DTN-15-6-19

8th Assembly didn’t perform to full capacity – Lawan Says 9th assembly will pass budget in 3 months To create window for budget defence Mathew Dadiya, Abuja The newly elected Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, has said that the 8th assembly under the leadership of Senator Bukola Saraki performed

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From campuses to streets:

below expectations.

He assured Nigerians that under his leader they should expect a National Assembly that is very focused, united, patriotic and nationalistic.

Continued on page 3

SATURDAY, JUNE 15, 2019

VOL. 3

We’ll make g 5 shocking revelations about 2019 poll, PDP tells EU NO. 968

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Sad tales of unending scourge of cultism Stakeholders explain upsurge, list ways to combat menace

Ladesope Ladelokun, Lagos Until his friend, Muyiwa Jumobi, was cut down in his prime by cultists suspected to be members of the Eiye confraternity, Bolade Kalejaiye only read and heard about hapless citizens who are hacked and dispatched to early graves by the lethal weapons of cultists.

But alas, what appeared like a horror movie unfolded before his eyes when a normal visit to a friend yielded tearful tales of sorrow and blood.

Bolade had alongside his bosom friends - Dolapo Adeogun and Jumobi Muyiwa - converged on the Surulere residence of Abimbola Amosu to unwind, but their fun was not only cut short when young men who were armed to the teeth stormed Amosu’s residence and unleashed mayhem, leaving Amosu with various degrees of injuries and Jumobi lifeless.

Just recently, April 14, 2019 precisely, no fewer than four human heads were reportedly harvested by the Nigeria Police at the Sangotedo area of Ajah in Lagos following a cult clash between men

suspected to be members of Eiye confraternity and an unidentified rival cult.

Only this week in Rivers State, the murder of a senior member of Bobos cult group reportedly provoked series of clashes between Greenlanders and Bobos cult groups, leaving five suspected cultists dead.

In recent times, security issues like banditry, kidnapping, insurgency have been a source of worry for many across Nigeria. But cultism, which some observers say is as old as the country, has over the years been another source of sorrow and tears for law-abiding Nigerians.

From the streets of Lagos to the creeks of Bayelsa, Rivers to Ogun, Oyo to Delta, reported and unreported cases of bloody cult clashes have become commonplace, The Daily Times has gathered.

According to Wikipedia, confraternities on Nigerian campuses began in 1952 when Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka and a group of six friends formed the Pyrate confraternity at the University College, Ibadan. It notes that CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

Bizarre!

Gorilla swallows N6.8m in Kano zoo g5

Again, FG gives taskforce 2 g 5 weeks to clear Apapa gridlock

Ex-army chief recommends June 12 as Inauguration Day g5

FX restriction: g 15 CBN to blacklist firms importing 43 banned items

Why Govt, corporate bodies need to buy into comedy shows - Pencil g 11

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Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 15, 2019

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 15, 2019

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Sad tales of unending scourge of cultism Continued from page 1

membership was open to any promising male student, regardless of tribe or race, but selection was stringent and most applicants were denied.

Soyinka had said the Pyrates wanted to differentiate themselves from “stodgy establishment and its pretentious products in a new educational institution different from a culture of hypocritical and affluent middle-class, different from alienated colonial aristocrats.”

Also, in 1975, The Supreme Eiye Confraternity (also known as the National Association of Air Lords), was formed in the University of Ibadan. In the 80s, however, confraternities spread to over 300 institutions of higher education like a wild fire.

Meanwhile, bloody cult clashes outside higher institutions of learning, some argue, bear testimony to the arrival of confraternities on the streets of Nigeria and its creeks. While some Nigerians have blamed politicians and eroding values for the rising spectre of violence occasioned by cult clashes, many have blamed it on the state of the economy.

For Dr. Jimi Akoni, a psychologist, the menace can be traced to poverty, unemployment and ignorance.

According to him, not many of the cultists knew the implications of what were getting into before initiation.

He said the grinding poverty and unemployment rate in the land could make them easy prey or recruits.

He, however, called on parents to always be on hand to impart the right values to their children.

Akoni said there was need for parents to create time for their children in order to pay attention to their development, the kind of friends they have and the early signs that things are going wrong, and most importantly, work on their self-confidence.

Commenting, Human rights activist and public affairs commentator, Barrister Inibehe Effiong, described the scourge as an indication of the decay of values.

Effiong accused politically exposed persons for fuelling the menace, calling on security agencies to show sincerity in tackling it.

“It is due to the culture

of impunity in the country.

The cultists who commit this crime across the country, across the various campuses, in many instances are believed to be sponsored by people in government. They have godfathers who protect them. It is also an indication of decay of values as a people.

That is why you see people who ordinarily ought to be studying in classes taking up arms and seeking to belong to one cult group or the other.”

He continued:”My view is that for the crisis to be tackled effectively, it is important for the security agencies to be sincere in deciding on investigating the sponsors of these cult groups. So I’m calling for a complete overhaul of the security architecture as far as the menace of cultism is concerned.

“The politicians are the ones arming them. They are the people who buy these guns for them. An average cultist ordinarily would not have the resources to acquire weapons and commit havoc.Until we deal with the root causes and address the decay of values in Nigeria and the culture of impunity, it will be difficult to rid our society of the menace of cultism.”

8th Assembly didn’t perform to full capacity – Lawan

Continued from page 1

The Senate President said this on Friday while speaking to State House correspondents after the Jumat prayers at the Aso Villa, Abuja.

Lawan said that under his leadership, the present Senate would work very hard, as they would like to catch up with the lost grounds over the last four years.

He said: “I am sure we did not perform to our capacity as a National Assembly in the last National Assembly.

“This time around, we want to perform to full capacity and by the grace of God, Nigerians will see a positive difference in terms of delivery of service to our country men and women.

“From my interactions with my colleagues when I was contesting, every senator there when I was contesting, has one massive experience or another. I saw my colleagues exhibited patriotism and desire to work for Nigerians and therefore we hope to have a National Assembly that will work for Nigerians optimally and patriotically.

“We are in a hurry, we are thirsty to perform, we want to support Mr. President, we want to see Mr. President achieve those legacies dreams that he has and we are going to work full course and full time to ensure that we give him the maximum

support that he requires.”

Lawan also assured that the ninth National Assembly will work with the executive arm of government in partnership and synergy to ensure that they perform their functions as a government because “we are a single unit. “ The Senate president said that he foresees a National Assembly that would insist that whoever has a responsibility in government performs that responsibility because “it takes all of us to work together to ensure that no part or nobody is left behind.”

“If there is anyone that is deficient it would cost the system,” he added.

On the timely passage of budget bill, the Senate president said, “this is a crucial thing that worries everyone, every Nigerian wants to see the National Assembly passes the budget in good time and what we have in mind we’ve campaigned with that and it’s something both of us in the National Assembly have bought into - that we’ll pass the budget within three months by the grace of God. But it takes two sides of government to pass the budget in good time and I am sure that the executive side of the government would like to present the budget before the National Assembly in good time - in September or early October

and by the grace of God we in the National Assembly will ensure that we carry out the budget defence and do the remaining parts of the processes.

“Before we leave for Christmas break, the budget would have been passed and Mr. President would have had the budget before him to signed and assent.

“This requires sacrifice in the National Assembly and the executive side of the government that we create a window for budget defence only, a dedicate period and timeframe- say a month of which only budget defence would be carried out in the National Assembly.

“It is our desire in the National Assembly that every minister, every chief executive officer of every agency comes to the National Assembly and defence the budget of his agency or her agency before going out of the country.

“That window is going to be available within the one month but that is the only window that is going to be available.

“After that for example, every minister or head of agency who did not come to defend the budget of that institution, the National Assembly would go ahead to work on such a budget appropriately.”

He said that nobody would take pleasure in wasting the time of “this administration.”

3 News

PHOTO TIMES

L-R: Director, NASCON Allied Industries Plc, Olakunle Alake; Director, NASCON Allied Industries Plc, Halima Aliko Dangote; Chairperson, NASCON Allied Industries Plc. ‘Yemisi Ayeni; Director, NASCON Allied Industries Plc, Abdu Dantata; and Executive Director, Commercial, NASCON Allied Industries Plc, Fatima Aliko Dangote, at the 2018 Annual General Meeting of NASCON Allied Industries Plc, in Lagos...on Thursday

L-R: Director, Press and Public Relations, National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Mrs Adenike Adeyemi; Director-General of NYSC, Brig.-Gen. Shuaibu Ibrahim and Director of Planning, Research and Statistics, Mrs Victoria Okakwu, during the opening ceremony of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Desk Officers training workshop in Abuja...on Friday

L-R: Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Mr Obafemi Hamzat, Gov., Babajide Sanwo-Olu; Head of Service of State, Mr Hakeem Muri-Okunola, Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Transport, Mr Taiwo Salaam and General-Manager of LASTMA, Mr Olawale Musa, during the Governor’s visit to the LASTMA headquarters in Lagos...on Friday

L-R: Co-founder and Partner, Verod Capital Management Limited, Eric Idiahi; Chief Operations and Information Officer, Fidelity Bank Plc, Gbolahan Joshua; Managing Partner, Synergy Capital Managers, Dr Akintoye Akindele, Managing Partner, Sefton Fross, Olayemi Anyanechi at the TechMoney Africa 2019 Conference which took place at the University of Lagos, Akoka, recently.

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Saturday, June 15, 2019

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 15, 2019

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Again, FG gives taskforce 2 weeks to clear Apapa gridlock Mathew Dadiya, Abuja Following a request for extension by members of the presidential taskforce on Apapa traffic gridlock, the Federal Government has extended by two weeks, the time given to the taskforce to resolve the matter.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, on Friday, approved the extension at a meeting of the Presidential Taskforce with stakeholders held at the Presidential Villa.

The taskforce which commenced its assignment on May 24 had up to June 7 to complete the assignment, but is now expected to present a formal report at the end of its extended mandate on June 24.

The presidential directive was issued for the clearing up of the Apapa gridlock and the restoration of law and order to Apapa and its environs within 2 weeks. The directive followed an emergency meeting convened

by President Muhammadu Buhari and chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, on the 25th of April, 2019.

While the Vice President chairs the task force, its daily operations are supervised by an Executive Vice Chairman, Comrade Kayode Opeifa.

Membership of the team is drawn from the Presidential Enabling Business

Environment Council (PEBEC), Nigerian Ports Authority and the Nigerian Shippers Council.

Other members include a special unit of the Nigeria Police Force led by a Commissioner of Police, the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), representatives of the Truck Transport Union, the Lagos State Government through the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), and other relevant MDAs. The Vice President said: “We will extend the tenure of the taskforce by two weeks and we must all work together to be able to resolve all the issues raised here today.”

Speaking on steps to be taken to find lasting solutions to the problem, Prof. Osinbajo added that “it will take both medium and long term solutions to ultimately enable us present to the users an efficient port environment for the economy and businesses to thrive.”

He warned that the Federal Government will not allow any interests to undermine the nation’s economy.

The Vice President directed the NPA and other stakeholders to expedite action on the opening of additional truck parks and parking bays around Lagos as well as the commencement of the electronic call-up system at the Port.

In his presentation at the meeting,

Osinbajo Opeifa, the Executive Vice Chairman of the taskforce, summarised the progress made so far by the team.

He said despite challenges experienced in the course of the assignment, it was able to record a significant compliance level of the presidential directive on the clearance of the Apapa gridlock.

According to him, efforts are ongoing to open new parking bays for trucks around the port area and in other parts of Lagos, preparatory to the commencement of the electronic call-up system at the port– one of the measures proposed to ameliorate the hardship at the port area.

Ex-army chief recommends June 12 as Inauguration Day Gbenga Sodeinde, Ado Ekiti Former Chief of Army Staff, Gen Alani Akinrinade, has advised President Muhammadu Buhari to make June 12 that had just become democracy day the inauguration for President, Governors and other political office holders in the country.

Akinrinade also dismissed the Fulanisation and islamisation theory raised against Buhari by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, saying it was a misdirected venom, which had been settled by the honour bestowed on the presumed winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential poll, Chief Moshood Abiola.

Speaking in Ado Ekiti on Friday at an event commemorating the June 12 democracy day, Akinrinade applauded Buhari for branding June 12 a democracy day, but insisted that it should also be a day of inauguration to add glamour to it.

At the public discourse entitled: ‘June 12: Lighting the Candle of Democracy’, Akinrinade added that “President Buhari was one of the firs retired generals to stand up for June 12, but they became disappointed at a time because of the inordinate ambitions of our people here in Yoruba, so they

became scared not until they were told that not all the Yorubas are treacherous.

“So, what he did was not for MKO Abiola, but for the growth of our democracy”.

On the poser raised by Obasanjo that Buhari was allegedly plotting to Fulanise and Islamise Nigeria, Akinrinade said: “Don’t let us have the intention that President Buhari will Fulanise us.

“I have always believed that criminal is a criminal, whether you are a Yoruba, Igbo or Hausa, when you commit offence, you must be treated as a criminal. It is not good to link every Fulani man to Buhari”.

Akinrinade appealed to Buhari to cooperate with the governors on the issue of insecurity, saying: “we can’t have peace when our people are being kidnapped and money is being taken from them.

The Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, in his contribution, said the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential poll and the honour bestowed on the presumed winner of the election, Abiola, showed the country needed a strong and virile political institutions.

The governor described many of those who fought over the annulment of June 12 as committed patriots, who did the sacrifice in the interest of democracy

and not for the late Abiola.

“Some of those saying the June 12 was not worth dying for were poor students of history and not abreast of the war waged by people to restore democracy to the country.

“Over 70 percent of our close to 200 million population did not have first hand information about June 12, so those of us who knew what transpired must acknowledge the struggle.

“One thing is clear, there won’t be May 29 without June 12 and that was why President Buhari decided to honour the late Abiola.

“The honour was not just about the man, but about Nigerians who voted for Chief MKO Abiola.

“Some of us in the radical fold believed Chief Abiola was a military collaborator, who used his money to fund coups. He was a capitalist but a populist on the other hand, because of his strong philanthropic gesture.

“The man represented Nigeria in all its ramifications and he understood all the contradictions, so there are lessons to be learnt, especially with the way President Buhari decided to honour this man, who died for democracy.

“That is why we have to strengthen this democracy; we are not yet where we are supposed to be”.

We’ll make shocking revelations about 2019 poll, PDP tells EU Says it has lost confidence in electoral process

Tunde Opalana, Abuja

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Friday told the European Union Election Observation Mission that it will make shocking revelations about what transpired at the recent general election.

The party also told the EU that it has lost confidence in Nigeria’s electoral process.

The party lamented that what transpired in the 2019 polls was a mockery of democracy where the electoral umpire, the Independent

National Electoral Commission (INEC) was compromised and security agencies hijacked the process.

Deputy National Chairman of the party, Elder Yemi Akinwonmi, who represented the chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, at the meeting with EU at the PDP national secretariat in Abuja, said despite intervention by international community, Nigerian Electoral process has not improved.

According to him, the nation is moving towards a failed state because Nigeria’s democracy is driving towards despotic rule.

The party warned that if the

situation does not change, it is doubtful if the next generation of Nigerians will witness democracy.

Head of EU election observers, Maria Arena, said the European Union will continue to assist in strengthening Nigeria’s Electoral process.

The visit to the leadership of the PDP was part of its consultations with stakeholders in Nigeria’s election process ahead of its presentation of the report of its observation of the 2019 general election.

A comprehensive report and recommendations will be presented today.

5 News

EFCC raids hideouts of Internet fraudsters in Abuja, Imo, others Operatives of the Abuja Head Office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, have apprehended seven internet fraudsters at the Sunshine Estate, Gwarinpa, a metropolis at the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, as part of the resolve of the acting EFCC Chairman, Ibrahim Magu, to ensure that online fraud is reduced to the barest minimum.

They are Asuquo Happiness, Agboje Lucky, Emmanuel Ochuko Okume, Lucky Ijire, Karo Ijire, Chinaka Chijoke Promise and Ibrahim Adiat.

The suspects, who were arrested on June 11, 2019 had in their possession a Toyota Camry 2018 and a Toyota Corolla, as well as Infinix, Nokia and iPhones mobile phones.

Investigations into their nefarious activities, which spanned months, revealed that they specialised in stealing people’s identities on social media, particularly FaceBook and Instagram. They then use the stolen identities to create fake profiles, using same to establish fraudulent relationships, with the aim of defrauding their victims.

Some of the aliases used to perpetrate online fraud, include James Bord, Tom Clanson, Paul Hanson, Clinton Maher, Richard Jordan and David Morgan.

One of them uses phishing as his modus operandi where he sends out bulk messages and malware with viruses, which when the target clicks on the message, they are able to gain access into their victim’s information.

Another claims he goes to the “dark web” to buy hacked logins to look for any business transaction and double cross the transaction using another account.

One of the suspects confessed to creating over 20 social media accounts.

They further confessed to having at various times made $5,479, $4,900, $1,500, $2,500, $7,000, $27,000, which were received through Western Union, Bitcoin, exchangers, and through Nigerians based outside the country, who have offshore accounts.

