificates simply don’t know what they should know. They are not prepared to practice; they may be prepared to go to court to get you a date. But, you cannot trust them. And I compare them with some of my juniors in England and without meaning to disparage anyone; I think I find a great disparity between a junior barrister who, maybe have two years post- call and someone who is five years post- call here. I would prefer a twoyear post call English barrister to even a five or 10 –years post- call barrister here. Of course, there are few people who are exceptions to this, who are very good even at one

or two years here. But in general, the quality is not comfortable at all, I would rely more on what my two-year junior does for me in England than what the five or 10 years post- call lawyer does for me here in Nigeria. You have practiced in other jurisdictions, how do you see the quality of judgements being churned out by Nigerian courts? The quality of the Nigerian judgements is very poor, but it hasn’t always been like that. When I was doing my doctorate degree in Oxford in the ‘80s, I used to be able to cite one or two or three Nigerian cases in my thesis as being good expositions of the Common Law. But, I must tell you with all humility that I did not find any judgement in modern day judgement that I am comfortable with. But, again that is part of the decline in standards that we started with. I think we had far better judges in the past because people always feel that the past is always better than the present. On the contrary, in many societies, the present is better than the past because of advances which are being made in various sectors of human endeavours, but in Nigeria, I think the past is far better than the present. There are many problems with the present. First of all, I think there has been a decline in merit- based appointment, and almost everything is done by lobbying. The people who lobbied most effectively and get appointed are not necessarily the best lawyers, so you can’t expect much to come out from them. Secondly, there is an undue emphasis on procedures. If you looked at any Nigerian Law Report, almost 70 or 80 percent of what is reported are purely technical issues of procedures, which have no consequence to anybody except here (Nigeria). You read judgements and you find that almost 60 or 70 percent of all civil or criminal litigation begin with procedural objection, jurisdiction, preliminary objection, proper party and joinder. These are all procedural issues; you don’t find much substantive issue of law. When you find substantive issue of law, like principles of contract law or principle of trust law or principle of property law, you find they engage in them superficially, with little or no analysis. So, that contributes to the poverty in judgement that we see today; but no system can make progress by being so addicted and wedded to technical and procedural issues and that is why the courts are overworked because when you have a very weak and ineffective system for dealing with procedural issues, then every procedural issues get to the Supreme Court. You just find

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.neta

Monday, October 8, 2012

Law & Justice

in the past –Oditah

masses and masses of cases which add nothing to anyone’s knowledge. Some of your colleagues have suggested that a number of senior lawyers be appointed to the Supreme Court Bench. What is your view? I think there must be diversity in the pool of people appointed to the higher Bench. It is a matter of obvious common sense that you must get into your appellate courts very able people. It cannot simply be a matter of promotion. It is not a civil service in that sense because you are asking people to decide very interesting and important issues of principle. So, you must take note of not only just people from practice, but even academic. The current Chief Judge of Kenya was not taken from the Bench, they advertised for the position, he applied and they appointed him. Recently, Singapore appointed their former Attorney-General first to their Supreme Court and then almost immediately as their Chief Justice. Those are dynamic appointments. The same thing happened in the US when Justice Robert was taken to the Supreme Court and made the Chief Justice. You cannot make this thing simply a matter of promotion because many of the old judges have nothing to contribute. They have absolutely no idea and cannot move the judiciary forward. Yes, they may be the most senior, but it doesn’t mean that they have the needed leadership qualities required to move the judiciary forward. Secondly, I have no doubt that the appellate courts will benefit from the infusion of quality from the Bar and even from the academia. After all, you are confronting issues of principles and when you are confronting issues of principles, you must benefit from people who are able to engage in rigorous analysis. It is not just cut and paste, counsel said this, and this one said that. I agree with this, I don’t agree with that. That is so pedestrian. I don’t understand why the judges are resisting the appointment of people to the appellate Bench from the Bar. It must be good for the Bench. It is all conceit on their part to think that they know it all and they don’t require assistance from anybody. The present Court of Appeal is so weak, so wishywashy with conflicting and unbelievable authorities. You will be amazed to see that those judgements were produced by people who call themselves lawyers, not to talk of senior lawyers, which is a disgrace.

But, do we have competent senior lawyers that can be appointed to the apex court? I believe that there are many very able senior lawyers at the Bar, who will bring a lot of quality to the Bench. You have to know that the best lawyers are actually at the Bar and not at the Bench. There are far better lawyers at the Bar than at any level of the Bench. But, that is not surprising, the reason is obvious, very few senior advocates are appointed to the Bench notwithstanding the deserved criticism of the procedure for appointing senior advocates, they still represent largely the best lawyers in Nigeria. There are some who don’t deserve the rank, but who have it. But, many of those senior advocates are exceptionally able lawyers. They are far better than judges you find at any level, whether at the Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court. Look at the judges of the Federal High Court who were appointed this year, you cannot say those were the best practitioners in Nigeria at the date of the appointment. But, because so many able lawyers are declining to apply, senior advocates don’t apply, so you get those lawyers who are not necessarily the best lawyers into the Bench. If you contrast that with the process at the UK almost 99 percent of all those appointed to the High Court Bench are distinguished Queen’s Counsel who have practiced for very considerable period of time. It is unusual to appoint people who have served less than 10 years as Queen’s Counsel onto the High Court Bench. There had been one or two exceptions. So, when you look at the pool of people who are appointed to the High Court Bench, you are talking about the best lawyers at the time you are appointing them. Even, if you continue to select from that pool, it would be very high quality pool, but you don’t have the same quality pool in Nigeria. If you look at that high court Bench which is at the same level with the Federal High Court, no one can

THE PRESENT COURT OF APPEAL IS SO WEAK, SO WISHYWASHY WITH CONFLICTING AND UNBELIEVABLE AUTHORITIES place his hands on the chest and say ‘’this are the best lawyers at this time’’. Some of them are people who are selling land somewhere and then they lobbied and get appointed. Some are in-house lawyers whose parents have lobbied for them and they get appointed. And, then they sit down there and after 15 or 20 years they claim they are now the most senior in the country. They have nothing to offer to anyone. You just cannot improve your system like this. You must have a merit- based system. Who says because you are the oldest person, then you are the most able? Why don’t we practice that in other spheres? Why do we believe that just because someone is the oldest judge, then he should be the CJ of a State or he should be the presiding justice of the Court of Appeal? We must promote merit and a system which doesn’t promote merit is deceiving itself. For commerce, most people now push towards arbitration because of the unpredictability of the outcome, which largely is a function of quality on the Bench. We need to do something drastic both in terms of improving the quality and also try to disentangle the system from all the technical and procedural difficulties that it has enmeshed in. But, the truth is that many of these senior lawyers have made so much money from their legal practice and don’t find the Bench attractive in terms of remunerations. I don’t think that is a valid objection. I think maybe they need to improve a little bit the remuneration of judges. I don’t know how much they pay them, but I do believe that for a poor country like Nigeria, notwithstanding the excesses that you see everywhere, Nigeria is a poor country. I think that for such a poor country, a salary of about $100, 000 dollars is sufficient. How do you see the future of legal profession in Nigeria? I think the legal profession is in crisis and there is an urgent need to reform it. The reason why people come to lawyers for legal advice is because you are able to predict how the cases would be decided based on legal principles. It is not because you are going to negotiate with the judge, people seek legal advice because we know by the Common Law tradition, that there are certain principles and if you apply those principles with the fact, you should get an out-

come. The judgement should be predictable, it should be transparent and that is one of the trends of the Common Law. If you don’t have that, you cannot predict the outcome of litigation because the outcome is being affected by external consideration which has nothing to do with the merit or strength of the case. With due respect to all the actors in that process that process is contaminated, almost fatally. There is an urgent need to restore credibility into the legal profession. What is your assessment of the Nigerian judiciary after 52 years of independence? As I have said earlier, I have no doubt in my mind that the judiciary has been on the decline, almost a free fall. And, I think the judges themselves, if they are honest men and women and they look back at some of the judgements in the 60s, 70s and even late 80s, they will see that there is a big difference between those judgements and what they now churn out as judgements. They will see that the people who they have succeeded are far superior to themselves and that they are not worthy to be successors to those people they succeeded. Could you mention some of these early justices? I don’t need to mention any name, if you take the Supreme Court of the ‘80s, when the likes of Idigbe, Obaseki, Irikefe, Fatayi- Williams, Kayode Eso were on the Bench and you compare that with the Supreme Court that you have now, which looks almost anonymous, you will see that there is no basis to compare them. It may be that it is not their fault, because they are overworked and they are more concerned by procedural imposition. Sometimes, in the Court of Appeal, there say you have just five minutes to argue an appeal that to me, is travesty of justice. How will you tell your client who has waited for three of four years for the appeal to get there and you are saying a complex appeal has just five minutes? It is crazy and I see it happen all the time. They say we have a few number of courts, so what? Case management is a problem in Nigeria. Some of the justices of the Court of Appeal often claim they have few weeks before vacation and they cannot take any substantive appeal, we can’t write judgement. What a shame! Do you support the establishment of special court to determine corruption cases? I do not believe that establishment of special court will reduce corruption significantly. Why won’t they become corrupt themselves? Afterall, they are going to be manned by Nigerians.

