Tuesday, August 21, 2012 by GLOBAL MEDIA MIRROR LIMITED

Ex-IG blames IBB, military for destroying police OMEIZA AJAYI

ormer InspectorGeneral of Police, Alhaji Muhammadu

Vol. 1 2 N0. 115 430

Gambo Jimeta, has condemned the recent agitation for the establishment of a state police, taking a swipe at its proponents, especially his former boss

FG allays fears over Nigeria’s $5bn external debt

and ex-military president, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida. He also accused the military of laying the foundation for the destruction of CONTINUED ON PAGE 5>>

P.8

Jonathan

Tuesday, August June 7,21, 2011 2012

N150 N150

Shell spent N59.3bn on police, security –Report AYO OLESIN

WITH AGENCY REPORTS

Protecting people, assets, our priority, says oil firm

nglo-Dutch oil firm, Shell, paid Nigerian police officers and other security agents $383m (N59.3bn) to guard its installations in three years, according to a report by an oil industry watchdog. Citing leaked company documents, London-based Platform said Shell spent a total of $383m on security in Nigeria between 2007 and 2009, when a rebel insurgency in the oil-rich Delta region was at its peak, The Guardian of London, reported yesterday Those funds partly paid CONTINUED ON PAGE 2>>

Children having fun at the National Theatre during the Eid-el-fitri celebration in Lagos, yesterday.

Omirin

PHOTO: OLUFEMI AJASA

Kuramo evictees blame surge on Eko Atlantic City

S’West legislators plan regional integration Six more bodies recovered law P.8 Police arrest fleeing terrorism kingpin in Kano

P.2 P.12

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Tuesday, August 21, 2012

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Kuramo evictees blame surge on Eko Atlantic City DAYO AYEYEMI AND MURITALA AYINLA

victed owners of demolished structures at Kuramo Beach in Lagos have blamed Saturday’s surge on the coastline on the multi-billion naira Eko Atlantic City project. This is coming just as six more dead bodies were yesterday recovered at the beach where about 16 persons were swept away into the Atlantic Ocean last Saturday.

This brings to 10 the number of bodies so far recovered by rescue operation agencies and local divers, while the search for others continues. The evicted residents said they had not experienced ocean surge before the commencement of the project in 2009, stressing that the frequent tidal waves had now been taking tolls on tourism activities at the beach. Speaking with National Mirror, one of the owners of the demolished structures,

who identified himself as Mr. Fred Okulama, said the woes of the residents began in 2009, with the commencement of land reclamation in the area. He said: “For me, the cause of this ocean surge came from the Lagos State government. “Since 2009, when the state government commenced the construction of the Eko Atlantic City, the surge has begun to increase. And this year, the work got to Kuramo Beach. That was why it affected

Policemen at the entrance of Kuramo Beach in Lagos, yesterday.

our structures. “The ocean surge happens yearly, especially from August to November, when the ocean current is expected to increase, and it happened this year. “And because of the ongoing work at the Eko Atlantic City, the ocean current had nowhere to flow and instead flowed to the shore to demolish our structures.” Although, the Lagos State Emergency Management Authority, LASEMA, could not immediately con-

PHOTO: YINKA ADEPARUSI

firm the recovery of the six bodies, evicted residents and local divers told National Mirror that the bodies were swept ashore by high tidal waves. National Mirror learnt that five of the bodies were recovered in the early hours of the day floating around the ocean shoreline, while another one was recovered about 1:30p.m. by the State Environmental Health Management Unit, SEHMU. The corpses have been deposited at the state mortuary. The Lagos State Police Command spokesperson, Ngozi Braide, confirmed the recovery of the six bodies, adding that the remaining five were still being expected. She gave the names of the six victims as Joseph Oke, Olorunwa Babatunde, Daniel Ajose and Alhaji Babatunde Benson, popularly known as KC. The other two, whose surnames were not known, are Olumide and Mary. The state government had completed the demolition of illegal structures at the beach on Sunday, owing to loss of lives resulting from the surge that swept residents of shanties erected at the beach.

National Mirror gathered that the search parties and the rescue team were still searching to recover more bodies yesterday. Some evicted residents also lamented that the incident had affected patronage at the nearby Bar Beach as fun seekers stayed away despite the ongoing Eid-elfitri holiday. The state Commissioner for Waterfront, Prince Adesegun Oniru, said the state government would find a lasting solution to the surge as it did on Bar Beach some years back. He said: “What we need here is permanent solution to the problem like we did on the Bar Beach. That is why you see the whole of Ahmadu Bello Way is not flooded. “This problem is not a Lagos problem, it is a national problem. The Federal Government should come to the aid of the state government. “Huge amount of money is required to put permanent solution and the state government alone cannot finance this.” Meanwhile, another resident of the beachfront, Abbey Edwards, said it would be difficult to forget the pains of losing five of his good CONTINUED ON PAGE 5>>

Shell spent N59.3bn on police, security –Report CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

for the Anglo-Dutch company’s own 1,200-member force as well as the protection provided by some 1,300 government forces that guarded Shell’s facilities, Platform said. An estimated $127m (N19.6bn) was spent on unexplained category marked “other,” the documents said. According to the data, the world’s largest company by revenue spent nearly $1bn on worldwide security between 2007 and 2009. According to The Guardian, if it were a country, Shell would have the third highest security budget in Africa, after South Africa and Nigeria itself. The documents showed that nearly 40 per cent of Shell’s total security expenditure over the three year period – $383m – was spent on protecting its staff and installations in Nigeria’s volatile Niger Delta region. In 2009, $65m (N10.07bn)

was spent on Nigerian government forces and $75m (N11.6bn) on “other” security costs – believed to be a mixture of private security firms and payments to individuals. Activists expressed concern that the escalating cost of Shell’s security operation in the Niger Delta was further destabilising the oil rich region and helping to fuel rampant corruption and criminality. “The scale of Shell’s global security expenditure is colossal,” said Ben Amunwa of London-based oil watchdog Platform. “It is staggering that Shell transferred $65m of company funds and resources into the hands of soldiers and police known for routine human rights abuses.” The financial documents, passed to Platform, suggest Shell’s worldwide security costs almost doubled between 2007 and 2009, coinciding with the rise of armed insurgency in the

Niger Delta. In 2008, 62 Shell employees or contractors were kidnapped and three killed, many Shell-operated pipelines, well heads and offshore oil platforms were attacked and the company was forced to halt oil exports for several weeks after attacks by groups including the Movement for the emancipation of the Niger Delta. Nearly a third of Shell’s global security budget in 2008, or $99m, was spent on “third parties”. This was double what the company spent on its own security staff and is believed to include the services of 600 Nigerian government police and 700 members of the controversial state “joint task force” (JTF) comprised of Army, Navy and Police. Shell denies having any direct control over JTF forces, amid numerous accusations of human rights abuses, including a largescale military attack in 2009

which the US state department said led to the displacement and loss of livelihood of tens of thousands of residents. But in the past, Shell has supplied government forces with gunboats, helicopters, vehicles and satellite phones to better patrol the myriad creeks and waterways of the Delta. “This proves what we in the Niger Delta have known for years – that the air force, the army, the police, they are paid for with Shell money and they are all at the disposal of the company for it to use it any how it likes,” said Celestine Nkabari of the Niger Delta campaign group, Social Action. According to Platform, a significant amount of Shell funding is channelled via senior military officials which provides “ample opportunities for corruption”. US cables, released by WikiLeaks in 2010, alleged that the company paid hundreds of thousands of

pounds towards the deployment of 350 soldiers in the Delta in 2003. But Shell International said that any allegation of corruption should be addressed to the Nigerian authorities, and that its spending is necessary to protect its staff and operations. Although armed insurgency in the oil producing regions of the Delta has declined since a 2009 amnesty, the company says it faces widespread criminality, organised crime and massive oil theft. It has stated that 15-20 per cent of its output is stolen by international gangs. Shell spokesman, Mr. Precious Okolobo, in a statement, sent to National Mirror last night said: “Protecting our people and our assets is Shell’s highest priority. “Our spending on security is carefully judged to meet this objective, wherever we operate in the world. We have always acknowl-

edged the difficulties of working in countries like Nigeria. In the period that this report refers to, the armed militancy in the Niger Delta was at its height, requiring a relatively high level of security spending there. “All our staff and contractors are expected to adhere to the highest levels of personal and corporate ethics, as set out in our code of conduct. We support the voluntary principles on security and human rights (VPSHR), and we recognise that these principles help maintain the safety and security of our operations in a manner consistent with upholding human rights. We also investigate grievances under the VPSHR.” The company declined to comment on whether worldwide costs for security were increasing because of the Arab spring. The company has recently left Syria and has interests throughout CONTINUED ON PAGE 5>>

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Tuesday, August 21, 2012

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Tuesday, August 21, 2012

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EID-EL-FITRI CELEBRATIONS IN PICTURES

Marina Road, empty as a result of the Sallah holiday in Lagos, yesterday.

PHOTO: OLUFEMI AJASA

Soldiers interrogating two suspected trouble makers at the Abuja Millennium Park, during the celebrations, yesterday. PHOTO: ROTIMI OSASONA

Children at the prayer ground in Lagos during the Sallah celebrations.RR

Children having fun at the Abuja Millennium Park, yesterday.

PHOTO: ROTIMI OSASONA

Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima (right), during a Sallah visit to inmates of the Maximum Prison in Maiduguri, yesterday. PHOTO: NAN

Alhaji Ahmed Shehu, riding into the Government House during Sallah homage to Governor Isa Yuguda in Bauchi, yesterday. PHOTO: NAN Riders leading their camels into the Government House, during a Sallah homage to Bauchi State Governor Isa Yuguda In Bauchi.

L-R: Emir of Dutse, Alhaji Nuhu Sunusi (left) and Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa, during the emirâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Sallah homage to the Governor in Dutse. PHOTO: NAN

Yandaba cultural group entertaining guests during the Emir of Bauchiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sallah homage to Governor Isa Yuguda in Bauchi. PHOTO: NAN

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Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Shell spent N59.3bn on police, security –Report CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2

the Middle East. But the scale of Shell’s spending, revealed by the data for the first time, raises questions about the effectiveness of its security policies. “What is striking about the amount being spent in Nigeria is its ineffectiveness,” said Amunwa. “Shell

spent many millions of dollars each year on government forces who failed to provide the company with adequate security.” Nkabari said: “Shell cannot call this spending ‘security’. If it was really providing security, then why do we continue to have vandalisation, why do we have bunkering (theft of

oil), why do we have the security mess that we have in the Niger Delta? They give protection to the oil workers but they are not providing the region with ‘security’.” “These figures are alarming – it is a scandal that so much money is spent on security instead of on the local communi-

ties whose livelihoods are destroyed as a result of the oil exploitation,” said Jaff Napoleon Bamenjo of Relufa, which campaigns for environmental justice in West Africa. “Across Africa oil, mining and agro-industry companies regularly pay for the services of local security forces that have

deplorable human rights records; sometimes as a contractual obligation,” said Bamenjo. “This is an extremely unethical practice held over from the colonial era which must end immediately.

Kuramo evictees blame surge on Eko Atlantic City CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2

L-R: Chief Imam of Abuja National Mosque, Ustaz Musa Mohammed; President Goodluck Jonathan and Vice-President Namadi Sambo during a Sallah homage to the President in Abuja on Sunday.

Not only is it bad for local communities who are the primary victims of police and military predation, but as Shell well knows, it exposes foreign companies to lawsuits in multiple jurisdictions.”

friends to the ocean surge. Edwards, who claimed to be the chairman of the business community at Kuramo Beach, told National Mirror that his friends were in their houses when the surge swept them away about 2a.m. last Saturday. He said that many others, who were swept away by the ocean waves, had been on the beach for over 10 years. The resident said he made frantic efforts to rescue his friends but that the sea waves overpowered him, showing National Mirror his right leg where he sustained injury in the process. Edwards condemned the

way the Lagos State government moved in to destroy their property and displaced them without giving them alternative accommodation. He said: “How can I quantify lives? How can I quantify the lives of my five friends that were lost to the surge? If we say this is the amount, government may be saying that we want to extort money from it.” The evicted resident alleged that the state government had labelled them illegal occupants, saying that the government and the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, had forgotten how they besieged their community last year to canvass for votes.

Ex-IG blames IBB, military for destroying police CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

the police, adding that policemen fared better in the First Republic. “The military destroyed the police,” the ex-IG said. Jimeta, also a former National Security Adviser, NSA, had served as IG under the Babangida regime. He said that some people seemed to have been bought over by the proponents of state police, describing such agitation as a dishonest ploy to steal more public funds. “We are doomed if anybody can be lobbied to truncate the truth. This is part of the national dishonesty we are talking about. It is a ploy to steal more money,” he added. Jimeta, who spoke to journalists at his Abuja residence as part of the Eidel-fitr celebration, also challenged Nigerians to unite and fight those he described as the mafioso. Although, he did not mention names, Jimeta noted that “it is criminal the way and manner we handle the security of this country.” He added that the mafia

had held the country hostage for so long, urging Nigerians to rise in defence of their future. “Let us unite to fight the mafia in this country because they have destroyed all the systems,” he said. Recalling that he had on different occasions disagreed with Babangida, even while serving under him, the former police boss said since Nigeria “presents a very peculiar scenario in terms of the diversity of its population, it would be suicidal to kowtow to the minority’s demand for a state police. “The former Head of State was my boss and I served under him. I have also read his views on the issue of state police as reported in the newspapers. “With due respect, there is a wide margin of disagreement between those of us operating in the force and people like my former boss. While I was in office, we had differences,” he added. Babangida, who spoke with journalists last week in Minna as part of activities marking his 71st birth-

day, had said that Nigeria could not afford to continue to remain stagnant, adding that the fears that state governors might misuse the concept of a state police were misplaced. “There is the need for us to go forward; I do not think there is anything wrong with the state police and I believe that the state police will work. “I don’t think the incumbent governors can use state police to intimidate anybody. Honestly, the fear is unfounded,” he had said. Babangida wondered why Nigerians had refused to shed their bitter experiences in the hands of the Native Police in the pre-independence era and in the early years of independence. But Jimeta recalled that during the constitutional conference in the 1960s, it was agreed that some issues be made ‘residual’ and others ‘exclusive’, stressing that the force was one of such exclusive preserves of the Federal Government. He said: “Nigeria presents a very peculiar situation with a vast number of tribes and if you want to keep Nigeria

united, you require certain institutions to do that and it was agreed that a single police force, devoid of ethnicity and politics, was needed. “The actual words they used were that ‘there should be no preponderance of any tribe in the force’.” The former IG also hailed the Parry Osayandeled Presidential Committee report on the reorganisation of the police, especially for recommending for the scrap of the Ministry of Police Affairs. Describing the ministry as a waste of money and another conduit pipe to fritter away the nation’s resources, Jimeta said that the decision to act on the recommendation was a prerogative of the President. He advocated the creation of a department in the Presidency to handle issues relating to explanations of government policies on the force. Jimeta said that the IG had no business appearing before the National Assembly to defend certain policies, explaining that such would be the responsibility of the department.

He recalled that the political crisis in the Western Region, commonly called “wetie” was aggravated due to the regional nature of the force, adding that Nigeria might witness greater crisis with the creation of state police. The ex-IG faulted claims by state governors that they could not control the commissioners of police in their states, adding that no policeman would refuse to carry out a legitimate business of governance if directed by a state governor. He noted that the governors would prefer a situation where they could use the force to feather their own nests, adding: “Neither the president nor the governor has the powers to use the police outside the provisions of the law.” The former police boss also described as unhealthy the continued proliferation of security agencies in the country. He said that if adequately funded, the police could handle the functions for which some new agencies or commissions had now been saddled

with. “There is now a proliferation of security agencies to the extent that if something happens, you would not know which of the agencies to hold accountable,” Jimeta said. Governors of the 36 states had on June 24 met in Abuja under the aegis of the Nigeria Governors Forum, NGF, with a call on the Federal Government to establish a special intervention fund to cater for violence-prone states. The governors also “identified the increasing need for state police as a strategy for combating the rising insecurity in the country.” But Jimeta said despite the wave of gun and bomb attacks in some parts of the North, the situation would become worse were the governors allowed a direct control of the force. He advocated a National Police Council, which would include all the state governors, which would provide a platform for governors to make strategic input on how best to police their individual states.

News

Mobil begins clean-up of Akwa Ibom oil spill TONY ANICHEBE UYO

obil Producing Nigeria, MPN, yesterday began the clean-up of Ibeno coastline contaminated by an oil spill reported on August 13. It was learnt that the oil company engaged 40 youths from the communities affected by the spill in the clean-up. The operator of the Qua Iboe oil fields, MPN, said although it was still conducting tests on the oil samples to determine the source of the spill, it had accepted to clean up the shoreline. The company said in a statement signed by its Manager, Communications and Government Affairs, Mr. Nigel Cookey-Gam, that: “The source of the hydrocarbon remains unknown as fingerprinting of collected samples is ongoing. “MPN remains committed to ensuring that the health and environment of our neighbouring communities are protected.’’ Meanwhile, the residents of Esit Eket Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom have urged the authorities of the council to ensure that the oil company takes responsibility for losses caused by the spill. A youth leader in Ibeno, Mr. John Cyril, said the number of youths engaged for the clean-up was inadequate. He said: “It is very unfortunate that Mobil can, at this period of emergency, be talking of saving costs when the safety of people is threatened. “The more people they hire, the faster the work but if they are seeking to keep costs low, the job will be delayed.”

Akwa Ibom Governor, Godswill Akpabio

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

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FG will soon resolve fuel, labour crises –Okupe

•Pay subsidy arrears or face strike, NUPENG warns govt ROTIMI FADEYI ABUJA

he Federal Government is making efforts to avert industrial crisis involving National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, oil marketers, Power Holding Corporation of Nigeria, PHCN, staff and the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC. The Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, said in a statement in Abuja yes-

terday that the government approach to resolve the crisis was multi-faceted and multidimensional. He said the ministers of labour, power, and other high level officers of government had met for several hours with the aggrieved PHCN workers and virtually all their demands had been agreed upon except for the issue of the workers’ severance benefits. Okupe said while the workers insisted on their terms of employment, government’s proposition was based on the Pension Act of

2004. He noted that the matter would probably be resolved favourably within the coming week by the Presidency. Okupe also explained that the Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, had shifted her base temporarily to Lagos despite the holidays and had been engaged with the aggrieved marketers, union members and other stakeholders in the downstream sector. He said: “All indications are to the effect that favour-

able resolutions are being reached and all matters are likely to be resolved within this week, as all these efforts are being made to ensure that the crisis that has caused a lot of hardship to commuters and motorists is not unduly prolonged and does not also extend beyond the city of Abuja in the case of the fuel scarcity. “The Federal Government therefore urges Nigerians to be calm, as all hands are on deck to ensure that normalcy returns soonest.” Meanwhile, NUPENG has appealed to the Federal

The scene of an accident at Ojuelegba, Lagos, yesterday.

PHOTO:NAN

Edo NMA in crisis as national body nullifies election SEBASTINE EBHUOMHAN BENIN

wo parallel executive councils of the Edo State chapter of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) emerged yesterday to run the affairs of the state union of medical doctors in a crisis that resulted from the nullification of an earlier state election. National Mirror reliably learnt that the out-gone executive of the state association led by Dr. Philip Ugbodaga, had last Saturday conducted an election that returned Dr. James Kpolugbo, as chairman along with other members of the executive. But the election was during the week nullified for not satisfying some basic rules for its conduct by the national NMA, which went ahead to organise another election yesterday at the Central Hospital in Benin City.

The new election, which returned Dr. Emmanuel Ighodaro, as Edo State chairman, meant that two executive councils are leading the association in the state. Commenting on the issue, the National President of the NMA, Dr. Osahon Enabulele, described the Ighodaro-led executive as the authentic one that should be recognised by all medical doctors in the country. He also described the faction led by Kpolugbo as a fraud. Enabulele described the election that was conducted by the out-gone executive led by Ugbodaga as “a kangaroo election that was not attended by more than 30 medical doctors.” In contrast, he said the second election that produced Ighodaro as state chairman was attended by over 100 medical doctors, including former NMA President, Dr. Dominic Osaghae, Prof. Linus Ajabor and the Edo State Director of Medi-

cal Services, Dr. Eboreime. Enabulele explained that the out-gone executive in the state had earlier been suspended along with those of Jigawa and Niger States for breaching the constitution of the NMA by overstaying their term in office. As as a result, they were not qualified to conduct any election for new executives and by extension that made whatever they have done, null and avoid, ab initio. However, in his reaction, Ugbodaga said due process was followed in the conduct of the first election and added that some of those who took part in yesterday’s election had also taken part in last Saturday’s election that produced Dr. Kpolugbo as state chairman. “What is happening now is that people who lost ran to the national body to save their face. Having lost, they formed a parallel body.”

Government to pay the 2012 petroleum subsidy arrears to ensure peace and industrial harmony in the country. The President of the union, Mr. Igwe Achese, who briefed journalists in Lagos yesterday, said the continuous delay in the payment of the money had impacted negatively on workers in the oil and gas sector. He said: “Government said it had paid about N400bn as subsidy arrears for 2011 and 2012 and from... Okonjo-Iweala’s explanation, N200bn was paid in excess as subsidy arrears. “We are worried that there was selective payment as the real depot owners are yet to be paid because their workers are being owed. “We urge the government to announce the names of those that had been paid the subsidy arrears because those who have investments and employees in the sector are yet to receive any money.” Achese said NUPENG was open to dialogue to resolve the issues, but warned that the union would call a nationwide strike if the subsidy money was not paid in time. The union president expressed concern about the diversion of crude oil meant for the refineries, which he alleged, was now being sold in the open market.

Involve youths in peace negotiation –Islamic Brotherhood

ustice Suleiman Belgore, the founder of Islamic Brotherhood of Nigeria, ISBON, yesterday called for the involvement of Nigerian youths in peace negotiation processes across the country. He made the call in Abuja while speaking at the ISBON’s “Family get-together,” organised as part of the Sallah celebration. Belgore said that the involvement of the youth in peace negotiations was imperative because they were the ones fomenting trouble in the country. The Islamic scholar, however, said that the citizens’ moral values had broken

down considerably, stressing the need to return to core societal values to have a better Nigeria. He blamed the growing immorality of youths on the parents, who were busy pursuing their businesses and chasing money at the expense of their children’s upbringing. On her part, the Leader of ISBON’s Women Wing, Hajia Silifat Ahmadu, said the gathering was to make members of the brotherhood happy and have a sense of belonging. She said that the organisation would inaugurate its Nursery and Primary School in September.

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Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Okupe’s appointment in order, says PDP

he Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said that new Special Assistant on Public Affairs to President Goodluck Jonathan, Dr. Doyin Okupe, was appointed to engage Nigerians on salient issues of national importance. The party said Dr. Okupe has what it takes to succeed in his assignment, adding that his appointment would deepen the channels of communication between the Presidency and Nigerians. The PDP was reacting to calls by the opposition on Okupe to resign his ap-

•Flays ACN over call for aide’s resignation

OMEIZA A JAYI

legedly climbed an overhead water tank to feed the pigeon when he slipped off, and in an attempt to regain his balance, held unto a seemingly innocuous electric cable. Eyewitnesses said he was immediately electrocuted. National Mirror learnt that residents of the SSS quarters, who were attracted to the scene, immediately informed his father, Alhaji Sani Abubakar, who mobilised some youths to bring down the body. A grief-stricken Abubakar, the Abuja Bureau Editor of the Nigerian Newsday Newspaper and Vice Chairman of the FCTA Press Corps, recalled that his late son was an ardent lover of pets, particularly pigeons. According to him, he had banned his late son from keeping the pigeon as he dedicated most of his time to the pet to the detriment of other domestic activities.

pointment, based on what the party called unfounded allegation. Deputy National Secretary of the PDP, Hon. Binta Masi Garba, said in a statement in Abuja that in appointing Okupe, President Jonathan took the right decision, noting that the President is constitutionally empowered to give appointments to deserving Nigerians under the presidential system that the country operates. The PDP particularly described as blackmail the

involvement of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in the ongoing campaign, adding however that the President cannot be intimidated on the issue. It said: “We have noted the copious references by the ACN through its spokesman, Mr. Lai Mohammed, to the purported unwholesome acts in the execution of some projects in Benue and Imo states several years ago. “It is our considered opinion that issues of contracts are basically civil

issues between contracting parties and certainly most contract documents contain clauses for dispute resolutions.” According to the party, since the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had said that Okupe was not being investigated for any crime or indicted by any court of competent jurisdiction or any investigative panel, he should be deemed innocent until proven otherwise. “The call for Dr. Okupe`s removal is therefore not

Teenager electrocuted in Abuja

ympathisers wept in the early hours of yesterday in Jikwoyi, a suburb of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), when a nineyear-old boy was electrocuted while attempting to feed his pet - a pigeon. His death came several weeks after members of the House of Representatives passed a resolution urging the Nigeria Telecommunications Limited NITEL and the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) to evacuate some of its cables which they said have constituted hazards in some communities. Hassan Sani Abubakar, a twin and lover of pets, had reportedly left his family house located in Jikwoyi for the State Security Service (SSS) quarters in the area in an attempt to feed his pigeon. The late Hassan al-

lem is energy. We cannot operate in darkness and expect things to work properly,” he said. Chukwurah, however, noted that other problems militating against the possibility of round-the-clock operations at the ports were man-made. The clearing agent cited the absence of manpower and lack of security at night as other problems militating against 24-hour port operations. He told the News Agency

ment, Okupe’s lawyers have confirmed that the Benue State Government actually awarded a rural road contract to Messrs Value Trust Investment Limited, one of the companies in which Dr. Okupe served as chairman. In a statement signed by Yemi Gbonegun, the Lagosbased firm, Yemi Gbonegun and Co., described the contract award as “purely a commercial transaction.” It explained that trouble started when the administration of the state changed hands and incumbent Governor Gabriel Suswam took over from former Governor George Akume.

L-R: Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) official, Abiola Fatoye ; Regional Sales Manager, National Mirror, Mr. Isaiah Olowere; FRSC Head of Training, Mr. Peter Davou; National Mirror Regional Managing Editor, South-West, Mr. Biyi Adegoroye and Commander, Mrs. Mary Wakama, during a presentation of National Mirror newspaper to the commander in Ondo State recently.

“Because of his addiction to the pigeons, I had instructed my late child to remove them from the compound so that he could concentrate. But unknown to me, he kept the pigeons at the SSS quarters, which is not far from my house,” Abubakar said. The late Hassan has been buried according to Islamic rites.

‘Unsteady power hampers 24-hour port operations’ licensed Customs Agent, Chief Ozo Chukwurah, says unsteady power supply has been the major impediment to 24-hour port operations in the country. Chukwurah, Chairman, Anti-smuggling and Corruption Unit of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), made the remark at an election held by the Igbo Maritime Forum (IMF) yesterday in Lagos. “The first and major prob-

only baseless and unwarranted, but equally malicious. The President will therefore not be blackmailed into following any agenda based on trumpedup charges, outright lies and misinformation,” it added. The PDP urged those trying to raise a storm out of the issue to desist from “further undue political exploitation and misrepresentation”. “It is a common saying that those who live in glass houses should not throw stones and he who comes to equity must come with clean hands,” it added. In a related develop-

of Nigeria (NAN) in a postelection interview that the customs agents were still experiencing delays in cargo clearance, adding that 80 per cent of the problems were, however, man-made. “We are facing delays in cargo clearance because the shipping companies and the terminal operators are benefiting from such delays “Every little delay, be it one minute or a day, is to their benefit, because they still continue to collect storage charges,” he said.

Heavy rain likely in 23 states –Ministry

he Federal Ministry of Environment has predicted heavy rain between now and August 27 in 23 states. The downpour, according to the ministry, may cause flooding. The prediction was contained in a report issued yesterday in Abuja by Dr Morohunkeji Oyeleke, the Deputy Director (Erosion, Flood and Coastal Zone Management) of the ministry. Oyeleke identified some areas that could be affected in Kebbi as Argungu, Bungudu, Bunza, Gwandu, Jega, Kalgo and Birni-Kebbi. Other areas are Keffi and its environs in Nasarawa State, Okigwe in Imo, New-Bussa in Kwara, Sabongida-Ora in Edo, Buruku in Benue and Echara-Onu and its environs in Ebonyi. Oyeleke also listed Daura, Yelwa, Katsina, Funtua, Jibia, Bakori and Bunda-

wa, all in Katsina State; and Dutse, Gumel, Gwaram, Hadejia, Miga,Mallam Fatori and Ringim, all in Jigawa; as part of the areas. Besides, the flood-prone areas include Bukuru and Shelleng in Plateau, Gombe and Nafida in Gombe,Damasak, Kukawa, Biu and Briyel in Borno. Areas which could be affected by the downpour-induced flood include Birnin Gwari, Jemaa, Kachia, Kaduna, Kafanchan, Kapa Madaki, Shanga, Zaria, Kauru and Shanga in Kaduna State; and Bebeji, Gezawa, Gwarzo, Kano, Karaye, Sumaila, Tudun-Wada and Wudi in Kano State. Oyeleke identified Azare, Bajoga, Darazo, Yelwa, Jamaare, Itas, Katagum, Kirfi and Misau as areas that could be affected in Bauchi State, while Mutum-Biyu, Lau, Gembu and Beli in Taraba; Bida, Rijau, Sarki Pawa, Jebba and Kotangora in Niger could also

be affected. Other areas are KauraNamoda, Maru, Maradun, Gusau, Bukwium in Zamfara; Damaturu, Machina, Gashua, Dapchi, Putiskum, Kanama in Yobe; Yorro, Yola, Song, Numan, Mubi, Mayo-Belwa, Jimeta, Gainye and Demsa in Adamawa. Gada, Goronyo, Gummi, Isa, Makira, Kargiwa, Shagari, Silame, Sokoto and Wamakko in Sokoto State, as well as Eleyele, Challenge, Moniya, Bodija, Odo-ona, all in Ibadan, Oyo State, could also be affected.

Minister of the Environment, Hadiza Mailafia

South West

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

‘South-West legislature to make regional integration law’ ABIODUN NEJO ADO EKITI

parliamentary conference of SouthWest lawmakers to provide legal framework for easy execution and sustainability of the integration programme being fashioned for the zone is under way. The Vice-Chairman, Conference of Nigerian Speakers (South West), Hon. Adewale Omirin, has said. Omirin, who is the Speaker, Ekiti State House of Assembly, said financial constraint owing to the present meltdown had been slowing it down, assuring that it would be convoked as soon as the finances of the states improve. The lawmaker told journalists in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, yesterday that the need for legal backing for the South-West economic agenda could not be over-emphasised.

He said the regional integration programme was an attempt to put the zone back to the fast lane of economic development as witnessed under the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, and expand the frontiers of socio-economic and political interactions of member states. Omirin said convocation of a national conference was necessary, if the ongoing constitutional amendment was to be meaningful in view of the limitation of the powers of the National Assembly to amend and not to rewrite the constitution. His words: “The National Assembly only has the power to amend and not to rewrite the constitution. With this, it will be difficult for Nigeria to witness the right constitutional democracy if the right constitution is not put in place. “As things stand now, many sections of our constitution should be rewritten and not just amended, so there is no way a national conference

that will comprise of true representatives of the people will not be convoked to rewrite the country’s constitution,” the lawmaker said. Omirin, who wondered why the National Assembly was not comfortable with the idea of a constituent assembly, said “what is being expended on the ongoing constitutional amendment is enough to carve out a new constitution that can stand the test of time”. He lamented that the problem with Nigeria is that ‘we don’t leaders that have the genuine interest of the nation at heart’. The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) chieftain expressed optimism that the proposed alliance between his party and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) would work this time around. According to him, “The alliance failed during the last general elections because of differences between the leaders of the two sides. Now, there is better understanding.”

Group challenges INEC over Akeredolu’s form submission claims

political group, the Democratic Values Initiative (DVI), yesterday challenged the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to resolve the puzzle surrounding the form submission of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) candidate in the Ondo State October 20 governorship election, Chief Rotimi Akeredolu. The group said it has become imperative for INEC to clear itself of any complicity in the matter. In a statement issued in Abuja yesterday and signed by its Publicity Secretary, Godwin Shari, the group said it has been following with keen interest the unfolding drama and the controversy surrounding the form submission issue of the ACN candidate. “It took a text message sent by Akeredolu, late Saturday evening, to dispel rumours about the party not meeting the deadline given by INEC. Reports in some newspapers yesterday had detailed of how reporters met brick walls while trying to confirm whether or not the ACN was able to submit the INEC forms before the rumoured August 15 submission date. “It was reported that nei-

ther Akeredolu nor the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Mr. Akin Orebiyi, offered any explanation,” the statement read in part. The group said it viewed strongly, however, a text message from Akeredolu late Saturday evening which noted that his party still had up till Monday, August 20, to submit the forms which will confirm the party’s readiness to participate in the poll. Registering its curiosity at the twist in the development, the group said; “We were, however, curious when a statement by the Akeredolu Campaign Organisation signed by the Media Director, Mr. Idowu Ajanaku, yesterday announced that the ACN candidate had indeed submitted the forms. “We therefore demand that INEC should speak up on this issue in order to confirm its integrity and neutrality towards the poll in the state. First, INEC should tell the whole world whether or not Akeredolu, which the commission had, as at Saturday, reminded about the October 20 submission deadline, had actually submitted the forms. “We also wish to know whether Akeredolu could submit the forms on Monday

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Maku allays fears over Nigeria’s $5bn external debt

inister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, yesterday dispelled fears over Nigeria’s foreign debt profile, saying the country’s $5bn debt could not harm the economy. “We currently owe $5bn as foreign debt,” the minister said, while speaking with Nigerian journalists in London. “If you compare that to our foreign reserves and our economic capacity, there is no problem as far as the country’s external debt is concerned,” he added. Maku, who noted that most developed and developing nations were not free from debt, however, conceded that debts should not be allowed to overwhelm the country’s capacity to pay back. He stressed that in the last 13 years of Nigeria’s democracy, the country has been able to exit the debt track. Maku recalled that at a

Maku

point in time, the country owed the Paris Club of creditors about $35bn, adding that the country was, nonetheless, able to pay off a substantial part of its external debt. “What led to the huge debt was that the money borrowed was used for things that were not productive,” he said. The minister stressed that the “new” debts owed by the government were used to revamp the country’s infrastructure such as the railways and the power plants. “These debts are private-sector loans, guar-

anteed by government, because the loans are given out at lower interest rates,” he said. Maku said for instance, the Chinese Nexim Bank was currently negotiating a loan to build modern rail tracks in Nigeria. “They (Chinese) are already building one railway track between Kaduna and Abuja. Also, work has commenced on the railway line linking Lagos through Ibadan to Ilorin and Minna, while linking up with the one from Abuja to Kano,” he said. “These are private sector projects that will develop the economy,” Maku said. The minister expressed optimism that the “private sector” debts would propel the growth of the economy. Speaking on the housing sector, Maku admitted that there was a huge gap existing in Nigeria’s housing delivery programme, stressing that the Federal Government recently unveiled a new housing policy for the country.

Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun (left), at the on-going state biometric data capturing exercise for civil servants, in Abeokuta, at the weekend.

knowing full well that INEC staff would not be on duty on that day. “Another aspect that INEC should clarify is whether or not the ACN could submit uncompleted forms because very crucial information which has to do with the deputy governorship candidate would be missing. “We demand that in case the Ondo REC would not be willing to talk, the INEC image makers at the headquarters in Abuja, Mr. Kayode Idowu, who was a former editor with The

Three die in Ondo auto crash

he police in Ondo State yesterday confirmed that three persons died in an accident on Okitipupa-Ore road in Okitipupa Local Government Area of the state. The Divisional Police Officer in Okitipupa, Mr. Titilola Lasisi, told the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, that one person also sustained injuries in the

accident which occurred on Sunday night. He said the accident involved two vehicles, which collided near Aye Junction, Okitipupa, at about 8.00 p.m. He explained further that the vehicles were a Golf car, marked EDO AE 844 HER, and an Opel car, marked, OGUN AM 27 JBD. Lasisi explained that the Golf car, which was con-

veying the three persons, suddenly veered off its lane and collided with the Opel car. He said the driver of the Golf car sustained injuries and was treated at the State Specialist Hospital, Okitipupa, before he was arrested. He also said that the bodies of the three persons had been deposited at the hospital morgue.