The operatives had previously arrested another set of internet fraudsters in Enugu State, aged between 20- 26 years. They were arrested at two different locations, Brick city Estate, Independence layout and Goshen Estate, in possession of three Mercedes Benz, two Lexus and one Avalon, including SIM cards and laptops.

Investigations revealed that they engaged in crypto currency.

A lady, Shalom Hart, 24, and graduate of Ebonyi State University was also arrested for internet fraud.

The suspect specialised in posing as Fabian Smith, a writer, a contractor or a soldier from the United States, US, to defraud her victims, she also posed as a businessman and blogger in the name of Stacey Dash.

As part of the mission to rid the country of internet fraud, the operatives had in the course of investigations, gone on the trail of the fraudsters traced to four states – Delta, Edo, Enugu and Imo states.

In a related development, another sixteen suspects were arrested on May 27, 2019 in Owerri, Imo State.

The suspects aged between 18 and 30, include Cassy Egekonye, Omonisho Efe, Egwuatu Stanley, Okafor Divine, Solomon Chimnobi, Igwe Ajoku Clinton, Chukwuemeka Elvis, Osuasu Daniel, Destiny Dibor, Chukwuemeka Precious, Chidera Ozirigbo, Uba Ifeanyi, Nwosu Kelvin, Okoli Munachi, Mark Jack, and Martins Anthony.

They were arrested at two different around Nekede and Owerri metropolis.

Investigations revealed that they disguised as military men from the US or serving in Afghanistan used different pseudo-names, such as Richard David, Anthony Williams, Francis James, and Davies to defraud their victims of their hard-earned monies.

Several incriminating items were found on them such as laptops, phones, diabolical items and two vehicles.

They all will soon be charged to court.

Bizarre! Gorilla swallows N6.8m in Kano zoo Doosuur Iwambe, Abuja A new report making the round has indicated that a gorilla has allegedly swallowed the sum of N6.8 million in the Kano Zoological Gardens.

A finance officer in the zoo was quoted as saying the gorilla sneaked into an office and carted away the money before swallowing it.

According to BBC Pidgin, the Chief Revenue Officer for the zoo, when approached, said on Wednesday, that the said money, approximately six million, eight hundred and twenty thousand naira, was money realised as gate fee from fun-seekers who had visited the zoo during Sallah celebration to watch the animals.

He said that one huge Gorilla sneaked into their office and carried the money and ran away, where it went and allegedly swallowed the close to seven million naira.

Also, when asked, the Managing Director of the zoo, Kashekobo, confirmed the development but, however, said that he had nothing more to say about it other than that the matter was under investigation.

According to him,” the issue is under investigations for now and I don’t want to say anything concerning the matter.

Many journalists have met me on the issue but I don’t want to say anything.

All I can say is that the money got missing.”

Also, confirming the report, the Police spokesperson in the state, DSP Abdullahi Haruna, said the matter was under investigation.

He said: ”Yes it is true that money got missing from the Kano Zoo. It is money they realised for five days of Sallah festivities. As at now, we have arrested 10 staff members of the Zoo and they are in police CID.” “Among the people we arrested are the gatemen and the people in the finance unit. What we want to understand is why they left such huge amount of money for five days without taking it to the bank,” the police spokesperson was quoted as saying.

Recall that in February 2018, one Philomina Chieshe, a sales clerk with the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) in Benue State, had claimed that a huge snake swallowed N36m, which the board made from sale of scratch card.

News 6

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 15, 2019

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South African police allegedly tortures Short News another Nigerian to death Hepatitis a bigger threat than AIDS, malaria, Doosuur Iwambe, Abuja

Members of the South African Police Service in Ladysmith, Kwa-zulu-Natal Province on Friday allegedly tortured another Nigerian citizen, Maxwell Ikechuku Okoye to death.

Okoye is from Oji River Local Government Area of Enugu state.

Confirming the incident to journalists in Pretoria, the Vice-President, Nigerian Union in South Africa, Joshua Ogade Itua, said that Okoye was allegedly tortured to death in the early hours of Friday.

He said that the police came to the deceased’s apartment and forced their way in, adding that while they were with

him, he called to alert other Nigerians, but before they could get to his apartment the police had made away with his body.

Itua said that Maxwell’s lifeless body was later seen at the mortuary.

Speaking further, Itua disclosed that leaders of the Nigerian community went to the police on a fact- finding, noting that his death has added to the number of Nigerians that were killed either by the police or through Xenophobia in that country.

“The station commander of Ladysmith claimed that he was met foaming as at the time they gained entrance to his apartment.

Police murder inquest has been opened and the independent police investigative directorate in Kwa-zulu-Natal province

has been informed for full investigation.

“We call on our government to seriously engage its counterparts in South Africa, for investigation and prosecution if the case is not a natural death. This is because, according to our leaders who went to the mortuary, there were bruises and blood all over his body; hence, we have every reason to believe that he was tortured to death.

“Our stand as the foremost Nigerian organization in South Africa is that all cases involving the killings of Nigerians should be investigated and prosecuted, irrespective of the nationality and status of the perpetrators,” he said.

Maxwell who was born on October 5, 1979, is survived by two children.

TB in Africa - WHO

A new scorecard by the World Health Organisation (WHO) has revealed that Africans are at a higher risk of dying of viral hepatitis than dying of AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.

A statement by the WHO made available to journalists in Abuja on Friday disclosed that only three out of the 47 countries are on track to eliminate the disease that affects one in 15 people in the region.

“Dying of viral hepatitis in Africa is becoming a bigger threat than dying of AIDS, malaria or tuberculosis,” the world body said.

According to the WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the analysis is the first to track each country in the region and also assess progress towards the goal of saving the lives of more than two million Africans at the risks of progressive hepatitis B or C liver disease.

He also called on the affected countries to step up efforts in eliminating the disease.

The statement explained that the analysis “provides vital information about the status of the regional hepatitis response, measuring progress against the framework for Action for the prevention, care and treatment of viral hepatitis in the African region (2016–2020).

Missing 3-day-old baby found in Plateau hospital - CMD Kingsley Chukwuka, Jos

Lagos State Head of Service, Mr. Hakeem Muri-Okunola; Secretary to the State Government, Mrs. Folasade Jaji; Governor Babajide SanwoOlu; his Deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat during the Governor’s visit to the LASTMA Yard, Oshodi...on Friday.

S’Court sacks Senator Umaru, declares Musa duly elected Andrew Orolua, Abuja & Saka Bolaji, Minna The Supreme Court on Friday sacked Senator David Umaru, representing Niger East Senatorial District and declared his participation as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the February 23, 2019 election a nullity.

In his place, the apex court declared Alhaji Mohammed Sani Musa the rightful candidate of the APC and winner of the Niger-East Senatorial District election.

The court set aside the April 8, 2019 judgment of the Court of Appeal, Abuja, which declared Senator David Umaru, ex-chairman, Senate Committee on Justice, Human Rights and Legal Matters the valid candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who won the election.

In a unanimous judgment on Friday, a five-man panel of the Supreme Court led

by Justice Ibrahim Muhammad upheld arguments by Musa’s legal team, led by Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN) to the effect that Musa won the primary of the APC for the election and was the actual candidate for the election.

The apex court allowed the appeal filed

by Musa and affirmed the February 7, 2019 judgment by Justice Folashade GiwaOgunbanjo of the Federal High Court, Abuja, which declared Musa the validly nominated candidate of the APC for the election.

Justice Olukayode Ariwoola in the lead

judgment faulted the Court of Appeal’s finding that the case was statute barred.

Justice Ariwoola upheld the argument by Olanipekun that the suit was filed at the trial court within time and that the Court of Appeal was in error to have held that the cause of action was the outcome of the primary election.

He held that the course of action as argued by the appellant was the submission of Umaru’s name to INEC instead of Musa, who won the primary. Olanipekun, who led Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) and Ahmed Raji (SAN) for the appellant, had while arguing the appeal on May 17, 2019, prayed the court uphold the appeal and restore the judgment of the Federal High Court earlier given in favour of the appellant.

Olanipekun said: “The appellant could not have complained about the primary election that he won. The cause of action accrued when the1st respondent’s name (Umaru) was sent to INEC as the candidate of the APC. “The cause of action arose when the APC sent the name of the1st respondent (Umaru) to INEC as its candidate, instead of the appellant, who won the primary.

“The primary election was conducted on October 2, 2018, the 14 days could not have started counting, because the name of the 1st respondents has not been sent to INEC. “If the 14 days is calculated from their position that the cause of action arose from October 2, 2018 when the primary was held, the cause of action would not have arisen as at October 16, 2018.

“It (the cause of action) only arose on October 18, when the1st respondent’s name was sent to INEC. And we are within time when we filed our suit at the trial court on October 26, 2018.”

Olanipekun noted that the Court of Appeal only set aside the judgment, but failed to upturn any of the findings of the trial court in the judgment of February 7, 2019.

Both Babatunde Ogala, who represented the APC and Taminu Inuwa (SAN), who represented INEC, urged the court to allow the appeal.

After the February 7, 2019 of the Federal High Court, Abuja, Umaru appealed to the Court of Appeal, Abuja, which revered the trial court judgment and declared Umaru winner. Aggrieved by the decision, Musa appealed to the Supreme Court.

Reacting to the Supreme Court ruling on Friday, Alhaji Mohammed Musa commended the people of his senatorial district for their support during his legal battle to reclaim his mandate from Sen. David Umaru.

Alhaji Sani, who gave glory to Allah for his victory, also thanked the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for standing by him throughout the period while also extending his hands of fellowship to others who contested the election with him.

Alhaji Sani said his going to the Senate would facilitate the development of the senatorial district, the entire state as well as assisting President Muhammadu Buhari to take the country to the next level.

The management of the Plateau state Specialist Hospital on Friday said that the 3-dayold baby stolen from the hospital has been found and was in special custody in the hospital.

Chief Medical Director of the hospital, Dr. Philemon Golwa, said that the baby was recovered from her abductor and after proper identification by its mother was placed in special nursing care.

He said that “the mother of the baby has been able to identify her baby and we have recovered her and have placed the baby at the special care unit and under specialised care nurses of the hospital.”

It would be recalled that a baby belonging to a 30-year-old, Mary Chukwuebuka of Zarmaganda, Jos, was stolen from her three days after birth at the hospital where she went to deliver the baby.

Chukwuebuka had told newsmen that she gave birth on May 28 and the child, a baby girl was stolen from her on May 31 by a woman who posed as a doctor.

Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau state who was at the hospital stated that the police were still investigating the matter and urged patients not to be discouraged in visiting the hospital.

Lalong said that his administration is putting policies in place towards upgrading the hospital to a full specialist hospital and improve on its security, adding that measures would be put in place to ensure that such ugly incident does not happen again in the hospital.

Two-storey building collapses in Warri A two-storey building under construction has collapsed at the Marine Quarters, Warri, Warri South Local Government Area of Delta state.

The building which was few metres away from the secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Warri Correspondents Chapel, crumbled at about 1:10pm, according to an eyewitness with no casualty recorded.

Chairman, Marine Quarters, Olusegun Awodiyi, who spoke on behalf of the residents, said they had warned the owner of the building that the foundation was not strong enough to carry a two-storey building.

According to Awoniyi, who claimed that the building materials used were substandard, the owner of the building whose name was not given, rebuffed them and said he was a certified engineer.

He said: “The workers have not been around for some days, so we thank God that no life was lost. The Delta state government should come and take a critical look at another house belonging to the same owner of the collapsed building to avoid another one collapsing and possibly leading to death.”

Samuel Owoputi, who owns a building beside the ill-fated structure, said two of his children who were sleeping in his room narrowly escaped death as the incident also affected the room.

According to him, the collapsed building had been giving signs since Wednesday.

Vice Chairman of the local government area, Mrs. Divine Iniovosa, who visited the scene, said the owner of the building would be invited to the council secretariat for questioning.

Niger gets new chief judge

Justice Aliyu Mayaki on Friday took the oath of office as the acting chief judge of Niger state.

Mayaki took oath of office at a valedictory court session in honour of the former Chief Judge, Justice Ahmed Bima, who has attained the mandatory retirement age of 65 years.

Justice Bima was appointed acting chief judge on January 28 and confirmed on June 13.

In his remarks, Justice Bima highlighted some of his achievements to include, rehabilitation of magistrate courts in the state. According to him, other include, training of staff, provision of computers for Magistrates and Management staff among others.

“From January, 2019 to date, we were able to impact positively in our own little way, as a build up on the legacy left behind by my predecessor. This progress was achieved in the areas of infrastructure development, training of staff and provision of computers for magistrates,” he added The oath of office for the acting chief judge was administered by the state Deputy Governor, Alhaji Ahmed Ketso.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 15, 2019

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Again, PDP fails to open case against Short News Taraba state university ASUU Kwara gov at tribunal suspends strike Court adjourns to July 9

Kehinde Akinpelu, Ilorin The Kwara state Governorship Election Petition Tribunal on Friday adjourned until July9- 10 for further hearings in the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) petition challenging the declaration of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq as duly elected on the allegation that the governor presented a forged certificate to the electoral commission.

The petition was filed by the candidate of the PDP in the March governorship election in the state, Razaq Atunwa.

The adjournment followed the failure of the petitioner to present a witness from the West African Examination Council (WAEC) with the subpoena and other supporting documents.

The tribunal had on Thursday adjourned to Friday for the examination body to present the subpoena, following the commencement of full hearing in the petition filed by the PDP. Counsel to the petitioner, Abdulwahab Bamidele, told the court that he was reliably informed that the officials of the West African Examination Council (WAEC) in Lagos which the tribunal mandated to produce the subpoena

missed their flight to Ilorin on Friday morning.

Bamidele prayed the tribunal to stand down the case till three o’clock in the afternoon for WAEC officials to present evidence of the subpoena when they must have arrived Ilorin by road.

But, counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Rowland Otaru objected to the application, saying that there is no iota of sincerity in the application.

Otaru said the petitioners had on Thursday told the court that the subpoena would be brought to Ilorin through courier services and wondered why the petitioner is now claiming that officials of WAEC missed their flight in Lagos on Friday.

Otaru suggested that the petitioner ought to call another witness if it has a case to prove rather than seeking for the stand down till three o’clock in the afternoon.

He alleged that the petitioner lacks the tools to prosecute the case and that the tribunal should compel the petitioner to call other witnesses.

Counsel to AbdulRazaq, Kunle Kalejaiye (SAN) asked the tribunal to treat the application

as frivolous, describing the request of the counsel to the petitioner as a manifestation of lack of seriousness and prayed the court should not wait for the witnesses or counsel.

Kalejaiye told the court that election petition tribunal is a serious business and the court should not allow the petitioner to drag the trial forever.

Counsel to the All Progressives Congress (APC), Akin Olujimi (SAN) prayed the court to dismiss the petition, pointing out that there is procedural heresy in the application.

He aligned himself with the first respondent that there is no sincerity in the application.

Olujimi insisted that the court should rather adjourn the trial till July 9-10 for the petitioner to bring all his witnesses.

Ruling on the petitioner’s request, the tribunal said the application to stand down the trial has no merit and insisted that the court would not grant any extension to any of the party.

The tribunal however, granted the application for adjournment to July 9-10, saying the petitioners were still within their time limit of four days to argue their case as agreed during the pre-hearing trial.

Okerafor Athanatius, Jalingo The Taraba state University (TSU) chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has called off the strike action embarked upon since April 3 with immediate effect.

ASUU Chairman, Dr. Samuel Shikaa disclosed this Friday during an interview in Jalingo.

Shikaa further stated that the union resolved to suspend the strike in response to the agreement reached between the union and the state government.

He added that the strike was also called off owing to a directive from the national headquarters of ASUU, mandating the chapter to call off its strike with immediate effect.

The chairman stated that the agreements reached with the state government were considered and approved by the congress.

“We were optimistic that government will fulfil its part of the agreement.

The implementation has commenced, there are some parts that have been tackled, we are optimistic that they will complete the implementation,” he said.

Daily Times reports that a communication from the Vice Chancellor of the Taraba state University, Pro.r Vincent Tenebe asked all students of the university to return back to school for the commencement of lectures.

Buhari salutes Gen. Abubakar at 77 Mathew Dadiya, Abuja President Muhammadu Buhari has sent warm felicitations to former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar on his 77th birthday.

President Buhari, in a congratulatory message on Friday by his Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, congratulated the former head of state “on a life of purpose, driven by a passion to serve his country and humanity.”

The President extolled Gen. Abubakar’s commitment to peace, stability and development in Nigeria, and the African continent as he continually and relentlessly follows and counsels leaders and communities on values of togetherness and collective vision.

He expressed belief that Gen. Abubakar’s visionary and selfless leadership style, and willingness for inclusive growth and development sets him apart for commendation while the handing over to a civilian government in 1999 secured an enduring place for him in history.

The President joined family members, professional colleagues and friends in celebrating the African elder statesman and global voice.

He prayed that the Almighty God will grant Gen. Abubakar longer life and good health as he continues to serve humanity.

Regular blood donation improves body fitness - Institute Doosuur Iwambe, Abuja

Programme Director, Institute of Human Virology, Nigeria (IHVN), Abubakar Abdullahi (L), observing a blood donor who donated blood, during the 2019 World Donor Day organized by IHVN in Abuja on Friday.