Law & Justice

Monday, October 8, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Controversy rages on relevance of gardens’ legislation CONTINUED FROM PAGE 41 sentence. Furthermore, anyone caught felling trees in the state or trimming them without permission would be fined a minimum of N50,000 or sent to one year imprisonment.” Ipaye had also said, “This law is not aimed at victimising house owners, it simply means that if you have a house, you must ensure that the lawns are well kept. If there is a gutter in front of the house, it should not become a dumpsite for refuse, which is the practice in some houses now. “As a responsible government, we will not fold our hands to watch our people being killed as a result of malaria, cholera, diarrhea and other diseases associated with living in an unclean environment,” Also defending the penalty prescribed for defaulters under the new law, Ipaye said, “The N250,000 fine was the maximum amount an offender could be fined for violating the law. “This simply means that the judge or magistrate can fine the person any amount within that range. “The same applies for the six months imprisonment but it is only those who are planning to violate the law that should be worried” Among the people who first criticised the law was a Lagos-based lawyer and human rights activist, Mr. Bamidele Aturu, who described it as a legislative initiative that would be very difficult to implement. Aturu said, “Beauty, as they say, is in the eyes of the beholder and a man determines what he considers beautiful and ugly. This means that you cannot impose your sense of beauty on mine. I do not know how they are going to

Sagay

Aturu

implement that law. My position is that the law is not capable of being implemented and is not capable of addressing the problems of Lagosians. It is a case of giving priority to ringworm over leprosy.” National Mirror sought the views of some stakeholders and other notable lawyers, as well as landlords and tenants on this issue. In his own view, Prof. Itse Sagay (SAN), said, “You see, what I find is that our people somehow complain a lot when they are being shown the right direction! How can anybody complain about planting flowers in his environment? What is so difficult about that? Even let us say the penalty for not doing it is imprisonment for a hundred years, that is a type of imprisonment that is easily avoidable. “This is because all you have to do to escape it is to get some plants, do a little landscaping and plant! Everywhere would not only look

I DON’T THINK ANYONE HAS THE RIGHT TO COERCE ME TO PLANT FLOWERS beautiful as the Lagos State government itself has demonstrated by the parks and gardens we have everywhere, the environment would be healthier. “The truth is that our people are too indisciplined, at times they need a hard hand to nudge them on.” Another Lagos-based lawyer, Mr. Tola Oladapo, said: “I don’t think any government; be it federal or state has the right to dictate how a tenement occupier is to beautify his or her premises. If we are talking about hygiene

and maintenance of clean environment, then there would not be any problem. “But why should any government make it a law with sanction that landlords must plant flowers? What if I own a house and I am allergic to flowers? By the way if you say I must do landscape it comes at a cost, will the government give me loan to execute it and make me repay the loan at my convenience?” A landlord in Akindele Street, Agbado Ijaiye area, Alhaji Ismael Tijani, said, “When the Lagos State Government made the new Tenancy Law, some of us were saying that they did not build our house for us and, therefore, could not tell us how much advance rent we are to collect, now they made this law. Well, I believe my house is beautiful as it is and I don’t think anyone has the right to coerce me to plant flowers. But if that is what they want, we would plant the flowers, but to me the law is laughable.” Another Landlord in Arowojobe Area of Oshodi, Mrs. Folake Oluwole, said, “What we want the government to do is to provide employment opportunities for our graduate children still looking for jobs. All these talks about flowers do not bother me. If it is about making my house beautiful, we will make it beautiful to the best of our ability, flowers or no flowers” A tenant living in an overcrowded area of Iyana Ipaja, Mr. Tope Amodu, said: “I am living in one room in face-me-I-face-you building. The place is very crowded and we don’t even have premises, every available space is already used up, where are we going to plant the flowers? The government does not make this law for people like us, I think, maybe it for all those rich people living in, Victoria Island, Lekki, Ajah and other areas!”

Onalaja, Lord Denning’s disciple JUDICATURE FRANCIS FAMOROTI

ustice Moronkeji Onalaja is a retired judge of the Court of Appeal. He is one of the Nigerian judges whose erudition on the Bench is unassailable. While on the Bench, Onalaja demonstrated clear understanding and analysis of the case laws. Evidently in the review of Onalaja’s book ‘’ Commentaries from the Bench –the third edition, Prof Itse Sagay states ‘’no one should be surprised at the increasing prodigious output of Justice Onalaja, who, apart from being a Justice of the renowned Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal, has produced a number of outstanding and well-acknowledged judgements in his career.’’ Onalaja was appointed a judge of the Lagos State High Court on September 8, 1980 and was elevated to the Appeal Court Bench in 1993. The existing law reports and journals speak volumes of his judgements and rulings. He was committed to the development

of the law and jurisprudence in the country as was the case in England with his judicial hero, the Master of the Rolls, Lord Denning. Among the cases he had handled as a judge was the famous Bronik case (Wema Bank Nig Ltd .v. Bronik Motors Limited) in which the jurisdiction of the state High Court and the Federal Revenue Court (now Federal High Court) were lucidly and rationally defined and delimited. The decision was upheld by the Supreme Court and this lit his fame and set the scene for his ascendancy in the judicial service. Another landmark decision with far more profound implications was Onalaja’s judgement in Olulode v. Oviasu (1981) regrettably unreported, in which he declared that section 39(2) of the 1979 Constitution had abolished the status of illegitimacy in Nigeria. This was a courageous decision because at that time, this was a minority and an unpopular view. According to Prof. Sagay in the book review, ‘’ It was not until 1997 that the Court of Appeal confirmed this radical view in T. E. A Salubi v. Mrs. Benedicta Nwariakwu (1997) 5 NWLR (Pt 505) independently, because Olulode v. Oviasu was not cited before the Court of Appeal. Again in the Registered Trustees of the Constitutional Rights Project .v. The President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (The Lekwot case) (1993), Onalaja broke new grounds in the country’s constitutional and

Justice Onalaja

Human Rights law when he declared that the provisions of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights override Nigerian military Decrees suspending human rights and ousting the jurisdiction of the courts, on the ground that the provisions of the charter constituted international obligations and, therefore, prevailed over domestic legislation including Decrees of the Federal Government. Onalaja’s foray into customary law was equally interesting with incisive analysis. He is an author of a series of books which included Commentaries from the Bench parts one, two and three. Prof Sagay sees the book as a treasury of legal principles and anecdotes. The jurist retired from the

Appellate Court Bench in July 2003. Prior to his appointment as a judge, Onalaja was in private practice. As a practising lawyer ,he handled many landmark cases with remarkable gusto. A few of the cases he successfully defended included Prof. Soyanwo who was charged with obstructing S.L Akintola, former Premier of Western Region; the accused was discharged by reason that a moving vehicle cannot constitute an obstruction. He was in the group of lawyers that successfully defended Wole Soyinka during the case involving the robbery of a radio tape at the NBC (now FRCN), Ibadan. Onalaja also defended Alhaji Azeez Ajagbemokeferi , an Islamic religious leader charged with assaulting a traditional masquerade in Ibadan. The latter was discharged on appeal by the Ibadan High Court. Born in Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State on July 24, 1933, Onalaja attended the famous C.M.S Grammar School in Lagos and, thereafter, travelled abroad to study at the London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London where he obtained his LL.B Degree (Hons) in 1956 and LL.M in 1958 respectively. He was called to the English Bar on June 16, 1959 at the Inner Temple. He enrolled in Nigeria the following year and served his pupilage in the chambers of E.B Craig & Co (later Justice E.B Craig) until he set up his law firm in 1963 and was appointed Notary Public in 1966.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Law & Justice

Monday, October 8, 2012

Celebrating Adegbite, ex-AG, Western Region FRANCIS FAMOROTI

ot many Nigerians really know that the late Secretary -General of the Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Dr. Abdullateef Adegbite, 79 was a lawyer and a one-time Attorney General of the Western Region. The fact, however, remains that Adegbite, an exponent of peaceful coexistence of religious tolerance, who passed on September 28, actually studied Law and qualified as a lawyer. Having graduated from the University of Southampton in the United Kingdom (UK) with a law degree in July 1962, he became a renowned lawyer, and in later life, he demonstrated more passion for the cause of Islam in the country and beyond. Glimpses into his profile showed that after stepping out of the university, Adegbite attended the College of Law for Solicitors, Lancaster Gate in London. He distinguished himself as a trained lawyer and this gave him a leeway to secure a Commonwealth Scholarship to pursue his post graduate studies, which earned him a doctorate degree in law. On his return to Nigeria, he began his teaching career at the University of Lagos (UINLAG) before he was appointed Attorney-General of the old Western Region in 1973. When he left the government three years later in 1976, he founded the legal firm of Lateef Adegbite & Co as the Principal Partner, specialising in commercial and corporate law. Despite his sound pedigree in the legal profession, Adegbite was more prominent propagating

Tribute the cause of Islam. As an Islamic scholar, he never made any inflammatory remarks on religious issues, neither did he incite one religious sect against the other. His slogan in public arenas always was that Islam, like any other religion, preaches peace and abhorred violence. It suffices to say that during his lifetime, the deceased was a famous Islamic scholar and a widely acclaimed religious bridge builder. Since the news of his demise filtered in, top public functionaries, notable leaders of the Muslim community and even the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) have been paying glowing tributes on Adegbite’s exit. Among them was the Ogun State Governor, Mr. Ibikunle Amosun who was saddled with the task of announcing the news of Adegbite’s demise. In his tribute, the governor said of Adegbite, “He shone like a star in the field of law and was well known across the world as the mouthpiece of Islam in Nigeria.” Amosun said that the late Seriki Musulumi and Baba Adinni of Egbaland was a man who usually offered wise counsel to governments at federal and state levels. The governor added that the demise of Dr Adegbite was not just a loss to Ogun State, but to Nigeria as a whole. Former governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel said, “In Dr Lateef Adegbite’s death, Ogun State and, indeed Nigeria, has lost an icon, probably one of the last of the titans, a colossus and a pillar of moderate religious leaning and preacher of peace.” He added: “Dr Adegbite was a patriot

Mallam Yusuf Ali recently donated a building to the University of Ilorin, Kwara State. Retired President, Court of Appeal, Justice Mustapha Akanbi (left) and Mallam Ali (SAN) at the event.