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South West

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

2015: ACN, CPC alliance to wrest power from PDP –Lam

Faction members are political mercenaries –Ondo PDP

KEMI OLAITAN

IBADAN

ormer Governor of Oyo State, Alhaji Lam Adesina, has promised to ensure that the ongoing efforts to form an alliance between his party, the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, and the Major General Muhammadu Buhari-led

Congress for Progressive Chance, CPC, succeed. Adesina, who made the pledge yesterday while speaking with journalists at his Felele, Ibadan residence on the Eld-el-fitri celebration, said efforts must be made to wrest power from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in 2015. Giving reasons why

he is supporting the proposed ACN/CPC alliance, the former governor said with the PDP in power at the centre, Nigeria would not be able to witness any meaningful development as its members only believed in serving their own interest rather than the interest of Nigerians. He said: “I welcome any alliance that will drive

PDP out of power in 2015 because with the PDP at the centre, Nigeria cannot witness any meaningful development. “The PDP has continued to fail Nigerians for over 12 years, and we in the opposition cannot continue to fold our alms. We must take pragmatic actions to drive the political party out of power.”

L-R: Chief Operating Officer, Broadcasting Corporation of Oyo State, BCOS, Mr. Yomi Layinka; State Coordinator, National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, Pastor Olanipekun Alao and Assistant Director, NYSC Skills Acquisition Empowerment Department, Mrs. Josephine Bakare, during a visit to BCOS in Ibadan, yesterday.

NRC to inaugurate refurbished rolling stock Thursday OLUSEGUN KOIKI

he Nigerian Railway Corporation, NRC, yesterday said it would on Thursday inaugurate rolling stock refurbished through direct labour. The corporation said the refurbishment was necessary in order to provide efficient and effective passenger train services which would guarantee comfort, affordability, mass carriage, and safety to the commuting public.

The NRC, Assistant Director Public Relations, Mr. David Ndakosu, said in a statement that the roll-out of phase one of a planned rehabilitation of the entire rolling stock in the system would be utilised on Minna Kaduna - Minna Mass Transit Train Service. Ndakosu added that in another few weeks, coaches of mass transit trains in Lagos, Ilorin, and Kaduna would be withdrawn systematically for rehabilitation without any disruption to passenger train services.

He explained that the rolling stock refurbished at various locations of the corporation included 12 economy class coaches, one restaurant, one business class coach at the Zaria workshop; one canteen coach, two sleeper coaches, six parcel vans, two power cars, and one business class coach at the Lagos workshop. Others are three economy class coaches, three business class coaches all in the corporation’s Carriage and Wagon workshop, EbuteMetta, Lagos; 49 steel wag-

ons, three guard vans at the Minna workshop; 30 hopper wagons at Apapa; and eight covered steel wagons at the Zaria workshop. Ndakosu said the gradual nationwide roll-out of refurbished rolling stock was part of NRC’s approach to address congestion on its mass transit trains; showcase the quality of work done by the engineering staff of the corporation; optimise accruement of market share of the passenger traffic offer to the corporation as well as give the commuting public value-added

Internalise lessons of Ramadan, Alaafin urges Nigerians KEMI OLAITAN IBADAN

he Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi III, has appealed to Nigerians to reflect the lessons of Ramadan in everything they do. He gave the advice in a statement issued by his Media Assistant, Alhaji Azeez Fehintola, and made available to journalists yesterday in Ibadan, the Oyo State

capital. Congratulating Muslims across the country on the successful observance of the annual fasting and the Eid-el-fitri celebration, the monarch said as Islam preaches peace and obedience to constituted authority, people should always strive to live in peace and be their brother’s keeper for the sake of stability of the country. He said: “Islam is a reli-

gion of peace. The period of fasting is for abstinence from all forms of sins and iniquities. It is a period people should be righteous in all their dealings just as Mohammed preaches in the Quran. “Much as Muslim faithful had subjected themselves to these teachings and virtues during the Ramadan period, I implore them to let the teachings continue to be part of their way of life

so that our society could be a better one for all to live in. “Strive to live a righteous life style. Refrain from acts capable of disrupting the peace of your communities. Support your leaders, love your neighbours as yourself, and always work towards the growth and development of your fatherland.” Adeyemi also implored the religious fundamentalists in the North to stop killing innocent people, saying that Islam forbids such act.

HAKEEM GBADAMOSI AKURE

he Ondo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party has described members of a factional group in the party as political mercenaries paid to cause disharmony within the party. In a statement issued in Akure yesterday by its state Director of Publicity, Ayo Fadaka, the PDP also accused the group of frustrating efforts to regain the state by assisting Governor Olusegun Mimiko to win the October 20 governorship election. Fadaka explained that most of the genuine party leaders who earlier pitched their tent with the group had deserted it after noticing that it was pursuing a different agenda from that of the party. “This group, which at the onset, was able to disguise its agenda to a section of the party, pretending to be on a renewal within the party, has since been discovered by its initial supporters as an absolute ruse, a smokescreen and shadowy organisation that was procured by Mimiko to assist him in accomplishing the destruction of our party in Ondo State and as such has been deserted by all genuine members of the party who have all forcefully moved back into the party to contribute their quota in its continual development and help it to win the governorship election come October 20th 2012,” Fadaka said. He also disclosed that efforts were made by the leadership of the PDP to unite the party by accepting their demand to dissolve the Tayo Dairoled executive last year which paved the way for the Transition Committee that administered the party till March. The PDP spokesman, however, said the recent turn out of party supporters and the acceptance of the party standard bearer, Olusola Oke, for the forthcoming election by the people of the state led to the current upsurge from the group to destabilise PDP in the state. He said: “Since we

held the largely successful ‘unity rally’ that was attended by thousands of members of the party from every nook and cranny of the state, a crowd of party men and women who in a demonstration of their commitment and faithfulness to the party, a crowd that forcefully indicate that power has already shifted in the state and paled into insignificance the motley rented crowd that graced Mimiko’s own rally, this group has up scaled its act upon realising that their evil, insidious and despicable agenda of destruction has failed. “We are, however, comfortable in our confidence that these group of political mercenaries, spent forces and largely tired and castrated politicians are in no position to injure our new found strength, confidence, influence and respect that we command in the state. “Respect that is newly ignited by the so many solid and enduring achievements of the last PDP administration in the state that pale into insignificance ephemeral contributions of the Mimiko administration. “Every member of the party now knows them for what exactly they represent, fifth columnists, we all know that it is Mimiko that picks their medical expenses, both local and foreign, placed many of them on salaries and subventions. We all know about their nocturnal meetings in the Government House and the instructions they take from there and they know in all honesty that they are absolutely effeminate as regards any ability to injure the PDP any further.”

Oke

South East

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

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Tension as PDP accused of plot to destabilise Imo CHRIS NJOKU OWERRI

ension is building up in Imo State as the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) yesterday alerted the public of an alleged plot by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to cause breakdown

of law and order. In a statement signed by the APGA Chairman, Prince Marshal Okafor Anyanwu, which was made available to National Mirror, the party alleged that over 200 buses carrying thugs from unknown states would converge on Imo State tomorrow to

force the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Hon. Benjamin Uwajumogu, to swear-in Chief Eugene Dibiagwu as a member representing Oguta constituency, a matter which it claimed is still before the court and on which judge ruled that the status-quo should re-

main. Dibiagwu, a member of PDP, won House of Assembly seat in Oguta Constituency re-run election on August 11, 2012, but APGA claimed it boycotted the election and proceeded to court, a situation which made the House to stop the swearing in of the

PDP candidate. However yesterday, APGA alleged that following the refusal of the House to swear-in Dibiagwu, PDP planned to import hoodlums into the state to create instability that “will lead to mayhem and a declaration of a state of emergency.”

Okorocha

Okorocha approves N320m intervention fund for schools mo State Governor Rocha Okorocha has approved N320m intervention fund for all primary and secondary schools in the state. Governor Okorocha, who disclosed this after a one-day workshop with head teachers, principals and other stakeholders in the education sector, said the fund would enable the newly established management teams of various schools to embark on

maintenance projects ahead of resumption of schools. He explained that each primary and secondary school would get N200,000 as part of the measures towards implementing school autonomy, adding that his administration would establish management teams that will oversee the affairs of the schools towards addressing the bureaucratic bottle-neck that had contributed to the collapse of infrastructure in the public schools.

were valid. On August 16, the ruling APGA sought an experte motion of the court to stop the Speaker from swearingin Dibiagwu. Justice Opara, after having allowed counsel in the matter to announce their appearances, wrote for about 15 minutes before reading out to parties that he had re-assigned the application to the state Chief Judge. He directed the Speaker not to swear-in Dibiagwu till the Chief Judge resumed his annual vacation even when no debate was held on the application. Justice Opara attributed his action to allegation by

the PDP Publicity Secretary, Mr. Blandyn Amajuruonwu, of alleged compromise in handling the application which, according to him, was aired in a local radio. Sensing danger on the mood of over 700 youths from Oguta who attended the session, Justice Opara quickly rose from his seat to announce the closure of court and ran into his chambers. The act, however, triggered off hooting at the judge and throwing of stones, sachet water, sticks and other weapons at the judge’s chamber, damaging window glasses, among others.

CHRIS NJOKU OWERRI

L-R: Anambra State Comptroller of Prisons, Mr.Patrick Onodu; Minister of Interior, Mr. Abba Patrick Moro and Governor Peter Obi , during the inspection of prison facilities in Awka Prisons, yesterday.

APGA crisis: Commissioner insists Umeh must go CHARLES OKEKE AWKA

he Anambra State Commissioner for Special Duties, Chief Vincent Ezenwajiaku, has called for the removal of Chief Victor Umeh as National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) as a way of restoring lasting peace to the party. It will be recalled that the party has been bedeviled by supremacy battle among members loyal to Anambra State Governor Peter Obi and those of Chief Umeh. Since the crisis started some months ago, the party has not known peace as the two factions have been waging a relentless battle. Addressing journalists in Awka, Chief Ezenwajiaku said stakeholders had been taking necessary measures to flush out Chief Umeh and his cohorts from whatever positions they claim to be holding in APGA.

Youths threaten to assault judge for alleged injustice GEORGE OPARA ABIA

judge in Owerri, the Imo State capital, Justice Ngozi Opara, has escaped violent assault by irate youths over perceived injustice and flagrant abuse of the rule of law. It was gathered that Justice Opara received an application for ex-parte motion from the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) seeking an injunction restraining Imo State House of Assembly Speaker, Hon Ben Uwajumogu, from swearing-in Chief Eugene Dibiagwu as member representing Oguta Con-

stituency in the House. Chief Dibiagwu, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), had scored 15,338 to defeat the candidate of ruling the APGA, Mr. Walter Uzowunne, who scored 3401 and Hon Henry Igbomeze of the Action Congress Nigeria (ACN) with 2502 votes. The result was a combined effect of April 26, 2011 and August 11, 2012 results in four out of the 11 wards of Uwaorie, Ndiuloukwu/ Umuowerre, Obudi/Aro, and Mgbala/Uba. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared elections in the four wards in Oguta inconclusive after

the April 2011 general election. However, litigation heralded the emergency of a representative for Oguta as parties headed for court to determine whether an outright cancelation should be made in the 11 wards or to uphold results of seven out of the 11 wards where some PDP members believed results were successfully returned before the supplementary governorship election in Imo. But the battle ended June 25, 2012 following the decision of a Federal High Court sitting Owerri and presided over by Justice Owo Ade who ruled that results of the seven wards

Abia farmers, consultant at war over agric loan GEORGE OPARA ABIA

he Abia State Farmers Co-operative Union is on war path with the International Center for Entrepreneurship Development - loan consultant to the Federal Government’s N1bn agric loan to states - over the method of disbursement and conditionality. The union said since the

loan was released, none of its members had accessed it despite the fact that they had earlier obtained forms to that effect as directed and that the consultant had been playing hide and seek game with them. In a statement made available to journalists, the farmers’ union president, Chief Uzoma Nwogwugwu, expressed sadness over the way his members had been sidelined in the disbursement of the loan.

Nwogwugwu explained that the union had submitted applications of about 85 names of individual cooperative societies out of about 4, 580 societies of not less than 48,000 individual members for loans to the consultant through the Abia State Ministry of Cooperative Poverty Reduction, but regretted that ever since, nothing had been heard. He said it was unfair for the co-operative societ-

ies to be sidelined in the disbursement of the loan after the Ministry of Agriculture had collected N5, 000 from each cooperative society, stressing that what obtains in other states in this regard ought to apply in Abia State. Speaking later, Nwogwugwu said as things were now, most farmers would not be able to meet one of the demands of assessing the loan which was that an applicant must be guar-

anteed by a government worker of Grade Level 9 and above, stressing that most individual farmers have no relations that fall in that category. He said: “In other states, the loan is passed to farmers’ cooperative societies through the farmers’ cooperative union which stands as guarantor to the primary societies and we are now wondering why the consultant is not applying the same method in our state.

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South South

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Benin jailbreak, an insiders’ job, says CP SEBASTINE EBHUOMHAN BENIN

olice in Edo State said yesterday that the Sunday morning jailbreak at Oko Prison in Benin City was an internal work which was planned and hatched inside the prison. Speaking on the incident at a press briefing in Benin, the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Olayinka Balogun, said that holes were bored in the walls of the prison cell and fence. He said: “Edo State Police Command wishes to inform the general public that on 20th (19th) of August, 2012 at about 0105 hours, there was a distress call from Oko Prisons. Police patrol teams from Airport Division, and operatives from B Ops were immediately dispatched to the scene by the commissioner of police. He also fol-

lowed up by being physically present at the scene. The situation was immediately put under control as two prison inmates who had earlier escaped through holes bored from within were re-arrested. “The commissioner of police was shown the two

ABUJA

he Niger Delta Indigenous Movement for Radical Change, NDIMRC, has advised President Goodluck Jonathan to ignore calls by a group of terrorists for him to convert to Islam or resign from office for peace to reign in the country. Describing the demand as laughable and a huge joke, the group warned the terrorists to stop frustrating President Jonathan and put an end to the “senseless” killings in parts of the North. In a statement signed by its President, Nelly Emma, Secretary, John Sailor, and Public Relations Officer, Mukoro Stanley, NDIMRC noted that the demand that Jonathan should convert to Islam or resign was a cheap blackmail which must be ignored by the good people of Nigeria. The group implored the terrorists to stop the killings and give the President the needed peace to discharge the mandate freely given to him by Nigerians in the

bomb blast at Oko Prisons or that gunmen came from outside to invade the prison as reported in some dailies. “The command wishes to reaffirm that there was no invasion of any kind, and there was no bomb blast. The escape bid was

purely the handiwork of prison inmates. The situation has, however, been put under control while security has been intensified in and around the prison environment.” Balogun, however, said his command was still waiting for the authorities

of the prison for more details on the incident. However, like the prison authorities, the commissioner failed to give the actual number of inmates who escaped during the jailbreak. But sources said that the number of inmates who escaped was yet to be ascertained.

Foundation partners Akpabio on campaign against violence TONY ANICHEBE UYO

A L-R: Chairman, Tai Local Government Area, Rivers State, Gbenekenu Kuapie; Programme Coordinator, Dr. Chinyere Nwaneri and Senator Magnus Ngei Abe, at the launch of the Free School Eye Health programme by Senator Magnus in the council, yesterday.

Nobody can force Jonathan out of office –N’Delta group JOHN UWE

holes bored into the cell walls and one through the fence. All made by the inmates probably over the time without the knowledge of the prison warders and the security operatives within the premises. It is untrue, misleading and unfounded that there was

2011 general elections. The statement reads in part: “President Jonathan has the mandate of Nigerians to rule this country and he will not succumb to any blackmail. The President cannot be intimidated; he will not resign because he is the custodian of a mandate given to him by Christians and Muslims alike. “The people of the South-South region have been the natural political allies of the North and have given their unflinching support to all the past Presidents from the North; never a time people from the South-South frustrated past Presidents from the North while in office. “Those who are doing everything to make the country ungovernable should know that their continuous harassment of the President will not be tolerated and should also be told now that they cannot stop President Jonathan from contesting the 2015 general election. “The people of the South-South have resolved that President Jonathan will remain in office and come back again in 2015.”

Bayelsa: Security outfit arrests two pirates, four cultists EMMA GBEMUDU YENAGOA

special security outfit codenamed: “Operation Amiekuma,” has apprehended two suspected sea pirates and four cultists terrorising communities in Nembe Local Government Area of Bayelsa State. The security outfit constituted by the Chairman of the council, Waribogo Sylva, to check the activities of sea pirates and cultists in the area arrested the sus-

pects in Nembe town at the weekend. A witness, who pleaded anonymity, said the suspects were flogged and paraded in the coastal community for several hours. The suspects, it was learnt, have been handed over to the police in Yenagoa, the state capital, for interrogation. Identities of the suspects were not disclosed at press time. The Chairman of Nembe Council of Chiefs, Michael Ogbotubo-Olokutu, said the

arrest of the suspects would serve as a deterrent to sea pirates and cultists operating in communities in the local government. He warned that the special security outfit would not spare any criminal in its determination to maintain law and order in the area. In recent times, sea pirates have continued to attack boat operators and passengers plying the waterways. The sea pirates often lay ambush for their victims in the creeks.

the ACN spokesman, was compiled after five months of painstaking study of the conditions of roads in the state capital. He said: “The report of the study reveals that our roads and streets are perilous. We therefore, call on government to declare an emergency on this sector.” Needam said the party was aware and applauded genuine efforts of the Rivers State Government to rehabilitate failed roads and streets in the state capital, but urged the government to conduct a thorough investigation to identify the causes of the dilapidated

state of these roads and streets, “bearing in mind the fact that these roads and streets were repaired barely two years ago”. The party also kicked against plans by the Ministry of Works to rehabilitate roads in the state capital without reviewing the failed efforts of the recent past. “Paradoxically, these same roads and streets, that government intends to repair all over again, were the same that were said to have been rehabilitated and maintained by the Rivers State Road Maintenance Agency and the Operation Zero Potholes,” Needam added.

Declare emergency on Rivers roads, ACN tells Amaechi CHINEDUM EMEANA PORT HARCOURT

he Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, has called on the administration of Governor Rotimi Amaechi to declare a state of emergency on roads in Rivers State. The state Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr. Jerry Needam, said in a statement that the call followed a report by The Environment Watch, a Non-Governmental Organisation, NGO, that there were 50,200 potholes on roads and streets in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital. The report, according to

Non-Governmental Organisation, NGO, the Martin Luther King Youth Empowerment Foundation, said it was partnering the Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State on the campaign against violence in the country. This is contained in a statement signed by its National President, Emmanuel Jonathan Esq, and its Akwa Ibom State Coordinator, Comrade Anieti Udom. According to the statement, Martin Luther King Youth Empowerment Foundation, whose aim, among others, is to preach peace and non-violence in society, found it necessary to partner Akpabio because of his achievements in the restoration of peace and unity in Akwa Ibom and Nigeria at large. “Governor Akpabio has consistently been at the forefront of the campaign for peace and non-violence in Nigeria. He has been able to create an ambience of peace and harmonious coexistence in his own state, making it possible for development to thrive. “Today, because of the effort of Governor Akpabio in restoring peace and unity in Akwa Ibom State, all major retreats and conferences of national significance are being held in the state; the latest of which is the 2012 Senate Retreat on Security held in the state. “Apart from preaching against violence everywhere he goes, the governor has also decided to use education as a tool to stop violence and criminality through the introduction of free and compulsory education up to the senior secondary school level to Akwa Ibom indigenes, as well as other Nigerians resident in the state, irrespective of tribe or religion,” the group said.

North

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Sallah day attack: Police arrest fleeing suspected terrorist AUGUSTINE MADU-WEST KANO

he Kano State Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris, said yesterday that the search for the fleeing suspected terrorists, who engaged security agents in gun battle on Sallah day in Kano, has paid off. He said one of the fleeing suspects had been arrested. Idris told journalists at the palace of the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero, yesterday that security agents had spread their

• Gunmen kill two in Mubi dragnet to track down fleeing members of the group hit by bullets when the security personnel repelled the terrorist attack on one of the check points in the city. He said: “My men have arrested one of them with bullet injuries, while the search for others has been intensified. We plead with members of the public, especially the medical personnel to report the presence of any patient with bullet wound to the police.”

The police boss said the incident was over blown by the media, adding that the Sallah celebration ended on a peaceful note, but said attempts by the terrorists to attack a check point was repelled. Idris was at the Emir of Kano palace to pay Sallah homage. He said he was there to thank the emir for his support to campaign by security agents to rid Kano of criminal activities. Members of a terrorist

group and Joint Task Force (JTF) officials clashed in one of the check points in Kano on Sunday. Spokesman of the 3 Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Kano, Lt Ikedichi Iweha, said no military personnel was hurt in the confrontations which were prominent in Hotoro and Zaria areas of the city. Meanwhile, gunmen killed two persons in Mubi on Sunday in an attack, which left one other person wounded. The Adamawa State Commissioner of Police, Mr.

Mark Idakwo, confirmed yesterday in Yola, the capital, that two people were killed, while one was hospitalised following the attack in the Sabon-Layi area of Mubi. The police chief, who did not give details of the incident, urged members of the public to give any information that could assist security agencies to track down suspected criminals in their midst. However, an eyewitness told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that six gunmen descended on the area around 8:pm on Sunday

and ordered everyone to lie down. “They collected money and handsets from the people before shooting sporadically as they retreated, hitting four people in the process,” he said. The eyewitness, who preferred anonymity, said that the attack took place in front of the house of Alhaji Sahabo Jauro, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Chairman in Mubi North Local Government Area. “Most of the victims were the politician’s visitors,” he added.

Salary: Kwara ACN backs LG workers’ 24-day ultimatum WOLE ADEDEJI ILORIN

he Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in Kwara State has described as justified, the 24-day ultimatum given by members of the state chapter of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) to demand payment of their salary arrears and allowances In a statement made available yesterday to journalists, ACN Chairman, Kayode Olawepo, said: “The non-payment of salary to workers is just a symptom of “political deceit, endemic corruption and mindless economic sabotage. “That there could be no

reasonable explanation for the habitual delay in the payment of salaries, a problem that is unique to Kwara. “We support the action and resolution of the NULGE in Kwara State on the issues of salaries and welfare. There could be no reasonable explanation for the habitual delay or refusal to pay workers monthly. “But we are quick to point out that the nonpayment of salaries is just one of the symptoms of the political deceit, endemic corruption and mindless economic sabotage championed by the PDP-led state government in active connivance with the party’s leadership.

Cross section of Yelwa and Dass Boys Brigade on parade during the closing ceremony of their annual council retreat in Bauchi at the weekend. PHOTO:NAN

Tragedy averted in Maiduguri as bomb failed to explode

Group warns against ‘plot’ to remove Akume as Senate Minority Leader

INUSA NDAHI

OMEIZA AJAYI

MAIDUGURI

ragedy was averted in Maiduguri, Borno State yesterday as an Improvised Explosive Device, IED, loaded in a Camry saloon car failed to detonate near a drinking joint. National Mirror learnt that the incident took place about 4.30pm at the Tudu area of the metropolis, behind the state Police Command Headquarters. According to an eyewitness, the suspected terrorist had parked the explosive laden car very close to the drinking spot and all attempts to detonate it failed. The eyewitness said that rather than the device exploding, there was smoke inside the car, at which point, the man ran away by mingling with the crowd.

“I was about 10 metres away from the vehicle, watching what the occupant was doing. We initially thought that it was an electrical fault, which he wanted to rectify, so, we continued with our drinking. “But, as soon as we saw the car engulfed with smoke, with the occupant running away, we also ran and immediately alerted the security agents. And when the Anti Bomb Squad arrived the scene, it was discovered that the vehicle was loaded with containers and cylinders of IED’s,” the eyewitness said. The Joint Task Force, JTF, spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Sagir Musa confirmed the incident. He said: “We received a distress call from Tudu beer joints, behind the police headquarters in Mai-

duguri and we intend to brief the press tomorrow. But now that you have called, all I will tell you is that a Camry car which was loaded with IEDs failed to explode when the mastermind, now at large, run into the crowd an escaped before the JTF arrived the scene.” National Mirror learnt that security agents in the state had on Sunday received intelligent report that a suicde bomber in a Camry car was on his way to Maiduguri from Damaturu, the Yobe State capital. As a result, heavy security was mounted on all major roads linking the two towns with a view to apprehend the hoodlum. The security clampdown also led to heavy traffic congestion in Maiduguri both on Sallah day and yesterday.

forum of Benue indigenes under the aegis of Benue Zone B Collective (BZBC) has warned against alleged plot by some politicians to instigate the removal of the Senate Minority Leader, Senator George Akume, describing the move as “ill-thought out.” The group told journalists in Abuja that it viewed the development as “satanic,” adding that the plot “by the enemies of peace and progress” was unwarranted and a classic case of a rape on democracy. Represented by its National President, Col. Awua Yese (rtd) and the General Secretary, Mr. Ayoo Angwe Ayoo, the group said it watched with “dismay, the

deliberate and sustained attempts by the enemies of democracy to harangue, malign, impugn and denigrate the person of the Senator representing Benue NorthWest Senatorial District otherwise known as Benue Zone B Senatorial District.” The group said: “For long, we have watched with restrained anger how desperate people with a morbid fear of the Senator’s rising profile have sought to distract attention from their political nakedness by making Akume a target of their cheap pull-him-down tactics. “We felt that with time, these avowed Akume bashers would give up on him, and begin to find solutions to national challenges like insecurity, election rigging, corruption in the judiciary and political violence. But unfortunately, the attacks have graduated from politi-

cal blackmail to media terrorism. And now, there is a grand plot to remove him as Senate Minority Leader”. The group said that such development “represent incessant and annoying distractions, which would go a long way in retarding progress, democracy and social harmony,” just as it called on such persons to leave Akume alone, insisting that “Akume, like the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), his party, is not the problem of Nigeria neither is he the black stain on its democracy”. According to the group, since the Senator is not part of those who have continued to work against the nation’s democracy, he should be left alone to “continue his good work of quality representation, deepening the content of democracy at the national and repositioning the ACN for 2015 and beyond”.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

SUPER TUESDAY I ate one loaf of bread for four days in kidnappers’ den – PDP vice-chair

14&15

Politics

Our burden to deliver good governance amidst misconceptions – Ihedioha

42&43

TRANSFORMATION AGENDA

Between Jonathan’s dream and realities

The Transformation Agenda of the Goodluck Jonathan administration look perfect on paper and was supposed to make life meaningful to the average Nigerian. But has the agenda added any value to the lives of Nigerians since it was unveiled over a year ago? OLAJIDE OMOJOLOMOJU asks.

s it is common practice the world over, new governments normally pronounce their policy thrusts, which they intend to pursue and upon which their subsequent actions and inactions are based and interpreted. Nigerian past leaders have not been found wanting in this regard as they have made series of policy pronouncements, strategies and programmes, with which they meant to transform the Nigerian economy in past years. Not to be left out and following in the footsteps of his predecessors, shortly after his inauguration on May 29, 2011, President Goodluck Jonathan unveiled what he called Transformation Agenda, with which he hoped to turn the country around by the end of his ‘first’ term in 2015. The Transformation Agenda contains the key priority policies, programmes and projects of the administration, which are to be coordinated by the National Planning Commission. The Agenda, which draws its inspiration from the Vision 20:2020 and the first National Implementation Plan (NIP), when implemented, is expected not only to transform the Nigerian economy and make it one of the best 20 in the world by 2020, but also transform the life of the average Nigerian. The Agenda’s key policies include: (a) Ensuring greater harmony between fiscal and monetary policy, through the National Economic Management Team, which would be strengthened to facilitate effective coordination of fiscal and monetary policies; (b) Pursuit of sound macroeconomic policies among which are fiscal prudence supported by appropriate monetary policy to limit inflation to single digit; (c) The review of the budget process to provide greater clarity of roles between the executive and legislature and to ensure that the appropriation bill is enacted into law within the first month of any year, drawing inspiration from the United States’ system and concentrate on setting allocation priorities rather than micro-budgeting or contesting figures with the executive; (d) The review

Jonathan

I HAVE NOT SEEN ANYTHING TRANSFORMED.

of existing revenue allocation formula to achieve a more balanced fiscal federalism, expected to pave the way for more effective implementation of programmes at sub-national level and (e) Institutionalising the culture of development planning at all levels of government and ensuring that the annual capital budget allocation takes a cue from medium and long term development plans. Its key components are in the areas of job creation and labour and productivity, management of public expenditure, good governance, efficient judiciary capable of dispensing justice, focused foreign and economic diplomacy, dynamic, constitutionally effective and public responsive legislature, effective educational policy, effective health care delivery, massive infrastructural development and improvement of the parlous power state. Others are in the areas of Information and Communication Technology, Niger Delta and transportation. Planned for between 2011 and 2015, the life span of the first tenure of the Jonathan administration, the Agenda was necessitated by the need to correct past flaws in the drive towards the development of the country, which was short of long term de-

YOU HAVE TO

REFORM BEFORE

YOU TRANSFORM.

HOW CAN YOU BE TRANSFORMING WHEN CORRUPTION IS WORSE THAN YESTERDAY?

velopment, lacked continuity, consistency and commitment to policies already agreed upon. All these ingredients that were lacking in the implementation of previous policies and programmes of government have impacted negatively on the lives of the Nigerian people. The Agenda is projected on a baseline GDP growth rate of 11.7 per cent per annum for the four-year duration, with the hope of it translating to real and nominal GDP of about N428.6 billion and N73.2 trillion respectively in 2011 and 2015. The projected GDP growth of the Agenda will be driven largely by the oil and gas, solid minerals, agriculture, ICT equipment and softwares, telecommunication, wholesale and

retail trade, tourism and entertainment, manufacturing and building and construction sectors. The key priority projects of the Agenda are derived from 20 ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) and other sectors with 1,746 projects identified, from which 385 are new while 1,361 are ongoing. More projects are also to be indentified and commenced in the course of the duration of the Agenda. But as laudable as the Transformation Agenda looks, in over one year of its existence, how far has it impacted positively on the lives of the Nigerian masses? Has the average Nigerian faired better or worse in the first year of the implementation of the Agenda? If you confront the man on the street, the first question he would ask is: what Agenda? To many Nigerians, their lives have only gotten worse since the advent of the present administration. This is because there were high hopes and aspirations from the generality of Nigerians when Jonathan won the 2011 elections and assumed office in May 29, 2011. Although the economy may not be said to be on a high when Jonathan took the mantle of leadership, it is on record that he did not inherit a total economic ruin, despite that the country’s foreign reserves were grossly depleted and the foreign debt profile was on the rise and the cost of governance had skyrocketed, stunting capital expenditure. Many Nigerians are of the belief that they have been short-changed by the Jonathan administration, saying that it had failed in its primary responsibility. To them, this is simply because all the sectors are in comatose and government’s response to the ailing sectors of Nigeria’s national life is non-existent and where it exists, it is at a snail’s speed. The pessimism trailing the Transformation Agenda is premised on the various happenings around the country. Nothing seems to be working. Nigerians now pay more for darkness, while other nations are marking various hallmarks in the power sector; the roads have become death traps with lives of Nigerians wasted almost on daily basis; Nigerians, especially the rich, continue to travel abroad for various health remedies, with India becoming the Mecca of health for average Nigerians and thus making Nigerian hospitals, which the late Sani Abacha referred to as consulting clinics in 1983, now mortuaries; employment rate is at an all time high rate of 30 per cent, according to the Bureau of Statistics, but which in actual fact is hovering around 45 and 50 per cent; corruption is no longer a cankerworm, but a behemoth and CONTINUED ON PAGE 41

Politics

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

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I ate one loaf of bread for four days in The Vice-Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP ) in Delta State, Mr. Ekenwan Akwagbe, was recently abducted by gunmen on his way to Abuja. In this interview with Assistant Editor, SOLA ADEBAYO, he narrates his ordeal during the eight-day captivity. Excerpts:

Can you narrate your recent experience with the kidnappers, especially how it started? It was on August 7, being Tuesday, I decided to travel to Abuja by road since I was not hurrying to the office for any commitment. So, I travelled by Greener Line, a Warri-based transport company. We left their park at about 7 a.m. that morning. Because of the long nature of the journey, I decided to take a little nap as soon as we boarded the vehicle. I also discovered that the driver was not driving at average speed and almost challenge him for driving at average speed but somehow I thought I should allow him to go. But at about 8.10 am, I looked at my wrist watch and I discovered that we were entering into the Benin/Warri by-pass. But suddenly afterwards, I heard the driver exclaiming, and I woke up from my sleep. I thought it was an accident; I tried to look for my seat belt. On the road, I saw a Mercedes Benz 190 in front of our car, when I looked back, I saw one Hyundai Jeep behind us. I thought that we had hit the one in front, somehow our driver packed. Then all of a sudden my door opened and I saw about four persons with very long guns. What I did immediately was to bring out all the money I had because I thought they were armed robbers and armed robbers would always need money, I didn’t want to wait for them to ask for money. I brought out the money I had and gave it to one of them. But somehow, one of them said ‘you come and follow us into that car’. He held me by the wrist and took me to the Hyundai that was behind our own. They brought out the other people, flogged them, collected their valuables and asked them to go. They came back to the jeep and asked me to lie down on the floor of the Hyundai Jeep, they drove for about 45 minutes to one hour, but all of a sudden, they pulled up along the road. Then opened the door and asked me to come out.

What happened next? They started fiddling with my phones, they would asked who is this and who is that. They demanded to know my relationship with everyone, whose number is in my phone. I say ok call my wife, they eventually called my wife. That was how the negotiation for my release started. Initially they were asking for N20 million ransom. I told them that I don’t even have up to N10,000 in my bank account and I don’t know how I can raise N20 million and who can raise such amount for me. That was how day one passed and they threatened my wife that if the money did not come before Friday, which was going to be 10th, they are going to kill me and make her a widow. The negotiation continued from the first day, second day, third day until the eight day when somehow they asked me to go home. I found myself somewhere, they dropped me.

Were they planning to release you at that point? No, no, no. They just asked me to cover my face, come down and enter the boot of that car, that is the rickety Mercedes Benz 190. I entered into the boot and they drove for about three hours at neck-breaking speed, I am sure they were running the entire speedometer of the vehicle. We were just going, I was wondering where we were going to, I was praying and asking God to cause something to happen so that the journey would be stalled and I will be released. But somehow we got to their destination, I think it is a serene village, they pushed me into an uncompleted building, tied my hands and covered my eyes. Then they asked me to call people that I want to call. That was how it started.

Akwagbe

TUESDAY INTERVIEW NO RESPONSIBLE

GOVERNMENT WILL JUST RELAX UNDER THE PRESENT CIRCUMSTANCES.

THERE

SHOULD BE DECLARATION OF EMERGENCY IN TERMS OF

SECURITY, THERE IS NO DOUBT

ABOUT IT.

ALMOST EVERYDAY,

THERE IS KIDNAPPING AND BOMBING Where did you come out from? When I was dropped, I discovered that for the eight days I was with them, I did not actually know where I was because from the pure water they were giving me to drink, I thought I was somewhere around Ughelli and with label on the bread I was eating too, I thought I was somewhere around Ughelli. But somehow, I discovered that I was not around there. When they eventually decided to release

me, they put me inside the boot of the Mercedes 190 again and where I was dropped was a clean place, with beautiful houses, I was wondering where I was until I started walking down as if nothing has happened until I saw road signs showing Abraka, Agbor, Warri, Sapele. I say where is this place? Eventually I discovered that I was dropped in Eku. What was your experience in their den for eight days? It was very horrible. In fact, nobody should pass through that kind of situation because you are passing through the shadow of death. To be there, kept for eight days, I was blindfolded for the entire eight days, so that I would not recognise the faces of my captors. My day was night and my night was night, 24 hours in darkness. That was the trauma. What were you given to eat? They were asking me for any type of food I wanted to eat but I think I was not interested in eating. My interest was how to get out. So, all I ate was bread; I ate a loaf of bread for two days. I think I did not finish four loaves of bread in eight days. I was in an uncompleted building, where toilet facilities were not in place. Specifically, on the third day, I wanted to stool and I thought there was going to be a toilet facility, but I told them I wanted to stool, one of the boys, I think they have hierarchy, gave orders to another one that he should give me a bag to stool on. They tore a bag opened and then in their presence I was stooled. Thereafter, I resolved not to eat anything serious, I must feed on my bread and water until by the grace of God I regain my freedom, so that I would CONTINUED ON PAGE 15

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Politics

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

kidnappers’ den – PDP vice-chair not feel like stooling. So, for the eight days, I stooled only once.

How do you advise the government to step up the onslaught against criminals? The security agencies should intensify highway patrols. Every security agency should be equipped sufficiently to complement the efforts of the police. In our situation now, even the armed forces should be everywhere. We should call it emergency situation. Even members of the armed forces should patrol the highways vigorously, just as you have in the advanced world. If you go to Britain for instance, every minute you see siren-blaring police vehicles on patrol. We should have that on our highways and major cities to minimise kidnapping, bombing and other criminal acts inimical to the well-being of the society.