Wike vows to always defend interests of Rivers people Amaka Agbu, Port Harcourt Governor Nyesom Wike has stated that he remains focused in his defence of the interests of Rivers state and its citizens.

Speaking during the solidarity visit by Anglican Bishops of the Province of the Niger Delta, Gov. Wike said that it was difficult to trust any politician totally because some politicians were easily swayed by circumstances.

He said: “I am not carried away by all the congratulatory and goodwill messages. The Bishop of Ikwerre knows one man called Mpi. Mpi said when you are moving and you hear footsteps, watch whether the footsteps are with you or they are stepping back.

“So as a politician, one group you must watch very carefully are the politicians. They are easily swayed. Some believe; when they believe, they believe.

“Something can entice politicians and they can change. If you watch what happened at the

National Assembly, you can see that this is the attitude of politicians.

“You see the party has a position, before you know it, they are selling out themselves for one plate of porridge. This one has a case and he wants them to withdraw the case.”

The governor said that some persons don’t have principles and they simply use politics as a cover up for their unprincipled acts.

“These things we know and we are guided about it. I will never let my guard down to say everybody is with me. The only person I can be comfortable with at all times is God. If it is a human being, no.

“I don’t trust any human being. It is difficult for me to give 100 per cent trust that a man will continue to be like this or like that. The only person that cannot change is God. For human beings, they can always change. That is why they are human beings. You can trust a human being, but be careful to open your eyes because anything can happen,” he added.

Gov. Wike said that in protecting the interests

of Rivers state, he will never bow to anybody, declaring that “I will not go to bow to anybody.

I will defend the interests of our state. As far as God lives, this state will remain a Christian state.

“As a human being, you must have challenges. When those challenges come, with your belief in God, those challenges will be surmounted,” he said.

Earlier, the Archbishop of the Anglican Province of the Niger Delta, Most Rev. Tunde Adeleye, said the battle was not yet over, hence Gov. Wike must always remain vigilant.

He said: “The devil doer does not have any vacuum in his attacks. We know that quite a number of people have come to greet you, but we have a feeling to plead with you that your guard should not be let loose yet.

“When you are winning a battle and the people are drumming, and you are dancing, my people say look back from time to time whether the drummers are following you or you are just hearing the sound of the drum. The battle is not complete until it is completed.”

The Institute of Human Virology, Nigeria has said that regular blood donation improves body fitness, lowers calories and helps produce and maintains the required level of iron in the human body.

The Blood Safety Programme Manager of the institute, Abdullahi Abubakar, who disclosed during an event to mark the World Blood Donor Day in Abuja on Friday, said that blood donation helps patients suffering from life-threatening health conditions live longer with a higher quality of life.

He also said that blood donation has an essential life-saving role in maternal child care and during emergency response to man-made and natural disasters, adding that blood donation can also enhance the production of new blood cells.

“When blood is withdrawn, the donor’s body immediately begins to replenish the lost blood within 24 hours of donation. All of the red blood cells the donor loses during donation are completely replaced within one month to two months,” Abubakar stated.

He explained that the best way to ensure safe blood supply was through regular donations by voluntary and unpaid blood donors.

Tribunal strikes out petition challenging Rep. Faleke’s victory

An Ikeja Election Petitions Tribunal on Friday struck out an application challenging the victory of Rep. James Faleke, representing Ikeja Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives.

Chairman of the tribunal, Justice Kunaza Hamidu, struck out the application, following a motion filed by the petitioner, Mutiu Okunola, a candidate of the PDP, who ran against Faleke in the election.

Okunola, who defected to the APC had raised a petition against Faleke, the APC and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), seeking a reversal of Faleke’s victory and asking the tribunal to declare him winner of the election.

During proceedings, Okunola’s counsel, Owoyemi Ibrahim, informed the tribunal that Okunola had made a decision to withdraw the petition he filed against the respondents.

Ibrahim told the three-man panel that in withdrawing the petition, he filed a motion pursuant to Section 145(1) of the Electoral Act, 2010, alongside an 11- paragraph affidavit which was deposed to by the petitioner.

He therefore, urged the tribunal to grant the prayers contained in the motion and withdraw the petition filed against all the respondents.

News 8

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EU election observers to release Short News Delta chief judge vows to uncover killers of lawyer 2019 election report today INEC to engage 9th NASS on electoral reform framework

Tunde Opalana, Abuja The European Union Election Observation Mission to Nigeria will today release the report of its observation of the 2019 general elections to relevant stakeholders in the country.

Head of Delegation, Maria Arena, who disclosed this on Friday, said the report will be accompanied by recommendations for the conduct of future elections in Nigeria.

Arena, who led the mission which include, Keith Karlsen, the European Union Ambassador to Nigeria, said the report is an objective observation of EU’s three –month engagement in the country ahead of, during and after the elections.

According to Arena, the election observation mission deployed 91 observers to 261 polling units and 94 collation centres in 31

states during the presidential and National Assembly elections and 73 observers to 223 polling units and 81 collation centres in 22 states.

She said Nigeria is committed to democracy and the recommendations by the EU team will further deepens the nation’s democracy as it will be useful to various stakeholders such as INEC, government, civil society organisations, the parliament, the media and others.

Receiving the delegate, Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu assured that the commission will focus attention on the electoral legal framework in addition to several other areas of reform.

While stressing that the report is coming at the right time, he promised that INEC will study all recommendations of the mission in detail as part of its ongoing internal review of the 2019 general elections.

“Immediately after, we shall engage with the leadership of the 9th National Assembly on areas of that require legislation while implementing aspects of the reforms within the powers of this commission in full consultation with stakeholders,” he assured.

The INEC chairman acknowledged the notion of the EU Chief Obsever that “as the 2019 elections in Nigeria have demonstrated, there are important improvements to be made. Elections can always be better.”

Yakubu said that the European Union has been part of Nigeria’s steady progress towards democratic consolidation since 1999, adding that “the implementation of some of the other recommendations went a long way in enhancing our organisational and operational planning and strengthening our engagement with stakeholders.”

Nosa Akenzua, Asaba

Delta state Chief Judge, Justice Marshal Umukoro has vowed to bring to justice those behind the gruesome murder of a lawyer, Kennedy Nwashindi Ofuezuem Anni.

Justice Umukoro made the declaration at the valedictory special court session in honour of the late Kennedy, an Asaba based legal practitioner who was abducted on April 16, 2019 and subsequently, murdered by his abductors after paying the demanded ransom.

The chief judge who was represented by Justice T. O. Diai condemned in the strongest terms the gruesome murder of the legal practitioner, saying that the murder of Kennedy has brought to the front burner of national discourse the heinous crime of kidnapping and murder, which has assumed a terrifying resurgence and dimension in recent times.

He observed that “the mounting appetite of our youth for these crimes is alarming and it is not unconnected with the get-rich-quick syndrome that has become so pervasive in our society today.

“The syndrome has lamentably infiltrated our families, our educational system, our state institutions, the corridors of power and even our churches and mosques.”

Corps member with acute renal failure cries for help

A corp member serving in Osun state and diagnosed with acute kidney disease, John Fidelis, has called for help from well -meaning Nigerians.

Fidelis, who hails from Ogwashi-Ukwu in Delta state was diagnosed with the disease since September 2008 and needs N10.5 million for treatment. The corps member with NYSC call-up number/ OSU/2019/000089, graduated with second class lower from the Osun state University in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning.

“My father, who was a pastor at the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Province 1, Osogbo is also down with glaucoma and is currently blind,” Fidelis said.

The father of the ailing corps member, Obi, who is blind, told newsmen at the NUJ Correspondents’ Chapel on Friday in Osogbo that his son’s present condition exacerbated the level of sorrow his blindness has caused the family since 2012.

According to him, the loss of sight forced him out of the pulpit as a pastor and rendered him completely incapacitated in the past seven years.

“This is the darkest moment in our family; our problem was compounded with the recent condition of my son, as he was diagnosed with kidney failure. It was due to his condition that we sought for redeployment from his place of primary assignment in Oyo state back to Osogbo.

Ondo assembly sacks 18 LG caretaker chairmen

Head of Civil Service, Mrs Winifred Oyo-Ita (3rd L); Permanent Secretary, Service Policy and strategic Offices, Office of the Civil Service, Dr Ajani Magdalene (2nd L); and other participants, during the Training Programme on Survey Design Data Interpretation and Reporting in Abuja ...on Friday.

Kwara poised for greatness under me, says Gov. AbdulRazaq Kehinde Akinpelu, Ilorin Kwara state Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq on Friday said the state is poised for greatness on all fronts, having turned the page on decades of socio-economic stagnation.

“Let me reiterate that my government will carry the good people of Kwara state along in this journey of renewed hope and prosperity and never are we going to disappoint you on our campaign promises,” AbdulRazaq said at the event commemorating the June 12 Democracy Day in Ilorin, the capital city.

The event was attended by thousands of supporters and the crème- de la -creme of the state and other prominent Nigerians, including the state Deputy Governor Kayode Alabi, Speaker of the House of Assembly, Salihu Danladi, Secretary to the State Government, Dr. Mamman Jibril, Chief of Staff, Aminu Logun and members of the state House of Assembly.

Others include the state Chairman of the APC, Bashiru Bolarinwa, permanent secretaries, the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Gambari, businessman and son of the acclaimed winner of the June 12 presidential polls, Kola Abiola, former Deputy President of the Nigerian Labour Congress and guest speaker of the day Isa Aremu, former

governorship aspirants and several other dignitaries.

It would be recalled that the state government had shifted its commemoration of the event to Friday to enable AbdulRazaq join other state governors and President Muhammadu Buhari for the national celebration of June 12 in Abuja.

Mobbed by thousands of ecstatic supporters as he walked up to the stage, AbdulRazaq said he is committed to making the state a better place for every Kwaran and residents of Kwara.

“I promise to run an inclusive government in order to carry everyone along. No matter your age, sex or tribe, as long as you reside in Kwara state, we will make Kwara a conducive working environment for you,” he said.

AbdulRazaq praised President Buhari for his courage to accord June 12 the national recognition it deserves and his support for the Kwara liberation struggle.

“Nigerians of good conscience have lauded President Buhari for finally recognising the June 12 as Democracy Day. We in Kwara state also owe Mr. President a debt of gratitude for standing firm on his resolve that peoples votes must count in the last election.

“In the past, Kwarans had often voted to reject tyranny and a suffocating hold on their destiny, but they always had their mandates

brazenly stolen with nobody to resist such oppression. We thank Mr. President for standing for truth and justice,” the governor stated.

In his opening remarks at the event, Bolarinwa thanked Buhari for “his show of magnanimity for making June 12 a reality.”

Aremu, on his part, drew a similarity between the June 12 and the struggle of Kwarans, describing AbdulRazaq as a governor of destiny.

Apart from Abiola and others, he called on Buhari to immortalise other heroes of the June 12 struggle, including the late Comrade Ola Oni, Pa Anthony Enahoro, Abraham Adesanya, and Frank Kokori, among others.

Also speaking, Kola Abiola said it took 25 years to get the federal government to recognise and honour the mandate of his late father, adding however, that the greatest legacy to the struggle is for Nigerians to treat one another as brothers as they did on the day of June 12 election.

“The significance of June 12 is not just about MKO. It also symbolises what we can do together if we set aside our differences and relate as one tribe.

“If we do that, the sky is the limit. If we don’t allow ourselves to be divided along ethno religious lines, we will succeed as a people. If we hold our unity then June 12 will remain alive,” Kola said.

The Ondo state House of Assembly in its maiden sitting on Friday dissolved the interim caretaker chairmen of the 18 council areas of the state with immediate effect.

Speaker Bamidele Oleyelogun, upon the unanimous decision of the House, dissolved the caretaker chairmen sequel to the expiration of the six -month lifespan given to them by Governor Arakunrin Akeredolu on December 13, 2018.

The House ordered the caretaker chairmen to hand over all government property in their stead to their various directors in-charge of local government administration.

Majority Leader, Jamiu Maito moved a motion for the dissolution of the interim management which was seconded by the Deputy Speaker, Iroju Ogundeji.

In another development, the Deputy Speaker, Iroju Ogundeji submitted the report to confirm the appointment of three nominees as members of the Ondo state Civil Service Commission which was seconded by Simeon Borokini.

The nominees are Rotimi Okeowo, Isaac Itiola and Joel Magi.

Court remands 31-year-old man for impersonating NNPC GMD, others

A Kwara state High Court, Ilorin on Friday ordered the remand of one Jamiu Isiaka, 31, for allegedly impersonating the Group Managing Director of the Nigeria National Petroleum Cooperation (NNPC), Dr. Maikanti Baru and others.

Justice M Abdulgafar said that Isiaka should be remanded in Mandala Prison until the next adjourned date. The defendant is facing a four-count charge of impersonation and intent to defraud among others.

Abdulgafar adjourned the case until June 19, for trial.

Earlier, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) prosecuting counsel, Andrew Akoja, told the court that between April and September 2018, the defendant impersonated Dr. Baru and the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adeshina as well as other prominent Nigerians.

Akoja said that the suspect, with others still at large, allegedly used the names of the senior government officials to scam a South Korean national, Keun Sig Kim to the tune of N30 million.

He said that the defendant committed the act with the pretence of getting Kim NNPC approval/marketing form and license to buy crude oil in Nigeria.

The prosecutor said that the defendant thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act. The accused person pleaded not guilty to the charge.

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Nobody can stop my second term victory - Gov Bello Mathew Dadiya, Abuja

Kogi state Governor, Yahaya Bello has said that his prospects of returning back as governor of the state for a fresh four –year- term is certain and nobody can stop him.

The governor said his optimism stems from the fact that he rebuilt the All Progressive Congress (APC) in the state after the demise of late Prince Abubakar Audu.

Bello spoke with State House correspondents on Friday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, while reacting to speculations that he was being denied the party’s ticket to contest the gubernatorial poll.

Our correspondent recalls that Senator Dino Melaye, who has been at loggerheads with the governor, has also declared interest to contest the next gubernatorial election in the state.

Bello said: “I am the governor today and Insha Allah, l will return back as the governor for another four years after the November 16 election.

“As for the ticket, the analogy is that the tenant cannot send the landlord out of his house. So, APC in Kogi state was rebuilt by me after the good job done by our late leader, Prince Abubakar Audu.

“After his demise, l came, rebuilt it from the scratch to what it is today.

That is evident in the last outing of the party where we had 25/25 in the state House of Assembly.

We also won seven out of the nine contested positions in the House of Representatives and two out of the three senators representing Kogi state in the National Assembly.

“So, anybody that is making such noise does not disturb me because in the market place, noise is allowed.

You know, in Kogi politics is the loudest, so people must make noise and you can’t stop that. But surely, l am very good with my party from the local government to the national level.

“They know that l am the leader of the party in my state. I have built it and it is very strong. Anytime, any day, we will win elections in a landslide. That l am going to win in the primaries is given by the grace of

God, by which ever means, direct or indirect.”

The governor further said: “In the November Governorship election, we are not just talking of winning; we are looking at the margins. The margin is going to be such that whoever comes a far second will be discouraged to go to court”.

On his personal opinion regarding the declaration of June as Democracy Day, he said the President’s decision recognizing the day stands him out as a democrat.

“We can’t thank Mr. President enough for that wonderful master stroke of recognizing an icon, a human being that is synonymous with democracy, the late Chief MKO Abiola.

“I think something would have been wrong if he had not done this.

For effectively doing it well, we can’t thank him enough. It is so significant for us and the future generation to know that this man paid the supreme price for the democracy we are enjoying today. We continue to pray for him to do more for the country. He has blazed the trail,” he added.

9 News

Short News Police arrest 25 crime suspects, recover two cars in C/River

The police in Cross River state on Thursday said they have arrested 25 suspects for various offences allegedly committed in the state.

Commissioner of Police in the state, Austin Agbonlahor disclosed in Calabar while parading the suspects to newsmen, said that the command had strategized in curbing cultism, armed robbery and other crimes in the state.

Agbolanhor said that the arrest of the suspects was made possible through the collaborative efforts of the command and residents.

According to him, on May 14, 2019, one Ogbu Enene reported that a five-man gang of armed robbers broke into his room in Akampka Local Government, shot him and collected his motorcycle, N16, 000 cash and other valuables.

He said that the police immediately swung into action and arrested three suspects, adding that two locally-made pistols, two live cartridges and a plasma television were recovered from them.

“Also, on May 15, 2019, the police arrested six suspected cultists in Akamkpa Local Government area for harassing residents in the area.

On May 27, our men arrested two suspects for allegedly robbing a sales agent of a filling station of N2 million.

Sanwo-Olu charges LASTMA to shun corruption, bribery Benjamin Omoike, Lagos The Lagos state Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has warned officers of the Lagos state Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) to desist from collecting bribes from motorists, adding that they must be courteous and decent in their operations.

At an interactive session with staff of the agency during his visit to the their office at Oshodi, Sanwo-Olu said Lagosians want a decent and corrupt free LASTMA and as such, they should be respectful when arresting an offender.

