BusinessDay 26 Apr 2020

The changing style of religious worship in times of COVID-19

Buhari needs another ‘Abba Kyari’

COVID-19: To trace or not to test?

Leveraging technology for social impact

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NPA vows to ensure terminals deliver on concession agreement

CAP posts N456m PAT in Q1 2020

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Fear of escalating COVID-19 numbers, insecurity, hunger puts government in quandary We do need to look at what can work for us – Oyewumi We must balance the lock-down with socio-economic issues – NECA DG Lagos looking forward to the relaxation of lockdown by FG – Commissioner

See page 2

Time to restore the ‘kingdom’ to Nigerians 11

A healthy Ramadan: Best foods to eat during the fasting period 21

LaLiga to resume behind closed doors as Covid-19 ravages football season 31

Noimot Salako-Oyedele, deputy governor (m), Ogun State, inspecting and listening to Tomi Coker, commissioner for Health and other Health officials at the inauguration of Nigeria’s pioneer protective glass box installed in the Ogun State Walk-in & Drive-through Testing Centre at the Ijamido Town Hall, Opposite Ansar-u-Deen Comprehensive College in Ota.

Garden City big ladies discover face mask fashion for COVID-19 Ignatius Chukwu

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fashion trend that may sweep across Port Ha r c o u r t a n d

other big cities seems to emerge as top ladies gear up for new wears and facemasks that would hit and define the fashion world any moment from now.

Coronavirus or COVID-19 hit the world hard since January 2020 with morbid fear of death. It also came with a crackdown on businesses and the way of life of human, but the

image of facemasks helped to make the virus a dreaded proposition. Many seemed not to like the fact that they would hide behind facemasks for any reason.

Images of very

important dignitaries especially presidents and leaders of countries around the world wearing masks proved that no man (or See page 20

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Lockdown dilemma CHUKA UROKO, OBINNA EMELIKE, JOSHUA BASSEY, INIOBONG IWOK (Lagos) and INNOCENT ODOH (Abuja)

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revailing circumstances, including excruciating pain of hunger, escalating insecurity, and the complaints and alleged discrimination in the distribution of palliatives and relief materials, where available, and above all, the frightening daily rise in the number of confirmed coronavirus cases appear to put government at all levels in a predicament over possible extension of the lockdown.

The present situation where hunger is biting, economy is bleeding and the COVID-19 numbers are rising has been described as a mixed bag of woes for Nigeria, which experts say demands careful handling at this critical moment.

Much as some Nigerians would want an extension of the lockdown, many others want a gradual opening of the economy so as to save people’s lives and jobs.

The proposal by the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) for a 14-day national lockdown is an entirely new dimension to the stay-at-home order and Nigerians are praying that the idea ends just at that level of proposal because, to them, that will be one lockdown too many.

Nigerians blamed the Federal Government that when on Monday, April 13, extended the lock down on the federal capital city (FCT) Abuja, Lagos and Ogun states for two more weeks, it failed to address the concerns of the people which bordered on hunger and insecurity.

The consequence of that failure was spontaneous. The people are now defying the order and taking to the street to look for what to eat while armed robbers have gone on rampage and become hard on their targets.

Speaking with BDSUNDAY, Ajibike Oyewumi, a consultant, Healthcare Quality Advisory at International Finance Corporation (IFC), said it was a dicey situation that demands carefulness in handling.

“People are calling for an end to the lockdown, I am totally sympathetic, I understand very well how people feel; it is a very difficult time and it is a very difficult choice to make,” Oyewumi said.

According to her, “If we lockdown people, those who are making their living on a daily basis, they are faced with hunger, at the same time if we ask people to go out then we are faced with a risk of increasing Covid-19, especially now that the pandemic is in the community, we are beginning to see community transmission.

“So, we are in a difficult situation and have a difficult choice to make.

However, we do need to look at what can work for us, because we run the risk that if people are

hungry they would not obey government and we don’t want to run the risk of any form of disobedient and civil unrest.”

Attempting a suggestion, the health expert said: “So, what can we do in this situation? We acknowledged what is being done and I totally feel they can do more.

So, one of them would be to increase testing, we are not doing enough, we are seeing some countries doing a lot of testing per day, I am not sure we are doing 10,000 per day. We do need to step up testing; we do need to be able to go take people where they are to places where they can be isolated to reduce the risk of infecting others.”

“Until we get to a point where we see the number coming down, then we are at risk. However, it is not about lockdown, we have a situation where people are living in overcrowded quarters; that in itself is a risk,” she also noted.

She further said there was the need to educate “our people; we need to do a lot more and the consequence of it and why the lockdown is necessary and the social distancing… Of course, the face masks are real and we have been hearing that they would produce face masks. Aggressive campaign is necessary; we have to encourage people to donate materials, which can be used to produce face masks.”

Timothy Olawale, director-general of Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), who spoke with our correspondent, said it has become imperative to balance the lockdown with socioeconomic issues which seems to be assuming worrisome dimension.

“I believe there is need to balance the lock-down with socioeconomic issues such as crime rate, increasing poverty and likely uprising or revolt of those in precarious situation,” Olawale said To have this done successfully, he suggested that the government would need to put in place stringent national policy as done in countries like Ghana and Germany.

“I suggest a relaxed lockdown between 8am to 4pm and curfew

between 5pm to 7am. For anyone that will go out, face mask should be made compulsory. Non-use of face mask should be criminalised,” the DG said.

Olawale further suggested strict enforcement of ban on interstate travels, while businesses should be mandated to ensure stringent protocols such as social distancing, provision of wash-hand area within their premises.

“In extreme case, businesses can be encouraged to do a roaster for their employees so that there won’t be more than a certain number of employees at work at any given time.

“There should be a total ban of religious, political and social gatherings, limited number of passengers in public and private transportation and strict enforcement of same, amongst others,” he said Muda Yusuf, the director-general of Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), told BDSUNDAY: “Lagos, for instance, is highly cosmopolitan, very mobile with high velocity of business transaction. About 50 percent of the Lagos economy is made up informal sector. One of the main features of the sector is that the operators live by the day. Keeping such a commercially active population indoors for a month is a great challenge.”

Yusuf posited that neither Lagos State nor the Federal Government has the capacity to manage the social consequences of a prolonged lockdown that could manifest in hunger, restiveness and insecurity, hence a prolonged lockdown is not sustainable.

Against this background, he said: “The option of partial lockdown should be considered. This should be preceded by a robust COVID- 19 risk assessment.

The LCCI DG, who argued that different economic activities presented different vulnerabilities, noted that in all cases, the observance of the COVID-19 protocols should continue under a regime of a partial lockdown.

At the level of Lagos State, Gbenga Omotosho, the commissioner for Information and Strategy, said the Governor Babajide

Sanwo-Olu administration was looking forward to the relaxation of the lockdown by the Federal Government, and once done, the state would roll out its economic recovery plan which is already being worked on.

“We didn’t lockdown the state, it was the federal that did. But we have our own plan. We’re redirecting our budget to reflect the situation we now have on hands once the lockdown is relaxed by the Federal Government.

“Our plan is to maximize the opportunities that this global adversity has presented in the areas of healthcare, medicine, information technology and science. We will see how the youth can be empowered to tap into these opportunities to better the economy of Lagos and grow its GDP,” said Omotosho.

The commissioner explained that the state hopes to achieve this by redirecting the 2020 budget in view of the sliding revenues- both internally generated and allocation from the federation account.

On daily basis, the number of people on the road, mostly the poor in the suburbs of the cities, keeps rising. These people, it seems, are unperturbed by the daily increase in the number of confirmed cases, especially in Lagos and Abuja.

This means that there are some fundamental or underlying issues the government is not addressing.

Bamidele Adeyeye is a sociopolitical affairs commentator. His brief discussion with BDSUNDAY on the wisdom or otherwise for an extension of the lockdown was quite revealing. “Why do you think the poor are unwilling to stay at home; is it because you think they want to die?” he asked rhetorically.

“Let’s open our understanding and analyze within proper context,” he added, saying that there are two issues now in Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. These issues he named as (1) Health crisis and (2) Hunger crisis.

Adeyeye said that while the rich are afraid of (1), the poor are afraid of (2), noting that the rich are pushing the poor to stay at home because they (the rich) believe that is what will save the situation and,

perhaps, save them as well.

“The poor are also pushing to survive as they know they may die of hunger and not the virus if they don’t take care. The rich, it appears, fear the virus and not hunger whereas the poor, it seems, fear hunger more than the virus. Each is fighting for his survival, only differently,” he said.

Adeyeye reasoned that if the rich are really serious, they should push their strategy further by feeding the poor constantly, not only once but twice, at least. “If they just keep crying ‘stay at home’, the poor may interpret that desperate mantra to mean ‘die at home’,” he posited.

Magarette Jolayemi is a consultant public health physician who does not believe that the country should be locked down forever, especially when the resultant effects of the lockdown—hunger and insecurity— are proving to be more deadly than coronavirus itself.

Jolayemi, while opposing an extension of the lockdown, canvassed more rigorous enlightenment of the people, explaining that many of the people don’t believe that coronavirus is real. “Government needs to engage these people through the churches, traditional rulers and even age grades,” she advised.

The consultant physician also advised that markets, churches, schools should reopen, “but we still have to maintain all the social distancing and personal hygiene directives by washing our hands regularly with soap and applying sanitisers. All these should be made available at strategic locations even in the markets.”

John Asogwa, who lives in Kubwa, Abuja is scared of the insecurity in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) just as it is in Lagos and Ogun, the three states that have been on lockdown for almost one month now.

Like in Lagos where all the city suburbs have been over-run by armed robbers, Asogwa says the residents of the satellite towns including Kubwa, Lugbe, Nyanya and Bwari live in fear. “It is no longer a case of one not sleeping at night.

These guys rob even in broad day light. It is scary and unsafe here,” he said, stressing that extending this lockdown means killing them quicker than coronavirus infection.

Though Francis Faduyile, president of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), argues in favour of an extension of the lockdown, he is of the view that government has to provide for the people, especially the poor who earn their income on daily basis to make them stay at home.

Faduyile is not comfortable with what, in his view, was “the politicisation of the palliatives”, explaining that there were political considerations in the sharing and distribution of the relief materials to the people such that a good number of Nigerians did not get anything called palliative.

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Corroborating this, Rose Igwizo, a non-native living in one of the South West states, lamented that where she lives, food items were brought for distribution but you have to prove you are an indigene before they give you something. “I did not get anything because I am not a native and they want me to stay at home. I am a widow; I have nobody to feed my children for me,” she said inbetween sobs.

As of Friday, April 24, confirmed cases nationwide were nearing 1,000 with 31 deaths with the numbers threatening to go up. The number of discharged cases has however remained at 197 in the last couple of days.

As of Friday April 24, the total test conducted by Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) since the beginning of the epidemic is less than 10,000. If this is compared to some neighboring countries, it is a far-cry, indicating that Nigerian has a lot to do to contain the crisis.

South Africa for example has mobile testing units to try and test as many people as possible and so far it has conducted around 60,000 tests for Covid-19, and is now testing at a rate of nearly 5,000 a day.

There are enormous challenges around the development of the tests, the cost of the test and the logistics involved but the nation need to intensify efforts in that regard.

The hope of any relaxation of the lockdown appears to have been dashed finally when the governors of the 36 states of the federation on Wednesday April 21 “unanimously” agreed to the implementation of an inter-state lockdown in the country over the next two weeks to mitigate the spread of the pandemic COVID-19 virus from State to State.

The governors, operating under the aegis of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), were said to have reached the agreement after receiving briefing from the Governors of Lagos, Bauchi, Oyo and Ogun States who shared their experiences and lessons from the fight against COVID-19.

The governors believe that the decentralisation of the COVID-19

response could present the best chance of curbing the spread of the virus in communities with over 25 States now affected by the spread of the virus amid more evidence of community transmission.

Responding to the grim situation, a public affairs analyst and legal practitioner, Kayode Ajulo, in his Memo to President Muhammadu Buhari on the lockdown made available to BDSUNDAY, said the sad reality is that the virus is now spreading within communities and even within the poor communities, hence, the necessity to explore desperate measures to curb the spread of the virus.

“There is no need belaboring the fact that the lockdown measure taken by the President and some other similar measures such as curfew implemented in some states are not without significant benefits such as reducing the spate of the spread of the virus, however, total lockdown risks a complete halt of economic activity across the nation.

“It suffices to add that more than a third of the Nigerian population lives below the poverty line.

While most of those live in rural areas and without access to basic

amenities.

“While we are uncertain as to when business as usual will be restored, if there is a need to completely lockdown the whole country for a long time, the potential death toll is unknown. Economic recession and deteriorating livelihoods mean impoverishment, malnutrition, worsened access to routine health services, and that in turn all means lives lost as well,” he said.

According to him, “What we have failed to understand is the fact that we can’t impose a lockdown like more developed nations, as there are many citizens who don’t have homes. Nigeria has limited resources to replace the incomes of citizens coupled with the fall in the oil price from which Nigeria derives 95% of its revenue.”

While commending the Federal Government for releasing palliatives and relief materials to some indigents in some affected parts of the country, Ajulo called for effective accountability on how the public funds are being expended.

“Government needs to invest in this and consider alternative means of giving conditional cash transfer through BVN to citizens like some

developed nations. We cannot tell people to stay away from work and make sure you stay hygienic when you don’t give them a way to do so,” he said.

Ajulo said further that “Government must focus on efficient testing, training and building capacity across board. Creating reliable infrastructure and employing principles of transparency and good governance will also be crucial.”

Similarly the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) last Wednesday warned the Federal Government against any further extension of the lockdown over the pandemic.

The labour union through its President Ayuba Wabba, issued the warning in a letter he addressed to the chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha.

Wabba noted that the situation would get out of hand if the lockdown exceeded one month.

“Within the first two weeks of the lockdown in some parts of the country, there were widespread acts of civil disobedience, inducement of law enforcement agents to gain passes and even various forms of violent crimes. No one is sure how long this dam would

hold,” he said.

The labour leader said its major concern is on the recovery of jobs, restoration of income, and sustainability of livelihood as the states under the total lockdown are the economic and administrative nerves centres of the country.

“The truth is that our economy might relapse into prolonged coma if the current lockdown in the nation’s nerve centres goes beyond the current extension,” he said.

Ikem Oti, an economist and public analyst, said that what gives him grave concern is the anticipated revolt by the hungry and tired Nigerians in the event of extension of the lockdown.

“In spite of the lockdown, crime rate is high because people are hungry. The extension will worsen the situation unless government changes strategy on delivering the palliative materials to those who need them, and the ones who are seen hawking at bus stops now”, Oti said.

Dare Okiki, a lawyer, said the government has not been fair in the distribution of the palliatives, hence many people who depend on daily bread would revolt if the lockdown is extended because hunger is biting harder and there is no help in sight.

“Government has not done enough to cushion the harsh impact of the lockdown on the masses as most families who depend on daily bread are suffering now. So, why will they obey government that does not care after their welfare. The extension will not be an easy one for everyone”, he lamented.

But if government relaxes the lockdown, Bidemi Adetunji, a medical doctor, said government would regret the action as the number of positive cases would skyrocket overnight.

“We have to do the needful to curtail the virus. It is sacrifice we must pay now to live tomorrow.

Again, we do not have enough medical facilities and personnel to fight the virus when it escalates.

We should learn from Italy’s experience and avoid it”, the doctor said.

News COVID-19: Police arraign 1,909, convict 1,736 over violation of restrictions in FCT ...43 others arrested for various criminal activities ...Arms and ammunition, 12 assorted vehicles recovered Innocent Odoh, Abuja

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he Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Command of the Nigeria Police Force has arraigned 1,909 suspects for violating the restriction orders imposed by the federal government in Abuja the nation’s capital to contain the rampaging Coronavirus pandemic.

The Commissioner of Police of the Command, Bala Ciroma made this known while parading 43 suspects arrested for different criminal activities in Abuja and its environs since the lockdown was slammed on the city about a

month ago.

According to the commissioner the 13 mobile courts set up to tackle the issue of violation has so far convicted 1,736 out of the suspects and set free 145 while 28 others had their cases adjourned for further hearing.

Ciroma said the convicted violators were sentenced to community service or asked to pay a fine as part of efforts not to congest the Correctional Centres.

“In the last couple of weeks, the Command has been on the streets enforcing the presidential lockdown order, to contain the spread of the COVID-19, which is today a global health issue. In the course of

this enforcement exercise, persons arrested for violating the presidential directive are arraigned before mobile courts,” Ciroma said.

The CP also admonished traditional, religious and community leaders in the FCT to support the effort of the government to curb the spread of the deadly virus, urging them to educate and enlighten their adherents on the need to observe the presidential lockdown order.

Ciroma noted that the Command has been very proactive in the protection of lives and property through measures put in place to combat criminal activities during the lockdown as well as playing a

key role in enforcing the lockdown directive of President Buhari.

“I am pleased to inform you that the Command within the period in focus has recorded commendable progress in its fight against crime. In compliance with the directives of the Inspector-General of Police, the Command has focused its crimefighting effort on crimes like armed robbery, Kidnapping, robbery, one chance robbery theft, housebreaking,” he said.

He said the command having intensified measures has busted suspected criminal gangs and within the period arrested 43 suspects for offences ranging from armed robbery, Kidnapping, rob-

bery, ‘one chance robbery’, theft and housebreaking.

Some of items recovered from the suspected criminals include; 10 vehicles, two Motorcycles, one locally made AK47 rifle, 8 locally made pistols, one Dane gun,37 ammunition, 11 cutlasses/jack knives/Cutters, three phones and others.

CP Ciroma also said the Command is determined to render quality service that would meet the policing needs of the FCT residents even as he enjoined the public to continue to collaborate with the Command to combat crime by actively participating in the policing of their respective communities.

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Sunday 26 April, 2020

News Appolus Chu takes over Oneh Eh Nchia stool in Eleme Kingdom IFEOMA OKEKE

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Donation: Mardi Mari Investment Limited team from its Aquadana Premium Drinking Water Factory Lagos presents a truck-load of bottled water to Lagos Food Bank as its modest contribution towards the fight against COVID-19.

L-R: Gurvinder Singh, head of Sales; Jide Osibajo, Sales representative; Geraldine Okpala, Sales representative; Emma (driver); Lanre Raji (driver); Mary Amaka Okpala, Sales representative; John; Shadrach Yacim, general manager; Samuel, and Sekhar Jayaraman, factory manager, during the donation.

Over 1 million people benefit from Refugee Zakat Fund - UNHCR …Urges more contributions amid COVID-19 emergency INIOBONG IWOK

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he United Nations High Commissioner f o r Re f u g e e s (UNHCR) has urged Muslims and other faith-based organisations to support refugees struggling to cope with the repercussions of the global COVID-19 pandemic through the Refugee Zakat Fund.

In a video statement at the official launch of the UNHCR’s 2020 Islamic Ph i l a n t h r o p y Re p o r t i n Qa t a r o n S u n d a y April 19th,2020, Khaled Khalifa, senior adviser and Regional representative of the UNHCR to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, emphasized that “in the countries where UNHCR operates, the COVID-19 pandemic is an emergency on top of an emergency.”

Th e Re p o r t , w h i c h highlights the impact of the Refugee Zakat Fund on vulnerable refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) across the globe, revealed that in 2019, the Refugee Zakat Fund received a total of

over US$43,165,000 million, including the largest ever single contribution made by the Thani Bin Abdullah Bin Thani Al-Thani Humanitarian Fund of over USD35 million which has helped to support a total of 164,696 vulnerable families (875,000 individuals).

The Report further reveals that other donations to the UNHCR Re f u g e e Za k a t Fu n d were from individuals, institutional partners and philanthropists, primarily from the (Middle East and North Africa) MENA region. These donations have helped provide lifesaving assistance to a total of 191,497 vulnerable families and 1,025,014 refugees and internally displaced persons in Bangladesh, Yemen, Iraq,

Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Malaysia and Mauritania.

Sh e i k h Th a n i Bi n Abdullah Bin Thani AlThani, founder of the Thani Bin Abdullah Bin Thani AlThani Humanitarian Fund, observed that “Displaced communities are, without a doubt, among the most vulnerable populations that require close and strategic attention from philanthropists wanting to make a serious impact on the state of the globe”. He further stressed that “The Muslim World has a historic opportunity to further demonstrate the significant role of Islamic social finance, and particularly Zakat, in humanitarian assistance, through extending a helping hand to the world’s displaced populations, while realising key Sustainable

Development Goals,” Expressing gratitude to the Thani Bin Abdullah Bi n Th a n i Al - Th a n i Humanitarian Fund, and all individuals, Foundations, financial institutions and faith-based organisations that have entrusted UNHCR with their Zakat, thus enabling it to reach over 1 million needy and displaced persons, Khaled Khalifa, emphasized that “Today, and in view of the current global health situation, more refugees will require our humanitarian assistance, and Zakat and Islamic philanthropy can have a significant impact in responding to these needs.”

Giving a graphic description of the grim situation of refugees and displaced persons worldwide, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi said: “Imagine trying to cope with this (the coronavirus pandemic) crisis with no access to soap and water to wash your hands. No hope of isolating yourself because of overcrowded conditions.

No shelter to stay safely inside. Imagine having to do this after already having been forced by war to flee your home and your family.

This is the tragic reality today

for far too many refugees and displaced families around the world.”

Faced with the urgent push to curb the risk and lessen the impact of COVID-19 outbreaks on vulnerable communities, the UNHCR had on March 25th, appealed for US$255 million, noting that funds were critical to urgently support UNHCR’s preparedness and response in situations of forced displacement over the next nine months.

The Refugee Zakat Fund was launched by UNHCR in 2019, as a trusted, compliant and effective distributor harnessing the power of Zakat to transform the lives of the most vulnerable refugee and IDPs, through partnerships and collaboration with Zakat institutions, foundations and philanthropists. The fund is backed by five fatwas (religious rulings) and is subject to strict governance, ensuring utmost transparency at every step - from donation to provision of assistance.

Since its inception in 2019, the fund is said to have assisted more than one million vulnerable beneficiaries worldwide.

hiefs, elders and stakeholders from the six clans of Nchia have unanimously chosen Appolus Chu, the Egbere Emere Okori Eleme and paramount Ruler of Ogale Eleme as the new substantive Oneh Eh Nchia.

Nchia is made up of six clans which include Alesa, Aleto, Alode, Agbonchia, Akpajo and Ogale.

These clans are made up of smaller communities headed by traditional Rulers and chiefs that form the council of chiefs and elders.

By this development, another superior stool which is Oneh Eh Nchia (King of Nchia) has been added to the stools being occupied by Appolus Chu which include: Egbere Emere Okori Eleme and Paramount Ruler of Ogale Eleme.

It was gathered that the tradition of Eleme permits a traditional ruler who has exhibited high level of performance and competence in the ability to lead and take responsibilities of the community to also be given higher stools in the event of a death or voluntary resignation of the occupant of that stool.

In a press release made available to newsmen, a

traditional title holder, Peter Olukanwi noted that the selection of Appolus Chu as the Oneh Eh Nchia is in line with the culture and traditions of Eleme as all the chiefs in the sixclansofNchia unanimously took the decision after due consultations.

“Today is a special day in the history of Nchia in Eleme kingdom. What has happened today is that the chiefs and stakeholders of Nchia haven considered the vacancy in the stool of Nchia, appointed His Royal Highness Dr. Appolus Chu as Oneh Eh Nchia”, Olukanwi added.

Ch u , w h o h a s b e e n in self-isolation as a result of the total lock down and restriction of movement in Lagos state, is expected to be back after the lockdown and covid19 pandemic to accept the mantle of leadership bestowed on him to lead the good people of Nchia.

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News REA boss stresses need for COVId-19: FCT community decries lack of FG’s palliatives increased energy supply …As group donates food items to 150 households

…Says, ‘power, major catalyst to nation’s development’

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Ngozi Okpalakunne

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anaging Director, Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Ahmad Salihijo has stressed the need for increase in energy supply throughout the country, describing power as a major catalyst to the nation’s development.

Speaking during an online training, tagged: ‘Opportunities in the Nigeria Electrification Project’, organised by the Association of Professional Women Engineers of Nigeria (APWEN) in collaboration with Nigeria Society of Engineers Victoria Island (NSEVI), Rural Electrification Agency (REA) and World Bank, Salihijo also encouraged private organisations to compliment the effort of government in ensuring increase in energy supply to millions of Nigerians without access to power supply.

“Government cannot do it alone; the success of the implementation of Nigeria Electrification Project depends on the partnership with the

Ahmad Salihijo

private organisations. So, I am encouraging private organisations to make use of the funding opportunities so as to light up Nigeria,” he said.

Suleiman Babamanu, acting Component Lead, Nigeria Electrification Project, who spoke on ‘Standalone solar home system component’, explained that the component aimed to enable millions of underserved Nigerian households and micro

enterprises access better energy services at lower average cost by supporting the private sector-led market development for standalone solar system.

Nigeria Electrification Project is an innovative programme to catalyse off grid development in Nigeria through the provision of grant funding, detailed market data and technical assistance.

Organisation urges countries to help save 400,000 lives from malaria amid COVID-19 pandemic IFEOMA OKEKE

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head of World Malaria Day marked yesterday, Saturday April 25, 2020, the global platform for coordinated action against malaria, the RBM Partnership to End Malaria, is calling on countries to act now to save almost 400,000 additional lives from malaria as the world grapples with the COVID-19 pandemic.

The RBM Partnership to End Malaria, along with global and regional partners, including World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, is urging leaders of malaria affected countries to take advantage of the critical window of opportunity they now have, before the rainy season, to save lives and prevent over-burdening health systems.

The call comes in response to a new modelling study from WHO, which

Innocent Odoh, Abuja

suggests that severe disruptions to insecticide-treated net campaigns and in access to antimalarial medicines due to COVID-19 could lead to a doubling of malaria deaths, potentially resulting in up to almost 800,000 malaria deaths in 2020.

According to last year’s World Malaria Report, approximately 400,000 people died from malaria, the lowest level ever in almost 20 years.

Whilst the ongoing pandemic places extra burden on low-resourced health systems, particularly in Africa, which carries 90 percent of the global malaria burden, as well as parts of Asia and Latin America, the malaria community is calling for these countries to safely continue life-saving malaria interventions that accelerate diagnosis and treatment at the community level.

These interventions include the distribution of longlasting insecticide treated nets and preventative treatments for pregnant women and children, who are most at greatest risk of dying from

a mosquito bite, and integrated community case management as part of essential health services.

Abdourahmane Diallo, chief executive officer of the RBM Partnership to End Malaria, said: “As COVID-19 spreads across the globe we must ensure that efforts to contain the virus do not compromise access to life-saving malaria prevention, diagnosis and treatment services.

“In 2018, investments in the malaria fight saved almost 600,000 lives and prevented nearly 100 million new infections each year compared to 2000 levels.

Divert this funding or place holds on malaria interventions that could be safely carried out now and we could see an exponential increase in deaths from malaria this year. In the face of COVID-19, countries must act now to save lives, protect hard-fought progress, and strengthen health systems—our first line of defence against existing and emerging threats to public health.”

esidents of Takushara community in the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have cried out that the much-reported disbursement of the Federal Government palliatives to cushion the impact of the lockdown on the FCT, occasioned by the coronavirus pandemic, has not reached the community.

Indications to this development emerged when the Skyewise Foundation, a multi-sectoral and human development-oriented organisation, donated food items to 150 households in the community to help them cope with the hardship during the lockdown. The Foundation, through its medical arm, also enlightened and sensitised the community on the basic health tips such as hand washing and social distancing necessary to curb the pandemic.

Speaking to reporters during the donation, President of the Skyewise Foundaton, Elvis Abuyere, said the Foundation was birthed from the act of giving back to the society, especially with the suffering coming from the lockdown.

“Since the lockdown, my heart has been bleeding; we have heard about the government palliatives but a lot of people have cried out that they have not been able to receive any palliatives. So, we said to ourselves there is something we can do to help our society and assist the government.