Why do you think you were singled out for kidnapping out of other passengers in the bus? Did your look gave them the impression that you had money to give? I think it is an issue that I pondered over because I even told friends that among those seven passengers, I was the most haggard. The other guys were looking well fed; the seven of us were men. So, I was surprised that I was singled out. Jokingly I would say it was because of my grey hair or my grey beard, that made me look like somebody, who has money otherwise I was the most haggard. In fact, that baffled me, to think that I was the only person. I have a feeling that the more passengers they would have collected, the more money they would have made. So, why me alone? If they have taken, maybe another person and they are asking for N1 million per head, it would be N2 million. If they are asking for N20 million as they started with me, it will be N40 million. So, I just cannot understand why I was the person picked. But somehow, I just decided that it was coincidence of fate.

Are you baffled that you did not come across any police patrol team during the three-hour drive to the kidnappers’ den? There was a time they almost came by some policemen, I heard their boss saying face him, face him. Just that alone, no other instance. If there was an intensive police patrol, maybe we would have been stopped along the line. Do you support the call for President Jonathan to resign because of his inability to return the country to normalcy? That is just a normal propaganda in a situation like this. Not even the over 160 million Nigerians can ask President to resign just like that unless the National Assembly says it is impeaching him for certain wrongdoings and they succeed in doing so. So, it is not for anybody to just wake up and say you must resign, there is a constitution. It is based on that constitution that the President was elected. So, nobody can ask him to resign.

What was your state of mind when they dragged only you out of the vehicle? To be candid when I was led by the wrist by one of them to their jeep, I was very calm. I said oh! These are the kidnappers I have been hearing about. But I was very calm, my heart was not beating at all, I was just calm. Did it ever occur to you that it was politically motivated? Not at all, so many friends have asked me and I told them that there was no politics in it, we should not attribute everything to politics. What do you think such portends for the security of the country? While I was with them, the kidnappers and I agreed that the problem is poverty and unemployment. You cannot imagine a situation when young men and women would wake up in the morning and they don’t have any place to go to, anything that will engage them for some hours of the day. And that is a very serious issue for the nation. So, I should think that those who have made so much money should invest in this country. Some of the billionaires are setting up businesses that employ tens of thousands of our youths. I want to advice these people that instead of taking this money out of this country and enrich other countries, they should invest the money, whether they are stolen or not, so that young men and women would be engaged. So that when they wake up in the morning they know where to go to. The situation where young men and women wake up in the morning, idling away and gazing at the road, they become readily available for criminal acts. I think that is the problem. Massive industrialisation and investment by both state and federal governments as well as private individuals will take away these idle youths off the streets. Let me tell you, one of those kidnappers discussed with me and he said he wanted to learn a certain skill, but he did not have money to register, rent a small house and buy a small mattress to sleep after closing from work. He needed less than N100,000 to make his life meaningful but the money is not there. What does he do? It is to engage in such things, particularly those of them, who cannot bear it. Do you think the security agencies are doing enough in view of the general insecurity in the country? Well, I think that the insecurity in the country is a challenge to everybody. As far as I am concerned, the security agencies are trying when you talk about the general security situation in the country because security agents are not spirits. They cannot be with 160 million Nigerians at the same time. The challenge we have is a very novel one. When I hear people say that government is not doing enough, I am always bothered because the government cannot be God that is everywhere at the same time. Some of us condone these things. For in-

MASSIVE INDUSTRIALISATION AND INVESTMENT BY BOTH STATE AND FEDERAL

GOVERNMENTS, AS WELL AS PRIVATE INDIVIDUALS WILL TAKE THESE IDLE YOUTHS OFF THE STREETS stance, where I was kept, is in a community, not in the bush. So, there is no way that some people in that community would not know that such ugly development is taking place there. So, we compromise ourselves, we are not bold enough to come out to say look, what is happening in this place? As far as I am concerned, the security agents are trying. Like President Goodluck Jonathan said sometimes ago, this is different front a conventional war. They are like you and I, they could be in the same bus with you, they could be in a hotel drinking with you, you would not know. So, how do you think the security agencies can check all these? That is the situation. They can dress in suits, they can put on agbada. They take you by surprise. Are you saying that government does not have a role to play and that it should watch helplessly as criminals make the whole country ungovernable? That is not what I am saying. It is the duty of government everywhere to protect lives and property. There is no government anywhere that will condone this kind of thing, so the government cannot be helpless. The government should do what should be done to ensure that the situation normalises. No responsible government will just relax under the present circumstances. There should be declaration of emergency in terms of security, there is no doubt about it. Almost everyday, there is kidnapping and bombing. In the North, there is bombing and kidnapping in the South, especially in the South-South. We are in a very abnormal time.

What is your reaction to the threat by the House of Representatives to impeach the President over poor implementation of the budget? If they have reasons and they are able to meet the constitutional requirement to impeach him, I wish them the best of luck. But this is not the time for anybody to talk about impeachment, if anybody has any idea, let him volunteer the idea to the government for usage, so that the nation will be better for it. Impeachment is a declaration of war. We have serious security challenge and you are taking about impeachment and budget not being implemented to the letter, when the lawmakers know the budget was only signed into law in April this year. We all know the bureaucratic bottlenecks, I don’t know the magic they want the President to perform. As a close aide of the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Elder Godsday Orubebe and an indigene of the Niger Delta, how would you react to the allegation of nonperformance being levelled against your boss? Privately I have discussed with many friends and I told them that I have the privilege of working with the minister of Niger Delta as his Press Secretary for about two years. I have the privilege of working with him for four years when he was minister of Special Duties and minister of State for Niger Delta Affairs. I want to say that there is nobody from Niger Delta, who would be appointed into the Ministry of Niger Delta that would not want to perform. The issue is funding of the ministry. Look at the Airport Road in Abuja, that road is over N200 billion. Niger Delta is a territory, Federal Capital Territory is not even a state but it was given a state status. Niger Delta is made up of nine states and the entire budget for the area for this year is less than N60 billion. And last year, the East/West Road was reviewed upward to N200 billion by the Federal Executive Council. If in 2011, the East/West Road was reviewed to N200 billion, what magic will the minister perform to use N60 billion to construct that road. And this is in the face of other strategic projects like skill acquisition centres in the nine states of Niger Delta. Sometimes, the minister is so confused about what to do. So, it is not about non-performance. It is a question of paucity of funds. Nobody will come into the ministry from Niger Delta and say I am not going to perform, I will just sit down and siphon money. There is no other issue but just poor funding.

Politics

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Ex-IGPs vote against state police

ASO ROCK FILE

with

Rotimi FADEYI

Minister, PHCN staff wrestle for power

he last has not been heard of the squabble between the Minister of Power, Prof. Barth Nnaji and staff of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) over severance allowances and pension matters as both parties are all out to test power. Just when the union is threatening fire and brimstone over the privatisation of PHCN, Nnaji has accused the union of fraud, alleging that workers pension contributions since 2006 were not remitted to the pension fund. Already, the Federal Government has commenced investigation of the staff union while Nnaji has also promised to release more information pertaining to the severance allowances of the workers. Speaking on the strike threat by the PHCN workers, Nnaji said there were a lot of distortions from the union leaders as the leadership of the power sector unions want government to exempt them from complying with the nation’s pension laws which stipulates contributing pension. However, what really angered the

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union members was when the minister said they have constituted themselves into outlaws that are going against laid down rules. “For labour, there are lot distortions out there. The workers are not getting it, it is unfortunate that they are not getting the proper information but I can promise you that this week we are going to release a lot of information pertaining to the main issue which the union was quarrelling with government about. “That has to do with how much they are going to take. They say it is N85, 000. I cannot understand how they could say that. Many of the people who are junior officers, some of them with WEAC qualification are going to go home with N8 million.” The PHCN workers are also flexing muscles, saying that they would not give up until their demands are met. The battle line is drawn between the minister who wants the privatisation of the power sector as soon as possible and the workers of PHCN who want their severance allowances and pension paid before they are disengaged.

here has been growing agitation for state police by some state governors, particularly those from the South in the face of the growing insecurity challenges in the country. They have even taken their case to the National Assembly for consideration. The issue again came up at the Presidential Villa last week when retired Inspectors General of Police met with President Goodluck Jonathan to find possible means of tackling the insecurity challenge posed by the Boko Haram sect. Led by Muhammadu Gambo Jimeta, who served as Inspector General of Police from 1986 to 1990, the former police chiefs under the auspices of the Forum of Retired Inspectors General of Police vehemently kicked against the idea of state police, saying it spells doom for the country as it would not be in the interest of the nascent democracy. The Police chiefs were of the opinion that the establishment of state police would bring the country back to the days of ethnic militias where the OPC, MASSOB, Egbesu held sway, adding that with the political climate in the country at the moment, state police would only be a tool in the hands of political leaders at state

levels. Gambo said: “We don’t support state police because some of us have lived through the history of this country to have experienced the sort of horrible things that had happened when various Police Forces were in the hands of various people in this country. At that time, people from other parts of the country cannot freely go to other parts of the country for trade, political campaigns or any other thing that would give them the right to exercise their rights of citizenship of this country. “The local police forces were bastardised, they were used for all sorts of heinous things, so at the last London conference where it was decided to create one single police force for the country, it was done among other things for the security of the minority people of Nigeria wherever they happen to be.” Other former Inspectors General of Police who were also at the Presidential Villa to support Gambo were Alhaji Ibrahim Coomasie, Mr. Sunday Ehindero and Sir. Mike Okiro. They handed over an address which was also signed by five other colleagues – Alhaji Muhammadu Yusuf, Mr. Sunday Adewusi, Alhaji Aliyu Atta, Mr. Musiliu Smith and Mr. Tafa Balogun.

Osayande, Olubolade and the scrapping of Police Affairs Ministry

ormer Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) and Chairman of the Presidential panel on the reorganisation of the Nigeria Police, Parry Osayande, and the Minister of Police Affairs, Navy Capt. Caleb Olubolade, were at loggerheads on the report asking that the ministry be scrapped as it was irrelevant. The Police reform panel had in its report gave hard knocks to the ministry presently headed by Olubolade. For Osayande, the ministry should be scrapped as it has no particular assigned role in the 1999 Constitution, saying that the ministry was neither in charge of operations nor appointment, discipline and promotion of the Police yet, the budgeted funds was “unjustly” domiciled with it. He said: “The ministry determines Police projects and awards its contracts, including organising and running training programmes involving billions of naira with no input from the Police who are the end users. The result is that some of the projects being executed are not priorities to the Police. This is an aberration which has led to abuse, misapplication and hemorrhage of the limited resources made available to the Police.” The committee recommended that the Police should be empowered to determine its priorities, draw its budget based on its needs and should be held accountable for the use of the funds. But Olubolade would not want to hear any of these, as he criticised the report, saying that the committee derailed by going beyond its assignment. Olubolade said the assignment given

to the committee by President Goodluck Jonathan was to look at how the police could be reorganised to meet modern challenges, adding that anything outside that terms of reference amounted to derailment. “Usually, when an assignment like this is given, one must look at the subject. The subject is to reorganise the police and any issue discussed outside that can be termed to be a derail.” The minister also frowned on Osayande’s disclosure of the content of his committee’s report when the government had not taken a decision on the recommendations. He said such was capable of misleading the public. “It is usually very nice to wait for the outcome of a report that is submitted rather than disclosing that report to the public because in one way it may mislead the public and that will not be in the interest of Nigerians,” he said. “The issue of scrapping the Ministry of Police Affairs, if it is in the report, will be looked at. And if it is not part of the assignment given, that also will be seen. I will urge you to wait for the report of the committee that has been set up by the President to produce a White Paper on the report,” he added. He said contrary to the claim of the committee, the police on their own, award contracts and the ministry approves payment. “The police are involved in their own budgetary dispensation. The ministry does not award contracts on behalf of the police except in capital budgets. All operational provisions are managed by the police itself,” Olubolade added.

L-R: Former Inspectors General of Police, Mike Okiro, Sunday Ehindero, Ibrahim Coomasie and Muhammadu Gambo during their visit to the Presidential Villa.

Another probe of Olympics flop and wasted fund

ven with the N2.2billion taxpayers’ money spent on the just-concluded 2012 London Olympics games, the Nigerian contingent had no place on the medal table; they came back without a medal. At the 1998 Barcelona Games, Nigerian athletes won six medals – two gold, one silver and three bronze medals. At the Sydney Games in 2000, Nigeria won one gold and two silver medals. In Athens 2004, the country won two bronze medals while the 2008 Beijing Games recorded one silver and two bronze medals. Disturbed by the shame and the heartache the outing brought to the country,

Presidential Villa’s visitors 1. Governor Godswill Akpabio 2. IGP Muhammed Abubakar 3. Alhaji Muhammadu Gambo Jimeta 4. Alhaji Ibrahim Coomasie 5. Mr. Sunday Ehindero 6. Sir. Mike Okiro. 7. Parry Osayande 8. Prof. Barth Nnaji 9. Mrs Sarah Ochepe 10. Director General, Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Emeka Eze

President Goodluck Jonathan last week directed the total overhaul of the sports sector. He also directed that a Presidential Retreat be organised to discuss the future of Nigerian sports in which state governments will be involved as well as the private sector to re-order priorities in the Nigerian sporting sector. Minister of Information, Labaran Maku who spoke the mind of the President explained that Jonathan was not happy with the performance of the team. Labaran said, “President Goodluck Jonathan ordered for total and comprehensive reorganisation of the sporting sector, following the disappointing performances of Nigerian contingent to the London 2012 Olympics… So in the next couple of weeks you are going to see action in this area as we prepare to work and ensure that Nigeria in subsequent events, in continental and global takes it proper place within the continent and globally in sporting competitions.”

MORE POLITICS STORIES ON PAGES 41 - 44

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Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Capital market probe: Misdirected venoms on regulators AKINJO OLUROTIMI

n the last few days, one has made a strenuous but futile effort to attach a serious meaning to the report of the House of Representatives’ committee on the “near collapse” of the nation’s capital market. My efforts have been futile because the Committee’s damning report, has not come up with any rational findings. Rather it reels of vendetta, shadow chasing and unguarded use of uncomplimentary words to condemn the capital market operators and regulators over the actions taken by them between 2009 and 2011. The committee report clearly shows that its members were either not familiar with the issues they were supposed to investigate or were too myopic to see anything good in what the financial regulators did in protecting the interest of the depositors of the weak banks, especially the nationalisation of Afribank, Spring Bank and Bank PHB. When it became obvious to the regulatory authorities that these three banks were not likely to meet the September 30, 2011 deadline recapitalize, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on August 5, 2011 had to apply an intervention mechanism to rescue them. After serious consideration of the bad standing of the banks, the CBN and the NDIC applied the bridge bank option to protect the interest of depositors rather

THE DECISION OF BOTH THE CBN AND NDIC TO RESCUE AND NATIONALISE THE THREE BANKS WAS THE MOST COST EFFECTIVE AND SENSIBLE OPTION than shareholders, most of who were responsible for the collapse of their banks. This bridge bank option led to the acquisition of assets and assumption of liabilities of Afribank, Bank PHB and Spring Bank by the bridge banks established by the NDIC, namely, Mainstreet Bank, Keystone Bank and Enterprise Bank respectively. The action of the regulators, instead of being commended, was roundly condemned by the House Committee. Quoting from the report, “The nationalization of Afribank PLC, Spring Bank PLC and Bank PHB did not conform to statutory provisions related thereto… were based on forgery, fraudulent misrepresentations and abuse of office by the managing directors of NDIC (Umaru Ibrahim), CBN Governor, (Sanusi Lamido Sanusi), AMCON (Mustafa Chike-Obi), and Corporate Affairs Commission(Bello Mahmud)” . The committee also stressed that it

was of the view that “due process was not followed and that investors interests were not considered in nationalising these banks. Public officers charged with the responsibility of protecting investors and depositors did not act in good faith…” From the above statement, it is so obvious that the committee members have very limited understanding of the operations of the capital market and the reasons why the three banks had to lose their operating licences. It would be recalled that before the CBN action, the nation’s financial sector was in turmoil with most banks reeling in all kinds of corruption acts ranging from the manipulation of stock prices and balance sheets, insider lending which ran into billions of naira and many other sharp practices, which threatened the existence of our banks to their foundations. A combination of all these evils created a loss of confidence in the banking system and this shot up the interbank interest rates which prompted the CBN to come to the rescue of eight of the banks through the provision of financial support in August 2009, while three of them were finally resolved through the bridge bank mechanism after nationalisation, according to the enabling act which established the NDIC. The only second and easier option for the CBN would have been to revoke the licences of the dying banks and allow the NDIC to liquidate them out rightly, but it

did not adopt this option because of its dire consequences on depositors. One fact which the committee members must realise is that if the CBN and the NDIC had not rescued some of the recapitalised banks, a lot of them would have been dead today and billion of depositors’ funds would have gone down the drain. The decision of both the CBN and NDIC to rescue and nationalise the three banks was the most cost effective and sensible option for the nation’s financial sector considering their sizes and the very high number of their employees. Apart from protecting depositors funds, the establishment of the three bridge banks by NDIC have saved thousands of jobs that would have been lost if the option of liquidation was adopted. It has also ensured the continuity of banking operations through a very smooth transition of the troubled banks to the bridged banks. These apart, the three bridged banks had attractive franchise and if their assets were allowed to deteriorate, it would have been very difficult to get investors to buy them. The bridge banking system adopted by the NDIC also provided a good platform for the three banks to meet their obligations to their depositors without any stress. To be concluded Olurotimi, a policy analyst, wrote from Abuja

Local Content Act and Nigerian insurance industry JOY WARIKKE-BRIGGS

resident Goodluck Jonathan deserves commendation for signing into law in 2010, the Local Content Bill. The implementation of the law has begun to have impact on the economy in terms of our human capacity development, especially in oil and gas sector. Of particular interest is the current development in the insurance industry where underwriters and insurance brokers have shown greater capacity to insure and, to a reasonable extent, reinsure the high net-worth properties of government and its agencies and parastatals. Zeroing in on the oil and gas sector, Nigeria’s economy has been the greatest beneficiary with the insurance and reinsurance of the properties and equipment of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) joint ventures valued in millions of dollars. Years past, it used to be Lloyd of London that handled such accounts and repatriated the gains. That is now history because the Local Content Act has effectively put paid to that. Perhaps in anticipation of a time like this, insurance underwriters and insurance brokers have shown keener interests in the nation’s oil and gas sector and have gone all out to acquire enormous experience and expertise in oil and gas insurance. A considerable number now have the technical capacity to participate in providing effective cover for these dollarized assets. The NNPC joint venture account is

the focus here. Quite unfortunate, some local insurers and brokers see the account as an opportunity to earn a share of the national cake, so they desperately seek to be one of the brokers to insure NNPC’s multi-million dollars assets. They fail, however, to appreciate that the NNPC is a business entity managed in the best national interest by a crop of competent and skilled Nigerians. These skilled NNPC staff ensure due diligence in awarding contracts and in the appointment of consultants. Transparency has been the hallmark of their operations and that has translated into improved economic prosperity for the country. Commitment to due diligence, which effectively shot out some brokers from NNPC assets insuring, did go well with them. National interest, they felt, should be sacrificed for their selfish interest. Instead of doing a self-appraisal to determine why they failed to secure the account and brace up for a better presentation the following year, they are stridently trying to discredit the corporation’s management. They have alleged that NNPC violated the Local Content Act by reducing the number of brokers handling its account. They just refused to realize that effective insurance is not about number, but the capacity and competence of those engaged. The kernel of the Local Content Act is the promotion of the involvement of indigenous companies and manpower and the use of locally produced goods and services in all areas of the petroleum industry. The implication is that if NNPC

GONE ARE THE DAYS WHEN BROKERS WHO HAD NO CREDIBLE BASE AND EXPERTISE WOULD BID FOR AND GET REASONABLE ACCOUNTS LIKE THAT OF THE

NNPC

finds only one company qualified and competent it can appoint and use only that company without prejudice. Doing so would not amount to a violation of the Local Content Act, so long as the engaged company is indigenously owned. The law does not compel NNPC to appoint any number of insurance brokers to insure its assets, the emphasis is that the broker must be an indigenous entity. These aggrieved brokers needed to be reminded that providing cover for NNPC assets is no job for the boys. Rather, it is a serious business for big and competent insurance brokers. It gladdens the heart that they have not been able to fault the process of selecting the preferred brokers. The NNPC duly advertised in national newspapers for interested brokers to express interest in the insurance of its their properties and the advert specified all the requirements needed. So, why the current fuss? The NNPC has consultants working for it in all spheres of life – health, educa-

tion, communications, food and hygiene, engineering etc. So why will some insurance brokers resort to discrediting it for employing due diligence in picking fewer brokers to insure its properties? The action of these feuding brokers indicates that they are desperate. They probably were passengers in the last dispensation when a consortium of 34 insurance brokers handled the account, thus earned money without offering corresponding services. That is a most dishonourable way of earning a living. For sure, if they did offer quality service, the NNPC would have gladly reconsidered them first. Gone are the days when brokers who had no credible base and expertise would bid for and get reasonable accounts like that of the NNPC. The truth is that good corporate governance in Nigeria is taking a stronger foothold than ever before. Both the Local Content Act and the Petroleum Industry law require people of courage and character to get Nigeria to attainment of Vision 20:2020. The insurance industry can play a significant role in the achievement of this goal. Warikke-Briggs wrote in from the Delta State University. 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

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

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HEAD, GRAPHICS

The FG-GES initiative and reviving agriculture

ome recent reports indicated that about 17 out of the 36 states in the country have successfully keyed into the Federal Government’s Growth Enhancement Support (FG-GES) initiative which is targeted at revitalizing the nation’s comatose agricultural sector. The GES is a special FG agricultural support scheme which, among others, supplements the efforts of farmers through the provision of subsidized fertilizer and seedlings directly distributed to the end users. The FG had stated last June that it had raised, reportedly through commercial banks, about N30bn towards ensuring the success of the GES scheme. It is the FG’s hope that with the scheme, the nation would gradually move in the direction of achieving food security, youth and women empowerment, increased income for farmers as well as curtailing the activities of middlemen in the sale and distribution of fertilizer and seedlings in the country. Farmers who subscribe to the scheme would access farm inputs directly from the government through Personal Identification Numbers (PIN). Already, one hundred thousand farmers were said to have received sub-

sidized agricultural inputs from 500 designated Redemption Sites. In Ekiti State, for instance, a farmer/subscriber to the GES is entitled to receive a support of N10,500 worth of fertilizer. The federal and state governments pay 50 per cent ( 25 per cent each) of the cost of the subsidized fertilizer while the farmer pays the balance of 50 per cent. Improved seedlings are freely distributed to the farmers, according to reports. In addition, through an arrangement the FG tagged as ‘interest drawback’, beneficiary farmers can obtain loans from commercial banks at reduced interest rates of seven per cent as against the 15 per cent interest that the banks charge on treasury bills (lending) to the FG, with a 70 per cent government guarantee for non-recoverable loans. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, said the GES scheme targets five million small holder farmers annually and about 20 million in the next three years. More than 4.3 million farmers drawn from all parts of the country are said to have been registered in the national farmers’ data base. The FG-GES programme is,

THE FG MUST REMAIN VIGILANT WITH PROPER MONITORING TO ENSURE THE PROJECT IS NOT HIJACKED AND DERAILED BY INCORRIGIBLE CROOKS IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR without doubt, an inspiring milestone in a country where many distressed farmers cannot afford the cost of fertilizer and other vital agricultural inputs due to pervasive poverty, as well as the sharp practices of corrupt government officials and their middlemen collaborators who corner purportedly subsidized farm inputs and make same available to the end users at cut throat prices. By removing the difficulty usually associated with fertiliser and seedlings distribution, the FG-GES seems an innovative arrangement capable of saving the nation’s distraught farmers from the criminal grip of fertilizer syndicates, especially. Before now the profiteers made fortunes from government subsidized fertilizer and left the farmers for whom it is intended in the cold. The FG should in-

tensify efforts to ensure that, in cooperation with relevant stakeholders - the organized private sector and farmers associations – a nationwide network of FGGES-friendly agro- and allied products centres are established to ensure easy access to, and the availability of fertilizer and other farm inputs. It is indeed heartening that the FG-GES offers farmers direct access to facilities and targets the end users. We consider the scheme a hope rising project that all the 36 states in the country and the Federal Capital Territory authorities should exploit to revive their virtually dead agricultural sectors. If properly harnessed, the FG-GES holds promises for enhanced productivity, more job opportunities, less food imports, foreign exchange earnings and better living conditions in the long run. But the FG must remain vigilant with proper monitoring to ensure the project is not hijacked and derailed by incorrigible crooks in the public sector. Besides, the initiative would require rural roads rehabilitation, the provision of agricultural extension services, storage facilities, and some level of mechanization, etc., to make the desired impact on the prostrate agricultural sector.

ON THIS DAY August 21, 2007 Hurricane Dean made its first landfall in Costa Maya, Mexico with winds at 165 mph (266 km/h). Dean was the first storm since Hurricane Andrew to make landfall as a Category 5. It was the most intense North Atlantic hurricane since Hurricane Wilma of 2005. The hurricane’s intense winds, waves, rains and storm surge were responsible for at least 45 deaths across ten countries and caused estimated damages of $1.66 billion.

August 21, 2001 The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) decided to send a peace-keeping force to the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. NATO, also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on April 4, 1949. The organization constitutes a system of collective defence whereby its member states agree to mutual defense in response to an attack by any external party. NATO’s headquarters are in Brussels, Belgium.

August 21, 1983 Philippine opposition leader, Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino, Jr., was assassinated at the Manila International Airport (now renamed Ninoy Aquino International Airport). Aquino, Jr. (November 27, 1932 – August 21, 1983) was a Filipino Senator and a former Governor of Tarlac. Aquino, together with Gerry Roxas and Jovito Salonga, formed the leadership of the opposition to the Ferdinand Marcos regime in the years leading to the imposition of martial law in the Philippines.

Customs duty waiver: Government promises to assist airlines

Aviation road show abroad’ll reinvent Nigeria

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Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Experts advocate cautious implementation of Fiscal Consolidation Agenda The current moves by the Federal Government to ensure budgetary efficiency anchored on fiscal consolidation pillar could not have come at a more auspicious time given the profligacy and unbridled abuses that have characterised public finance over the decades. TOLA AKINMUTIMI takes a critical look at the drive and the need for government to pursue agenda with a cautious, calculated approach to avoid counterproductive outcomes.

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Arik Air Los-Abj: 07:15, 09:15, 10:20, 15:20, 16:20, 16:50, 18:45 (Mon-Fri/Sat/Sun) Abj-Los: 07:15, 09:40, 10:20, 12:15, 15:15, 16:15, 17:10, (Mon-Fri/Sat); 12:15, 15:15, 16:15 (Sun) Los-PH: 07:15, 11:40, 14:00, 16:10, 17:15, (Mon-Fri) 07:30, 11:40, 15:50 (Sat) 11:50, 3:50, 17:05 (Sun) Abj-PH: 07:15, 11:20, 15:30 (Mon-Fri) 07:15, 16:00 (Sat) 13:10, 16:00, (Sun) PH-Abj: 08:45, 12:50, 17:00 (Mon-Fri) 08:45, 17:30 (Sat) 14:40, 17:30 (Sun) Abj-Ben: 08:00, 12:10 (Mon-Fri/Sat) 08:55, 12:10 (Sun) Ben-Abj: 09:55, 13:30 (Mon-Fri/Sat) 10:50, 13:30 (Sun)

efore now, commitment to fiscal discipline in budgets implementation had been paid mere lip service as those saddled with the responsibility of ensuring the performance of the budgets had either pursued their mandates half-heartedly or have been overwhelmed by political and in most cases, selfish interests, thereby failing in their mandate of ensuring that budgets impact on the economy with the attendant implication for sustainable and inclusive growth. With the lapses of the past budgets identified and the losses counted, the present administration has, in the past two years been pursuing a new agenda in the implementation of yearly budgets, using the Medium Term Expenditure Framework as the compass of its drive towards improved performances of yearly budgets, particularly by ensuring that achievements of the past are used to leverage the performance of subsequent budgets. The Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi OkonjoIweala, has not only made it categorically clear that in the medium term, government will doggedly pursue agenda of fiscal consolidation as a

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strategic option of improving the performances of the yearly budgets, especially as a the only viable option to reposition the economy on the path of growth and competitiveness. If anything, this has become her mantra of public governance and she has not hidden her desire to see that the dream becomes realised through a combination of strategic fiscal and monetary policies. For instance, while briefing journalists shortly after the consideration by the Federal Executive Council of the fiscal framework for the 2013 in which N4.929 trn was proposed, Okonjo-Iweala said the

theme for the 2013 budget is “Fiscal consolidation with growth”, the 2012 Appropriation Act had, “Fiscal consolidation, inclusive growth and job creation” as its own toga. As expected, the efforts of government to ensure improved performance of the yearly budgets, particularly the capital component, has continued to elicit reactions from domestic and international environment in view of the socio-economic import of the renewed efforts for the socio-economic wellbeing of the people, and more importantly, for fiscal stability of Nigeria in an era when the whirlwind of economic depression is

sweeping the global economic landscape with devastating impact on national economies. In addition to financial experts’ endorsement of the fiscal doses for the ailing economy are the voices of global institutions like the International Monetary Fund, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank) and sundry others coming in recent months to laud the Federal Government for its move to strengthen the economy. Specifically, the IMF in its just published 2011 IMF Country Report for the Nigeria has CONTINUED ON PAGE 20

Rice production: Farmers to earn $2bn by 2015

Calls mount for formation of new umbrella labour

Los-Abj: 06:50, 13:30, 16:30, 19:45 (Mon-Fri/Sat/Sun) 12:30 (Sun) 16:45 (Sat). Abj-Los: 07:30, 13:00, 19:00 (Mon-Fri/ Sat) 10:30, 14:30, 19:30 (Sun) 18.30 (Sat) Los-Ben: 07:45, 11:00, 15:30, (Mon-Fri/Sat/ Sun) 12:30 (Sun) 15:30 (Mon-Fri/Sat/Sun) Ben-Los: 09:15, 12:30, 17:00 (Mon-Fri/ Sat/Sun) 17:00 (Sat), 14:00 (Sun) EXCHANGE RATES WAUA

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Business & Finance

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

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Experts advocate cautious implementation of Fiscal Consolidation Agenda CONTINUED FROM 19 voted in favour of sustained fiscal consolidation as a means of achieving stability in the domestic economy and shielding it from the likely devastating effects of the lingering Euro zone and other regional economic crises. The report, in real terms, did not only endorse the fiscal consolidation agenda of the government but also offered useful steps that are needed to reposition the economy on the path of sustainable growth, at least in the medium term. While noting that the Nigerian economy has grown robustly even during the 2008–2009 global crisis, partly due to the effective implementation of countercyclical policies, the Fund pointed out in unambiguous terms that government’s planned fiscal consolidation for 2012–15 will be essential for rebuilding fiscal buffers in the uncertain global environment and safeguarding macroeconomic stability. The position which aligns with the government’s, could not have been otherwise given the statistical indices and other performance parameters which their findings were based. It is proved that debt despite the inclement operating environment, Nigeria’s debt to GDP ratio still ranks amongst the lowest globally at under 20 per cent when the average in Europe is 88 per cent and global average is 87.6 per cent. For United States and some others countrie, the ratios are more than 100 per cent. But then, one of the issues that have continued to generate reactions on the fiscal consolidation drive is the extent to which the agenda could be driven without turning into a counter-productive panacea for an economy that has over the past few years have been growing with little or no visible positive impact on the real sector performance and the derivatives of job creation and low inflation rate. As some experts have noted, despite the desirability of the fiscal agenda for the economy, the need to ensure that the excessive monetary and fiscal tightening measures do not deny the economy the required liquidity for businesses to thrive should be a major consideration of government as it continues, as a sailor desirous of getting his cargo safely delivered at the harbour, to implement the yearly budgets. Reacting to the fiscal consolidation prescriptions for the economy, a seasoned banker and financial analyst, Mazi Okechukwu Unegbu, noted that as desirable as the advice on fiscal consolidation seems, the challenge remains how managers of the economy will be able to align the fiscal consolidation agenda with real sector growth requirements since fiscal retrenchment would not translate in the long run if employment rate and socioeconomic conditions of the citizenry remain poor Unegbu, a chartered banker and former president of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, explained that the IMF’s advice to government

THE CRITICAL QUESTION TO ASK IS: IS THERE THE IMPERATIVE NEED FOR THE PURSUIT OF FISCAL CONSOLIDATION FOR AN ECONOMY WHICH IS IN NEED OF URGENT GROWTH TO FACILITATE THE GENERATION OF MASSIVE EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES THAT COULD IMPACT THE GROWING INCIDENCES OF SOCIAL UNREST?

Feilx Ibru

that funding of capital projects should not be sourced from borrowing but from government’s own funds in banks and other sources would naturally help to stem the tide of rising domestic borrowing by the tiers of government and by implication, support the fiscal stability goals of the fiscal and monetary authorities. Nonetheless, he picked holes in the current efforts to contain the rising inflationary trend by monetary policies on the grounds that tightening the fiscal environment without adequate attention being given to the likely socio-economic effects on the real sector might be counter-productive, particularly if such measures fail to engender inclusive growth. “Let me say that I am one of those that have always supported IMF recommendations on how to stimulate sustainable growth in developing economies like ours. Unlike the World Bank, the IMF seems to be more conversant with the socio-economic dynamics of developing economies. So, I agree with the institution’s advice on the need for fiscal consolidation and for government to explore its window of funds in banks to finance projects rather than borrowing. “But this should not be adopted in isolation because fiscal consolidation through application of monetary policy instruments as the authorities are trying to do now may not help achieve the overall objective of the drive. Let me say that it is not all inflation that is bad, some can be allowed within the context of the fact that in doing so, productivity will grow if the manufacturing entities are support by other fiscal measures. When this happens, the economy will grow in such a way that jobs will be created, demand for goods will increase and in the long run, the rising inflationary trend will be con-

tained by a combination of economic forces driving the system. According to Unegbu, who is also Principal Consultant at Madonna Law firm, what the managers of the economy need do in order to create some balance in the fiscal consolidation agenda is to allow for some level of injection of more money into the economy, at least in the short and medium term, so that the real sector can experience a new funding breath required to stimulate economic growth on a sustainable basis. Speaking in a similar tone, another financial expert, Dr. Boniface Chizea, argued that as good as the recommendations were on the face value, it may be economically illogical for the country to consistently pursue fiscal consolidation agenda without critically considering measures that are crucial to stimulate growth in the real sector. He explained further that one of the urgent areas requiring attention is the decaying road network infrastructure, adding that fixing the rot would not necessarily undermine efforts to grow the Sovereign Wealth Fund savings from surplus budgeted funds. On options for funding capital projects which the IMF believes should be sourced from generated revenues rather than borrowed funds, Chizea, a leading investment consultant, pointed out that available statistics showed that sourcing funds for infrastructure development require a combination of approaches, preferably the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement. He believes that a judicious use of the SWF will most certainly contribute to the pursuit of the goals of enhanced budget efficiency and to the prudent use of national resources. According to him, “The critical question to ask is: Is there the imperative need for the pursuit of fiscal consolidation for an economy which is in need of urgent growth to facilitate the generation of massive employment opportunities that could impact the growing incidences of social unrest? “In fact if you ask me I think that if anything the economy is in urgent need of a stimulus. And there are ample opportunities in the areas of massive regeneration of dilapidated infrastructure particularly the road network which now represents a veritable drag on the attainment of increased productivity. “There is nothing wrong with growing the balance of the SWF if this repre-

sents fund surplus to what has been budgeted for as that makes for good housekeeping. But in point of fact funds accruing to the SWF should not be tampered with except under conditions which are stipulated in the ACT establishing the fund. “And why should government in the first place borrow if it has deposits on its account which is in excess of what best practice stipulates particularly as the rate of returns on these deposits would be less that the cost of borrowing? It is also a recognized fact that public sector borrowing has a crowding out effect on private sector requirements which should be the source of needed growth in the economy”, Chizea added. Elaborating further, the seasoned public analyst, pointed out that debt refinancing using infrastructure fund would seem not to be an available option as it there is existence of any infrastructural fund anywhere. He recalled that infrastructure funding is largely supposed to be driven under the PPA arrangement but that even then the challenge remains the funding gap between actual need and available resources. Despite the funding lacuna, he believes that a “judicious use of the SWF will most certainly contribute to the pursuit of the goals of enhanced budget efficiency and to the prudent use of national resources but for debt sustainability the authorities do not feel that this is any urgent problem even if we must accept that there is the need to take proactive steps to make sure that it does not become so in the near future”. Like the experts have noted, the IMF has also warned government on the sustained plans for recurrent expenditure contraction, pointing out that the aspects that have to do with wage bill reduction should be handled carefully, adding that in particular, fiscal consolidation measures would need to be underpinned by comprehensive reforms in order to ensure that the fiscal savings were sustainable and consistent with the goal of improved public service delivery. As government continues the paper works on the 2013 Appropriation Bill which is slated for presentation to the National Assembly next month, the option appears to be for government to ensure, like experts have noted that the required funds and fiscal incentives are not denied the real sector that holds the key to unlocking the fiscal consolidation potential for the country.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Business & Finance

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Rice production: Farmers to earn $2bn by 2015 MESHACK IDEHEN

he Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has said the Federal Government is projecting that rice farmers in the country would be able to earn about $2bn by year 2015. Adesina said with steps being taken to improve rice production in the country, the commodity would soon become more available, leading to self sufI In a statement made available to National Mirror the weekend recently the minister said the projection was possible, as Nigeria was already rolling out an ambitious reform programme across its agricultural sector that is aimed at cutting the country’s dependency on food imports, create jobs and generate sustainable economic growth. The minister said further that some of the measures that have been taken by government to meet the projection include; boosting private sector participation and improving competitiveness, adding that those measures would also form a key

L-R: Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Works, Alh Bala Dansheu; Chairman, Cement Manufactures’ Association of Nigeria, Engr. Joseph Makoju and Secretary of the association, Mr. James Salako, during a meeting between Cement Manufactures’ Association of Nigeria and Ministry of Work in Abuja, yesterday. PHOTO: ROTIMI OSASONA

part of Nigeria’s plans to diversify the economy away from crude oil. He said, “Over the next five years, we plan to add 20m tonnes of additional food to the domestic food supply to create 3.5 million jobs in the sector and to replace up to 40 per cent of wheat flour imports with high-quality

Foreign reserve up 1.65 % to $37bn ADEDEJI ADEMIGBUJI

he nation’s foreign reserve increased 1.6 per cent month-on-month to N37.02bn as at August 16 up from N36.41bn a month earlier, due to strong oil prices forex inflows from non-Central Bank of Nigeria sources to the official market; including banks and oil firms. Analysts said the reserves gained as a result for substantial dollar sales on the official market by banks seeking to comply with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s directive to reduce their net open position, NOP, from three to one per cent. The Executive Secretary of Financial Market Dealers Association, Mr. Wale Abe, had predicted that the reserves will increase on crude oil prices and WDAS funding. “Reserves recorded highest value in May ($37.5bn) and its lowest value in January ($34.53bn). According to him “Movements in reserve were influenced by crude oil prices and WDAS funding. Volatility in crude oil price flattens reserves values between May

and June.” He, however said that in the second half of the year, the reserve is likely to stabilise around its present value, as opportunities for further accretion are likely to be committed into infrastructure renewal.” The Central Bank of Nigeri reduced the amount of foreign exchange banks can hold as a percentage of their shareholders’ funds to one per cent from three per cent and increased their reserve requirements to 12 per cent of total assets from eight per cent, hence giving the CBN a breather from pulling from its foreign reserve to fund naira The naira had gained the strongest in more than three months last week as lenders sold dollars to comply with Central Bank regulations on foreign-exchange holdings before a currency auction. The country’s currency climbed 0.6 per cent to 157.65 a dollar last Wednesday and set for the highest close since May 8. The naira has risen three per cent this year, the strongest performance in Africa after Ghana’s cedi, stated a data compiled by Bloomberg.

cassava flour”. The minster explained that some of the key reforms al-

ready introduced are bringing in results, saying moves such as the privatisation of procure-

ment and distribution of fertiliser and seed are yielded great results, disclosing also that private sector firms are growing and foreign direct investment is increasing due to the moves embarked upon by the ministry. According to him, there are further reasons to be optimistic, considering that Nigeria’s banks are well-placed to support the expansion of the country’s agricultural sector. He explained that the necessary key for a successful reform of the sector is to turn agriculture into a business that makes money, adding that with focus on investments as opposed to aid and development, the agriculture sector in general, and the country’s farmers in particular will become better off. Adesina said the country needs to move towards focusing on particular value chains in which Nigeria has a traditional comparative advantage.