“Lagosians expect a corrupt-free LASTMA that will not be collecting bribes. Be respectful and courteous even when you are going to arrest an offender. Lagosians want a LASTMA that is decent; they want neatness.

We don’t want laziness and lateness to work. Be my advocates,” the governor said.

The governor added that the government would provide a conducive work environment for the staff, such as improvement of their allowances, repair of damaged vehicles and motorbikes, provision of raincoats and other work tools.

Regarding the operation of commercial motorcycles and tricycles on highways, the indiscriminate parking of imported vehicles by the roadside, Sanwo-Olu said he will have a meeting with the commissioner of police and other security operatives to establish a Law Enforcement Commission which will regulate these activities.

Man, 53, in court over alleged N690, 000 fraud

L-R: Forensic Investigation Professional, Mr Carlos Venegas; Protem President of Forensic and Investigative Professionals of Nigeria (CIFIPN) , Dr Victoria Enape, Protem; Facilitator in Information Systems and Technology, Ms Adrienne Crosby and Chief Executive Officer of International Institute of Certified Forensic Investigation Professionals (IICFIP), Dr Mannixs Paul, during a international workshop organised by the IICFIP in collaboration with the CIFIPN, Uniworld Professional Training Academy and Evan Distinct Worldwide Consulting Company, for financial professionals and organisational leaders from Nigeria in New Jersey City, United States...on Friday.

Fish out killers of my husband, wife tells Delta police Nosa Akenzua, Asaba The wife of Isagban Obi Oscar allegedly murdered by suspected Fulani herdsmen in Delta state has asked the police to fish out the killers.

Mrs Joan Oscar, who spoke to journalists in Asaba on Friday, alleged that Fulani herdsmen murdered her husband two months ago and expressed disbelief that the police were yet to bring to book the killers.

“My husband was murdered two months ago in Onicha Olona Community by suspected Fulani herdsmen after he had dropped me at

Ezi, my home town and he was going back home.

“The gunmen attacked my husband after shooting his vehicle’s tyres, the gunmen killed him and abandoned his jeep with registration number BGM 241SZ on the road and we reported the incident to the police at Olona Police Division and nothing has happened,” Mrs Oscar said.

It was gathered that Oscar was a successful businessman in Olona Community before he was allegedly murdered by suspected Fulani herdsmen.

But, sources said that the ugly

incident attracted the presence of Olona vigilante men who went after the suspects, but unfortunately, could not apprehend the fleeing gunmen.

Speaking further, Mrs. Oscar however, appealed to the police and other security agencies to fish out the culprits for them to face justice.

Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Onovuwakpoyeya Onome, who confirmed the incident, said investigation was ongoing as the case was later transferred from Olona Police Division to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for further investigation.

A 53-year-old estate agent, Joshua Daudu was on Friday brought before an Ikeja Magistrate Court, Lagos, for allegedly obtaining N690, 000 from a man and failing to rent out an office space to him as promised.

Daudu, who resides at Ikeja, Lagos, however, pleaded not guilty to the two-count charge of obtaining money under false pretence and stealing.

The police prosecutor, Clifford Ogu, said that the defendant committed the offence in August 2018, at Ogba, Lagos.

He said that the defendant collected the money from one Michael Oyadele, the complainant, adding that “the complainant approached the defendant for office space and after negotiations, the defendant asked him to pay N690, 000, which the complainant paid.

“After the defendant collected the money, he was nowhere to be found.

Efforts made by the complainant to get the office space or retrieve his money proved unsuccessful, as the defendant refused to pick his calls,” Ogu said.

He said that the complainant reported the case and the defendant was eventually arrested, informing the court that the offence contravenes Sections 287 and 314 of the Criminal Law of Lagos state, 2015.

NEMA partners ministry, SEMA to check flood in Enugu

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) says it is partnering with the Enugu state Ministry of Environment and Enugu state Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) to check flash flood in the state.

Flash flood is a seasonal disaster that confronts the state and wreaks havoc within Enugu metropolis yearly.

NEMA Zonal Coordinator, Fred Anusim said on Friday that the agency is also extending the sensitisation to communities and council areas mostly affected by flash floods.

Anusim said that the agency is also engaging the chairmen of the councils to ensure de-silting of all drains ahead of the major months of the rainy season, disclosing that ‘‘we have met with the heads of the ministry and SEMA on the issue. As a lead emergency agency, NEMA wants to put an end to yearly recurrence of flash flood in the state. ‘‘Apart from the community sensitisation, we have also involved council chairmen to see that they mobilise resources and volunteer groups to de-silt major waterways and drains in the localities. NEMA believes that ending flash flood in Enugu State is achievable, if residents in the state cooperate with us and the government for a clean environment.’’

News 10

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 15, 2019

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Police arrest pastor, 5 others for allegedly duping youths in A’Ibom Isaac Job, Uyo The Akwa Ibom state Police Command has arrested a pastor and a five -man gang that allegedly swindles unsuspecting youth in Ikot Ebok Village, Eket in their desperation to secure juicy jobs in oil companies.

Our correspondent gathered that Rev. Akpan and the suspects were arrested at the premises of an orthodox church along Ekpeyo Street, off Liverpool Road Eket while conducting fake interviews as a ploy to defraud 300 youth.

Speaking to our correspondent, the youth leader of the community, Ubong Edoho said he invited the police when a crowd of unemployed youth gathered in the church compound for screening for job opportunities in Agip Oil Company in Port Harcourt.

Edoho explained that when he made more enquiries, he discovered that the pastor and the syndicate have collected N32, 000 from each

person after issuing them fake employment forms to fill preparatory for departure to an unknown offshore location to commence work.

“The incident happened here in the premises of Qua Iboe Church, Ekpeyo Street, Ikot Ebok.

We had information that there were some people in the church compound defrauding some unemployed youth. I informed the police as I went to Eket Police Station with my friends and reported to the police surveillance team.

“On enquiries, we discovered that they have collected N32, 000 from each person on that ground. We informed other youth leaders in the area and resolved that this kind of fraudulent activity cannot happen in our village and the police whisked the suspects away to the Eket Police Station where they were interrogated,” he said.

Edoho further said the syndicate claimed before the divisional police officer in Eket that they were authorized by Agip Oil Company to recruit personnel on their behalf, but failed to produce any relevant documents to justify their claims.

“There were no originating documents from Agip Oil Company to show that they were working for the firm. I was with the divisional police officer in his office in Eket and we could not find any paper to show what they claimed and based on this the police detained them,” he added.

The youth leader further disclosed that the syndicate had defrauded people at Afaha Eket, Ikot Ekpene and Eastern Obolo through their nefarious activities and wondered how people can use the name of a church to commit such crime not minding the consequences.

In a telephone interview, the Police Public Relations Officer in Akwa Ibom state, Odikko Macdon said though he has not been briefed on the matter, the police would do a thorough investigation to establish the facts of the case and bring the culprits to book.

“I don’t have that information at my disposal as at now. But however, if there is anything ongoing like that the police would leave no stone unturned in getting to the root of the matter,” he said.

Short News Focus on education, youth employment, group task Bauchi gov Samuel Luka, Bauchi Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi state has been advised to give priority to youth employment and education for the socio-economic development of the state.

A group known as Forum of Executive Directors of Civil Society Organizations which gave the advice at a press conference lamented that 80 per cent of youth in the state are either uneducated or unemployed.

The advice, according to the forum is part of its recommendations to the governor to implement in his first 100 days in office.

Chairman of the forum, Sodangi Chindo said a survey carried out by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and UNICEF indicates that Bauchi state has the highest number of out- of- school children in the country.

He said that the survey showed that 1.3 million children are still not enrolled in school, hence the need to declare a state of emergency in the education sector.

Other recommendations proffered by the civil society organizations for the new administration, include developing a robust long term development plan that will guide it in tackling the myriads of challenges it inherited.

Flood kills JSS3 Student in Delta Nosa Akenzua, Asaba

Flood waters following heavy rainfall on Thursday in Asaba, Delta state has killed a girl on her way home from school.

An eyewitness, Joan Osakwe said the victim identified as Chiwendu Rosemary fell into the rushing flood waters around Redeem Church area of Okpanam community while returning home from school and was swept away by the flood water before rescue efforts could save her.

She stated the corpse of the school girl was later recovered by the Kabana Hotel junction.

But, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Onovuwakpoyeya Onome, who confirmed the incident said the victim died on the spot after she fell into the flood waters.

“The victim, a JSS 3 student was on her way home after her examination when she fell into the deep flood waters and was swept through Redeem Church on Okpanam Road to Kabana Hotel junction where she died,” Onovuwakpoyeya said Investigations revealed that Okpanam Road and its environs have been facing serious erosion menace with several houses and vehicles destroyed since the coming of the rains in the last few weeks.

Judiciary staff in prison custody for forgery in Delta Nosa Akenzua, Asaba

From left: Speaker Anambra State House of Assembly, Uche Okafor; Gov.Willie Obiano of Anambra State; Igwe Peter Anukwu of Mbaukwu, Dr Steve Dike; Member Board of Directors, Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC), Mr Okey Nwosu; Managing Director of EEDC, during the inauguration of new 7.5 MVA and upgradee15MVA injection substation in Awka on Friday.

Activist tasks judiciary to use June 12 ruling as benchmark for electoral reforms Chris Onuoha, Lagos A pro-democracy activist and former associate of late Chief Moshod Abiola, Chief Sunbo Onitiri has tasked the Nigeria judiciary to step up its credibility to save the country from judicial collapse.

Speaking to journalists as the nation marked June 12 as Democracy Day, Chief Onitiri lamented the way judges in the country pronounce judgments in a bias manner.

He said that “Nigeria’s judiciary which is the last hope of the common man and also the anchor hope of our democracy is under serious threat. The institution needs strong men, brave and bold who can sit and pronounce resounding judgments that can save this country.”

Using the 1993 monumental judgment

delivered by Justice Moshood Olugbami of the Lagos state High Court prevailing on the then electoral commission headed by Prof. Henry Nwosu to allow Nigerians vote in the election, Chief Onitiri, not only saw that as a sterling credibility to the Nigerian judiciary, but also a victory for the common man.

“The 11th June 1993 judgment that made Nigerians to vote overwhelmingly for Abiola was a landmark victory for Nigerians. Arthur Nzeribe and his group in the ABN procured a judgment at an Abuja High Court that the June 12 election must not hold.

“I went to a Lagos state High Court, argued as a citizen and obtained an ex parte order to dust that decision. The order was respected by the then Head of State, Ibrahim Babangida. It was a historic judgment that enabled Nigerians to vote and it formed the foundation of the democratic struggle.

“The election then was an open secret ballot system. It was a good electoral system, so transparent and credible. And that is why we say it was a free and fair election ever conducted in this country, but unfortunately, an election tagged the most free and fair in the country was annulled,” he bemoaned.

The significance of that judgment, according to Chief Onitiri, should not be over-emphasised because it was the judgment that later led to the Nigeria Judiciary Council (NJC) giving an order that judges should be very careful on how they give out ex parte orders.

He however, emphasized that the only way an election can be credible in Nigeria is to use a system that enables voters to use their voters card to vote anywhere they are, adding that “you don’t need to queue in the sun or rain. This can be done at the comfort of your vicinity.”

A female judiciary staff in Delta state, Helen Oshehor has been remanded in prison custody allegedly forging a certificate of death The accused person allegedly forged the death certificate of a lawyer, one Owei Brinemughan, who died few years ago to administer his estate.

The accused person currently standing trial at an Asaba Magistrate Court on a two –count charge of impersonation and forgery, was alleged to have presented a fake letter of administration of the late lawyer’s estate, identifying herself as his sister.

Prosecuting police officer, James Okpako on Friday told the court that the accused person committed the offence in contravention of the Criminal Code.

“The accused person had filed a motion on notice at Ughelli South Area Customary Court sitting at Ejophe with a view to claiming the money in the Ecobank account of the late Owei Brinemughan.

“Owei Brinemughan was gruesomely murdered in Ughelli Town on April 19 2016 by unknown gunmen and the accused person did impersonate the younger sister by forging his death certificate.

Airport police prosecutes 88 offenders in 4 months The Murtala Muhammad International Airport (MMIA) Police Command on Thursday said that it prosecuted no fewer than 88 persons in court for committing various offences between January and April 2019.

Spokesman for the command, Joseph Alabi, disclosed this in an interview he granted in Lagos, disclosing that some of the suspects were charged with assault, stealing, obtaining by false pretence as well as unlawful entry and touting, offences that contravene the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) bye -laws.

Alabi said that the command made 125 arrests and secured 19 convictions within the period, adding that 35 persons were still under investigations while 69 others were awaiting trial.

He said the command is committed to making the airport and its environs safe and secure for travellers, airline operators and its other users.

Alabi said that “it is evident that security has improved at the MMIA. Those who used to come here for touting and swindling of unsuspecting passengers now know that they will be prosecuted for their actions if caught by the security agencies.

“Our plainclothes officers have been deployed in and around the airport’s environment to ensure the safety and security of passengers and other users of the airport.

“My advice is that the members of the public should learn how to abide by the rules and regulations of the airport, especially in the restricted areas.”

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 15, 2019

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I’ve gone past the stage of telling fictitious tales - Comedian Pencil Since he won the AY’s Open Mic challenge in 2010, Ogechi Nwanevu Cyril, better known as Pencil, by his teaming fans is a comedian per excellence who has grown over the years and is still a work in progress, haven graced several stages with his unique rib cracking style. Pencil is known for his simplicity and originality of materials at all times.

In this chat with MUTIAT ALLI, Pencil talked about his coming event tagged, Pencil Unbroken ‘The Movie Edition’, reforms the industry need, and take on entertainers who bring their private life to social media amongst others. Enjoy…

It’s the second quarter of the 2019 already, how has the year been so far for you?

The year by all standards have been moving on well, we thank God for his infinite mercies, things are getting better.

A lot of your colleagues have dabbled into either movie production or turned actor, do you see yourself doing this anytime soon?

I am someone that know little things about so many things, I am multi talented, I have featured in some movies already and some yet to be released, if I am offered movie roles why not it’s all entertainment and it’s interwoven.

What has been some of your greatest achievements this year compared to the past year?

I’ve been improving myself and my craft, because I learn everyday that is why I will refer to myself as a student of life, we are just in the middle of the year and it will be too soon to conclude, the year still has a lot in stock for me so it will be too soon to start counting my blessings, I will want you to ask me this same question at the end of the year then I will give you a comprehensive list of my achievements So what is new about the ‘Pencil ‘brand?

The Pencil brand is ever dynamic, each opportunity on stage is a learning experience, it just keeps getting better, there has been positive changes over the years in all ramifications, the style of jokes and delivery have changed over time, the brand will keep growing.

What has been the challenges faced in growing your brand?

Some of the challenges are always being fresh, coming up with jokes to entertain your audience and most importantly not repeating your jokes, it requires lots of hardwork especially for my kind of jokes that come with moral lessons, so keeping up with trends and making sure that my jokes speak about the ills in the society and possible solutions to them is a major challenge. I have gone past the stage of telling fictitious tales whom people can not relate with, this is because my jokes are now inspired from my day to day activities.

It’s the fourth edition of your yearly comedy programme ‘Pencil Unbroken’, what are you doing differently this time

For new bees coming into the industry they should try as much as possible to be original, if you don’t have anything new to offer then don’t take from the existing, also government and corporate bodies should buy into our shows more; we can only implore them to do so as it is clearly seen that in overseas their government and policies supports talent building.

However there is still platform to improve having at the back of their mind that entertainment in Nigeria is one of our greatest export.

Will it be right to say that the Comedy business is paying off for you?

Yea, at least it puts food on my table and sustains the life style so comedy for me has been very rewarding even beyond my wildest imagination, initially it was just for the passion, when I started I never envisaged that it will be this rewarding but above all we thank God for his grace.

around?

Fresh jokes, new acts and the packaging and execution this time will be flawless; we are making sure that everything that happens will be planned. For every year we are always raising the bar and this year won’t be an exception, it will be pure entertainment and fun all the way.

So why the choice of this year’s theme tagged ‘The Movie’ edition?

Everyshow I do come with its unique theme, and the theme determines the dynamics of the show, this year we will be raising the bars in the comedy industry because we have to set standard.

Every edition, there is a burning issue to tackle and this year is not an exception.

What and who will be taking the stage this time around?

This year comedians like the legendary Ay, Seyilaw, Gandoki, Kenny blaq,Ladisi Elenu,

Destalker, Frank Onero and many more will be cracking the ribs of the audience Since you won the AY open mic challenge in 2010, you have upped your game, will you say the challenge opened all this favored doors for you?

Certainly the platform was just like a spring board for me, and it opened lots of doors, I can’t stop taking AY for the platform, it also sharpened my craft and added more value to me.

Did you envisage that you will be this big and embraced starting out?

Sure right from inception I have always had a burning desire to be successful, I knew I would make it but na the date I no no, I won’t regard myself as big yet because my best is yet to come In your own opinion what reforms do you think the comedy industry needs right now?

Are there down moments you felt you are in the wrong industry?