“We are doing this because we have come to re-

alise that the greatest illness in the world is empty stomach. If you want to reduce the number of sick people in the world, you have to give them food to eat, because even hunger kills faster than the coronavirus. So, that is why we are doing this and we will continue as long as we get support from other people and from government,” Abuyere said.

The youthful entrepreneur, expressed excitement at the number of people that turned out to receive the donations, saying, “Today, I feel so excited and this gives me a sense of fulfillment and a sense of belonging reaching out to people and they are happy just for food. Just imagine if we have much more to do for the community.

“This was what motivated me and with the support of everybody we can do better to develop the society. Gone are the days when we depended on the government, we don’t have to depend on the government anymore; we have to create something out of nothing to help young people to become self-reliant in the 21 century,” Abuyere added.

He also tasked Nigerian leaders to set perspectives and create enabling environment for entrepreneurs and philanthropists and empower them to do more for the country.

Responding, the Village Head of Takushara, Saidu Mohammed, expressed delight at the donations. “We pray God to replenish them and empower them to do more to reach not just 150 households but 500,” he said, even as he urged government and other spirited groups to also assist the community.

Some of the beneficiaries, who decried lack of Federal Government palliatives, expressed joy that the organisation came to the rescue with the donations.

Rilwan Shehu, Youth leader of the community, told reporters that “the lockdown has been very hard on the people here because most of us are farmers and those of us that are working; the government said that junior workers should stay home and we find it difficult to cope with life. The help from the organisation means a lot to the community, the organisation has done a lot to reduce the hardship especially the vulnerable and widows, we really appreciate. The palliatives from the Federal Government have not reached us up till now but the government asked us to make a list and we are hoping.”

Another beneficiary, Aisha Aliyu, who expressed appreciation to Skyewise, for the food items, said “we have not gotten palliatives from government; they should take care of the poor because we are suffering too much”.

Larai Muhammadu, who also benefitted, was full of gratitude to the foundation.

She however, said the community was yet to get the government’s palliatives. She also prayed God to deliver the nation from the rampaging disease.

Kadija Murtala a member of the community said, “Since this lockdown, the people have been suffering, they don’t go out to look for food, and they are just at home always. We have not received any palliatives from the government. So government has to come to our aid.”

Jumia, Coca-Cola in partnership to bridge supply gap SEYI JOHN SALAU

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umia, the e-commerce platform, has announced a partnership deal with global beverage company, Coca-Cola to provide access for consumers to shop for their essentials online as opposed to going to stores on the back of the lockdown occasioned by COVID-19.

The partnership is coming on the heels of Nigeria Centre for Disease Control’s (NCDC) directive, encouraging Nigerians to practise social distancing as a means of curtailing the spread of the coronavirus in Nigeria.

The partnership will see consumers get free shipping and also enjoy price discounts on selected products. The

partnership also extends to supermarkets,includingGame which now has e-ordering systems. Kolawole Osinowo, head, key account management at Jumia Nigeria, said the partnership was in line with Jumia’s “Stay Safe” campaign.

“We are proud to partner with Coca-Cola Nigeria Limited as part of our commitment to provide customers access to essential products during this challenging time,” he said.

According to Osinowo, Jumia strives to continue operating so that customers can stay at home, leverage e-commerce to shop and stay safe during the lockdown.

Osinowo opined that these initiatives show Jumia’s way of expressing its commitment to consumer protection, as well as an avenue to

encourage its consumers to practice social distancing by making online purchases of consumables, at convenient and more affordable prices.

Phoebe Larry-Izamoje, the franchise commercial manager, Coca-Cola Nigeria Limited, said COVID-19 pandemic has altered almost everything with regards to human interactions in the world.

“Considering the need for social distancing brought about by the pandemic, CocaCola, in its bid to help consumers have greater access to its products at less or no risk to lives, decided to partner ecommerce platforms to make its products easily accessible, bearing the cost of delivery and offering a discount to our consumers,” Larry-Izamoje said.

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News

PDP wants collective approach against COVID-19 ANIEFIOK UDONQUAK, Uyo

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L-R: Olorunimbe Mamora, minister of State for Health; Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Lagos State, governor; Ademola Adeyemi-Bero, chairman, Independent Petroleum Producers Group (IPPG), and Timipre Sylva, minister of State for Petroleum Resources, during the donation and handover of medical consumable & ambulances by IPPG to states in the South West Geo-Political Zone to fight coronavirus pandemic, in Lagos.

NPA vows to ensure terminals deliver on concession agreement of deploying infrastructure, equipment AMAKA ANAGOR-EWUZIE

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he Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has vowed that it would not leave any stone unturned in making sure that port terminal managers deliver on the concession agreement signed in 2006 with the Federal Government.

NPA, which serves as both the port landlord and technical regulator, promised to ensure that terminal operators deployed the necessary infrastructure and equipment needed to deliver efficient services to port users and ensure ease of doing business in the nation’s seaports.

Speaking during the commissioning of the two new multimillion dollars Mobile Harbor Cranes (MHCs) acquired by APM Terminals to boost service delivery at the Apapa Port in Lagos, Hadiza Bala Usman, managing director of NPA, promised that the authority would ensure terminal operators deploy the necessary equipment to facilitate trade within the port.

“We are here today to witness APM Terminals deploying what they have committed to providing and we shall continue to monitor to ensure that all the equipment is deployed. We encourage APM Terminals to continue their sustain improvement within their terminal and we look forward to providing the necessary support to enable them meet up international best practices in the port,” she said.

According to her, one of the key aspects of the regula-

tions that the NPA had been doing over the years was ensuring that every item in terms of infrastructure and equipment as contained in the concession agreement, were provided by terminal operators.

“Another thing that we have discussed with APM Terminals was the need for expansion of Apapa port to make sure that the terminal is able to take on the larger vessels that are being built globally. So, while we are improving service delivery there was need for expansion for long time recognition of the port,” she pointed out.

Usman further noted that the NPA recognises the fact that the terminal operator has brought in about nine cranes in the last three months following the letters that NPA had written to them, notifying them of the default in deploying sufficient equipment at their terminal.

She however stated that APM Terminals were also expecting about four additional cranes to bring the total number to 13. Noting that this would improve the capacity of the terminal, she added that the NPA would sustain its monitoring functions to ensure the terminal operator bring in the additional infrastructure, which they also need to deploy.

“It is imperative that terminal operators rise up to the obligation of investing in terminals in Nigeria and this was what we are following up on. One of the challenges had been that certain investment was not being done at a certain period. But, having drawn their attention to that in line with the fact that there

is a clause in the concession agreement that we can call back, they had risen up to the occasion by starting the $80 million investment within the period of three months,” she explained.

David Skov, head of terminals, Africa and Middle East region of APM Terminals, said that before now, the company had invested USD358 million (N150.36 billion) in port infrastructure development, information technology upgrades and modern cargo handling equipment to improve both quayside and landside operations.

“The additional investment we are making is to handle the increased trade volumes into Nigeria. Trade in Nigeria is growing due to the many favorable efforts and policies of the Federal government of Nigeria including but not limited to the policy on ease of doing business; stabilisation of foreign exchange; closure of the land borders which has increased the use of our seaports; and diversification of the economy,” he said.

According to Skov, the additional investment would create capacity to handle the growth in the economy, support the Federal government’s efforts on trade growth and improve service delivery across the logistic chain in Nigeria.

He said the acquisition of these new cranes, the terminal now operates with a total of 10 Mobile Harbour Cranes; 23 Rubber-Tyred Gantry Cranes; six Empty Handlers; 48 specialised Truck Terminals, six Reach Stackers and 11 Forklifts.

he People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Akwa Ibom State has urged all to join hands in the fight against Covid-19 as confirmed cases continue to rise.

Ini Ememobong, publicity secretary of the party gave the advice during a training session for journalists in Uyo, the state capital.

He said coronavirus could only be defeated by strict adherence to rules including the ongoing lockdown order of the Akwa Ibom state government.

He also stressed the need to be conscious of personal safety and hygiene. “We must kill corona virus before it kills us, and we can only do that standing together.

He said that the purpose

of a lockdown as explained in a new study from the Imperial College London COVID-19 Response Team, is to reduce reproduction – in other words, to reduce the number of people each confirmed case infects.

Mitigation would be slowed down, but not necessarily stopping epidemic spread – Suppression, or basically, lockdown, which “aims to reverse epidemic growth, reducing case numbers to low levels,” he said He however, identified increased inequality, increased poverty and extreme hunger Global unemployment as some possible Socio economic effects of the ongoing worldwide Lockdown.

Ememobong also listed learning gap, disruption in education, increased unprepared pregnancies,

increased inequality, increased poverty and extreme hunger as other possible effects of the lockdown due to Covid-19.

The guest lecturer, who further identified fear as a human emotion that is triggered by a perceived threat, used the occasion to appeal to journalists in the state to present their news stories in a way that would not trigger fear among members of the public.

“Fear is a basic survival mechanism that signals our bodies to respond to danger with a fight or flight response. As such, it is an essential part of keeping us safe. Fear weakens our immune system and can cause cardiovascular damage, please report in a way that would not throw members of the public to panic,” he stated.

Coronavirus: Oyo rejects bags of rice donated by FG, says they are unhealthy for consumption REMI FEYISIPO, Ibadan

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yo state government on Friday rejected bags of rice donated by the Federal Government through the Nigeria Customs Service(NCS) to the state, saying they were all infested and unhealthy for consumption.

Three trailer loads of rice totaling 1,800 bags were sent to the state as part of Federal gvernment COVID-19 relief materials.

The state government team, which received the items were: Executive Assistant to Governor Seyi Makinde on Agricbusiness, Debo Akande, Commissioners Ojemuyiwa Ojekunle (Agric), Bayo Lawal (Special Duties), Seun Fakorede (Youth and Sports), Faosat Sanni (Women Affairs and Social Inclusion) and Funmilayo Orisadeyi (Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters).

The committee on distribution of relief materials and palliatives that paid an inspection visit to the warehouse where the grains were kept however, said they had been infested with weevil and unfit for human consumption.

Debo Akande, the Executive Adviser to the governor on Agribusiness, noted that after taking delivery of the donated rice, a qual-

ity control inspection was carried out repeatedly and the donation has now been rejected.

According to him, “We received these items from the Federal Government via the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and we brought them to the warehouse and it is in the process of further inspection that we discovered that almost all the rice has been infested with weevils and some other materials and on that basis we formed a committee to re-inspect it and so that we can be definitely sure of what we have received.”

Speaking on behalf of the state government, Akande said: “We think this is not definitely in the position for consumption for human being at this point in time and at such the materials cannot be distributed as parts o palliatives within the state.

“We don’t want to start providing solution to a problem and then start creating another problem.

We have inspected it and done a random selection and we have seen that similar things apply across board.”

He stressed that the donated rice would be returned to the Nigeria Customs Service with the hope that it would be replaced with good quality.

The Executive Adviser further explained that the infested rice would not

affect plans of the state government to commence distribution of palliatives to the people, adding that distribution would commence soonest. “ Th e s i t u a t i o n w i l l not delay in anyway the planned distribution of the state government. We all know that a good number of food items have been received by the Food Security Committee of the Task Force and this has been itemised weekly even before we received this particular item from the source where we received it.

“We have received good number of products here and we have added it along with the ones the state government is putting his funding to support what has been donated by the good citizens of the state,” he said.

Akande added that it would be distributed in the next couples of days precisely, “because what we have done is to ensure that we put a robust system in place for distribution and that we have finalised with.”

Also, the Commissioner for Agriculture, Ojekunle Ojemuyiwa, while reiterating the position of state government, stressed that the wellbeing and healthy disposition of the people would not be compromised in the continuing fight to curtail further spread of the virus.

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Feature The changing style of religious worship in times of COVID-19 AMAKA ANAGOR-EWUZIE & INIOBONG IWOK

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ver the years, deep pocket churches and Muslim congregations have invested billions of naira in building various categories of edifices as church buildings and mosques to serve as place of worship for their members.

These edifices were so furnished and decorated that one never imagined that a Sunday or Friday (in the case of Muslims), would come without a single soul coming to the church or mosque to pray.

Nevertheless, with the emergence of the deadly coronavirus pandemic, otherwise known as COVID-19, governments all over the world were recently forced to enforce restriction on movements and other rules on social distancing that affected all religious gathering in order to contain the spread of the virus.

This global health crisis has forced faith communities and religious bodies all over the world to cancel weekly fellowship, and to adopt new ways of worship in order to keep members’ faith alive.

With this, many churches, Muslims and other religious bodies have left the multimillion naira edifices to change the style and format of their services by resorting to virtual or online style of worship in order to create opportunities for members to still communicate or interact with others while maintaining social distancing.

BDSUNDAY check shows that majority of religious bodies moved their traditional worship and prayer meetings online by carrying out online weekly gatherings as closely as possible while others created a multimedia experience that was streamed live to the congregation.

Presently, some religious bodies address members informally in front of a home altar, offering virtual procession even on Palm Sunday and incorporating old video clips of worship activities for members to reflect on.

In Nigeria, many religious bodies have closed their doors to worshippers, and have started broadcasting services over the internet, while others are conducting services for small groups only.

Here, changing the style of worship for some religious bodies especially churches were very easy because while such churches were investing in building of church edifices or prayer halls, they also invested in developing websites or television channels for ease of broadcasting of services.

While for others, it was a bit difficult because none of them ever envisaged that emergencies such as COVID-19 crisis would befall the world in such a manner that social distancing would be applied, and even affect church activities and prayer meetings.

For this category of churches, pastors have now resorted to transmitting Sunday services and other religious activities online through existing television and radio stations in compliance with the directive of government.

During his nationwide address on Monday, April 13, 2020, President Muhammadu Buhari noted that the coronavirus pandemic is no joke and that it had affected everything, including worship which is regarded as sacred.

Church Building “This is not a joke. It is a matter of life and death. Mosques in Makkah and Madina have been closed. The Pope celebrated Mass on an empty St. Peter’s Square. The famous Notre Dame cathedral in Paris held Easter Mass with less than 10 people. India, Italy and France are in complete lockdown. Other countries are in the process of following suit. We cannot be lax,” he said.

BDSUNDAY can recall that during this year’s Easter Sunday, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, governor of Lagos State and his wife, Ibijioke, were videoed watching the live broadcast of Easter service by The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) General Overseer, Enoch Adeboye, on Dove TV. Apart from RCCG, several other churches and religious leaders in Nigeria are also transmitting church service, prayer meetings and other programmes to their members across the country in the same method.

These new method of worship have now replaced the physical

Mosque

gatherings of members at their various magnificent and spacious auditoriums.

Perhaps, a new trend in town is that some Christian leaders and pastors have also adopted online payment of tithes, offering and other monetary obligations. Members of different denominations now receive text message on phone from their churches, informing them of a certain account numbers for the payment of tithes, offering and other religious obligations.

Some churches have also adopted the method of displaying banners in front of the church, notifying members of their financial obligations, and showcasing account numbers for members to make payment into.

“I attend one of the Pentecostal churches in town. Last week, I received a text message from my church informing me that I could pay my tithes, offering and financial commitment into the church ac-

count,” said an engineer, who gave his name as Emeka.

He said that he was shocked initially, which does not mean that he was against people giving to God. “But, in this era of lockdown, we have been home for a month and things have been very difficult such that people now struggle to eat,” he said, wondering where the church expected him to bring money from.

But the big question is what does this development mean for the faith communities all over the world?

Religious pundits believe that not going physically to church has no serious implication on Christianity especially at a time like this and even judging by the biblical teaching on Matthew 18:20, New International Version (NIV) which states “For where two or three gather in my name, there I am with them.”

The above Bible passage gave authority to individual families to build altar of faith in the comfort of their homes and God’s presence would be with them just like in normal church service.

In Saudi Arabia, congregational and Friday prayers have also been suspended in every single mosque in the devout country. The government also banned Muslims from entering the holy mosques of Mecca and Medina, while they would no longer be allowed to pray in the overflow areas outside their walls which is perhaps, the first time in living memory.

Mecca and Medina are the two holiest cities in Islam. Mecca alone draws around 5 million devotees every year during the Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages. In light of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Umrah has been suspended this year.

Just like Mecca, coronavirus pandemic has equally threatened religious worship, activities and gathering in several cities across continents globally.

As the holy month of Ramadan begins; heralding commencement of the fasting period, Muslim leaders such as Sultan of Sokoto and President of Jama’atu Nasril Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar 111 has warned that there would be no Ramadan lecture sessions and congregation prayers in mosques across the country.

According to the Sultan, this year’s Ramadan would be one with a difference, in view of the Covid-19

pandemic, hence everyone should pray at home with their families, as Muslims cannot afford to be reckless with their lives.

The sultan, therefore, recommended that Muslims should in addition to recitation of the Holy Qur’an, listen to Ramadan lecture through internet and other virtual means.

Noting that most Muslim countries have unanimously agreed to suspend public religious congregation in order to contain COVID-19 pandemic, he said the move was in tandem with the teachings of the Prophet.

According to him, “As Muslims, we are not however oblivious of the fact that death is inevitable, but we must not be reckless with our lives, Q2:195 is a clear testimony to that effect.”

“Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI) under the leadership of His Eminence, Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, felicitates in advance with the muslim Ummah on the month of Ramadan.

Unequivocally, Ramadan is the month of the Qur’an, the month of Du’a (supplication) and Dhikr (Allah’s remembrance), the month of Zakah and Sadaqah (giving poor dues and charity), and the month of Qiyamul-Layl (standing in the night for prayers).

“But due to the overwhelming eruption of the novel Covid-19 pandemic, the Ummah’s enthusiasm needs to be reinvigorated as against what obtains of palpable fear over the pandemic outbreak.

“It should be made known that all Salawatun-nawafil (optional and nonobligatory prayers), including Taraweeh, are originally preferred to be observed at home, even though it is Mustahabb (desirable) to observe it in congregation.

“To sum it up, there will not be the annual Tafsir sessions and no congregational Taraweeh in mosques, until when situation permits. We should therefore pray with our families at home and stay safe.

“Medical experts and mid-course Ulama’s advice on Covid-19 should be religiously adhered to. We must collectively shun the vituperations of extremists in thoughts and actions on any matter, as warned by the Prophet (PBUH).

“Most often, extreme position on matters of religion creates more dissent views and counteractions, which in the final analysis generates acrimony and animosity rather than solutions, and for all intents and purposes that isn’t the essence of the Islamic faith!

“Despite the challenges of physical and social distancing, Tafsir and other religious teachings could continue using various information technology (IT) platforms, such as Facebook, Skype, YouTube, Zoom, etc., to live stream preaching sessions. Reliable information and communication technology (ICT) professionals could be consulted for proper guidance,” he said.

The Sultan further said: “It is on this basis that the JNI calls on the Ulama’ to as usual make the fear of Allah their watch word, bearing in mind that knowledge is a trust from Allah and shall be accounted for on the day of reckoning, thus it should be handled with the utmost caution it deserves.

“Muslims should fervently pray for an end to the myriad challenges bedevilling the world and Nigeria in particular, and to also seek Allah’s interventions for better well-being and prosperity.”

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COVID-19: A disrupted reality

Frank Aigbogun

editor Zebulon Agomuo DEPUTY EDITOR John Osadolor, Abuja

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, OPERATIONS Fabian Akagha EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, STRATEGY, INNOVATION & PARTNERSHIPS Oghenevwoke Ighure ADVERT MANAGER Ijeoma Ude FINANCE MANAGER Emeka Ifeanyi MANAGER, CONFERENCES & EVENTS Obiora Onyeaso BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER (South East, South South) Patrick Ijegbai COPY SALES MANAGER Florence Kadiri DIGITAL SALES MANAGER Linda Ochugbua GM, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT (North)

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Soromidayo George George is chairman, UN Global Compact Network Nigeria (UNGCNN).

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he world has been thrown into chaos in the last couple of months with the detection of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV [SARS-COV-2]) in humans in December 2019 at Wuhan city in China. The message from the World Health Organisation was clear – COVID-19 is the biggest challenge we face in this century; therefore, actions that organisations take over the next few weeks and months will be critical.

Measures put in place will need to go beyond self-interest.

The fact that the coronavirus poses an unprecedented challenge which touches every facet of life and every human being is undisputed. Never has the world or its powerful leaders experienced such a daunting task of saving its citizens. The unseen enemy, as they call it, appears to have left many powerful listless and confused. While the race to find a cure is on, COVID-19 leaves in its tow countless number of dead people,

taking not only with it the life and joy of many but also leaving many fearful and psychologically fazed.

It is incredible to see how things can turn around so quickly. World leaders did not prepare for a crisis such as we are experiencing with the coronavirus. The impact of this current health challenge makes an unprecedented change in the way we live and interact. The fear is multifaceted and includes coming in close contact, unknowingly, with someone who has the disease but is not showing any symptom and also passing it on to others. This fear comes from a large amount of information we get on the virus daily. We have made the issue, rightly so or not, the central focus of our lives. The fear has propelled unhealthy and self-centred actions. Several people are buying almost every essential product such as toilet rolls and hand sanitisers from stores in a way and manner that has made these goods scarce and unaffordable. The fear is also more palpable because it is said that those with underlying health problems are more vulnerable and likely to be affected, which means that in countries where the healthcare system is frail, more precautions have to be taken.

The economy is also not left unaffected as many have been forced to stay away from work. Both small and large businesses have had their operations affected. It is important that this impact is recognised by the federal and state governments, so that they can understand how

to support these businesses to get back to performance and also ensure that many do not lose jobs or the incidence of poverty worsen than it already is. Nigeria cannot afford at this time to lose more ground economically.

The impact COVID-19 will have on large businesses will also affect the smaller ones whose survival is dependent on the economic viability of the supply chain of large corporates. The supply of raw materials which largely come from China has also been impacted and the ripple effect which we have begun to experience, as oil prices fall and governments establish travel restrictions in different countries, will have a more devastating effect on small businesses in emerging economies like Nigeria, resulting in more people living in poverty. In a recent UNU report, half a billion people are expected to be thrown into poverty as a result of the pandemic. This means that we need to strategically design policies that will mitigate this issue and stimulate the economy for growth within a disrupted world.

While COVID-19 poses a grave danger to many, there is light still at the end of the tunnel. We sincerely hope that the projections that Africa and countries like Nigeria should expect to see the numbers of those affected worsen will be the reverse. However, preventive measures taken by many state governments will only be effective if Nigerians fully understand how critical it is to embrace the advice given by WHO and other credible

health institutions. Antecedents show that cultural and religious beliefs often prevail to the detriment of scientific facts even with those who are supposedly enlightened and educated. Therefore, widespread communication on what COVID-19 is and how to prevent it is really needed at this time.

Small businesses may have to develop new ways to serve their customers who have been asked or forced to live in a different way by isolating themselves. While the social media sites are a good source of information on coronavirus, it will also help small businesses to provide some services to their customers, such as ordering groceries and have it dropped at the doorstep or providing other credible information to help those in need of medical assistance but cannot go out for one reason or the other. We have seen an increase in e-commerce and the logistics around the delivery of things purchased on-line.

Finally, while we take every measure and pray for the end of this plague, it is time to sit down and reflect on what we will do differently thereafter to mitigate the effects of what we now know to have enormous disruption on life as we know it. The proponents of sustainable measures that will ensure that the world takes due care of its environment and our social interactions and wellbeing have never been more right. It is time we take heed to the voices of reason and do things differently for the sake of humanity.

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Perspective COVID-19: To trace or not to test?

Leveraging technology for social impact

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he word “unprecedented” has probably recorded the highest usage in the past couple of months as it best describes the times nations across the globe find themselves. Nobody has a clear-cut strategy, and each day comes with new questions that require answers for direction. The truth is, we will all have to keep exploring, playing it by ear and weighing options until we reach a state of stability overtime.

On April 13, 2020 - His Excellency, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria announced a further 2-week lockdown directive across certain states of the country and Lagos being the epicenter was clearly not exempt.

The announcement left a lot of people distressed, especially the vulnerable groups who were already agitating for freedom of movement to pursue their daily means of livelihood. However, in light of global trends, it appeared to be the responsible action to take to my mind, for our collective greater good.

My domestic executive (housekeeper) was particularly exasperated that the government was being inconsiderate, as the palliatives provided were not getting to some people at all. According to her, it was better to let people go out to fend for their daily living as they would rather contract the virus and get treated, rather than die from hunger. Clearly following the news, and going by the number of recoveries reported, she inadvertently presumed it was an indicator that a treatment of sorts existed, and only accessible by the more privileged class in society. For her essentially, the situation was not dire enough to warrant a continued lockdown, as long as the same treatment would be provided to the vulnerable groups should they contract the virus whilst engaging in their daily “hustle”.

Realising that this thinking was perhaps shared by millions of Nigerians worried me. Poignantly, it brought to my consciousness the potential threat of a multiplier effect that could emanate from increased community infections, should this group of people espouse their faulty interpretation of the current situation. More disturbing was when I saw the statistics comparing the proportion of

Information minister denies absorbing Police of killing petrol attendant in Abia James Kwen, Abuja

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confirmed cases recorded in relation to the number of people tested across the globe, and Nigeria was at the bottom of that list. As expected, my immediate reaction was to wonder how our government and relevant bodies plan to increase the number of tests to be carried out in Nigeria.

Then came the eureka moment – in conversation with an AIG Scholar, who happens to be a young medical professional undergoing the Master of Public Policy degree at the University of Oxfords’ Blavatnik School of Government (courtesy – Africa Initiative for Governance). This young man was able to make me see that, in truth and by the looks of the figures being reported by the NCDC, maybe increased Testing was not a critical need for us as much as an efficient and effective Contact Tracing mechanism is. His rationale was this - “A true reflection of the burden of the disease is the mortality rate, and so if we are not testing and people are not dying mysteriously” – we are essentially fine.

Thus, my question: To trace or not to test?

Quite frankly, while I agree with the gentleman’s perspective in terms of a quick needs-assessment and surmise that indeed, an effective contact tracing mechanism will help manage the potential threat of an exacerbated transmission while making testing better targeted. Essentially, testing is still required, but should not be the

primary focus.

Contact Tracing according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) is a technique used to curb the transmission of communicable diseases.

It’s used to identify people who have come in close contact with someone who is infected with a virus and as a result are at high risk of becoming infected themselves and potentially infecting others. The first group of contacts i.e. the primary contacts are easy to identify, the challenge however, lies in tracing the secondary contacts that come in contact with the originally infected person through someone who made primary contact with the infected person. This is where technology comes in, to address the challenge of identifying the secondary contacts by taking a log of your movements thus parties the infected person has directly and indirectly come across, making the process more effective.

This calls to mind the reports from Israel regarding their Contact Tracing Mobile App – Hamagen which has contributed significantly to the effective management of the spread of the virus. Italy also, launched their Immuni App last week as a way to ensure the curve stays flat by nipping in the bud, the possibility of cluster infections.

The effectiveness of these Apps were solely hinged on members of society choosing to be responsible and volun-

tarily adopting them.

It was therefore heartwarming to see the pilot version of CommuniTrace, a Contact Tracing Mobile App developed by some young Nigerians, similar to what the likes of Italy, Israel, South Korea etc. have used to manage cluster infections. Like other countries, an App like CommuniTrace should help manage the extent of spread in communities through voluntary information from community members (anonymously provided so no data privacy risks) which will help the NCDC work even more effectively.

To further support the importance of contact tracing, the World Health Organization (WHO) recently outlined six conditions for lifting lockdowns to contain the spread of the coronavirus, and Contact Tracing cuts across the first three of these conditions.

As the WHO Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus put it - “This pandemic is much more than a health crisis. It requires a whole-ofgovernment and whole-ofsociety response.”

And on that note - I encourage you to please be your brother’s keeper, volunteer information to the appropriate quarters using available channels to help ensure the sustainability of our society.

At the end of the day, a society is really a sum of its parts, and we as individuals make up those parts.

he Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed has denied media reports credited to him that the Nigerian Police was not responsible for the alleged killing of a petrol attendant in Abia State.

Mohammed, while speaking at the Presidential Taskforce on Covid-19 daily press briefing in Abuja said that the petrol attendant was hit by an oncoming vehicle while the people were protesting against a tricycle that was allegedly hit by the police.