Late Adegbite

and statesman who worked tirelessly to foster religious harmony and unity in our diverse country. Under his watch as the Secretary General of the Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, the body became a fulcrum for campaigning and advancing the cause of peace and unity among adherents of different faiths in the country. He was a detribalized Nigerian who rose above ethnic and religious sentiments in his work and walk through life.” The Catholic Emeritus Archbishop of Lagos, Anthony Cardinal Okogie was said to have expressed shock and prayed for the repose of Adegbite’s soul. Narrating his relationship with the late Muslim scholar, Okogie was quoted as saying that “when I was CAN president, we were very close, he was a balanced Muslim leader. He used to come to my office and he would tell me he wasn’t feeling well, and I would advise him to go and take care of his health and he would also advise me to do likewise. “During that period, we talked about the killings in the North and he would say those who are doing that have no good knowledge of religion. He had very encouraging words such that we should pray for one another. He believed that we are serving one God and advised that we should always pray for our leaders and that is the kind of person he was,” Okogie said. A close associate, Alhaji Razaq Bello, who is the General Secretary of Joint Najah Joint Muslim Organisation (NAJOMO), described the deceased as a colossus, an icon and a role model for all, especially the Muslim community. Bello who said he was Adegbite’s associate for 25 years added; “My men-

tor was an eminent scholar and lawyer who was highly respected. Alhaji Adegbite will not hurt a fly. We all love him and his death is a great loss.” Born on March 20, 1933 into a Muslim Egba family in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Adegbite attended Methodist School, Abeokuta and Arabic School; then he entered St. Paul’s Primary School in Igbore, Abeokuta in 1942, when he was aged nine. He obtained a scholarship to attend King’s College, Lagos, where he was co-founder and first national president of the Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria, graduating in 1956. In 1959 the Premier of the Western Region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo offered him scholarship to travel to England to study Law under a scheme drafted by Chief F.R.A. Williams. Adegbite attended the University of Southampton, graduating with a B.A. in Law in July 1962. He then studied at the College of Law for Solicitors, Lancaster Gate in London, and then at Gray’s Inn (1963–1965). Later he won a Commonwealth Scholarship for postgraduate studies in England. He lectured at the University of Lagos, and went into private practice in September 1976. In 1971, Adegbite was appointed Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters in the old Western Region; during the military administration of Brigadier Christopher Oluwole Rotimi. He was then appointed Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General of the Western Region in 1973. In October 1976, he founded the legal firm of Lateef Adegbite & Co as the Principal Partner, with main office in Lagos and a branch office in Abeokuta, specializing in commercial and corporate Law.

Law & Justice

Monday, October 8, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Western Region crisis: How Awolowo, Akintola parted ways Fifty years ago, the leadership of the defunct Action Group (AG) was embroiled in a political crisis that culminated in the removal of Chief Ladoke Akintola, as the Premier of the Western Region. This resulted in fierce legal duel among the prominent AG leaders at the law court and later, the Privy Council. FRANCIS FAMOROTI, Ag. Head, Judiciary, reports.

any of the standard biographies of Nigerian leaders and journalistic accounts have never minced words that Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Chief Samuel Ladoke Akintola were close allies and promoters of the AG. Shortly after the country’s independence, the AG’s control of the Western Region was weakened and there was an imminent collapse of the party structure because of divisions within the party that reflected cleavages within the Yoruba society. The leadership of the AG , which formed the official opposition in the federal parliament, split in May 1962 as a result of a rift between the party’s leader, Chief Awolowo and his erstwhile deputy and Premier of Western Nigeria, Chief Akintola. Various historical accounts abound on the circumstances that led to the rift between the two political leaders. While some historians claimed that the genesis of the political crisis in Western Nigeria began with the sacking of Chief J.F Odunjo as the Chairman, Western Region Marketing Board by Akintola over interfamily squabbles, others attributed the offshoot of the crisis to hard line stance of the AG leaders over differences that could have been amicably be resolved within the party. According to a publication of The Human Rights Law Service (HURILAWS) “Managing Election Conflicts in Nigeria”, the AG crisis of 1962 arose primarily from disagreement over matters of ideology between Chief Awolowo, the party’s leader and Chief S.L Akintola, his deputy. Akintola was expelled for anti-party activities, among other reasons, and he went on to form the United Peoples Party (UPP). “The UPP and some members of NCNC and the Nigerian National Democratic Party (NNDP) formed an alliance, which controlled the government of the Western Region until the Western Regional elections of 1965.” Prof. John.N. Paden in his book “Ahmadu Bello, Sardauna of Sokoto- Values and Leadership in Nigeria, said ‘’the key leaders of Northern Peoples’ Congress (NPC) held secret talks with the Yoruba. Some of these meetings had actually begun in 1961- 62, and Awolowo and the Sarduana met casually on a few occasions and agreed to hold meetings. But Awolowo seemed more interested in documenting the discussions and the agreements for future use. The NPC decided to try Akintola. “The NPC came to regard Awolowo as the stumbling block to a union between the Yoruba and the north. Akintola was more trustworthy than Awolowo. The thinking was that later they might form one single party with Akintola.” Another account in an article titled “Nigeria Politics in the Crisis Years”

Awolowo

FAMOUS CASES AKINTOLA’S REMOVAL IN MAY 1962 SPARKED A BLOODY RIOT IN THE

WESTERN REGION

obtained from the website of the Library of Congress Country Studies, states that “Awolowo favoured the adoption of democratic socialism as party policy, following the lead of Kwame Nkrumah’s regime in Ghana. This radical ideology that Awolowo expressed was seen as a bid to make the AG an interregional party that drew support across the country from educated younger voters. ‘‘Akintola, in reaction, attempted to retain the support of conservative party elements. He called for better relations with the Northern Peoples’ Congress (NPC) and an all party federal coalition that would remove the AG from opposition and give its leaders greater access to power’’. Awolowo’s majority expelled Akintola from the party. The then Governor of the Western Region, the Ooni of Ife, Sir Adesoji Aderemi demanded Akintola’s resignation as Premier and named Alhaji Dauda Adegbenro as his successor. Crisis erupted in the Western Nigeria and this earned the region the appellation “Wild Wild West.” This action resulted in some legal battles as Akintola challenged his re-

Akintola

moval as the Premier of the region. The series of cases became popularly known and cited as Akintola-vs- Aderemi & Adegbenro (1962) 1 All. NLR. 442, Adegbenro –vsAkintola & Aderemi (1962) 1 All NLR 465 and Adegbenro-vs- Akintola (1963) All NLR 305. In Adegbenro- vs- Akintola in May 1962, for instance, the issue tried by the court was the removal of Akintola as the Premier of Western Nigeria. Specifically, Sir Aderemi had removed Chief Akintola from the office of Premier, and appointed Alhaji Dauda Adegbenro to the position. Akintola’s supporters allegedly went wild and unleashed violence in the region while supporters of Awolowo reportedly retaliated. Akintola sued Adegbenro and the AG leadership, and the Federal Supreme Court decided that he had been wrongly removed. Exercising a right conferred by Section 114 of the then Constitution of Western Nigeria, Adegbenro appealed to the Privy Council, where the judgement was upturned in his favour on the interpretation of S. 33 (10) (a) of the constitution. According to A.D Badaiki (1996) Interpretation of Statutes ‘’This proviso was later amended by the Constitution of Western Nigeria (Amendment) Law, 1963 retroactively in a manner which settled the question of the Premiership in Akintola’s favour, but without mention of the court suit or of the costs awarded by the Privy Council to Alhaji Adegbenro.” On the question of whether Adegbenro was entitled to recover costs awarded to him, it was held that it is presumed that the legislature does not desire to confiscate the property or to encroach upon the right of persons, and, as there was no clear implication that the legislature intended not only to settle a political question, but also to deprive Adegbenro of his costs by the Constitution of Western Nigeria (Amendment) Law, 1963, his right to costs remained unaffected. Akintola then organised the UPP, which pursued a policy of collaboration with the NPC –National Council of Nigeria and Cameroun (NCNC) government in the

federal parliament. Akintola’s removal in May 1962 sparked a bloody riot in the Western Region and brought effective government to an end as rival legislators, following the example in the streets, introduced violence to the floor of the regional legislature. The Federal Government declared a state of emergency, dissolved the legislature, and appointed a medical practitioner, Dr. Adekoyejo Majekodunmi as an administrator for the Western Region. One of his first acts was to place many AG leaders under house arrest. Later, the Police uncovered evidence linking Awolowo with a conspiracy to overthrow the government. With a number of other AG leaders, he was arrested and tried for treason. Authorities claimed that 200 activists had received military training in Ghana and had smuggled arms into Nigeria in preparation for a coup d’état. Awolowo was found guilty, along with 17 others, and was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. Chief Anthony Enahoro, Awolowo’s close ally, who had been abroad at the time of the coup, was extradited from Britain and was also convicted of treason and imprisoned. In the meantime, the state of emergency was lifted and Balewa, obtained Akintola’s reinstatement as Premier of the Western Region at the head of a coalition between the NCNC and the UPP. The AG successfully contested the legality of this action in the courts, but a retroactive amendment to the Western Region’s constitution that validated Akintola’s reappointment was quickly enacted. As Tafawa Balewa told parliament, the legality of the case “had been overtaken by events.” Later in 1963, Nigeria became a republic within the Commonwealth. The change in status called for no practical alteration of the constitutional system. The president, elected to a five-year term by a joint session of the parliament, replaced the crown as the symbol of national sovereignty and the British monarchy as head of state, Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe, who had been Governor-General, became the republic’s first president. This piece was first published on Monday, May 2, 2011.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Law & Justice

Monday, October 8, 2012

NIGERIA THROUGH MY WINDOW Barr. Chijioke Ndubuisi Godfreylaw2000@yahoo.com 08033027620 (sms only)

y first solo court appearance was in 2006 before a Lagos State High Court Judge. I was with my first law firm. Initially, I was to appear with a senior counsel, but he had to attend to another matter on short notice, so I had to appear in court by myself. The case was for pre-trial conference. I tried to contact the senior Counsel to find out what has transpired in the matter, but I could not reach him on the phone. It was a hard learning experience as it was obvious that I was not fully prepared for the matter. But at the end, I learnt from my

NBA’s plea against secession

H Adeniyi Olayode

It was a hard learning experience –Olayode mistakes. At the next adjourned date, I was up-to-date on the facts of the matter and ad-

dressed the court quite effectively. At the end, the court ruled in my favour.

Bar Jokes

Source of darkness

doctor, a lawyer, and an engineer are going out golfing. They are trying to decide whose profession came first. The doctor says, “My profession came first because when God removed Adam’s rib he performed surgery.” The engineer then says, “No,

no, no. When the earth was dark and void God created light. That was engineering.” The lawyer says, “You’re both wrong.” The doctor and engineer reply, “Oh yeah? What makes you think yours came first?” The lawyer replies, “Where do you think the darkness came from?”