Bombardier ready to partner FG on MRO, aircraft acquisition OLUSEGUN KOIKI

ombardier, the Canadianbased third largest aircraft manufacturer in the world has expressed its readiness to partner with the Federal Ministry of Aviation in the establishment of a Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in Nigeria. The company has equally agreed to work out modalities with the Nigerian aviation authorities to facilitate the acquisition of new aircraft by domestic airline operators in the country. The President, Public Affairs, Communications and Corporate Social Responsibility of the company, Helene Gagnon made the pledge last weekend in Montreal, Canada when top management team of the company received a delegation of the Ministry of Aviation, led

by the Minister, Princess Stella Oduah at the company’s facility in Canada. An online statement signed by the Special Assistant to the minister, Mr. Joe Obi stated that Gagnon said Bombardier is pleased with the visit of the delegation and the willingness of the Nigerian government to work with the company in the development of the aviation sector in Nigeria, adding that establishing an MRO facility in Nigeria holds huge potential for the aircraft manufacturer because of the ready market in Nigeria and the West African sub-region. On aircraft acquisition, she said Bombardier is equally ready to play a major role in replenishing a newer fleet for domestic airline operators in Nigeria, and expressed the hope that both parties would come to a compromise on the modalities as soon as possible.

Passenger traffic drops at Lagos Airport OLUSEGUN KOIKI

he two days public holiday declared by the Federal Government for Eid-el-fitri celebration is a toll on airlines in Nigeria as they all flew virtually empty yesterday to various destinations in the country out of Lagos. The terminals at the Murtala Mohammed Airport Two, Lagos and the General Avia-

tion Terminal, Lagos were almost empty due to lack of flying passengers. When National Mirror visited MMA2, it observed that most of the remaining operating airlines in the terminal, Aero, and IRS airlines intentionally delayed their flights to Abuja and other destinations as a result of inadequate passengers. Abuja flights were also combined by the airlines. As at the time of filling this report, only three flights on

Earlier, Oduah said Nigeria is desirous of having an MRO facility in the country to cushion the adverse effect of domestic operators having to fly their fleet overseas always for maintenance. She said the absence of Bombardier in Nigeria in spite of its presence in Africa means the company is harnessing an insignificant segment of its market on the continent, and assured of a good return on investment if Nigeria is made a maintenance hub in Africa. The minister also expressed her desire to have domestic operators acquire new aircraft that are efficient, stressing that this is the only way they can operate optimally. She called on the aircraft manufacturer to partner with her ministry to facilitate the acquisition of aircrafts by domestic operators through access to cheap funds. Aero had departed from Lagos to Port-Harcourt for 10:30am, Lagos to Abuja for 11:00am and Lagos to Uyo for 11:00am while passengers were boarding for the 1:45pm Lagos-Abuja flight. Besides, the situation is not different on IRS as the airline at the time of compiling the report had only three flights out of the terminal. Besides, at GAT, the Arik Air experienced the same inadequate passengers as the usually filled terminal was almost empty.

Business & Finance

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Hike in LPFO, electricity tariff worry textile manufacturers MESHACK IDEHEN

he Director-General of Nigerian Textile Manufacturers Association (NTMA), Mr. Jaiyeola Olarenwaju, has said that what is left of textile companies in Nigeria are struggling to survive as a result of the escalating cost of LPFO and hike in the electricity tariff. Olarewanju said the association is raising the alarm over the hike, saying despite the intervention funds from the government that the textile sector is still finding it difficult to survive. Speaking with National Mirror, he said though the intervention funds have been given to members of the association, the situation has not improved because of high cost of LPFO and electricity adding that things might go worst if not taken care of.

According to him, some of the companies that took the loans have bought new machines, while others have done many things with the loan, but their situation has not improved. Olarenwaju said the present situation has made it difficult for the local companies to compete with foreign products because their cost of production is on the high side, saying also that the intervention fund will not make any significant impact unless the government addresses the issue. “We cannot compete with imported textiles under the current business environment. If within one year the market is saturated with imported textiles, local industries will have problems selling, and many of them will certainly close down. “The government has to do something on these increases if they want progress in the sector. I don’t really know why government should increase the cost of

LPFO that we are producing locally,” he lamented. He explained the textile sector is at a stagnated level, while attributing the situation to the smuggling of cheap textiles from abroad. “Unless the Federal Government takes urgent action by giving a special relief to manufacturers, especially textile manufacturers, the sector could become comatose, with these challenges, the sector could be extinct”, he added. Speaking further, he said the supply of electricity from the public source leaves manufacturer with no options than running on private generating plants. “Take, for instance, a textile company consuming 1,000,000 litres of diesel in a month and three million litres of LPFO a month, the increase in the prices of the product will definitely reflect on the price of their products,” he explained.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Enterprise Bank reassures former subsidiary workers of continued employment

nterprise Bank Limited on Monday reassured workers of their subsidiary company of a secured future and continued employment as the bank divests from First Spring Franchise Services Ltd. FSFS, a former non-banking subsidiary of EBL, has about 98 workers. A statement from the bank said that the assurance became imperative following the increased concern of the workers about losing their jobs and their agitation for appropriate severance packages. According to EBL’s Head, Corporate Communications, Mr. Olusola Longe-Okenimkpe, , the bank’s sale of FSFS was in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s directive for banks to

divest from non-banking operations. Longe-Okenimkpe, who was, however, silent on the new owners of FSFS Ltd., said the sale had no labour debt overhang. “Enterprise Bank has ensured that no staff will suffer as a result of the transfer of service to a new owner. “As a matter of fact, the bank has put in place a number of positive measures to protect the interest of every staff. “Some of these measures include instituting, measuring and monitoring parameters to evaluate the service providers and ensuring that they are able to keep up the standards, the continued payment of existing remuneration and a future career development structure,” he said.

NIDOE forum to boost investments – Organisers TOLA AKINMUTIMI ABUJA

s the inaugural joint trade mission of the Nigerian Diaspora and the State formally opens this Wednesday in Oshogbo, Osun State, the coordinators of the event, Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Europe (NIDOE) has assured of its investment potentials in the country. A statement by the General Secretary of the NIDOE, Ben Osawe, indicated that the overall aim of the event is to introduce business people in the Diaspora and their foreign (investment) partners to the most important government officials and business people in the State, as gateway to Nigeria. He explained further that be-

ing implementation-driven; the forum will create a unique platform for investment demands of the state to meet investment supply anchored by the Nigerian Diaspora. Osawe disclosed further that hundreds of the state’s indigenes in the Diaspora, especially from Europe and the Americas, were playing key roles in promoting this unprecedented mission. He stated that participants are expected from agriculture, aviation, banking, construction, defence, engineering, health, information communication technology, machinery, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, shipping and logistics, telecommunication, travel and tourism, transportation, water resources, energy among others.

Nokia’s DanfoReloaded competition rewards winners L-R: Director, Corporate Relations, Guinness Nigeria Plc, Mr. Sesan Sobowale; Corporate Communications Manager, Ms. Ngozi IfeAnene and Head, Public Policy, Mr. Mike Onuoha, at the DRINKIQ Media Workshop organised by the company in Lagos, yesterday.

FAAN to send illegal truck owners parking soon – GM OLUSEGUN KOIKI

he traffic bottleneck on the Murtala Mohammed Airport, Lagos road will soon be a thing of the past as the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria has indicated its readiness to send away illegal cab and trucks operators within the airport complex. Also, various hawkers and food vendor operators who are not registered with the agency would be shown the exit. To make the exercise a suc-

cess, the Managing Director of the agency, Mr. George Uriesi recently set up a committee, which has since submitted its report to the helmsman for approval and implementation. Speaking in an interview with National Mirror in his office over the weekend, the General Manager, Public Affairs, Mr. Akin Olukunle assured that the current massive traffic jam at the airport most especially at the hajj and cargo area of the airport would soon be a thing of the past. Olukunle, who described

the bottleneck on the road as an eyesore, emphasised that the management would ensure that those who have no business to do at the airport are completely restricted from gaining access to the complex. He said in a bid to sanitise the airport environment, the agency would need to collaborate with the Lagos State government especially on the menace of the yellow buses who ply the airport road indiscriminately. “The issue of congestion especially of the fuel tankers is a concern to us, we are working on that. I can tell you that FAAN is working seriously on the congestion at the airport most especially the yellow buses that are not supposed to be there and have turned that place to their abode. We have discussed it even at the management level that whatever they are doing right now is illegal.

ELLA OLAMIJU

wo players, Udosoh Hope Aniema and ChigbuEbuka have emerged as winners of the first draw of Nokia’s Danfo Reloaded Competition, a local game available on the Nokia store. The duo was presented with a sum of N100,000.00 each as reward for being the highest scorers for the week. Explaining the mechanics of the Nokia Danfo ReloadedGame Competition, Marketing Manager, Nokia-West Africa, Mr Kesiena Ogbemi said that the Danfo Reloaded is a locally developed mobile phone game that can be played on the Nokia Asha 200, 201, 303 or 302 phones. “Danfo is a common slang for commercial buses in Lagos. In the gameDanfo Reloaded, the player plays as a “Danfo driver”, earns

money as he proceeds and at the end of one week, the players with the two highest scores win N100,000.00 from Nokia” ,he said. Speaking at the prize presentation, which took place at Nokia office in Lagos, Head, Developer Experience, Nokia West-Africa, Mr Teemu Kijaarvi, stated that Danfo Reloaded competition is another way Nokia is reaching out to its loyal subscribers. He said, “At Nokia, our customers are at the heart of everything we do, this is why we will always look for ways to reward their loyalty to the brand and put smiles on their faces.” One of the winners, Udosoh Hope Aniema expressed joy at the gesture. He recounted that he was skeptical about the authenticity of his winning when he got a call informing him that he had been chosen as one of the highest scorers for the week.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Jobs & Career

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Calls mount for formation of new umbrella labour As Nigerians await the next line of action from the breakaway faction of the Nigeria Labour Congress(NLC),analysts say the stand-off between the Federal Government and electricity sector workers has again brought to the fore the need for the formation of a national labour body that is at home with developmental initiatives, writes MESHACK IDEHEN.

hough not much has been heard from the Integrity Group, breakaway faction of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), in recent times since its decision to form a parallel body to rival the NLC, observers said the implication of the impending move by the group is not lost on discerning stakeholders. However to some analysts, there is no doubt that these indeed are trying times for organised labour unions in Nigeria,what with “popular opinion” being against them particularly with regards to the power sector reforms, and the spoiler role many believe they have continually played in matters that concern the wholistic development of the country. For other stakeholders though, the current power sector reforms generally assumed to being held back by labour is amongst the several reasons for the formation of parallel national labour body has become more urgent and imperative than ever before. Labour and Industrial Relations Professional, Mr. Kunle Rotimi, told National Mirror at the weekend that “the country’s leadership more than ever, could make do with a new labour body that can work in tandem with the developmental initiatives of the government, while at the same time, also able to guarantee the rights and welfare of the nation’s workers”. In that regard, concerned stakeholders explained that not hearing or seeing much from the Integrity Group that had promised to see to the formation of a new national labour body is not only worrying, but also that the failure or inability to see the new national labour body come to life may have wider economic implication, with the capacity to slow down socio economic development in the longer term. Be that as it may, and while the Mr. Abdulwaheed Omar led NLC is still expressing concern over the gale of demembership of the congress from institutions and organisations in which NLC hitherto was a member, experts in labour matters told National Mirror that the integrity group should take the bull by the horn, and declare its complete independence from the NLC, just as the group had promised to do earlier this year. Labour Activist, and President of Progressive Leadership Organisational International (PLOI), Mr. Emmanuel Ezueme, on his part, told our correspondent that the NLC, having lost the mandate to speak about defending the country’s workers and safeguarding their welfare,

should not constitute itself into an unnecessary blockade on the path of the integrity’s group plans to vacate the congress. He explained that Nigerian constitution and international labour laws guarantees individuals and groups the freedom of association for industrial purposes, while also disclosing that the “fuel subsidy protests shenanigans” by the NLC in January this year, and recently, “the salient support given to members of the National Union of Electricity Employees, (NUEE) and Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Corporations,(SSAEAC),aimed at frustrating the power sector reforms are enough to prove that the NLC and its few supporters are not in touch with majority of Nigerians on matters that greatly affects them”. Taken together, the Integrity Group of Industrial Unions on their part, said the deep divisions within the NLC and its series of crisis of leadership have proven that the labour union has lost the respect it once commanded among Nigerians The President, National Union of Hotels and Personal Services Workers, Mr. Leke Success who is the leader of the group, alongside the General Secretary of Non Academic Staff Union, (NASU), Mr. Peters Adeyemi, said divisions within NLC and its series of crisis of leadership have proven that the labour union has lost the respect it once commanded among Nigerians. According to the group, the burden of conscience is finally and openly manifesting in the behaviour of key elements whose serial blunders have brought on the NLC contempt never experienced since its creation over three decades ago. They added that the NLC no longer commands the respect and trust of the masses except in the imagination of the few within the congress, who sole interests and concerns are how to feather their nests, and the expense of collective good of the people, adding the national secretariat of the NLC is currently in far worse shape than many trade unionists and Nigerians may have feared or suspected. “The remonstration over our move to register a new national labour centre by certain elements indicates they are very poor student of not just Nigeria’s labour laws but also of the recent history of trade unionism in Nigeria. “We wish to state that the Labour Act is clear on the requirements for the registration of a centre. If, as a group, we feel no longer compatible with the tendencies or trajectories driving the NLC,

Rotimi

Omar

THE COUNTRY’S LEADERSHIP MORE THAN EVER, COULD MAKE DO WITH A NEW LABOUR BODY THAT CAN WORK IN TANDEM WITH THE DEVELOPMENTAL INITIATIVES OF THE GOVERNMENT, WHILE AT THE SAME TIME, ALSO ABLE TO GUARANTEE THE RIGHTS AND WELFARE OF THE NATION’S WORKERS we have the right to move out and form a centre. No government, and not even a million NLCs, can stop us if we fulfil the terms of existing labour laws in Nigeria. “Our single-minded determination to achieve this derives from the empirical evidence that the NLC, as presently constituted, is no longer in the position to defend the interest of workers and the aspirations of the masses. The need for a new labour centre is therefore long overdue”, the integrity group leaders explained. On speculations that the integrity group is being sponsored by the Federal Government, the leaders said it is not worthy to respond to the alleged sponsorship of the anti labour bill, saying such “fantasy” can only germinate in the farcical imagination of people who are out of touch with the reality of workers out there on the shop floor. “Labour leadership in the current epoch has gone beyond a rule of the thumb or they-say-so approach. Labour politics, like all other branches of social life, must be based on knowledge, driven by research and backed

by a certain moral cleanliness”. However, National Mirror gathered that the non passage of the new labour bill which is currently before the National Assembly is primarily responsible for the delay the group is grappling with, before it can go ahead to declare its independence from the NLC. It was also gathered that some of the unions that will be the driving force of the new body when the new labour bill is eventually passed by the National Assembly includes the National Union of Banks, Insurance, and Financial Institutions Employees (NUBIFIE), Non Academic Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU), National Union of Hotel and Personal Services Workers (NUHPSW). Others are, the National Union of Postal and Telecommunication Employees (NUPTE), Radio and Theatre Arts Workers Union (RATTATAWU) Steel and Engineering Workers Union of Nigeria (SEWUN), and National Association of Technologies, (NAATS) all told National Mirror of their preparedness to align with the new body once it takes off.

Jobs & Career

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

ILO says wage cut may affect growth STORIES: MESHACK IDEHEN

he International Labour Organisation (ILO), has warned governments that slashing wages of workers in the public sector in a bid to boost competitiveness and cut unemployment may have the opposite effect in the immediate and long term. According to ILO, that global economy is on the decline in some areas, and growth slowed in others is not a critical factor in determining to slash wage, particularly of workers earning very low income. This warning by the ILO was issued, following the release by European Central Bank (ECB) in its monthly report for August that called for more flexibility in the wage determination process - such as lowering minimum wages - coupled with measures to strengthen competitiveness. ILO Global Wage Report Specialist, Mr. Patrick Belser, in the statement that was made available to journalists, said a de-

crease in wages does tend to lead to an increase in exports, but that it also depresses domestic consumption, which affects growth. According to him, given the level of economic uncertainty at the moment across the world, it is also unclear whether wage cuts would generate enough incentives to raise investment. “Whenever a fall in wages reduces domestic consumption more than it increases exports and investment, it has a negative effect on a country’s economic growth,” another Senior Economist at the ILO’s Conditions of Work and Employment Branch and main editor of the ILO Global Wage Report added. According to him, this explains why declining wages in periods of crisis may actually lead to a spiral of falling aggregate demand and price deflation, rather than to a quicker economic recovery. Furthermore, the ILO also warned that seeking to regain competitiveness through

NDE to train lady chauffeurs

he National Directorate of Employment (NDE), said it is planning to introduce Lady Chauffeur Training Scheme to meet the demands for female drivers in Cross River State and across the country. Cross River State Co-ordinator of the NDE, Mr Edem Duke, in an interview said 100 women would be trained in the first phase of the training scheme. According to him, the Lady Chauffeur Training Scheme is one of the many vocational skills acquisition programme designed under the Basic National Open Apprenticeship Scheme (B-NOAS). He said the directorate decided to venture into the business of training lady chauffeurs in order to break the jinx of driving being the exclusive preserve of men, adding that women with cheerful disposition to driving skills would easily earn the trust and confidence of their clients. Duke said that the objective of the training was to empower unemployed female so that they could be self-employed. “Other specific objectives included the creation of a pool of female drivers that will meet the needs of the labour market, while the other objective is to create wealth

pening jobs vacancies for the week is the advice to job seekers not to effect any payment to secure interview appointments, and to make timely complaints as soon as possible to relevant authorities. For the week, available vacancies begin with the position of Medical Representatives (www.nigjobsite. com), to be based in Cross River, Akwa Ibom, Abuja and Kaduna states. Aiming to promote and sell range of Antibiotics and fertility products, the company insists qualification for the position includes a Bachelors degree in pharmacy, with the possession of MBA degree would be an added advantage. Other requirements, apart from the cut off age of not more than 26 years, includes possession of a valid driver’s license, disciplined and display initiative, drive and determination Also on offer is the post of a Wed-

DG, NDE, Abubakar Mohammed

and job satisfaction as well as impacting the spirit of professionalism and commitment in women drivers’’. He explained that the directorate would seek collaboration with the Federal Road Safety Commission on the training programme, saying also that the programme would be a two-month intensive training session. According to him, there would be an orientation course after registration, recruitment and documentation of trainees.

DG, ILO, Juan Somavia

Wogu

lower unit labour costs ,which amongst other measures, includes slashing wages or letting productivity grow faster than wages , will be unsustainable globally. “If competitive wage cuts are pursued simultaneously in all countries, competi-

tive gains will cancel out and the regressive effect of global wage cuts on consumption could lead to a world-wide depression of aggregate demand and employment,” they said in the statement.

Tips for making a good impression in a job interview

hat you need to do to ensure that the job interview is a success may not be too far from reach. Here are a few tips to help you make a good impression. Be detail-oriented and timely- Be certain that you have the right address and directions to the interview site. (Do not always rely on your global positioning system). Know the correct spelling of your interviewer’s name. Have money for parking and enough gas in your car. Aim to arrive at the interview site early, and allow plenty of times to turn off your cell phone and take a deep breath before you walk in the door. Be alert- How do you energise before an important meeting or event? Do you need to sleep for nine hours, drink caffeine, or go for a quick run? Whatever your preferred method, be sure you are well rested, rejuvenated and full of life for your interview. Let your best self shine through. Be a sharp dresser- It is important to dress appropriately for your interview. If you are interviewing for an office-related position, a suit is almost-always appropriate. Dress up a bit — your extra efforts will show respect for the company and interviewer.

Job vacancies ding Designer and Operations Manager (www.findjobs Africa.com) to be based in Lagos. Placed on offer by the Wedding Company TM, the company is a bespoke wedding design and planning company creating stylish and elegant celebrations for couples who want an inspirational wedding without the stress of organising it. To qualify, the incoming will have to have a proven background in this field and be able to hit the ground running, as much as been passionate about the service and facilities being offered alongside being supportive and flexible through the whole process. Qualifications, skills and experience needed include includes experience in organising and managing big

budget weddings, social functions or corporate events and handling venue logistics. Other qualities need are strong relationship management, collaboration and interpersonal skills, excellent communication skills and written, oral and presentation skills, advanced experience of Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel and PowerPoint) and the internet (Social media) would be useful, but not essential. Telecommunications giant, MTN offers another position for the week, the post of a Senior Manager, Business Continuity Management,(www. mtnonline/careers) based in Lagos is available, with the opportunity to plan, build, operate and manage the governance of MTN’s enterprise-wide

Be knowledgeable- Research the company. Understand the services they provide, the products they produce, and the customers they work for. Be prepared to answer the interviewer’s common question: What do you know about our company? Be yourself- The interview is a perfect time to let your personality shine. The interviewer should leave with a good idea of who you are — don’t be afraid to have a conversation for fear of what they’ll think. Likely, the interviewer will appreciate your efforts. Be prepared to ask questions of anything you are uncertain of. It is important to go into an interview with an open mind, and be prepared for a dialogue. Have questions ready regarding the reporting structure of the position, how a typical day is spent, why the position is open. Be persistent- Stand out from the crowd — send a thank-you note, express your interest and stay in touch with the interviewer. If you don’t feel that you have time to snail-mail a note, then do so with e-mail. Either way, the gesture will be appreciated. (www.syracuse.com) Business Continuity Management, including managing programme, including policies, roles and responsibilities, as parts of the job description. Other responsibilities are the design and Implementation of a companywide Business Continuity Management awareness and education program to ensure that all MTN personnel clearly understand their responsibilities before, during and after a business disruption. Reporting to the GM, Business Risk, some of the required skills needed for the position includes a Bachelors degree in Business or Management of technical and Information Systems, a Business continuity management certifications appropriate to MTN needs, and at least 12 years work experience comprising 3-5 years experience in implementing business continuity management, disaster recovery and crisis management plans, including:

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Real Estate & Environment dayoayeyemi@yahoo.com 08033312578

Experts canvass vertical housing development for Lagos

he population of Lagos city, like other African cities is expected to grow by 300 percent by 2050, according to 2010 report of the United Nations Habitat, thereby bringing the total number of its residents to no fewer than 37.7 million by the middle of this century. According to the report, the population of Lagos will hit 12.4 million by 2015 just as African city populations will more than triple over the next 40 years, a growth being promoted by massive rural-urban migration. Lagos city is host to an estimated 18 million and would increase tremendously in years to come. The United Nations report, The state of African cities 2010: Governance, Inequalities and Urban Land Markets, looks at the growth of Africa’s urban areas, the fastest growing urban areas in the world. In 2015, the projected urban populations of Lagos (Nigeria) at 12.4 million and Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of the Congo) at 12.7 million will exceed the 12.5 million people of Cairo (Egypt), which is currently Africa’s largest urban area. Equipped with the information, the Lagos State Government has not left any stone unturned to confront the challenges by upgrading basic infrastructure and initiating mass housing schemes. On what his administration has been doing in the last five years to solve housing problems in Lagos State, Governor Babatunde Fashola did not mince words when he spoke at a panel discussion at Rio+C40 Mega City Mayors Summit held recently in Brazil, saying his administration has developed a policy called the Lagos HOMS which is an acronym for Lagos Home Ownership Mortgage Scheme. He said, “We have designed a housing model that we think can adequately address the needs that we face”, he said, pointing out that the real challenge of housing falls not only on the number of people needing houses but the number who have the capacity to pay for them. “We adopted a model of four floors including the ground floor with each block having 12 apartments and they are integrated in the sense that on each floor, there is a one bedroom, two bedroom and three bedroom units and it is erected like that right to the top floor due to the small land size of the state. ” Speaking to National Mirror when interviewed on how Nigeria can meet housing needs of its teeming population, former Chairman of the Nigeri-

Considering the teeming population of Lagos which UN Habitat says will grow by 300 per cent by 2050, experts in the built environment say there is need for mass development of highrise structures just like other cities such as Dubai and Singapore to meet its accommodation needs. DAYO AYEYEMI, reports.

xxxxx

NIGERIA, WE DON’T HAVE URBAN MASS HOUSING. IN LAGOS WE TALK ABOUT HIGH-RISE, PEOPLE CALL 15 FLOORS HIGH-RISE IN

an Institute of Architects (NIA), Mrs. Abimbola Ajayi, said the only solution lies in the construction of mass highrise housing, noting that the nation has none as at the moment. She cited Lagos as an example, saying that rather than government and the private sector to embark massive high-rise structures to accommodate the teeming population owing to small land size, what they are constructing are bungalows, three and four storey buildings. She said, “Like I always say about urban mass housing, in Nigeria, we don’t have urban mass housing. In Lagos we talk about high-rise, people call 15 floors high-rise, it is not high rise. We are talking of high-rise of international

standards ranging from 25, 30 floors because this is where high-rise start from. 15 floors can be called medium-rise. So, all these houses they we are calling high-rise in Lagos are not high-rise at all. “People say that in Lagos, we don’t have much land. It is so limited that people are reclaiming land and building low structures and we say that rather than building horizontally, we have to go up. ” She noted that cities like Singapore and Dubai have explored opportunities inherent in high-rise to solve their housing problem and grow their economy, saying Nigeria cannot be exceptional. She debunked claims by some individuals that Nigeria lacks the required

Fashola

technology and technical know-how to sustain skyscrapers, saying with political will, such innovation can be sustained. She referred to old structures such as CONTINUED ON PAGE 26

Real Estate & Environment

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Experts canvass vertical housing development in Lagos CONTINUED FROM 25 Eko Court and Eric Moore Towers in Lagos, saying high-rise structures to accommodate majority of the people had been done in that past. According to Ajayi, until the nation gets to the point where people are building high rise buildings such as Eko Court and 1004 Estates in Victoria Island, Eric Moore Towers and Bar Beach Towers in Lagos, “we are not going to achieve anything as far as mass housing is concerned.” She said, “How old is Eric Moore and Bar Beach Towers? Why can’t we go to that era and go up? I see that Lagos is trying to do some mass housing and the government is building two, three floors, it is a joke! Why can’t we build like these towers that I mentioned? Look at 1004 Estate, the buildings are not even high but if we start to have something like that, it will solve more problems.” Settlement experts and former President of the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners (NITP), Mr. Bunmi Ajayi, said for Lagos to increase its housing density, its current planning regulations have to be reviewed to remove restriction limiting developers from building high-rise structures from mass housing. He said Governor Fashola has been working in the direction of reviewing the Town Planning law to face the reality in order to accommodate multiple units vertically in many locations in Lagos. But, he urged that Ogun State Government must also review its Urban and Regional Law to allow for construction of highrise buildings, considering land limitation in Lagos. Ajayi said though he supports the idea of skyscrapers but due to erratic power supply and infrastructure decadence in the country, development of three and four floors should

L-R: Director of Finance and Admin, Industrial Training Fund, Hajia Fatima Usman; Minister of State for Trade and Investment, Chief Samuel Ortom; and Director General, Industrial Training Fund, Prof. Longmas Wapmuk; at the commissioning of the ITF Apapa Area Office Complex on last week.

be encouraged to accommodate more people. Principal Partner, Stephen Jagun and Associates, a real estate firm, Mr. Stephen Jagun, said it is expensive to maintain highrise buildings, considering the infrastructural facilities such as water, electricity, elevator and others that are involved.

According to him, the technology involved is enormous and not cheap to come by, adding that the issue of safety and maintenance of facilities are other considerations. Stated that in Eko Court in Victoria Island, service charge ranges between

N1.2m and N1.5m, saying that how many low-income or medium-income earners can afford such? “When you talk of mass houses, who are the target? In Ikoyi, we have high-rise properties; their rents are as high as N10m and N20m per annum,” he said.

Minister emphasises capacity building as ITF completes N260m Apapa office building DAYO AYEYEMI

inister of State for Trade and Investment, Chief Samuel Ortom has emphasised the need for capacity building in all sectors of the economy, describing it as a critical requirement for economic growth and development. The minister made this remarks at the inauguration of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Apapa Area Office Complex in Lagos, adding that acquisition of skills in all sectors would fast-track the diversification and competitiveness of the Nigerian economy. For this reason, he said the National Industrial Skills Development Programme (NISDP), is key to the success of the National Industrial Revolution Plan of the ministry. He hinted that over 1.2 million people, particularly youths, will be trained, annually under NISDP, which is being driven by the ITF and its sister organisation, the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN). The minister commended ITF for putting up the edifice, saying it would be

Jonathan

a veritable outlet for the much needed skills acquisition services. “ I am particularly happy that this investment is made by one of the parastatals under our ministry, “he said. The 3-storey structure was designed and constructed to provide office spaces for ITF Apapa area office. Its contract was awarded in January 2007 and work commenced in June 2008. The project was executed by ITF contractor, Messrs Tridek Nigeria Limited, with Archshel

Development as the principal consultant. The minister remarked that the building of the office complex remained a positive step towards ensuring adequate and functional office accommodation that will nurture a conducive work place. Besides, he said it was also a step towards growing fund to augment the resources of ITF to effectively carry out its activities and services. He urged the staff of ITF to take advantage provided by the ITF amended Act, to redouble their efforts to meet the revenue and training targets set for the year. He said, “I wish to state, emphatically, that government will frown at deliberate actions that will frustrate the fund’s efforts in this regard. Apapa Area office must, therefore, step up its activities to justify the sum of N260m invested in the constructing of this office.” Elated Director-General of ITF, Professor Longmas Sambo, stated that with the successful completion of the project, the challenges the corporation encountered in the past in providing office accommodation to its officers have been laid to rest.

He said, “This building is equipped with modern furniture and facility. It was specially designed to accommodate the office of the area manager, the training department, finance and accounts department, the administration department and the internal audit unit. There is also a decent training roomto accommodate our participants.” He assured the minister that ITF is committed to fulfilling its mandate of generating a pool of indigenous trained manpower sufficient to meet the needs of the nation’s economy. “ITF cannot do this alone. We need the support and encouragement of all stakeholders. This desire for partnership to enhance national growth and development, led us to commence the Technical Skills Development Programme (TSDP), with the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA). The successes recorded by this scheme and the experiences we gathered through collaborations with local and international human resource development agencies contributed to our initiation and eventual partnership with the ministry for the launch of the National Industrial Skills Development Programme,” he said.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

D Diamond League: Okagbare, Odumosu set O ffor Lausanne 30

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Sport

My position is still the same; we will revisit the Olympics and seek the most credible way forward - Sports Minister, Bolaji Abdullahi

Battle of Monrovia: Eagles open camp in Abuja IKENWA NNABUOGOR

fter the goalless draw against the Menas of Niger Republic last Wednesday in Niamey, the Super Eagles resumed camp yesterday with the home-based team captain and Warri Wolves’ goalkeeper, Chigozie Agbim, the first to arrive. National Mirror learnt that Agbim, who arrived at just past noon, was received by Team Coordinator, Emmanuel Atta, at the Bolton White Apartment in Abuja. Pillars striker, Sani Sanusi, also arrived about an hour later after which other invited players trickled into the camp to the delight of coach Stephen Keshi who sought early preparation ahead of the Afcon 2013 qualifier with the Lone Star of Liberia in Monrovia on September 8. Team Psychologist, Dr. Robinson Okosun, says there is no cause for alarm as the players are in the best frame of mind for the looming encounter game

where Nigeria must earn a win to pave its route to South Africa next January. “We have players who are exposed and have been in constant touch with my office,” Okosun said. “Luckily, I also have a Head Coach who doubles as a super psychologist and motivator to the players and this has made my job easier. I don’t think we are well on course to do well in the Nations Cup and the World Cup qualifiers as well as in the main tournaments.” the former national volleyball star added. Meanwhile, coach Stephen Keshi has appealed to Nigerians to be allowed to reign himself in the team, saying he will not condone distraction. “I will ask for is to be left alone to concentrate on my job as the national coach. I will take advice from every well-meaning Nigerian, but I will not accept distractions,” the former international said yesterday. “I am determined to produce the Eagles that the entire Nigerians will be proud of,” he assured.

Super E S Eagles’ l ’ fi firstt choice h i goalkeeper lk Vi Vincentt E Enyeama will ill b bring i hi his ffresh h IIsraeli experience to bear on Nigeria’s quest for a place at Afcon 2013 finals

Sunshine Stars get windfall AFOLABI GAMBARI

layers of Sunshine Stars of Akure will pocket N2m after their 2-1 victory over ASO Chlef in a CAF Champions League tie in Algeria at the weekend. A player who pleaded anonymity told National Mirror yesterday after the team’s arrival in Lagos that the management’s gesture was an internal arrangement to spur the team to further success in the Champions League race. “We are glad that the promise that was given will be delivered and I think this will really go a long way in ensuring the achievement of our collective dream to do better than we did last year in the competition,” he said. The Nigerian representa-

tives are second in Group A with seven points, five points below Tunisian side Esperance who posted a defeat on another Tunisian representative Etoile du Sahel at the weekend to confirm its place in the semi-finals of the lucrative annual African competition.