“What happened was that the policeman hit a Keke Napep and while the people were protesting, another oncoming vehicle hit the petrol attendant leading to his death,” he said.

But speaking again at the daily briefing of the Presidential Taskforce on Covid-19 on Friday, Mohammed denied that his response the previous day was to a last week similar incidence in Abia which happened on 17th April and not that of 5th April misconstrued by the media.

“I just want to make a clarification here, yesterday a gentleman asked about the petrol attendant that was killed last week in Abia State. My response yesterday was what happened on the 17th of April in Abia State being last week.

“Prior to that time, on the 5th of April, a petrol attendant was killed. But that was not the question I addressed. I found later in the evening a statement by NUPENG and I think it is important for me to make a clarification. The issue I addressed yesterday was the issue of 17th of April.

“I had the opportunity this morning also to confirm with the Inspector General of Police who also confirmed that something happened on the 5th of April but the culprit has been arrested and he is facing internal disciplinar y measures before he will be prosecuted. The question I was asked is about last week and not 5th of April”, he stated.

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Sunday 26 April 2020

Crime Watch Police woman shot dead in Rivers by colleague while rendering a helping hand ...She was saving trader’s wares from Task Force ...Only son, 4-yr-old Great, playing away, oblivious of any tragedy ...Husband, SARS operative, showing brave mind, away to inform his in-laws ...Sister says the woman had premonitions, almost not going to work ...The bullet cut her below the eye – Eye witnesses ...Why keke riders chased and caught some of the task force men

“

L

IGNATIUS CHUKWU ovender Elekwachi, woman sergeant in the police and mother of a four-year-old boy called Great, did not like the funny feeling she was having that day. She was on afternoon duty and was a regular figure at the Eneka Roundabout near Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on the road from Owerri through Igwuruta.

She told her sister, Beauty, that she was the only female on duty that afternoon and that she must endeavour to go. She left her Rumowa section of Eneka at about 3pm and kissed her only child goodbye.

The traders and others at the junction knew her too well; a jovial, honest and kind woman, she always intervened in disputes and always saved traffic offenders from trouble. But this day, as she approached the junction, she met commotion from afar.

Racing to the scene, Lovender as she was popularly called, saw task force men destroying wares of traders, one particular shoe trader was ready to die rather than surrender his wares to the task force men.

There is a law against street trading in the state; a law observed often in breach. Task force men complain that traders are too stubborn and insist on coming back after every raid.

The traders cry often that the task force men have found their wares as free shopping plazas.

There is distrust and hatred.

Lavender threw herself into the fray and begged the task force men not to destroy the wares but to allow the trader take them home because it could be his capital, his life. The woman was said to have been hitting the trader by the arm to give up so she could beg for him. This was when eye witnesses said a gun went off. And Lovender fell down, dead. The bullet cut her below the eyes.

Everybody scampered but some brave tricycle riders (keke) gathered courage and gave chase to the fleeing task force men and caught the police sergeant and two other members. One of the keke riders told BDSUNDAY that Lovender was a very nice woman and that was why he and others cared to risk their lives for her. “If it’s any other police person, I will not waste my fuel and run after them”.

The corpse was removed at about 5pm and the town was

The Commissioner of Police has ordered investigation into the matter with a view to unraveling the circumstances that led to her death and has appealed for calm, pending the outcome of the investigation, promising that the interest of justice must be served in the circumstance

in turmoil. Etche people around the area gathered in anger and sorrow. The evening of that Thursday, April 23, 2020, became one of high tension following the tragic news that a female police sergeant had just been shot dead at Eneka Roundabout where she used to control traffic by another police sergeant attached to one

of the task force in Rivers State.

This heightened the tension between the task force and the residents, a relationship underlined by suspicion and bloodshed.

Some residents and traders have been killed, but some task force members have also met disaster and death. It now looks like full scale war.

Killing of police woman in Rivers- picture 2.jpg

The state was apprehensive of how the police command would handle such a sensitive tragedy. The people had grown suspicious after the killing of Chima Ikwunado, a mechanic from Ikokwu area, by E-Crack team set up by the immediate past commissioner of police, Mustapha Dandaura, who hails from same town with President Muhammadu Buhari. The people felt the death of the mechanic was being covered up.

Now, the new commissioner of police, Joseph G. Mukan, who has urged the people to trust him, moved fast. A statement by the indefatigable but often embattled police image maker, Nnamdi Omoni, announced the death.

The statement said: “The W/ Sgt Lovender Elekwachi who until her untimely death was serving at Eneka Division, was posted to the Eneka roundabout on traffic duties. The late Woman Sergeant was shot while controlling traffic by Sergeant Bitrus Osaiah attached to the Operations Department of the Command.

“Meanwhile, the Sergeant who is said to be attached to the Rivers State Task Force on

Decongestion has been arrested, disarmed and undergoing Orderly Room Trial. Two other members of the Task Force have also been arrested and are being questioned. The Hilux vehicle belonging to the Task Force has been impounded and the corpse of the Woman Sergeant deposited in the mortuary.

“The Commissioner of Police has ordered investigation into the matter with a view to unraveling the circumstances that led to her death and has appealed for calm, pending the outcome of the investigation, promising that the interest of justice must be served in the circumstance.”

The timely statement seemed to douse tension as the public felt action was being taken, this time around.

When BDSUNDAY visited the compound where the police couple lived, there was crowd of sympathizers, even as the only son, Great, played away; totally oblivious of what has befallen him. The husband, a SARS operative, was said to have gone to Etche to brief the in-laws. It was not possible getting his reaction.

Th e o n l y s o n h o w e v e r, seemed in love with a gun-looking stick and seemed to parade with it. His play seemed to have police and military gaits to it.

Neigbours spent time recalling the kindness and goodness of the deceased who never wanted to see people suffer or make trouble.

Lovender died stopping misery and trouble on fellow humans.

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Politics Time to restore the ‘kingdom’ to Nigerians

W ZEBULON AGOMUO

hether now or in the distant past, politics has always been about striving for control of power, and no one wants to be in perpetual servitude. Freedom is always sweet. There was a time the disciples of Jesus met him and asked a critical question- “Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?” This presupposes that kingdom has always been the desire of the people but they need somebody with the capacity to bring it down to them.

Jesus’ disciples thought their master came for earthly kingdom and felt he was in the right position to liberate them. But the kingdom that their master preached was not the kind they hoped for.

Nigerians, in their feeling of despair, alienation and lack of fulfillment in the kind of leadership they have seen over the years are no different from Jesus’ disciples with their helpless question. That appears to be the singular question on the lips of many concerned Nigerians to President Muhammadu Buhari, concerning the happenings on the country’s political, economic and social landscape.

For some time now, particularly, in the current political dispensation, it has been said that a cabal, a group of powerful elements, who are not core career politicians, have been in charge of power in Nigeria.

This group, it has been alleged, has been the reason all the health and education sectors (in the main) are not working.

Rightly or wrongly, the late Abba Kyari, chief of staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, was accused to be the leader of the cabal. It was that perception that elicited the variegated responses to the news of his demise.

While many Nigerians believe Kyari deprived them of quality governance through the manipulation of power to favour few cronies, some other Nigerians, who claimed to know the late Chief of Staff intimately, were effusive in their eulogies.

They all spoke in tandem that Kyari was needlessly buffeted and that he received the bullets that were not meant for him.

Among a few Nigerians who saw him as a saint are Simon Kolawole, erudite journalist and chief executive officer of Cable Newspaper Limited; Geoffrey Onyeama, Foreign Affairs minister; Femi Fani-Kayode, a former Aviation minister, Sam Nda-Isaiah, publisher of LEADERSHIP newspapers, and Waziri Adio is the executive secretary of Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI).

If Kyari was innocuous as some people say now that he is no more, it meant that his principal clothed him in that cloak, wherein he exhibited a larger-than-life posturing and wielded power outside the precincts of the presidency circle, albeit to his detriment.

The workings in the Aso Rock Villa did not agree with the testimonies being bandied in some of the condolences scripted by those who claimed to know the late Chief of Staff very well.

If asked to pen his condolence mes-

President Muhammadu Buhari

sage, a former Minister of Health, Isaac Adewole’s may not be as flowery as those of the people listed above.

It was said that it was during his tenure in office that, for an alleged misunderstanding with Kyari, the Health Ministry was stripped of its right to make purchases for its needs. That was rather transferred to the Ministry of Agriculture. Reports have it that the situation remained the same until Kyari’s death.

“The perception of Kyari as a man with an insatiable power appetite who had the President of the Federal Republic in a closet is a great contradiction if not disservice to the image he created in his about four decades in the corporate world. And it is a tragedy that his entire career summed up in the mere five years of his power relations,” Niran Adedokun, a newspaper columnist, said.

Bukola Saraki, a former Senate President, suggested that an unnamed cabal might have edged Buhari out of executive control. Reacting to the barrage of court cases that he faced shortly after his inauguration, Saraki said: “However, what has become clear is that there is now a government within the government of President Buhari who have seized the apparatus of Executive powers to pursue their nefarious agenda.”

It wasn’t long after Saraki’s observation that Aisha Buhari, wife of the President, started seeing danger early in the life of the administration of her husband, cried out that some powerful elements had hijacked power from the elected president.

That was in October 2016, when, during an interview with BBC Hausa, a major broadcaster in northern Nigeria, Aisha claimed that “The president does not know 45 out of 50 of the people he appointed and I don’t know them either, despite being his wife of 27 years… some people are sitting down in their homes folding their arms only for them to be called to come and head an agency or a ministerial position.”

She also claimed that the views of “most” of the people that held positions in the government were not aligned with the President’s.

“They don’t know our manifesto, they don’t know what we campaigned for and they were not part of us,” she said.

On a number of times, the First Lady has had to speak out over being sidelined in the Villa. She had also alleged that two people were hindering the progress of her husband’s administration, challenging Ni-

Yemi Osinbajo

gerian men to stand up to the two people.

The president’s wife said this at a national women leadership summit organised by Project 4+4 for Buhari & Osinbajo 2019, a political group.

Although she did not mention the names of the two persons, she said they had dominated a government which emerged through the votes of over 15 million people.

“Our votes were 15.4 million in the last elections and after that only for us to be dominated by two people… this is totally unacceptable,” she said.

“If 15.4 million people can bring in a government and only for the government to be dominated by two people or three people, where are the men of Nigeria?

Where are the Nigerian men? What are you doing? Instead of them to come together and fight them, they keep visiting them one after the other licking their shoes (I’m sorry to use those words),” the First Lady had said.

In the estimation of many Nigerians, the current administration has neither delivered on the Change mantra, on the crest of which the All Progressives Congress (APC) rode to power in 2015, nor has it lived up to the Next Level promise it made to Nigerians in 2019.

For many, the current administration has only existed to serve a narrow interest of a few individuals. Since 2016, this has been the situation.

Fingers have consistently pointed to some individuals as those who have hijacked power from the elected President and wielded power according to their whims.

It was not only Aisha Buhari that believed that wrong people had hijacked power at the Presidential Villa, Oluremi Tinubu, a senator representing Lagos Central Senatorial District, at the National Assembly, said in February 2018 that the sidelining of her husband, Ahmed Bola Tinubu, whose singular efforts gave rise to the party that fielded Buhari in 2015, was very disappointing.

She complained that her husband was “trashed” after the party won the 2015 election.

“He was campaigning, I did too. We were running three campaigns in my house; and for him to be trashed like that? But I saw somebody who has love for this country. I hate to speak because when I stand in the front of God, I don’t want, because of this man, go to hell,” the senator said.

According to her, “occasionally, I would chip in and I would say, ‘You’re still helping out? Why are you helping out?’ He would say, ‘This country matters to me more.”

After the revelation on the hijack of power and the relegation of Tinubu by the powers that be in Abuja, it was noticed that the National Leader of the APC was no longer visible at the seat of power.

Preparatory to the 2019 general election however, it was said that President Buhari drew him back once again. But, Katch Ononuju, an Abuja-based public affairs analyst, alleged that the cabal in government used blackmail and threats to compel Tinubu to work for the return of President Buhari to power for the second term in 2019.

The same cabal that allegedly operated under the shadows of President Buhari were said to have bared their fangs against Yemi Osinbajo, vice president and a professor of law.

In the first tenure of the government, the Vice President was a star figure and probably the most eloquent and articulate voice behind its policies, but shortly after the re-election, the voice of this ardent champion got drowned.

Things started to change for the worst in the corridors of power at the Villa, when on Monday, September 16, the Presidency announced the replacement of the Economic Management Team (EMT), which Osinbajo chaired, with an Economic Advisory Council (EAC), to be chaired by Professor Doyin Salami.

That move, according to observers was said to have opened the floodgate of the vicious anti-Osinbajo campaign. The EAC has since continued to report directly to the President.

There were also alleged moves to reassign some top aides of the Vice President from the Presidential Villa to some Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

In fact, some of his staffers were sacked.

The developments intensified the speculations that the cabal was out to “curtail” the VP’s powers by excising some agencies under his supervision.

If these developments were terrible for the Vice President, then it was a disaster when an alleged Memo from the Presidency came directing the Vice President to henceforth seek presidential approvals in the running of the agencies under his supervision. At this point, it was not in doubts as to the feud between the Vice

Continues on page 12

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Sunday 26 April 2020

Politics 100 days of unparallel faithfulness to campaign promises Francis Chukwu

F

riday, April 24, marked the 100th day our God-sent governor has been at the helm of affairs of our noble state, Imo. First and foremost, we acknowledge God for the resounding victory He bestowed on His servant, the Executive Governor at the Supreme Court.

Indeed, power and authority belong to God. With that landmark verdict, His Excellency swung into action in a swift manner in a bid to restore the lost glory of the state mindful of his 3R mantra which is anchored on Reconstruction, Recovery and Rehabilitation.

Although, these 100 days have come with a lot of political turbulences, simmering tensions and unforeseen circumstances, His Excellency has been able to weather the storms with a calm but cheerful disposition. In the face of many orchestrated distractions, His Excellency has remained resolute and undeterred in the vision of making Imo the primus inter pares (first among her equals).

Thus, within the shortest timeframe, His Excellency has taken a giant stride forward towards a redefinition of governance. In the first place, this administration has shown its commitment in the area of continuity. His Excellency has made payment to all contractors handling construction works awarded by the immediate past administration.

Currently, massive road constructions are ongoing around the state: MCC, Control to World Bank and Umuguma, Akwaakuma to Onitsha Road, Naze to Road Safety and Uratta, Opara Anozie Street, Naze to FUTO to mention but a few. On a similar note, His Excellency has ordered a massive rehabilitation of failed strategic portions of Concord Avenue, New Owerri, Orlu Road, Bank Road, Wethedral, Opara Avenue and a host of others.

Additionally, the governor has en-

Hope Uzodima

sured prompt payment of salaries to civil servants. He has also reinstated the civil servants who were unjustly relieved of their duty by the previous administration.

To enthrone accountability, this administration embarked upon the correction of the irregularities in the pension system and the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR). This has immensely contributed to the unprecedented increase in the IGR of the state. This administration has also unmasked a ghost working syndicate which has ripped the state off in the past. By so doing, His Excellency has succeeded in closing off leakages of the state resources. Similarly, this administration has taken bold steps in the recovery of both the state and LGA funds looted by the previous administrations.

Furthermore, faced with the challenges posed by COVID-19 pandemic, His Excellency has proven himself as a leader who is capable of safeguarding the lives and providing for the social welfare of his subjects. His Excellency believes in the sacredness of human life. In his words, “Ndu bu isi (life is paramount). For this reason, he has put extra measures in place in order to curb the adverse effect of this pandemic. As part of his relentless efforts to contain this malady, he quickly constituted a rapid response team. The state was equally fumigated in the safest manner possible. Afterwards, he established a World-class Isolation Centre within the shortest period of time, citing that his vision for the healthcare excludes no one, be they poor, rich, young, old. All

have equal rights. His Excellency understands that the means through which he can realise his lofty ambition of “shared prosperity” is only when Imo citizens are in robust good health. For him, “Health is wealth.” His urgent steps and strict adherence to the guidelines provided by the World Health Organisation and the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control has saved lives and as a result, Imo Sate has not even recorded a single COVID-19 case. Relying on the grace of God, we know that we shall remain secure.

Moreover, to checkmate the economic hardship occasioned by the precautionary lockdown, His Excellency has sought for ways to alleviate the burdens of the Imolites. Sequel to this, His Excellency made procurement of certain essential commodities as palliative measures to cushion the effects of COVID-19 in the state. Up to the present moment, these stuffs have been dispatched to all the 27 LGAs for onward distribution to the Imolites in full compliance to the objectives of the Governor.

On another positive note, His Excellency has broken the jaws of criminality, insecurity and other social vices in the State with his unprecedented moral and financial support to the security agencies. Upon the ascendance of His Excellency to the governance of the state, he speedily provided the various security outfits in the state with vehicles to ensure prompt response to criminal activities.

Likewise, His Excellency has revived Imo Adapalm, and restored public water supply. The list of the achievements of this fresh administration goes on and on.

Ndi Imo, in the words of Paul, the Apostle of Christ, “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable … is worthy of praise” (Phil 4:8).

• Chukwu, special adviser to Governor Hope Uzodinma, writes to applaud his principal on the occasion of his 100 days in office.

Time to restore the ‘kingdom’ ...

Continued from page 11 President and elements within the Presidency, who had allegedly hijacked power.

A source insists that “it would be hypocritical to claim that the Office of the Vice President was enjoying a robust relationship with the late Chief of Staff.”

Reliable sources claimed that Osinbajo’s rising profile at the time was said to be threatening the cabal allegedly led by the late Kyari and others with serious grudge against Osinbajo who, BDSUNDAY gathered, had vowed to leave no stone unturned to diminish him.

Kyari got more arsenal, as it were, to deal a deadly blow on perceived enemies when President Buhari, while inaugurating his cabinet, ordered the new Ministers to submit any request meant for him to his Chief of Staff, and all executive matters to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha.

It was alleged that the wall of enmity at the Villa got cemented following some of the decisions Osinbajo took that made

him popular when he acted as the President while President Buhari was away on medical vacation.

First, against all the calculations and interests of the Aso Rock cabal, Osinbajo had confirmed Justice Walter Onnoghen as the substantive Chief Justice of Nigeria, the first southerner to be appointed into that exalted office in nearly 30 years.

The cabal did not like that and they plotted and eventually advised Buhari to remove Onnoghen before the election through ways many lawyers considered as unconstitutional. Onnoghen was accused of not declaring his assets and was suspended on controversial circumstances. His independent-mindedness is said to have scared the cabal. Onnoghen had presided over Supreme Court judgments that did not favour the cabal, notably that of the former President of the Senate, BukolaSaraki.

Osinbajo sacked the former DirectorGeneral of the Department of State Services (DSS) Lawal Daura after it was discovered the former DSS boss spear-

headed the invasion of the National Assembly to allegedly effect a change of leadership. This was considered a “cardinal sin” by the cabal as Daura is said to be a prominent member of the cabal.

Osinbajo went ahead to appoint Matthew Seiyafa from Bayelsa State as Acting DSS Director-General. But in a swift move Seiyafa was removed by President Buhari and replaced with Yusuf Bichi, who had already retired. This appears to show the desperation in the cabal to keep all sensitive positions to the north and to their fold.

Perhaps, the most devastating blow Osinbajo unleashed on the cabal was his public denial of the RUGA policy meant to settle Fulani herdsmen on land belonging to indigenous people of Nigeria. This, according to a Fulani politician, who wished not to be named “was like a hot knife that cut through their hearts” as the RUGA policy was perhaps the most important agenda of the Fulani cabal which President Buhari was yet to deliver to them.

It has been alleged that the President has been slow in implementing the recom-

mendations of the EAC. Could it be that the advice and recommendations of the EAC were not having the desired effect, principally because of possible conflict of interests? It was said that the likes of Kyari held socialist ideas, which economists strongly believe have not helped the nation’s economy under Buhari.

MKO Balogun, CEO, Global PFI, who saw the constitution of the council as a fulfilment of the yearnings of Nigerians that believed the President needed some strong people on the economy around him, had observed that “the team is the best you can think of at this time of national development with key actors in Nigeria’s economic development agenda in the council.” It would be advisable for the President to put into effect the advice of the EAC without wasting more time.

Analysts also suggest that the President should restore the vibrancy of Osinbajo, who was effectively the face of the government in the first term.

The country belongs to Nigerians and power should return to the people.

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Politics Nigeria in search of political, economic strategy to build resilient and vibrant economy Michael Aderohunmu

R

eassessing economic development strategy means government must re-think policies and charts deliberate pathway for long time development. It is very likely that economic scholars will be intrigued by the diverging performances by various countries in the Southeast region of Asia.

Before the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, the trade wars between the United States and China had already changed the trajectory of International trade in favour of countries that have strong internal structures to sustain economic growth. Indeed, economic sustainability is going to be one of the most important issues of the coming decades for Nigeria’s economic development.

In reality, the capacity to manage resources efficiently must be achieved and sustained to support economic transformation.

Nigeria is in need of political and economic cohesion to set up efficient economic systems in order to achieve sustainable development. If we examine the effects of COVID-19 pandemic vis-a-vis the state of Nigerian economy, then we will realise the reasons for inaugurating economic sustainability committee by the Vice President few days ago to think of how to build resilient and vibrant economy, Saddled with the responsibility of how to re-configure the national economy, the committee will have to first accept that

population is a key factor that drives the economy, because, in real fact, “trained and healthy” population bring fresh talents and innovation into the economy.

With COVID-19 pandemic around, we observed the impact is broad and global, as matter of fact; these are challenging times for businesses with serious financial impact in various sectors of the economy.

Concerning Nigerian economy, the absence of closed circuit economy mechanism to support national economic development process even in time of challenges is a major constraint. Example, Nigeria is practically in need of foreign technical support in every sectors: Engineering and technical schools have not impacted the industrial sector, lack of basic amenities is greatly affecting most sectors to perform optimally; health sector services are poor due to inadequate infrastructure. Besides, we need foreign partners in construction sector to provide necessary road networks infrastructure; electricity the heart beat of any nation’s economy, has to come from Germany, China, America, Malaysia, etc.

The COVID-19 pandemic exposes the deprivation of a safety net and protection for Nigeria’s economy. Nigeria, like many other oil exporters in Africa and Latin America, has watched the price of Brent crude move down wards from $70 a barrel in January 2020 to less than $30 in the third week of March 2020. Low price of oil further aggravate rising inequality, especially for those working in the fabric of economy’s

“informal sectors” with no social protection. Once again, Nigeria is caught in the net of international economic conjecture, confronted with the constraint of dwindling oil revenues for financing sustainable economic development.

As Covid-19 pandemic continues to dominate the news cycle globally, we have another opportunity to use this crisis as a way to understand how to develop our economy differently. This requires a rethink of what governance is all about. Rather than politicising economic fundamentals, government should move towards actively putting in place power for SMEs to create vibrant internal markets to deliver sustainable and inclusive growth.

Government should also ensure that partnerships with business involving government funds are driven by public interest and consider the followings: First, governments must invest in structures, and in people through institutions because it is the people that add values to economy. But this will involve long-term investment to strengthen the nation’s economic systems, reversing the trends of recent years of high rate of underemployment.

Second, governments need to identify sectors that have quick and direct impact on the economy with practical approach to develop into local market growth. And it is equally important to focus on how to better coordinate research and development activities, steering them towards national economic goals.

Third, governments need to support SMEs to become economic apparatus to create more opportunities for youths through innovative projects. These are in addition to defined economic sectors objectives and priorities to make sure both citizens and the economy benefit. Precisely, power (electricity) is a sector that receives billions from the public purse. The large public funding going into power sector, that means governments still have to play a major role in the process to ensure adequate provisions, supply is safeguarded and profits are reinvested back into innovation, rather than siphoned out to shareholders.

Long-term sustainable and inclusive growth is the driving force for poverty reduction in developing countries. We are amazed by the rapid growth path followed by some countries such as Chile, India, Malaysia, Thailand, and more recently Vietnam, where the industrialisation process quickly transformed their subsistence, agrarian economies lifted several hundred million people out of poverty in the space of one generation.

The current COVID-19 pandemic, the most serious one since the Great Depression, calls for a rethink of economic policies in the health sector. It is therefore, a good time for political leaders of our country and economists to reexamine economic development strategies as well.

Dr. Aderohunmu, development economist is also president, Nigeria-Malasia Business Council.

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Sunday 26 April 2020

Interview It takes special orientation to move with trend in new media — Arunaye While the current coronavirus pandemic has driven many Nigerian youths into violence in efforts to navigate the hardship occasioned by the outbreak, Newton Arunaye, a graduate of the Federal University of Petroleum Resources Effurun (FUPRE), and Petroleum Training Institute (PTI), has turned his passion into profitability, delving into the entertainment media space. After studying Electrical Electronics Engineering, his desire to project budding talents in his neighbourhood pushed him into starting an entertainment blog—Legit9ja— which has now gained recognition. From Delta State, Nigeria, Arunaye talks about his little beginning and staying afloat during the ravaging pandemic in this interview with DESMOND OKON. Excerpts:

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hat is Legit9ja all about?

Legit9ja is an online hub with a deep passion and curiosity for Entertainment, youth, and pop culture. It is dedicated to reporting, analysing and creating trends around music, lifestyle, events and all other extensions of present-day culture, including daily articles.

What inspired the birth, and when was it established?

Being the founder, I have always had a passion for entertainment from my childhood. I also felt I could tell the stories of the young talents around me who are trying to showcase themselves to the world. I took it seriously during my school days. Officially Legit9ja started on the 23rd of October, 2015.

Did you receive any funding or investment?

NO. What is the achievement so far?

It has been really eventful in rewarding records. Legit9ja.com emerged the best entertainment hub of the year in the just concluded Peace Legend Awards 2019 held at Oriental Hotel in Lagos.

Three times winner of Best Entertainment Blog at Warri Entertainment and Recognition Awards (WERA) in 2017, 2018, 2019 respectively. Just a few months ago, the maiden edition of our Concert, tagged ‘Legit9ja Showcase’ held at Legend Bar, Ajah, Lagos. It was a total shutdown. Bigger projects cooking to be unleashed soon, to mention but a few.

What is the unique selling proposition of Legit9ja?

Promotion and appreciation of entertainment lifestyle remain our edge ahead of others. More than music.

How do you plan to compete with bigger news/entertainment platforms?

We are never a believer in competition! Information is key; our map is to continue to improve our readership by bringing entertainment to the finger tips.

More so, we do not intend to compete but to join make the media authority in putting out credible information and also

showcasing talents to the world.

Credibility of news in the media space is key to success; how do you plan to make sure information from Legit9ja is trusted by readers?

Since the inception, perspectives gauged from our readers show we are guided by truth in reportage. Over the years, Legit9ja employs creative and vibrant reporters who understand the rudiment of communication.

We put out contents verified with proofs directly or indirectly from the sources, social media accounts, and also by reaching out to the person concerned.

Is there an area of entertainment Legit9ja intends to focus on as an edge to others?

Apart from being an entertainment hub of information, we have embarked on showbiz and this we promise our fans across board from year to year. Any moment from now, Legit9ja will be streaming live on television screens as part of 2020 resolution. So, we will continue to focus more on the Music, Celebrity lifestyle and news.

What were the challenges when starting and how did you overcome them?

The initial challenge was finance and also having a voice in the society, and consistency showed it was getting better.

About the App, what was the need for the App? Tell us more about the App? In bid to making information mobile-friendly for our readers, we decided to launch Application for both Androids (OS) and Apple (IOS) devices which has been made available on Google Play Store. The application is to get closer to our users to easily get feedback and engagement.

This application has been made faster with notifications to inform users of any updates around the entertainment industry.

The Covid-19 pandemic; how’s it affecting your business, workers?

The outbreak (Covid-19) has really caused so much damage to all facets of life; the new media is not left out. So many important appointments have been turned down as a result of the outbreak of the coronavirus. Every worker/

Newton Arunaye

hustler is now left with the option to work at pace, this continues to bring delays at all levels. In that entertainment as a business deals in person-to-person appointment.