Lawyer and a doctor

lawyer is cross-examining a doctor on the stand about whether or not he had checked the pulse of the deceased before he signed the death certificate. “No,” the doctor said, “I did not check his pulse.” “And did you listen for a heartbeat?” said the lawyer. “No, I did not,” said the doctor.

“So,” said the lawyer, “when you signed the death certificate, you had not taken steps to make sure he was dead.” The doctor, having enough of the lawyer’s ridicule, stated, “Well, let me put it this way. The man’s brain was in a jar on my desk, but for all I know he could be out practicing law somewhere.”

A burglary charge

y lawyer was trying to get me off a burglary charge. He told the judge “ My client inserted his ar m through a window and removed some items. As his ar m is not his whole being, I submit that it would be wrong to punish the whole person for a crime committed by a sole limb. The Judge replied “Okay

- using that logic, the defendant’s ar m is sentenced to two years in prison and can accompany the limb if he chooses”. So with the aid of my lawyer, I unscrewed my artificial ar m, placed it on the table and walked out of the courtroom.

Amazing Lawyers’ jokes

istorically, it would appear that patriotic and genuine calls and demands by eminent personalities and groups for a change of attitudes, actions and inactions perceived to be inimical against the laws and not in the interest of generality of Nigerians and Nigeria have often fallen on the deaf ears leading to catastrophical consequences on the nation. That it was the late sage Chief Obafemi Awolowo, who during the second Republic precisely in 1982 called on the then President Shehu Shagari Government to take urgent steps to pilot the economy as he put it “The Economy is grinding to a halt”. The then NPN Government not only ignored the call, the party called him a prophet of doom. In not too long time, Chief Awolowo’s call became manifest and there was the 1983 military putsch that saw the government overthrown. That marked the beginning of economic woes and quagmire affecting the country up till this moment. Evidence of altruistic calls by Nigerians of different walks of life on many issues turning to be exercise in futility abound. Against this background, it is pertinent to x-ray the recent call by Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) to Federal Government asking it to call Ogoni people and the Bayelsa State Government to order over declaration of self government, own flags and anthem. It would be recalled that on August 2 2012, the people of Ogoni declared its own political autonomy, stating that the action was for “the advancement of liberty in freedom and preservation of ancestral heritage of the ogoni people”. The spokesman of the MOSOP, Dr Goodluck Digbo vowed that the Ogoni people are determined to enforce the United Nation declaration on right of indigenous peoples without fear or retreat. Again, Bayelsa State on August 8 equally rolled out its own flag, coat of arm and anthem. The rationale behind the action, the government argued is to forge a common identity for the Ijaws. The state alos says its people are joining the other nine states namely Lagos, Osun, Oyo, Ondo , Ogun, Ekiti, Kwara, Cross River and Rivers state. The NBA’s cry to Federal Government to call the Ogoni and the Bayelsa State government to order is hinged on unconstitutionality and illegality of the actions of the state as the steps being taken so far amounted secessionist tendencies. If not checked, it might lead to separation and disunity within the federation. This writer is clearly in agreement with NBA’s timely warning on FG to avert the impending secessionist tendencies of some states. This is accentuated by the fact that the reasons proffered by various states for their actions and inaction are clearly in conflict with preamble of the 1999 constitution which states that “ having firmly and solemnly resolved to live in unity and harmony as on indivisible and indissolu-

THE FED GOVT MUST LISTEN TO THE VOICE OF

NBA

AND NIP THE

SECESSION TENDENCIES IN THE BUD ble sovereign nation under god dedicated to promotion of inter-African solidarity, world peace international cooperation and understanding” . Whilst one can argue perhaps that the states and other ethnic groups which have declared self governments, printed their flags, and composed their anthems and coat of arms are motivated by patriotic spirit of forging unity and oneness among themselves and their ethnic groups but on a closer scrutiny, it is obvious that they are progressing in error even when there is no law backing their actions. For the avoidance of doubt, it is clearly enshrined in section 1(3) of 1999 constitution that if any other law is inconsistent with the provision of this constitution, this constitution shall prevail, and that other law shall to the extent of the inconsistency be void. Again, it is only the FG that has power to legislate on matters bordering on coat of arms, flags etc which is within exclusive legislative list in constitution. It is submitted vehemently that what was done by both the Ogoni and Bayelsa State and other nine states amounted to acts of succession which promotes separation and therefore unconstitutional. It is equally submitted that true federation does not include self government, owing flags, coat of arms and others by states in way that do not promote unity and peace and oneness of federation. We admonish the various state Governors who are in league of fanning the embers secessionist tendencies to tune down their actions to confirm with spirit of unity and sovereign nation, especially at this time when the security of the nation has been seriously threaten by activities of sect known as Boko Haram in Northern part of country. The kernel of our submission herein is that the FG must hearken to the voice of NBA and nip the secessionist tendencies in the bud and to learn from history because a neglect of the call might be calamitous. We urge the Attorney – General of Federation to be proactive by looking at the unconstitutional and unlawful activities of these states and groups and to use the instrumentality of court to stop them so as to serve as deterrent others. Ndubuisi Esq. is a Lagos-based legal practitioner and president of COGTLA group of lawyers.

Cocktail

Monday, October 8, 2012

FOR YOUR SUCCESS

WITH DR. DEJI FOLUTILE

Today's Tonic (17)

The greatest enemy of faith is what I call human alternatives. **David Oyedepo * * * Trust Only In God! Men can help us, but their help is limited without the help of God. When we place our trust in man, we are digging the graves of disappointment, bitterness and frustrations. In my little life, I have come to believe that the only authentic source of true help is God. When in our spirit man, we let go of our worries and anxieties and simply rest on God and His WORD, we will never be put to shame. Peace! TEL 08104942999 E-MAIL deji.folutile@gmail.com Follow me @TwitterOWOTIDE

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Oddities

Jailers accused of sending inmates on unsupervised beer runs

wo officers are charged with letting inmates go on beer runs at American Samoa’s only prison facility. Two corrections officers at American Samoa’s only jail are accused of letting some inmates leave the jail to go on shopping trips for beer and chips.

Officers Fiti Aina and Rocky Tua are being investigated after one of the Territorial Correctional Facility’s inmates escaped. According to court documents, one inmate said he was allowed to travel outside the jail to buy beer for a fellow inmate and

also to pick up chips and cookies for Officer Tua. The officers are now charged with aiding the escape of a prisoner, permitting escape and public servant acceding to corruption. They are being held on $10,000 bail each. After the inmate escaped, police investigated

his cell and found beer that appeared to have been purchased at a local store. Another inmate who was allowed to go on a beer and food run is currently serving a 40-month prison sentence after assaulting a civilian with a machete.

Dog D g makes k mysterious t i phone h call

Utah man said he panicked when he received a call from his house while he was at work but he soon discovered his dog had placed the call. Bruce Gardner of Orem said he had only been at work for about 10 minutes around 9 a.m. Wednesday when he received a call from his home phone, The (Salt Lake City) Deseret News reported Friday. “I knew nobody was home, so I answered it,” he said. “I said, ‘Hello,’

and all I could hear in the background was all this rustling noise. I wasn’t quite sure what it was. “My mind immediately went to, ‘I’m being robbed,’” Gardner said. However, Gardner and police arrived at the house to find there were no burglars. Gardner said it wasn’t until later in the evening when he thought to dial his home number from his cellphone while standing in his back yard.

“I called it, and I could hear the ring. I started going toward the sound and found it out here in the garden,” he said. Gardner said he determined his dog, Maya, had found the phone, which he apparently left outside, chewed it up and buried it in the garden. “She must have hit redial, and what I could hear was her playing with this phone and chewing the phone up,” he said. Gardner said he explained the situation to police and apologized.

Two officers are charged with letting inmates go on beer runs at American Samoa’s only prison facility. PHOTO: AP

Monday, October 8, 2012

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World News

“We have to find these spending reductions and if we want to avoid cuts in things like hospitals and schools - services that we all rely on - we have to look at things like the welfare budget” BRITISH PRIME MINISTER, DAVID CAMERON

13 killed as Sudan’s military plane crashes A Sudanese military plane has crashed outside the capital, Khartoum, killing some 13 people, officials disclosed, in a report from the BBC. The Russian-made Antonov was travelling from Khartoum to Fasher in the conflict-ridden region of Darfur. The plane made an emergency landing after trying to turn back to the air base in Khartoum because of mechanical problems, a military spokesman said. Some nine people were rescued from the crash site west of the capital, he told state TV. “Five minutes into the flight... the pilot radioed that one engine had stopped

working,” army spokesman Col al-Sawarmi Khalid told the BBC. “Shortly afterwards, he reported that a second engine on the same side (wing) had broken down, which made the plane unbalanced. He said he would make an emergency landing.” Jebel Aulia is a popular recreational area about one hour’s drive from the capital. There have been a number of deadly plane crashes in Sudan in recent years. In August, a civilian plane crashed in a southern state, killing more than 30 people including a government minister. The authorities say it is hard to get spare parts

The site of the plane crash in Sudan

because of US sanctions against Khartoum. Government forces are

Chavez’s socialist rule challenged as Venezuelans vote

ugo Chavez loyalists blew bugles in a wakeup call for voters yesterday as the Venezuelan leader faced the biggest electoral challenge yet to his socialist rule from a young rival tapping into discontent over crime and cronyism. Henrique Capriles, a centrist state governor, edged toward the still-popular Chavez in final polls thanks to a vigorous campaign that united the opposition and made him its best chance of ending the president’s 14-year tenure. Chavez has used record oil revenue to support ideological allies around the world while preaching a fiercely anti-American line, so the election is being watched eagerly from the United States to Belarus

and Iran. Queues formed at some polling centres long before they opened, and despite a few delays voting was going smoothly. “The battle has started!” the flamboyant former soldier wrote in an early morning rallying cry on Twitter. “Today we will write another chapter in history.” Chavez loyalists in poor neighbourhoods, where he draws his most fervent following, blew bugles and trumpets in the predawn wake-up call. In the centre of Caracas, some red-clad fans shouted “Long live Chavez!” from the back of trucks. Chavez, 58, staged a remarkable comeback from cancer this year. But he could not match the energy

Over 49 injured in Tunisia clashes

t least 49 policemen have been injured in clashes with demonstrators protesting against the reopening of a rubbish dump on Tunisia’s tourist island of Djerba, an interior ministry spokesman has said. “A large number of protesters in the centre of Guellala attacked a police post with rocks and petrol bombs,” Khaled Tarrouche said on Saturday. “There were 49 police injured, with fractures and

other injuries caused by rocks and petrol bombs.” He said six police vehicles were burned and that no arrests were made. Tarrouche said reinforcements have been sent from the capital to Guellala, a town of some 13,000 people in southern Djerba, a popular tourist destination. Calm had returned by early evening after the crowd dispersed following use of tear gas by the police.

of past campaigns - or the pace set by his 40-year-old basketball-loving opponent. “Today we decide the future of our Venezuela,” Capriles said on Twitter. “Today we are millions of Davids! God will be our guide,” he added, referring to his depiction of the vote as the biblical underdog’s battle against Goliath.