Idoko

Japan 2012: German machine crushes Chinese

eigning champion Germany yesterday commenced its title defence with a comprehensive 4-0 victory over China as the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup entered Day 2. Two goals in each half saw the strong German side cruise past an outclassed China and match the score line achieved by Group D rival USA over Ghana earlier in the afternoon. Germany made the perfect start as Lena Lotzen prodded a loose ball home from close range on three minutes, after a ponderous China defence made a hash of clearing the danger, With the team’s goal rarely threatened, Germany created a host of chances with Lotzen hitting the crossbar, before ending the half in the same way they started as Anja Hegenauer scored after Dzsenifer Marozsan’s free-

Results Ghana

0-4

USA

Germany

4-0

China

Korea DPR

4-1

Norway

Argentina

0 -6 Canada

kick was blocked. The second period mirrored the first with Germany dominating, however it took until 16 minutes before time until the two-time champions extended the margin. Yupong Lin turned a Leonie Maier cross into her own net, while Luisa Wensing iced the cake with an injury-time strike. “It is important to start with a win without conceding a goal,” Germany coach, Maren Meinert, said. “But this means nothing for the tournament. We need three good games to go through. Now we have three points in a very difficult group and that’s great,” she added.

Lena Lotzen

Sport

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Ferdinand rues opener’s miss

Tit bits...

Cazorla

anchester United’s defender, Rio Ferdinand, has revealed his anguish suffering yet another injury which looks set to rule him out of the opening four weeks of the club’s season. United faces Everton at Goodison Park today, but Manager Sir Alex Ferguson will have to field a patched-up defence without Ferdinand. Jonny Evans, Chris Smalling and Phil Jones are all absent and Ferdinand now faces a troubling wait to discover the full extent of the damage to Ferdinand’s leg and he could miss as much as a month of the new season. It is understood he suffered the injury during a session at the club’s Carrington training base and Ferguson could now play midfielder Michael

Arsenal new boy Santi Cazorla has expressed his joy at making his Premier League debut but told his new club it must fill the void left by Robin van Persie and Alex Song. New strikers Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud were unable to provide the firepower that Van Persie delivered last season as Arsenal opened the campaign with a goalless draw with Sunderland and Cazorla is confident Arsenal will improve with time.

Agger

Liverpool left back, Daniel Agger, is considering appealing the red card he received during his club’s humbling 3-0 season opener with West Bromwich on Saturday. The Denmark defender, who was handed his marching orders by referee Phil Dowd after appearing to push Shane Long inside the box, will miss the clash with Manchester City as a result, unless the card is rescinded.

Carrick at centre-half alongside ongside fitt again Nemanja emanja Vidic against gainst the Toffees. The news comes just st days after Ferdinand nand was fined £45,000 5,000 for his response ponse on Twitter to someone calling Ashley shley Cole a “choc ice”. e”. Sir Alex suggested Ferdinand’s standerdinand’s ing g in the game and the e fact that he plays forr United contributed ed to the FA finding him m guilty of making improper comments mproper about bout Cole the social networking etworking site.

Ferdomamd

Aguero (l) and Mario Balotelli

Richardson West Ham and QPR have been put on red alert after Sunderland boss Martin O’Neill revealed that homesick Kieran Richardson wants to leave the club. The one-time England midfielder is keen on a return to London and threw his shirt into the crowd after the Black Cats 1-1 draw with Arsenal at the Emirates. But O’Neill is reluctant to lose the versatile 27-year-old but the former Manchester United player.

Michu

It took Michu, Swansea City’s £2m summer buy, only eight minutes to score the first Barclays Premier League goal of the season in his side’s 5-0 thrashing of QPR. If the first strike from his languid left foot was a little lucky, the second, eight minutes into the second half at Loftus Road, was stunning. This was the reason Michu, whose full name is Miguel Perez Cuesta, caught the eye of new Swansea boss Michael Laudrup.

Ba Newcastle Manager Alan Pardew’s best piece of summer business will be keeping Demba Ba. Several Barclays Premier League clubs, including Saturday’s defeated opponents Tottenham, were rumoured to be ready to invoke the clause in the Senegal striker’s original contract before it expired at the end of last month. But no clubs came in to match the £7m release fee.

Barca unveils Song at Nou Camp Song

ormer Arsenal strongman, Alex Song, yesterday arrived in Barcelona to complete his £15m move after it emerged that the Gunners were happy to let him go. Song also had his medical shortly after arriving at Nou Camp and passed without any problems. “He has a very low body fat percentage and very good muscle quality. All the tests have come out satisfactorily and he is available to the coach,” Barca team doctor, Ricard Pruna, declared. Arsenal Manager, Arsene Wenger, had sensationally sanctioned the sale of Song last week after becoming infuriated by the midfielder’s lack of commitment in pre-season. It, however, emerged that the Cameroon midfielder’s exit has been in the offing for months after a breakdown in the relationship between player and club over an improved contract. But unlike the £24m sale of Robin van Persie, who was in the final year of his contract, to Manchester United, the Gunners were under no pressure to offload Song, who had three seasons left on his £55, 000-per-week deal.

Club sources claim Song’s levels of professionalism had dropped significantly in recent months and Wenger decided to dispense with him. Sources also say Song regularly arrived late for training, took a half-hearted approach in sessions and did not follow instructions from the management staff. Having established himself as arguably the club’s second-most influential player behind Van Persie, Song, who felt he was entitled to an improved contract and tried to open talks over a pay rise at the Emirates, will earn about £70, 000 a week at Barcelona.

City sweats on Aguero, Balotel

anchester City striker, Sergio Aguero, will be playing again within weeks after a scan on the star striker’s injured knee on Sunday. Aguero twisted his right knee following a challenge by Southampton’s Nathaniel Clyne early in City’s dramatic 3-2 win. In another worrying development for City, Mario Balotelli twisted a knee in the post-match warm-down and was seen wincing. A six-a-side practice game was interrupted by Balotelli’s pain, although City sources later played

this down. City Manager Roberto Manc said he was worried over Aguer injury. Meanwhile, the Argentine s Twitted yesterday: “The studie had done revealed there’s no nificant injury but it was a v tough blow to my knee. Tomorr (today), the physicians will eva ate the time it will take for me recover.” Aguero’s knee is swollen and forward will need more tests t week to determine the exact ext of the damage.

Buttner lands in Old Trafford

itesse Arnhem left back, Alexander Buttner, has completed his medical ahead of sealing his £3.9m switch to Manchester United. The 23-year-old Dutchman, who arrived at Bridgewater Hospital in Manchester at lunchtime yesterday, Monday lunchtime, will sign a five-year contract with the 2010/11 EPL champion. “If you had told me one week ago that I would be training with and playing for the same team

as Robin van Persie, I would have sent you to a mental home”, Buttner said. “This is crazy stuff, beyond all my dreams. I am looking forward to this challenge so much. I am so proud and so glad that it has worked out like this. I’m so glad that it has happened and everything has turned out like this. This is really a dream come true.” Buttner has been regularly linked with a move to England this summer and had looked

poised to join Southampton with Vitesse announcing in July that it had agreed a deal with the Barclays Premier League newcomer, but that switch fell through. Buttner, who can also operate at right-back, came through the youth system at Vitesse. The Doetinchem-born player made 107 appearances for the Dutch club and had been named in Holland’s provisional 36-man squad for Euro 2012, although did not eventually go to the finals.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

AFOLABI GAMBARI

cini ro’s

star es I sigvery row alue to

the this tent

Buttner

Fed Cup 2012: Amodu, Odegbami, others get honours

Adebayor nears Spurs switch o t t e n h a m Hotspurs Manager, Andre Villas-Boas, will attempt to secure a £6m deal for Manchester City’s Emmanuel Adebayor this week after the coach admitted the Togo striker is the forwarded still needed in the team. A fee for the 28-yearold forward, who scored 18 goals on loan at White Hart Lane last season, has been agreed and the former Arsenal forward is close to agreeing a wage cut after accepting that his City career is over. Frustrated at the opening day defeat after Spurs hit the woodwork twice, Villas-Boas pledged to spend quickly with the surprise first-day tormentors of Liverpool, West Bromwich Albion, visiting White Hart Lane on Saturday. Meanwhile, VillasBoas has assured Jermain Defoe that he has a future at White Hart Lane, despite interest from Sunderland and Aston Villa and the impending arrival of Adebayor. The 29-year-old scored 11 goals in 25 appearances last season but his starts were limited by the impact Adebayor made playing as a lone striker. “Jermain always has this killer instinct. He scored in midweek for his country, scored for us during pre-season and again here,” the manager said. “He accepts that we are looking for one more striker because the team is in need of that, but when we have them all together the quality of the player is tremendous.”

Sport

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Villa-Boas

AVB scoops Israeli

ottenham Hotspurs Manager, Andre Villas-Boas, is ready to bolster his squad with a surprise move for Nir Biton after inviting the Israel midfielder to White Hart Lane for talks. Biton was expected to join Manchester City, after impressing their coaching staff during a trial at The Etihad Stadium, and has also attracted interest from Everton and Aston Villa. But Tottenham appears to have seized the initiative, after Biton and FC Ashdod owner Jacky Ben-Zaken flew to London to discuss a deal and make sure there were no problems over a work permit. Although City has considered a loan move for Biton, cash-strapped Ashdod wants to negotiate a permanent deal for a player who has been likened to former Arsenal favourite Patrick Vieira for his midfield athleticism. Villas-Boas is more concerned about landing a suitable replacement for Real Madrid-bound Luka Modric but sees 20-year old Biton as a useful back-up who would strengthen his central midfield options.

ormer Super Eagles coach, Shaibu Amodu, is among Nigerian football legends being lined up by organisers of the 2012 Federation Cup for special award. Secretary of the Local Organising Committee for the cup final scheduled for the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos on August 26, Mrs. Oluyomi Oluwasanmi, told National Mirror in Lagos yesterday that other legends to be honoured are former internationals Christian Chukwu, Segun Odegbami, Peter Rufai, Victor Oduah, Ismaila Mabo and Muyiwa Oshode. “We will also honour Sani Mohammed, Moses Kpakor, Alabi Aisien and veteran sports analyst, Fabio Lanipekun,” she said. “Our gesture is appreciation of the landmark achievements of the awardees and there will be posthumous awards for others who had died as well,” she added. She further said that the late duo of Teslim ‘Thunder’ Balogun who had the stadium named after him, and former Nigeria international Haruna Ilerika would be given posthumous awards for their contribution to the competition. Balogun won the Federation Cup title seven titles and coached the national team to the 1968 Olympic Games while Ilerika, a former vice-chairman of the Lagos State Football Association, featured for the famous Stationery Stores of Lagos in the competition.

Shaibu Amodu

Hockey: Fund scarcity threatens Nigeria AFOLABI GAMBARI

he hope of Nigeria Hockey Federation (NHF) to attend next month’s Round 1 qualifier for the International Hockey Federation (FIH) World League, leading to qualification to the 2016 Olympic Games and FIH World Cup, faces serious threat after it was revealed that the National Sport Commission (NSC) is short of funds needed to prosecute participation in the event. The qualifier is scheduled for Accra, Ghana from September 7 to 9. “We informed the NSC of our plan months before but all we hear now is that there is no money,” a source in the Nigeria Hockey Federation (NHF) said yesterday. Meanwhile, President of the NHF, Patrick Ukah, has expressed worry over the development. “We have done a lot to get our teams ready for this event and we can only hope it would not be a dashed dream after all,” Ukah said. The World League will be used to decide which teams will qualify alongside the Continental Champions and Hosts for future Olympic Games and FIH World Cups. The competition is open to all members of FIH and all teams playing in League will also gain world ranking points. African powerhouse Egypt, Ghana, Nigeria and Zimbabwe will compete in the men’s competition while Ghana, Nigeria and Zimbabwe will contest in the women’s competition.

Two teams from the men’s tournament will progress to the Round 2 stage of the FIH World League which will be held in New Delhi, Rio de Janeiro, Paris or Moscow in 2013 while one team from the women’s tournament will progress to the Round 2 tournament of the FIH World League, which has been scheduled for Johannesburg subject to confirmation in February 2013.

B’ball: YSFON seeks fresh ground IFEANYI EDUZOR

ollowing the unimpressive outing of D’ Tigers at the London 2012 Olympics, the Kaduna State branch of the Youth Sports Federation of Nigeria (YSFON) has organised a championship for U-19 Boys and Girls respectively aimed at popularizing basketball at the grassroots. According to the National Organising Secretary of YSFON, Mallam Abdurazaq Usman, the championship going on at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna has seen seven male and four female teams compete in a round robin game. Teams competing in Group A of the boy’s category are Wheelers, Real Wons and Top Teenz, while Group B comprises Cooperative, Wizard, UNTL and Fantastic. Queen Stars, Unique Ones, Top Teenz and Government Girls Secondary School, Kaduna are jostling for honours in the girls category.

Sport

Tuesday,August 21, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

On the track with

YEMI OLUS danyella172003@yahoo.com

Diamond League: Okagbare, Odumosu set for Lausanne

Ajoke Odumosu (l) and Blessing Okagbare competed for nothing in London and hope to make amends in Lausanne this week.

lympics 2012 flop, Blessing Okagbare, is set to compete in the long jump event at the 11th stop of the Samsung Diamond League holding in Lausanne, Switzerland on August 23. Okagbare was Nigeria’s best prospect for a medal at the London Olympics but her participation in the women’s 100m, long jump and 4x100m relay failed to earn her a medal. The Nigerian sprinster will be up against Olympic champion Brittany Reese who won gold with 7.12m as well as the silver and bronze medallists, Yelena Sokolova (7.07m) and Janay DeLoach (6.89m) at the Pontaise Olympic Stadium on Thursday evening. Fellow Nigerian, Ajoke Odumosu, will also compete in the women’s 400m where she will contend against London Olympics gold medallist Natalya Antyukh who claimed the title with a personal best of 52.70 seconds. About 13 Olympic champions and a total of 53 Olympic medallists will take part in the meeting where Olympic triple sprint champion, Usain Bolt, his compatriot Yohan Blake and the American duo of Justin Gatlin and Tyson Gay will also be star attractions. Bolt will compete in the 200m, where

he will be facing Warren Weir, Wallace Spearmon, Churandy Martina and Jason Young. Olympic 400m champion Kirani James will face the London medallists Luguelín Santos and Lalonde Gordon while the 110m Hurdles will also feature the London podium Aries Merritt, Jason Richardson and Hansle Parchment. In the women’s events, the 100m will also highlight the evening, with the participation of the London top 3, Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce, Carmelita Jeter and Veronica Campbell-Brown. In the absence of Sally Pearson, who has ended her season due to injury, the London runner-up Dawn Harper and bronze medalist Kellie Wells will fight for the victory.

We took unfit athletes to London–Toblow

oremost athletics coach, Tobias Igwe, contends that the athletes who represented Nigeria the London 2012 Olympics were unfit for the challenge ahead of them after starting preparation late. Nigeria recorded one of its worst performances at the games as the athletes returned without a medal and the man who discovered the likes of Mary Onyai, Henry Amike and the Ezinwa twins has identified late funding as Nigeria’s stumbling block. “Serious reparations for the Olympics should have started by October,” Igwe, popularly referred to as ‘Toblow’, said yesterday. “But in a situation where they started camping in March for a competition slated for August, what do you expect? All the athletes we took to London were talented but they were all half-prepared and had not attained the level required for a competition of that standard.” Igwe, who was part of the coaches that trained athletes

for the 1992, 1996 and 2004 Olympic Games where his athletes won medals, argued against buck-passing by the administrators, saying they should focus on the future challenges. “The Olympics has come and gone and we as Nigerians should learn our lessons from the event. “I am not going to blame any federation or person but rather the Presidency because of the late release of funds. In the developed world, if the minister in charge of sports goes to solicit for funds and such a request is not granted, that person would resign because he knows he cannot be efficient in carrying out his tasks. “However in Nigeria, such official never resigns and doesn’t come out to make his points known to the public. “We need someone who is bold to be in charge of the National Sports Commission so that when such things happen, he can cry out and tell Nigerians what is actually going on.”

Igwe, who stressed on the need to return to the schools system where talents are scouted at the grassroots, said the inability of the elite athletes to perform optimally owed to the fact that they were mature before they were discovered.

This is a factt!

Metu

At the 2007 All-Africa Games, s, Obinna Metu won a bronze medal in the 200 metres and a gold medal in the 4x100 metres relay and at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, he competed at the 100 metres sprint and placed second in his heat after Francis Obikwelu in a time of 10.34 seconds. Together with Onyeabor Ngwogu, Chinedu Oriala and Uchenna Emedolu, Metu also competed at the 4x100 metres relay. In their qualification heat, however, they did not finish due to a mistake in the baton exchange and they were eliminated. He did not get within medal range at the London 2012 Olympics.

Hazel weighs new sport

eigning Commonwealth Games heptathlon champion Louise Hazel has confirmed she is contemplating turning her back on athletics to try a different sport. The 26-year-old won gold for England in Delhi two years ago but finished 27th at the recent London Olympics. “My life’s a little bit in limbo and I’m not quite sure what direction I’m going to take next,” she said yesterday. “I can’t say too much, but there is a possibility of a change of sport.” Hazel threw a personal best 47.38 metres in the javelin but her London 2012 total of 5,856 points left her

almost 1,000 adrift of gold medallist Jessica Ennis, and over 400 behind of teenager Katarina Johnson-Thompson, the third member of the Great Britain trio, in 15th place. She was recently quoted as saying she had entered a forthcoming golf tournament-golf will be an Olympic sport in 2016-and was also planning to find out more about beach volleyball. However, Hazel insisted that although she needed to make a decision in the near future because of the fouryear Olympic cycle, she would not be rushing it. “But it’s very much at an early stage of I’m just thinking about it. I’m going to take a nice long holiday before I make any decisions,” she added.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Real Estate & Environment

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Can you briefly outline the major achievements of your ministry in the last one year and what value have you added? Let me start with the major projects we have undertaken, this ministry happens to be the centre for physical development in Kano State and in the last 12 months, we have done so much. You are aware we are constructing three new cities, Kwankwassiya, Amana and Bandarawo, they are all new concepts, encompassing all new systems of development as far as Kano State is concerned. The second aspect is trying to decongest the city and we are doing this by creating new stations, which would be called terminals, which will accommodate lorries, trailers, and other big vehicles coming into Kano for haulage purposes. What we are doing is to build these big terminals, where there would be lots of warehouses and enough parks that will accommodate these vehicles. These terminals would be built a few kilometres outside the Kano metropolitan city and the idea is that by so doing, it would reduce drastically the level of congestion. So, this second project is a major innovation that was brought about by the government of Dr. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso. The third important project is the expansion of major entry points into Kano. You are also aware we have awarded contracts for not only the dualisation but also for the expansion of the dual carriage way by at least three lanes and this is in respect of Zaria Road, Gwarzo-Hadeja road and Sheikh Mahmoud Jafar Road. So, those three projects constitute the physical development of Kano State, and then we are bringing for the first time Kano Geographic Information System that has been built in this ministry and is expected to raise the documentation, like the Certificates of Occupancy from the current level of about 150 artifacts to over a million by the time we leave government by the grace of God. These are programmes that we have already committed and in the next couple of weeks, we are also going to commence the building of five kilometres dual carriageways and street lights in all the 44 local government areas in Kano. Each Local Government headquarters will be serviced by dual carriageways and street lights and other urban facilities. We are also creating new layouts in all the 44 Local Government headquarters so that there would be rapid development in the rural communities. If you ask me of my footprint, technically, perhaps I will tell you not much of a footprint because that belongs to Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso. He is the one who started out these laudable projects. However, we have succeeded in some ways but I think my major achievement if I should mention one is halting the operations of illegal land speculators that abound in Kano who are mutilating the original master plan of Kano. So we have succeeded in stopping illegal land developers in the state and also halted the creation of illegal layouts that deface the beauty of Kano city. We have also done some works by trying to encourage people to build on plots allocated to them. I have been having a running battle with speculators and believe me, we are winning and to me these projects are people-oriented and designed to make Kano a beautiful place. So, with all these, I think we have made remarkable progress, more than any government would have done in this country. So far, what is the level of progress in these new cities?

Why we’re building three new cities –Kano commissioner Alhaji Mohammad Nadu Yahaya is the Commissioner for Lands and Physical Planning in Kano State. He spoke with AUGUSTINE MADU-WEST on the achievements of his ministry in the last one year, including reasons behind government’s decision to construct three new cities in the state, challenges during the period, among others. BUILDING IN THE AREA WILL COMMENCE AND

I AM HOPING

THAT BY THE TIME

LEAVE OFFICE BY THE GRACE OF

GOD, THE

KWANKWASSIYA CITY WILL BE ONE OF THE FASTEST DEVELOPING CITIES IN

Yahaya

I think the best is to arrange for you to go and see it for yourself but giving the fact that we started these cities sometime in January this year, if you go to Kwankwassiya city, you will observe that all the artworks have been completed, as well as the estate roads, all the necessary infrastructure are ready, the dual carriageway are also ready, bridge construction is also in progress and we have up to 18 months to complete the roads and I am hopeful we will complete the roads before the 18 months deadline. You are also aware that in the next two or three weeks, building in the area will commence and I am hoping that by the time I leave office by the grace of God, the Kwankwassiya city will be one of the fastest developing cities in Nigeria. What is the financial implication of the project? As for the financial implication, if you are in Kano, you will observe that the tradition is that government will acquire the land and develop it and allocate to people in the political class. In fact, it serves as a gesture for political patronage. What we are doing is not using government money to build these layouts, we borrowed money to pay the contractor and thereafter, we auction the plots but not so much to make profits. We try to recover the cost of development and it is the proceeds that we plough into other areas and I think this is one of the profoundly happy programmes I have ever done. I have seen people, who are developers getting involved in the execution of this project. In the past, it was done on the basis of political patronage and

NIGERIA

in the end it is the speculators that benefit and the state the victim. We don’t use government money at all but rather go into some kind of Public Private Partnership with the companies that are developing the estate. We pay them as we collect the development charges for the plots. How much was budgeted for the project? In the case of infrastructure development for Kwankwassiya city, which is between 500 and 600 plots, with a five-star hotel, schools, hospitals, shopping malls and green areas, we budgeted N2.7 billion, Amana city N2.3bn and Bandarawa city is about N2.12bn, so a total of N8bn and this money like I said is sourced from other financial system. What level of completion has been achieved? More than 50 per cent level of job has been achieved, especially the infrastructure in the last six months. We started in January and we have 15 months period and already within six months, we have gone more than half, so we are just lucky. This is because the governor has shown committed interest and because we follow it up with close monitoring. What is the truth about this allegation that the revoked plots allocated by the immediate past government was done out of malice, how was it resolved? Well, it depends on what you mean by that because once a land is revoked, it remains revoked, there is no question of any resolution. What happened actually was that here was this land which was lying with the state government for more than five years and they did not do anything with it, they keep handing them over from one contractor to the other. There was this contractor who bolted with the money paid to him; it was towards the end of the administration that they started to do something funny. If you look at that Kofa Na’isa parcel of land, it is the only open land left in Kano municipal in Gwale, there is no other

open land, so what His Excellency decided was that we should leave the parcel of land the way it is, it is only one hectare. What he decided to do with the land is to subdivide it into sporting facilities, so that the teeming youths of Kano State have a place to go for exercise, relaxation and other sporting events. There would be a football pitch, lawn tennis, table tennis but I think perhaps that is the best decision this government has made since coming to power. There is of course another place, the West bye-pass, the controversy over that land has to do with payment of compensation to farmers who own the land. An agreement was struck between the former government and the farmers that the government would develop the area and 50 per cent of all the plots in that area will be given back to the farmers as compensation in lieu of money and the government did not take action on that and allowed the controversy to linger. Two weeks to the expiration of the administration, they decided to allocate the farmlands to all manner of people in violation of the 50 per cent land compensation agreed upon with the farmers, which in case they gave out what was not available, so that was the problem, so we came on board we knew about the agitation and for peace sake the allocations were revoked. It was not even allocation but it was called intent to allocate, if you go to the place now, what the government is trying to do are two things, soon we will begin to construct roads to the plots and allocate 6,000 to the farmers, the remaining we would know what to do with it. You talked of the dualisation of the Zaria road/ Hadeji road as well as the BUK/ Gwarzo road, are these roads not federal roads? I think it would benefit the people of Kano State, that is the most important thing. If we leave the roads as deplorable as they are waiting for the Federal Government, I think it is the Kano people that will suffer. Since the Federal Government has not come to the rescue, the state government will not fold its arms, something has to be done. Our priority now is that we want decongest Kano and this is part of the process, we want Kano people to have pleasure in driving by enjoying good roads. What is the cost of all these? The project from Zaria road from Silver Jubilee to around Dantata and Sawoe is about N5.6bn, Gwarzo road is N3.6bn, while the Hadejia road is N2.8bn, another one is the Sheikh road, which would be about N2.3bn, and of course, the money is available because we don’t start projects without budgeting for them and ensuring the availability of funds. We get this money by prudent management of resources. If you notice, there have been a lot of efforts in the area of internally generated revenue. In the past, nobody cared. Today, our major focus is to collect all the collectable taxes, including ground rents, if you have not paid, say 20 years, you will be asked to pay all now; we expect a lot of money from IGR. We will soon go for tenement rate.

Real Estate & Environment

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Choosing between glass and wooden dining table T

he dining space is undoubtedly the most communicative area of your home. Especially when it is supper time, the family boding gets all the stronger. The family members get to share their happiness and sadness. Thus, donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t you feel that is necessary that the furniture in the dining room should be apt and appropriate? The answer is a huge yes! But then, you have two types of dining table â&#x20AC;&#x201C; glass dining table and wooden dining table. So what to choose? This is exactly the topic of discussion of my blog today, says expert at www.avetexfurniture.com, saying he has just presented a compare and contrast of the two so that you can make your choice accordingly. So listen to him. Before starting off, I want to share fantastic news with you. A huge array of online furniture stores have come up that render convenience at its best. Online shopping of both glass dining table and as well as wooden dining table is definitely a wise move. And yes you can also look up online for an entire superb range of dining room furniture, including tables First and foremost, lets us talk about glass dining table. If you opt for it, then your dining room will come out fresh as ever. A modern surrounding with classy and sophisticated look will be the end product. The availability of various shapes further contributes in rendering an elite atmosphere. Nowadays, the oval-shaped ones are becoming extremely popular. However, as they say everything comes with some disadvantages, glass dining table too has some drawbacks. Maintenance of such dining table is quite a difficult task. Dust and dirt tend to get attracted towards it. You have to have a clean mop with you all the time! Moreover, the removal of the fingerprints gets difficult at times. Do you have small children at home? Then, it is advisable that you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t buy glass dining table. The

kids will obviously make the table messy which also increases your work load. The wooden dining table has remained since time immemorial. It is like your old trust worthy friend to whom you can always turn to. The most crucial factor here is the durability of the wooden dining tables. Once you invest a good sum of money in a high-quality wooden table, you can be sure that it be a part of your home for a long period of time. I have met a number of people who complain that the designs are limited as far as wooden dining table is concerned. I want to impart

that few good furniture companies have actually taken up the initiative and have come up superb designs in wooden dining tables. If you want warmth, simplicity and space then opt for wooden dining table. For those who desire innovation, then it a total thumbs up for glass dining table. It would really be lovely to eat from a glass dining table that symbolizes sophistication. Thinking of purchasing dining tables? Go online now. You will get all the information that you want and yes you can also opt for online purchase of the same.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Real Estate & Environment

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Lagos to partner NCF to boost eco-tourism potential in Lekki STORIES: DAYO AYEYEMI

he Lagos State Ministry of Tourism and Inter-Governmental Affairs is collaborating with the Nigerian Conservation Foundation to enrich flora and fauna of the Lekki Conservation Centre while improving on the side attractions and boosting potential tourism of the only nature reserve in Lagos. To hasten the effort aiming at boosting the eco-tourism of Lagos, the Governor of the state, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola, visited the Lekki Conservation Centre last Saturday to assess the centre having given approval for the partnership drive. The acting Executive Director of the Nigerian Conservation Foundation, Mr. Alade Adeleke in his presentation to the governor highlighted some areas where the government and the foundation will work together to boost the tourism potential at the Lekki Conservation Centre such as introduction of some native animals like Sitatunga to the nature reserve, construction of canopy walkways that will enable tourists view the plants and animals of the reserve situated in a mangrove terrain. Other areas that would be worked on are construction of a new family picnic spots and beautification of the front and entrance of the 78 hectares conservation centre to meet up with interna-

L-R Gov Babatunde Fashola and acting Executive Director of the Nigerian Conservation Foundation, Mr. Alade Adeleke last Saturday.

tional standard. The Chairman, Fundraising and Awareness of NCF, Mr. Desmond Majekodunmi, said that activities at the Lekki Conservation Centre are in line with the transformation efforts of Lagos State Government to see that people imbibe the culture of environmental conservation and preservation for

the purpose of today and the future. He said that NCF would not relent in its effort to continue partnering with the state government to develop unique nature conservation strategies that cater for the needs of people while maintaining ecosystem integrity. He said, “We commend your unrelenting efforts to make Lagos clean

and healthier despite the monumental environmental and sanitation challenges facing the city. We also appreciate your kind gesture to support Lekki Conservation Centre on the need to make the centre a world class eco-tourism attraction in Nigeria, while maintaining its ecological integrity”.

60% vacancy rate exists in Lagos’ prime locations, says expert Club donates staff quarters to Osun community

nalysis of real estate sector by the Managing Director of Financial Derivatives Company Limited, Dr. Bismark Rewane, in July showed that an average vacancy rate of between 50 and 60 per cent exist in prime locations such as Lekki, Ikoyi and Victoria Island, Lagos. According to the analysis, an average vacancy rate of 30 to 40 per cent exists with the office space segment, which

comprised the majority. He said, “Vacancy rate in shopping malls is low at 10 per cent,” adding that Free Trade Zone will have a positive impact on property values along Lekki and Ajah corridor, while airport and seaport would attract huge volume of business. Despite the harsh business environment in the country, Rewane noted that real estate market remains a viable

One of the properties in highbrow neighbourhoods of Lagos

form of investment. In his presentation on Monthly Economic News and Views at Lagos Business School Executive Breakfast Meeting, he gave analysis of various sectors of the economy and outlook in August. He remarked that real estate has potential to hedge against inflation and as such remained a viable form of investment to would-be investors. As a pointer to inves-

acesetters’ Club of Otan Ayegbaju, Boluwaduro Local Government area of Osun State has donated a modern medical staff quarters for the use of health officials working at the town’s Comprehensive Health Centre. Worried by the absence of key medical personnel to attend to the indigenes, especially at night and weekends, the club decided to build a befitting staff quarters to provide accommodation for doctors and nurses, who before now were commuting daily to Otan Ayegbaju from places like Osogbo, the state capital, and Ikirun. The property comprises five bedrooms with en-suite conveniences, a living room and three kitchens all furnished for the use of doctors and nurses, who had hitherto attributed their inability to stay overnight in the community to the absence of comfortable accommodation. The President of the club, Mr. Bisi Popoola, explained that the project was started by the body, which is made up of professionals in various fields, about six years ago and completed last year. He appealed to the state government to upgrade the health centre to a general hospital in order to serve the people of Otan Ayegbaju and neighbouring towns and villages better. The Chairman of the Project Handing over Committee, Mr. Segun Aina, had similarly appealed to

the Osun State Health Management Board and other relevant government agencies to install and put into use the medical equipment donated by sons and daughters of the community resident in Canada, which had been locked up in the health centre for many years. Meanwhile, Osun State Governor, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola, has commended the club for the gesture. Aregbesola, who urged other associations to emulate the Pacesetters Club’s commitment to raising the standard of living of the town’s residents, said its efforts were well appreciated by the state government. He used the occasion to appeal to the residents to live a clean and healthy lifestyle by planting flowers and nurturing the green vegetation that defined the entire landscape, as well as embracing habits that would promote good health and reduce illness. The governor also emphasised the need for the people to eat balanced diets and engage in physical exercise, noting that hospital attendance in the state had reduced by about 50 per cent since his administration introduced the O’Clean sanitation exercise. The traditional ruler, Owa of Otan Ayegbaju, Oba Lukman Fadipe, echoed his subjects’ sentiment and urged the government to upgrade the health centre to a general hospital and complete all ongoing road and drainage projects in the community in order to enhance the quality of life.

Real Estate & Environment

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Enugu govt decries shoddy road work by contractors

Ugbene: Nike Lake road in Enugu metropolis that was awarded in 2008 but has not received any attention up till date

DENNIS AGBO ENUGU

oor road construction and outright abandonment of contracts by some local contractors has become a thing of worry to the Enugu State Government, precisely the legislative arm which has decided to invoke Section 129 A&C of the 1999 Constitution that empowers the legislature for oversight functions of works being executed by the executive arm. To that effect, the Enugu State House of Assembly Committee on Works, Lands and Housing led by Chief Abel Chukwu, recently embarked on a tour of the road projects which took the committee members to various parts of the state where work had been awarded since 2007.

THE COMPANY IS TOO SLOW BECAUSE THEY DON’T HAVE THE CAPACITY. SOME OF THE ROADS THEY HAVE DONE HAVE ALSO FAILED It was after the tour that the committee summoned the contractors to a public hearing. Among the contractors summoned were NCFC Construction Company, Arab Contractors, J.Quarison Construction Company, Komac Steel and Construction Company, Charnnel Nigeria Limited and Zaccus Nigeria limited. Also summoned included Sahanna Nigeria Limited, Setraco

Nigeria Limited, Jinaco Nigeria Limited, Hijia Nigeria Limited, Master Holdings Nigeria Limited, Greyline Nigeria Limited and Ferotex Construction Company. From the public hearing came startling revelations from the contractors themselves. For instance, NCFC onstruction company that was in 2007 awarded contracts to execute the Ugwuaji road in Maryland and Harmony Estate road in the Abakpa- Nike

area, only completed the Ugwuaji road last year which certain portions of the road had already failed, while it abandoned the harmony estate road after receiving the necessary payments. The house committee was also able to know that J. Quarison Construction secured 37 roads contracts measuring 17.93 kilometres in 2007 totalling over N1bn at Achara but as at February this year, nothing had been done on five of the roads- a development that prompted the government to terminate the contracts and re-awarded them to J&J Techno Construction Company. The committee equally found out that roads done by J.Quarison which had been handed over to the government lacked drainage

system while some portions had already collapsed, stressing that Awkunanaw, Etudo, Obioma and Ohofia were withdrawn from the company because it had delayed the jobs. On Master Holdings and Bulletin Construction Companies that refused to attend the public hearing, the committee expressed disappointment, noting that several jobs they executed at Ogui, Asata, Trans Ekulu and coal camp areas are now a source of worry to residents. These roads are said to have been washed off or created dangerous potholes, making movement uneasy. For Ferotex Nigeria limited which is handling the Nsukka urban and rural roads, the committee summed up that it lacked the capacity, stressing that the company which was awarded job for the construction of a total of thirteen roads in Nsukka urban in 2008 was yet to complete it. “The company is too slow because they don’t have the capacity. Some of the roads they have done have also failed and because this is the only contractor working in Nsukka, there is no competition and we should advise that government engage more contractors to enable the work move,” they said. Perhaps, the only company that received accolade for the jobs awarded to it was Greyline Nigeria. The House committee expressed delight with the level of delivery on awarded jobs especially on the Ugwuogu-Nike-Ikem, Udi-Oji River and Nara road contracts, which are currently on going. It agreed that with what it saw, the company was prepared and possessed the capacity to ensure it maintained standard in all works given. The State Commissioner for Works, Mr. Godwin Madueke, said while many of them did the work out of specification, certain natural occurrences, inaccurate soil sample testing as well as breakage of completed roads by water corporation workers to lay water pipes caused the failures.

Why we commenced electronic vetting of building plans, says FCTA OMEIZA AJAYI

he Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) said it has begun the electronic vetting of all building plans in a bid to fast-track all the processes of building plan approval in Abuja. The administration announced that its Department of Development Control is saddled with the e-vetting of all

drawings submitted. FCT Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed who stated this after the monthly FCT Operations Briefing Session in Abuja revealed that with the introduction of this e-vetting, all building plan approval processes are now being captured in the Development Control Information System (DevCis) which is the first of its kind in Nigeria. “Physical files are gradually being withdrawn to keep faith

with new ways of improving delivery to the residents of the Federal Capital Territory in line with what is obtainable in other advanced cities across the globe”, he said. The minister appealed to the residents to cooperate with the government in order to take Abuja to the next level; stressing that the FCT Administration has the mandate of improving the services being rendered to the residents of the Federal Capital Territory.