Just like every other profession I’ve had down moments but never for one day have I had the thoughts of quitting comedy, I have always had an inexplicable conviction that I am in the right profession, i have a strong passion for my profession so the few times I had down times I had to evaluate it and know the reason why and worked hard to prevent a recurrence Just like your colleagues who takes their shows outside the shores of the country, do you have similar plans too?

Yes I will be having my UK tour this year from the 5th of October and in due cause other countries will follow, because we are trying relentlessly to make the brand a universal one with global acceptance How did you feel when you were backlash on social media for posting your new ride some months back?

It’s nothing new, I just laughed

over it, posting my car was my own way of counting my blessings and thanking God, whatever interpretation anyone makes from it is subjective, anyone can type anything from the comfort of their homes in as much as it doesn’t define who I am I don’t feel bothered, I didn’t feel disturbed about it at all.

What is your opinion about entertainers who bring their personal life to social media?

Well it’s their life. I’m not in a position to tell a full fledged adult how to run their affairs, the bottom line is to do what makes you happy, the fact that I might not like it doesn’t make it wrong, it’s just a clear case of individual differences.

Will you bring your personal issue or private life to social media?

As a celebrity, my life is already in the public space, but I still try to reduce it, like you said it’s my private life and not for public consumption, the part of me seen on social media is the part I want people to know, like for example no one is poor on social media where as in real life I have my financial challenges just like anybody, but I will certainly not be bringing that for people to feast on social media Are you in a relationship now?

Sure I am in a relationship with my God at the moment, but if what you mean is having woman in my life then I will say not at the moment, I have a list of things I have set to achieve and their time frames, when it gets to the time to start a relationship you will be the first to know, I promise you but for now I am ‘babeless’.

What do look out for in your future wife to be?

When it’s time to look for a wife surely I will create a standard but for now it hasn’t crossed my mind, I don’t want to make a categorical statement now, all I know is that my wife will be fine sha How will you describe your sense of style?

In the words of Jidenna ‘I am a classic man’.....I love dressing in a way that will create an indelible impression in the minds of people.

What is your take on Nigerians patronising made in Nigeria product?

Surely is the way to go, with the necessary support and push these products will become as enviable as the ones we import, so I am totally in support of made in Nigeria items.

Gist 12

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 15, 2019

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Freda Francis’s Oasis Medspa acquires state of the art equipment Socialite and aesthetics specialist Freda Francis who doubles as the CEO of leading beautification outfit, Oasis Medspa has revealed that her line of beauty business has acquire a state of the art equipment which can comfortably say is the only one in the whole of Nigeria.

On the new equipment, Freda Francis noted that the two equipments include Thermiva which help rejuvenates the vagina and the Dermalux that is specially made for people of colour.

Speaking on the creation of the spa, she said: “I have always been very passionate

Freda Francis

about skincare, and that was why I decided to establish

a spa. I am happy that we have been doing well. We recently won two awards – the Most Innovative Spa of the Year 2019 by the Travel and Hospitality Award, and the World Luxury Spa Award”.

Shedding more light on the use of the Thermiva machine, she noted that it uses radio frequency and a probe to carry out the treatment. And you begin to see improvements immediately with no side effects. The equipment helps tighten the internal and external parts of the structure and makes sex more enjoyable; with this women don’t have to fake orgasms.

Afroprom unveils Prom King & Queen contest Stories Mutiat Alli Following the grand announcement of Nigeria’s firstever prom concert, “Afroprom”, organizers have reeled out other activities that are guaranteed to whet appetite leading to the concert. The Afroprom King & Queen contest is primed to celebrate a good looking King & Queen who is intelligent, smart and already a leader in their own capacities.

This will be the maiden edition of the contest and history is in the making. The winner of these crowns will become ambassadors of Afroprom for a year and will enjoy a rare lunch with one of Nigeria’s A-list music stars in a choice restaurant aside walking away with a brand new iPad. To enter the contest, interested participant is required to: record

only a 30-seconds long video with details such as participant’s name, the name of the school attended, age, personal background, and why they deserve to be crowned Nigeria’s first ever Prom King or Queen Alternatively, participants are encouraged to upload a full picture of themselves on one grid and the aforementioned information on the other grid. The post with the highest number of votes will advance to the next stage of the contest Bukola Litan, Assistant Creative Director at J. Vanni Global revealed that the contest is organized in a bid to stir the spirit of friendly competition amongst the teens as the step into a crucial time of their lives.

“The Prom King & Queen contest was born out of a desire to stir the spirit of friendly competition among the teens. The

real world is just a step away, and in there, it is a battle of popularity however unfair it seems.”

“Is it fair to have popular kids go head-to-head against the more popular ones? Maybe not. But the social media gives everyone an equal opportunity and we just want to see how well they can maximize these platforms and use it in their favor.” Bukola concluded.

The top 10 posts in each category will advance to the final phase and at this stage, the remaining participants will get special codes with which they can now be voted for again. The overall winner will be decided via an automated mechanism and a winner will be announced at the prom concert.

The event which is scheduled to hold on Sunday, July 14, 2019 will be hosted by ace OAP Jimmy, and will reward attendants with enticing gifts such as an iPhone XR, PlayStation 4, and lots more.

L-R: Adebisi Odubela, Bukola Litan, Mobola Abiru and Jimmie Akinsola at Afroprom recent announcement

Tim Godfrey

Fearless ‘The Rebirth’ holds this Sunday For the first time, award winning music maestro, Dr. Tim Godfrey and his Multiple Award winning crew – Xtreme, are set to hold the fourth edition of their annual FEARLESS concert with the theme “REBIRTH” this Sunday at the Convention centre, Eko Hotel & Suites Victoria Island.

One exceptional feature of this year’s concert is the fact that for the first time since the debut of his concert, Tim will joined by three international, multiple award winning acts Israel Houghton, JJ.Hairston, and Phil Thompson amongst other Nigerian A-list artistes.

In a chat with The Daily Times, Tim disclosed that one of the purpose of the concert is to bring about change in the sound of worship and praise as well as repositioning the gospel music sector as a whole.

He said: “Rebirth is significant because the devil deceives us a lot of times, by making us believe our sins and shortcomings cannot and will not allow us amount to anything. I am using the FEARLESS platform to bring a message of hope to everyone (young and old) to live their lives to the fullest because in Christ, we have been given victory over every lie of the devil. We are FEARLESS!” The first edition of FEARLESS hosted the renowned Bishop Marvin Sapp, the second edition featured Kirk Franklin and the third, a tour with Travis Greene in five different states in Nigeria, amongst other Nigerian Artistes.

However, this year’s edition will also give platforms to new gospel singer who will be performing at the concert amongst others

Singer, Annjay to launch new fashion product, Cura Nigerian singer, actress and entrepreneur, Chioma John, who recently bagged the ambassadorial deal of a Chinese tech company, Ja Solar Energy Equipment, has added more feathers to her hat.

The ‘Man No Be God’ crooner is set to launch her fashionable Sunglasses, Cura, which got into Nigeria from China few days ago.

Speaking on why she went into sunglasses business, after she had successful established her hair, eyelashes and makeup brands, Annjay stated that her love to good look is inborn.

“I went into beauty business because I like it since childhood.

It’s also part of my profession as a singer and a model. I love to see people look good. We also know that the level of sunshine in Nigeria is something to worry about. That was why I introduced the Sunglasses brand,” she said.

Continuing, the Ebonyi State born multi-talented artiste hinted that she has been a lover of entrepreneurship.

“I have been doing this business before I went into journalism but

Annjay

not as big as it is now. Annjay products are international now.

We have our clients globally.

Some USA U.K., SA, Ghana and many more. People order our goods products from there and we ship to them.”

On the affordability of her products, the light skinned entertainer maintained that its for all and sundry. “All our products is affordable. Cura is for all lovers of good fashion items and want to stand out too.”

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Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 15, 2019

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Society Gist

Top socialite, Ndidi Pat Ugwu gives back to the less privilege Isaac Oguntoye Sunday, June 8, 2019 was a memorable day in Georgia United State of America as Delta Ibo Women Association (DIWA) gathered friends, family and business associates from within and outside the state to support the less privilege initiative. The convener and prime mover of the association, Ndidi Pat Ugwu, a social philanthropist whose heart of gold is second to none is using Delta IBO Association Women Initiative, a non-governmental organisation to empower women and their childrento become a better person within the society.

Without mincing words, Stone Ridge Event Center, Stone Mountain, Georgia was filled to the brim as the association held the inaugural and fundraising gala night tagged; Supporting the less privileged mothers and children through health.

The very articulate and industrious young woman is leaving no stone unturned as she invited top personalities both in the business, government and private sector to talk, educate, motivate and teach the women on new skills that will make them a better person within the society.

When the delectable lady of style was asked about

her vision and mission, she said her mission is to put smile on women’s face irrespective of their challenges saying “What we do here is to empower women and to make sure every woman can stand on their own while helping the younger generation to believe in themselves. We also want to help the girl child to know that, she can be a better person without selling her body. We raise fund for them, teach them how to acquire skills.’’ She concluded.

Wale Tinubu

Wale Tinubu’s millstone

Ndidi Pat

The latest 419 trending amongst prostitutes

ZOOM CORNER With

Mariere Tracy

It seems like prostitutes these days are dead to every sense of shame and priority.

Recently there’s been several incidence of prostitutes violently asking for increased payment .

Few weeks ago I watched in totally dismay a lady shouting on top of her voice over underpayment of her client. I could not believe for a moment as this lady furiously described and explained to a crowd of people at a shopping mall in Abuja.

It all began when a guy went home with a girl from a highly profilled club but unkown to him she was a prostitute. The lady profilled her client by the phones and SUV car. By morning her client paid her twenty thousand naira. She replied saying she’s not a cheap girl. After much argument and plea from her client, he left her in the borrowed SUV to get more money from ATM machine and never came back. By evening the real owner of the car came for his car. To his amusement the

lady slammed the car door severally thereby damaging it. She screamed asking for her balance payment.

No shame was the word on everyone that gathered.

Recently, there’s been one too many of such reoccurrence where so-called big girls, aka prostitutes, no longer have fear or shame.

This has become a growing trend where men now have to make away with thier one month salary or even more when they encounter such malicious ladies.

Decency is never old fashioned, your integrity and privacy is key.

Prostitutes inflicting bodily harm while asking for a whopping sum of money have become an increasing trend, MEN BEWARE!!

I remain your zoom queen, Mariere Tracy.

Share this story with your friends, inform them.

Join me next week, let’s zoom into latest trends and lifestyle.

Jubril Adewale Tinubu, Group Chief Executive Officer, Oando Plc, is a shrewd businessman.

Since the Oil and gas giant boss started out as a businessman, he has always turned away from anything that can drag his name into disrepute.

His family knows he detests negative publicity. His friends even say he is genteel and gentlemanly. So also his business associates love him for being business-minded.

It was revealed that the billionaire has proven to the world and those who believe in him that he is, indeed, a man who does his business with open mind and with no skeleton in his compound.

Perhaps, this explains the shock being expressed by his ardent admirers especially members of the business community when last week Friday Security Exchange Commission, SEC, came out with the press release many described as the most draconian order of the century as the regulatory body ordered Tinubu and his deputy, Omamofe Boyo’s immediate resignation from the leading oil firm over alleged infractions and breaching stipulated rules of SEC. This syndicated press release also announced an interim management board which will convene a special general meeting of shareholders, where new management board will be selected and inaugurated.

However, the severity of the penalties and the timing of the release has roused public curiosity as to the motive and the basis for the penalties.

As revealed, the trained lawyer claimed he was not given a chance to review and respond to the outcome of the report. ‘’You do not sentence a person to death without giving him or her a chance to defend him or herself. In this instance we have been sentenced to death without knowing what our crime is or being given a chance to defend ourselves. At the barest minimum, best practice requires that you give the person a chance of a fair hearing. We have not been accorded this opportunity.” he added.

Also, the Lagos State born billionaire had a sigh of relief when the Federal High Court restrained SEC from further action against the company he sweat to build from the scratch.

The Oil mogul has always proven his vast experience in business with uncommon brilliance and wizardry. So, when he promised Oando shareholders at the beginning of 2018 that he would move the leading Oil and Gas company to an enviable height, many did not doubt his competence.

He always delivers far above expectation and today, he has not only fulfilled his promise, he has lifted Oando far above its competitors.

Unveiling of the hidden substance Gov. Seyi Makinde’s Alonge Michael, a journalist and an online news service provider at Mike Angelo News, has perfected all acts for the public presentation of the maiden edition of his intellectual compilation, The Hidden Substance, slated for Thursday 27th, June, 2019 at Imperial Hall, Muhammed Jobifele Way, Behind MKO Abiola Gardens, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos from 12 noon.

The Hidden Substance is a ‘mini-autobiography’, embellished with some motivational and inspirational nuggets for the emerging generation and for those entrepreneurs who are yet to, or still struggling to realise their potential.

According to the latest

author on the bloc, Alonge Michael, “The Hidden Substance is a needed formula for those aspiring for success and greatness despite stumbling blocks. It is a tool that is no doubt needed in the engineering factory of success. It’s a model in book format that is enriched with necessary tools that will help reshape, mold and change the mentality of our youths who believe that cutting corners or engaging in shady deals like ‘yahooyahoo’ will launch them into the fantasy life of their dreams.”

Alonge continues, “a book I once read changed my perception to life, and I believe this too will definitely change someone’s life. Whatever you

want to become in life, you need necessary tools, this book contains all the nourishments needed to be on top of your game. ” The book which will be reviewed by Mr. Babatunde Olowu has Apostle Aderemi Awode, the man behind the global brand, Finecoat paint, as the writer of the Foreword.

Activities for the launch include Book Reading from three industry persons, a Nollywood thespian, a lawyer and a columnist.

Expected to grace the event are distinguished personalities from all strata of society cutting across captains of industries, entertainment czars, media personalities from all walks of life.

Heart of Gold While everyone was busy celebrating the most acclaimed free and fair election in the country, the newly elected governor of Oyo State was also putting smile on the face of 35 inmates.

The man, who broke several jinx to emerge the governor, is leaving no stone unturned as his love for education knows no bond.

Meanwhile, the governor enjoined residents and citizens of the state to join him to reflect on the ways by which they could contribute to the growth of Nigeria’s democracy.

His words: “We recall 26 years ago, how Nigerians of all walks of life spoke in unison and trooped out to participate in the freest and fairest presidential election Nigeria has ever seen.

“It was a sad day as the election was annulled by the military and the man, Abiola, eventually died in detention.

“We take solace, however, in the fact that his determination and dogged fight watered the flowers of democracy.

“We salute the many heroes and heroines, especially the late Kudirat Abiola and Pa Alfred Rewane among others, who paid with their blood in the struggle to give June 12 its deserved recognition. ”May the souls of those that departed in the course of the June 12 struggles continue to rest in peace”.

Seyi

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Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 15, 2019

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Interview How Chinese govt is improving, enlightening life via ‘Access to Satellite TV’ Project An informed life is considered a well lived one!! This further harnesses the potentials of the creative industry to further improve the standard of living of Nigerians. The Chinese government assurance in tackling the challenges of poverty and discrimination in Africa through the ‘Access to Satellite TV ‘project for 10,000 African villages is an example.

Anchored by StarTimes Nigeria, the provider of digital satellite has commenced the installation of satellite TV to some villages in Lagos to kickoff the second phase of connecting Nigerian rural communities to digital television. MUTIAT ALLI writes about this commendable effort.

Two years after piloting the first phase of the program in rural communities in Abuja, and being satisfied with the outcome, StarTimes commenced the second phase of the program by installing satellite TVs to some villages and communities in Lagos.

During the China-Africa Cooperation Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, Xi Jinping, the president of China, announced that his country would provide satellite television to 10,000 African villages as part of the efforts to boost African, Chinese relations with this been said, 1,000 villages across Nigeria would benefit from the program.

Itire, a community under Mushin Local government area of Lagos state is one of the beneficiaries of the satellite project with the installation process commence first in the palace of the Oba Onitire of Itire elect, Oba Tajudeen Odubiyi.

Oba Odubiyi who at the time of the inspection had gone to observe the lesser Hajj spoke via internet call that the community is indeed appreciative of the effort of the Chinese government to further connect the people with the outside world via the satellite connection which will in turn enhances information dissemination across border.

With the installation of the television, the community could now be known nationally and globally, he said.

Chief Adisa Olatunde Olatunji, the Asiwaju of Itire land equally gave kudos to the brains behind the satellite installation as it took the community by surprise that they are selected among the numerous beneficiaries ‘We want to appreciate the Chinese government in partnership with StarTimes for his laudable project as this will further achieve its aim which is to inform and enlighten the people more because information is light. While we are appreciative of this effort, we are super glad of the installation at the

health centre because it’s the first of its kind as the health centre have existed for over 20years and the StarTimes decoder is the first there as I believe this will also keep the nurses from sleeping on duty’ ‘ One thing we equally love about the decoder in the Health Centre is the fact that it is powered by solar; hence no matter the blackout situation, patients and medical staffs would still have an opportunity to catch a glimpse of their favourite channel.

The Oba elect also made effort to ensure that one of the dishes is rightly installed in the Itire Police station as some of the officers met during the inspection commended the picture quality of all the channels.