What decisions have you made since the outbreak of the virus?

Of course, preventive measures were taken despite all tight schedules; it was really disheartening understanding the dispersal. Kudos to Lagos State and Federal Government at large that showed prompt response in attacking the epidemic.

The major challenge people face now is the clamour for survival in that the government should try and see to their support this period.

Other youth like you are out there scrambling for food and constituting a nuisance to society, would he say starting the blog has helped you out of poverty?

Being a professional entertainment/new media hub entails so much, when you are good at what you do, definitely the reward will come. I have paid my dues trying to deliver many talented artistes out

there via my promotional offers.

What prospects do you see in the entertainment industry?

Entertainment industry at large has evolved, from the mainstream to new media, now the digital way. It takes special orientation to move along with the trend, many entertainers find this so difficult.

In that, going digital is faster in outreach but requires more capital expenditure.

What is your vision in the next five years for Legit9ja?

Legit9ja is no longer small entertainment hub; we are now big beyond our tentacles. Just few weeks ago, we launched our mobile-friendly application to suit both Android (OS) and Apple (IOS) devices. Immediately after the Covid-19 outbreak, we will be shocking the world in a digital way. Legit9ja TV is underway, stay updated.

What drives you as a young entrepreneur?

The need to put the talented acts around my environment to the world has always been my dream.

OVID-19 Lockdown: Human rights lawyer urges FG, govs to check police, military brutality KORETIMI AKINTUNDE, Akure

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o ra k i n y o O g e l e, a n Akure-based legal practitioner, on Friday called on the federal government and state governors to quickly address the issue of police and military brutality to Nigerians in the face of the ongoing lockdown.

It would be recalled that on April 15, 2020, the enforcement of the Coronavirus lockdowns in some states, especially, Anambra, Ebonyi, Delta and Kaduna turned bloody, with at least 21 people shot dead.

Ogele, in a statement made available to journalists in Akure, maintained that there was no part where it was mentioned in the stay at home order that citizens seen on the streets should be arrested or be brutalized.

“Since the proclamation of lockdown in some states in Nigeria the law enforcement agencies detail to see to the effectiveness of the order have engaged in cocktail of brutality and bloody implementation of the order.

“In the process of arresting the defaulters, security enforcement agencies went haywire in that the death toll in one day outnumbered the death in connection with the pandemic itself.

“It is on record that extortion is not left out, this is equally carried out with impunity. The governors in their effort to checkmate the spread of pandemic only instructed the security agencies to see to the observation of the order,” he said.

The human rights lawyer, therefore called on government, state governors, the Inspector General of Police, Muhammed Adamu, and the Chief of Army Staff, General Tukur Buratai to call their men to order saying security agencies should operate within the constitution.

He said, “We must say emphatically that the security agencies have gone beyond their limit, they are now security risk rather than to see to the safety of the masses.

“It is very barbaric primitive and crude for these agencies to the masses as their enemies.

“In their uncivilized operation, they assaulted health workers, journalists and some others rendering essential services.

“We must put them on notice that if the brutal operations are going on unabated the masses may be forced to challenge this brutality.

“I call on President Muhammadu Buhari and states governors to check the excess of impunity corruption and highhandedness by the security agencies to stop the killing of masses.

“Security agencies should display decorum and respect human rights in the discharge of their duty in maintaining law and order while enforcing the lockdown.”

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Issue COVID-19 and recapitalisation of Insurance companies in Nigeria (Part 1) Akin Oladeji-Johnbrowne

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he regulatory environments in different part of the world are undergoing changes. Some of the changes are government induced while others are induced by natural phenomenon, the terms known as force majeure in legal parlance. Most recent changes and never contemplated are Saudi Arabia -Russian oil politics and Covid-19 of which both have influenced the world economic order. These changes are germane to financial marketactivitiesofwhichregulatory agencies all over the world are being proactive. Nigeria should not be an exception. The financial market regulatory agencies in Nigeria must as a matter of urgency take a second look and or review subsisting policies before it is too late.

Intentions of most regulation are either to benefit the society, business environments and or their stakeholders. For instance, the Saudi-Russian oil politics is to protect the production output of Saudi Arabia and Russia respectively due to falling price of crude oil. Similarly, the Prudential Authority of United Kingdom recently urged restraints on payment of dividends or cash

LifeGuide

with Emem Nwogwugwu

bonuses to senior staff, including all material risk takers as COVID-19 pandemic wreaks havoc on financial markets and undermines loan forecast. Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) too announced some policy measures to douse the adverse economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy.

Oil politics and Covid-19 are virus in the business and regulatory environments. A virus is a scientific term for organism that will enter a healthy cell in a living organism and duplicate itself to create more benefits or damages to the host organism. If the definition of virus is adapted to subsisting regulations in Nigeria business environment, it becomes easier to understand why regulatoryagenciesshoulddoanholisticreviewofsubsistingregulations to achieve the intended objectives contemplated for the growth of the economy. The basis of this write up is on recent world economic challenges and how it affects implementation of recapitalisation timeline of insurance companies in Nigeria. The author is of the view that timeline set

by National Insurance Commission ofNigeria(NAICOM),thoughoriginally feasible, is now a regulatory stillbirth and unrealistic. NAICOM should therefore abandon the recapitalisationtimelineandpostpone it to a date, to be determined based on post COVID-19 effects on world

economies.TheProvinceofOntario Canada has said that the COVID-19 pandemic could last 18 months to 2 years.

The reasons for the postponement of the recapitalisation timeline are not far-fetched. First, Nigeria economy is currently at a new challenging time since 2008 financial meltdown.Beingahighlydependent oileconomy,theSaudi-Russiaoilpolitics and resultant oil glut is affecting the prices of crude oil and earning.

Nigeria crude oil is selling below $24 per barrel as against $57 budgeted in 2020.Standard and Poor lowered Nigeria rating from B to B-. Similarly, Moody and Fitch gave lower rating for the country. The investment rating of Nigeria is declining significantly due to obvious perception of the country in not meeting debt service obligations due basically to lower revenue expectations. The Nigeria default risk rating is now very high. Institutional investors are exiting the local stock markets and appetites for debt and equity are gradually becoming weak. Investmentsinequityanddebtinvestment areconsideredhighlyriskyandspeculative. Hence most of the intents to investininsurancesub-sectorshares have weakened.

Second, the oil glut has affected the budgetary expectations of the country and quoted companies on the Stock Exchange. In 2019, Nige-

08033455364

ria Stock market exchange all share index posted a negative return of -14.6percent to close the year. In a report by ProShare, a leading stock market analyst, it was reported that “Nigerian Stock Market closed March 2020 in red as market witnessed intense sell pressure during the month under review. The NSEASI dipped by -18.75percent as against-9.11percentlossrecordedin the month of February 2020 while the NASD USI closed southwards with -1.10percent loss recorded at the end of the month under review asagainst+0.26percentlossinFebruary 2020. Furthermore, the NSEASI ended Q1 2020 in the negative territory with -20.65percent loss recorded as against -1.24percent loss in Q1 2019 while the NASD USI closed the quarter southwards with -0.69percent loss recorded as against +2.31percent gain in Q1 2019.It is pertinent to state that the -20.65percent loss recorded in Q1 2020exceedsthe-14.60percentloss reported in 2019 and -17.81percent loss in year 2018, respectively. The huge drop cannot be disconnected from the high level of uncertainty created by the outbreak of the COVID-19 which is now a global pandemic”.

Substantial discount are being offered on future oil contracts. Hence, the assumptions upon which profit forecast in Insurance sub sector are

made are no longer achievable. The stack reality is that there is no more attraction in investing in the debt and equity market. Institutional and portfolio investors are likely to be withdrawing their underwriting position from most insurance companies.

Third, the global economy is in recession and African countries are seeking debt relief and forbearance of interest payment. In a meeting of Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), it was proposed that a longer period for debt relief was imperative given that the global economy had entered a period of a synchronised slowdown, with recovery only expected after about 24 to 36 months.

African Finance ministers appealed todevelopmentpartnerstoconsider debt relief and forbearance of interest payments What is good for NAICOM at this period is to have a rethink on recapitalisation propositions of insurance companies, listen to informed opinion of African Finance Ministers, World Bank and ECA to postpone the recapitalisation to at least 36 months.

Dr. Oladeji-Johnbrowne, a Fellow of Institute of Chartered Accountants, Institute of Taxation Nigeria and Securities and Investment Institute, United Kingdom,iscurrentlybasedinCanadaas anindependentEconomicPolicyAdvisor.

Emem Nwogwugwu is an entrepreneur, author, life coach and certified project manager.

For over a decade she has been working to motivate people to live their best lives.

Productivity tips to stay sane during the lockdown

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ealing with a global pandemic can be traumatic for many people. More than ever people need to make intentional decisions in taking care of their mental health in this season and even in the post COVID-19 We are humans must find safe ways to stay productive and healthy. We have to find ways to cope with what is going on, you have to understand that as human beings we’ve been created to find coping mechanisms in dealing with issues that affect humans right from the very beginning of the planet. Today I would be sharing Productivity tips with you today and how you can stay sane during this lockdown season.

Daily planner- take charge of your life and day Create a detailed schedule on how you want your day to go from when you wake up you start by saying your affirmations positive declarations speaking positively into your life has great effect after that you can take out time to work out for 30 minutes and you can also create a healthy nutritious menu within your financial budget, at this time knowing that a lot of families are facing financial hardship and organisations so you might want to cut back on high expenses. Also take note your nutrition has a role to play with your mood. You can order a copy of my book,

it’s a planner.

Plan your healthy meals ahead Decide what kind of snacks you would love to eat in the morning, decide on the group of foods that are healthy for your body, decide the kind of snacks you will like to eat in the afternoon and also your dinner so you can create a menu for yourself and also plan what your snacks would be what kind of snacks are healthy for your body at this time and make the appropriate food decisions before you go grocery shopping, buy them ahead of time make sure you understand the kind of drinks that your body needs, do not feed your body with fizzy drinks because they are not healthy and are full of sugar, you can make healthy smoothies ahead of time put them in your freezer and then drink them when you have a need for them. They can help curb cravings.

Workout daily Find healthy activities within your home like gardening. You can use old buckets, if you don’t have a flower pots.

Make sure you make out time to work out at least for 30 minutes a day you can take long walks within your home environment in a safe place and still observe the social distancing. Working-out is so good because it helps you release those feel good hormones into your body and it

makes you happy, it also makes you feel self-motivated. When you workouts it gives you a positive outlook on life.

Creativity You can create greeting cards for your friends and love ones, online version or paper.

You can write a book a new book some of you have been trying to write a book for years and this is a good time to start your Chapter 1 of that very book.

Learn a new skill You can also learn a new skill at attend online webinars and take some online courses.

If the lock down is affecting you financially and terribly to the point that you can feed, I would advise that you learning new skills quickly online and find ways you can become a freelancer so you can earn an income you can write proposals for organisations and for SME’s, you can become a video editor for entrepreneurs or big organizations who want to put out marketing content on social media.

You can learn these skills quickly on YouTube, Coursera, EdX.com, Udemy App and many other learning sites.

Become a freelance writer You can become a sales copy writer for Businesses, because a lot of people that would have to develop content for their

products online.

Staying sane is finding ways to cope and thrive in these times.

Learn to forgive Learn to forgive any hurt, you might be dealing with prior to COVID- 19 or even any pain or disappointments you are dealing with right now.

With the lockdown and restrictions comes for ‘’some people’’ other forms of traumatic emotional experiences like anxiety, domestic disagreement’s, stress and for some people depression.

Unforgiveness should not be added to the list because it can affect your health in the long run. It’s healthy and medically advisable to forgive as it will help to improve your mental health, no offense is your worth your mental and emotional wellbeing.

Be Courageous at heart- With the loss of jobs for many globally and companies shutting down, you really need courage to stay sane if you have been hit by any of these terrible issues. Be hopeful, there is still life and you will make it through with a positive mindset and can-do spirit, there is nothing you cannot achieve.

We believe in creating a Work-Life Integration Structure For Organisations And Families. Think productivity and human capital, development, Think La Pax Life Project.

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Sunday 26 April 2020

Feature

Young Nigerian CEOs training to rule the world

How Junior Achievers (Nigeria) is creating future CEOs, alleviating poverty in Niger Delta

...Has so far reached over 200,000 young people in the region ...Targeting students and the under-privileged to stir undergrowth of entrepreneurship business leadership

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IGNATIUS CHUKWU unior Achievers (JA) is a global group trying to fight poverty from a basic point of view by building business leaders at young age, at school age.

Junior Achievers Nigeria is the Nigerian wing that seeks to create future CEOs and business leaders who would give instead of asking for jobs.

The Programmes Manager, South-South/South-East, Emmanuel Oturu said in an interview that Junior Achievers Nigeria (JAN) is the nation’s largest non-governmental organisation dedicated to preparing young Nigerians to succeed in a global economy. As a global organisation, he said, JA delivers a unique experiential programmes focusing on the four core areas of entrepreneurship, financial literacy and work readiness which ignites spark in young people to experience the world or business and realise the opportunities and realities of the 21st century. In Nigeria, he went on, it is committed to building financial and entrepreneurial mindset in young people aged five to 27 across the six geopolitical zones.

Oturu said JAN is actually a nongovernmental organisation. “We are part of the JA world family with the mission of educating young people to become conscientious business leaders. We achieve this by implementing economic programmes that develop attitude needed for personal success and social responsibility of the individuals,” he said.

According to him, “Our core goal in JAN is to build a bridge between the classroom and the workplace so as to increase employability of young Nigerians, and to be recognsised as leader in production of high quality of entrepreneurs and financial literacy in Nigeria. We seek to develop the ability of young Nigerians so they

Emmanuel Oturu, regional coordinator, Niger Delta region

can compete effectively in the global market place. We tend to foster socially responsible attitude and spirit of patriotism among successful business leaders and companies operating in Nigeria.

This is to alleviate poverty in Nigeria by empowering the socially and economically disadvantaged.”

He also said that the group contributes to the development of busi-

ness attitude in Nigerian youths.

“Our vision is actually young conscientious leaders leading a vibrant economy. The goal is to raise young people that would not just be entrepreneurs but would be entrepreneurial in their thinking to lead a vibrant economy,” Oturu said.

On what JAN recognises as poverty in the Niger Delta, an oil region, he said: “First, there is no

definite way of defining poverty but we can talk about those that are either socially or economically disadvantaged. Our programmes are not just for private schools but we focus on a lot of public schools in the Niger Delta by doing an 80/20 programme implementation strategy.

“By this, 80 percent of focus schools are public schools. The rest 20 percent is either missionary or private schools. We believe that most young people found in public schools may be those whose parents can’t afford to pay tuition.

We look for such schools and teach them entrepreneurship. An aspect of our work is teaching digital literacy and financial literacy and entrepreneurship.”

He mentioned key programmes of JAN in the region. “We have been doing many programmes. In the past few years, we have been partnering with the CBN every year to implement what is called the Financial Literacy Day in the Global Money Week. It is a week dedicated to teaching young people in schools about financial literacy.

It comes in March each year. The COVID-19 crisis has affected the one for 2020.

“We operate in the 11 states of the south-south and south east.

We run projects and programmes in these 11 states, including the financial literacy day, the company programme which is one of our programmes. It is about teaching young people practical ways of running a business. It is for those in SS2 who come together, set up a company, design, write a business plan, come up with a brand name, a particular product, market the product and either liquidate or sustain their company the following year (beyond that particular programme year).

“We have had situations where students finished and after the competition, went ahead to continue with their businesses. In the

Niger Delta, we had in the past nine years; we have been holding our regional company of the year. We have been very consistent and we have had winners from different schools. The students have gone ahead to invent amazing products.

“We have had students that used pure water sachet to design strong goalpost. We have seen students that developed apps for mathematics, recycled waste to make wealth, and manymore.Inthepast20years,other programmes have been running, but for the past nine years, we have been runningCompanyoftheYearproject.”

Oturu further said: “We have reached about 995,000 young people in the past 20 years. In the 11 states of the Niger Delta, we believe we have reached over 200,000 students. In the Niger Delta, we have a lot of young people that we engaged but over the years, some have gone to the universities and some outside the country. We have Chidiebere, now a student of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike.

He was part of GSS Elekahia. The skills he learnt during our career success programmes that we did in partnership with GE in his school transformed his life. That while he was seeking admission, he started working in line with what he intended to study at school. Now, when he is on break, he comes back to his work. It helps him build experience, “Blessing Ogor of the same school now in final years shared her experience and testifies that through the experience she produces bags, beads, ear rings, etc, selling to her course mates and was making money to support herself in schools. Chukwudi Okoro who has finished from ESUT has a similar experience. When he was part of Junior Achievement at a day school in Enugu, he learnt to make hairs and his company produced hair creams. He showcased that during the competition and as an undergraduate, he was making people’s

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Feature

Simisola Nwogugu, executive director, JAN

hairs. He lost his father while at school but the skill took over.

“Dickson is a young man that finished from Government College Umuahia but could not secure admission immediately because of the challengesthefamilyhad.Hedesired to study engineering. What he learnt during his Company Programme, he decided to meet a mechanic and learntforfree.Helatergotadmission tostudyengineeringandnowknows how to fix cars and is at Michael Okpara University in Umuahia.”

Talking about other activities of the Junior Achievers, the Programmes Manager said: “JAN has another core programme called Venture in Management Programme (VMP) where NYSC members are engaged and trained in a one-week mini-MBA session in partnership with the Lagos Business School. They trained to be effective managers and given a lot of other skills both in management and in people relationship. We have had amazing testimonies from that programme.

“In summary, some of the persons passed through JAN schemes are now using it to perfect their chosen careers especially in company management, skills and entrepreneurship.”

Giving the position of affairs in JAN, the regional boss said the vision shown by the present CEO, Simisola Nwogugu, in transforming the place to digital operations had helped much. He said now that the world can hardly come face to face to execute tasks, the digital training is coming handy by working online.

“Now, young people sell shares, come up with product design, etc.

A lot of them are moving from physical to online sales of their products, from physical engagement to digital engagements.

“We have programmes from primary school to NYSC level. We

have JA More than Money, JA Our Nation, My Company, My Region, JA Entrepreneurial, JA Company programmes, JA Career Success, and Lead Camp sponsored by Union Bank for girls that participate in our Company Programme. We host them in Lagos (all expense paid by the sponsoring bank).

“We also have two of our major programmes called Out of School.

There are some schemes in Lagos not yet in the Niger Delta. We train females at Holy Rosary College in Port Harcourt in partnership with Master Class. We have a scheme for young girls that are vulnerable and train them. We plan to expand some of these programmes in more cities in the Niger Delta,” he said.

He also said there is huge hope for the future of the Niger Delta going by the potentials in the young ones especially their hunger and determination for entrepreneurship and business management.

“First, last year, JAN in partnership with ExxonMobil developed a programme called ‘Our Niger Delta Region’ which was specifically designed and tailored to the Niger Delta.

“Out of our experience over the years, we wanted to teach young people non-oil resources in the region. We realise that a lot of times, the young people are too oil-focused. So, we teach them that there is more outside oil and gas.

We make them understand and appreciate a lot more about the Niger Delta resources other than oil: human capital resource, sand, forestry, plants, herbs, wildlife, etc that are hugely untapped. That is where we at JAN developed that particular programme that solves unique problems in the oil region.

“It makes them get to realise that there is actually to the region than oil/gas, youth restiveness, etc. There is more to make out of

the region. We also teach creativity.

We realise that there is hope for the Niger Delta by looking at the numerous inventions of our students, the excellence of their thinking, and manner of executing their projects at this level. The future is actually bright for the Niger Delta.

“A lot of people do not know that the Niger Deltans are actually naturally entrepreneurial. There is this myth that they are not. Our meeting with the younger ones has proved that they are deeply entrepreneurial. If you go back many years you discover that they had a culture of waking early to do fishing and do farming and also work out how to make money out of their enterprise. What we now do is to inspire them to go back to entrepreneurship.

“Beyond going back to it, we are helping to shape a mindset that will make them run sustainable ventures. We find that because the people here start entrepreneurship in adult age, they can’t afford to take serious risks. That’s Jan comes in and train them at secondary school stage, make their mistakes, learn the lessons, and rebuild. By the time they are out of the university, they can now use their experience in JAN to construct and run better sustainable ventures.

“When you look around you, we find that many businesses are failing because they were not equipped earlier. With JAN, we are able to engage them early. They will understand some of the risks and learn how to mitigate those risks and run more successful businesses.”

He mentioned opportunities for ex-participants to continue to learn and network. “At the JA worldwide level, we have the JA Gather where all former participants of the programmes in all nations can sign up and share their experiences and learn a lot more. At JA Nigeria, we have a string alumni engagement platform and Alumni Leaders in the various states and at the national level with a coordinator keeping track of them. We used to have alumni events where they encourage one another and meet professionals to talk with them.”

He said the organiation has achieved has not been only by their efforts. “We have a board with members that have been enthusiastic for JA programmes in Nigeria. The great works of the executive director to increase the tempo of the work she is doing.

The education boards of the various states who allow us work with public schools.

“Volunteers who drill these students until they become better business leaders are very important to the scheme. It’s not just in the knowing but in implementing what is known. Knowledge is only power if it is put to work,” he said.

For the works in the Niger Delta, he mentioned companies such as First Bank, ExonMobil and Total E&P as well as an NGO called Anguz Partners which he said is supporting them in Imo State as focus.

“Sellyfac Energy Limited supports us too. Google supports us in our events too. City Bank supports our company programme in Port Harcourt while Slumberger and Sigma Pensions help us in Enugu with Agile Communications helping in publicity,” he further said.

Buhari needs another ‘Abba Kyari’

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BUNMI MAKINWA

hose who admired the late Abba Kyari, former Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, praised him loud and clear. And those who hated him have resoundingly castigated him and his actions. The tributes reflect public perception and feelings about a person who stood out as the key figure of the administration.

Perhaps, more than anyone in government, the late Kyari defined the Buhari government and carried out its mission seriously and correctly. The tributes reflected this much.

As an un-elected official, he was uncharacteristically well known without making public appearances; unusually famously labelled and categorised by the public without saying much; and generally attributed superior authority and great influence by all including the spouse of his principal.

As Nigerians wait for the choice of a possible next chief of staff, several names are circulating. No matter the guesses and suggestions, one issue that looms largest is that Kyari served Buhari as the president wanted to be served. Kyari consistently spoke for and interpreted the president to all who he came across. Kyari’s appointees served during his principal’s first and ongoing second mandate, unless he chose not to keep them.

Still relying on the tributes, the conclusions are, without prejudice, that Kyari ran the government and the country very well for Buhari. The president confirmed his confidence in Kyari by reappointing him during the second mandate. The president needed Kyari, perhaps more than Kyari needed him.

Given the conclusions above, the next chief of staff will have to be another “Kyari” – meaning a Kyari-like personality. He does not have to be a look-alike in physical and material ways. But he must be similar to the former chief of staff in mind, spirit and temperament.

Some key characteristics of Kyari that Buhari will seek and prioritise in his choice of the next chief of staff are as follows and you should consider them as you weigh your interest in the job: The health problems of Buhari impose certain physical limitations on his activities. The presidency is not a part-time job, and it places great physical burden on the occupier of the highest office.

It is not publicly known whether the health conditions impair other faculties of the president. No matter the facts, the president must be shielded and cushioned from formal and informal demands of the office that may jeopardise his health. The new chief of staff must manage, deploy, arrange the presidency in name and style of his unseen and absent principal.

Very good educational background is important. Whilst what was studied may count for little,

attendance of notable educational institutions is critical. The candidate’s former colleagues and mates will form a band of supporters that testify to his strengths, character and personality when he was in school, no matter how irrelevant such testimony may sound relative to today’s realities.

In all choices of key positions in government, families and friends are prime choices. Occasionally well-known people make the grade. Others when appointed to important positions must keep perpetual social distance from the president. And such people will act only within the wisdom of the known but unwritten rules of loyalty. Critics and advisers who do not share prevailing visions must never be allowed any merits.

All defence, security, and intelligence posts are made with hundred percent “cultural sensitivity”.

The appointments are important in the fight against Boko Haram insurgency. They are useful to reduce corruption, but only as defined internally.

The work of running the presidency is hard and demanding. The candidate should be on top of all issues no matter how it appears in public as if he is not. Hence, appearances must be a cool exterior whilst interior is boiling with tactics and definite agendas.

The candidate must seek no publicity and obvious attention.

The more the silence, the better the options that can be applied as the situation demands. Do not show your hand quickly. Even when there is a lot of noise, maintain a poker face and stay impassive. Distance is important from the public. The political campaign has stopped the day the results of elections were announced.

Have a lot of room to wiggle.

The space to take a stand or make a u-turn on issues and decisions grows bigger the longer the silence by the presidency. At times, the issues will simply disappear, no matter how loud the noise is.

Know how to buy and use time.

The fewer the people, with whom there is any social or political interaction, the better. The candidate will not mount the soap box readily, or accept to have the klieg lights turned on him. It violates the silence and detached demeanour. In fact, stay within the friends-family-and-well-known others’ circle unless it is absolutely essential. When public interaction or statements are required, be brief. Curt the soap box and lights only when it can lure the unwary and divert attention. Or do it when there is too much pressure that the costs of not appearing in public may cause irreparable damage.

Be wary of politicians, all politicians. Even those within your own party. Let them stay divided if it happens. The longer they fight amongst themselves the easier it is to use them to attain set purposes. Keep in mind that they have served their important objectives already by getting the votes or doing whatever was necessary to win elections. They also have prices and interests. Know them well.

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Sunday 26 April 2020

Arts World Book Day: Nigerian book industry players celebrate books amid Covid-19, enjoin book lovers, readers to stay safe Stories by OBINNA EMELIKE

I

n the face of global challenges, and especially the raging COVID-19 pandemic, the Nigerian book industry recognize and celebrate today being 2020 World Book Day. Speaking on the significance of the celebration, players in the industry noted that books have offered Nigeria so great opportunity with its positive impact being felt in all ramifications from the development of literacy to growth in education, contribution to the Nation’s GDP, instilling peace into mankind, personal development, engaging all and sundry even at a solitary time such as this.

In a press statement signed by some of the industry players including; Nigerian Association of Publishers (NPA), Chartered Institute of Professional Printers of Nigeria (CIPPON), Association or Nigerian Authors (ANA)

among others, the players disclosed further that books have enabled us to learn how to develop our skills and hone it further, relate with one another peaceably, as well as, open our mind to converting initiative into creativity and inventions that make the world a better place to live.

Moreso, knowledge, and skills in all sectors such as education, health, environment, water, energy, industry, gender equality, peace and security, and reviving the economy are paramount at this moment; which can only be achieved with the collective influence of the book industry, the players noted in the press statement.

“Today, we, the book industry players in Nigeria are not just celebrating books, our excitement is embedded in the fact that we are great contributors to ensuring the availability of books to the masses.

“The author writes and prepares the manuscripts,

Gbadega Adedapo, president, NPA

the manuscripts get edited, illustration done and packaged by publishers to make a book which in turn is converted to readable physical and electronic formats for onward availability to endusers through the booksellers and get the book shelved for easy access and archiving.

Nigerian tops Commonwealth Short Story shortlist

W

ith two writers among the five shortlisted for this year’s Commonwealth Short Story Prize Africa region, Nigeria is topping the shortlist with hope of wining the prize and moving on to the global prize.

The two Nigerian writers are f(When a Woman Renounces Motherhood) and Caleb Ozovehe Ajinomoh (Rites Evasion Manuever).

Other writers inlude; Aba Asibon (The Dawning) Ghana, Alboricah Rathupetsane (The Faraway Things) South Africa and ML Kejera (Fatou

Innocent Chizaram Ilo

vs. the Dictator) The Gambia.

Th e C o m m o n w e a l t h Short Story Prize is awarded for the best piece of unpublished short fiction in English in the regions of Africa, Asia, Canada, and Europe, the Caribbean, and the Pacific. Each of the winners is then eligible for the global prize.