“The FCT Administration in collaboration with the residents of the Federal Capital Territory has a collective responsibility to continually improve on all service delivery in consonance with the Transformation Agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan,” he added. The minister added that the FCT Administration has been able to approve 138 building plans and a total number of 95 setting out/stage applications

Senator Bala Mohammed

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Aviation

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Customs duty waiver: Government promises to assist airlines

bout two weeks ago, the Managing Director of Bristow Helicopters, Capt. Akin Oni disclosed that on the average, Nigerian airline operators spend at least $4m as customs duties paid to the Federal Government for acquisition of an airplane. He explained that if an operator imports an X92 aircraft, which is about $30m into the country for instance, the airline pays a duty of 14 per cent of the total acquisition, which he puts at $4m. He decried that the amount of money is enough to build two state-of-the-art aircraft maintenance hangar anywhere in the country. He declared that Nigeria is one of the few countries in the world which still collects customs duties on aircraft and its spare parts, maintaining that the continual collection of this would prevent the airlines from competing favourably with their counterparts in the globe. He observed that former President Olusegun Obasanjo during his administration once waived import duties for the airlines, but decried that his successor in office reintroduced the duties stressing that taxes and duties on airlines are one of the major militating factors against the growth of airlines in the sector. He said, “The people we are competing with like the British Airways, Delta and others don’t do that. I’m not going to name any airlines that are currently going to the long hauls, they are not competing, they have been given the boxing gloves, but at the same time, their hands are tied.” These and more have been the lamentations of airline operators in the country’s aviation sector over the years, but despite the fact that the operators have been craving for waivers on customs duties paid on aircraft parts and acquisition, the operators say the government seems to be indifferent to their plights. But the Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Oduah has assured the airline operators that government will take a second look at the request of the airlines as regards waivers on spare parts and aircraft acquisition. Oduah in an interview with National Mirror said that the ministry was already discussing with the relevant government agencies on the issue, but noted that the request would have to go through some processes before approval. Oduah who spoke through her Special Assistant, Media, Mr. Toyin Okpaise noted that the process for the review of customs duties for the airlines has kickstarted and assured that the issue would be resolved soon. Oduah could however, not put a peg on when the issue would be attended to by the government, but pointed out that the growth of the indigenous airlines has been her major priority right from the outset. He said, “The minister is actually working on it. Whatever will boost the operations of the indigenous airlines is her interest, but as you know, such request has to go through some processes. This thing is not just about aviation, the ministry of finance and others will have to be involved. It is a government process, but it has kick started and

The call for customs duties on imported spare parts and acquired aircraft by indigenous airlines in the country may eventually yield fruitful results as the Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Oduah promised to look at the issue. OLUSEGUN KOIKI writes.

Capt. Oni

hopefully, things will change for the better. “The position of the minister from the outset is to make sure interest rate for airlines is at zero per cent. Soon, everything would be in place, but we have to note that waivers on import duties are not under the purview of ministry of aviation.” She explained that since assumption of office in July 2011, the ministry has been meeting with different local airline operators on how to improve their services to the public, reiterating that her passion is to grow local airlines “because if we don’t grow local airlines, then, we don’t have aviation in the country. We want to make sure that local airlines compete well and meet international standards in all their operations.” Also, speaking on the issue, Chief Executive Officer of Mish Aviation School, Capt. Ibrahim Mshelia, called for review charges on the airlines in the country. He explained that some of the problems bedeviling the country’s aviation were created by the government, stressing that for them to compete favourably well, the government could waive the landing fee for domestic operators. He disclosed that in Ghana, no domestic operator pays for landing fee and wondered why indigenous airlines in the country would be made to pay for such. On navigational charges, he said that domestic operators could be exempted from the charges if they are to remain in business, noting that the five per cent ticket sales collected on

Oduah

LOOK AT AVIATION FUEL, IT HAS BEEN HIGH FOR A LONG PERIOD AND HAS REFUSED TO

COME DOWN AND YET, GOVERNMENT HAS INTRODUCED MORE CHARGES THEREBY PUTTING MORE BURDENS ON US.

ALL THOSE

POLICIES SHOULD BE REVIEWED behalf of the government by the agencies would be used to maintain the facilities at the airports. “The government collects five per cent ticket sales charge, some of the percentage of that can be earmarked for the maintenance of the runway. After all, how often do you maintain the runways? For domestic operators to provide cheaper transportation, the government can abrogate that for the airlines. “In the airspace too, we have to pay navigational charges. We are paying this and it is exorbitant. Why can’t government do that for free for domestic operators? Because if you cross another man’s border, you will pay and foreigners come here and they pay too. I know countries that are not charging their domestic operators for navigational charges and ironically, we were

enjoying it before now until someone came and said we must pay for the navigational charges in the country. “Look at aviation fuel, it has been high for a long period and has refused to come down and yet, government has introduced more charges thereby putting more burdens on us. All those policies should be reviewed.” Also, the Managing Director, Aero, Capt. Akin George in an interview with National Mirror called for total waivers on imported aircraft part. He wondered why government could grant waivers to some other aspects of transportation in the country and abandoned the airlines, which he said made the sector viable. George also challenged the government to provide an enabling environment to the airlines in the country, which would enable them to sustain their operations. He said, “If government could give waivers to other forms of transportation in the country, I don’t know why the same government can not do the same to airlines in the industry most especially on spare parts imported into the country by the airlines. “For us to pay customs duties to the government amount to double taxation because we have already paid duties on acquisition of the aircraft. What government needs to put in place is a conducive aviation environment, which will make the airlines sustain their operations. Aviation is a driving force and people can’t move around without it.” The Assistant General Secretary of the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), Alhaji Muhammed Tukur, insisted that the only way the airlines could compete favourably is for government to eradicate some of the charges it currently collect from the airlines. Tukur said that it is only in Nigeria that the airlines pay for customs duties on imported aircraft parts, describing it as double taxation. He noted that operators had already paid some percentage for the acquisition of the aircraft to customs. “Anywhere in the world, airlines don’t pay for spare parts on their aircraft parts. Spare parts anywhere in the world are duty free, but we have double taxation in Nigeria. Already, some percentage of the total cost of the aircraft has been paid to customs on cash and carry basis and we still pay duty for spare parts. Government has to give waivers to airline operators for them to operate profitably well.” The former airport manager and the General Secretary of Aviation Round Table, Mr. Sam Akerele, also called for waivers for the airlines on imported spares. He restated that apart from Nigeria, no country anywhere in the world are airlines made to pay for imported spare parts and other aviation equipment. He described as sordid a situation whereby the Nigerian Customs Services pursue targets, saying that that was not the primary aim of setting up the services.

Aviation

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

‘Aviation road show abroad’ll reinvent Nigeria’ STORIES: OLUSEGUN KOIKI

ormer Commissioner for Information, Plateau State, Hon. Yakubu Datti has risen in support of the Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Oduah over her recent business road show to China, Canada and United States of America. The two weeks road show had attracted lots of criticisms from stakeholders and professionals in the sector who described the business show abroad as a jamboree and a share waste of public funds, but Datti in an interview with National Mirror said that rather than criticise the minister for her efforts in uplifting infrastructure in the sector, Oduah should be commended by players in the sector. Datti insisted that the business show abroad to attract foreign investments into the sector would reinvent Nigeria as the hub of Africa’s aviation, adding that it would also situate the country as the commercial entry point of international financing and foreign investments. He explained that what Nigeria needed to continue to play its leading role in Africa and beyond was the involvement of foreign investors, which he said the minister was trying to achieve through her road show. He argued that Oduah met dilapidated infrastructure in all the 22 airports in the country on her

Oduah

appointment as aviation minister barely a year ago, but with determination, she has been able to uplift half of the abandoned structures she inherited. He said, “Circumstances she inherited, on her assumption to office, could not have been less favourable. It is common knowledge that most of the Nigerian airports and terminals were built in the ’70s and for the past 30 years, no meaningful step was taken to shore up the infrastructure to be at par with international basics. “Our national carrier, the once boisterous Nigerian airways was systematically reduced to cadavers, and the remains cremated. The airports were glorified motor parks, check-in services were slow and inefficient, and the arrival and departure lounges were an

eyesore. Leaking roof, suffocating counters and unkempt and broken conveniences added to passengers’ nightmare. “The facilities were decayed and in a state of utter dysfunction; a disgrace and embarrassment to our national pride and standing in the comity of nations. Passengers avoided our local airlines like a plague. Foreign airlines tip-toed our climes to reap from our profitable routes; they flew in their food, water and even insecticides, as if to purify our air. They charged arbitrary fares and made it practically impossible for indigenous carriers to compete on lucrative routes. They patronised our routes with dilapidated, spentup aircraft. Even their crews were like a scene from the James Bond movies of the sixties.” He noted further that through the road show, China’s stateowned construction giant, China State Construction Engineering Corporation Ltd (CSCEC) has given its commitment to invest in the development of Nigeria’s aviation sector. Datti observed that African countries like Egypt, Ethiopia and South Africa have all benefited from aviation investments from well established aviation financiers, engineering companies like Bombardier, Boeing and Cessna, emphasising that much more could be achieved with a greater rejuvenation from foreign investments in the sector.

SAHCOL acquires modern X-ray machine to boost performance

he Skyway Aviation Handling Company Limited (SAHCOL), has acquired a state- of –art- equipment aimed at enhancing efficiency and transparency in its service delivery. The machine-Rapiscan 632DV X-ray System with dual view is an advanced small and large parcel screening system designed for pallet and break bulk cargo screening. A statement signed by the Head, Communications, SAHCHOL, Mr. Basil Agboarumi stated that the equipment comes with a 1,500 mm (59.1 inches) wide by 1,650 (65.0 Inches) high tunnel opening and uses innovation dual–view technology to generate a horizontal and vertical view of the object under inspection with a standardised platform that makes it easy to install and maintain. Agboarumi also noted that the machine comes with features such as dual energy detection, a streamlined, ergonomic design and Rapiscan’s feature – rich 0S600 system software. Rapiscan 632DV X-ray Sys-

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

AIRSIDE

shegzzy4live2000@yahoo.co.uk 08186007273

Still on FAAN and licensed agent Airside was taken

t is a common knowledge that the imbroglio between the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) in late June lingered for two weeks due to the forceful eviction of the latter by the former. But like Oliver Twist, FAAN has retracted its position on the Customs agents. Last week, one of the management staff of FAAN in an interview with National Mirror insisted that the agents were never evicted from the Hajj and Cargo terminal, saying, “The issue of the agents coming back or not does not arise. They’ve not been sent packing. The only thing we did was just to advise them that we were going to work on the Hajj and Cargo terminal and they would have to vacate where they presently operate now.”

aback by this statement from the agency. If truly the agents were not sent packing, why was the premises locked up for two weeks by FAAN? Why did FAAN deploy stern looking security personnel to the area during the closure? Why did the agents refuse to clear goods and cargos at the airport for the period? Why did the executives of ANLCA called for President Goodluck Jonathan’s intervention in the whole crisis? FAAN should just admit that the agents are more connected and even has the ears of Mr. President. It is easier for government to dislodge harmless journalists from the Presidential Lounge in Lagos, but much more difficult to eject illegal operators within the airport environments. Shame of a nation.

Ethiopian Airlines up the stakes

thiopian Airlines last Tuesday became the first airline in the African continent to take delivery of the glamorous Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The acquisition of the wide bird by the airline made the carrier also the first airline in Europe, Americas and Middle East to operate this modern aircraft. However, what baffles Airside was the statement credited to the Chief Executive of the airline, Mr. Tewolde Gebremariam that Ethiopian Air will put the 787 on its African routes first -- to Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe before it flies to other in-

ternational destinations, such as Washington, D.C. Airside needs to remind the management of the airline that Nigeria does not have the capacity to accommodate the aircraft, at least for now. Starting from the runway, inadequate facilities to the 1979 conveyor belts at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos that moves at snail speed, the country is not ready yet. Also, now that Ethiopian Airline has blazed the train in the continent, which other airline will be the first in Nigeria to take delivery of B787 or even the Airbus 380? The countdown has begun.

Turkish Airlines fulfills promise to NAHCO staff

Vice President Sales and Services Southeast Europe, Africa & Middle East, Mr. Carsten Schäffer; Deputy Managing Director, West Africa Lufthansa German Airlines, Mr. Henry Mujota; MBGN Tourism 2012, Ms. Ifeoma Umeokeke and retired employee of Lufthansa, Mr. Emmanuel Okoko during the celebration of the airline’s 50th anniversary in Lagos recently.

tem Machine with window software has 24 high capacity monitors, dual view lockable console kit, 4.0m umbilical cable, 115V North America /Japan 3-pin voltage kit as well as 230V British 3-pin voltage kit. The Managing Director, SAHCOL, Mr. Olu Owolabi in the statement said the introduction of the new equipment would ensure the cargo section of the ground handling equipment SAHCOL performs optimally as the organisation strive to meet international standard in its cargo, parcel

and baggage inspections. He also said that SAHCOL would stop at nothing to ensure customers satisfaction, pointing out that steps have been taken to reposition the company since its takeover by the Sifax Group in 2009. He added that Secure Brainwaves Technologies Limited would commence training workshop for Staff members after the installation of the machine. The machine, manufactured by Rapiscan Systems was delivered by X-Ray House Salfords United Kingdom.

urkish Airlines has fulfilled its promise to a staff of the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company, NAHCO, Mr. Salami Ibrahim with returned ticket and visa to Istanbul, Turkey for submitting the sum of 25,000 pounds and 5,000 euro he found inside an aircraft at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos. Ibrahim, a cabin cleaning team leader, found the wallet containing the amount during a routine cleaning of an aircraft belonging to a different airline. An online statement signed by the media consultant to the airline in Nigeria stated that Ibrahim has since embarked on the trip and returned with the Managing Director of the airline, Mr. Ali Bulut who was also on board the aircraft. Bulut in the statement stated that, “it is not good only to make

a promise, you must fulfill it. That is what we have done in this case to tell honest people that their actions will be rewarded; it is a matter of time. “It is a great pleasure for us at Turkish Airlines to be associated with such an honesty Salami displayed on that fateful day when he returned the money. It does not matter whether it happened on our aircraft or not. The most important thing is that an act of honesty was displayed,” he stated. Relaying his experience on the trip, Ibrahim described the journey as memorable, stressing that since he started working in the industry, he was yet to fly with an aircraft. He described the in-flight service and entertainment as a wonderful experience from the cabin crew of Turkish Airlines.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Insurance

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

AIICO achieve N9.79bn gross premium in six months STORIES: OMOBOLA TOLU-KUSIMO

uring the period under review, the gross benefits and claims paid by AIICO amounted to N3.02bn compared to N2.85bn paid during the corresponding period in 2011. The company also achieved a profit before tax of N1.78bn during the six months period, while its profit after tax stood at N1.49bn. Meanwhile, AIICO recorded a 24 percent growth in its gross premium income

and profit before tax for the financial year ended December 2011. The gross premium income recorded for the year 2011 was N18.44 billion indicating an increase of N3.49 billion over the 2010 figure. Similarly, the company’s net premium earned rose by 19 percent to N15.62 billion whilst retained profit grew by 30 percent. Managing Director of the company, Mr. David Sobanjo, who disclosed this during a chat with journalists in Lagos

Royal exchange wins best web transaction processing website

oyal Exchange Plc, Nigeria’s pioneer insurance group, recently won the ‘Best Web Transaction Processing’ website award in the insurance category of the 2012 Web Jurist Award conducted by Phillips Consulting, Nigeria. Presenting the award to Royal Exchange Plc’s representative at the award ceremony, Mr. Ejike Osisioma, Group Head, Information Technology, was the Honourable Minister of Communications, Mrs. Omobola Johnson, accompanied by the Managing Director of Phillips Consulting, Mr. Folusho Phillips. According to Osisioma, the winning of this award is a major endorsement of

Royal Exchange’s E-business platform and the management’s investment in the upgrade of its website and information technology tools and processes to ensure products and services are offered to customers, how and when they want it. He recalled that in 2010, Royal Exchange pioneered the introduction of its scratch card payment solution to cover motor vehicle and personal accident insurance policies. He said, “These policies can now be acquired in a faster, more reliable and convenient manner than conventional methods because of the virtual process that the Royal Exchange scratch card payment system offers.

L-R: Director, Marketing Segment and Strategy, Etisalat Nigeria, Mr. Oluwole Rawa; Head, Events and Sponsorship, Ms. ModupeThani and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Steven Evans, at the Etisalat FC Barcelona Press Conference/Novelty Match in Lagos at the weekend.

recently, maintained that the various efforts being made by the management of Aiico have began to yield fruits. Sobanjo explained that the quantum of claims paid is in line with the company’s determination to ensure that all claims are paid as promptly as possible. He stated that the company has continued to re-strategise in order to keep rendering excellent services to its cherished customers noting that this has assisted the organisation to improve on its fortunes in the market to the delight of its shareholders. Commenting on the overall performance of the company during the last operating year, Sobanjo said “AIICO Insurance plc is well positioned for continued profitable growth. We are quite pleased with our overall performance in 2011 despite the prevalent economic challenges – “clearly our unflinching efforts at improving our overall operation and service delivery have remained the reason our consumers and clients consistently rely on us”. Also, speaking on the company’s outlook, he added that the company is looking forward to another good year and enthusiastic about the growth opportunities that lie ahead. “We are confident we will exceed our 2011 performance figures this year. “Following the impressive results, a dividend of 6 kobo per share representing a 300 per cent increase over what was paid in 2010 was recommended by the board of AIICO at the last annual general meeting of the company in Abuja recently, and this was unanimously approved by the shareholders. AIICO has never been found wanting in the area of claims payment and it has paid claims in excess of N2.5bn during the financial year 2011”, he said. Sobanjo also promised that the insurance firm will continue to discharge its responsibility in the area of claims payment whenever the need arises.

Niger, Staco Insurance prioritise human capital development

taco Insurance plc has promised to continue developing its human capital by sending employees of the company to the West African Insurance Institute (WAII) in Banjul, The Gambia in order to keep enriching their knowledge. Speaking during a chat with journalists in Lagos recently, the company’s Managing Director, Sakiru Oyefeso, informed that the management of Staco has resolved to ensure that some of its employees are attending WAII on an annual basis. While referring to seven employees of Staco who graduate from the institute in July, he pointed out that Staco prioritises human capital development because the insurance firm appreciates the fact that its human capital is its most valuable assets. This human capital, he noted requires constant training and retaining to be at their best and be able to make meaningful contribution to the growth of the underwriting firm. In order to remain a profitable organisation delivering exceptional value to its

stakeholders, he said the company is constantly looking at its products, operations and meeting the needs of its customers. In the same vein, the management of Niger Insurance plc also promised to continually organise training for the employees of the insurance company so as to keep rendering excellent services to its cherished customers. The company’s Managing Director, Justus Uranta, who gave this assurance maintained that Niger Insurance is still in tune with its human capital development by way of sending key staff to both local and international training fora. Speaking on the members of the company’s staff who also graduated from WAII, the Niger Insurance boss assured that the organisation will continue to send its employees to the institute in order to keep enriching their knowledge. Uranta, while confirming that more than 50 employees have been trained at WAII in the last few years, added that the company’s management has resolved to ensure that some of its employees con-

tinue to attend the institute on an annual basis. While referring to eight employees of Niger Insurance who graduated from the institute in July, he pointed out that the company prioritises human capital development because it appreciates the fact that its human capital is its most valuable assets. This human capital, he noted requires constant training and retaining to be at their best and be able to make meaningful contribution to the growth of the underwriting firm. “In order to remain a profitable organisation delivering exceptional value to its stakeholders, he said the company is constantly looking at its products, operations and meeting the needs of its customers”. He added that the company’s training school at Anthony Village, Lagos has been given a face-lift in readiness for more enhanced in-house training for its employees.

Problems with insurance? Send a text: 08086946621

Frequently asked questions on issues of good governance and integrity of the New Pension Scheme Part IV 1. How can I be sure that my contributions are safe? All those managing or keeping custody of pension funds and assets will be licensed and continually regulated and supervised by the National Pension. 2. What is the guarantee that the pension funds under the new scheme will be well managed and not diverted for other purposes? The functions of the Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) and Custodian are clearly spelt out in the Pension Reform Act 2004. The Act provides adequate safeguards against the misuse of the pension funds and assets by any operator. 3. What happens if a PFA fails or is liquidated? The pension funds and assets in the Retirement Savings Account (RSA) are kept by the PFC and as such the liquidation of the PFA will not affect the funds and assets. Besides, every PFA is expected under the Pension Reform Act 2004 to maintain a statutory reserve fund as contingency fund to meet claims for which it may be liable as may be determined by National Pension Commission. 4. Who can I complain to if I have a problem with a PFA? The Pension Reform Act 2004 allows any employee to complain about any PFA to the National Pension Commission.13 5. What iis the role of government in the new pension scheme? The Federal Government has established the National Pension Commission and charged it with the responsibility of regulating and supervising new pension scheme. 6. Can the government take or use the money in my RSA forany purpose? The Government cannot tamper with the pension funds in your RSA, because the Government cannot have access to the account. Besides, the Government is primarily concerned with ensuring the safety of the money in your RSA through the enforcement of strict rules and regulations. 7. Will inflation and devaluation of the naira not erode the value of the pension contributions? It is the duty of the PFAs to administer the contributions and invest in such a way that will ensure safe and reasonable returns on investment. The reserve fund created by the PFAs under the Act would compensate for any erosion of the value of the contributions. 8. How is compulsory or voluntary retirement especially in the armed forces to be handled under the new scheme, if this happens before the age or 50 years? Under the Pension Reform Act 2004 a person can voluntarily retire or be compulsorily retired before the age of 50 years on the ground of medical advice, permanent disability or due to particular terms and conditions of employment. If any person retires under any of the foregoing circumstances, he is entitled to withdraw from his RSA though he was under the age of 50 at such retirement; provided that, in the case of retirement due to particular terms and conditions of employment, the contributor does not secure another employment after six months from the last employment.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

YtD: Equities gain N832bn JOHNSON OKANLAWON

he value of investments in equities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange hits N832bn despite the Central Bank of Nigeria monetary policy that reduced the volume of money in circulation. The CBN had on July 24, 2012 raised cash reserve ratio from eight per cent to 12 per cent as it also reduced the net foreign exchange open position to one per cent from the three per cent, but retained Monetray Policy Rate at 12 per cent. Todate, the All Share index rose by 11.6 per cent to close at 23,141.08 points as at Friday, Au-

Capital Market

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

gust 17, from 20,730.63 points at which it opened the year. Market capitalisation gained N832bn to close at 7.37trn in the review period, from N6.53trn at which it opened the year. Specifically, the index increased by 11.76 per cent from 23,169.24 points on July 24 till date despite the CBN tighthen of liquidity in the system. Analysts at FSDH said noted that the equities market still have long term upside potentials, as it awaits the second quarter results of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and Access Bank Plc. The research frim in a note to investors added that subsequent to the monthly meeting of the

Federation Account Allocation Committee and the release of August allocation into the system on Friday August 17, 2012, it will ease the liquidity tightness currently experienced in the market. The Managing Director of Trust Yields Investment Limited, Alhaji Rasheed Yussuff attributed the rally to the positive half year results of companies, which according to him, remain the major driver of the feat. He explained that the frequent change of leadership in the Securities and Exchange Commission could not have immediate effects in equities beacuae of the fact that the Exchange is not

yet an emerging market. Yussuff said, “The Nigerian Stock Exchange is still a frontier market. It is only a developed market like change of leadership could have negative effect immediately.” The Managing Director of Lambert Securities Limited, Mr. David Adonri, also attributed the rally to the impressive second quarter results released by major companies. He noted that some stocks were currently selling at very low prices, adding that investors would be attracted to those stocks thus boosting their prices. Adonri added that the expectations of increased and better results at the end of the third quarter would also whet investors’ appetite, thus making them to leverage on those stocks.

Facebook investors brace for more shares coming to market

acebook Incoporation shares, which fell to a record low after insiders could sell stakes for the first stime since the initial public offering, will face more pressure when another 1.44 billion shares are freed up through November. Bloomberg reported yesterday that the company last week unlocked 271.1 million shares, the first of five insider sale restrictions scheduled during its first year as a public company. While Facebook Chief

Executive Officer, Mr. Mark Zuckerberg operates the world’s largest social-networking service, he’s facing investor concerns about how it can generate more revenue from its growing user base. That, plus the end of the first lock-up, drove the shares to half the offering price of $38, wiping out almost $46bn in market value. “Is this something impatient or nervous investors should be worried about?” said Her-

man Leung, analyst at Susquehanna International Group. “Yes, but for the long-term investors, I view this as an opportunity to potentially get a stock at a pretty good price.” Regulatory filings as soon as this week will disclose how many major shareholders sold their stock. Insiders are seen selling about 55 per cent of the 1.2 billion shares that are set to come unlocked on November 14, according to an August 9 research note by Brian

Wieser at Pivotal Research in New York. Hedge funds that are using so-called short sales to benefit from the stock’s decline may be active ahead of mid-November, said Jay Ritter, professor of finance at the University of Florida. These investors will probably sell shares with the aim of buying them back at a discount at a later date, he said. “There will be selling pressure before the November 14 lockup expires,” said Ritter, based in Gainesville, Florida.

US stocks decline on concern over European debt crisis

nited States stocks fell, after the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index rose to its highest level since April, amid investor concern European leaders will fail to quell the region’s debt crisis. Lowe’s Cosmestic tumbled five per cent after the retailer missed analysts’ profit predictions and cut its earnings forecast, while Best Buy Company lost 7.4 per cent after saying its founder Richard Schulze declined an offer from the board to conduct due diligence and go to shareholders with his buyout offer. Coventry Health Care Incoporation jumped 19 per cent after Aetna Incoporation said it has agreed to buy the medical-

care provider for about $5.6bn. The S&P 500 lost 0.1 per cent to 1,416.72 points. The US equity benchmark on August 17 came within one point of an almost fouryear high struck in April. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures expiring the same month declined 16.38 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 13,258.82 points. “We’re basically at the highs from earlier this year,” Michael Strauss, who helps oversee about $26bn of assets as the chief investment strategist at Commonfund in Wilton, Connecticut, said in a telephone interview. “It’s an interesting test. We’re at a pretty formidable technical resistance here but if we break through, what’s

resistance now will then become support.” The S&P 500 last week capped its longest stretch of weekly gains since January 2011 as economic reports beat forecasts and Germany backed the European Central Bank’s bondbuying plan. Trading volume and volatility have dropped this month as vacationing traders awaited policy clues from the Federal Reserve’s summit at the end of the month and an ECB meeting in September. The ECB’s governing council may decide at its next gathering to set yield limits on each country’s debt, Spiegel magazine reported, without saying where it got the information. Gov-

ernment bond purchases “entail significant stability risks,” the Bundesbank said in its monthly report yesterday. Reports in the US this week will show that combined purchases of new and existing houses increased to a 4.89 million annual rate in July from a 4.72 million pace in June, according to the median forecasts in surveys of economists before releases from the National Association of Realtors on August 22 and the Commerce Department the next day. Bookings for longlasting goods may have climbed the most this year, a release from the Commerce Department will show August 24, according to the median estimate.

Source: NSE

NIBOR QUOTES 16 AUGUST & 17 AUGUST 2012 30.00 29.00 28.00 27.00 26.00 25.00 24.00 23.00 22.00 21.00 20.00 19.00 18.00 17.00 16.00 15.00

16-Aug-12

17-Aug-12

Market indicators Market indicators

All-Share Index 7,342,308 points All-Share Index 22,191.14 points Market capitalisation 23,066.74 trillion Market capitalisation 7,084 trillion

Stock Updates GAINERS COMPANY

OPENING

CLOSING

CHANGE

% CHANGE

AGLEVENT

1.20

1.26

0.06

5.00

INTBREW

6.61

6.94

0.33

4.99

CAP

24.12

25.32

1.20

4.98

REDSTAREX

2.62

2.75

0.13

4.96

BERGER

6.93

7.27

0.34

4.91

ETERNA

2.35

2.46

0.11

4.68

CADBURY

15.25

15.95

0.70

4.59

BAGCO

1.56

1.63

0.07

4.49

IKEJAHOTEL

1.12

1.17

0.05

4.46

AIRSERVICE

1.57

1.64

0.07

4.46

LOSERS COMPANY

OPENING

CHANGE

% CHANGE

CONTINSURE

0.63

CLOSING 0.60

0.03

-4.76

GTASSURE

1.75

1.67

0.08

-4.57

UTC

0.92

0.88

0.04

-4.35

STERLNBANK

1.07

1.03

0.04

-3.74

ROYALEX

0.55

0.53

0.02

-3.64

OANDO

13.99

13.61

0.38

-2.72

DANGFLOUR

6.30

6.13

0.17

-2.70

DANGCEM

112.40

110.00

2.40

-2.14

UNILEVER

35.50

35.00

0.50

-1.41

DANGSUGAR

4.55

4.50

0.05

-1.10

Primary Market Auction TENOR

AMOUNT (N’mn)

RATE (%)

DATE

91-Day

30,647.81

13.50

23-Aug-12

182-Day

20,000

15.50

23-Aug-12

364 -Day

Open Market Operations TENOR

AMOUNT (N’mn)

RATE (%)

DATE

178Days

14,231.30

15.50

23-Aug-12

118-Day

50,282.86

14.08

23-Aug-12

Wholesale Dutch Auction System AMOUNT OFFERED

MARKET DEMAND

AMOUNT SOLD

DATE

$200m

N/A

$126m

15-Aug-12

$180m

N/A

$147m

13-Aug-12

Capital Market

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Stock exchange daily equities summary Equities as at August 17, 2012 1st Tier Securities

1st Tier Securities Sector

Company name

No Of Deals

Quotation(N)

Quantity Traded

Value of Shares(N)

Sector

Company name

No Of Deals

Quotation(N)

Quantity Traded

Value of Shares(N)

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Politics

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Between Jonathan’s dream and realities CONTINUED FROM 13 is now a holder of the Grand Commander of the Federal Republic national honour, according to Prof. Niyi Osundare; the poverty rate is so high that almost over 100 million Nigerians now live below the poverty line, existing on less than $1 a day. The list is endless. In an interview with National Mirror, presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Mega Party (SDMP), Prof. Pat Utomi lamented the near collapse situation of the Nigerian state. He said: “I have not seen anything transformed. You have to reform before you transform. How can you be transforming when corruption is worse than yesterday? General Olusegun Obasanjo tried to change things in his first tenure and one of the things he suggested was the so-called low profile, they tried to cut down on funding of public officials. But now we have abuse of resources beyond measure at a time when Nigerians are just starving to death; we have public officials spending money like it has no value, hosting conferences of African First Ladies and you wonder whether the people in public life are giving any thoughts to the fact that those they are presiding over are having worse times of their lives. “Every day, you wake up, there is a probe about billions that disappeared. People read of all these things and you think it won’t affect them? They believe that they are being ruled by a gang of thieves. Whether it is correct or not, that is the perception – they are just victims in the hands of thieves.” Many political pundits agree with Utomi in his analysis and postulations. But to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Transformation Agenda is on course. The party said that the President “has left no one in doubt of his political will as well as high content value of his transformation road map.” Speaking through its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, the PDP praised Jonathan for his “unambiguous stride in the retrieval of our fiscal planning from the flawed and corrupt budgetary processes of the past.” The party also expressed satisfaction with the “impressive pace of the implementation” of the Transformation Agenda, noting that it was happy with the president’s faithfulness to his campaign promises, which it said has stunned the opposition and thrown them into disarray. The PDP said: “The faithfulness of the President to his campaign promises has stunned and thrown the camp of the opposition into confusion and disarray; hence the current knee-jerk criticisms and taunts, which lack deep reflection. Hence, they are exposed as preposterous at the insistent knockings of verifiable facts. “Even though the transformation train has just left the station, the pace, tempo and result-delivery, notwithstanding well rehearsed distractions, have put the opposition to shame.” The PDP said that the President has kept faith with Nigerians in the the inauguration of the Almajiri model school in Sokoto; the Youth Enterprise with Innovation (YouWin), a job creation scheme; and signing of the 2012 budget and hailed Jonathan’s courage in “frontally tackling national challenges without minding whose

THE FAITHFULNESS OF THE PRESIDENT TO HIS CAMPAIGN PROMISES HAS STUNNED AND THROWN THE CAMP OF THE OPPOSITION INTO CONFUSION AND DISARRAY ox is gored.” The party therefore called on Nigerians to lend their support to the efforts of President Jonathan to transform the country and take Nigeria to where it is supposed to be in the comity of nations. But that is to be expected. After all, the president is the leader of the party. But the National Publicity Secretary of the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP), Osita Okechukwu, disagreed with the PDP. To him, government’s failure to implement chapter 12 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which put the welfare and security of the people squarely on the shoulders of the government, is an indication of the government’s non-performance. His words: “If there is no distance covered, then there is no work done. Let us even talk about job creation, because it affects the entire spectrum of the national life. When a family struggles to train a child from nursery level to tertiary institution, it is expected that after graduation, the child is expected to take care of the family, but how will that happen, when the child is unemployed? “One of the major issues in the forthcoming American election is job creation. Americans are complaining that Barack Obama did not create enough jobs, that unemployment is about eight or nine per cent. But the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics put the average unemployment rate at 30 per cent, and that is official record, in reality, it would be about 45 per cent and above. “On the Transformation Agenda, if there is no distance covered, there is no work done, simple. So far, I have not seen the distance covered in terms of even just one item: job creation. Under the economic objective of the 1999 Constitution, it says that this economy should me managed in such a manner that it would not concentrate wealth in the hands of a few. But the PDP government since 1999 has concentrated wealth in the hands of a few. The Jonathan administration’s economic programmes are warped and therefore the Transformation Agenda cannot work.” It is accepted that government programmes evolve over time and while other serious nations accelerate their economies and development by putting their human resources to maximum utilisation, but in Nigeria, such is never done. Public office is seen as patronage for party members. Any serious transformation must make certain aspects of the society, which are critical as priority. For instance, all levels of education in the country is receiving the least attention.

Okonjo-Iweala

Utomi

In fact, Nigerian education system is facing the worst of time and is yet to attract any attention from government. Yet, education is the bedrock of human development. Today, analysts believe that the best transformation Nigeria needs is in the area of education and national orientation, rather than all the ungrounded theories and bureaucratic and political tunes that are coming from government quarters. In Nigeria, the education sector is in a persistent running battle between the academia and those in positions of power and authority, as those in power, rather than compliment the institutions and the academia, they starve the institutions of funds to conduct studies and fail to expand the spaces for learning and research. They only see the academics as mere noise makers. Government business in Nigeria is run like a cult and it is business as usual as public officials see government as an avenue to amass wealth to the detriment of the Nigerian people. This has been one of the banes of the Transformation Agenda of President Jonathan. But despite these, the government has also faced divergent challenges since its inception. This was why the President recently said that his Transformation Agenda was derailed by the activities of the Boko Haram Islamic sect, which had held the country by the jugular through its nefarious terrorist activities, especially in the Northern states and the Federal Capital

Territory (FCT), Abuja. Insecurity, not only occasioned by Boko Haram, but by kidnappings, armed robberies and the likes is perhaps the major challenge facing the government today and from all indications, it seems the Federal Government is at a loss on how to effectively contain this challenge. And it is the view of many experts that this would surely drive away the desired foreign direct investments, which the government expects would drive the economy, as no investor would want to invest his money in a violence prone country. Another albatross is the poor implementation of the budget under the Jonathan administration and even previous administrations. An analyst, who preferred anonymity, opined that under Jonathan’s watch, “budget is becoming a declaration of deceit.” And this was why the House of Representatives, before its recess last month threatened to impeach the President if he fails to implement the Appropriation Act by September. Despite the conflicting figures of the budget performance, the Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, revealed to the Senate Joint Committee on Appropriation and Finance that the 2012 budget has only attained 14 per cent performance. Analysts are of the view that no tangible transformation can be achieved with such performance ratio of the budget. Also, for the country to prosper, more goods and services must leave its shores than come in and more in terms of money and infrastructure coming into the country than going out. This is the basis for competition among global players and success is measured through the quality of goods and services rendered and provided. Can Nigeria boldly say that it has achieved a desired result in this realm? The answer, of course, would be in the negative. When will the people begin to experience the transformation they desire to make life meaningful? When will the education sector be transformed to drive the country’s other sectors to development? How long will Nigerians continue to pay for darkness rather than light? From all indications, it is still a very long way yet to Uhuru. The classification of Nigeria as the 14th failed state in the world probably brings this truth more directly. The Failed State Index (FSI) Report of the Fund for Peace (FFP), a non-governmental organisation, for 2011 put Nigeria in that position, but the government had rubbished the report, saying it does not reflect the realities on the ground. No wonder Utomi said: “For anybody in good conscience to assume that life is wonderful in Nigeria is to either embark on self deceit beyond imagination or to live in denial about our reality. Things are bad in Nigeria. We all know from our experiences that life is worse off. Only few Nigerians, especially those who benefitted from the fuel subsidy scam, can say life is better today than it was a couple of years ago.” How long will Nigerians continue to wait for Godot? When will the government on whose shoulder the welfare and security of the people lies rise up to its responsibility and improve the quality of life of those whose mandate they exercise? Time is running out for the Jonathan administration!