PHOTO: PRESS TV

still involved in clashes with rebels in Darfur, where a civil war broke out

in 2003, though violence in the western region has fallen from its peak.

WORLD BULLETIN

Turkey continues reprisal attack on Syria Turkish artillery fired toward Syria for a fifth day in a row yesterday, minutes after a Syrian shell landed on Turkish territory. An Associated Press video journalist witnessed the shell landing some 200 meters (200 yards) inside Turkey, near the border town of Akcakale. A short time later, eight mortars could be heard fired from Turkey. Town mayor Abdulhakim Ayhan confirmed that Turkish artillery immediately returned fire. He said shrapnel from the Syrian mortar caused some damage to a grain depot, but no one was hurt by the shelling.

Monday, October 8, 2012

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Community Mirror “I wish to state with all sense of responsibility that we, as a nation, are not ripe for each state to have its own police force.” FORMER OYO STATE GOVERNOR, OTUNBA ADEBAYO ALAO-AKALA

PRISCILLA DENNIS MINNA

he Police in Niger State are searching for a woman who allegedly dumped her baby after delivery on Tunga Market Road, Minna, even as the child was rescued by sympathisers. Community Mirror gathered that the woman gave birth to the baby in a bush, a little distance from a major drainage without cutting off the placenta and immediately disappeared. The baby was later discovered by a scavenger who raised the alarm to attract passersby who rushed to the scene to rescue the baby Mrs. Hasamau Abubakar, who was in custody of the baby before arrival of police, said the scavenger saw the baby lying on the grass, and drew attention of the people, who just rushed there, without making attempts to help the baby. She explained that moved with compassion, she picked up the child,

Mother dumps day-old baby

bathed and fed her, before the police arrived and took custody of her. “I was among the early arrivals at the scene where the baby was left by her mother without cutting the placenta from the baby. Everyone who came just stood and watched, but I felt pity for the baby and took her to my house. The baby would have died, if no one saw her before the heavy downpour of that day. Even without any rainfall, she could not have survived, if left unattended to,” Abubakar stated. When contacted, the Police Public Relation Officer, Pius Edorbo, told the Community Mirror, that investigations have commenced in order to apprehend the mother. He also said that, while efforts are on to apprehend the culprit, the baby has been taken to the state welfare where she is being catered for.

People queing under a roofless BRT bus terminal at Ketu, Lagos.

PHOTO: OLUFEMI AJASA

Residents decry soldiers brutality in Niger PRISCILLA DENNIS MINNA

or humiliating residents of Maitubi Area in Minna, the

Niger State government has been urged to withdraw soldiers from their community, even as investigations revealed that a 60 year trader, Alhaji Ibrahim Ahmed,

was forced to under “frog jumping” by some military personnel. It was gathered that others in the area were routinely forced to crawl on their knees along the streets or even clean the gutters. Speaking on his ordeal, Alhaji Ibrahim Ahmed said, “A young soldier asked me to “frog jump”, while twitching my ears without out consideration for my age.” He explained that the soldiers accused him of not leaving his motorbike at a very safe distance before getting to his residence. Aminu Mohammed, another resident, said “Right now, the people of Maitunbi are going through hell at the hands of soldiers and

this sometimes result in the manhandling of people at every little provacation”. He called on the state government to withdraw soldiers from the area, adding that before their presence on the streets, Maitunbi was peaceful and devoid of rancour. When contacted, officer in charge of security operations in Minna, Col. Lekwot ,denied the allegations, pointing out that findings show that military personnel were of good behaviour and wondered why people are out to malign them. He called on the people to cooperate with security personnel in carrying out their duties of securing the lives and property of people in the state.

Al-Makura inaugurates electricity project IGBAWASE UKUMBA LAFIA

overnor Umaru Tanko Al-Makura of Nasarawa State has commissioned Bukan Kwato town electricity project which started seven years ago. Bukan-Kwato, a suburb of Lafia, the state capital, has 2.8 kilometre wiring with an electric transformer capable of stepping down a 330 kilo voltage electric

power. Inaugurating the project, Al-Makura reechoed the commitment of his administration to assist the vulnerable group improve in their standard of living by providing basic social amenities in the town and villages. According to him, “it is on this backdrop that the administration is focusing attention on the provision of water, roads and electricity in rural areas.”

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North

Monday, October 8, 2012

Detectives investigate Kano Motor Licence Office over stolen vehicles AUGUSTINE MADU WEST KANO

etectives have begun investigating the alleged sharp practices at the Kano State Licence Office. Criminal Investigation Department (CID) officials have visited the Post Office Road office of the state internal revenue board, housing the license office at the weekend to investigate the alleged registration of stolen vehicle by the vehicle license office. This followed an embarrassing discovery by the police that a stolen vehicle was found carrying a number plate allocated to special services office of the Gov-

ernment House. A light blue colour Honda Civic car marked BJ 288 DKA allegedly stolen on September 11, 2012 at Green Park Restaurant on Ahmadu Bello Way, Kano, was recently recovered with registration number AA 26 TRN originally allocated to one of the vehicles attached to the office of the special service. Sources said days after the car was stolen, the owner, a student of Bayero University Kano, while heading to the new campus in a commercial vehicle, spotted his stolen car as he noticed all its physical features, including a sticker. “He trailed the car to Red Bricks Housing Es-

tate where he confirmed his car as his praying mat, which was inside the car when it was stolen was intact, though the number plate has been changed to that of Tarauni Local Government of Kano,” a source said. The owner was said to have immediately reported the shock discovery to Rijiyar Zaki Police Station after which

the matter was transferred to CID on the orders of the Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris, following complaints of interference in the case by some highly placed persons. The suspected leader of the car snatching syndicate was immediately picked up and detained by the police, while investigations have commenced.

The Chief Motor License Officer, Mohammed Bashir Abdul, confirmed police investigations into the mater, saying all the necessary information have been supplied to the CID officials. Abdul, however, absolved the licensing office of any blame on the issue as he believed that the number plate might have be given to the

suspect by a member of staff at the special service office, who could not evaluate the implication of such action. According to him, before any vehicle is registered by the office, proper screening of its documents is conducted by a security team to ensure that all information supplied in respect of such vehicle are genuine.

Poly expels 59 students for exam malpractices

he Federal Polytechnic in Nasarawa has expelled 59 students for examination malpractices. The Registrar of the polytechnic, Hajiya Fati Jimeta, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in an interview in Nasarawa on Saturday that the students were caught during the 2011/2012 academic session. She said the management of the polytechnic reached the decision to expel the students at a meet-

ing of the Academic Board. Jimeta said 18 were fulltime students, while 41 were part-time students, adding that the students had been blacklisted by the institution. The registrar warned that any of the students seen within the premises of the polytechnic would be arrested by the security. Jimeta urged students to appreciate the huge financial resources that their parents invested in their education and reciprocate through commitment to

Vice-President Namadi Sambo (left) and Kaduna State Governor Patrick Yakowa at the grand reception in honour of the illustrious sons and daughters of Kaduna State in Kaduna, at the weekend.

their studies. She also urged the students to shun acts capable of tarnishing their image and that of the polytechnic. The registrar said the institution was determined to eradicate examination malpractice among the students.

Kwankwaso flays corruption in polio immunisation AUGUSTINE MADU-WEST KANO

ano State Governor Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso has ordered the replacement of all managerial officials involved in polio immunisation programme in the state because of alleged corruption. Kwankwaso said he took the decision to stop the corrupt practices hindering the progress expected in the exercise. The governor said he personally directed that officials involved in polio immunisation from the level of state director downwards and immunisation officials of the 44 local government areas be replaced because, according to him, they

seemed to have turned the exercise into a money-making venture. Speaking during the launch of the fifth round of polio immunization at the Government House in Kano, he said: “The activities of some immunisation officials leave much to be desired, hence the efforts to eradicate polio once and for all are not yielding the desired success.” Kwankwaso said that the government would not tolerate corruption in immunisation or any of its activities, pointing out that more proactive measure were being adopted to make sure that Kano is polio-free as soon as possible. The governor, however, said his administration was not happy with pockets of the immunisation rejection

in some parts of Kano. Kwankwaso stressed the need for collaborative efforts among civic, political and religious leaders to eradicate the disease. He thanked the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as well as Alhaji Aliko Dangote for their contribution to the anti-polio crusade. According to him, it has been scientifically established that polio is linked to poor sanitation habits, lamenting that Nigeria is still among the three polio endemic countries in the world. The state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Abubakar Labaran Yusuf, said that 19 cases of polio were recorded in Kano this year, stressing that the government is concentrating on efforts to reverse the trend.

Plateau: Wife wins late husband’s Assembly seat

aneng, the wife of the late Majority Leader of Plateau House of Assembly, Gyang Fulani, was elected on Saturday to replace her husband in the Barkin Ladi State constituency seat. The seat became vacant following the death of Fulani with Senator Gyang Dantong,on July 8 in a stampede when gunmen attacked mourners at Maseh, a village in the Bachit District of Riyom Local Government Area. Similarly, Mr. Gyang Pwajok won the election for

Plateau North Senatorial District that was vacant by the death of Dantong. Both candidates contested the by-elections on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The Returning Officer, Prof. Fatima Sawa of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi, said Pwajok scored 195,349 votes to beat Col. David Dungs of Democratic Peoples Party (DPP), who polled 38,847 votes and others. Sawa also announced that the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) can-

didate, Chris Giwa, scored 36,245 votes, while Danladi Atu of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) got 30,132 votes and Yusuf Pam of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) polled 27,609 votes in the Senatorial race. She said Lumumba Adeh of the Labour Party (LP) got 25,527 votes in the election. “Pwajok, having satisfied the requirements of the law and having scored the highest number of votes required, is hereby declared winner of the Plateau North Senatorial District election,” Sawa said.