Ikenna Isaac, a patient who had come to receive treatment at the Itire Community Health Centre told DailyTimes that it was surprising for her to come to the centre for appointment to see the big screen hanged on the wall as what struck her most was the movie channel that was crystal clear despite the bad weather.

She said ‘Even after been attended to at the centre, I am still sitting here because I want to watch the program to the very end since there is no power supply in the area’.

Equally another community which benefited from this project was the Isolo community under the traditional ruler of Oba Kabiru Alani, the Osolo of Isolo kingdom who appeal to StarTimes to extend the gesture to both communities and villages that are yet to benefit from the project, stating that it offers very important advantages to rural community’s development.

Chief Fatai Musiliu (One of the community Chief) applauded the Chinese government and StarTimes for even going as far as making the decoders come with a free one year subscription, an effort that their counterpart is yet to meet up with.

‘I am a lover of sport channels and I can boast of the fact that throughout my viewing of one of

Chairman Odi-olowu-Ojuwoye LG, Hon. Rasaq Olusola Ajala

the sport stations, it felt like I was using a 3D device as the clarity of the channel is topnotch despite the bad weather condition’ . A sport as we all know connects the world and I am glad that at the one the viewing centres, we have been able to build relationships amongst the populace in the community.

Chief Fatai however appeals to the conveyer of initiative of the need to make the solar devices available to community people who might need it at an affordable price.

It is equally important to note that one of the Solar-satellite devices was equally installed at the Isolo general hospital.

Not relenting on its commitment to serve as much community as possible, the Chinese initiative train moved to Ilupeju Community area of Lagos under Odi-Olowu/ Ojuwoye LCDA Commenting on the project,

Chairman Odi-olowu/Ojuwoye LCDA, Hon. Rasaq Olusola Ajala noted that it is quite commendable as we are in the state where we are shifting from analog to digital and the need to people at the grassroots level to have access to information through digital means.

He said ‘There is no deniable fact that information is key towards the growth and development of the country at large as such the project is commendable counting the entire Ilupeju community lucky to have been selected as beneficiaries of the laudable project.

It is pertinent to note that the project has gained wide acceptance by the people of Africa. A survey conducted recently among communities benefitting from the project shows the willingness of the rural dwellers to continue to enjoy the advantages of the project.

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Lagos–Ibadan rail project: New coaches arrive as tracks laying reach 152km Temitope Adebayo The Lagos–Ibadan standard gauge rail project may soon be flagged-off as the laying of tracks had reached 152 kilometres out of the 156-kilometre stretch. This is even as the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has taken delivery of two new coaches to be deployed for the railway.

Speaking after the inspection, which followed by a meeting with the contractor, supervising consultants and other stakeholders at Ologun Eru, on the outskirts of Ibadan, the Chairman of NRC, Mallam Ibrahim Al- Hassan, said the coaches were shipped in from China to start passenger services from Lagos to Ibadan.

The NRC boss, who disclosed that the two tracks would be completed by the end of July, added that once the double tracks are completed, passengers can begin to enjoy the services from Lagos to Ibadan.

According to him, it remains four kilometres to complete. The second track stops at 140 kilometres. I believe by the end of July, both tracks would be at the Ibadan station. We want to complete this as quickly as we can.

“Once the tracks are completed, the focus would be shifted to other ancillary works like the ongoing construction of stations and level crossings.

“We want to complete this (track laying) as quickly as we can so that other ancillary services could continue and we could put the tracks to use.

Laying the tracks is the most important.

Once we have the tracks from Lagos to Ibadan, then when you look at the stations in Lagos, the ones in Abeokuta, they are already making progress”, he said.

By the time we finish laying the tracks, we would be able to move passengers from Lagos to Ibadan. Then the intermediary stations can come up later We can have temporary stations if we need to.” The MD on his part explained that more coaches and locomotives would arrive to start operations on the Iju-Ibadan corridor while work continues on the Lagos end up to the Apapa station. “Yesterday (Wednesday), two coaches got to Papalanto and hopefully by next month, we would be going for further inspection of another set and test.

We hope by September more locomotives would come”, he added.

Okhiria said the corporation would use the temporary stations to operate the service from Lagos to Ibadan On the Lagos end, he said most of the challenges had been addressed while work would commence in earnest on the corridor down to Apapa.

According to the Managing Director, NRC, Mr Fidet Okhiria, more coaches and locomotives will be procured to start operations on the Iju-Ibadan corridor while work continues on the Lagos end up to the Apapa station.

He stated that two coaches got to Papalanto on Wednesday and that by July, there would be further inspection of another set and test.

L-R: Relationship Manager, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Cynthia Chidinma Onugha; CEO Bestman Games Ltd, Nimi Akinkugbe and Business Manager, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Awolowo Road Branch, Ikoyi, Nneka Oloyede, at the 2019 Children’s Finance Fair organized by Bestman Games Ltd held in Lagos…recently.

FX restriction: CBN to blacklist firms importing 43 banned items Motolani Oseni Any company found to be violating the import policy regime on restricted 43 items from the official foreign exchange (forex) window will be henceforth blacklisted, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revealed.

The governor of the CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, on Friday disclosed that President Muhammadu Buhari recently gave the new directive, as well

as encouraged the apex bank to provide support for producers of crops and other commodities with export potential.

The Presidential the directive may not be unconnected to smuggling of the affected items by some companies into the country in violation of the subsisting restrictive order by the monetary and fiscal authorities.

Confirming the presidential order during a meeting with oil palm producers in Abuja, the governor of the CBN, Mr Godwin

Emefiele, explained that the apex bank had been mandated to sanction any company and their principal officers engaging in smuggling of the restricted items into the country.

In addition, he said that the directive also mandated the apex bank to broaden the scope of funding support support to entities and individuals that planned to boost the production of some commodities and by so doing, enhance the nation’s non-oil export earnings.

Emefiele listed the items as rice, maize, cassava, tomatoes, cotton, oil palm, poultry, fish, livestock dairy and cocoa.

It would be recalled that recent government’s efforts to boost the nation’s foreign exchange earning potential had been focused on agrobased productive activities with an emphasis on export-orientation of such engagements.

Indications that the policy efforts are yielding the desired result were reflected in the nation’s non-oil exports earnings in 2018.

Ikeja Electric rolls out prepaid metres for Ikorodu customers Godwin Anyebe Ikeja Electric Plc. (IE), one of Nigeria’s electricity distribution companies, has announced the roll-out of prepaid metres for customers in the Ikorodu Business Unit.

This was made known at a media briefing held recently in Lagos which was attended by customers and stakeholders under the Ikorodu Business Unit of Ikeja Electric. According to Ikeja Electric, this is part of the first phase, which will further, extend to Abule Egba and Shomolu Business Units next week.

Speaking on the roll-

out, Head of Corporate Communications, Ikeja Electric, Felix Ofulue said: “In line with NERC regulations, customers are expected to pay for metres. Through the online process, customers are to abide by the rules and regulation guiding the metering process and they should not pay cash to anyone or fall prey to unscrupulous element who may want to take advantage of the scheme to fleece customers. They will be advised on the designated channels for payment.”

While explaining the process, he noted that every customer was expected to go through the Know Your Customer (KYC) process and

also agree on the settlement of the outstanding debt. After this, the account survey will then be carried out before payment for prepaid metre is made. The metres will be provided and installed within 10 working days of payment.

Mr. Ofulue also advised customers who dispute their outstanding bills to take advantage of the various repayment options available during the KYC process. He explained that outstanding balance could also be rolled over into the customer’s prepaid account and paid in instalments.

According to him, the stipulated cost of a singlephase meter is N38, 850 while

a three-phase metre is N70, 350. These are all inclusive of VAT. According to the Disco, the deployment and installation of prepaid metres to customers in Ikorodu, which will be carried out by one of its MAPs, New Hampshire Capital limited will commence on June 17th 2019 following the successful registration and subscription for metres by thousands of customers spread across Ikorodu and Epe. The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC empowers third-party companies identified as Meter Asset Providers (MAP) to procure and install meters for electricity consumers.

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Opera releases ‘State of Mobile Web Report’ for Africa Godwin Anyebe

L-R: Chief Executive Officer Union Bank, Mr Emeka Emuwa; Chairman Board of Directors, Mr Cyril Odu and Company Secretary, Mr Somuyiwa Sonubi, at the Bank’s ExtraOrdinary General Meeting, held recently in Lagos.

TERF 2019: Coker, David-West, others to speak on cybersecurity threats Ladesope Ladelokun The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Rack Centre, Mr Ayotunde Coker, is confirmed to lead the panel of discussants on the Regulation and Policies on Cloud Computing and Cybersecurity Threats in Nigeria at the forthcoming fifth Telecom Executives and Regulators’ Forum (TERF) organised by the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON).

This was made known in a statement by ATCON on Friday.

According to the statement, Coker will serve as the chair of the panel while Prof Olayinka David-West, Director, Lagos Business School will serve as a member of the panel with the MD/ CEO of eStream Networks Limited, Mr Muyiwa Ogungboye; Mr Muhammed Rudman, President, Nigeria Internet

Registration Association (NiRA); Peter Osuere, Senior Manager, Business Solutions, Cyberspace Limited; Ifeloju Alakija, Head, Regulatory Services, MainOne, Adamu Garba, CEO, IPI solutions Nigeria.

Others are Dapo Akanbi, MD/CEO Telepro Consulting Services Limited; Gboyega Ojuri, MD/CEO, Juniper Solutions Ltd., Malek Jaber, Enterprise Account Manager, FireEye META; Michael Ayoade, MD/CEO DotMac Technologies Ltd.; Olatunji Igbalajobi, Directo of Infosec Development, Cybersecurity Experts Association of Nigeria( CSEAN); Sean Hsu, President/CEO, Netcom Africa;MD/ CEO, IPNX Ltd; among others.

Meanwhile, the Executive Secretary of ATCON, Mr Ajibola Olude, has described this year’s edition of TERF as key to addressing the myriad of issues bedevilling the telecoms and Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector.

Olude in a statement said, “This year’s edition of TERF 2019 is pivotal to addressing issues that are confronting the telecoms and ICT sector in Nigeria. The topics that are lined up for discussions are well researched and we are certain that our carefully selected keynote speakers, panel chairs, panel discussants and the quality audience will do justice to them and the expected growth in terms of engendering an enabling environment that promotes further investment in the telecom an ICT sector.”

Other topics queued up for discussions include: Eradication of the Influx of Cloned and Fake Phones and other Telecom devices in Nigeria: The role of NCC, ONSA, Nigerian Customs, SON, Nigerian Shippers’ Council and other relevant government agencies. Mr Ahmed Ojikutu, President, Computer and Allied Products Dealers Association

of Nigeria (CAPDAN) will chair the panel.

Also, Mr Yusuf Kazaure, MD/CEO of Galaxy Backbone will chair the panel discussion on Funding Telecoms and ICT Investment in Nigeria: How would Telecom Infrastructure be financed?

The MD/CEO of MainOne, Ms Funke Opeke, will chair the panel discussion on Formulation of Policy and Regulation for OTTs: Challenges and Prospects.

The Telecom Executives and Regulators’ Forum 2019 will hold on July 11, 2019, at Four points by Sheraton, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The keynote speakers are Mr Olusola Teniola, President, ATCON, Prof Umar Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission and Dr Isa Pantami, Director General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).

TDB President, Tadesse emerges African Banker of the Year Mathew Dadiya, Abuja TDB President and Chief Executive of Trade and Development Bank (TDB), Admassu Tadesse, has won the 2019 ‘African Banker of the Year’ award, one of the top two most prestigious of the competition.

TDB Anne-Marie Iskandar, during the week, stated that the Bank also jointly received with Crédit Agricole the 2019 ‘Infrastructure Deal of the Year’, for its co-financing of the groundbreaking Coral South Floating Liquified Natural Gas (FLNG) project in Mozambique, where TDB collaborated closely with its national partner, Banco Nacional de Investimento (BNI), among others, on that strategic national investment.

The race for the 2019 African Bankers Awards came to an end on the night of the 11th of June in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, at a high profile gala dinner of bankers

and financial sector stakeholders.

TDB was also nominated in the categories ‘African Bank of the Year’ and ‘Deal of the Year – Debt’ for its US$ 1.25bn syndicated sovereign loan facility to the Government of Kenya.

The ‘African Banker of the Year’ award celebrates influential and inspirational captains of Africa’s banking industry: those who demonstrate outstanding integrity, and who through their leadership and outstanding vision, are exceptionally agile in achieving a strong financial performance and playing an active role in enhancing socio-economic empowerment and development in the region they serve.

President Tadesse was recognized as this kind of a leader, building on the foundations laid by his predecessor, Dr Gondwe who played an instrumental role in guiding the Bank through its teething years.

Working closely with a

committed board and talented management team, Mr Tadesse has elevated TDB into the worldclass African development finance institution it is today.

He has successfully crafted and spearheaded ground-breaking reforms in the Bank’s governance and organizational structure, with centres of excellence in risk management, treasury, investor relations and human capital management, among others, which have enabled the Bank to multiply several fold its capital base and lending capacity and grow a more diversified and de-risked loan portfolio. TDB is now an investment grade bank with half of its loan portfolio, directly and indirectly, contributing to SDGs and creating millions of jobs.

Under his leadership, he has managed to attract world class executives and talented professionals from several continents, and has fostered a positive and motivating work

environment, where substance, initiative, results and excellence are the focus and basis for advancement and rewards.

With his world-class team, he has mobilized unprecedented volumes of funding, at a reduced cost, for its scaled-up trade and development financing. The Bank’s total assets grew from just over US$ 1bn in 2012, to close to US$ 6bn in 2019, with non-performing loans at under 3per cent.

TDB’s second win in the category ‘Best Infrastructure Deal of the Year’ is a testament to the latter.

Its US$ 99.2M Senior Loan Facility towards Mozambique’s Coral South FLNG project – part of one of the largest subscription tickets for which Crédit Agricole was the lead arranger – is an absolute gamechanger both in terms of technology used as well as for Mozambique’s economy. TDB is the only DFI among other African banks to have participated in the lending of the project.

Opera has released its State of Mobile Web 2019, giving a detailed insight into the African digital landscape.

The report reveals that the Opera mobile browsers and standalone news app were used by nearly 20 million internet users in Africa and by more than 350 million people globally in the first quarter of 2019.

The State of Mobile Web 2019 report also, showed that Opera experienced a growth of more than 26 per cent of its user base year on year, compared to the first quarter of 2018 in Africa.

“We are thrilled to see that our mobile browsers and news app have grown by 25 million monthly users in the last year”, said Jorgen Arnesen, head of marketing and distribution at Opera. “The new Opera News app has led this positive growth, as well as the introduction of new features to our mobile browsers like built-in VPN and crypto wallet. The successful partnerships Opera has with major smartphone manufacturers in Africa have also contributed to this massive growth.”

The 2019 edition of the State of the Mobile Web Report looked into the use of the Opera Mini browser and the Opera browser for Android, and it shows that mobile browsing is one of the most popular online activities among African internet users. For example, in South Africa, nine out of ten people use their mobile browser every day, an activity they prefer over the use of other applications like YouTube.

The report also revealed that on average, Africans using Opera spend more than 30 minutes browsing online each day. The most browsed category of websites was social media platform domains such as Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, followed by search engines like Google, and entertainment and sports websites.

In the report, Opera gives detailed insight into the use of the data savings feature in the Opera Mini browser and compares the average price of mobile data in 20 countries in Africa.

The results revealed that the data compression mode in Opera Mini saved users nearly US$100m worth of data in 2018.

In this analysis, Opera also compared the costs of data in some African countries with the cost of mobile data in India and Germany.

The outcome of this analysis showed that South Africans pay six times more per gigabyte of mobile data than Indians and almost the same price as Germans for one gigabyte of mobile data.

The report takes a look at the trends of news and video consumption across Africa. This includes analysing the usage of its standalone Opera News app, which grew from launch to over 20 million users in a period of one year. Categories like breaking news, local news, and entertainment were the favourites among users in the first quarter of the year.

Video content is also becoming more popular among people who use the Opera News app. The report shows that people spend 50 per cent of the in-app time in Opera News watching videos on Instaclips, the recently added video feature on the news app.

The usage of Instaclips keeps growing since its test launch in December 2018: in Q1-2019, Instaclips registered a total of 122,000 videos uploaded in different languages such as English, Portuguese, French, Arabic and Swahili.

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At June 12 celebration, Buhari commended, urged to do more for Abiola, tackle hunger, insecurity Patrick Okohue The celebration on Wednesday of the first Democracy Day on June 12 after 20 years of the return to democratic rule and 26 after the June 12 1993 presidential election won

by Chief Moshood Kashimawo Abiola was significant in many respect.

Since the return of democratic rule in Nigeria in 1999, pro-democracy activists have been on successive administrations to not only recognize June 12 as the nation’s democracy day, but also to declare the winner of that election, Chief MKO Abiola who ran on the platform of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), against Alhaji Bashir Tofa of the National Republican Convention (NRC), as the winner and honour him as one of Nigeria’s former Presidents, even though he never got to rule.