Politics THE

PARLIAMENT

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

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Our burden to deliver good governan

Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Emeka Ihedioha, in this paper titled “The legislature: Roles, misconceptions and experience in the consolidation of democracy in Nigeria,” gives an insight into various aspects of lawmaking, challenges, and perceptions among others. Misconceptions The National Assembly has suffered from public misconceptions since the inception of the Fourth Republic in 1999. This is not without any justification if the truth must be told. However, to really understand and appreciate the legislature we should accept the fact that the legislature is part and parcel of the larger Nigerian society. To this extent, whatever affects the Nigerian society similarly affects the legislature. We are Nigerians and therefore subject to all the frailties and foibles of the larger society. The National Assembly like any other Nigerian institution has had its high and low points. From the inception of this political dispensation in 1999 it has had its own share of scandals including certificate forgeries, contract scams and bribery sagas. Over time, and with some internal control measures put in place, the National Assembly in the light of experience has become a pre-eminent legislative institution for which Nigerians should be proud of. You should be proud of the National Assembly not because scandals will not erupt once in a while, but the House of Representatives as an institution has mechanisms in place to deal with such matters as they arise. The disciplinary process contained in the Standing Orders of the House is robust enough to contain and deal with any scandals and the individuals involved. The initial problems that enveloped the National Assembly in the beginning had given rise to misconceptions and misunderstanding by members of the general public. The problem of misconception also derives from the crises of expectations on the part of the electorate. It is even more worrisome when it is realised that enlightened members of the society, including those from the ivory tower confuse the roles of the legislature with those of the executive. I will dwell more on this as we proceed.

Experience in consolidating democracy Notwithstanding the recent developments in which one of our colleagues was fingered in an alleged bribery scandal, the House has continued to insist on probity and accountability in the conduct of not only public policy but also in the management of its legislative business and the ethical conduct of members. This is why the House has not found it difficult to do the needful when any member is speculated or believed to have overreached himself in the discharge of any responsibility assigned to him or her. The House of Representatives is a pre-

eminent democratic national institution which must not be allowed to be rubbished on account of the actions or inactions of its members. It is important to note that because of the corrective mechanisms we have put in place, the era of frequent scandals and scams is becoming isolated. Ultimately, history will forgive us for taking wrong steps (if any) but will not forgive us for not taking any at all when it mattered. As we continue in our march to deepen and consolidate the gains of our democracy, we can only get better in the discharge of our mandate.

Fourth Republic and the instability in the legislature The crisis of leadership which attended the inauguration of the 4th National Assembly was largely due to external interference. The political leadership that emerged in 1999 was coming from a military background where the idea of a legislature was totally unknown or greatly detested. Under succeeding military regimes, the ruling military high command always combined executive and legislative powers. Government policies and programmes were carried out with “immediate effect”. The military had no patience for “too much grammar” and debates often associated with parliamentary democracy. So, for a military leader who is used to issuing out orders and getting things done, it is inconceivable for him to be sharing powers with “idle civilians” who constitute the legislature in a democratic setting. The tendency to assert total control was ever present. This mental construct or military hang-over was primarily responsible for the adversarial relationship that was witnessed between the Executive and the Legislature between 1999 and 2007.

Roles of the legislature The National Assembly which in our case consists of the Senate and House of Representatives, is vested with the legislative powers of the Federation. Section 4(1) under Part II of the Constitution states inter alia: “The Legislative powers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be vested in a National Assembly for the Federation which shall consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives.” It goes further in Section 4(2) to state as follows: “The National Assembly shall have power to make laws for the peace, order and good government of the federation with respect to any matter included in the Exclusive Legislative List.” In simple terms, the legislature performs three basic roles namely: lawmaking, representation and oversight. So, in

SOME PERSONS STILL SEE US AS MEDDLESOME;

A BURDENSOME INSTITUTION AND

IN SOME CASES, AN OVERWEIGHT IN THE DEMOCRATIC PROJECT

Jonathan

Ihedioha

the House of Representatives, we make laws, we carry out representative functions on behalf of the people who in our case, are demarcated in 360 federal constituencies, and we oversight the executive arm of government which include the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to ensure that government is held accountable to the people from where it derives its sovereignty.

ing our constitutionally assigned duties of oversight, representation and lawmaking, our primary consideration is the downtrodden. Time and events have proved that the aforestated justifications propelled our now historic sitting on January 8, 2012, the first of its kind on a Sunday, recording the 2nd highest attendance in the history of the legislature; the first being the inauguration of the House on June 5, 2012. The significance of all these facts underscores the value we place on our people, the electorate and the indisputable fact that they are the ultimate repository of power. We are not unaware that some powerful forces are yet to forgive us for that historic act we undertook and which saved the nation, and we are consoled by not only the huge savings we have made from the wastages of the past but we are also further vindicated by the startling revelations that emerged in the course of our investigations. We believe that going forward; the Nigerian public will take a more sympathetic interest in the huge efforts we put up in the nation-building process. Our circumstance is not helped by the scepticism that has been the lot of the legislature, given many years of military domination of our polity. Some persons still see us as meddlesome; a burdensome institution and in some cases, an overweight in the democratic project. Going forward, we should be assessed by the savings we make for the nation as the fear of our inquisition has now become the cure of executive recklessness.

Investigative roles The legislature in a democracy has the sole constitutional power to conduct investigations into any agency of government with a view to exposing corruption and correcting any lapses in the conduct of public policy. This power is enjoyed under Section 88 of the Constitution as amended. In carrying out its investigative roles, the National Assembly can summon any person in Nigeria “to give evidence at any place or produce any document or other thing in his possession or under his control, and examine him as a witness, subject to all just exceptions”.

Power of appropriation Under its lawmaking role, the National Assembly is saddled with the power of appropriation. Perhaps, this is the single most important function of the legislature under our constitution. The power of appropriation is conferred on the legislature by Section 81 of the Constitution as amended. Under this section, no money shall be withdrawn from the consolidated revenue fund or other public funds of the Federation without the authorization of the National Assembly. Much of the influence which the legislature enjoys in the polity is derived essentially from its power of appropriation which it has effectively deployed with regard to the citing of government projects and infrastructure. However, no one is in doubt today why the budget was never funded in spite of our huge infrastructural deficits. Let it be appreciated that we acknowledge our mandate through the ballot; but we note the expectations of the Nigerian public which guide our actions and place a burden of accountability on us. In discharg-

Fuel subsidy crisis and the House intervention The timing of the removal of subsidy from petroleum products by the executive was most inauspicious. It came at a time when majority of Nigerians were in their various villages and communities for the Christmas and New Year festivities. They were trapped and stranded as they could not afford the huge escalation in fuel price which moved from N65 to N140 per litre of petrol in the average Nigerian community. No one anticipated such sudden sharp increase as Nigerians had planned the

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Politics

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

nce amidst misconceptions – Ihedioha National Assembly which has been highly misconceived by the public. It is from the money budgeted for running costs that every member of the House meets his obligations to his office in the National Assembly and the Constituency office back at home. All these activities are funded from official running costs which can hardly subsist. But the erroneous impression created in public opinion is that these are slush funds for members of the National Assembly. Some even erroneously call it allowances. Nothing can be further from the truth!

7th House and the new legislative agenda

Mark

Tambuwal

budget for their trips based on existing cost parameters and indices. People were thus thrown into unavoidable economic turmoil and even reduced to the level of destitution and beggary. As the representatives of the people, we were inundated with barrage of calls and protestations from our constituents all over the country on their worsening economic situation occasioned by the subsidy removal. Confronted with such a terrible situation, the House of Representatives had to convene an Emergency session on a Sunday, January 8, 2012 (the first of its kind in our legislative history). This culminated in the decision of the House to set up the Hon. Farouk Lawan-led AdHoc Committee on the Investigation and Monitoring of the Fuel Subsidy regime. To address the urgent matter of the impending strike, we set up the Patrick Ikhariale Committee to reach out to Labour and arrest the situation. The findings of the committee have since revealed that the huge funds being misapplied by a privileged few in our society in the name of oil subsidy could have been better and wisely deployed in funding the national budget to provide critical infrastructure and tackle mass poverty. I want to assure Nigerians that in spite of the alleged bribery scandal, the report of the subsidy committee as adopted by the House remains sacrosanct. We urge the executive to implement it without further delay.

of the legislature. The provision of such social infrastructure falls within the ambit of executive functions. We only appropriate the money for the executive to provide these infrastructures. But most often, our constituents including the enlightened ones believe that an elected representative is empowered with resources to provide public infrastructure. This is one of the many misconceptions which have continued to dog the legislature. Let me make it abundantly clear here that legislators do not control any vote under our constitution and therefore are not expected to provide infrastructure. The provision of infrastructure is purely an executive function. Like I noted earlier, the legislature can only exert influence through its power over appropriations. Some members of the public also, probably out of mischief, believe that an average legislator controls special funds for dealing with routine problems in the constituency. As a result of such misconception, the legislator is put under severe pressure by his constituents, family members, extended relations, community members and friends who usually inundate the legislator with innumerable requests. Such requests range from school fees and hospital bills to financial support for naming ceremonies, wedding engagements, funeral programmes, soccer competitions, fund raising in the community, church or mosque, age grade competitions, new yam festival etc. The litany of requests is inexhaustible. When these demands are not satisfactorily met, the hapless lawmaker is painted black by illinformed critics in the society. This now brings me to the question of the running costs of each legislator in the

Public misconception of the legislature The legislature is a highly misunderstood institution in our country today. Because it is misunderstood as a result of what I call crisis of expectations, it has also become highly maligned even by those who should know better. Most often, people confuse the roles of the executive with that of the legislature. The doctrine of separation of powers which assigns different responsibilities to different arms of government does not seem to make any sense to most Nigerians who expect the Nigerian legislator to provide roads, schools, bridges, markets, hospitals, electricity, water, etc, in the community, even when this does not fall within the schedule

The 7th House of Representatives was inaugurated on June 6, 2011 with Rt. Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal and my humble self overwhelmingly elected the Speaker and Deputy Speaker respectively. Against the background of recurrent leadership crises in the National Assembly, the seeds of which were sown in 1999 as I noted earlier, the crop of men and women elected into the 7th House of Representatives decided to chart a different but refreshing path for the House by seeking to enthrone the leadership of their choice, away from any political interference. It was a difficult task but they were determined to do away with the political chicanery that had been our lot in the immediate past. Against the preferred choices of the leadership of the ruling party, members voted massively for the TambuwalIhedioha ticket to place the destiny of the House firmly in their own hands. So, in a way what transpired in the House on June 6, 2011 could be described as a bold legislative statement to safeguard the nation’s fledgling democracy from forces of impunity and arbitrariness. The resultant stability that has endured in the House is basically because the leadership emerged through broad-based national consensus. One of the first decisions we took when we came on board was the designing of a New Legislative Agenda to guide the House in the conduct of its proceedings and its engagement with the polity. I chaired the Ad-hoc Committee on the New Legislative Agenda. After several weeks of brainstorming and intellectual introspections, the committee finally came up with a draft legislative agenda which was presented to the House for deliberations. The document was thoroughly debated by honourable members who hailed it as the legislative compass of the 7th House of Representatives. It was subsequently adopted, having been further enriched with new perspectives from our colleagues. The new Legislative Agenda is a veritable document with creative and pragmatic ideas on how to deepen our democracy and advance the welfare interests of the Nigerian people whom we represent. There are

FROM THE INCEPTION OF THIS POLITICAL DISPENSATION IN 1999 IT HAS HAD ITS OWN SHARE OF SCANDALS INCLUDING CERTIFICATE FORGERIES, CONTRACT SCAMS AND BRIBERY SAGAS

six core factors captured in the Agenda which would guide the business and conduct of the House in its bid to enhance its operational capacity and improves its standing in the eyes of the public. These include openness, transparency and probity in the conduct of public policy; internal democracy in the running of the House; international best practices; prudent financial management, review of the constitution and relevant laws to ensure good governance; and productive interface with civil society organisations and other relevant stakeholders in the Nigeria project. In line with the principles enunciated in our legislative agenda, we constituted the House committees by ensuring that the competencies of members are appropriately deployed in the relevant areas. This is why the exercise was without any rancour or crises unlike in the past where the composition of committees always threw the House into turmoil and commotion. Since its adoption, the House has been running on the new Legislative Agenda which imposes on us a burden of responsibility to deliver good governance and development to the good people of Nigeria. Under the Legislative Agenda, “the House seeks to build a new image for the legislature; a strong, vibrant, effective legislature, able to assert itself as an important partner with other arms of government in the delivery of good governance, according respect to the rule of law and due process”.

The legislature and constitution making Constitution is the legal grundnorm of any country. It is the anchor on which the rule of law is hinged. Although there are a few countries like the United Kingdom that do not have a written constitution, the fact remains that there are certain agreed norms, practices and well established legal principles that are so embedded in a country’s way of life and governance, that it would require more than routine legislative action to change. Our grundnorm – the Constitution – confers on the legislature at federal and state levels the powers to alter the constitution under section 9(2) of the 1999 Constitution. The powers conferred on the legislature to amend the constitution can however only be exercised with popular participation and support in order for it to win legitimacy. In 2010, the legislature for the first time in Nigeria’s history achieved a broad amendment of multiple sections of the 1999 Constitution. The amendments addressed popular agitations and pressures from Nigerians for the reform of the electoral process. These amendments helped achieve the improved elections conducted by INEC in 2011. With the inauguration of the seventh National Assembly, there have been pressures for even wider and more ground-breaking amendments of the Constitution to reflect demands for greater fiscal responsibility, devolution of powers, fiscal federalism, citizenship rights, and land use reform. The legislature has started the process of amending the constitution. We intend, however, that the process must be inclusive and participatory. Scholars and academics have always provided intellectual content to the development of any country.

Politics

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

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PDP, Aregbesola trade words over contracts FELIX NWANERI

sun State government and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state have been locked in a war of words over contracts recently awarded by the Rauf Aregbesola-led administration. The PDP had asked the governor to justify the rationale behind awarding a greater percentage of contracts in the state to only one Lagos-based construction company, RATCON, a claim, according the state government, shows a party that is bereft of ideas and too lazy to crosscheck facts. The PDP in a statement issued yesterday and signed by its Director of Media

and Strategy, Prince Diran Odeyemi, also asked the governor to explain why his contracts for road projects are the most expensive in the South-West with a kilometre going for N359 million. The PDP further alleged that contracts so far awarded in the state did not pass through due process, competitive bidding and never advertised, citing examples of those by the ministries of Works and Education. It said: “We are still investigating why the Ilesa and Osogbo township road contracts were awarded at the same amount of N3.7 billion each apart from another N17.5 billion for six inter-township roads all of which were awarded to one particular construction

company. “We also note in particular the award of roads pothole patching contract to the same construction company at the sum of N1.08 billion, which under normal circumstances should be a direct labour job for a subsidiary of the Ministry of Works, the Osun State Road Maintenance Agency (OSROMA) “We want to ask if these are the reasons why Aregbesola made himself the state Commissioner for Works and why he has deliberately refused to allow all his multi-billion naira contracts to that particular company, follow due process as well as tell us if the company is not ‘Rauf Aregbesola Tinubu Company’ as being speculated in the

state.” The party also urged the governor to explain why he made himself the Commissioner for Works and his deputy, Mrs Laoye Tomori, Commissioner for Education. The PDP said: “We are concerned that the governor and his deputy who are number one and number two citizens in-charge of the overall affairs of the state still appointed themselves as the head of two most “juicy” ministries in the state. “Aregbesola as the governor of the state and at the same time the Commissioner for Works is like a king doing the work of chiefs in his own palace and we find this awkward and not appropriate for reasons of accountability.

L-R: Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal and Lagos State governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN), at this year’s lesser Hajj (Umrah) in Mecca, Saudi Arabia recently.

“What Aregbesola is telling the people of Osun State especially his ACN members indirectly is that he cannot trust anybody to man the ministries of Works and Education except himself and his deputy or that there are no construction firms in Osun State that are worthy of road contracts.” But, the state DirectorGeneral of the Bureau of Public Communication, Mr. Semiu Okanlawon, who dismissed the claims, said the allegations are indications of how lazy the PDP and Odeyemi are, wondering why they were was not bold enough to mention the name of the company that got all the contracts. He said: “They are so lazy to read newspapers to know that several companies are being engaged to handle various road projects in Osun State. If Odeyemi and his party do read newspapers, they would have read about the names of the companies handling various projects in the state. Two, they should have visited the sites of the projects to confirm the veracity of their claims. They should go and do their finding and stop misinforming the public. “I advise Diran Odeyemi and his co travellers to seek better education on criticism. This has become necessary in view of the fact that their criticisms show that they are totally bereft of ideas and too lazy to crosscheck facts before

running down to newsrooms.” On the cost of the road projects, Okanlawon said the bargain Osun State got from the companies is the best anywhere in the country. “Let the Odeyemi and his party come up with the prevailing cost of the road construction per kilometre anywhere in the country and compares it with what we have in Osun. I wish to inform Odeyemi and his PDP cohorts that the bargain we got from the contractors is the best anyone can get anywhere. “Osun does not have the kind of fund either from the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and federal allocation required to embark on the kind of ambitious projects we are doing in the state, but because of the confidence the investors and corporate world have in the Aregbesola-led administration, they are ready to engage in business with us on the most convenient payment terms. “I wish to inform the PDP that the kind of road projects we are embarking upon are not the type PDP was noted for which will be commissioned today and requires patching in three months,” he said. Okanlawon denied Aregbesola’s ownership of RATCON, mentioning HONGYE Construction, Sammiyya, and Perfect Structure Limited as some of the construction companies handling road projects in the state.

The party stated that for the avoidance of doubt, Ikuforiji has been charged before a court of law, adding: “He has pleaded not guilty. The law presumes him innocent until proven guilty. The case is still on ongoing therefore any call for his resignation is an attempt to stampede justice. “The case of Doyin Okupe is completely different. He has been confronted with allegations that he has swindled both Imo and Benue state governments of hundreds of millions of naira. He cannot continue to be the President’s spokesman until he clears himself of these allegations.” ACN noted that it was laughable for PDP to refer to the party as crooks and cheats in the sense that the

ruling party since 1999 has bring untold hardship to Nigerians. The party further accused the PDP that under its watch several scandals and bribery allegations such as the Siemens, Wilbros, PTDF, NIPP, Police Equipment Fund, the Halliburton, the multi-billion naira pension scam, the oil subsidy scam, the Malabu Oil scandal have been perpetrated. It maintained that there is “no amount of shadow boxing, bluster or vitriolic by the PDP and its mercenaries therefore will change the facts as they stand which is that Dr. Doyin Okupe is alleged to have collected hundreds of millions of naira for work not done and he must be fired.”

Party seeks FG’s intervention on ocean surge No similarity between Ikuforiji and Okupe, says ACN OLAJIDE OMOJOLOMOJU

ollowing last weekend ocean which claimed several lives at the Kuramo Beach in Lagos, the Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has called on the Federal Government to halt the sand filling of the ocean and lagoons in the state. The stoppage, according to the PDP, will forestall further loss of lives and property. The party, in a press statement made available to National Mirror yesterday by the party’s state Chairman, Olatunji Shelle, berated the Lagos State Government for its fire brigade, deceptive and

diversionary ejection of occupants from areas which its direct negligence has caused calamities. Shelle said: “We are very pained by the wanton loss of lives and property prevalent only along the coastal lines of Lagos beaches. We sincerely sympathise with the affected families. We are however vindicated because we had continually criticised the unprofessional manners the state government particularly encroaches the ocean and lagoon without due ecological and environmental impact assessment. “The Lagos State government has abandoned the welfare of the residents and embarked on all sorts of misplaced, bourgeoisie projects at the expense of

the majority of ordinary Lagosians. One of such projects is the Eko Atlantic Project, where the ocean is being sand filled to build another “Dubai” in Lagos. The effect of the project is the recurrent ocean surge and flooding around the state after every rainfall and which has led to frequent loss of lives and property.” The PDP added that the Action Congress of Nigeria-led government in the state is confused about what ordinary Lagosian needs. It said: “Imagine also the contradiction in the state government’s demolishing of Makoko on allegation of lagoon encroachment, while the same state government is actually sand filling our Bar Beach.”

SINA FADARE

he Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) yesterday stated that there is no similarity between the corruption allegation against Lagos State House of Assembly Speaker, Adeyemi Ikuforiji, and the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe. The party in a statement issued in Lagos by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said that rather than respond to the allegation levied against Okupe, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) through its foot soldiers are calling on Ikuforiji to resign from office.

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Cocktail

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Oddities

Limbless man swims Brazilian worker survives iron bar piercing skull from US to Russia

renchman Philippe Croizon, a quadruple amputee, successfully swam across the Bering Strait from the United States to Russia, UPI has reported. Croizon, 44, took about 1 hour, 20 minutes Friday to make it the approximately 2.5 miles from Little Diomede Island in Alaska to Big Diomede in Russia, Radio France Internationale reported.

He was accompanied by long-distance swimmer Arnaud Chassery, 35. Their swim between America and Asia was their fourth between continents in the past three months, RFI said. They also swam from Papua New Guinea to Indonesia (Oceania to Asia), across the Red Sea from Egypt to Jordan (Africa to Asia) and from Spain to Morocco (Europe to Africa).

Man gets wrong lottery ticket, wins $1million

hen a store clerk gave a Massachusetts man a different kind of scratch-off lottery ticket than he asked for, he didn’t make a big deal about the mistake; he said he just “rolled with it.” It was a good decision: He won $1 million. Richard Brown of Taunton said he went into Gulf Taunton recently and asked for a $5 “Blue Ice 7s”

ticket, but the clerk was distracted and instead gave him a “Sizzlin 7s” ticket. Brown selected the cash option on the prize and received a one-time lump sum payment of about $430,000 after taxes. He plans to use the money for a new roof on his home and to take a trip to San Francisco. The store gets a $10,000 commission.

24-year-old construction worker survived after a 6-foot metal bar fell from above and pierced his head, doctors said at the weekend. Luiz Alexandre Essinger, chief of staff at Rio de Janeiro’s Miguel Couto Hospital, said doctors successfully withdrew the iron bar from Eduardo Leite’s skull during a fivehour surgery. “He was taken to the operating room, his skull was opened, they examined the brain and the surgeon decided to pull the metal bar out from the front in the same direction it entered the brain.” Essinger said. He said Leite was conscious when he arrived at the hospital and told him what had happened. He said Leite was lucid and showed no negative consequences after the operation. “Today, he continues well, with few complaints for a five-hour-long surgery,” Essinger said. “He says he feels little pain.”

The bar fell from the fifth floor of a building under construction, went through Leite’s hard hat, entered the back of his skull and exited between his eyes, Essinger said, adding: “It really was a miracle” that

Leite survived. The accident and surgery took place last Wednesday. “They told me he was lying down (in the ambulance) with the bar pointing upward,” said Leite’s wife, Lilian Regina

da Silva Costa. “He was holding it and his face covered in blood. His look was as if nothing had happened. When he arrived he told the doctors he wasn’t feeling anything, no pain, nothing. It’s unbelievable.”

The tomography scan showing the skull of 24-year-old construction worker, Eduardo Leite pierced by a metal Photo: AP

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Community Mirror FG, Lagos inaugurate cassava value chain

“My son is an adult; I can assure you it is only the court of justice that will determine it. It is not justice by public opinion.”

NATIONAL CHAIRMAN OF PDP, BAMANGA TUKUR

Flood destroys houses, farms in Bauchi EZEKIEL TITUS BAUCHI

total of 220 houses and 600 farmlands have been destroyed following heavy rain in Disina and Dazigau villages in Shira Local Government Area of Bauchi State. Community Mirror gathered that the affected families are now in temporary shelters and

public buildings for safety. It was gathered that the rainstorm which lasted for several hours triggered massive flooding in areas inhabited by Fulani herdsmen. A resident blamed people in the area for the flooding, having ignored government campaigns against building along the waterways resulting in destruction to farmlands and households. It was reported that most of the

victims are children, women and domestic animals and if nothing is done urgently, there could be an outbreak of disease in the camps. It was gathered that the LGAs affected are Jama’are, Shira, Misau, Kifri, Bauchi, while the authorities are making efforts to ensure the safety of people following the governor’s visit to the affected areas. It would be recalled that the permanent secretary of the State

Emergency Management Agency, Alhaji Mahmood Garba, revealed government’s readiness to take pro-active measures to combat the incidence of flooding in the state. Speaking, he lamented the flood disaster and the damage to properties saying government had already taken decisive measures to re-settle the victims. He regretted the delay in reporting the incident to his of-

fice for immediate action and blamed the flooding on residents living near river banks. According to him, Governor Yuguda had already directed for mobilisation of relief materials to all areas affected by the flood which include bags of rice, maize, palm-oil, blankets, mattresses among others, as a demonstration of the administration commitment to cater for the people.

FRSC returns victim’s recharge cards OKAY OSUJI WITH AGENCY REPORT

he Federal Road Safety Commission, (FRSC), has returned N1million worth of recharge cards, among others, to an accident victim, Mrs Felicia Obanla. The Ogun Sector Commander, Ayobami Omiyale, said this while handing over the items to the victim of an accident involving five vehicles at Ota. “An articulated vehicle from Lagos to Sango lost control at Sango Ota Toll Gate and rammed into a Mazda bus, marked, LAGOS XV 388 KJA. This also rammed into a Nissan Pathfinder jeep, marked, TF 368 KJA, and the jeep hit Obanla as she was coming down from a

commercial motorcycle. She immediately became unconscious and the FRSC Rescue Team conveyed the victims to nearby hospitals for first aid treatments. Omiyale said, although 17 people were involved in the accident, only five were injured. He said that N11, 000 cash, a cell phone, ATM cards, deposit slip, keys, among others were also recovered at the accident scene even as he said it was difficult to locate Obanla because the accident victims had been discharged from the hospital when FRSC officials visited to hand over the items. ``Some people had earlier come to our office, claiming to be her relatives but we insisted that we want the handing over covered by the media,’’ he said.

Some Children scavenging a refuse dump in Ibadan, Oyo State.

Lawmakers wade into hotel closure dispute

NWABUEZE OKONKWO ONITSHA

wo lawmakers, Senator Chris Ngige representing Anambra Central Constituency and Hon. Charles Odedo, member representing Idemili North/South Constituency in the House of Representatives, have waded into the continued detention of Mr. Christopher Arthur Udoh, proprietor of Arthur Garden Hotels, Nkpor by the state police command. Addressing members of Nkpor community, under the aegis of Nkpor Village Chairmen Forum who paid him a courtesy visit in his Alor home, Ngige said he would take the matter up with the Commissioner of Police, Bal-

lah Nassarawa. Ngige noted that since the respect of law and order is the beauty of democracy, failing which anarchy will become the order of the day, he would find out from the police authorities if they are disobeying an existing court order that says the detainee should be released and his hotels reopened, pending determination of a Motion on Notice. In his statement, Odedo, said he had just heard of the matter and promised to join hands with Ngige to examine the matter critically to find a lasting solution. Earlier, spokesman of the Nkpor Village Chairmen Forum, Frank Molokwu, had complained that they are worried of incidences and news of kidnap-

pings making the rounds in Nkpor community. He further complained that although people of Nkpor condemn the acts of kidnapping, terrorism and blackmail and will support any punishment against perpetrators, they caution that due to lingering communal crisis, the police should be thorough in their duties, to avoid attempt by any faction to implicate perceived opponents. “We are saying this because rumour making the rounds is that the transition chairman for Idemili North Local Government, Raphael Nnabuife is threatening to implicate some innocent persons opposed to his administration in the kidnap saga. “We want the police to be cau-

tious of blackmailers and those willing to give false information in order to intimidate those considered as political opponents, because in the cause of on-going investigations, we discovered that some policemen are already invading the houses of those branded as enemies”. They said that on August 13, some policemen invaded the house of Chief Obioma Odunukwe of Isingwu Village, pointing out that he challenged Nnabuife in the last December Nkpor Development Union election. They therefore said the arrest and detention of Prince Udoh and Godwin Onwukwe is causing tension in the community as they are not known to be criminals.

PHOTO: YINKA ADEPARUSI

An Onitsha High Court presided over by Justice J. I. Nweze had in a motion on notice filed by Udoh, through his counsel, M. C. Ilondu, granted an interim order directing the police, their agents or privies to release the applicant forthwith and re-open his hotels and business premises at Onitsha and Nkpor, pending the determination of the motion. Meanwhile, Justice Nweze has fixed, August 24 for hearing of a committal notice (Form 48) also filed by Udoh, against six respondents, including the Inspector-General of Police, Commissioner of Police Anambra State, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, SP. James Nwafor (O/C SARS Awkuzu), CSP Kanayo Uzuegbu and Raphael Nnabuife.

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Community Mirror

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

FG, Lagos inaugurate cassava value chain MURITALA AYINLA

he Federal and Lagos State governments have inaugurated the cassava value chain programme under the National Agricultural Transformation Agenda, NATA, with the distribution of 12,000 cassava bundles to registered crop farmers in the state. Speaking at the ceremony at the Lagos State Agricultural Training Institute, Araga, Epe, Min-

ister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwunmi Adeshina, represented by the Regional Director South west, Dr. Odeyemi Julius , said the exercise is aimed at enhancing various crop yield in which the country has comparative advantage. He disclosed that N460 million had been committed for implementation of the programme, adding that attention is being given to the value chain of the various enterprises

with cassava being the subject of concern. The minister also added that part of the various transformation plans of the ministry, is to stop the importation of all agricultural produce that can be locally produced. He lamented that N635 billion is spent yearly for importation of wheat, adding that the present administration is poised at improving the efficiency of farmers towards enhancing food production as well as ensuring food

security He said: “Importation is a challenge to the economy, job creation and national security. There is no going back on ensuring food security in the country.” Adeshina however commended the efforts of Lagos State Government at improving the agric sector. Earlier in his address, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Co-operatives described the intervention as a welcome de-

velopment, describing the occasion as a giant stride in the crusade to revamp local food production. Gbolahan said:” This occasion is another effort of the state to revamp the agricultural sector with the Strategic Programme for Accelerated Agricultural Growth, SPAAG, which is the six “INS” as its major thrust. The intervention will lead to investment opportunities that will ensure sustainable growth of agriculture and create more

jobs in the state.” Harping on the empowerment of ‘Agric Yes’ graduates, he said, “I want to assure them, especially course I and II, that their empowerment is undergoing due process and would materialise soon. It is an inter -ministerial affair.” A total of 200 out of 34,000 registered crop farmers received cassava bundles at the ceremony which is the second in the series of intervention under the Growth Enhancement Support Scheme.

Group lauds union boss NWABUEZE OKONKWO ONITSHA

embers of Igbo Mandate Union, IMU, have lauded the President of South-East Amalgamated Traders Association, SEAMATA, Dr. Okwudili Ezenwankwo, for purposeful leadership of traders in the zone. In a statement at Onitsha, Anambra State, and signed by its President, Dede Uzor A. Uzor, IMU stated that Ezenwankwo’s leadership had brought peace and put a stop to factions among the traders. According to the group, “Ezenwankwo has brought traders in the SouthEast into one body, thus, giving them a strong voice and bargaining power with governments at all levels”. He has conducted free and fair elections in over 50 markets and supervised more than 100 elections within the five states in the zone. The on-going construction of Anambra Traders’ Secretariat and Traders House is also his brain child, even as he was responsible for bringing the plights of traders’ to government as well as protecting their rights and interest”. He empowered more than 2,000 youths by granting them soft loans to start and advance their businesses in the zone,’’ it said. However, IMU called on President Goodluck Jonathan to fulfill his campaign promises to South-East traders, which included building the second Niger Bridge and completion of the on-going Onitsha-Enugu highway, as well.

Structures at Maza-Maza on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, being demolished for road expassion.

PHOTO: OKAY OSUJI

Delta spends N1bn on MDG programmes

elta State Government is to spend one billion naira annually to execute Millennium Development Goal projects in the state. Besides, the state government is determined to meet the set targets under the MDG by the end of the current administration in 2015. The Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, who stated this during a National Advocacy and Sensitisation Town Hall meeting in Asaba, said that there was no going back on the set targets. According to him, the government has already executed 82 solar/motorised water schemes in various communities, in addition to other projects. Uduaghan promised to sustain the tempo of

development under the MDG and directed local governments in the state to participate actively in the programme so that the target envisaged could be realized. He explained that if the programme is jointly and vigorously pursued by the state and local governments, the impact of success on the people would be tremendous. The governor, who said MDG programme was not about awarding contracts alone, emphasised the need for projects to be religiously executed so that the living standard of the people could be improved. His words “MDG programme is not about awarding contract alone but about the commit-

ment towards the execution of the contracts to improve the living standard of the people” He disclosed that the selection of three local government councils by the Federal Government namely Ukwuani, Warri South and Ethiope West for implementation of MDG programme was not political even as he disclosed that the process was based on guidelines and feasibility studies, stressing that it was beyond the control of the Delta State. In her remark, Senior Special Assistant to the President on MDG, Dr Mrs. Precious Gbeneol, announced that the Federal government has disbursed N1.2 billion to the state for execution of MDG programmes.

Gbeneol, therefore, enjoined states of the federation to utilize funds earmarked for the programmes within the financial year so that they would not elapse. She advocated for the prompt utilization of funds emphasizing that there should be no delays. “Let the fund for 2012 be used to execute projects in the financial year, and therefore all states should fast track development in their areas”, she said She therefore promised that the Federal Government would work in synergy with the state to impact positively on the lives of the rural and urban populace. Delta State Commissioner for MDG, Victoria Ikenchukwu, announced that the government has

provided 50 maternity labour wards and 62 medical staff quarters in the state. Queen Mother Ikechukwu, also announced that the state has provided six skills acquisition centres in the three Senatorial districts, 670,000 doses of anti-malaria drugs, as well as 550,000 units of long lasting insecticide treated nets. She disclosed that through the MDG programme, 20,000 special delivery packs with labour maternity kits were distributed to pregnant women free. The Commissioner who called on the people to embrace all MDG programmes, said they are not about government but about the people who are the beneficiaries.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

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Aspirant urges residents to revive Plateau’s glory JAMES ABRAHAM JOS

senatorial aspirant in Plateau State, Mr. Gyang Pwajok, has urged the people of the state to ensure that the cherished culture of love which earned the state its appellation; ‘Home of Peace and Tourism,’ is revived. Pwajok, who gave the charge in a statement in Jos yesterday while rejoicing with the Muslim Ummah in the state over the successful celebration of the Eid-el-Fitr, urged them to sustain the gains recorded during the Ramadan period by embracing one another as brothers. Pwajok, who recently resigned his appointment

North

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

as Chief of Staff to Governor Jonah Jang, to vie for Plateau North senatorial seat under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said there was so much to gain under a peaceful and united Plateau, especially in the northern zone of the state. He paid tribute to Senator Gyang Dantong, whose life was cut short alongside Gyang Fulani and many others in the search for peace. The Plateau north senatorial aspirant also commended the recent stakeholders dialogue to find a lasting solution to the conflict while urging citizens of the state to join hands with the present administration for a lasting peace in Jos and its environs.

Tsav carpets calls for Jonathan’s resignation HENRY IYORKASE MAKURDI

etired Police Commissioner, Alhaji Abubakar Tsav, yesterday carpeted the Boko Haram Islamic sect for its comments calling on President Goodluck Jonathan to resign. Tsav, who spoke in Makurdi regretted the call, describing the activities of the group as worrisome. He said no meaningful citizen would ask an elected leader to resign because of violence and noted that

such unguarded utterances were unbecoming. The ex-police boss, who spoke to National Mirror, said no religion preaches violence, adding that members of this group are neither Muslims nor Christians. His words: “These people are rather criminals who are out to foment trouble and should be warned to desist from their diabolical actions.” The former police commissioner observed that “as a Muslims, we are told to live in peace with one another and shun any act

of violence and if anyone insists that they are Muslims, I would like to prove that person wrong. “For the sake of peace and togetherness as one indivisible entity, people should learn to do away with sentiments and tolerate one another so that peace would reign in the land,” he said. He was enthusiastic that Nigerians, irrespective of their diverse nationality, are still bounded together as one federating unit. He urged everyone to join hands to find amicable solution to the chal-

lenges threatening the unity of the country. Meanwhile, the Commissioner representing Benue State at the Federal Character Commission (FCC), Mrs. Margaret Icheen, has raised the alarm over the lopsidedness in the job placement report received at the commission from the state. Icheen, speaking in an interview with National Mirror yesterday in Makurdi, said steps were being taken to correct the imbalance and called for patience among the stakeholders.