Killing: Clan decries continued detention of ex-LG boss ADEMU IDAKWO LOKOJA

he continued detention of the former Chairman of Okene Local Government Area of Kogi State, Mr. Yahaya Karaku, over the killings of the Deeper Life Church members in Ottite by suspected terrorists has started generating another tension. The Ezi-Ogu Clan in Ebiraland yesterday in Lokoja, the state capital, blamed the

continued the detection of the former chairman, after he was exonerated by the police investigation, on his political enemies. The Ezi-Ogu Clan spoke in a statement signed by its head, Mr. Ovureve Nasiru. The killings of Christian worshipers and two soldiers in Okene two months ago had led to arrest and detention of some people in the area. The clan said: “It is sad

and disheartening enough to discover that some notable Ebira elite both home and Diaspora have constituted a baseline for fabricating false allegation against our kinsman.” It, however, lauded the security report over the Okene killings for exonerated the former chairman, stressing that policemen have arrested the suspected killers of the of the Deeper Life Church members.

News

Monday, October 8, 2012

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LCCI decries CBN’s tight monetary policy STANLEY IHEDIGBO

he Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has decried the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) tight monetary policy stance as it continues to keep funds out of the reach of the private sector. According to a statement make available to National Mirror by LCCI President, Mr. Goodie Ibru, there has been a steady decline in aggregate credit to the economy and private sector in particular, adding that the CBN economic report aggregated net credit by banks to the domestic economy fell by 2.7 per cent and 0.1 per cent in the second and first quarter of the year respectively. Ibru pointed out that it is largely due to the sustained monetary tightening, significant rise in government domestic borrowing and attractive yield of government bonds and treasury bills. He said that contrary to yearnings of the real sec-

tor for a relaxed monetary regime, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) kept all the key monetary policy variables unchanged at its last meeting held September. “The committee affirmed that its decision at the last MPC meeting in July have had desired effects on inflation, stability of short term interest

rates, build-up of the external reserves and the stability of the exchange rate,” Ibru said. LCCI boss added that MPC held MPR unchanged at 12 per cent, sustained the symmetric corridor at 200 basis points, retain Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) at 12 per cent and minimum liquidity ratio is retained

at 30 per cent. Since July 2010, the MPC has adjusted the MPR by 100 per cent from 6 per cent to 12 per cent currently. He said: “According to the MPC, three key issues accounted for the decision to hold the monetary policy variables unchanged. First, the relative stability of the foreign exchange market has helped boost

accretion to the external reserves and the MPC hopes to sustain the trend as a measure against shocks from the fragile global economy. “Secondly, the increasing inflow of hot monies into the Nigerian economy portends a risk for exchange rate volatility in the event of sudden reversal with implications

Orji, IGP, Ghana NSA to deliver 8th Security Watch lecture SEGUN ADIO

A L-R: Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) President, Mr. Michael Alogba; Minister of Education, Prof. Ruqayyatu Rufai and Minister of Labour, Chief Emeka Wogu, during the 2012 World Teachers’ Day celebration in Abuja, at the weekend. PHOTO: ROTIMI OSASONA

Independence Anniversary: Protesters force Maku to abandon New York parade OLAJIDE OMOJOLOMOJU

he Minister of Information, Labaran Maku, was on Saturday forced to abandon the annual New York City Independence Day parade following a dramatic flash protest by members of the New York-based Nigeria Liberty Democratic Forum, NLDF. The annual Independence Day parade is an event organised by the Nigerian government in collaboration with some United States of America-based Nigerian organisations. The NDLF protesters, led by an official of the group, Bukola Oreofe, had joined the colourful parade from 51st Street and 2nd Avenue, when words spread that Maku was the “Parade Marshal” and that he was leading a troupe of Nigerian diplomats, who waved the Nigerian flag at different groups as they danced towards the Nigeria House on 44th Street. Shortly after, according to an online news medium, Saharareporters,

for price and financial market stability. Also, the persisting high core inflation was viewed as a hindrance to commence a reversal of monetary tightening.” Ibru lamented that over the last nine months, there have seen a steady decline in discretionary spending by households and firms, weaker uptake from suppliers and distributors and softer operating performance among consumer goods companies.

the protesters penetrated the area where Maku and other officials were and began a flash protest, singing protest songs against the President Goodluck Jonathan administration. When they came face to face with Maku, they shouted, “Go Home!” They also accused Nigerian officials of corruption and insensitivity to the plight of the vast majority of Nigerians. According to the report, one of the protesters was quoted as saying that Maku “should return to Nigeria and sympathise with millions of Nigerians, who are currently besieged by a massive flood disaster that has affected 22 states.” Other protesters demanded that Maku should help fix Nigeria’s problems to ensure that Nigerians celebrate their Independence Anniversary in public without fear of terror attacks. In the heat of the protests, the Nigerian officials called in police from the New York Police Department, NYPD, to drive the protesters away.

But the NYPD officials showed no inclination to force out the protesters; they rather formed a guard around the protesters to forestall probable breakdown of law and order. The disappearance of Maku, the Nigerian officials and diplomats into the Nigeria House, when it became clear that the police would not do their bidding, brought the parade to an abrupt end. But reacting to the development, the Media Assistant to the minister, Joseph Mutah, said the parade witnessed a huge turnout. Making no reference to the protests, Mutah said in a statement that the street parade was characterised by “dances and music, waving flags in appreciation of Africa’s most populous nation.” He added that the parade was witnessed by Maku, Nigeria’s ambassador to the US, Prof. Ade Adefuye, Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, UN, Prof. Joy Ogwu, Nigeria’s Consul-General in New York City, Habib Baba Habu and

former Senior Special Assistant to the President on Millennium Development Goals, MDGs, who is now Assistant Undersecretary in the office of UN Secretary General, coordinating the post 2015 phase of MDGs, Amina Azzubair. Mutah said Maku’s presence at the parade drew cheers from the crowd in appreciation as no direct representative of the Federal Government had participated in previous editions of the parade. The statement reads in part: “The float later ended up at 47th Street beside the Trump Tower in an impressive ceremony marked by dances, musical shows and goodwill messages. “In his keynote address, the Information Minister conveyed President Goodluck Jonathan’s appreciation to the Nigerian community in the US for their continued support and faith in their country.” But in a telephone interview with our correspondent, Oreofe, confirmed the saharareporters’ report, saying that the NDLF

also presented a letter protesting the ‘misrule’ going on in Nigeria, corruption and the lack of social amenities for the people. He said: “I am not surprised that the government is denying what happened in New York. A government that has kept the country and the entire world in the dark about the health status and the whereabouts of the First Lady can deny what happened. “We actually organised a ‘Free Nigeria Rally’ to protest the misrule and dysfunctional Nigerian society which is being foisted on Nigeria by the clueless Goodluck Jonathan administration. “We were able to mobilise Nigerians who trooped out in large number to protest against the presence of Maku at the parade. We sang anti-government songs, highlighting the broken down Nigeria society, we sang against corruption and the looting of the Nigerian treasury and the lack of infrastructure and other vices of the Nigerian government and what is actually going on in Nigeria.”

bia State Governor Theodore Orji, Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Abubakar, and Ghana’s National Security Adviser, Brigadier-General Joseph Nunoo-Mensah (rtd) are among the dignitaries earmarked to deliver the 8th Security Watch Africa Lectures. The event comes up at the prestigious La Palm Royal Beach Hotel, Accra, Ghana on October 18, 2012. In a statement made available by the International Coordinator of Security Watch Africa, Patrick Agbambu the lecture, with the theme: “Developing Regional Strategies and Best Practices in the Fight Against Crime and Conflicts in Africa,” is in “response to the challenges posed by insecurity and emerging insecurity to governments and people, arising from urban development and disturbing levels of poverty in the rural areas.” Governor Orji is expected to be the guest speaker at the event, while IGP Abubakar will speak on the topic: “Urban Crime Prevention, Control Management and Fighting: The Nigerian Experience.” The Ghana NSA will speak on “Evolving a Paradigm Shift in Intelligence Gathering, Processing and Application.” The lecture is expected to draw high profile security chiefs and their officers from across Africa, particularly, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Namibia, The Gambia, Ethiopia and Zambia.

Monday, October 8, 2012

Battle of Calabar: Mikel hits camp Wednesday IKENWA NNABUOGOR

helsea midfielder, John Obi Mikel, will arrive in Abuja tomorrow and will on Wednesday head to Calabar where Super Eagles will meet Lone Star in a crucial second leg final round of the African Nations Cup 2013 qualifier on Saturday. National Mirror gathered exclusively yesterday that Mikel’s arrival suffered 24 hours delay because his passport had been deposited at the Ukrainian Embassy in London where the document was being processed for visa ahead of Chelsea’s Champions League date with Shakhtar Donestk next week. “Mikel has called coach Keshi to intimate him of the development and the coach understood his position,” a source in London told National Mirror. The former Lyn Oslo player, who will pick his Ukraine visa today, has secured a place to take a morning flight out of London tomorrow onward Abuja from where he will connect another flight to Calabar on Wednesday morning, even as the team’s technical crew had last week declared tomorrow as deadline for players’ arrival in the camp. Seven home-based players had been selected among the 23 earlier invited last Friday and they will be joined by the 15 foreign-based John Obi Mikel is set to play his first game under coach Stephen Keshi who are expected in Calabar later billed to be played in an artificial surface Guinea in October 2011 in Abuja, where Nitoday. but was later changed by the Liberia Foot- geria drew 2-2 and lost the ticket to Gabon/ Mikel returns to the team after ball Association (LFA). Equatorial Guinea, the first time the forexcusing himself from the first It will be Mikel’s first game for Nigeria mer champion would not participate since leg in Monrovia which was earlier after the ill-fated Afcon 2012 qualifier with the 1986 finals hosted by Egypt.