Selecting the winners for 2020 is a panel chaired by Nii Ayikwei Parkes, novelist, poet, and publisher. The others are Mohale Mashigo (Africa), William Phuan (Asia), Heather O’Neill (Canada and Europe), Elizabeth WalcottHackshaw (the Caribbean)

and Nic Low (the Pacific). The panel has pronounced the shortlist for the 2020 award.

Speaking on the shortlist, Nii Ayikwei Parkes, chair of the judges, said, “Beyond their basic plots, the best stories are elevated by the language in which they are told. In this judging process, the fine language has also undoubtedly been that of my fellow judges, who add nuance, colour, fun and a profound knowledge of trends in their regions to discussions.

“The result of the time we’ve spent indulging in the submissions to the Commonwealth Short Story Prize is a shortlist of 20 unique stories.

These stories, drawn from all over the globe, are as harrowing as they are uplifting, funny while being tragic—and defiant in the face of politics, bigotry, and injustice. But, crucially, at a time like this, with the world beset with myriad challenges and a devastating virus, the stories are grounded in faith, hope and the humanity we all share.”

Previous winners in the Africa region have been Jekwu Anyaegbuna (2012), Julian Jackson (2013), Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi (2014), Lesley Nneka Arimah (2015), Faraaz Mahomed (2016), Akwaeke Emezi (2017), Efua Traoré (2018), and Mbozi Haimbe (2019). Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi won the global prize in 2014.

It is indeed a great time to celebrate everything about books not leaving out the brains behind its production and availability”, they disclosed further.

The players also thank authors, publishers, illustrators, printers, booksellers and librarians who tirelessly work

together to ensure books reach the readers, and also appreciate those who ensured the copyright of those books are well protected to enable industry investors to have their Return On Investment.

They observed that in whatever form the book comes, it radiates light into the darkest part that is seemingly incomprehensible.

They thank lovers of books who after all, encourages its further production by purchasing and improving their lives. They also celebrate the readers who have denied all temptations to get swayed away by the dying reading culture.

“At a time like this, we care for the safety of all, book lovers and readers in Nigeria and beyond as we urge you to please stay home and stay safe reading books. We shall soon get over the current COVID-19 pandemic.

If there’s a way to make the most of the moment, then

it is by studying and reading books. By extension, parents have in extempore now turn official educator with integrated engagement so guide the children and their wards through books.

“Our industry keeps making frantic efforts to keep abreast of the current book demands, exploring every possible means to further meet the demands of book readers in concordant with the UN Sustainable Development Goal 4, as it concerns inclusive and equitable quality education that promotes lifelong learning opportu- nities for all”, they concluded.

The players also recognized that the current pandemic has dealt a huge blow on the industry and hence call for government’s support to get over the negative impact on their activities as they gasp for oxygen to survive.

On this note, they urged the government to consider the book industry in its economic response strategies.

Yerima takes over at NICO

B

ridgette Rupmicit Yerima, former director, Training at the National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO), has taken over the baton of leadership as director, overseeing the office of the Executive Secretary/CEO, following the retirement of Louis Eriomala from service on April 17, 2020.

An e-mail made available to NICO News with the caption “Handover to the Most Senior Director in NICO”, dated April, 20, 2020 and signed by Akudo-Nwoso Nwosu (Deputy Director, OPS) on behalf of Grace Isu Gekpe permanent secretary, Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, directed Eriomala, the immediate past Director Overseeing the Office of the Executive Secretary to handover the affairs of the institute.

The mail reads in part, “I am directed to request you to handover the affairs of the Agency as well as forward all relevant circulars urgently to the aforementioned director on receipt of this mail”.

Yerima who has since received handover notes from her predecessor joined the Federal Civil Service in 1987 with the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture where she was posted to the Federal Department of Culture as Cultural Officer. She was among the first set of officers to be deployed to the National Troupe of Nigeria when it was created where she served in different capacities including officer overseeing the welfare

Bridgette Yeima

of artistes; Head of Admin; Public Relations Officer and Marketing Officer until her transfer to the National Institute for cultural Orientation (NICO) in 1997 as Assistant Chief Programmes Officer.

When NICO’s administrative head office was moved to Abuja and with the commencement of active training, Yerima became the first coordinator of Training and Orientation for the Institute as well as Liaison Officer in charge of Lagos in 2004. She was the one who coordinated the first batch of training programmes for cultural officers leading to the Award of Post Graduate Diploma in Cultural Administration under the guidance and leadership of Elder J. B. Yusuff, then Executive Secretary of the Institute.

With the creation of a fullfledged department for training for the Institute in 2010, Yerima was posted to head the Lagos Liaison Office. Under her leadership as the Liaison Officer, major programmes of the Institute were conceptu-

alized and later institutionalized which are; Annual Round Table Conference for Cultural Orientation (ARTCCO); Nigerian Indigenous Language Programme (NILP); Weekend Indigenous Language Programme; Language in the Barracks and the Annual Children’s Cultural Extravaganza with components like debate in indigenous Languages, cooking competition, hairdo completion, dancing competition for secondary schools.

It was also during her tenure as Head, Lagos Liaison office that the Institute organized notable programmes like the workshop for traditional rulers in Lagos in conjunction with the Lagos State government as well as the first ever cultural orientation programme for expatriates’ staff of LARFARGE Cement Company.

In 2013, through a process of re-organization, Yerima was again posted to head the Institute’s Training School as Director where she has successfully superintended the training of over six sets of cultural officers drawn from different states of the Federation.

Under her headship as Director of Training, the Institute for the first time, trained and did orientation for the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC) as well as training for other states of the Federation.

Born on July 26, 1963, Bridgette Rupmicit Yerima who hails from Lantang North Local Government of Plateau State is well schooled.

Sunday 26 April 2020

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CapitalMarket

CAP posts N456m PAT in Q1 2020

C

first quarter of 2017, CAP’s PAT fell by 7.39 percent while Nigeria’s real GDP growth rate for that quarter was -0.91 percent.

On the contrary, in Q1 2018, CAP’s PAT rose by 18.43 percent while Nigeria’s real GDP grew by 1.95 percent and in the first quarter of 2019, the company’s PAT rose by 7.93 percent while Nigeria recorded a real GDP growth rate of 2.27 percent.

Cost of sales to revenue was 49.6 percent as at the end of Q1 2020 compared with 51.2 percent in Q1 2019. This was because the firm incurred N1.15 billion as cost of sales in the last quarter relative to N1.09 billion in corresponding quarters in 2019.

Profit margin declined to 20 percent whereas in same period in 2019, its profit margin was 24 percent.

Basic and diluted earnings per share (EPS) for the period was 67 kobo down from 71 kobo last year March.

TELIAT SULE

hemicals and Allied Products last week announced its unaudited first quarter results for the period ended March 30, 2020 with the turnover and profit after tax (PAT) heading different directions. Quarterly growth of 9.08 percent in turnover which rose to N2.31 billion from N2.12 billion in corresponding period in 2019 was offset by a 8.55 fall in PAT. The profit after tax for the period was N456.3 million compared with N498.9 million in similar period in 2019.

In the past five years when CAP recorded a decline in Q1 PAT, Nigeria’s real GDP growth rate ended in the negative. That happened in the first quarter of 2016 when CAP’s Q1 PAT fell by 13.21 percent and in that quarter, the country’s real GDP growth was -0.67 percent. Also, in the

NSE releases names of 12 companies for securities lending TELIAT SULE

T

he Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has released the names of companies that investors can lend and borrow their securities on the NSE starting from April 17, 2020. The twelve companies are MTN Nigeria, Nigerian Breweries, Presco, United Bank for Africa (UBA), Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) and Zenith Bank.

Others are Okomu Oil, Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB), Dangote Cement, Dangote Sugar, Flour Mills of Nigeria and the Chemical and Allied Products (CAP).

The stocks mostly of which are bluechip companies have the total securities offered for lending and borrowing worth N1.02 billion as at April 24, 2020.

According to the NSE, securities lending refers to the lending of securities such as stocks and

bonds by one party to another.

Direct lenders are pension plans, insurance companies, mutual funds, sovereign wealth funds, investment companies and some high networth individuals. Agent lenders are custodians, brokerdealer firms, and asset managers.

On the other hand, borrowers are market makers, broker-dealer firms, investment banks, hedge funds, among others.

“Usually, the borrower will provide acceptable collateral to the lender in the form of cash or other acceptable securities of equal but often greater value than the lent securities in order to protect the lender against any default by the borrower. The borrower is obliged to return the securities at the end of an agreed period.

“Once the security is lent, the legal title of the security passes from the lender to the borrower, but any benefits arising from corporate actions and/or dividend

payments are retained by the owner. The lender regains title when the securities are returned by the borrower”, the NSE said.

MTN Nigeria made available 2.547 million shares for lending and borrowing worth N264.88 million. Nigerian Breweries made available 318,000 shares worth N10.97 million. Presco made available 4.015 million shares worth N146.34 million. UBA made available 2.6 million shares worth N15.34 million while Union Bank made available 450,000 shares worth N3.06 million.

Further, Zenith Bank made available 1.66 million shares worth N23.34 million. Okomu’s 2.19 million shares are worth N120.55 million. GTB’s 8.58 million shares are worth N165.59 million. Dangote Cement’s 1,74 million shares are worth N226.2 million. Dangoite Sugar’s 2.35 million shares are worth N28.2 million. Flour Mills’ 600,000 shares are worth N12.6 million while CAP’s 50,000 shares are worth N1.04 million.

“Securities lending plays an important role in capital markets by providing liquidity, which in turn reduces the cost of trading and promotes price discovery.​ Global Master Securities Lending Agreement (GMSLA) and its Nigerian Addendum is the standard contract document that binds lender and borrower in a Securities Lending arrangement”, NSE stated in its securities lending guidelines for market participants.

Companies that reported insider trading transactions in April TELIAT SULE

I

n a bid to further enhance the transparency of the market, eight companies in April have reported insider trading transactions. Some of the companies are Stanbic IBTC, United Capital, Sterling Bank, Meyer and Wapic Insurance, among others.

Insider trading is any transaction in securities made when the person behind the transaction is aware of non-public material information. The categories of individuals who qualify as an insider include board members, management team members and other employees holding strategic positions in a company.

Stanbic IBTC announced that Olufunke Amobi, head human capital purchased 11,159 units of the company’s shares at N26.78 per share. United Capital’s head of portfolio management, Kayode Tinuoye bought 500,000 shares of the company at N3.06 per share.

Guaranty Trust Bank’s Paul Ogwemoh bought 370,000 units of GTB’s shares at N18.15 per share.

Sterling Bank’s Tairat Tijani, a non executive director representing Ess-ay Investment Limited executed a cross deal from Balogun Shuaib Adesina. The transactions involved 300,000 shares at N1.15 per share.

Further, a non-executive director of the Consolidated Hallmark, Ngozi Nkem, sold 20 million shares

at N0.25 per share. Also, Olufunke Amobi of Stanbic IBTC purchased additional 38,841 shares of the company at N28.50 per share. She also bought 18,607 shares of the company at N28.60 per share in another transaction.

Bosworth Investment Limited purchased 24,915,094 shares of Meyer Plc at N0.46 per share.

Aigbovbioise Aig-Imoukhuede of Wapic Insurance bought 987,948 shares in the company at N0.23 per share.

Makaunjuola, a non-executive director at Vitafoam bought 24,046 shares of the company at N4.10 per share while Rapido Ventures Limited, a related company to ABC Transport soled aggregated volume of 1,714,176 shares at N0.34 per share.

The NSE All Share Index closed last Friday at 22,599.38 points while the market capitalisation of equities closed at N11.78 trillion.

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Sunday 26 April 2020

COVID-19 Fashion Garden City big ladies discover...

Continuued from Page 1 woman) was above the virus or the reality of hiding behind masks, looking like Nigeria’s Lagbaja the singer (Bisade Ologunde).

It was believed at the beginning that the mask would be put on at few moments of exposure or when near suspicious sources, but as researchers begin to suspect to point at likelihood of the virus becoming airborne, fears grew rife and need for masks became more real. The prospectofstayingbehind themask most times outdoor began to down on human.

At a point, many began to think that masks, with all its dread and ugliness, were mostly for men. It was believed that the ugly-looking mask would remain a burden mostly for men because they were believed to be the ones in the frontline of actions related to the infection. It was also believed that it is only women in the medical line who should regard facemasks important only as personal protection equipment (PPE) issue.

Now, most countries are issuing orders, making the facemask a compulsory dress accessory when outdoor or to be allowed to pass through their states. In Nigeria, some states such as Cross River and Abia have decreed the facemask is a compulsory public dress accessory.

Ladies in Port Harcourt, ever conscious of their looks and fashion status, have gone to the drawing board to create facemasks that match different occasions.

Two big industrial sewing centres in Port Harcourt, Showers Nigeria Limited in Woji (top member of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria), and Jovitapatricks Nigeria Limited in D-Line, top member of the Port Harcourt Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (PHCCIMA), have come up with designs to win support especially from the ladies.

At the moment, each of the makers has thousands of orders to meet especially as the organized private sector (OPS) has convinced the FG to look inwards in the supply of face mask to fill import gaps.

Jovita Ada Iroemeh, the CEO of Jovitapatricks Limited, pioneer coordinator of NAWORG, pioneer coordinator of south-south/south east of NAWORG and national president of the Association Women Entrepreneurs and Business Owners, said Nigeria has reached facemask level.

She told BDSUNDAY exclusively; “We don’t have to wait until we get to that stage to adopt facemasks as a protection. There is pandemic in Nigeria despite the low numbers. This is because we have not tested enough. I am an expert in Sociology of Medicine and I can see that we are getting there fast.

People are not maintaining social distance. I call it a joke yet because we are not doing anything. I have never been this scared in my life.

When it starts raining here, it will be terrible.”

She went on: “Prevention is our best bet. We should not wait to get

to Italy level. Turning the facemask into a fashion trend is the way to go. All you need is to get the grammage right. You know women, once this is started as a way of fashion, it will catch fire and women will not spread the virus. See the governor of Cross River State is modeling it.

“Port Harcourt people need facemask to reduce exposure to soot. Between the coronaviros and soot, there is need for facemasks especially for women. It is common knowledge that soot is an issue in Port Harcourt. If there is pandemic in the Garden City, it will be terrible because with soot already in the lungs, it will be hard to manage the virus.

“Everybody should wear mask, plus washing of hands. That is the way to go. Now, every dress people make, they make a facemask to go with it”.

The CEO of Showers Limited, Ekama Emilia Akpan, who was in the forefront for homemade facemasks, said it gives Nigerians the opportunity to adjust designs to suit local realities. She said the poor must be factored into the choice of masks we produce because disposable masks are only for the rich. And, fashion must be considered to get the buy-in of the upper class.

Akpan, immediate past national deputy president of MAN, and two-time chairman of MAN Rivers/Bayelsa chapter, said turning the facemasks into fashion streak would help make it popular and acceptable.

She said until a vaccine is found, the facemask would remain crucial.

The only option is to make it acceptable to everybody. She took time to explain the various features considered in the making of facemasks such as filtration, softness around the neck, space for breathing, and reusability. She mentioned other things that would keep it free from germs and infection but said the cost of wear-and-drop (disposable) ones is high.

By what the latest designers in Port Harcourt are saying, if top ladies start to wear facemasks, other women in the society and men would easily buy into it as a fashion, and next, facemasks and designs would became the new fashion trend in town. You may feel free to call the Covid fashion, with mask to match.

A fashion trend that may sweep across Port Harcourt and other big cities seems to emerge as top ladies gear up for new wears and facemasks that would hit and define the fashion world any moment from now.

Coronavirus or COVID-19 hit the world hard since January 2020 with morbid fear of death. It also came with a crackdown on businesses and the way of life of human, but the image of facemasks helped to make the virus a dreaded proposition. Many seemed not to like the fact that they would hide behind facemasks for any reason.

Images of very important dignitaries especially presidents and leaders of countries around the world wearing masks proved that no man (or woman) was above the virus or the reality of hiding behind masks, looking like Nigeria’s Lagbaja the singer (Bisade Ologunde).

It was believed at the beginning that the mask would be put on at few moments of exposure or when near suspicious sources, but as researchers begin to suspect to point at likelihood of the virus becoming airborne, fears grew rife and need for masks became more real. The prospect of staying behind the mask most times outdoor began to down on human.

At a point, many began to think that masks, with all its dread and ugliness, were mostly for men. It was believed that the ugly-looking mask would remain a burden mostly for

men because they were believed to be the ones in the frontline of actions related to the infection. It was also believed that it is only women in the medical line who should regard facemasks important only as personal protection equipment (PPE) issue.

Now, most countries are issuing orders, making the facemask a compulsory dress accessory when outdoor or to be allowed to pass through their states. In Nigeria, some states such as Cross River and Abia have decreed the facemask is a compulsory public dress accessory.

Ladies in Port Harcourt, ever conscious of their looks and fashion status, have gone to the drawing board to create facemasks that match different occasions.

Two big industrial sewing centres in Port Harcourt, Showers Nigeria Limited in Woji (top member ofthe ManufacturersAssociationof Nigeria), and Jovitapatricks Nigeria Limited in D-Line, top member of the Port Harcourt Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (PHCCIMA), have come up with designs to win support especially from the ladies.

At the moment, each of the makers has thousands of orders to meet especially as the organized private sector (OPS) has convinced the FG to look inwards in the supply of face mask to fill import gaps.

Jovita Ada Iroemeh, the CEO of Jovitapatricks Limited, pioneer coordinator of NAWORG, pioneer coordinator of south-south/south

east of NAWORG and national president of the Association Women Entrepreneurs and Business Owners, said Nigeria has reached facemask level.

She told BDSUNDAY exclusively; “We don’t have to wait until we get to that stage to adopt facemasks as a protection. There is pandemic in Nigeria despite the low numbers.

This is because we have not tested enough. I am an expert in Sociology of Medicine and I can see that we are getting there fast. People are not maintaining social distance. I call it a joke yet because we are not

doing anything. I have never been this scared in my life. When it starts raining here, it will be terrible.”

She went on: “Prevention is our best bet. We should not wait to get to Italy level. Turning the facemask into a fashion trend is the way to go. All you need is to get the grammage right. You know women, once this is started as a way of fashion, it will catch fire and women will not spread the virus. See the governor of Cross River State is modeling it.

“Port Harcourt people need facemask to reduce exposure to soot. Between the coronaviros and soot, there is need for facemasks especially for women. It is common knowledge that soot is an issue in Port Harcourt. If there is pandemic in the Garden City, it will be terrible because with soot already in the lungs, it will be hard to manage the virus.

“Everybody should wear mask, plus washing of hands. That is the way to go. Now, every dress people make, they make a facemask to go with it”.

The CEO of Showers Limited, Ekama Emilia Akpan, who was in the forefront for homemade facemasks, said it gives Nigerians the opportunity to adjust designs to suit local realities. She said the poor must be factored into the choice of masks we produce because disposable masks are only for the rich. And, fashion must be considered to get the buy-in of the upper class.

Akpan, immediate past national deputy president of MAN, and two-time chairman of MAN Rivers/Bayelsa chapter, said turning the facemasks into fashion streak would help make it popular and acceptable.

She said until a vaccine is found, the facemask would remain crucial.

The only option is to make it acceptable to everybody. She took time to explain the various features considered in the making of facemasks such as filtration, softness around the neck, space for breathing, and reusability. She mentioned other things that would keep it free from germs and infection but said the cost of wear-and-drop (disposable) ones is high.

By what the latest designers in Port Harcourt are saying, if top ladies start to wear facemasks, other women in the society and men would easily buy into it as a fashion, and next, facemasks and designs would became the new fashion trend in town. You may feel free to call the Covid fashion, with mask to match.

Sunday 26 April 2020

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Life&Living A healthy Ramadan: Best foods to eat during the fasting period Jumoke Akiyode-Lawanson

I

t’s the beginning of the fasting period for Muslims (Ramadan), and a lot of Muslims who would be fasting this season will be thinking of how to stay healthy even though they have reduced eating times when they break their fast.

Islamic Ramadan is a 28 - 30 day fast in which food and drink are prohibited during the daylight hours.

The majority of health-specific findings related to Ramadan fasting are mixed. Howvever, Ramadan is very important for Muslims as it is a time of spiritual reflection, self-improvement, and heightened devotion and

worship. Muslims are expected to put more effort into following the teachings of Islam. The fast (sawm) begins at dawn and ends at sunset.

Those unable to fast are obligated make up the missed days later.

Fasting can make you have reduced energy levels and feelings of lethargy especially if you are not consuming high energy, nutritious meals at the times when you eat.

When you can eat and drink, consuming plenty of high fibre foods, such as wholegrains, high fibre cereals, bran, fruit and vegetables, beans, lentils, dried fruit and nuts alongside plenty of fluids may help to ease constipation as well as doing some light physical activity, such as going for a

walk after ‘iftar’ – the evening meal with which Muslims end their daily Ramadan fast at sunset. Muslims break their fast at the time of the call to prayer for the evening prayer.

For Suhoor (pre-dawn meal), it is advised that you eat fruits and vegetables which are essential during fasting, as they increase the feeling of fullness and help prevent constipation. Apples and oranges are considered super fruits as they keep your stomach full for a long time.

Bananas, water melons and high fibre food such as oats, granola, yoghurt and quinoa are good to eat as well.

“Ramadan is a great opportunity to break the chains of bad eating

habits, but the majority of people are not reaping the full benefits of this month,” says Salaamah Solomon, a registered dietitian at Tygerberg Academic Hospital in Cape Town.

According to Health24, a Ramadan diet should be a simple meal – not a feast – and should not differ substantially from your normal everyday diet.

To maintain a balanced and nutritious diet, a person should consume food from all the major food groups, equally distributed between the two meal times.

The major food groups are: Fruits and vegetables Breads, cereals, and potatoes

Meat, fish and chicken Dairy products such as milk and cheese Foods containing fat and sugar Complex carbohydrates which are foods that are rich in energy but release this energy slowly throughout the day should be consumed.

Examples include whole wheat, oats, beans, and rice. Also, foods that are rich in fibre and are also digested slowly include fruits (raw and unpeeled) and vegetables. Don’t forget the all-important fluids as they maintain water and salt levels in the body. Water and fluids with vitamins – like fresh fruit juices – should replace caffeinated drinks.

posed to making you feel lethargic or sleepy in the middle of the day.

from research that drinking water before each meal, ideally a couple of 250ml glasses, results in fewer calories eaten and a reduced likelihood of putting on weight.

How to snack smartly during lockdown

W IFEOMA OKEKE

ith the coronavirus lockdown seeing most of us staying at home, many people are worried that the stress, combined with a more sedentary lifestyle, could result in unhealthy weight gain.

This worry is proven by the fact thousands of people are searching for ways to prevent it.

As a result, Flawless.org obtained expert advice from Alex Ruani, UCL Doctoral Researcher and Chief Science Educator at The Health Sciences Academy, and from Heather Rosa, Dean of the Institute for Optimum Nutrition, on what we can do to reduce impulsive eating habits and eat healthy snacks while working from home.

What snacks to avoid during lockdown: “We’re seeing many people reporting boredom-eating during the lockdown. But overeating is risky,” says Mr Ruani. “Good nutrition is needed more than ever, when our immune system may need to fight back.

“The worst foods to snack on are those that provide ‘empty calories’.

That is, foods that are micronutrient-poor and very low in essential vitamins and minerals – usually sugary and processed fatty foods like cakes, biscuits, crisps, milk chocolate, ice cream, and pastries.”

Some of the best foods to snack on if you don’t want to put on unnecessary weight are: Foods with a high-water content, which makes them more filling as they delay gastric emptying (e.g. fresh fruit like grapes, apples, kiwi, melons; low-salt broth soup; homemade ‘thicker’ smoothies; corn cobs; mixed salad bowl).

Probiotic-rich foods which are shown to have beneficial effects on the regulation of hunger-supressing hormones GLP-1 and PYY (e.g. fatfree yogurt, kefir, cottage cheese or soft cheese; vegan and lactose-free options are tempeh, miso, sourdough bread, fermented cabbage or pickles).

Fibre-rich foods which are not only physically filling but also help produce hunger-suppressing shortchain fatty acids like butyrate and propionate in the gut (e.g. raw

vegetable crudités, baby carrots, cucumber slices with hummus, porridge oat flakes).

Protein-rich foods shown in countless satiation experiments to reduce our desire to continue eating (e.g. boiled eggs, fat-free yogurt, fat-free cottage cheese; vegan and lactose-free options include tofu dices, beans mix, hemp seeds, wholegrain rice cakes; dairy-free coconut yogurt).

The added benefit is that all of these alternatives are low-glycaemic, too – meaning that they cause a slow sugar release into your bloodstream, which helps maintain energy and sustained focus, as op-

Some tips for snacking and keeping in shape: 1.Make a plan Reduce unnecessary snacking.

Be strategic about your purchases during self-isolation and use your fresh foods and those with a shorter shelf life first.

2. Hydrate first Sipping water instead of sugary drinks is the simplest way to limit unnecessary snacking and excess calories. Besides that, we know

3. Prioritise home-cooked family meals Main meals remain the most important. Snacking is secondary and, in many cases, unnecessary.

We’re spending more time at home, which gives new opportunities to experiment with home-cooking and to share meals together.

Heather Rosa, Dean of the Institute for Optimum Nutrition added: “Lockdown is the ideal time to break the snacking habit. Our approach is to reduce and eliminate snacking.

To do this we would focus on the main meals of the day ensuring they are nutrient-dense and low in sugar to prevent the triggers for snacking.

“Ensure protein at each meal along with some healthy fats for satiety and fat-soluble vitamins A, E and D. e.g. butter, cold-pressed extra virgin oil, beef dripping, goose fat and coconut oil. Plenty of colourful veggies and as the weather is warming up salad veggies.”

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Sunday 26 April 2020

Travel UNTWO and its call for action for tourism recovery from Covid-19 Stories by Obinna Emelike

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he tourism sector is currently one of the hardest-hit by the outbreak of COVID-19, with impacts on both travel supply and demand. This represents an added downside risk in the context of a weaker world economy, geopolitical, social and trade tensions, as well as, of uneven performance among major outbound travel markets.

Despite the impact, the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is hoping for respite from the outbreak soon and hence has released a set of recommendations calling for urgent and strong support to help the global tourism sector not only recover from the unprecedented challenge of COVID-19 but to ‘grow back better’.

The recommendations are the first output of the Global Tourism Crisis Committee, established by UNWTO with high-level representatives from across the tourism sector and from within the wider United Nations system.

Recognizing that tourism and transport has been among the hardest hit of all sectors, the recommendations are designed to support governments, the private sector and the international community in navigating the unparalleled social and economic emergency that is COVID-19.

“These specific recommendations give countries a check-list of possible measures to help our sector sustain the jobs and support the companies at risk at this very moment. Mitigating the impact on employment and liquid-

ity, protecting the most vulnerable and preparing for recovery, must be our key priorities,” Zurab Pololikashvili, the UNWTO secretary general, said.

Recognising the diverse realities in each country, as well as, the evolving nature of the crisis, the document will continue to be updated.

The UNWTO said it is necessary to start preparing for recovery now.

“We still do not know what the full impact of COVID-19 will be on global tourism. However, we must support the sector now while we prepare for it to come back stronger and more sustainable.

Recovery plans and programmes for tourism will translate into jobs and economic growth.” added the secretary general.

The recommendations for action are the first comprehensive set of actions governments and private sector actors can take now and in the challenging months ahead. Pololikashvili stressed that “for tourism to fulfil its potential to help societies and whole countries recover from this crisis, our response needs to be quick, consistent, united and ambitious”.

To encourage tourism stakeholder across the world to respond today and prepare for tomorrow, the UNWTO has offered 23 actionable recommendations, as new guide for worldwide industry action and recovery.

The recommendations are divided into three key areas: Managing the crisis and mitigating the impact; providing stimulus and accelerating recovery, and preparing for tomorrow.