Niger to strengthen ministry of religious affairs PRISCILLA DENNIS MINNA

iger State government has announced plans to fortify the state Ministry for Religious Affairs as part of efforts at maintaining peace in the state. Speaking when he received the Emir of Minna, Dr. Farouk Bahago, during the traditional Sallah visit, the state Acting Governor, Alhaji Ahmed Musa Ibeto, said aside strengthening the ministry; the state will continue to collaborate with traditional rulers, community and religious

Gov. Aliyu

leaders and teachers in public and private schools to ensure peace. He said the need to collaborate with all stakeholders has become imperative, if the state is to continue to remain the most peaceful state in the country as there can be no meaningful development in the absence of peace. “We are aware of the positive roles traditional rulers in the state play in the sustenance of peace. For that reason, government will continue to rely on them as there could be no development in an atmosphere of chaos. “The security challenges facing the country at the moment required all Nigerians to purge themselves of their sins and return to God for his intervention. “This involves all, no matter their religious and ethnic background; everyone must have the interest of the country at the back of their minds all the time.”

L-R: Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Zulu Gambari; Kwara State Deputy Governor, Elder Peter Kisra and Deputy Speaker, Kwara House of Assembly, Prof. Muhammed Gana Yisa, during the Emir’s traditional Sallah homage to Government House, on Sallah day.

Kaduna workers groan over unpaid salaries A ZA MSUE KADUNA

ivil servants in Kaduna State are groaning over the non-payment of their August salaries for the Sallah celebrations despite Governor Patrick Yakowa’s directives last week that the salaries be paid. The Commissioner for Finance, Dr John Ayuba,

had in a statement e-mailed to National Mirror said the August salaries had been paid ahead of the Eid-el-Fitr celebrations to enable Muslims celebrate with their families after the month of Ramadan. Ayuba said the payment followed a directive from Governor Yakowa, while urging civil servants to contact their banks to obtain their salaries.

However, most civil servants, who spoke with National Mirror yesterday, complained that no money was paid into their bank accounts as directed by the governor. “I checked my bank account on Friday last week and there was no money there. I went to the bank again yesterday with my ATM, but no salary has been paid into my bank ac-

Irate Katsina youths injure four, smash car windscreens JAMES DANJUMA KATSINA

rate youths numbering over two dozens yesterday stormed a political gathering in Katsina State where they unleashed terror on the people, injuring four as well as smashing windscreens of more than a dozen cars.

The rampaging youths, who wielded machetes and sticks, rained abuses on the organisers of the event before descending on some of them and in the process, beat and macheted some. They also smashed windscreens of cars parked within and outside the university belonging to the organisers of the event and

would have set them on fire were it not for the timely intervention of sympathisers. It was observed that the impetus to unleash terror on the people came after security, consisting of police and military operatives were withdrawn from the gates of the institution. Security, at first, had to shoot into the air to dispel

the irate youths, with about five of them apprehended in the process. The political gathering, which was held at the auditorium of the Katsina University, was organised by a group referred to as Naka Sai Naka, a forum that is chaired by Alhaji Umar Abdullahi Tsauri. Tsuari, also known as

Tata and seen to be planning to contest the 2015 governorship election in the state, was almost lynched as he tried to escape in a red Toyota car along with four other people. The rioters had tried to get at him when he was coming out of the auditorium but his supporters formed a human shield

count. “I was about to borrow money for the Sallah celebrations from a friend but hearing the news, I told the person to postpone it, without knowing that no kobo was paid into my bank account,” a top civil servant in the state said. Efforts to confirm the salary delay from Dr. Ayuba yesterday were unsuccessful.

round him; it took the ingenuity of four of Tsauri’s supporters, who bundled him inside the Toyota car and escaped with him. Discovering that Tsauri had managed to escape, the angry youths began smashing vehicles’ windscreens with some of them making arrangements to burn the cars.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

World News Family stop woman from jumping to her death

“The Dalai Lama is a global statesman... so there is no way a single person can fill in his shoes” - Tibet’s Prime Minister in exile, Lobsang Sangay

Libya arrests 32 Gaddafi’s loyalists over Tripoli attack

WORLD BULLETIN

Another man convicted for plot to kill Mandela

he Libyan authorities say they have arrested 32 members of a network loyal to former leader Muammar Gaddafi in connection with Sunday’s twin car bombing in the capital, Tripoli. Two people were killed by the two blasts near the former military academy for women and the interior ministry. An official of Libya’s top security body said the network had been linked to the bombs. It was the first deadly bomb attack since Gaddafi’s overthrow last year. The attack happened on the eve of the anniversary of the fall of Tripoli to rebel fighters last year. The bombs struck at dawn, one of them close to the interior ministry’s administrative offices, and the other near the military academy on Omar al-Mokhtar Avenue. The city’s head of security, Col Mahmoud Sherif, said the blast outside the military academy left two people dead and four or five injured. No casualties were reported from the other explosion, he said. Mr Sherif blamed Gaddafi supporters for the attacks, who he alleged were receiving financial backing from contacts based in neighbouring countries. Another official, from the Supreme Security Committee that has been supervising security matters since Gaddafi’s fall, told Reuters news agency later that connections between the group and the attacks had been established. The attacks took place as crowds prepared for mass morning prayers to mark Eid al-Fitr, the Muslim celebration at the end of the fasting month Ramadan. Earlier this month, Libya’s interim National Transitional Council handed power to a newly elected assembly, in the first peaceful transition in the country’s modern history. But violence remains a challenge for the government, with several attacks taking place in the eastern city of Benghazi in recent months. BBC’s reporter in Tripoli says that the government has often blamed these attacks on Gaddafi loyalists.

Libyan security forces inspecting the remains of a vehicle after twin blasts killed two people in Tripoli on Sunday. Photo: Getty Images

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Somali president Sharif Sheik Ahmed speaking during the swearing in ceremony of 211 MP’s in Mogadishu, Somalia yesterday. Photo: AP

Somalia swears in new parliament PAUL ARHEWE

WITH AGENCY REPORTS

omalia moved one step closer to a new government, with the swearing in of 222 members of the country’s committee-selected parliament. The committee tasked with approving parliamentarians swore in 222 of the parliamentarians yesterday afternoon. The swearing-in ceremony was not quite the historic day that many had hoped for, Al Jazeera’s reporter in Mogadishu. “Ceremony was held in the airport base, which is under the protection of the African Union,” she said. The parliament will eventually have 275 members. Only then will it be able to hold crucial votes for speaker and president by secret ballot. Despite the tardiness, however, there was a mood of new optimism on the streets of the capital. “This will be the first time in 20 years that an election of this kind will take place in the capital,” Moshiri reported. Hussein Arab Isse, current defence minister and deputy prime minister, said that the delays finalising the future parliamentarians had been caused by the thorough vetting process.

This was to avoid the scandals of corruption and nepotism that had discredited the previous government, he told Al Jazeera. “Most people that are coming into the parliament are highly educated and highly motivated,” said Isse, who was among those being sworn in yesterday. About 24 candidates are running to become Somalia’s first post-transition president who, once elected sometime

in the near future, will then choose a prime minister. Many of the candidates for president - including current President Sharif Ahmed, Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali and the parliament speaker Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden - already serve in a government that has been tainted by corruption allegations. Ahmed denied the allegations in an interview with Al Jazeera on Saturday.

S’Africa mine extends deadline for striking workers

triking workers at the South Africa platinum mine where 44 people were killed in a week of violence have been given another 24 hours to return to work, while 259 arrested strikers have appeared in court for the first time. “After consultations with various labour representatives today, the company [Lonmin PLC] can also announce that those illegal strikers who did not return to work this morning will not be dismissed and have been allowed an extra day in light of current circumstances,” said Lonmin mine in the statement on Monday. Lonmin had initially ordered miners to return

to work by Friday. After the shootings, the mine changed the deadline to Monday, Sue Vey, a company spokesperson, said. Lonmin said in the statement that almost one-third of the 28 000-strong workforce reported for their morning shifts, adhering to the company’s initial deadline and allowing Lonmin, one of the world’s largest primary producers of platinum, to resume partial operations. After a week of protests in which ten people were killed, including two police officers who were hacked to death, 34 strikers at Lonmin’s Marikana mine were shot down by police on Thursday.

A South African court yesterday convicted the last of 20 men accused of high treason for a plot to kill Nelson Mandela and drive blacks out of the country, in a trial that spanned nearly a decade. The “Boeremag” organisation had planned a right-wing coup in 2002 to overthrow the postapartheid government by creating chaos in the country. Dozens of people were injured and one person killed in blasts that shook the Johannesburg township of Soweto in October 2002. High Court Judge Eben Jordaan found that Kobus Pretorius was the group’s “master explosives manufacturer” and “took the lead in the production process” throughout their bombmaking activity. “He produced the bomb intended for President Mandela and explained to the others how it worked,” Jordaan said. The Boeremag -- Afrikaans for “Boer Force”, a reference to the descendants of the first Dutch colonisers -- had planned to sow chaos through bomb blasts then take over military bases, replace the government with white military rule and chase all blacks and Indians from the country.

‘Egypt to send aircraft, tanks into Sinai’ Egypt is preparing to use aircraft and tanks in Sinai for the first time since the 1973 war with Israel in its offensive against militants in the border area, security sources said yesterday. The plans to step up the operation were being finalised by Egypt’s newly appointed Defence Minister General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as he made his first visit to Sinai yesterday following the killing of 16 border guards on August5. Egypt blamed the attack on Islamist militants and the conflict is an early test for President Mohamed Mursi - elected in June following the overthrow last year of Hosni Mubarak - to prove he can rein in militants on the border with Israel. “Al-Sisi will supervise the putting together of final plans to strike terrorist elements using aircraft and mobile rocket launchers for the first time since the beginning of the operation,” an Egyptian security source said. Another security source said the army was planning to attack and besiege al-Halal mountain in central Sinai, using weapons including tanks, where militants were suspected to be hiding.

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World News

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Embattled Chinese politician’s wife gets suspended death sentence C hina sentenced the wife of fallen Politburo member Bo Xilai to death yesterday but suspended her execution, setting the stage for a possible final purge of Bo himself in a scandal that has shaken Beijing ahead of a leadership transition. The sentence means Gu Kailai is likely to face life in jail for murdering British businessman Neil Heywood last year. It also brings a curtain down on China’s most sensational trial in three decades, yet opens a new and more politically dangerous act for the ruling Communist Party -- how to deal with Bo, an ambitious and well-connected provincial leader whose downfall exposed rifts in the party. “I feel the verdict is just and fully reflects the court’s special respect for the law, its special respect for reality and, in particular, its special respect for life,” Gu said of the sentence in official television footage of the hearing. Gu, 53, wore a white shirt and black suit and stood expressionless, hands folded in front of her, as she spoke, pausing at one point to find the right words. At her trial on August 9, Gu

L-R: British businessman Neil Heywood and Gu Kailai

admitted to poisoning Heywood last November, and alleged that a business dispute between them led him to threaten her son, Bo Guagua, according to official accounts published by state media. A court official, Tang Yigan, said the court had concluded that Heywood used threatening words against Bo Guagua, but had never acted on them. The court also found Gu’s actions reflected a “psychological impairment” but did not elaborate. Gu could still face execution if

UN monitors pull out of Syria

nited Nations military observers left Damascus yesterday after a four-month mission in which they became helpless spectators of Syria’s spiralling conflict, instead of monitoring a ceasefire between President Bashar al-Assad’s forces and rebels. Seven U.N. cars were seen leaving a Damascus hotel yesterday morning, carrying some of the last members of a mission which at its height deployed 300 observers across the country. The unarmed monitors suspended operations in June after coming under fire and most have already left the country, leaving a small ‘liaison office’ in Damascus in case a chance for a political settlement to the bloodshed ever emerges. “Our mission failed because the two sides did not abide by their commitments,” one uniformed U.N. observer, who declined to be named, said at the Damascus hotel. Battling a 17-month-old uprising against his family’s 42-year rule, Assad has used fighter jets and helicopter gunships to pound rebel strongholds. Insurgents have stepped up their attacks, hitting tanks, military convoys and security buildings. The mandate of the monitoring mission, known as UNSMIS, expired on Sunday night after diplomats at the United Nations said conditions for continuing operations had not been met. The last monitors are expected to be out of the country by Friday. After a brief lull, violence intensified during the monitors’ presence in Syria and at least 9,000 people have been killed since they arrived to oversee a ceasefire declared on April 12 by former U.N.-Arab League mediator Kofi Annan.

Photo: Reuters

she commits a new offence over the next two years. Almost invariably in China, however, such suspended sentences are commuted to long prison terms. The court, in the eastern city of Hefei, also said Zhang Xiaojun, an aide to the Bo family, was sentenced to nine years in jail for acting as an accomplice to the poisoning of Heywood. “With both of the defendants declining to appeal, this marks the end of things,” Zhang’s lawyer, Li Renting, told Reuters.

Four policemen were also convicted on Monday of having sought to protect Gu from investigation, receiving jail sentences of between five and 11 years - a development that could prove damaging for Bo because it establishes formally that there was an attempted cover-up. Police sources in Chongqing, the south-western municipality ruled by Bo until he was ousted as its party chief in March, have said that Bo tried to shut down the investigation into his wife after being told she was a suspect early this year. Some Chinese political experts doubt the party will look to prosecute Bo, and note that his name was not cited at either the trial of his wife or the four policemen. But He Weifang, a law professor at Peking University, said he believed Bo would still face a court once the party had decided how to handle him. “I think there’s a range of options, such as economic crimes, concealing a crime, or obstructing justice that could all be used against him,” He said. “I don’t think that we can say that Bo Xilai has been cut free from this.”

Turkish-Cypriot tycoon found guilty of theft

urkish Cypriot tycoon Asil Nadir would be too complex to pull off successwas found guilty of theft yesterday fully — noting that much of the evidence in relation to the collapse of his Pol- had been lying in archives for two decades and that key witnesses might be too old to ly Peck business empire, one of a series of debacles that focused public attention on testify. If that was Nadir’s gambit, it backfired. the corporate greed of 1980s Britain. Polly Peck was an low-profile British A jury at London’s Central Criminal Court textile firm until Nadir took over in 1980, found him guilty of three counts of theft turning the modest business into a vehicle and not guilty of a fourth count of theft. The 71-year-old tycoon looked shocked for a wave of acquisitions, including Del Monte’s fresh fruit operations and Ja- as the verdicts were announced. His wife pan’s Sansui Electric Co. The stock went Nur, 28, sat at the side of the dock. Jurors are still deliberating a further through the roof and Nadir became one of nine counts of theft. Britain’s richest men. But the success story turned sour after investigators began probing irregularities in Nadir family trusts. The tycoon denied charges he had stolen from Polly Peck to line his pockets, but the company’s share price collapsed and the company itself went under in 1990. The collapse was deeply embarrassing for the then-ruling Conservative Party, to which Nadir was a major donor, and it made a fugitive of the tycoon, who fled the country for his native north Cyprus only months before he was due to stand trial. The Polly Peck story was one of several corporate scandals that showed up the dark side of Britain’s freewheeling 1980s; others included the 1991 collapse of BCCI and the demise of the Maxwell media empire. Nadir spent nearly two decades as a fugitive from British justice, but he made the dramatic decision to return to London in 2010, saying he wanted to clear his name. Legal analysts speculated that so much time had elapsed that a prosecution Asil Nadir

Briefs Belarus sacks foreign minister after teddy bear row

Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko sacked his foreign minister yesterday, weeks after a diplomatic row with Sweden and the European Union over a pro-democracy stunt in which hundreds of teddy bears were airdropped over the country. Lukashenko’s office, which announced the dismissal of Sergei Martynov, 59, who had held the post since 2003, did not provide any reasons for the decision. Lukashenko named 54-year-old Vladimir Makei, previously his chief-of-staff, as the country’s new foreign minister. Earlier this month, Belarus expelled Sweden’s ambassador after a plane chartered by a Swedish public relations firm dropped about 800 toy bears over the authoritarian country in July, each carrying a message urging the former Soviet republic to show greater respect for human rights.

Disputed islands should not hurt key China ties – Japan Japan urged China yesterday to protect its citizens after anti-Japanese protests rocked Chinese cities on the weekend, and stressed that a feud over disputed islands in the East China Sea should not damage ties between Asia’s two biggest economies. Thousands of protesters took to the streets in Chinese cities on Sunday, with groups overturning Japanese cars and shouting slogans denouncing Japan’s claims to the islands, known as the Senkaku in Japan and the Diaoyu in China. The demonstrations came after 10 Japanese nationalists swam to the islands on Sunday in a tit-for-tat move following a similar landing by Chinese activists last week. Both China’s government, which faces a once-in-a-decade leadership change later this year, and Japan’s Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, whose ratings have tanked since he took office last September and may be forced to call an election soon, are under domestic pressure to take a tough stance over the islands.

Burma abolishes media censorship Burma has abolished pre-publication censorship of the country’s media, the information ministry has announced. The Press Scrutiny and Registration Department (PSRD) said that as of yesterday, reporters would no longer have to submit their work to state censors before publication. However, strict laws remain in place which could see journalists punished for what they have written. Burma has kept tight control over all aspects of its media for some 50 years. But the civilian government has been gradually easing restrictions since taking office last year. “Censorship began on 6 August 1964 and ended 48 years and two weeks later,” Tint Swe, head of the PSRD, told AFP news agency yesterday.

World News

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Family stop woman from jumping to her death

his is the dramatic moment that family, friends and rescue service workers desperately try to stop a woman from leaping to her death, a report from Daily Mail has displayed. They are forced to cling to Sheng Fi’s legs as she threatens to throw herself off a nine-storey building. But what they did not know was that she had choked her four-year-old nephew just hours earlier and thrown his body from the same roof in Southern China. Sheng had been embroiled in a bitter row with her sister-in-law, the young boy’s mother, and killed the boy as a result of the fight. She admitted to smothering him to death and throwing his body from the 100ft tall building in Zhanjiang, Guangdong province before attempting to jump after him. Unaware, rescue workers, who had been called after Sheng was spotted on the roof, brought her daughter to talk her down after which they moved to grab her before she made the fatal leap.

The horrific truth behind her suicide attempt was unveiled when she had been brought off the ledge. ‘She admits she’d thrown the boy’s body off the same roof ’, a police spokesman told local media. ‘She will still die now, but by a firing squad for murder.’ China has one of the highest suicide rates in the world, placing ninth in World Health Organisation’s list of countries by suicide rate. With 22.23 suicides per 100,000 people reported in 2010, China has a lower percentage than Latvia, Kazhakstan and South Korea but the total numbers soar above other countries due to its large population. The WHO adds that their list is compiled using official statistics and relies on the reports from The People’s Republic of China rather than their own research. Last year the Beijing Health Bureau spokesman Mao Yu confirmed over two million attempted suicides per year and announced that suicide was the biggest killer among 15 to 34-year-olds.

The woman’s daughter was brought up on the roof to attempt to talk her down

Friends, relatives and rescue workers dragging Sheng Fi back from the ledge after her suicide attempt PHOTOS: REUTERS

Sheng Fi, trying yet again to throw herself from the building in an attempt to kill herself but the people holding her legs in a tight grip refused to let go.

Shop worker jailed for £1m lottery fraud

Manchester shop worker has been jailed after fraudulently trying to claim the £1m lottery winnings of an elderly woman. Farrakh Nizzar, 30, of Woodlands Road, Crumpsall, Greater Manchester, told Maureen Holt, 78, she had won nothing when he scanned her ticket. He later tried to claim the EuroMillions jackpot himself. Nizzar, who pleaded guilty, was sentenced at Manchester Minshull Street Court to 30 months in prison. Passing sentence, Recorder Philip Cattan told Nizzar: “This goes to the heart of public confidence in the National Lottery. “The courts must demonstrate to you and to others that this type of fraud will be met by significant custody.” Mrs Holt and her husband Fred, 80, who knew Nizzar by his nickname Lucky, told him to bin the worthless ticket. After they left the shop, Nizzar called the lottery hotline and tried to claim the jackpot for himself, saying he had bought the ticket at the Best One store in Watersheddings Street, Oldham, where he worked. The scam was unravelled when checks were made by lottery operator Camelot which showed the winning ticket was not bought at the store.

Fred and Maureen Holt receiving their cheque

It was bought at Tesco Extra in Oldham where Mr Holt had used his Clubcard while paying for the couple’s weekly groceries and Mrs Holt was seen on CCTV footage. Mr and Mrs Holt had been on holiday when the draw which matched their numbers was made on 22 June. They were presented with their cheque from Camelot on 2 August. The couple said in a statement: “We are glad justice has been done and that this matter is now behind us. We can now look forward to enjoying our lottery win and spending some time with our family and friends.

Nizzar PHOTO: PA

“We understand the defendant has written a letter to us and we look forward to reading this.” Camelot said in a statement the company has “stringent operations in place to detect fraud and to monitor suspicious activity”. “The success of The National Lottery is built on player trust - and the sentence handed down to Mr Nizzar provides clear evidence Camelot will not allow that trust to be undermined in any way.” Det Con Kate Carnally said: “Nizzar’s actions were at best foolish, and at worst, extremely cruel.

“He knew this woman had a winning ticket and chose to lie to her, deliberately duping her out of a life-changing sum of money that would have meant financial security for her and her husband in their retirement. “To cheat an elderly woman and try and claim the money for himself was both callous and underhand, but thankfully he did not get away with his scam.” She added: “Because of that, Nizzar has been brought to justice and just as importantly, the genuine owner of the ticket has been paid out what was always rightfully hers.”

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Features

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Albinism: Crusading to demystify

ave you ever imagined yourself giving birth to an albino? What would you do if you or your close relation has one? What are your perception albinos? Like the saying, “Variety is spice of life”. The world cannot be appealing if every creature looks alike. But no couple prays for a child that would have dissimilar features with normal people in the community. But when one comes, such child is unconditionally entitled to all rights and privileges enjoyed by its contemporaries. For albinos, their world is simply compelling if one could take one’s time to explore their enormous potentials. The experience of two parents would suffice to tell the world on the abilities of albinos and challenges of raising them to become successful adults. Mrs Jane Ego Peter, a professional nurse from Delta State and lives in Mararaba, Nasarawa State, is a mother to two goodlooking albinos. During an interview in her residence, she said she had a fair complexioned boy before being delivered of her second child, a baby girl an albino. According to her, she never thought she could give birth to an albino. “Though my grandfather and mother are albinos, I never thought that I could have one. When I gave birth to her at Gwarinmpa hospital, I thought, what sort of child was she? Initially, my husband was astonished at the look of the child. She was looking red on delivery and the nurses on duty were the first to create fear when they screamed “this one na oyinbo baby!” meaning “this is a white baby!” But my husband quickly recollected while comforting me that the child took after my grandfather. “So, when I became stronger, I carried her because my father had wanted my mother to have an albino child for him but could not. While I was nursing the child, some people came to see her while others came to congratulate me. I could remember that I usually wrapped her so that people will not see her whenever I took her to my workplace. Then one day, a woman met me and said, “What is this you are carrying, you gave birth to a doll baby and claimed you have a child? I almost fought her. But later, I recalled that I am a medical practitioner and that albinism is a genetic issue and not a disease. Since then, I have learnt to live with the reality.” Meanwhile, Mrs. Peter alleged that she beat the child often and later apologized to her because of some little mistakes she made at childhood. She further said that Golden, her eight year daughter, would, while playing stain her clothes, throw her food away and would always want to go out to play. “Truly, I never realised that albinos have visual challenges at childhood,” she recalled. No sooner had Golden enrolled in school than she grew out of her domestic idiosyncrasies except for her visual impairment. Another person, Mrs. Naomi Nakande, Head teacher of Apex Star Academy, where Golden has garnered intellectual prowess culminating in her nomination as children’s representative in the FCT, said that she and her younger brother, also an albino, are doing well in school as a result of special attention paid to them by the school authority. Both are usually made to seat in the front to enable them see the chalkboard clearly,

For long, the Nigerian society has been held hostage to a weird perception of albinism as a genetic disease and those living it with are condemned to permanent disability. But conversely, they are not only very intelligent but live normal and productive lives like their peers. MARCUS FATUNMOLE recently met parents with such children and reports that they are not only happy but the children are proud of their place in life.

Dame Patience Jonathan (m) carrying an albino child at a ceremony.

I RECALLED THAT I AM A MEDICAL PRACTITIONER AND THAT ALBINISM IS A GENETIC ISSUE AND

NOT A DISEASE. THEN,

SINCE

I HAVE LEARNT

TO LIVE WITH THE REALITY which is a major challenge to such children. Mrs. Peter remarked that upon delivery of her fifth and last child also an albino, she decided to resign from work to enable her give adequate attention to the children. Unlike albinos in the villages who lack necessary care needed for good health, these two children are cynosures of eyes wherever they go. But what delights her most in life, is the love her husband shows to these children. Golden told National Mirror that she is happy with her condition and relates well with friends. “But you know I am very fair, if they play rough with me they would hurt my skin. So, I always limit my play with them,” she said. A thrilling story came yet from another mother of an albino, Mrs. Nnena Godwin, who is also a nurse in the service of a Federal Medical Centre in Abuja. When she conceived of her baby, Angel, she had teased her husband that they might give birth to an albino because of their fair complexion. Af-

Mrs. Peters with her albino children

ter delivery of the child through caesarian, she noted the child was albino. Everyone at the hospital was so happy to see the baby. One major challenge that first stared her in the face was that she thought she would be cooking separately for the baby because of the fact that albinos do not take salt. Nonetheless, she realised that albinos are not affected in any negative way by consuming salt. “All I know is that the child must not be exposed to sun. I also realised that if a child does not take salt, he or she would lack iodine which is mainly from salt.

“We always tell Angel that she should see herself as the best wherever she goes. Even in the house, you see her go to the mirror and sing “I am the best, I am the best”, while she dances. I don’t think there is any child around that could be livelier than Angel”, she stressed. Unlike Peter with history of albinism in her lineage, Godwin said there is none with challenge of skin pigmentation in her lineage. She stressed that albinism is hereditary and comes from the lineage of either the husband or wife.

National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

y the genetic condition

Typical albino children.

Dr Jake Epelle is the founder of Albino Foundation with headquarters in Abuja. He is an accomplished albino and has driven his vision of addressing the plight of albinos in Nigeria to the global stage; leading to productive rapport with frontline organisation such as the National Organisation for Albinism and Hypopigmentation (NOAH), Canada; governments of nations and eminent persons across the globe. Speaking with National mirror, Epelle said his passion was to address the predicaments of albinos, help change negative mindsets against them and correct the socio-cultural stereotype about them not only in Nigeria, but throughout the world, as God would give him the grace. “We have volunteers in states that help drive our agenda. At the moment, we have offices in Zamfara, Ebonyi, Enugu and Lagos. We have over six million albinos in the country. I can tell you that we have not been able to reach two million or even a million. A lot is required to be done,” he said. He disclosed that given the facts available, Nigeria currently has the highest number of albinos in the world. According to him, the Federal Government has offered to provide free cancer treatment to all albinos in the country. He said, more than 200 had benefitted from the offer. The Ministry of Education, he added, also helps in promoting the ending of stigmatization against them, through assistance on creating awareness on rights of albinos. “These are some of the milestones of our foundation, that albinos can come from the villages and go to National Hospital, be fed and operated on free of charge,” he declared. He lamented the discrimination against albinos which he claimed to be very frightening. Epelle also alleged that the state of insecurity in the country makes some albi-

ALBINISM IS A

GENETIC DISORDER; IT IS NOT AN INFECTIOUS DISEASE AND CANNOT BE TRANSMITTED

THROUGH CONTACT, BLOOD TRANSFUSIONS AMONG OTHERS nos to be the susceptible to attack in crisisprone areas. In his assessment of government recognition and contribution to alleviating the plights of albinos, he noted that some of the demands of the foundation were being looked into. First, he said, was the recognition and support for the first Albino Day in Nigeria which was marked on May 5, this year. There is a push by the foundation to ensure government endorses the day and make it a yearly programme. It was also discovered that all albinos who participated in the last Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), were given two hours of extra time to compensate for their visual impairment. National Examination Council (NECO) has also approved examination extension time for albinos, while talks are on with the West African Examination Council (WAEC) and other examination bodies to do so. He expressed happiness with the population of albinos in the nation’s tertiary institutions and their performance in schools and other chosen careers, as he opined that they are more intelligent than any other set of human beings. While condemning what he called “public negative perception” against his colleagues,

Epelle mentioned some parts of the country where albinos are allegedly still being used and abused for ritual activities. Albinism is a cross-continental issue. It is not limited to the black race. Folklore gives account of a drama that was said to have evolved at a rural settlement in one of Nigeria’s South-West states two decades ago. A couple reportedly gave birth to what the villagers called “afin” (an albino). Not only was this “coloured” baby boy born with “strange” skin, the home from which he emerged was said to be among the region’s most impoverished. Shortly after birth, a sudden stream of hate, the folklore said, flowed past his compound as neighbours and many callers at the residence glaringly displayed some measures of ill feelings and mockery towards the less fortunate parents and their child. This marked the beginning of the child’s virtual rejection by his peers and community. While his parents too did not help matter by failing to enroll him in school like other children in the neighbourhood of school age, his ordeals reached a peak when his skin grew with irritation and sores. He was literally abandoned. Few years later, the villagers who had not been privileged to see “real White men” got news from the village head that some foreigners would visit them. The jubilant community swarmed the village paths, market place and village centre; putting everything in good shape as part of preparation for the visiting dignitaries. At noon on the market day, four goodlooking men arrived in a Mercedes Benz car. The village centre had been adorned with various home-made spices and attires; as the community thrilled their guests with lyrics and dance. The villagers were thereafter informed of a new school the white men intended to build in the community.

Features

Peeping through the crowd was a visibly disturbed poor boy who might have thought that the people looked like him but wondered why they were goodlooking and he was not. Curious and dissatisfied, he attempted to have a closer look. This time, an angry woman shoved him into the front. As if that woman’s misconduct were providential, the visitors were able to see a different human being among the crowd. They looked at each other for a few seconds before one asked their interpreter: “What’s wrong with this boy?” The interpreter said the boy was an “Afin”, (not knowing the English name). The second visitor allegedly screamed: “I assume this boy is an albino. It is clear this lad lacks necessary care to live a meaningful life. Why this? Touched by the boy’s condition, one of them told the villagers what the folklore says remains one of the amazing tales in the community today. “My younger brother is an albino. My parents took good care of him, and today, he is an Aeronautical Engineer. In my country, you don’t see a human being in this state. This is so unfortunate,” the man said sadly. It took the villagers several years to believe there are albinos among the Europeans, even as destiny of poor Omodele was visited by luck as the White men took charge of his upbringing. Albinism is a form of congenital hypopigmentary disorder, characterized by a lack of pigment in the eyes, skin and hair. It results from inheritance of recessive genes. It occurs when one of several genetic defects makes the body unable to produce or distribute melanin, a natural substance that gives colour to the hair, skin, and iris of the eye. Albinism is a genetic disorder; it is not an infectious disease and cannot be transmitted through contact, blood transfusions among others. The principal gene which results in albinism prevents the body from making the usual amounts of the pigment melanin. Most forms of albinism are the result of the biological inheritance of genetically recessive genes passed from both parents of an individual, though some rare forms are inherited from only one parent. Experts say persons with albinism will have one or more of the following symptoms: absence of colour in the hair, skin, or iris of the eye; lighter than normal skin and hair and patchy or missing skin colour. Many forms of albinism are associated with the following symptoms: crossed eyes; light sensitivity (photophobia); rapid eye movements; vision problems or functional blindness. Experts also believe there is no treatment that can replace the lack of melanin that causes the symptoms of albinism. Doctors can only treat, not cure, the eye problems that often accompany this lack of skin color. One of the greatest health hazards for people with albinism is excessive exposure to the sun without protection, which could lead to skin cancer. It is therefore advised that wearing opaque clothes and sunscreen, people with albinism can safely work and play outdoors safely; as exposure of eyes to the sun too often could also lead to total blindness. To avoid giving birth to albinos, people with family history of albinism should consider genetic test at appropriate medical institution.

WORLD RECORD

Oldest driver - man

Vol. 02 No. 430

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

N150

There are two male drivers who were issued with new driving licenses at age 104: Fred Hale Sr (USA) (born 1 December 1890, died 19 November 2004) was issued with a driving license in February 1995 at age 104, and drove until it expired on his 108th birthday in 1998. He became the oldest living man in the world and died aged 113 years 354 days.

Again, the London 2012 Olympics probe

he London 2012 Olympics have come and gone but the last is yet to be heard of subsequent developments following the games. As usual, the Olympics offered moments of excitement as well as disappointment for people at different times, depending on individual expectations either met or not fulfilled. For those whose goals of participating in the games were achieved, they have reasons to look forward to another rewarding outing in future as long as they are fit and qualify to participate. Given the trend worldwide as usual after the games, would it be described as the appropriate thing to commit resources to probe at this stage when other countries have started in earnest, preparation of their athletes for the 2016 Games in Brazil? There are inherent dangers in the move by President

outh Africa yesterday wrapped up a 2-0 Investec series victory over England after the hosts went down by 51 runs on a thrilling final day at Lord’s. Chasing a record 346 to win and tie the three-match series with openers Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook already out,

TALKINGPOINT Seyi Fasugba

seyifasugba@yahoo.com 08053069514 (sms only)

Goodluck Jonathan to probe the failure rather than planning ahead what the programme would be to ensure that the failure of the last event is not repeated. The 1996 performance, which till date remains the country’s best, was hinged on solid preparation of the athletes even before the games. Looking back, that perhaps was the last time the athletes had ever been so handled for a major competition as the Olympics. But for administrative reasons, the purpose the probe was meant to serve is irrelevant if not to create a conducive environment for sports to thrive among the youths in the country. Investing in the youths towards productive engagements in sports has long been forgotten. A reorientation in this regard is not only desirable, but again, cannot be overemphasized. As often believed that the joy of the Olympics is to participate but for some it goes beyond that and the way to justify their involvement is to win laurels which in turn manifests in monetary value, particularly these days of lucrative endorsements for athletes of worth. Not all will win but for those who were able to, they have occasions to celebrate their achievements. The games come after every four years, thus giving athletes opportunities to effectively prepare before the next event. Therefore, the performance of individuals competing for their countries is a reflection of the standard of prepara-

THE JOY OF THE

OLYMPICS IS TO PARTICIPATE BUT FOR SOME IT GOES BEYOND THAT AND THE WAY TO JUSTIFY THEIR INVOLVEMENT IS TO WIN LAURELS tions within the spate of four years. The scenario could be compared to the performance of a class of students who enjoyed same access to quality lectures and lessons but due to their approach and preparations for examinations end up having different grades. Sitting under the same lecturers does not add up to success in an examination without the deliberate effort of the student to go the extra mile by investing time and resources in things that will guarantee excellent results. After the Beijing Olympics in 2008, the preparation for the next did not only begin in most countries without them accepting the responsibility to effect a change of fortunes four years later. Success in international sports competitions has gone beyond mere wishes, it is about taking calculated steps towards achiev-

ing a desired goal. This, without any doubt, has been the orientation in most countries which instead of abandoning their athletes until the start of competition, have been taking measured interest in their welfare and their preparations to ensure that victory is sure. Success in major events is not just a wish but what must be worked at vigorously. The composition of what makes for success did not reckon with inability to plan to achieve a set target. While luck may be important to the attainment of the set goals of an athlete, the major component, if not the overall consideration, is the commitment to serious preparation. The games as witnessed in London 2012 was the final stage of years of training by the athletes at different stages and in various competitions purposely to enhance performance and to ensure the attainment of the ultimate goal of securing an Olympic medal. Given the new dimension of the significance of victory in sports in international diplomacy, countries are gradually getting into overt and diplomatic backing for athletes to boost the rating and strength of their respective governments. After the games, various nations, including those who performed excellently well and those in Nigeria’s category of no medal to show, have started mapping out strategies for the games rather than looking backwards to apportion blames. The danger in Nigeria’s post-Olympic games appraisal is the distraction this will cause at a time attention should be focused on the next four years of planning to win medals. One major window, which exposed the colossal failure in London more than any of the previous ones was the non-appearance of the country’s football team in any of the events. With victory in the men’s football event, there would have been less criticisms of the failure so far recorded in the games.

Sport Extra Cricket: South Africa shines at Lord’s, bowls England England gave the tourists a fright before being bowled out for 294. Jonathan Trott, Jonny Bairstow and Matt Prior all struck half-centuries as England gradually closed on its victory target into the late afternoon.

When Trott (63) was sixth man out with the score on 146 it looked as though England would submit meekly, but Prior (73) along with Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann would have none of it. The trio lashed the ball to all

parts of the ground before Broad skied one, Swann was run out and Prior succumbed to the second new ball as South Africa took its place at the top of the Test rankings, with England dropping in the table.

Jean-Paul Duminy

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