Nigerian player slumps, dies in Poland

I Joshua Pepple

t was yet another black Saturday for Nigerian football as the country lost one of its foreign-based players, Joshua Tamunobarabonye Pepple, who slumped and died on the pitch while playing for fifth division club, Pomorzanin Nowogard. Poland-based Charles Okere, who confirmed the news to National Mirror yesterday, said that Pepple, who was his bosom friend, had collapsed after few minutes into their league fixture against Iskierka Szczecin- mierdnica and was revived to continue the game.

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The Bafana Bafana rebuilding is going on smoothly and I think the team will bounce back soonest –Former South Africa captain, Lucas Radebe

Gerrard commits to Liverpool 54

IKENWA NNABUOGOR

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“But he was not lucky the second time when he fell again in the 26th minute as he lost consciousness and couldn’t be revived,” Okere said. “The course of his death is still not yet known but I think the Nigerian Embassy will do something about it if he was registered at the embassy. “His death came as a rude shock to Nigerian players based in Poland and all of us are still in shock. There’s no news yet about his remains as information remains sketchy. “His brother called me yesterday to inquire about his remains. But as I said, we’re still waiting to know what happens next.”

Asiagate: ZIFA clears more players AFOLABI GAMBARI

WITH AGENCY REPORT

he Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) has cleared 11 more players who were under investigation for match-fixing, bringing to 44 the total number of coaching staff and players now cleared to represent the country. The culprits left off the hook yesterday include Kaizer Chiefs striker Kingston Nkhatha and defender Lincoln Zvasiya who have been called up to the Zimbabwe team to face Angola in a 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier this week. Goalkeeper Ephraim Mazarura, who is based in Swaziland, Al Hilal striker Edward Sadomba and former number one goalkeeper Energy Murambadoro will also join the Warriors camp next Monday after benefitting from the latest development. Other are Mthulisi Maphosa, Justice Majabvi, Costa Nhamoinesu, Hardlife Zvirekwi, Cliff Sekete and Chris Semakweri. About 33 players and officials, including Khama Billiat, Ovidy Karuru, Willard Katsande, Gilbert Mushangazhike and Brazilian coach Valinhos were cleared in May, even as about 55 players and 16 officials are still to have their fate decided by an independent disciplinary committee set up by ZIFA to probe the biggest scandal in Zimbabwe’s 32-year history as a nation, which revolves around controversial tours taken by the national team to Asia in 2007 and 2009. The fate of former Warriors captain, Method Mwanjali, striker Nyasha Mushekwi and former coach Norman Mapeza are yet to be decided.

NFF hails Flying Eagles AFOLABI GAMBARI

he Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has praised the Flying Eagles after their 3-1 defeat of Amajita of South Africa in their final round qualifier for the Algeria 2013 African Youth Championship in Ilorin yesterday. NFF President, Alhaji Aminu Maigari, who watched the encounter with the Kwara State Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed, said the junior national team deserved the victory. “I am truly impressed with the performance of the team and I will use this opportunity to pledge that the NFF will give the team all the support to prepare very well for the defence of its title in Algeria next year,” Maigari assured. Midfielder Abduljelil Ajagun scored a first-half brace before setting up top striker Alhaji Gero for a third goal that ended the Algerian dream for the South Africans, after the visitor scored a goal as the second half commenced. Ajagun won the $2, 000 Ifeanyi Uba Award for the Most Valuable Player of the match. The NFF will look forward to repeating another qualifying feat next weekend in Calabar, where the Super Eagles will hope to post a convincing win over Lone Star of Liberia to proceed to the Afcon finals to be hosted by South Africa next year.

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Monday, October 8, 2012

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Gerrard commits to Liverpool

iverpool captain, Steven Gerrard, has said he will stay at Liverpool for the rest of his career after admitting yesterday that he is loving football at Anfield. Gerrard has turned down opportunities to leave the Reds in the past, including a move to Chelsea in 2004. “Everyone’s aware my head has been turned on a couple of occasions but it’s never been enough to move,” the 32-year-old said. “I have no regrets. I’m happy I stayed here. I’m born in Liverpool, I’m a Liverpool supporter. It means an awful lot more to me playing here.” Gerrard made his Liverpool debut in November 1998 and has made nearly 600 appearances. He has won an array of trophies, including the Champions League, FA Cup, League Cup, UEFA Cup and the UEFA Super Cup, but the only one eluding him is the Premier League title. “I’ve played in some wonderful grounds around the world. But you can’t beat the buzz of ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ and when you touch the Anfield sign,” Gerrard added. Despite the Reds’ disappointing start to the season, the England captain still believes a top-four finish in the Premier League and a trophy remains a realistic aim.

We want to win World Cup for Africa –Ghana captain Goal hero Sherifatu Sumaila (l) jubilating with captain Priscilla Akyere after Ghana beat Japan on Friday to book a semi final ticket

“T

his is what we came for, to make history,” exultant Ghana captain, Priscilla Okyere, said on Friday, moments after her side had pulled off the shock of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup Azerbaijan 2012 by beating tournament favourite Japan 1-0 in their quarter-final clash. “We’ve made history but we want more. We’re hoping to beat France, reach the final and take this World Cup home with us,” the midfielder continued. Having failed to make it past the group phase in their two previous FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup appearances, the Black Maidens will be contesting their very first semi-finals in the competition against Les Bleuettes tomorrow. What makes their achievement even more notable is the fact that they are the first Ghana women’s team to reach the semi-finals of a FIFA competition and the first African side to appear in the last four of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.

“I know that the eyes of all Africa are on us and that drives us on,” the excited Okyere further said, stressing, “Our country is watching us because of what we achieved today. I can’t even describe how that feels.” Sherifatu Sumaila’s 51st-minute goal was enough to send the previously unbeaten Japanese back home early and naturally the striker, who also represented her country at Trinidad and Tobago 2010, was thrilled with her performance: “I’m so excited because I didn’t score a single goal in 2010. In fact, this is my first goal in a World Cup and I’m very, very happy.” But captain Okyere could not stop smiling as she explained how she thanked her team-mates for their efforts against the Japanese: “I was expecting a lot from my team today and my colleagues showed me how great we are. I just thanked all of them for allowing me to get so far in this competition. Reaching this stage is something we’ve all worked towards.”

Cole faces Tweet hammer

Steven Gerrard

helsea Manager, Roberto Di Matteo, yesterday revealed that defender Ashley Cole faces being disciplined by the club over a tweet criticising the Football Association. Cole, 31, tweeted after an independent FA commission queried his evidence in the hearing which found team-mate John Terry guilty of racial abuse. “We’ve got a social media policy at the club,” Di Matteo said. “There’s going to be a disciplinary process against the tweet and that’s how I’ll leave it.” Cole later deleted the offensive tweet, although Chelsea is still set to take action and he could face a charge from the FA. Cole is set to meet up with the England squad today for the forthcoming World Cup qualifiers against San Marino and Poland. Interestingly, former England striker, Alan Shearer, has called for Cole to be banned as punishment for his outburst.

Devils destroy Toon Army

anchester United secured its fifth win in seven Premier League games yesterday with victory away to Newcastle. Starting the day seven points adrift of leaders Chelsea, it was vital for the Red Devils to pick up three points, and two headers from corners in the first 15 minutes set them on their way. Jonny Evans was first to make the net bulge before fellow defender Patrice Evra repeated the trick moments later while Tom Cleverley made it 3-0 with a cross-cum-shot into the top corner. The midfielder was trying to find Robin van Persie at the far post, but instead saw the ball fly out of the reach of home keeper Steve Harper and into the goal. That may have been fortunate, but there nothing lucky about the Old Trafford club’s overall display. United players were rampant in the opening quarter, helped by some very amateur Newcastle defending on setpieces, and twice went close before the first goal. Magpies manager Alan Pardew tinkered with the tactics and had a quick word with his backline as Evans received treatment for an injury, and that seemed to help mend the leak in defence. EPL Results

Ashley Cole

So’ton

2-2

Fulham

Liverpool

0-0

Stoke

Tottenham 2-0

Villa

Newcastle 0-3

Man Utd

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IKENWA NNABUOGOR

Sport

Monday, October 8, 2012

hut-out Super Eagles striker, Obafemi Martins, was in superb goal scoring form, hitting the winner for new club Levante in their 1-0 home win against Valencia yesterday. Martins’ effort came in the 22nd minute when he directed Uruguayan team mate Gustavo Munua’s pass into the Valencia net and that proved to be enough. Martins, who lasted for 90 minutes, was however cautioned in the 46th minute. It was his second goal of the season since his late summer transfer from Russian side Rubin Kazan. An Eagles’ recall could just be on cards for the petit but bulky forward. Super Eagles flying winger, Ahmed Musa, signed off in style as he arrives the Eagles Abuja camp today, with a strike and an assist in CSKA Moscow’s 2-0 win over rivals Spartkak Moscow in the Moscow derby yesterday. Musa, who put the visitors in front in the 15th minute off a pass from Japanese partner Keisuke Honda, returned Honda’s favour in the 52nd minute for the final nail on Spartak as the deadly combination between Musa and Honda continued to instil fear in the opponents’ defence. Musa was on for 90 minutes and has thus far scored four goals in nine appearances for the multiple Russian champions. Super Eagles invitee, Emmanuel Emenike, failed to rescue his side from the defeat and was replaced by Brazilian Wellington in the 76th minute. He has thus far returned four goals in the new season and cautioned three times. Still in Russia, forgotten Super Eagles striker Obinna Nsofor was in action for Lokomotiv Moscow but couldn’t prevent a shoch 1-0 home defeat to Kuban Krasnodar on Saturday. He was replaced in the 83rd minute. He has scored a goal in 10 league outings thus far. Super Eagles striker, Osaze Odemwingie, returned to the West Brom team after serving a three-match suspension due to a red card, to help West Brom to beat Queens Park Rangers 3-2 at home on Saturday. The former Lokomotiv Moscow striker was given straight red card for stamping on Fulham player in their 3-0 defeat at Craven Cottage on September 15. He was named in the starting line up on his return on Saturday at Hawthorns. He was however, surprisingly, not among the goals or provided assists in their famous 3-2 win. He was pulled out in the 63rd minute. He was on for his fourth game of the season, accounting for a goal thus far. Eagles returnee midfielder, John Obi Mikel, who was, as usual, in action for the Blues is still in search of his first goal for the club. The former Lyn Oslo star helped keep things tight at the rear for the European champions as they ran Norwich City defence ragged, hitting four past them. The Canaries had gone ahead as early as the 11th minute before Chelsea blew them apart, ending the one-side tie 4-1. Mikel would later make way for young Spaniard Romeu in the 82nd minute. He has thus far played in all the seven league games and surprisingly yet to enter into the referees’ books. Mikel’s compatriot, Victor Moses, sat out the game, although he had earlier grabbed his first goal for Chelsea in 6-0 demolition of Wolves in the League Cup last week. He has however, played three times in the league for his new club thus far this season.