Zurab Pololikashvili, the UNWTO Secretary General The first recommendations relate to retaining jobs, supporting self-employed workers, ensuring liquidity, promoting skills development and reviewing taxes, charges and regulations relating to travel and tourism.

The recommendations, according to the UNWTO, are made as a global economic recession looks likely. It also explained that given its labor-intensive nature, tourism would be hard hit, with millions of jobs at risk, especially those held by women and youth, as well as, marginalised groups.

The second recommendation

emphasised on the importance of providing financial stimulus, including favourable tax policies, lifting travel restrictions as soon as the health emergency allows for it, promoting visa facilitation, boosting marketing and consumer confidence, in order to accelerate recovery. The Recommendations also call for tourism to be placed at the centre of national recovery policies and action plans.

The last recommendation, which looks at tomorrow, emphasised tourism’s unique ability to lead local and national growth, hence it calls for greater empha-

Clovid-19: An opportunity to sharpen intra-Africa travel - ATP says B

sis to be placed on the sector’s contribution to the Sustainable Development Agenda and to build resilience learning from the lessons of the current crisis.

It also calls on governments and private sector actors to build preparedness plans, and to use this opportunity to transition to the circular economy.

However, Pololikashvili added that, while it is too early to make a full assessment of the likely impact of COVID-19 on tourism, it is clear that millions of jobs within the sector are at risk of being lost. He is also concerned for the small-and-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which provide around 80 percent of all tourism businesses. The sector, which has been leading the way in providing employment and other opportunities for women, youth and rural communities, according to him, is under threat now.

Despite the impact, UNWTO strongly believes in tourism’s historic resilience and capacity to create jobs after crisis situations, while also emphasizing the importance of international cooperation and of ensuring the sector is made a central part of recovery efforts.

It would be recalled that since the start of the current crisis, UNWTO has been working closely with the wider United Nations system, including directly alongside the World Health Organization (WHO) to guide the sector, issuing key recommendations for both high-level leaders and individual tourists. To better consolidate and strengthen the response, the Organization has established the Global Tourism Crisis Committee.

STAY HOME TODAY, #TRAVELTOMORROW campaign mirrors shared responsibility among travellers

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hile COVID-19 uncertainties have had a severe impact on the global travel and tourism industry, and still counting, Africa Tourism Partners (ATP), has urged industry stakeholders to see the pandemic as an opportunity to sharpen intraAfrica travel.

The pan-African travel organization noted that the sad reality of today would not last forever because global experts and governments are working around the clock to find the best solutions for the pandemic and its impact.

According to ATP, the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and many other organisations in the travel and tourism industry, as well as, destinations have launched numerous innovative initiatives to help sharpen focus on post-COVID-19 opportunities.

Top among the initiatives is the UNWTO’s Healing Solutions Tourism Challenge. The challenge calls on entrepreneurs, start-ups, the youth and innovators across the globe to come up with most disruptive solutions to mitigate against the impact of COVID-19 on people, prosperity and destinations. Considering the import of the initiative, the Africa Tourism Partners is urging all African travel and tourism stakeholders to take

advantage of the opportunity to stand up, be counted and ultimately be part of the journey.

Moreover, almost all Africa tourism institutions and destinations have launched a common, yet specific national and tailored campaigns to motivate and inspire people to look out for the “light at the end of the tunnel”. As the conveners of Africa Tourism Leadership Forum (ATLF) and Africa MICE Academy, Africa Tourism Partners assured that it is fully committed to supporting these inspiring initiatives and intentions, which have already enriched the quality of life of many people during these chal-

lenging times.

ATP also assured that it is collaborating with ATLF, its partners, to further committed to supporting the global practice of social and physical distancing, and encourage all stakeholders to heed to the calls to stay at home during this period as supported with the campaign #Stayathome today and #Traveltomorrow.

Speaking on the need to stay at home, Zurab Pololikashvili, the UNWTO secretary general, assured that, “By staying home today, we can travel tomorrow because travelling tomorrow will support jobs, celebrate culture and promote international friendship and understanding”.

y staying home today, we can travel tomorrow”.The hashtag #TravelTomorrow encapsulates this message of solidarity and hope, through which the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) calls for shared responsibility among travellers and the tourism sector around the world to deal with the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

Discovering different cultures, practicing solidarity and respect, caring for the environment, continuing to learn, fostering decent work, development and sustainability, generating new opportunities for all. These are the core values of tourism advocated by the World Tourism Organization and which constitute the main pillars of the #TravelTomorrow campaign. #TravelTomorrow has become the common thread that runs through the World Tourism Organization’s response to the current crisis, highlighting the enduring values of tourism.

Ourresponsemustbefast,coherent andunitedsothatwecanalltravelagain.

This online campaign has had a massive impact on social networks and is being embraced by a growing number of countries, destinations and companies linked to tourism, cities, media outlets and individuals from all over the world. Countries such as Germany, Morocco, Mongolia, Oman and Uruguay, as well as cities such as Bogotá or Vienna, have already endorsed the hashtag #TravelTomorrow, thus amplifying the voice of tourism, which is united in the face of this unprecedented global challenge.

A digital resource platform has

been created to provide different options for any individual, business or institutional user to join this initiative, offering elements such as images for social media profiles, electronic signatures, as well as relevant audio-visual content on tourism and COVID-19.

“Historically, tourism has proven itself as a key driver of international recovery, and as early as now, we must begin to prepare in order to build the foundations of the future resilience of tourism,” Zurab Pololikashvili, secretary general, UNWTO, said.

The Global Tourism Crisis Committee, chaired by the UNWTO, has also supported this initiative within the framework of the recommendations it has developed to address this crisis.

“Our response must be fast, coherent and united so that we can all travel again soon and do so in a safer, more sustainable and more respectful way, learning from the lessons of the current crisis,” concluded Pololikashivili.

Among the recommendations promoted by the Committee is the need for financial and political support for recovery measures aimed at the tourism sector, in coordination with international development organizations, in order to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on employment, protect the most vulnerable segments of society and accelerate recovery.

At the same time, it is important for policies and actions to ensure the promotion of sustainable development, in line with the mandate of the UNWTO, especially at the beginning of the Decade of Action—ten years to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals deriving from the 2030 Agenda.

Sunday 26 April, 2020

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BDSUNDAY 23

Travel

Outdoor rooms you’ll want to ‘travel’ to during lock down Stories by IFEOMA OKEKE

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ith the current lockdown, making it impossible for people to travel and explore more destinations, there are several innovative ways to ‘travel’ while at home. Creating a travel scenarios right in your home could be super amazing!

Garden buildings to wow your yard An outdoor room could be the perfect solution if you want to add more space to your home and enjoy your yard more. Whether you fancy a home office hut, an art studio cabin or a fun home bar, these gorgeous outbuildings and garden rooms will have you heading for the backyard.

Set up a home office Relocate your makeshift home office from the kitchen table into your own designated space in the yard. What could be better than a quick morning commute across the lawn into a calming light-filled cabin?

Host happy hour at home This alfresco bar is sure to be a big hit in warmer months. This design has a pull-down hatch so when the weather turns it can become a handy storage shed for the colder months.

Bring in a bold contrast A garden shed or outdoor room is a perfect canvas to get creative with color. From the outside, this shed is a rather sensible shade of black, but open the door and the contrasting orange and white walls create a vibrant and uplifting home office space.

Use natural light A fully glazed wall will allow plenty of natural light into your

garden room. Whether you use it for an office, hobby room or even a gym, the abundance of natural light will make it feel bright and spacious. Extra fan light windows will keep the small area ventilated while tongue and groove boarding will offer a natural and warm feel for year-round use.

Get creative in a garden studio Blur the boundaries between inside and out with a beautiful studio filled with lush greenery.

A white backdrop and soft gray furniture will make the foliage pop and create a calming environment. A practical sink will keep paintbrushes clean and a mini stove for coffee breaks is a must.

Enjoy the view If your outdoor room is positioned to overlook your yard then add in a comfortable corner

sofa to enjoy the view. Choose weatherproof furniture such as rattan and wicker to continue the outdoor theme and cushions made from hardwearing materials such as canvas will be tough and rustic for outdoor living.

Join your own garden gym Missing the gym? Why not create your own workout space in the comfort of your own home.

Install floor-to-ceiling mirrors along the back wall of your home gym and fit interlocking rubber tiles on the floor, then simply add your equipment of choice!

Lose the walls Enhance your outdoor way of life with a canopy. This outdoor room without walls is perfect for warmer climates as it offers the best of both worlds. The pergolastyle structure will define an area and create shelter without com-

prising on the sense of space or enjoying good weather. For chilly nights look out for designs that have louvred ceilings and sliding side panels.

Create a cozy snug Set up an outdoor snug full of home comforts. White painted cladding will create a coastal or country exterior that can be decorated inside with inviting living room looks. Complement feature artwork with a warm-toned neutral backdrop, floor lamps and wicker furniture. Maximize space by adding matching armchairs on the patio which can then be stored in the garden room when not in use.

House a hot tub Hot tubs are becoming more popular in residential yards so why not add a shelter to enjoy your investment all year round?

This aluminum canopy means you can enjoy your warm outdoor soak even when it’s raining and cold outside. The contemporary structure has rotating blades which means they open up when it’s sunny and dry so you get the best of all weathers.

Create the ultimate playroom Separate from the rest of your property, yet close enough to keep a watchful eye, an outdoor playroom offers the best of both worlds for young families. Simply decorate with a few colorful wall stickers and you’ll have the perfect magical space for your little one’s imagination to run wild.

Embrace beach hut vibes Another way to enhance the humble yard shed is to convert it into a cool coastal retreat. Beach huts are a seaside staple and will give your garden a touch of boardwalk style. Choose a structure with double doors and windows and paint the exterior a breezy oceanic blue. Inside, opt for cool white walls and plenty of natural textures.

Create a fantasy space The Lord of the Rings fans will adore this hobbit house dwelling that looks as though it’s been lifted straight out of a film set. Bux End is built from reclaimed bricks and has grass and cottage garden flowers growing on the roof. The incredible eco-friendly hobbit hole was crowned as the 2019 Cuprinol Shed of the Year.

Build a shadow shed Blend your outdoor room into an urban backdrop with contemporary lines and colour. This urban room designed and built

by Neil Dusheiko, looks ultra-chic and unobtrusive painted black.

It’s also cleverly sunken into the earth to reduce its scale within the garden. Nicknamed the Shadow Shed, it’s small, perfectly formed and multifunctional.

KLM, Philips establish special cargo air bridge between Amsterdam and China

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he loss of around 90 percent of flights between Europe and Asia has resulted in a major shortage of cargo capacity. Meanwhile, the corona crisis has prompted an enormous need for the rapid transportation of medical equipment and other supplies between the United States, Europe and China.

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has now joined hands with Royal Philips and the Dutch government to create a special cargo air bridge between the Netherlands and China. In addition to these parties, many others are seeking additional capacity. The air bridge to Asia will be launched on 13 April.

To maintain this vital cargo air bridge for the coming six to eight weeks, KLM will specially redeploy Boeing 747 Combi equipment for the service between

the Netherlands and China. This air bridge will ensure continuous availability of special cargo capacity, with two weekly flights to Beijing and three weekly flights to Shanghai.

This will ensure around 250 tonnes of extra cargo capacity each way per week.

The flights will supplement the current ‘skeleton schedule’ that took effect on 29 March, with two

weekly flights to Beijing and two weekly flights to Shanghai, operated with Boeing 787s and 777s.

Th e K L M / Ma r t i n a i r Fu l l Freighters will continue to be deployed on North Atlantic routes, which Philips will use as an air bridge between Amsterdam and distribution points in the United States.

The Full Freighters will also continue to operate on South At-

lantic routes and to destinations in Africa.

In view of the 90 percent decline in flights and anticipated future capacity, KLM previously decided in early March that it would phase out its remaining Boeing 747s in April 2020, instead of in the summer of 2021.

For the benefit of this air bridge, however, KLM will now redeploy two Boeing 747 Combi aircraft to be used specifically on these two routes during the designated period.

“I believe it is incredibly important that KLM can be of service to broader Dutch society in this time of crisis, by way of our flexibility, creativity and cooperation with partners.

“This is perfectly exemplified by the initiative from Philips to join hands with KLM in seeking a solution for freeing up cargo capacity

between Europe and China for essential medical supplies. I am very proud that the professional and dedicated staff of both companies have managed to realise this initiative at such short notice,” Pieter Elbers, KLM President & CEO said.

“Philips and KLM have been key partners for more than 100 years. I am very pleased that we have now joined hands once more, in this time of need, to create this important air bridge with China.

“In combination with the existing air bridge to the United States, we can now more rapidly transport essential medical equipment and supplies between the United States, Europe and China, thereby ensuring that healthcare professionals can be more rapidly assisted in their battle against the coronavirus,” Frans van Houten, CEO Philips said.

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Sunday 26 April, 2020

TheWorshipper The church will come out stronger after the pandemic - Oluwagbemiga Reverend Apostle Ngozi Oluwagbemiga, associate pastor with Famous Gospel Proclaimers Church, Lagos, called to ministry in 1988, has been actively into liberation activities that have delivered many souls through the church’s regular faith clinic programme. In this interview with SEYI JOHN SALAU, she speaks on the current lockdown, social distancing and expresses the optimism that the Church will emerge as a stronger entity after the pandemic. Excerpts: Could you tell us your impression on the lockdown and its impact on the church? y experience has been consistent on the path we have chosen to be close to God. The lockdown has been necessary for us to join in the fight against COVID-19; the church is never against it and as a matter of fact, it is the church’s responsibility to ensure that healing and wellness is attained. Here we are talking about a pandemic and it is not that it is targeted at the church in particular, neither is it an intentional act to get at the church.

Another thing is that this has come as a divine agenda of God because the church is not disintegrated; the church is not the physical building we see; we, the church, because the bible in Corinth told us ‘I will build my church,’ God was the one building the church by dwelling in the heart of humans.

So, allowing our heart to be his dwelling place is the church.

Within the period of this fight global battle against the virus, it has helped a lot of our congregants to know that they can find God on their own; except the ones that are not saved.

They can find God because God is with them and God is with the church, and by the time we come out of this fight, the church will come out stronger because when you face your battle all by yourself with your Creator; you will come out as a collaborative body, you will come out with principles - now we know that except God keeps us together, build the house; the builders labour in vain.

Times have changed; some are saying medicals - but I want to see it as a motive of the Lord because we the church pray more against this disease and I believe he will hear the cries of the righteous in their various temples. Another

M

Ngozi Oluwagbemiga

thing is that church begins at home. My family is a church; so, I do not see any negative effect on the church because as a church we have to bring in the God dimension to the fight against COVID-19; we also have to bring in Christ; we have to bring in power to curtail another power.

The lockdown no doubt has brought about some disruption in service and mode of worship; what is your view on this?

To you looking at us from the outside, yes, there is going to be disruption; but one of the things brought about by this pandemic is the distancing of the gathering of the people. But, God is raising pastors everywhere in many homes. So, I see no disruption; it may look like that but soon by the grace of God - every day by day we are bounding that strong hold; releasing those that are under captive; curtailing the spread by abiding to stay at home and

Our people must learn to hold-back, study situations and the unfolding events. It would have been nice all those support given to the Federal Government, were given to charitable organisations; it would have been helpful at this point because such NGOs such as the church and others would have augmented whatever the government is doing, get everything saturated, touch everybody and get to everywhere.

praying spiritually because the spiritual controls the physical. So, I do not see any disruption and you will see by yourself that the church will come out a bigger family. Now, we are fellowshipping at the family unit, but we will come out as a bigger group.

What is your opinion on the palliative measures taken so far by the church?

I think at this point I will air my personal opinion. First and foremost, I am one of those who condemn our bigger churches’ leaderships who were the first to start donating to the Federal Government. Am not saying that was bad, but before alms started coming to a bigger body like the Nigerian government, they should allow the government to at least run with what it has before giving backup; by allowing the situation to saturate, then study the situation on ground.

But, we really do not study things - we rush to taking actions; nobody knows when this lockdown is going to end; in fact, some Nigerians still don’t believe this virus is in Nigeria. A lot of people believe we have handkerchiefs, we are in a special zone, we have special God - Ebola came, we fought it.

So, our people must learn to hold-back, study situations and the unfolding events. It would have been nice all those support given to the Federal Government, were given to charitable organisations; it would have been helpful at this point because such NGOs such as the church and others would have augmented whatever the government is doing, get everything saturated, touch everybody and get to everywhere.

So, I don’t support the idea of donating to government. But, what is done is done - I still believe that what would have been done was to digitally identify people that should benefit from the pallia-

tives. Human beings are supposed to naturally help - we don’t have to wait for government because we know our system in Nigeria.

Palliatives or no palliatives, we have seen how the whole thing is going because there are some greedy people that even though they have, they want to have more. They want to get for their family members, village people and like that.

In other words, are you saying the initiative was abused?

So, churches should not say they have given and withhold the hand of fellowship to their members. Because if you put a scanner in the groups that are demanding for palliative, you will find church members there - so we can still do more as a society by giving support to the less-privileged. If you have two bags of garri, share one; we can do little by little; we do not have to give everything at a go because human beings are good at collecting. So, the church has done a lot, but can still do more by the grace of God. Critical times demand critical solutions; should the church come together to pray as one entity against the pandemic?

The church has been praying, even if we do not come physically together; we are spiritually together. I belong to the branch of Ikeja PFN - every night 10 to 11pm, we come together online on Facebook and other social media platform, and anybody willing to join is welcomed. We come together to pray, interceding for the nation. Every Christian body has been saddled with this task; our leaders have enjoined us to pray, and every moment we are praying.

The world may not see us come together, but we are together praying because when you stay alone to pray in your confine, you don’t receive auction. So, we are praying and very soon the world will see the outcome of our prayers.

PFN urges Christians to pray for Nigeria to overcome COVID-19 pandemic

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h e Pe n t e c o s t a l Fe l l o w s h i p o f Nigeria (PFN) has u r g e d Ni g e r i a n Christians to continue in fervent prayers to redeem the nation from further loss and hardship arising from the spread of COVID-19 pandemic.

Felix Omobude, the

national president of the PFN, urged Nigerians to support government’s efforts in combating the virus, stating that with the support of the citizenry it would be easier to have the nation return to normalcy.

Omobude made the appeal while commiserating with President

Muhammadu Buhari on the death of his Chief of Staff (CoS), Mallam Abba Kyari.

“The Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) has received with sadness the death of Mallam Abba Kyari, the Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari,” said Omobude in a statement signed by Simbo

Olorunfemi on behalf of the PFN president.

While urging the President and the family of the deceased to take solace in the fact that Mallam Abba Kyari’s record was one of sacrifice to the nation in public service, Omobude prayed for comfort for the President and members

of the Kyari family at this difficult time.

Omobude also urged Nigerians to continue to support the initiatives by the government towards the management of COVID-19 pandemic so that the country can attain full recovery soon and life can return to normal.

He equally expressed the appreciation of the PFN to all health workers for the great sacrifice they are making in the fight against the spread of the virus, and appealed to all Christians to continue to lift up the country in prayer and observe all the advised safety protocols on hygiene.

Sunday 26 April, 2020

Inspiration With Rev. Yomi Kasali

info@yomikasali.com

I

just finished a very good movie called ‘Money Heist’ and COVID19 stay at home order made it very easy for me to sit at home on the compulsory vacation to watch this very interesting Netflix Spanish series. It’s about some mask wearing criminals that are quite loving and charming, the characters are different from the usual violent and brutal gun wielding criminals who rob banks. These guys have been presented to their audience as very simple people who have ‘feelings’ and

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BDSUNDAY 25

Which mask are you wearing? can show love.

Well, my thought today is to Inspire you on the Masks they wore. So many of us know that mask wearing today is fanciful and expected to be used as prevention of this deadly virus ravaging the earth and roaming our streets. We are all admonished to buy masks and ensure we wear them appropriately whenever we go out.

It’s recommended strongly for our safety and serves as a precaution so that we don’t get infected.

There are many other reasons people wear masks and we should find out the mind of God towards wearing masks literally and figuratively. I’ll briefly share my thoughts from a verse of scripture that tells us to TAKE OFF THE MASKS we wear religiously before the Lord and His people. Paul the Apostle was inspired by the Holy Spirit to charge the church in Corinth about understanding the New Covenant, he had to compare the revelations of Moses on the mountain and consequently wearing a veil to cover his face because of the Glory of God that shone on his face.

‘And not as Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not steadfastly look to the end of that which is abolished. But their minds were blinded, for until this day remains the same veil

Satanic masks: The Bible tells us about ministers of Satan ‘masquerading’ as angels of light to deceive the gullible and naive towards eternal destruction (2 Cor. 11 v 1315). Those who wear these masks are more dangerous than those who wear the Religious masks. They are evil workers, terrible people and false Apostles in church.

They are in partnership with the devil and wear masks to bring men under captivity.

untaken away in the reading of the Old Testament, which veil is done away in Christ, even Unto this day, when Moses is read, the VEIL IS UPON THEIR HEART. Nevertheless, when it shall turn to the Lord, the Veil Shall Be Taken Away’ (2 Cor. 3v 13-16).

I’ll like to ask you, which mask are you wearing? Because there is a mask that the Lord said we should not wear and must be taken away if we are to enjoy the benefits of the New Covenant same way the doctors have admonished us on the type of masks to wear in order to prevent ourselves from contracting the deadly corona virus. Let me share the different types of masks that we have and hope you can understand the healthy ones and unsafe ones as well.

Take the masks away and be quickened.

Five (5) different kinds of masks Religious masks: This is the hypocritical mask that many religious people wear every Sunday before this lockdown. We go to church and act like Christians, use the phraseology of believers and sing the songs but our hearts are really far from the faith. Many ladies fall for men that wear these masks and start relationships with them, only for the ladies to realize later that they have been scammed.

It is a very terrible mask and I hope religious people will take off the mask of hypocrisy.

Entertainment masks: I remember when growing up, I used to be a lover of wrestling entertainment and loved a fellow called ‘Mill Mascaras’ (I hope I got the spelling right). He was the champion and always wore a mask to the ring to cover his identity from the public and add some mystery to his person. He was a good wrestler, but the mask was simply for entertainment. I think this may be likened to what Santa wears during Christmas and some clowns do to entertain the children.

Cultural masks: This is the African cultural practice that makes people hide in masquerades during certain festivals. I recall that it was a scary thing while growing up in Lagos and children will usually cry when they see them.

To dispel my fears, my late father had to explain to me that

human beings were the ones under the heavy attire. There is another side to their story though, some do it for rituals and to appease some idols in those days but we thank God for the influence and impact of the Christian faith in our land that had stopped some of these practices.

Health and safety masks: This is what millions of people are wearing today and many more will wear in the coming weeks in the world.

It’s to keep us safe from the virus that is infecting and killing people globally in this covid19 pandemic. It’s what I strongly recommend my readers should wear and not take off until the pandemic is defeated.

I hope you have been Inspired. Please, be safe and wash your hands regularly.

Drop me a note of acknowledgment and encouragement and also follow me on my Social media handles below: Instagram: @yomi_kasali Twitter: @yomi_kasali Facebook: www.facebook. com/revyomikasali Youtube: www.youtube.com/ revyomikasali Be Inspired!

Rev Yomi Kasali is Senior Pastor, Foundation of Truth Assembly (FOTA), Surulere, Lagos.

NEWS

Afro-fusion artiste, GOODGIRL LA releases Anchor University activates virtual classes in line new single ‘JEJE’

with education minister’s directive

IFEOMA OKEKE

…as students begin online sessions KELECHI EWUZIE

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he management of Anchor University, one of the private universities licensed by the Federal Government in 2014, has approved the commencement of virtual classes for all students of the University in line with recent directive by Adamu Adamu, minister of education.

Recall that the minister in a teleconferencing with all vice-chancellors, provosts and rectors of tertiary institutions in the country, ordered that learning in tertiary institutions be shifted online with immediate effect.

The university, in a bid to ensure that the global disruption caused by coronavirus pandemic does not significantly impede students’ programmes, approved the virtual option.

Joseph Olaseinde Afolayan, vice chancellor, Anchor University, while speaking about the possibilities of online classes for the semester which officially started on Monday, 20 April 2020 after students received their login accesses and invitations to class over the weekend which says the prolonged lockdown provided the University the option to administer classes online.

According to Afolayan, “We didn’t plan for classes outside of the University campus before the lockdown order as the University had concluded the first semester and students had gone on semester break. However, we will continue to observe the developments and may revert to online classes if the need arises,” he said while discussing the possibility of classes going virtual after the

lockdown.”

Ad e k o y a Ay o m i d e , a 300-level student of Accounting, one of the students who received the information with excitement, said the online session is a welcome development, “I’m happy about this development and I look forward to taking my classes online. For this, I am happy that I’m a student of Anchor University because I used to think this kind of experience is only possible in European countries. I can’t wait to be a part of the session”, Ayomide said.

On h i s p a r t , La w a l Emmanuel, a 400-level student of Political Science, expressed concern about the attitude of the students to the sessions and the quality of information to be given by lecturers.

“If students are serious about the classes,

considering that there would be distractions around and lecturers providing good quality visuals, it’s going to be as good as traditional classrooms. The best part is, we will maintain the required distance while still having our classes,” he said.

Fatokun, J.O., deputy vice-chancellor, expressed confidence that the classes would be seamless and productive as activities get busy across different departments.

“The truth is there are many challenges to having seamless virtual classes due to poor infrastructure across the nation but those cannot stop us from going ahead. I know there will be a couple of hitches as we commence but as classes continue both students and lecturers will adjust and we will have very productive sessions learning online.

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fro-Fusionartiste, GoodGirl LA is on a clear path to becoming one of the finest acts in the country, as she releases her first single of the year, titled “JEJE”.

The female singer has been on a steady win this year, from crossing 1 million views YouTube views on her single, “Bless Me”, to having few of her songs featured on Inkblot’s latest movie “Who’s the Boss” and being one of the 30 recipients of the e m Pa w a i n i t i a t i v e by musician/entrepreneur Mr. Eazi.

Born Euphemia Ekumah, on February 20, 1997, GoodGirl LA grew up in a family of four children in Ajegunle and Festac areas in Lagos. She is originally from Cross River State.

“Find joy in every moment” is a mantra GoodGirl LA

strongly believes in, and this is what she shares on her new record.

“Jeje” reaffirms GoodGirl LA’s stand and position, despite the hate and bad talks, she is unstoppable and not ready to let go even when it comes to love. It is a slow tempo track with sing along lyrics.

It was produced by young music genius P. Priime, additional bass guitars by Tony John, with mixing and mastering done

by Swaps.

The song is available on all digital music platforms.

26 BDSUNDAY

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Sunday 26 April, 2020

SundayBusiness Food & Beverages With Ayo Oyoze Baje

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he implementation of artificial intelligence across sectors has proven to be a major contributor in helping industries meet their sustainability targets across the globe. On World Earth Day, LG Electronics (LG) highlights the contribution of this innovative technology, incorporated into home appliances, to help households commit to sustainable practices throughout the year.

AI-enabled systems are able to recognise trends to anticipate decision-making and provide more accurate, measured solutions. The advanced technology continues to evolve and enable better regulation of power supply and demand, whether it be as large scale as mass production sites, or as personal as

Using AI to improve sustainability at home on World Earth Day 2020 within the home, through the simple use of a smartphone.

By incorporating machine learning technology into frequently used home appliances, LG makes AI home energy management convenient, while also putting power back into the hands of the consumers to monitor their energy consumption habits and determine how to adopt a measured approach to sustainability.

Centralised control with LG ThinQ Providing an enriched smart home experience, LG introduced the LG ThinQ mobile app to provide more seamless management of all Wi-Fi enabled LG appliances from anywhere at any time. With the app, users can stay connected to the house via their smartphone to remotely control appliances on the go, offering a simple solution to switching off devices after you have left the home in a hurry or even monitoring the usage of these appliances while out of the house.

The advanced AI-based app provides personalised support in the form of Proactive Customer Care to inform users of potential problems before they occur, maximising product performance and operational lifespan with detailed guidance for keeping one’s appliances functioning optimally.