The ceremony of Wednesday therefore was more or less an answer to some of the prayers by these activists, many of whom had carried the struggle over from the military era when the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) led the onslaught against the military junta in its bid to actualise the June 12 mandate.

As has always been the case in Lagos and most South West states and some other states in Southern Nigeria, many lovers of democracy gathered across many places in Lagos, Abuja and some other parts of the country, this time not only to again put pressure on the government to do the needful, but to appraise what has been done and decide if it was enough reason to celebrate.

At the end of the day, the feeling across the land is that the government has heard the cry of the people and has started a process to assuage their feelings and give honours to whom honour is due, but that a lot more still needed to be done to make the agitations subside.

At the Abiola Ikeja family house, the June 12 Movement as usual were gathered to not only lay the wreath on the grave of the late Abiola as it has been their annual ritual, but to also deliberate on latest development with the June 12 mandate.

Gathered at the Abiola residence to commemorate the Democracy Day, were the deputy governor of Lagos State, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat who represented the governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, former Minister of

Gani Adams Education and presidential aspirant, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, renowned political economist, Prof. Pat Utomi, Senator Shehu Sani, Prof.

Anthony Kila, Vice President, Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC Isa Aremu, Comrade Shetima Yerima, scion of the Fawehinmi family, Mohammed Fawehinmi, INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner in Akwa Ibom State, Mike Igini among others.

Sanwo-Olu urged Nigerians to continue to keep the wishes, hopes and aspirations of the late Chief MKO Abiola in their memories by behaving rightly and playing their roles in nation building.

Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by, Dr. Hamzat, made the call at the wreath laying in honour of Abiola, saying that making Nigeria a better country devoid of impoverishment which was the wish of Abiola, requires the collective efforts of both the government and the people.

“Today is about the wish, legacy and the good that Chief MKO Abiola had done.

And may the wish of MKO continue to be in our memories. If we all as a people in our different lanes and capacities do the right thing, Nigeria will be great. That is the reality and that is what we owe MKO Abiola,” Sanwo-Olu said.

Whether we like it or not, restructuring is a must if we must honour the memory of Chief Abiola. I call on President Buhari to go a step further by ensuring that Nigeria is properly restructured. If Nigeria is properly restructured, the spate of kidnapping, banditry, cattle rustling and clashes will become history.”

Wale Okuniyi He thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for declaring June 12 as Nigeria’s Democracy Day as against the May 29 date. “We must thank President Buhari for making us to understand our reality and that June 12 is our history. Even our children will hear the story and appreciate it. The Lagos State government will continue to strive and uphold the ideals of June 12 by ensuring the expansion of the frontiers of democratic governance and social justice,” he stated.

In his lecture entitled: “Hope 93: Democratic prosperity and political stability,” Prof. Pat Utomi urged political office holders and the elites to work together by creating wealth to avert the impending anarchy in the country.

Utomi stressed that the late Abiola’s ideology was hinged on economic prosperity, good healthcare, education and liberation for Nigerians.

“We need to reflect if we are where we are supposed to be as a people. Does our democracy work for us as a people? There are many challenges confronting the country today and our political office holders and the elite need to proactively work together, create wealth and jobs to prevent the anarchy that is about to come.

“If we are to do the memory of MKO any good, we must build economic justice, ensure peace, stability and prosperity for all,” Utomi said.

In his contribution, the Vice President, Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Comrade Isa Aremu said the declaration of June 12 as democracy day is ‘a triumph of democracy over military dictatorship’ urging the political class to channel their energy against poverty.

“For today, it is a total commitment. What seems impossible has become a reality. This is a triumph of democracy over dictatorship.

It is to renew our commitment to democratic process.

While many of the other speakers at the

Abiola residence commended the Federal Government for its gesture of recognising June 12 as Nigeria’s Democracy Day, they urged the government to do more by ensuring that Abiola get the treatment reserved for former Presidents and Heads of states, including hanging his photographs on the wall of Aso Rock as one of Nigeria’s former Presidents.

At the annual Oodua Progressives Congress (OPC) June 12 event put together by the National Coordinator of OPC and the Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Abiodun Ige Adams in Ogba area of Lagos, as parts of events to mark the day, Adams said that with the declaration of June 12 as democracy day, the late MKO Abiola will continue to linger in the minds of Nigeria and Nigerians.

Adams, in his remarks, lauded President Buhari for recognising the efforts of the late Abiola and several other heroes and heroines who paid the supreme price, saying the recognition is indeed a reward for Nigeria democrats.

“There is no other worthy price than the one given to the memory of the late Moshood Abiola, through the declaration of June 12 as the official democracy day. In June 1993, Abiola began a process to liberate his country, Nigeria, from forces of darkness. He took a decision in 1993 when the June 12 presidential election was annulled, and enforced this patriotic zeal when he was arrested in 1994, that never again would forces of darkness prevail over forces of light in Nigeria.

“It was the determination of Chief Abiola and other patriots to sacrifice themselves for Nigerians to enjoy democracy today.

“What is the meaning of June 12? It simply means restoration, the day democracy was restored in Nigeria after years of military rule, years of battle with tears, sweat, toil and, even, blood. Although the journey was tough from June 12, 1993 to May 29, 1999, Abiola, activists and democrats never wavered.

“Like the ‘few’ who saved Britain, Abiola and others insisted that democracy must be fully established in Nigeria and we thank God today that the process that started in 1993 has culminated in the signing into law, the Public Holidays Act Amendment Bill, by President Muhammadu Buhari.

“So, 26 years after that historic election in 1993 and 21 years after the death of Abiola, June 12 has, today, become what it should be: Restoration of Democracy.

“June 12 is a lesson to all Nigerians that you don’t give up a struggle. Despite its challenges, Nigerians should not give up on democracy because herein lies our future,” Adams said.

He restated the need for restructuring, stressing that , “It is a shame that in the 21st Century, states still go to Abuja, cap in hand, for monthly allocations. That action is, in itself, contrary to the spirit of federalism. Although we are in a democracy, Nigeria is still being governed through a unitary system.

“So, whether we like it or not, restructuring

Continued on page 18

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BMO to Atiku: Stop shedding crocodile tears on June 12 Patrick Okohue The Buhari Media Organisation (BMO) has debunked claims by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar that he stood shoulder to shoulder with Moshood Abiola, the icon of the June 12 struggle.

The group said it was a lie and a laughable attempt at re-writing an important part of Nigeria’s political history, as Atiku was one of the first members of the defunct Social Democratic Party (SDP) to abandon Abiola to his fate.

In a statement signed by its Chairman, Niyi Akinsiju and Secretary, Cassidy Madueke, BMO said that Atiku was not a full participant in the party’s presidential campaign activities after Abiola opted for Ambassador Baba Gana Kingibe as his running mate.

“This is not the first time that Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and his media handlers would attempt to rewrite history to paint the former Vice president in good light, especially before younger Nigerians.

“If anyone stood ‘shoulder to shoulder’ with Abiola at any time preceding the 1993 election or after it was annulled, that person certainly was not Atiku who literally sulked through the campaign season after the late icon of democracy dumped him and named Kingibe as his Vice Presidential candidate.

Atiku “Indeed he was not also among the leading lights of the post-annulment struggle which included the national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, the late Gani Fawehinmi, Air Commodore Dan Suleiman (Rtd), late Pa Alfred Rewane, Rear Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu (Rtd), Frank Kokori and Colonel Abubakar Umar (Rtd), to mention just a few.

“Atiku not only abandoned the

struggle, he and several members of what was then known as his political family were part of the National Constitutional Conference which was convened barely a year after the annulled 1993 election, but was largely boycotted by people close to MKO Abiola who were insisting on the June 12 mandate,” BMO said.

The group accused the former Vice President of playing to the gallery by seeking to downplay

the significance of President Buhari’s decision to declare June 12 as Democracy Day. “Here is an individual who, like his former principal Olusegun Obasanjo, was a major beneficiary of the civil rule that Abiola paid the supreme sacrifice for, but did not consider it necessary to as much as immortalise Abiola for eight years they were in office.

“Even a Senate resolution urging that administration which he served in as Vice President to name the Abuja National Stadium after the late politician was wickedly ignored by Atiku and his boss who acted as if they had personal grudges against the political icon.

“So, his sanctimonious thoughts on what June 12 should be, is nothing more than a case of a desperate politician shedding crocodile tears over an issue that he was never interested in.

“Atiku and Obasanjo deserve to be listed among the villains of June 12 in a hall of shame for their act of perfidy against Moshood Abiola and other unsung heroes of the struggle for democratic rule.”

And on the PDP chieftain’s claims that President Buhari ‘plunged the economy into coma’, BMO noted that the Obasanjo administration laid the foundation for some of the rot that the incumbent President is working hard to fix.

“We need to remind him of how the irresponsible and ineffectual privatisation process he presided

over as Vice President for eight years ended up pauperising several workers who not only lost their jobs but were also not paid their benefits.

“It took President Buhari to return smiles to the faces of many, including former staff of the defunct Nigeria Airways and several government owned enterprises that were sold off pittances to individuals believed to be friends and associates of key members of the Obasanjo administration.

“We are sure he knows that data released by the Manufacturing Association of Nigeria (MAN) at its Annual General Meeting in 2009 showed that 820 manufacturing companies were forced to shut down in the country between 2000 and 2008. The facts are in the public domain about how thousands of people were rendered jobless at a time Atiku was Vice President, yet he wants Nigerians to believe that Buhari was the architect of the country’s economic problems.

“He should also tell Nigerians how many kilometres of railway tracks the government he served for eight years added to the nation’s rail network in eight years and compare the figure to what the Buhari administration has done in only four years.

“So in several ways, Atiku is in no position to question President Buhari’s sincerity of purpose,” BMO added.

At June 12 celebration, Buhari commended, urged to do more for Abiola...

Continued from page 17 is a must if we must honour the memory of Chief Abiola. I call on President Buhari to go a step further by ensuring that Nigeria is properly restructured. If Nigeria is properly restructured, the spate of kidnapping, banditry, cattle rustling and clashes will become history.”

Guest Speaker, Dr. Dele Ashiru of the Department of Political Science, University of Lagos, in his speech talked about the mantra of June 12 and democratic consolidation in Nigeria.

The university don charged Nigerians to cultivate a new democratic culture that will allow transparency, and improve the Electoral processes, saying the event culminating in the annulment of June 12, 1993 election was never transparent.

Ashiru said the late Abiola was eliminated by a complex conspiracy by the leaders, saying the efforts of the mantra should never be in vain.

He saluted the effort of the Aare onakakanfo of Yorubaland, for ensuring that the memories of his predecessor remain indelible.

“I want to applaud the singular effort of Aare Gani Adams for ensuring that the struggle of our heroes of this democracy is never in vain” During the event, a mild drama played out between the Yoruba Generalismo, Iba Gani Adams and ‘the President, Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, Mallam Shettima Yerima over how the Yoruba plans to checkmate ‘the Insecurity allegedly perpetrated by the Fulanis in the South West.

Adams had sounded a note of warning to the Fulanis, who he said felt they could

conquer Yoruba land by perpetrating criminal acts, and threatening the security of the zone by their nefarious act of kidnapping and wanton killing of people.

He noted that Yoruba would not fold their arms and allow things to get worse, saying the Yoruba will resist their move, just as he told them to jettison their plan of conquering South West because that move would not succeed.

But, reacting, Shettima, when given the opportunity to address the audience said, he was not comfortable with the statement Adams made that the Fulani were out to conquer the South West.

According to him, any move to checkmate the kidnappers the way Adams was saying may result into killing of innocent Northerners if not properly handled, he said that the problem of insecurity was not limited to the South West, but that it cuts across every geo political zones of the country and that it was even worse in the North.

He noted that in some communities in the North, kidnappers write the residents that they risk being kidnapped if they don’t pay a stipulated amount to them, adding that the issue of banditry should be collectively fought.

Responding to Shettima’s statement, Adams said he was under a serious pressure because he receives call nearly on hourly basis of reports of attack and kidnapping in Yoruba land, and the attack is majorly carried out by “the Fulani and we can’t fold our arms and allow things to go wrong.”

He quarried if the Northerners would allow anybody from the South West to perpetrate such acts in the North, adding

that he learnt from reliable sources that the Fulani also illegally mine gold in the South West and that the people of the geo graphical zone can’t just close their eyes and allow things to go wrong.

He explained that since the Federal Government pretends that nothing is wrong, there is the need for people of the zone to safeguard their territory, because the activities of the criminal elements have started discouraging investors and that would have an adverse effect on the economy, having in mind that the South West is the bedrock of investment in Nigeria.

Other guests at the event, include, President Women Arise, Dr. Okei Odumakin, Aguda monarch, Oba Akeem Agbaosi, Yerima Shettima, Former Lagos state military governor, Rear Admiral Ndubusi Kanu, Mogaji Gboyega Adejumo, Banwo Adetoro among others.

The Lagos State government as is also their annual ritual also had its own June 12 anniversary event at the Blue Roof, LTV premises in Alausa, Ikeja.

At the event Governor Sanwo-Olu advised that young Nigerians should be educated on the significance of the event.

The governor stressed that it was through the formal education on the importance of the day that the people will appreciate and immortalise the acclaimed winner of the adjudged freest and fairest election in Nigeria, which the late philanthropist Abiola won.

Speaking at the event now tagged the Maiden National Democracy Day Celebration 2019, in remembrance of June 12 and its winner Chief MKO Abiola, the Governor who was represented by his

Deputy, Dr. Hamzat, said “on June 12, 1993, Nigeria had an election adjudged by the entire world to be the most free and fair and remained so till this moment.”

He said the importance of June 12 should not be lost on Nigerians, adding that parents should drum up its importance to the young ones and its relevance to the democracy Nigerians now enjoy.

“We are here today to continue what Lagos State government started in 1999. We must thank President Muhammadu Buhari because June 12 is part of our history. We must let our children know about June 12.

If over two hundred million Nigerians do the right thing and maintain their lanes, this country will be great,” he said.

“Democracy as the June 12 1993 elections and its annulment have shown, is a process and not an event in itself. It is a process which acknowledges that the burning desire and the power of the people, in choosing their leaders, is clearly deep-rooted and nonnegotiable,” Sanwo-Olu said.

The governor commended patriotic and excellent Nigerians that sacrificed their time, resources and their very lives to make the essence of June 12 acknowledged.

“Our great leader, Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu along with many others were at the vanguard for the actualisation of the democracy and democratic state which the June 12 mandate birthed in the country,” he said.

In his reaction, Abdul Amin Abiola, who spoke on behalf of the family expressed appreciation to all Nigerians, especially President Muhammadu Buhari, for their support and steadfastness in making the day a reality.

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DRC Ebola outbreak still not global emergency, says WHO

Still image taken from a US military handout video purports to show IRGC removing an unexploded limpet mine from the side of the Kokuka Courageous Tanker

‘Ridiculous, dangerous’: Iran denies US claims over Gulf tankers

Iran has denounced as “ridiculous” and “dangerous” allegations by the United States that Tehran was behind reported attacks on tankers near the Strait of Hormuz.

The two vessels - the Japaneseowned Kokuka Courageous and the Norwegian-owned Front Altair - were damaged on Thursday morning as they were leaving the Gulf of Oman, the second such incident in four weeks that sent Brent prices up and heightened tensions in the region.

US officials late on Thursday released a grainy video that they said showed a boat crew of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) drawing up toKokuka Courageous, hours after the suspected attacks, and removing an unexploded limpet mine from the hull.

The release of the black-and-white footage came after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said US intelligence agencies had concluded that Iran was responsible for the attacks, without offering concrete evidence.

On Friday, in a TV interview on Fox News, US President Donald Trump said, “Iran did do it”.

“You know they did it because you saw the boat,” Trump told the “Fox and Friends” show. “I guess one of the mines didn’t explode and it’s probably got essentially Iran written all over it.”

But Yutaka Katada, owner of the Kokuka Courageous, cast doubt on part of the US account, telling reporters on Friday that the vessel’s crew saw a “flying object” before a second blast on the boat.

Calling reports of a mine attack “false”, he said: “The crew was saying it was hit by a flying object … To put a bomb at the side of the boat is not something we are considering.”

For its part, Iran rejected the accusations as the United Nations, Russia and Qatar called for an international investigation into the reported attacks.

Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister, the US had “immediately jumped to make allegations against Iran without a shred of factual or circumstantial evidence”.

The allegation “only makes it abundantly clear” that the US and its regional allies, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, were moving to a “Plan B”, Zarif said, which was to “sabotage diplomacy” as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited Iran to defuse escalating US-Iran

frictions.

Tensions have ratcheted up in recent weeks after Washington sent warships and troops to the region citing unspecified threats from Tehran.

On May 12, days after Washington announced the military deployment, four oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz were damaged in what the UAE called “sabotage attacks”. The US blamed Iran for last month’s incidents, saying Iranian-made limpet mines were used in the attacks. Tehran rejected the claims.

Abbas Mousavi, spokesman for Iran’s foreign ministry, called the latest US accusations “ridiculous, but also very worrying and dangerous”, according to the IRNA state news agency.