Martins can’t stop scoring …Musa, Ogbu also hit targets

Obafemi Martins (m) grabbed by a team mate in jubilation after after his goal for Levante yesterday

Ahmed Musa

Derick Ogbu

Still in the Premiership, Victor Anichebe was in action for Everton but failed to add to his two-goal return as the Toffees managed a 2-2 draw at Wigan on Saturday. Anichebe, still in waiting for his second start this season, was introduced in the 81st minute Phil Neville in the tensionsoaked encounter that produced seven yellow cards, with the new entrant getting his caution in the added time. He was making his fifth league appearance in the game. In France, Simon Zenke had a black start for his new club AS Nancy as he given a straight red card in their 4-0 trouncing at St.Etienne, on Friday. The former Samsunspor of Turkey striker was sent for an early shower in his very first start for the bottom team in the 68th minute. Nancy conceded all the four goals in the first half. Zenke will have to wait for three games to play his fifth game due to suspension. He’s yet to open his goal account for his new club. In Belgium, OH Leuven’s last season’s top scorer Derrick Ogbu sensationally ended his goal drought by hitting a hat trick as Leuven hammered whipping boys Charleroi 4-0 on the road on Saturday, to condemn Club Brugge to the foot of the log.

The Enugu-born striker wasted no time in putting his side in front after just two minutes, getting to an end of Belgian League top scorer Ibou Sawaneh’s through pass. It was Ogbu’s day as he turned provided for Sawaneh’s eighth goal of the season in the 64th minute. He struck again in the 70th minute before putting the icing on the cake in the 85th minute before he was pulled out in the 90th minute. He has also been cautioned three times thus far this season. Ogbu netted nine times on his arrival from Qatar last season. In Germany, Werder Bremen’s newest acquisition Joseph Akpala was handed his second start this season but ended on the losing side as Bremen was turned back 3-1 at Augsburg last Friday. Akpala, who has scored once, lasted 90 minutes, his first thus far this season. The defeat at Augsburg was his sixth appearances since making his switch from Belgian champions Club Brugge in the summer. He has also seen yellow once this season. Still in Germany, Chinedu Obasi, returning from injury, was in action for Schalke but was not among the goals as the Gelsenkirchen side hit struggling Wolfsburg 3-0 at

Veltins Arena on Saturday. Obasi replaced on loan Dutch international Ibrahim Afellay on teh 73rd minute. That was his second league game of the season. In Turkey, former Esperance of Tunisia striker Mike Eneramo was back on the score sheet for Sivaspor as they forced a 2-2 home draw against Bursaspor on Sunday. The home team had trailed two goals until they pulled one back in the 85th minute before Eneramo brought his side back in the game with just three minutes left on the clock to prevent the visitors from running away with the full points. He had waited for four games to hit his third league goal of the season. He has played in seven league games this season. He has also gone into the referees’ books twice. He finished club’s top scorer with 15 goals last season. Kalu Uche failed to add to his five goals as his side Kasimpasa were beaten 1-0 at Trabzonspor on Friday. He was on for 90 minutes. He has appeared in all seven games this season, starting in five and getting introduced in two. He’s currently the second top scorer in the Turkish Super League. Still in Turkey, former youth international Isaac Promise returned from a threeman ban following a red card three weeks ago, to post a 90 minute showing in Antalyaspor 1-0 away win at 14th-placed Gazientespor on Friday. He has thus far scored once in four league outings this season. In Ukraine, three Nigerians battled themselves as Dnipro beat Dynamo Kiev 2-1 yesterday, to leapfrog Dynamo to second place on the log. On the winning side was one-cap Eagles central defender Michael Odibe, who posted 90 minutes in the thrilling encounter. Odibe returned to the Dnipro rear after he sat 90 minutes on the bench in their 3-2 away win at AIK Stockholm in the Europa League last Thursday. The 24-year old, nicknamed ‘Asaba’ has played six times in the league this season. Both Brown Ideye and Taye Taiwo were on for 90 minutes for Dynamo Kiev.

WORLD RECORD

Oldest panda in captivity

Vol. 02 No. 464

N150

Monday, October 8, 2012

The oldest panda ever in captivity was Dudu, who was born in 1962 and lived for most of her life in Wuhan Zoo, Chengdu, China, until her death on 22 July 1999 aged 37 years.

Celebrating a deserved national honouree

n a country where everybody is perceived as corrupt, especially in the public service, Mr. Muhammad Tahir Zakari has distinguished himself as an incorruptible Nigerian. He was among the 148 individuals President Goodluck Jonathan conferred with Nigeria’s national honours on September 17, 2012. Recently, Economic Confidential, an online economic journal, in a report disclosed that of the recipients of this year’s national honours, Mr. Zakari got his nomination on the basis of honesty by returning overpayment of N6.2 million wrongly paid into his salary account. The report also indicated that about 75 percent of the 148 recipients are public servants either as appointees or elected figures in the three arms of government. The report also disclosed certain biases in the awards. For instance, supreme court

ritish top driver, Lewis Hamilton, has delivered a downbeat prognosis on his championship chances in wake of Red Bull’s dominant performance in the Japanese GP. Hamilton’s fifth-place finish at Suzuka saw him move ten points closer to Fernando Alon-

Guest Columnist

Yushua A.

Shuaib

justices are conferred with CFR; governors, ministers and senators with CON; House members, deputy governors, diplomats and legal practitioners with OFR; top management staff in the public and the private sectors with OON, while MFR is reserved for security personnel, civil servants, traditional rulers, and community and religious leaders. A decision making slant revealed by the report is that final recommendations are done by the powers-that-be. A deputy governor was said to have been delisted on the order of his boss. Muhammad Zakari, a level 10 officer with the Federal Ministry of Information, but on secondment to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, got his MFR award for his incorruptibility. His journey for national recognition started in November 2011, when he received a credit alert of N6, 241, 469 from his bank instead of his usual monthly pay of N62, 000. At the time he got the alert he actually had N400 as his credit balance. A dazed Zakari immediately rushed to the bank where it was indeed confirmed that he had the millions deposited in his account. Back home, he then narrated his discovery to both his mother and his wife about what could be considered by anyone as “manna from Heaven.” A deeply religious family, the two women in his life both encouraged him to report the development and return the millions as he should not spend what did not belong to him. Along the line, something in his human flesh took over with this admonition: “God has many ways of blessing and enriching

A DEEPLY RELIGIOUS FAMILY, THE TWO WOMEN IN HIS LIFE BOTH ENCOURAGED HIM TO REPORT THE DEVELOPMENT AND RETURN THE MILLIONS AS HE SHOULD NOT SPEND WHAT DID NOT BELONG TO HIM.

individuals. I initially thought probably that was the way God wanted to intervene in my life by mysteriously depositing money in my bank account. But long years of religious and moral education reinforced by admonishment from the females in my life prompted me to immediately report and return the money, which was N6.5 million.” When friends learnt about the refund, some withdrew their friendship, while others taunted him as “a typical of the remaining few Nigerian mumu (fool) that could get free money and return it when he earns a meagre salary.” “I could feel others jeering at my resolve. As a human being, the temptation was high, considering the kind of environment we live in. But sometimes you just need to take a most dignifying action and take joy in that which I did sincerely”, he consoled himself.

Blessed with eight children comprising of seven boys and a girl, Tahir further admitted: “I was also afraid to tarnish my family name if I spent the money and the error was later discovered by the authority. That could be very shameful too!” His action was reported to the Independent Corrupt Practice Commission (ICPC), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Head of Service of the Federation and the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation. He got a commendation letter from the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation for his “show of honesty by returning an error payment to the tune of N6.2 million.” His letter of recognition dated August 27, 2012 came from SGF, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim. In honouring him, President Goodluck Jonathan had said the award was in recognition of Zakari’s outstanding virtues and in appreciation of his service to the country, Nigeria, without adding “where many are presumed to be corrupt.” A graduate of Mass Communication, Bayero University, Kano, Zakari was born on March 20, 1971 in Garun-Mallam, Kano State. He did his National Youth Service in Enugu and thereafter got appointment into Federal Civil Service as Information Officer. He was then seconded variously to the National Films and Video Censors Board, Ministry of Water Resources and now Ministry of Agriculture, Abuja. While we celebrate a young civil servant as incorruptible, we only hope some of our leaders who corruptly enriched themselves at the expense of the nation would not be laughing at poor Zakari for standing for honour even in the face of his unrealistic wages. As we are encouraged by the exemplary conduct of Zakari, it is doubtful if many poor Nigerians would accept the typical Nigeria’s national honours if they have the option of a million naira gift. I believe there are many Nigerians out there setting records and good examples, but would never ever make the exclusive top national honours for top public figures and title holders. Shuaib, yashuaib@yahoo.com, wrote from Abuja

Sport Extra

F1: Hamilton admits Red Bull’s superiority so, but the overall momentum has now firmly swung towards Sebastian Vettel after the German romped to his second win in two weeks. “I’m quite a realistic person so I know my situation, but I’ll

never give up as I’ll keep pushing,” Lewis said yesterday when asked if he thought there was everything to play for in the championship. “I think with a bit of a better qualifying we would have had a

better result. But the Red Bulls are going to be hard to beat,” he added, stressing, “I was quite happy with my race, to be honest. It wasn’t particularly exciting but I got everything I could out of the car.” NFF President, HamiltonAminu Maigari

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