The LG ThinQ mobile app also provides helpful information on

product features and functions and alerts the user with suggestions to carry out routine maintenance tasks of the appliance, such as running a cleaning cycle for a washing machine or changing the filter of an air purifier. In addition to ensuring the increased working lifespan of the product, this function is also designed to support a more environmentally conscious lifestyle by maintaining energy and water efficiency regularly.

Power and product efficiency to conserve energy Incorporating innovative technologies at the heart of its products, LG aims to help consumers reduce costs, while also responsibly managing their impact on the environment.

Keeping energy consumption rate in mind, LG InstaView Doorin-Door refrigerator has a built-in

NCAC rolls out facemasks, sanitizers for Covid-19 Obinna Emelike

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overnment growing concerns over the breaching of Covid-19 protocols, particularly on the dedicated use of facemasks and sanitizers, has prompted the intervention of the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) .

The Nigeria premier culture agency will roll out both medical and conventional facemasks made from local adire and Ankara fabrics embossed with NCAC logo to check imitation and also to showcase home grown solutions to demands for the kits.

Likewise, sanitizers exclusively made from local natural resources will also be part of the intervention.

Segun Runsewe, director general, NCAC, disclosed that the measures are part of well-thought interventions that would help bridge the gap in the demands and needs to ensure no one finds excuse to breach the Covid-19 protocols.

“We shall be targeting the culture/ tourism community, the media, the security agencies at the frontline of the battle to the successful and full compliance of the lockdown and also the medical professionals”, Runsewe

explained.

Describing the initiative as a necessity and response to exploit the huge cultural resources in Nigeria, Runsewe noted that covid 19 pandemic has provided Nigeria a great opportunity to look inwards for the production of relevant kits and accessories made exclusively in Nigeria and which will meet with export standard and health protocols.

“We cannot just sit down and expect help from outside the country all the time. We should respond to this challenge by looking inwards and creatively discover certain benefits in our cultural endowment, support the process of indigenous response to all health challenges not just covid 19 pandemic, Runsewe further

Inverter Linear Compressor, which can save energy up to 32percent, ensuring household energy saving.

With the knock-on feature, the fridge illuminates the contents inside with two knocks which provides users the convenience of seeing what is in the fridge without opening the door, keeping the food fresher while preventing cold air loss. The user also has the freedom to operate key features such as Control Temperature, Express Freeze, Smart Diagnosis and Hygiene Fresh+ Air Purifying for their refrigerator, from their smartphones. The uniquely designed refrigerator with Smart Care+, powered by LG ThinQ, also analyses usage patterns to deliver a more personalised service, further lowering energy costs and keeping food fresh longer by automatically setting the ideal temperature and

entering power-saving mode when not in use.

The LG TurboWash 360, which won an Honoree Innovation Award at the CES 2020 Awards, uses the company’s Artificial Intelligence Direct Drive (AI DD) technology to improve the efficiency of a wash cycle. By drawing on a vast amount of data collected, the AI DD machine enables finely-tuned washing patterns, automatically detecting the weight of laundry and accuratelyassessingfabricsoftness.

This guarantees exceptional results every time, and reduces the occurrence of fabric damage by up to 18 percent, in an effort to prolong the lifespan of the user’s favorite items of clothing. With Smart Pairing, LG’s newest dryers on the other hand can connect wirelessly to LG washing machines to offer optimal drying cycles based on the wash cycle selected.

LG’s AI DD washing machines also ensure that the correct amount of detergent is being used in each case, along with the appropriate amount of water. This results in reduced wastage of water, energy, and detergent, all while saving the user money.

Baje is Nigerian first Food Technologist in the media ayobaje@yahoo.co.uk; 07068638066

MTN Nigeria rolls out platform to meet subscribers’ specific needs clarified, adding that necessity is the mother of all inventions around the world.

“Ours is not only to support government directives that Nigerians should wear facemasks in public places, but to develop a determined basic cultural socioeconomic baseline to the effective use and engagement of local fabrics and natural resources to which Nigeria is well blessed, Runsewe stated further.

It would be recalled that NCAC under Runsewe has made the use of local fabrics, arts and crafts as the fulcrum of a new and emerging cultural economy.

Indeed, NCAC has promoted a proudly and exclusively Nigerian cultural products since the advent of Buhari administration.

SEYI JOHN SALAU

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n a bid to help ease the challenges with staying connected in the face of COVID-19 pandemic, MTN Nigeria has introduced MTN4ME, a new platform uniquely designed to meet the specific needs of each subscriber.

With MTN4ME, the peculiarity of each customer unlocks an exclusive array of products and services suited for individual need. This further enhances user experience, particularly with the lockdown directive and the need for social distancing to fight the pandemic.

Rahul De, MTN Nigeria chief marketing officer said MTN4ME is a wholesome package of innovative offerings tailored to the needs of each subscriber on the MTN network.

“We understand how important it is to stay in touch with loved ones in these trying times, at pocket-friendly prices using products we truly need. We also recognise that every consumer is unique in what appeals to them, and with MTN4ME we are ensuring that clarifications and complaints are resolved without the need for a call centre agent,” he said.

According to him, MTN subscribers can now enjoy the most amazing deals and discounts on data or recharges and at the same time enjoy value for every Naira which is very important at such a time.

Rahul further said that MTN4ME provides its customers with tailored offers available via a dedicated USSD code and

myMTNApp, which can also help subscribers to stay on top of usage.

“It is our promise to keep providing solutions and services to make our customer’s lives brighter everywhere they stay,” Rahul stated.

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BDSUNDAY 27

SundayBusiness SMEs hard hit by continued lockdown in A/Ibom ANIEFIOK UDONQUAK, Uyo

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mall and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are in a tough time in Akwa Ibom as the continued lockdown announced by the state government takes toll on their operations.

According to experts, Small and Micro Enterprises make up about 84.5percent of businesses in the country and are seen as the next to large enterprises or corporations in terms of employment, employing as much as 28.9percent of the total labor force in businesses nationwide.

Among the worst hit are small scale poultry farmers, food processing businesses and those operating restaurants, according to BDSUNDAY check in Uyo, the state capital.

For the small scale poultry farmer, the problem is made compounded by the restriction of movement which makes it difficult for consumers to visit their farms or for

them to take their products to buyers.

According to one of the farmers, who simply identified herself as Emem, she has over 100 crates of eggs for sale but she has not been able to find buyers.

Emem, who took to her verified twitter handle to lament her plight, requested her followers to repost her tweet to enable prospective buyers locate her.

In the same vein, small scale farmers in Uyo have equally been passing through tough times as the lockdown continued to be extended by the state government.

According to one of them, Anietie Akpan, there is likely to be no end in sight to their plight since they have not also been able plant to carry out planting at the subsistence level as a result of the lockdown.

“It is going to tougher next year as we have not been able to plant our crops by this time of the year,’’ he said.

According to one of them, a review of the lockdown order will encourage and

facilitate farming activities, food production and processing adding that while it is important to stay alive, it is equally important for people to food to stay alive The lockdown illustrates the growing frustration and economic uncertainty small scale business operators are going through as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to experts.

Lucy Ekpenyong, state manager of Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency, Akwa Ibom State, believes that SMEs are more likely to be hit harder by the lockdown because more than 72 percent of them rely on the transport/mobility to access their merchandise, services and clientele and that had been halted.

“The ripple effects of thousands of small businesses closing will have a massive impact on increasing unemployment and crime significantly,” she said.

In a interview with BDSUNDAY, she said the economy might not experience stability in a while with the current sharp fall in the price of crude oil which she said has further compounded the situation.

She noted that the worst hit are the informal and micro enterprises “who have utilised their small capital to feed their families during this lockdown,” and she urged government at all levels “to make available soft loans and grants to this category of businesses.”

Despite COVID-19, Customs records 52.7% seizures increase in Ogun to N1.1bn RAZAQ AYINLA, Abeokuta

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espite the negative effects of coronavirus spreading across the world with attendant economic woes, Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has recorded 52.7 percent total of seizures, amounting to N1.177 billion within the first quarter of the year as against the total of N438.9 million recorded within the same period last year.

Nigeria Customs also intercepted 293,015 litres of PremiumMotorSpirit(PMS), 625 litres of diesel and 19 jerry cans of kerosene in different parts of Ogun state during the period under review, just as it equally seized 176 sacks of cannabis sativa (Indian Hemp), comprising 1, 790

parcels,80compressedbooks packs and 28 compressed coconut packs.

Speaking during a scorecard press briefing for the first quarter of the year at Sentry at Idi-Iroko border post, Ogun State Friday, Michael Agbara, Area Controller, Nigeria Customs Service, Ogun Area Command I, noted that other seizures made within the period were 225 units of vehicles; 14,951 bags of 50kg rice and 9,161 cartons of poultry products.

While putting the Duty Paid Value of the seizures at N1.177 billion within the first quarters compared to the N438.9 million recorded within the period in 2019, Agbara particularly said the Customs Command generated N37,878,000 revenue from the auction of the intercepted petroleum

products.

He however, observed t h a t t h e “d a r e d e v i l smugglers” despite the lockdown and the ravaging C o r o n avir u s e x plo r e d difficult terrain to smuggle items into the country, saying that the Command remains resolute and committed to implementing the Federal Government policies on safety and wellbeing of the populace. “ Fu r t h e r m o r e , t h e CommandSpecialTaskforce, intercepted nine vehicles (7 SUVs Nissan Pathfinder and 2 Mazda) fully loaded with smuggled parboiled rice. It is important to bring to the notice of the public that during the lockdown, some daredevil smugglers ingeniously explored the difficult terrain with SUV vehicles to convey smuggled items into the country.

Hey! I’m crisis, can someone manage me!

Femi Oke

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risis won’t announce, “I’m at the door, come open up.” It’ll hit you when you less expected it. You can go to bed with a smile on your face, heart full of pride and accomplishment(s) and wake up the next morning with your brand trending and full of negative sentiments; then the hard-work begins: seeking for the facts, sieving it and deciding what to feed the public, winning back the trust you lost, etc.

Now trying to rebuild the brand and reselling it to a public you hurt is not as easy as distributing a welcome pack. You need to address the questions of why (raised to power 2), who did it, what were you doing, what were you thinking, where were you looking, how did this

escape you, who will pay... and lots of question marks.

Relationship reconstruction will have its drain on the management, staff and the profession the hurting brand represents.

Yes it’s easy to say we have a department that’s responsible for crisis management and allude all the process to the department; THAT’S A GRAVE ERROR. Crisis was never at the door, it was right with us, resumed every morning, present at our boardrooms and meetings, in our data trend, looping with our IT and always at high alert to spring on any loophole we fail to cover (our people, infrastructures, tools and processes). It is everyone’s responsibility to save the brand!

The crux is, are we prepared to host a crisis? Not the type that was taught in the walls of a classroom.

More than ever before, crisis management demands a new set of interdepartmental cooperation, not the fire-fighting approach we currently adopt. As communicators, especially if you manage a pan-African brand, you must be high alert and ahead of your public. The Nigerian public perception is not the same as that of the South African public; like-

wise Rwandan public might not assimilate trends like the Egyptian counterpart.

Unfortunately (well, fortunately, ‘cause that’s what we’re paid to do), that’s the headache of core corporate communicators to manage.

From my experience as a Corporate Communicator, the key value and legal tender here is TRUST; whether it’s a data breach, or integrity crisis, COVID-19, the currency you trade with, amass or get deprived of is trust.

Now who do you trade with?

On whose platform? Who do you open up to? If you’ve never been in a crisis, you may never have asked these questions (but you need to start asking now, while there seems to be no crisis (besides COVID-19).

In conclusion, never ever believe a brand is too big to fail. Get prepared for crisis like it’s going to hit today, have dry runs, conduct staff samples and assessment, enlighten them on what to say and what not to say; and most importantly, ensure you have a good relationship with the media, believe me, they can determine if your brand will survive or not. .Oke is the founder of Digitmazeafrica, he writes from Johannesburg, South Africa

MindBody & Soul

with Chioma Nwosu

Coping with anxiety in this pandemic

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remember when I first heard the news of the lockdown in Lagos over the COVID-19 pandemic, different thoughts raced through my mind: ‘Is this the end of the world? When would this be over? What happens to my organisation now?

How would I cope? And so on.

I didn’t have the answers and yet I couldn’t stop worrying. Anxiety and fear had taken a better part of me and trust me, I wasn’t coping well at all. As someone who suffers OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder), my OCD kicked in full gear. I’d constantly obsess over the world ending and how I would catch the virus, because of this, I would compulsively wash my hands over and over again. It got so bad that I’d wake up at least 10 times at night just to wash my hand. I also suffered frequent panic attacks. It got so bad that one day after my evening run, I felt I had seen too many people on the road and the obsessive thoughts lurked again, I washed everything including my phone. What was I expect-

ing, water got into my phone and it went bad.

Studies show that there has been increased levels of worry and anxiety during this pandemic, and just like me, a lot of people are having a hard time coping. Anxiety is your body’s natural response to stress. It’s a feeling of fear or apprehension about what’s to come. If your feelings of anxiety are extreme, last for a long period, and are interfering with your life, you may have to seek the help of a professional. Anxiety disorders are a group of mental disorders characterised by significant feelings of worry, anxiety and fear that are strong enough to interfere with one’s daily activities. Women are two times more likely to suffer anxiety disorders than men.

Some symptoms of anxiety attacks include; a surge of overwhelming panic, heart palpitations or chest pain, hot flashes or chills, feeling detached or unreal, trouble breathing or choking sensation, feeling of losing control or going crazy, hyperventilation, nausea or stomach

cramps, feeling like you’re going to pass out, trembling or shaking.

Does any of the above describe how you are feeling? If yes, I’d like you to BREATHE...

Take a deep breath in (3seconds) now exhale (4 seconds). Repeat this action at least 5 times. Feel better?

Not yet? Practice this grounding exercise, the 54321 technique. Describe 5 things you can see in the room, name 4 things you can feel, name 3 things you can hear right now, name 2 things you can smell right now, name one thing you can taste. Now BREATHE...

Chioma Nwosu is a mental health/positive psychology advocate, speaker and founder of Olamma Cares Foundation an NGO focused on encouraging the social acceptance of developmental disabilities and mental disorders, finding and implementing long term solutions of these conditions through training, capacity building, advocacy and intervention.

Email: cnwosu@olammacares.com Instagram: _olamma_

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Sunday 26 April, 2020

SundayBusiness Financing options, opportunities that may be lost to coronavirus

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vidently, coronavirus is a health phenomenon that could be described as an uncertainty. As it is today, it remains largely uncertain how more devastating its impact will be going forward. It is also uncertain today when, how and from where the exact cure for this deadly virus will come.

What is certain, however, is that when it pleases God to heal the world and the virus is no more anywhere on the phase of the earth, the global economy will not only be badly bruised, but also bartered.

Because the world is at a standstill, practically motionless, the aviation sector has become a wreck.

Airlines, including the big names— Virgin, Australia, Lufthansa, are busy grounding aircrafts, cutting jobs, reversing earlier decisions and re-ordering their priorities.

The next sector to fall is the hospitality sector where hotel occupancy rate has dropped to between 30 percent in most cases.

Social distancing and government’s restrictive policies have kind of outlawed conferences and other social gatherings. Airport Hotel in Lagos has just sent its staff on three months’ leave without pay.

At the receiving end of all these is real estate which provides the space needed for living, working and leisure.

As an aspect of real estate, housing is already hard-hit by the deadly virus. Rent default is as good as given. No new supplies because construction activities have been

halted. This means that when this crisis is over, there will be crisis in the housing bordering on demand and pricing.

Housing in Nigeria has always been struggling for a combination factors including finance, government’s policies and high cost of input materials which are over 70 percent imported. Of all these challenges, finance is critical.

This was why, when Nigerian professionals, experts and sundry stakeholders in the housing sector gathered at a housing forum in Abuja to look at these constraints, the focus of discussion was on innovative and sustainable financing model for the sector.

The forum, according to the organisers, was to realise a housing sector that would not only shelter man, but also contribute to GDP, provide jobs and create economic opportunities for those on the demand and supply sides of the housing value chain.

Consistent with the theme of the event, ‘Driving Sustainable Housing Finance Models in the Midst of Global Uncertainty’, expert opinions, ideas, insights and possible solutions were offered on how public and private capital could walk into the sector to deliver decent and affordable housing.

Besides private equity and debt from lenders, co-operatives, public and private partnerships which have not fared well in Nigeria due to policy inconsistence and trust issues, other finance and funding models were highlighted and these

are some of the opportunities the sector may have lost to COVID-19.

Institutional funding and Diaspora remittances are also other major finance sources and models for delivering housing with reduced risk and cost. According to the experts, there is a direct correlation between the availability or otherwise of financing for housing and risk.

Diaspora remittances into Nigeria are quite huge and have increased significantly in the last couple of years. Robert Honsby, Cofounder and CEO, American Homebuilders of West Africa (AHWA), estimates Diaspora remittances into Nigeria at $24 billion. It is also estimated that only 10 percent of this figure is deployed into real estate.

Hornsby noted that risk in SubSaharan Africa was generally overpriced relative to market fundamentals, pointing out that those who understood that could earn outsized returns. According to him, public sector, bilateral and multilateral donors, NGOs, resident citizens and the Diaspora all wanted solutions to the housing sector.

“Private sector actors who can deliver quality and value, and build a trusted brand will find significant opportunities for decades to come.

Diaspora investors hunger for a partner to trust with their money and they dream of a home in the land of their birth,” noted Hornsby who spoke on ‘Diaspora Housing and Financing: Opportunities and Challenges’.

Micro-finance is another model

Talking Mortgage with CHUKA UROKO (08037156969, chukuroko@yahoo.com)

that the experts considered to be of potential help. Debra Erb, MD, Real Estate Project Finance at Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) raised hope in this connection when she disclosed that they were already seeing more attempts to adopt that model to the lowest income housing needs and incremental demand, particularly in live and work developments.

Significant hope was also raised on institutional funding. It is expected that over the next five years, about $180 million will be invested in the sector by Shelter Afrique.

The continental housing finance institution will be disbursing this money through credits to financial institutions, mortgages, construction finance for public private partnership projects.

Andrew Chimphondah, the CEO, who disclosed this also revealed their intension to assist Nigeria to raise bonds as soon as the country’s macro-economic environment stabilised, adding that the institution was planning to partner with the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) on affordable housing for low in-

come earners under the Affordable Nationwide Housing Project (ANHP) scheme.

To create an enabling environment for all these to happen, the Senate has assured of a legislative intervention in the housing sector, disclosing that the Land Use Act and the national housing fund (NHF) were captured in the legislative agenda of the 9th Senate.

“The importance of housing cannot be over-emphasised,” noted Ahmed Lawan, the Senate President, adding, “Our needs are enormous while resources are lean. But the good thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time.

Today presents us with the opportunity to consolidate on what we have built and to start new projects where necessary.”

Continuing, Lawan said: “I am aware that there are critical areas that require legislative intervention like the Land Use Act, the National Housing Fund (NHF), housing regulations, and many more enabling policies. It is in the legislative agenda of the 9th Senate to see it that all policies required to get us closer to our dreams are achieved.”

SAPIENCE: Rethink How to turbo-charge your business through turbulent times (Part 3)

with Toluwanimi Osinowo info@cantab-associates.com Obinnae-mail: Emelike Lesson 1: Learn to redefine your business (contd.) ne of the fundamental mistakes business leaders make is in conceptualising what their business is. Traditional business thinking makes you consider what good or services your business is providing (product) and to whom these are being provided (customer). This seems straightforward enough, however, this is not your business.

This way of thinking is where the problem often begins as it already limits the possibilities available to your mind.

A picture of your business The best way to introduce a new way of thinking about our businesses is by using a metaphor. Imagine a person (you) is using a vehicle to deliver something (the essence/ content) to a target (someone or some people). It is important to note

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that in this story, you have something you want to give and someone to whom you want to give it.

The vehicle (contd.)

The vehicle (in our metaphor) is what most people mean when they are talking about their “business”.

One reason for this is that it is usually the most tangible of the elements.

However, in reality, as with most vehicles, it is only a means to an end.

Your vehicle is the active framework that helps you deliver the content you have to your target. It includes organisational structure, your business operations, and logistics by which you are able to deliver your goods/ services and communicate with the market. Now, this is the surprising part for most people, your vehicle includes the product and services themselves!

Many times, people let the vehicle dictate to them what they carry and to whom they can go – because

I have this type of factory, or this amount of money or these types of assets, I will go in this direction – but this should not be the case. Your vehicle serves your agenda and that agenda is about the content and the target.

Secondly, you can change vehicles. This is usually a traumatic idea for most but you are not wedded to your vehicle! Unfortunately, when we have prioritized the vehicle of our business (including our goods and services) in our business definition so that it has become the focus of our energies, changing vehicles becomes a traumatic idea. Admittedly, the larger and more complex your vehicle, the harder it is to change. Even then, some of the oldest companies have succeeded in transforming (changing) their vehicles over the years.

The essence - your real business Your real business is the content carried by your vehicle. And this content is NOT the goods you produce and/or supply. You are probably wondering “what then is the content I am delivering if it is not the goods I supply or the services I deliver?”

Your true product, the content you are delivering is intangible, it doesn’t matter whether you make

soap or help people procure airline tickets, whether you build houses or you help clean offices. These are really just the means to deliver something that is much less tangible than we like to imagine.

Your real business is delivering meaning to people. Human beings are creatures of meaning – the map of our lives is drawn in our minds and what matters to us is not what takes up the most space around us but what takes up the most space on our mental real estate. The real experience centre - where wants and needs are catalogued and accounted for in real-time is the mind. Even the most basic biological needs are maintained and modulated in the mind.

For example, when we say the world is in chaos, it doesn’t necessarily mean the physical environment is chaotic. In fact, the streets of major cities are “calmer” today than they have been in a long time however the meaning registered in the minds

Illustration by David Idibe

of most people is that the world is more chaotic and not less. Whereas, a busy weekend day at the beach may seem “chaotic” by comparison but for many people may represent a needed break from chaos!

You real business is about the meaning you are able to register in the mind of your target. And all your goods, services, business structures and processes simply form the apparatus for you to serve this end. Your aim, of course, is to register positive meaning and not negative meaning in the mind of your target. In other words, the object of your business is to bring true delight (meaning) to a predefined set of people (your target).

What meaning is your business currently registering in the mind of your customers?

Dr. Toluwanimi Osinowo is a thinker and teacher: coaching high-potential leaders, advising organisations and originating breakthrough ideas. He is the founder of CANTAB Associates and the pioneer of SAPIENCE which is both a philosophy and methodology of thinking. He previously worked in the London office of the leading global strategy consulting firm Bain & Company. He studied Medicine at the University of Cambridge where he was a Cambridge Commonwealth Scholar. He can be reached for your questions and comments.

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Sunday Business Business Clinic with The Start-Up Doctor with MUNA ONUZO Instagram: @startupdoctor | @munaonuzo Mobile: +2348077701104 Email: thestartupdocto@gmail.com

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Dear Startup Doctor, am an ideas person and a content creator. I see business opportunities where others see none. However, my greatest challenge is execution. I have many business ideas that have never seen the light of day. This situation makes me feel inadequate. I want to start my business, but l don’t know if I have what it takes. I need your advice.

Thank you Adanma. O. Ogun State.

Dear Adanma, Thank you for your letter. I too have the same gift. My close friends call me “The Fixer.” To answer your question, I would start by saying that being blessed with the gift to spot opportunities is a great advantage you have over most people. It is individuals such as yourself with your unique gift that move companies forward or start disruptive businesses. As the saying goes, ideas rule the world, and from what you have said, you have a unique opportunity to be part of the solution through your gift.

If your focus is on building your career, I would suggest you look towards working in experiential events, advertising or retail organisations. These companies need quick thinkers and creative genies to join their pool of talented content and product creators.

On the other hand, if you choose to own a business, you would do well to guard your enthusiasm as creating too many services or products at the same time will not be suitable for business. This gift is usually the chal-

Can a content creator transit to become an entrepreneur? lenge of having too many ideas.

Most people with the ability to spot opportunities, often find themselves burdened with the inability to bring one of such plans to fruition. This challenge crops up because there is more to success beyond having a great idea.

Now that you are thinking of starting your business, my most candid advice would be to stay where you are now and test out one, two or even three of your ideas. You did not say which company or industry is your nine to five. So, I will advise from the little information you have given.

First, would be to look around your organisation. Find the burning issues that need resolving. If you are in a position or department where your input can help the organisation become profitable, I would suggest that you take the initiative and come up with a solution that speaks to the problem.

Second, strive to be part of the implementation team that will bring the product or service from concept to market. Being part of this team will help you gain hands-on experience on how new products or services transition from ideation to market. Let your organiation bear this risk while you test out your theory. Build up a consistent portfolio of success before you begin to think of starting your own business. Once you have done this several times, and the company has made an enormous profit based on your curated intervention, then you might well be ready to branch off on your own.

While I do not discourage you from stepping out to launch your business, please bear in mind that you can also bring that idea to life within your organisation. If that’s a possibility, the plan could thrive better because of the structures and resources available in a bigger system.

So, my third contribution would be that before you jump out with your ideas to start your own business, check if the solution

can fit into your current employer’s business goals. Do you think it’s the board chairmen of the multinationals and banks that come up with all the ideas they have? No! It is the business, product, service or content development team like you in such organisations that spearhead the innovative contributions in the system!

If your idea aligns with the vision and goals of your current employer, find the courage to go and discuss it with your boss. It will earn you a place at the table with the big shots. This level of exposure in the organisation has its perks beyond monetary benefits. In many organisations, you could become a team lead with experts and support staff, funds and structure to help you bring the idea to life. This opportunity to work within an established structure and system will allow you to focus on bringing the concept to life rather than worrying about providing everything you need by yourself. This is called intrapre-

neurship.

To be clear, I am not saying that it is wrong for you to own your own business. You can! I am only emphasising the need for you to consider the option of giving your idea life in an existing organisation because many ideas will thrive better in such setting than in the hand of an underfunded entrepreneur.

However, for my fourth input, there might be times when the idea cannot fit into the goals, culture and operation of an organisation. At such times, starting your business may be the best option. Where your employers do not buy your idea, and you have a strong belief that it could be the next big thing, then you need to take the risk by boldly starting your business.

Now, I understand that you can’t just quit your job on a whim because ideas alone don’t make a business thrive. You will need to have the resources, business plan and strive to find the right people who will help bring your ideas to life. If you dive nose-first into

entrepreneurship without a plan, you will fail abysmally.

So, my fifth advise would be that one way to manage and cushion the transition into entrepreneurship is to look towards partnership. You need to partner with those who have the skills you lack. For instance, the success of Piggyvest came through partnership. Each partner brought their unique expertise into the business, and this helped in growing this startup. The Founders were able to reduce overheads by utilising each Partners skill in-house. This internal pooling of skills enabled them to turn over of 21 billion naira in their first year of operation and N5 billion monthly as at first quarter 2020. One more thing you should do is to take courses on business management and finance and leadership. With such courses, you will be an asset to your organisation while in turn, prepare yourself for entrepreneurship.

To recap, please note the points I have made.

First, there is nothing wrong with you stepping out to execute your ideas.

Second, if your organisation’s goals align with yours, and they buy-into your idea, remain there and use the opportunity to test the viability of your ideas and also build up your skills and portfolio.

Third, create a consistent track record of successful implementations of your ideas.

Fourth, it is ok to resign to pursue your dream. You can do this solo or through partnership.

Fifth, believe in yourself. If you can think it, you can do it! Acquire the knowledge and skill you need to give value wherever you find yourself.

Whichever one you choose, please stay consistent and committed to your goals. Give value in your current organisation. Then watch and learn how successful businesses operate before you branch off on your own.

To your continued success.

Keep sparkling!

The Startup Doctor.

Security trust fund improves traffic management in Ogun as TRACE receives working tools COVID-19: Amosun extends palliatives to

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Stories by RAZAQ AYINLA

o further enhance activities of the Traffic Compliance and Enforcement (TRACE), Ogun State Security Trust Fund (OGSTF) has provided 10 patrol bikes and walkietalkies to the Corps, with a charge on the Officers to be more alive to their responsibilities of traffic management, savings of lives and property.

Delivering the patrol bikes and walkie-talkies to TRACE operatives during a One-Day training programme, with the theme, “Efficient Patrol Bike Handling for Effective Service Delivery in Ogun State Traffic Management”, organised for the officers of the Corps in Abeokuta, Governor Abiodun said, it was imperative to equip the Agency with necessary tools to make it more efficient and effective in the discharge of its duties, thereby reducing road

accident to the barest minimum in the State.

The Governor, who was represented by an official from the Office of Special Adviser on security, Olukoga Emmanuel, appreciated the efforts of TRACE for prompt response to traffic issues in the State, saying the gesture was in fulfilment of his promise to ensure TRACE benefitted from the Security Trust Fund towards effective road safety and management.

In his contribution, the CorpsCommander and Chief Executive Officer, Commander Olaseni Ogunyemi, represented by his Deputy Corp-Commander, Commander Olusola Bamidele, commended the government’s gesture, promising that the TRACE Corps would be alive to its responsibility of effective trafficmanagementacrosstheState.

While hammering on the importance of road traffic safety, which he said was in line with the major responsibility of government to protect lives and property, he urged the riders not to break the laws

of social distance, hand washing, wearing of face mask and making use hand sanitizer during this period of covid-19 pandemic.

In her remark, TRACE Education Officer, Commander Oluwatoyin Fatoberu, enjoined the riders to be safely conscious, use crash helmet always, shun reckless riding and avoid taking of alcohol while on duties, charging them to adequately take care of government’s properties and always be at their duty posts.

Facilitators at the training including, Deputy Corps Commander, Commander Bamidele Olusola, Director of Administration and Supplies, Taiwo Dada, Director of Planning Research And Statistics, Commander Babatunde Ajayi, all took turn to educate the officers on safety consciousness, handling of walkie-talkie and other equipment effectively, urging them to reciprocate government’s kind gesture by making judicious use of the gadgets and adhere to rules governing TRACE operations.

Army, Police, SSS, others in Ogun

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s part of measures being put together to support government’s efforts to cushion negative effects of COVID-19 lockdown in Ogun state, former governor of Ogun state, Ibikunle Amosun, has rolled out palliatives to cover frontliners in the fight against the deadly virus.

The provision of palliatives in form of food items and daily needs that are more than 6,000 bags of rice, semolina, thousands pasta and noodle packs and vegetable oil to these frontliners, including operatives of Nigerian Army, Police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, State Security Service, Transport Unions, Medical Doctors, Press Men, among others, came as a follow-up N25 million given to State Government and food items earlier offered to 3,010 polling booths of the state.

Speaking on behalf of Amosun,

who now represents Ogun Central Senatorial District at the Senate, Derin Adebiyi, Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC), Ogun state chapter, said that “in continuation of the humanitarian service of Senator Ibikunle Amosun, the second phase of the distribution of COVID-19 Palliatives to the people of Ogun state would commence on Thursday 23rd April, 2020.

“This phase of distribution of COVID-19 Palliatives would cover Security Agencies, Trade Organisations Youths and Women Associations, Religious and Professional Groups, among others, across Ogun state.

“Senator Ibikunle Amosun uses this opportunity to reiterate his appeal to the people of Ogun state and indeed Nigerians in general to continuously comply with the directives of Health Authorities concerning the treatment and prevention of COVID-19.

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Health&Science WHO urged countries not to let COVID19 crowd out other health issues

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When exploring your infertility as a woman CONTRIBUTOR

ANTHONIA OBOKOH he World Health Organisation (WHO) has said that efforts must be maintained on other health emergencies and progress made against diseases such as malaria or polio preserved as public health systems in Africa are coming under severe strain due the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic persists.

According to WHO, in a press statement, an overburdened health system not only undermines the effectiveness of the response to COVID-19, but may also undermine the response to a host of preventable threats to human health.

“Even brief interruptions of vaccination make outbreaks more likely to occur, putting children and other vulnerable groups more at risk of life-threatening diseases.”

“I urge all countries to not lose focus on their gains made in health as they adapt to tackle this new threat,” said Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa. “We saw with the Ebola Virus Disease outbreak in West Africa that we lost more people to malaria, for instance than, we lost to the Ebola outbreak. Let us not repeat that with COVID-19.”

Confirmed COVID-19 cases in Africa continue to rise, now exceeding 25 000. WHO is supporting countries in all aspects of the COVID-19 response and has recently published guidelines for ensuring the continuation of critical health services, including immunization and anti-malaria campaigns.

ABAYOMI AJAYI

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The guidelines stress the need for countries to take a dynamic approach that mitigates any unavoidable pause in vaccination campaigns.

The consequences of disrupting efforts to control malaria in Africa could be particularly grave. Current estimates suggest that sub-Saharan Africa accounted for approximately 93% of all malaria cases and 94% of deaths, mainly among children under five. A new analysis by WHO and partners suggests that in a worst case scenario if malaria prevention and treatment services were severely disrupted as a result of COVID-19, the number of malaria deaths in 2020 in sub-Saharan Africa could rise to double the number in 2018.

“Africa has made significant progress over the past 20 years in stopping malaria from claiming lives. While COVID-19 is a major health threat, it’s critical to maintain malaria prevention and treatment programmes. The new modelling shows deaths could exceed 700 000 this year alone. We haven’t seen mortality levels like that in 20 years. We

must not turn back the clock,” said Dr Moeti.

There are countries like Benin, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, Chad, Central African Republic, Uganda and Tanzania which are continuing with their insecticide treated bed net campaigns and other important malaria prevention activities. Countries are adapting their malaria strategies to the current complex situation.

Another essential health service is immunization. The response to COVID-19 has already disrupted vaccination efforts on the continent. Despite considerable progress on immunization, one in four African children remain under-immunized. Measles vaccination campaigns in Chad, Ethiopia, Nigeria and South Sudan have already been suspended because of COVID-19, leaving approximately 21 million children who would have otherwise been vaccinated unprotected.

In response to the introduction of physical distancing measures, WHO has published guidelines on immunization in the context of COVID-19.

COVID-19: Retired nurses donate to Oyo endowment fund, commends Makinde REMI FEYISIPO, Ibadan.

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yo State Chapter of the Association of Professional Retired Nurses and Midwives of Nigeria, has commended Governor Seyi Makinde on his efforts at curtailing the spread of coronavirus alao known as COVID-19 in the state.

The association also donated to Oyo State COVID-19 Endowment Fund In a letter dated April 15 and forwarded to Governor Makinde on Wednesday in Ibadan noted with joy the deployment of commendable measures by the governor in attacking the scourge of the viral disease in the state.

The letter made available to journalists in Ibadan, the association said “we commended the prompt establishment of the Oyo State Infectitious Disease Hospital, Olodo as well as the Drive-Through and Walk-

Governor Seyi Makinde

through Test Centres in the state as attested that you are fighting the disease headlong,” it said.

It commended governor for the good work towards fighting COVID-19, assuring him of their support for every effort to contain the pandemic.

According to the association, in supporting the good work that your Excellency and your team are doing towards curtailing and

containing the scourge of COVID-18 pandemic in Oyo State that we hereby give our widows mite of N200,000.

“The said amount has been credited into the Oyo State COVID-19 Endowment Fund Account domiciled at first bank”, it said.

The nurses however prayed that the governor’s effort would bring succor and easement to the good people of the state.

nfertility is much more common than most people realize. An estimated 10 percent to 15 percent of couples wishing to conceive will have difficulty doing so. It is defined as the inability to conceive after 12 months of unprotected intercourse. However, in certain circumstances — such as irregular cycles, history of pelvic infection, and history of toxin exposure such as radiation or chemotherapy, or advanced maternal age— it is prudent to seek help with an infertility specialist before one year.

When you’re exploring infertility treatment, it could be difficult to know where to start. Before taking the first step in your journey to become pregnant, it’s worth seeking out a good fertility clinic.

Be meticulous in choosing your preferred treatment clinic as your choice goes a long way in determining your chances of achieving conception. Do some homework first. When it comes to choosing a clinic, do thorough research ahead of time.

The main symptom of infertility is failure to conceive after a year of unprotected sex. This is the point at which most doctors recommend seeking fertility care. For women over age 35 who did not conceive after 6 months of trying or who have irregular menstrual cycles, seeing a fertility doctor as soon as possible is recommended. Male infertility is just as common as female infertility, so it’s important that both partners be evaluated.

If you have not been able to get pregnant after about one year of regular, unprotected sexual intercourse, either you or your spouse may have a fertility problem. Concerns about being pregnant should not be ignored. Don’t wait. Consult a qualified medical doctor who will refer you to a specialist that will investigate the reason why pregnancy is not occurring.

If you have been trying to get pregnant for over a year you would generally be offered a test to check that you are ovulating. If these tests don’t reveal a problem, further tests are done to check that the fallopian tubes are not blocked.

Generally, fertility tests for women include a cervical smear test if she hasn’t had one recently, urine test for chlamydia, which can block the fallopian tubes, preventing pregnancy, and blood test for ovulation.

The man should also have sperm test checks for abnormalities as well as urine test for chlamydia, which, in addition to being a known cause of infertility in women, can also affect sperm function and male fertility. If one or both of have a condition that affects fertility more tests could be necessary.

Lifestyle can affect chances of conceiving significantly, particularly if you are a heavy smoker or overweight or underweight. In 15 per cent of cases, despite investigations, a clear cause of infertility is never established (unexplained infertility). Whatever the diagnosis, the clinician will explain the best

treatment options that are available to you.

But if the tests reveal a possible fertility issue, especially if you are in your 30s or older, you may need to see a specialist for further tests.

Infertility evaluation sometimes involves uncomfortable procedures. Understanding your menstrual cycle can help increase your chances of conceiving, if you desire to become pregnant. Understand that your menstrual cycle begins with the first day of menstrual bleeding (the menstrual period).

Your body releases hormones that encourage maturation of eggs inside follicles of the ovaries. From the 2nd to 14th day of the cycle, these same hormones cause the lining of the uterus to thicken and prepare for implantation of a fertilized egg. These events are referred to as the follicular stage of the menstrual cycle.

Fertility for women relies on the ovaries releasing healthy eggs. The reproductive tract must allow an egg to pass into the fallopian tubes and join with sperm for fertilization.

The fertilized egg must travel to the uterus and implant in the lining.

Tests for female infertility try to find out if any of these processes are impaired.

Assisted reproductive technology (ART) is any fertility treatment in which the egg and sperm are handled. There are several types of ART. In vitro fertilization (IVF) is the most common ART technique. IVF involves stimulating and retrieving multiple mature eggs, fertilizing them with sperm in a dish in a lab, and transferring the embryos into the uterus several days after fertilization. It combines the egg and sperm in a laboratory, and can be an option when other treatments have failed.

Embryos created in the lab are placed inside your uterus. IVF involves hormone injections and a surgical procedure to retrieve eggs from you. Pregnancy rates per cycle range from 10 percent if you are aged 43 to 44 to 46 percent in women under 35. Several cycles of treatment may be necessary. In women who have poor egg quality, are older, or who have not had success with previous IVF cycles, they may choose to consider IVF with donor eggs and the partner’s sperm. The resulting baby is biologically related to the father and not the mother, although the mother carries the pregnancy. IVF using fresh embryos from donor eggs has a high success rate, resulting in live births 55 percent of the time.

When problems have been identified with the man’s sperm, a procedure called intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) may be recommended along with IVF. This is a laboratory-assisted fertilization that involves inserting a single sperm directly into an egg. The embryos that form are transferred to the uterus in the same way as IVF embryos. Most IVF cycles now also use ICSI. It’s untrue that simply waiting it out will put an end to infertility.

Like other medical conditions, there are treatments available for those experiencing infertility. At least half of couples undergoing infertility treatments will conceive, and technologies such as in IVF have brought about many pregnancies.

Abayomi Ajayi, MD/CEO Nordica Fertility Centre info@abayomiajayi.com.ng,

Sunday 26 April 2020

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Sports

LaLiga to resume behind closed doors as Covid-19 ravages football season

ANTHONY NLEBEM

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ANTHONY NLEBEM

aLiga president Javier Tebas has spoken to clubs from Spain’s top two leagues and told them to be braced for football behind closed doors until 2021.

Tebas met with Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) chief Luis Rubiales and National Sports Council (CSD) head Irene Lozano in an eight-hour meeting last weekend to discuss the future of the competition amid the enforced break due to coronavirus.

Although a return to training for Spanish clubs was agreed in principle, subject to health protocols, it is too early to resume activities at this stage as Spain remains in lockdown because of Covid-19.

Following government advice relayed to Tebas in the meeting, the LaLiga chief has been in touch with directors from all 20 teams in Spain’s top flight and the 22 in the second tier (both under the umbrella of LaLiga) to warn

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them there will be no football in front of fans in the remainder of this year.

“I think we will start 2021 with no fans in the stands,” Mediapro chief executive Jaume Roures told Cadena COPE. “Football isn’t going to be the same, but neither will the cinema, walking along the street, nor concerts.”

Earlier this month, Tebas said

he remained committed to completing the season and claimed he had not even contemplated the possibility of voiding the campaign.

The 57-year-old said the cost of scrapping the season would be around €1 billion for Spanish clubs, with a €300 million loss if LaLiga is completed behind closed doors.

Ex-Man United captain Keane kicks against players’ wage cut ANTHONY NLEBEM

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ormer Manchester United captain, Roy Keane, has told players at the top clubs in the cash-rich Premier League to ignore pressure to take pay cuts.

Football has been halted since mid-March in a bid to curb the spread of coronavirus, leading clubs across the leagues to feel the pinch.

Earlier this month Premier League clubs agreed to consult with their players over deferrals and reductions amounting to 30% of their salary, but only Southampton, West Ham, Arsenal and Watford have so far announced any kind of agreement.

Keane, former Republic of Ireland defender kicked against the idea of players at the top clubs taking a cut and said he would not do so in a similar position.

“If they want to stick to their guns and say they want their full wages when you’ve got a billionaire in the background, do it.”

“There is pressure on players at the really big clubs, clubs with wealthy owners, to take pay cuts,” he told Sky Sports.

“The way I look at it now, particularly after the way I left Manchester United, I wouldn’t take a pay cut from anybody if I was at one of the bigger clubs.

“I know there is pressure on players, but it is nobody’s business what you do with your wages.

“You take your wages and if you want to be generous, go ahead and do it. I don’t think players should feel pressured by clubs, particularly the bigger clubs, to take pay cuts.

Premier League names Gary Hoffman new chairman

“They have signed a contract, and your contract with a club is a personal matter. This idea that all players should take a pay cut, or that all the players have to do this, I think that is nonsense. It’s up to the individual.

“If they want to stick to their guns and say they want their full wages when you’ve got a billionaire in the background, do it.

“Don’t be swayed by some sort of pressure from the media, who write lies anyway about certain players.

“There is a lot of speculation out there, I don’t think anybody should believe anything they are reading about what players are doing.

“I am really surprised at the amount of people jumping on the bandwagon with the criticism of the players, it’s nobody’s business.

“I’m talking about the top clubs here with the really wealthy owners, obviously the clubs in the other leagues are having to make sacrifices, but the players at the top at clubs that have the money, stick to your guns.”

Keane’s feelings are shaped by his time as a player with Nottingham Forest and Manchester United, where he got a first-hand taste of the cut-throat nature of business.

“When I was at Nottingham Forest or Manchester United, negotiating new deals or leaving the club, the club made it pretty clear to me on any aspect of contract negotiations that it was a business, and I understood that,” he said.

“But I signed a contract, and I expected the club to honour that contract. I know circumstances

remier League have appointed Gary Hoffman as their new chairman, the league confirmed on Friday.

The Investment banker Gary Hoffman will work with chief executive Richard Masters when beginning his role on June 1. Shareholders voted unanimously in favour of the appointment.

Hoffman, chairman of the Coventry Building Society and Monzo Bank, earlier served notice of his intention to resign as non-executive chair of Hastings Group Holdings before taking up the new role.

The former chairman of the Football Foundation, who began his career at Barclays and was a chairman of Visa Europe, succeeds acting chair Claudia Arney.

Hoffman said: “Football has been central to my life as a fan, an administrator and in my business career, so it is an honour to join the Premier League as Chair.

“During my time at the Football Foundation, I saw how the growth of the Premier League, to become the world’s most-watched sporting competition, helped it play an increasingly pivotal role in communities across the country.

“Now everyone in football, at home and abroad, is coming together to support one another through the COVID-19 pandemic.

I am convinced this spirit of togetherness will help the game we cherish, and the Premier League, endure long into the future.”

Bruce Buck, chairman of the Premier League Nominations Committee, said: “Gary was the outstanding

candidate in an extensive and highly competitive search process, and we believe he will form a strong partnership with our Chief Executive Richard Masters, helping to guide the League while promoting new ideas and strategies.

“Gary has proved over decades, as an executive and a board leader, that he has the character to steer world-renowned organisations through both good times and crisis situations. At a vital moment in our history, Gary’s knowledge and skills are sure to help us through this very difficult period.

“The Committee and all of the clubs would like to thank Claudia Arney for her superb work and dedication as Interim Chair through this very difficult time. She has guided the League with amazing dedication and hard work. We are extremely grateful for all she has done.”

German Cup final postponed ANTHONY NLEBEM

have changed but I am speaking about the clubs that have the money available.

“When the clubs with billionaire owners in the background come to the players and say they are in trouble, no, no, you honour the contract.

“I was in a brilliant dressing room at Manchester United, a lot of different characters and different traits, and if certain players wanted to give up some of their wages or keep some of their wages then good luck to them.

“That’s up to the player, the individual. This idea that we should be getting players to give up their wages at these big clubs, forget about it because these clubs are the first to tell you ‘this is a business, lads, this is how it works’.

“These guys who are billionaires in the background are ruthless, they are shrewd people. Then they come and talk to the players about cash flow problems, I’ve heard it all before.

I’d take no notice of it.”

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he German FA announced Friday that the national cup final, planned for May 23 at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium, has been postponed, but hopes it can still take place this season behind closed doors.

The semi-finals of the Cup, which had been scheduled for this week, were postponed when the season was halted in mid March due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Holders Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen, Eintracht Frankfurt and fourth division side FC Saarbruecken had all reached the last four.

Fritz Keller, president of the German Football Association (DFB), hopes the semi-finals and final can still be played, albeit without spectators..

On Thursday, the German Football League announced that they are ready to resume the Bundesliga season on May 9.

They still need the goahead from Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government and state leaders, but the German FA

hopes that the national cup competition will also be granted permission to be completed.

“It is extremely regrettable that this special match (the final) will in all probability also have to take place without spectators,” Keller said in a statement.

“Provided that the match is approved, we can then look forward to watching the final in our living rooms for the first time in the cup’s history.”

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COVID-19’s wake-up call on Nigeria’s healthcare system

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he economic productivity, social harmony and political stability of any given nation are directly proportional to the quality of healthcare delivery and standard of education available to the citizens.

That underscores the importance of the popular saying that: “health is wealth”. Nigeria cannot therefore, be an exception.

Factors such as the number and how well equipped the clinics and hospitals are, in terms of qualified professional nurses and doctors, medical equipment and stable supply of electric power and water all come into play.

The bitter truth however, is that the unexpected onslaught of the coronavirus pandemic, which took off from Wuhan, China in December, 2019 and has exploded across continents, has exposed the level of preparedness or otherwise of several countries in times of health-related emergences, such as we currently experience. Even as scientific research began to unravel the root causes of the coronavirus, the ease of spread became a clear and present danger! That was going to be an enormous challenge on the healthcare givers.

That brings to mind, the ratio of qualified physicians to the population of countries, as recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Specifically, it recommends one medical doctor to 1,000 citizens of each country.

It is always a thing of immense joy therefore, when any country attains what is referred to as the ‘Golden Finishing Line’ of 1-to-1,000. The reason is that it indicates the readiness of the country to achieve one of the cardinal objectives of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which is affordable yet qualitative healthcare delivery that is available to the citizens.

For instance, India attained that milestone mark precisely in 2018. According to Raman Kumar and Ranibir Pol, India with 479 medical schools and an annual

intake of 67,218 MBBS students proved to the world that it could walk the talk on taking care of its citizens, populous as it is.

But unfortunately, 44percent of the WHO member countries have less than 1 medical doctor to 1,000 citizens. And Nigeria is one of such. It has a paltry 0.3 to 1,000 citizens as compared to 1.8 for China, 2.6 for the UK, 2.8 for the United States (U.S.), 4.3 for Sweden and 5.83 for Italy.

That is, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Report.

That dismal figure for Nigeria is therefore, a source for serious concern and more importantly, action. It would be recalled that the country witnessed massive brain-drain in the health sector back in the ‘80s as one of the spin-off effects of the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP), as brought into effect by the then General Ibrahim Babangida-led military administration. Several of them could not resist the greener pasture of countries such as the U.S., U.K, and the United Arab Emirate (UAE) where their pieces of bread were going to be more well buttered!

Trust the average Nigerian with his or her inbuilt high level of resilience, creativity and professionalism. They excelled outside our shores! One would recall that during the Ahmed Tinubu-led governorship of Lagos State, some Nigerian-born medical doctors were invited to separate co-joined twins and they succeeded here in Lagos.

Incidentally, about the same period, a Nigerian medical doctor by the name of Colonel Oviemo Ovadje (now retired), achieved the feat of inventing Emergency Auto-Transmission System (EAT-SET).

It comes as a low-cost blood transfusion employing auto-mechanism. He patented the invention in nine countries and has won awards from the UK, up to Switzerland.

In a similar fashion, another Nigerian, Prof. Samuel Achilefu came up with a

ground-breaking development of a set of high-tech, cancer visualising goggles. They assist surgeons to see cancer cells in real-time while operating on patients. This won him the prestigious St. Louis Award in 2014.

There are several other Nigerianborn medical scientists doing Nigeria proud by the products of their creative ingenuity.

But back here in Nigeria, not a few clinics and hospitals are crying foul over decrepit infrastructure, inadequate qualified medical professionals, as well as ill-equipped laboratories and hospitals. Only such could explain a situation that has top-notch politicians, including the president, Muhammadu Buhari jetting out of the country for medical tourism, once they fall ill. Even the Aso Rock clinic has been unable to justify the sums of budgetary allocations over the past four years. In fact, the First Lady, Aisha Buhari openly ventilated her grouse over a clinic that cannot boast of paracetamol, syringes, and as recently exposed by the inability to treat Abba Kyari, the former and now late Chief of Staff there.

The sordid scenario is no less replicated across several states of the federation. The facilities in some of the Isolation Centres as well as the recall of some retired medical personnel to help out during this emergency situation attest to this. The COVID-19 pandemic has therefore, come as a wake-up call on our governments- at the local council, state and federal levels- to do the needful.

The way forward is to begin with a creditable Data Base on the healthcare sector. To do this, several questions need answers. What is Nigeria’s true population, state-by-state and each local government area? How many nurses, midwives and doctors do we have and how many more do

Off the Cuff

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we need? How many clinics- both public and private- do we have and how do we make up for the inexcusable gaps? How can we leverage the high quality of Nigerian-born medical personnel outside the country by luring them back home with some mouth-watering incentives, or by simply asking that they render selfless service on the platform of patriotism.

We need frequent and reliable demographics on the healthcare status of Nigerians to serve as the basis for planning and effective and impactful policy paradigms. Such was conducted in the U.S. from 2010 to 2016. From the researches, the government got to know that though the number of physicians increased from 277 to 295 per 100,000 of its citizens, they were still not enough. That led to the declaration of ‘an impending doctor shortage’ outcry before the coronavirus pandemic.

In addition to this move, it has become imperative to enforce laws at the federal and state levels to compel the budgetary allocations of at least 18 percent to the health sector. And some sums of the funds available should be set aside to take care of emergency situations as the world is currently going through. Proactive actions rather than wishful words will see us overcome the challenges ahead. The quality of healthcare available to the citizens, in addition to health insurance that covers a large number of the citizens will assist to make health the wealth of the nation.

Quick Takes

FG can begin to build the trust ver the years, there has been the allegation that government activities are shrouded in secrecy. Everything is opaque. Even when government claims certain projects are being done in the interest of the people, such claims are not wholly taken at truth. It appears this has worsened in the present dispensation. Things have gotten so bad that words from the government, no matter how wellmeaning, are being misunderstand and misinterpreted.

Government does not help matters either. There is a lot of mistrust for government. At a zoom meeting a few days ago, some big players in the private sector expressed concern at the increasing lack of trust in anything government. It was noted that perhaps, apart from in the regime of the late Sani Abacha, no other government has experienced the level of mistrust as the current one. The erudite business people expressed shock at the offensive bantering of some Nigerians at the break of the news of Abba Kyari’s demise. They noted that when it comes to a point that people jubilate over the misfortune of their leader, something drastically is wrong.

In the recent times, Nigerians appear to have completely lost interest in their government as a result of repeated contradictory statements and actions. In the age of information and communication technology (ICT) when people have access to information and events as they are happening, government officials still tell outright lies, thinking such would not be unveiled. Contradictory figures are being

AYO OYOZE BAJE Baje is the Media Consultant to Bells University of Technology, Ota

bandied as the amount of money that has been spent so far on the Federal Government palliative scheme. Despite continued denial of discriminatory distribution of the palliative packages, clips of photos showing the focus areas and the beneficiaries are legion on the social media. Today, many Nigerians find it difficult to believe that Nigeria does not have money. How would they believe when government officials live as though they pluck money from trees; when reports are all over the place about the net worth of many politicians and their choice properties within and outside the country? How can they believe in government when the same government that had said the corpse of anyone who die through the coronavirus must not be released to the individual’s family, but be buried by government, that same government turned around to mount a state burial for the late chief of staff? Granted that Abba Kyari deserved everything done for him at death; but to remain a government that stands on its word; it should have found a way around it without bringing itself to public opprobrium and then pushed into a corner to begin to stammer. What of the masses that attended the burial when a lockdown order was in place? By allowing that to happen, government’s rating further plunged, because many Nigerians are still being arrested today for flouting the lockdown order. Today, the twin problems of insecurity and poverty are manifesting in some parts of the country; what are the masses seeing their government do?

Instead of going after big offenders, security agents are going after soft spots. They

go on the street to round up ordinary hungry citizens and charge them for wandering and breaking the lockdown order. But when wealthy people break the law as was seen in the Kyari’s burial, nobody hears even a whimper.

Why do you think people are agitating for a relaxation in the lockdown despite the rising figures of the coronavirus in the country; the reason is simple – they are now thinking that the COVID-19 has become a means for government officials to make a kill. Some are even blaming the spirited Nigerians and some religious bodies for making huge donations into the coffers of government for the COVID-19 fight; saying jocularly that such donations went into a leaking basket? Some are even doubting the COVID-19 numbers being reported, particularly in Kano, when the governor allegedly came up to request for N15billion to fight the pandemic in Kano. Today, people take with levity every statement government and some manifest anger and irritation which are seen in many WhatsApp platforms and other social media platforms. This is a very critical moment for Nigerians to come together to fight a deadly monster but that collaboration may not be achieved because government has not built that trust in the people. But it is not too late to begin to make amends. Government can do better than it has done or doing at the present to build that trust.

ZEBULON AGOMUO

1.3%

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) says the economic growth of the region may drop by 1.3% if the coronavirus pandemic ends in June.

In a statement after the virtual summit held by the sub-regional heads on Thursday, the organisation said it had initially projected the growth rate at 3.3%, but it may fall to 2%.

From the horse’s mouth “We are extremely disappointed because we have excellent relations with the government and people of China that such a thing can happen at this stage. When there were calls for travels to be banned to China when they had the outbreak in Wuhan, we went along with the World Health Organisation (WHO) advice not to place a ban on China and we showed real solidarity. But really, we are deeply wounded by what has happened to Nigerians and other Africans in China.”

GEOFFREY ONYEAMA Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, speaking on the maltreatment and discrimination of Nigerians in China.