Blaming Iran for the incidents was “the simplest and the most convenient way” for US officials, he said, adding: “We are responsible for ensuring the security of the Strait and we have rescued the crew of those attacked tankers in the shortest possible time.”

The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most important sea lanes, as one-third of all oil traded by sea, which accounts for a fifth of all oil traded worldwide, passes through the waterway.

Justin Bronk, a combat technology specialist at the Royal United Services Institute, said the patrol boat shown in the US video was known to be the kind used by the IRGC. However, “if the attack was the Iranians, this would be a very, very brazen thing to do, to go up and retrieve an unexploded mine [while] under scrutiny from the US destroyer that was nearby,” he said.

“On the other hand, you could argue that they were keen to pick up an unexploded mine to avoid it linking back to them. Although, realistically, if this was the Iranians, there will be enough evidence to link back to them even without the unexploded mine.”

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters in New York that the truth of the attacks needed to be established.

“Obviously that can only be done if there is an independent entity that verifies those facts,” he said on Friday. However, he said he did not have the authority to establish such an inquiry, adding that this was the purview of the Security Council.

Russia’s foreign ministry issued a statement accusing the US of stoking

tensions with its accusations agaisnt Iran. Condemning Washington’s “Iranophobic” stance, it warned against blaming anyone until the completion of a “thorough and unbiased international probe”.

Germany also called for an inquiry, while China appealed for restraint. The United Kingdom backed the US stance that Iran was responsible for the reported attacks.

The heightened frictions in the Gulf come as the US reinstated and tightened punishing sanctions on Tehran, a year after it exited an international pact that offered Tehran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear programme.

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, speaking at an international forum in Kyrgyzstan on Friday, assailed the US as a “serious threat” to global stability. He made no mention of the tankers, but lashed out at Washington for pulling out of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

“For the past two years, the US government has used its economic, financial and military power through an aggressive approach to disrupt all international structures and regulations, which has turned him into a serious threat for the stability of the region and the world,” he said.

Al Jazeera’s Dorsa Jabbari, reporting from Tehran, said the latest US moves were aimed at forcing Iran to negotiate a new deal that would also address its ballistic missiles programme as well as support for armed groups in the region.

“The general feeling here is that Thursday’s incidents are not something the Iranians would do.

It is not in their best interests. There is actually no evidence and this grainy footage from the US is not substantial enough - it’s not clear where this footage came from and who is visible in it,” she said.

Meanwhile, Giorgio Cafiero, CEO of Gulf State Analytics, said the latest events highlighted any disruptions in the strait would also affect the economies of Iran’s regional foes, Saudi Arabia and UAE. “Saudi Arabia and the UAE, where these two tankers were coming from, have supported Trump’s maximum pressure campaign [against Iran] and some could see how it could make sense for Iran to gain from situations like this, whereby the pro-Trump countries in the Gulf face new problems as blowback for supporting the White House,” he said from Washington, DC.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has said the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) does not qualify as an international threat, even though cases have been confirmed in neighbouring Uganda.

“It was the view of the committee that the outbreak is a health emergency in DRC and the region, but does not meet the criteria for a public health emergency of international concern,” the United Nations health agency’s expert committee said in a statement on Friday after an emergency meeting.

Despite the outcome of the deliberations, “this outbreak is very much an emergency,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a Geneva press conference via telephone from the DRC. The virus has killed more than 1,400 people since its outbreak the second-deadliest in history - was declared in August last year after emerging in eastern DRC’s northern Kivu and Ituri provinces.

To be declared a global emergency, an outbreak must constitute a risk to other countries and require a coordinated response. The declaration typically triggers more funding and political attention.

Speaking from the DRC’s capital, Kinshasa, Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO’s regional director for Africa, said there was now a stronger political engagement to make sure the outbreak was contained.

“It will take longer than originally anticipated,” she told Al Jazeera.

“However, we still believe that it can be contained. It will need a multi-facet response not a simple public health response as had initially been thought. But we anticipate that it will eventually be contained.”

On Thursday, the WHO acknowledged that it had been unable to track the origins of nearly half of new Ebola cases in the DRC, suggesting it did not know where the virus was spreading.

The United Nations health agency said on Thursday that two people had died in Uganda after arriving with the disease from the DRC.

Its expert committee has met twice previously to consider the situation in the DRC. In April, the WHO said the outbreak was of “deep concern” but officials were “moderately optimistic” it could be contained within a “foreseeable time.”

The outbreak, occurring close to the borders of Uganda, Rwanda and South Sudan, has been like no other. Community mistrust has been high and attacks by rebel groups have undermined aid efforts.

Experts say people are still dying outside of Ebola treatment centres, exposing their families to the disease, and many do not appear on lists of known contacts being monitored.

“Vaccines alone can’t work if community hides cases due to distrust. Violence persists. We are in this for the long haul,” Lawrence Gostin, professor of global health law at Georgetown University, said, referring to deadly attacks on health facilities in the DRC. According to the WHO, more than 100 attacks on treatment centres and health workers in the DRC have been recorded since the beginning of this year.

As the far deadlier 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak raged in West Africa, the WHO was heavily criticised for not declaring a global emergency until nearly 1,000 people had died and the virus had spread to at least three countries.

Internal WHO documents later showed that the agency feared the declaration would have economic and social implications for Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone. More than 11,300 people died in the three countries.

Before the WHO panel’s move, Axelle Ronsse, emergency coordinator for Doctors Without Borders, known by its French acronym MSF, had expressed uncertainty whether a declaration would help. She said outbreak responders, including the WHO, should reevaluate their strategies to contain the spiralling outbreak.

“It’s quite clear that it’s not under control,” she said. “Now may be the time to reset and see what should be changed at this point.”

Social media sites widely used by protest organisers were down...on Friday

22 Foreign Times

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 15, 2019

How to truly decolonise the study of Africa Robtel Neajai Pailey From Cape Town to Cairo, Bahia to Bombay, recent calls to “decolonise the university” have gained traction across the globe. These demands correctly challenge the legacies of colonialism and attempt to subvert them in institutional structures of higher learning.

But the problem with this 21stcentury “scholarly decolonial turn” is that it remains largely detached from the day-to-day dilemmas of people in formerly colonised spaces and places.

Many academics mistakenly maintain that by screaming “decolonise X” or “decolonise Y” ad nauseam, they will miraculously metamorphose into progressive agents of change.

Some tragically believe that by ignoring leading thinkers who were “decolonising” long before it became a fad - including Edward Wilmot Blyden of Liberia and WEB DuBois of the US who were prominent as early as the mid-to-late 1800s - they can carve out “decolonisation” as their scholarly fiefdoms.

Still others erroneously contend that “decolonial” street credibility can be acquired by simply adding non-whites to their reading lists, journal editorial boards, speaking panels, research collaborations, book contracts, etc.

Despite these flawed assumptions, 21st-century “epistemic decolonisation” cannot succeed unless it is bound to and supportive of contemporary liberation struggles against inequality, racism, austerity, patriarchy, autocracy, homophobia, xenophobia, ecological damage, militarisation, impunity, corruption, media muzzling and land grabbing.

For those who research and write about Africa, this is particularly important given the continent’s fraught relationship with itself and the outside world. Though Africa remains captured today by the same forces that fuelled colonialism, African activists and artists have responded by commanding revolutionary change.

Before the “fallist” agenda gained prominence most recently at universities in South Africa and Ghana - with demands to remove statues of former imperialists like Cecil Rhodes or those with racial biases like Mahatma Gandhi - there were successful calls to topple continental autocrats, including Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in Tunisia, Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, and Blaise Compaore in Burkina Faso.

While Egypt has regressed to even more repressive leadership and Burkina Faso battles insecurity in the Sahel, no one can negate the heady winds of change that have swept across North and West Africa in the past decade.

Some activist movements have endured more than others. In Senegal, for example, Y’en a Marre (“Fed Up”, “Enough Is Enough”), a collective of rappers and journalists,

Students surround the bronze statue of British colonialist Cecil Rhodes, as it is removed from the campus of Cape Town University, South Africa on April 9, 2015

rose to prominence in 2012, when it mobilised the public to vote out thenpresident Abdoulaye Wade, who had manipulated the constitution to seek a third term in office. Its success inspired Rama Thiaw’s brilliant film The Revolution Won’t Be Televised, an ode to Gil Scott-Heron’s popular 1970s song-poem. Earlier this year, Y’en a Marre returned to play an important role in Senegal’s presidential election.

In Tunisia, seven years after that country’s “Revolution of Dignity”, people took to the streets again in 2018 asking “Fech Nestannew?” (“What are we waiting for?”). Dissent was prompted this time by austerity measures imposed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in which taxes were raised, public sector spending frozen, civil servants’ wages slashed, and 22 percent of the country’s budget allocated for servicing debt.

Meanwhile, a new revolution has swept Algeria and Sudan, where mass mobilisation managed to unseat two long-term rulers - Abdelaziz Bouteflika and Omar al-Bashir.

Aside from demanding accountable governments, Africans have recently pushed for the removal of colonial-era penal codes criminalising homosexuality. While Angola,Mozambique and Seychelles relaxed anti-gay laws in the past five years, last month the High Court of Kenya upheld a ban on same-sex relations.

Despite the ban - initially challenged in 2016 by the Kenyan National Gay and Lesbian Rights Commission - Kenya has seen a rise in LGBTI advocacy. This was most apparent in the overturning of an embargo on the critically acclaimed Rafiki, a film about a young lesbian couple whose director Wanuri Kahui sued the government for censorship in 2018.

While current crusades to rid the continent of colonial laws rage on, actual decolonisation in some parts of Africa persists. When the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled in February that the UK must return Chagos Islands to Mauritius, the nation scored a symbolic victory. This verdict exposed the UK’s unlawful retention of Chagos at independence in 1968 and the deportation of its inhabitants, who have been battling to repatriate ever since. London has since refused to respect the “advisory”, non-legally binding position of the ICJ, but Chagossians are not giving up their right to return without a fight.

Whereas some movements have focused on single countries, others operating at more regional, panAfrican levels remain convinced that political independence means nothing without economic emancipation.

Founded in 2007 during the World Social Forum, the Tax Justice Network Africa discovered that $50bn leaves the continent annually in illicit financial flows. Instead of employing

non-empirical indices of corruption, such as Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), the network has developed a more robust, evidence-based financial secrecy index, which measures actual stolen wealth from Africa by well-off individuals and foreign multinationals.

These are but just a few examples of Africans defying the relics of colonialism.

So, academics who are genuinely committed to “decolonisation” must meet them half way. They must resist the urge to co-opt for their own career advancement, and instead focus on collaboration. They must transcend the ivory tower by seeking “relevance” not “recognition”, in the words of celebrated Cameroonian scholar Francis Nyamnjoh.

They must take a cue from African and diasporic public intellectuals who have intentionally straddled academia and activism on behalf of the continent - including Frantz Fanon of Martinique, Walter Rodney of Guyana, Samir Amin and Nawal el Saadawi of Egypt, Sylvia Tamale of Uganda, and Ayesha Imam of Nigeria - by joining social justice movements and documenting their successes and failures.

They must produce emancipatory, ethical and subversive scholarship that serves Africa and its people.

Only then will they be able to truly “decolonise the university”. culled from aljazeera.com

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Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 15, 2019

AFN to organise open trials in Abuja ahead of African Games

The Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) on Friday said that it would organise a national open trials for athletes ahead of the 12th African Games scheduled for Rabat, Morocco.

The Secretary of AFN, Elijah Adamu, said in Lagos that the trials would hold from June 24 to June

27, at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja.

Adamu said that the arrival date was June 24 , while June 25 to June 26 would be the competition days and that participants were to depart on June 27.

“The states with eligible athletes are to send their entries to ngr@mf.iaaf.org or abgiwa@aol.com on or

g23

before June 21,” he said a statement.

Adamu added that 2019 affiliation fees was one of the requirements for participation, saying that those with outstanding fees should ensure they paid.

The African Games is scheduled for Aug. 19 to Aug. 31, in Rabat, Morocco.

NFF: FIFA to spend $1.2m on establishing football technical centre in Kebbi The Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) will spend 1.2 million dollars on the establishment of a football technical centre in Kebbi, an official said in Birnin Kebbi on Friday.

Mohammed Sanusi, the General Secretary of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), said Kebbi was chosen for the project because NFF appreciated the zeal and commitment of the state government to sports development.

He spoke when he led an NFF delegation to the state to inspect and take possession of the four hectares of land for the establishment of the football technical centre.

The NFF General Secretary said the Kebbi state government did this by ensuring sports men and women received adequate training to compete at national and international levels.

“I think we need to commend Gov. Atiku Bagudu for providing the necessary support to the state’s Ministry of Youths and Sports to perform its functions efficiently.

“FIFA is aware of the efforts being made in the area of sports development in the state, and this motivated NFF to provide support to the state through the establishment of the technical centre in the state,” Sanusi said during a visit to Gov. Bagudu.

While responding, Bagudu welcomed the establishment of the centre by FIFA and said it would enhance the promotion and development of sports in the state.

“In the last four years, the state ministry of sports has done well and this enabled the state to host several national and international competitions. They also played host to former foreign-based professionals such as Peter Rufai and Tijjani

Babangida,’’ the governor said.

He added that the state’s football team also emerged winners at a beach soccer competition held in Lagos.

“About 15 students from the state have been sponsored to receive training at the Kwara Football Academy in Ilorin in furtherance of efforts to promote sports to high standard,” Bagudu said.

He further expressed satisfaction with the performance of Kebbi United Football Club, urging the players to sustain the tempo.

Earlier, the Chairman of Kebbi State Football Association, Abubakar Ladan, had explained the mission of the team led by Sanusi.

Newsmen report that Bagudu later presented to Sanusi a certificate of occupancy for the plot of land hosting the technical centre’s permanent site in Birnin Kebbi.

Marta dedicates landmark goal to gender equality When Brazil forward Marta scored a landmark 16th World Cup goal, she took the opportunity to promote gender equality with a special celebration.

After netting the opener from the penalty spot in Brazil’s 3-2 defeat by Australia on Thursday, the 33-yearold pointed to her boots, which sported a pink and blue symbol to represent equality.

Her boot sponsorship deal expired last year and the veteran striker has since refused to sign a new one.

Martha said brands were not offering deals on a par with male soccer players.

Marta, a United Nations goodwill ambassador for women and girls in sport, instead opted to highlight the disparity on the international stage.

The goal made her the first player to score at five different World Cups, while her tally of 16 means she now shares the record for most World Cup goals alongside German Miroslav Klose.

“It’s one more detail written in the history of women’s football,” she said of the milestone goal. “I am honoured, but there’s more to do at this tournament.”

Toronto Raptors win maiden NBA Championship Title The Toronto Raptors sealed their maiden NBA championship with a 114-110 Game 6 victory to claim a 4-2 series triumph over the Golden State Warriors.

Fred VanVleet gave Toronto the lead for good on a three-pointer with 3:46 remaining as the Raptors took advantage of another serious Golden State injury to reward Canada with its first NBA championship.

Pascal Siakam and Kyle Lowry scored 26 points apiece while VanVleet and Kawhi Leonard added 22 each in a balanced attack that allowed the Raptors to win on Golden State’s home floor for the third straight time en route to a 4-2 win in the best-of-seven NBA Finals.

The Warriors put up a valiant effort in their last game at Oracle Arena without Kevin Durant, who ruptured his right Achilles tendon in Game 5, and for the final 14:22 without Klay Thompson, who had 30 points before sustaining a left knee injury late in the third quarter.

The game was tied three times in the fourth quarter before VanVleet buried his fifth three-pointer of the game for a 104-101 Raptors advantage.

Toronto went on to lead by as many as six before a three-pointer by Draymond Green cut the deficit in

half, and the Warriors rallied within 111-110 with 18.5 seconds left.

Golden State then forced a Toronto turnover on a bad pass from Danny Green with 9.6 seconds to go, but Steph Curry misfired on a threepoint attempt. After a scramble for the ball, the Warriors were assessed a technical foul for calling a timeout with 0.9 seconds remaining when they had none left.

Leonard made it a two-point game by making the free throw, then added two more after getting fouled on the inbounds pass to secure Toronto’s third road win in the series. No team had accomplished that feat since the Los Angeles Lakers in 2001.

Leonard, who was chosen the Finals MVP, heads into free agency this summer. He said postgame, “I’m going to enjoy this with my team-mates and coaches, and I’ll think about that later.”

The last five games were won by the road team, the longest streak of road victories in a single Finals.

Siakam had 10 rebounds and Lowry 10 assists to complete double-double performances for the Raptors, who outscored the Warriors 39-33 on three-pointers.

Serge Ibaka was a fifth Raptor in

double figures with 15.

Andre Iguodala had 22 points and Curry 21 for the Warriors, while Draymond Green recorded a second straight triple-double with 11 points, 19 rebounds and 13 assists.

The game formally closed Oracle Arena as an NBA home for the Warriors, who are moving to the Chase Center in San Francisco next season after playing in Oakland over a 47-year span.

The Warriors, two-time defending champions, managed to take an 88-86 lead into the final period despite losing Thompson with 2:22 remaining in the third on a dunk attempt on which he was bumped by Danny Green.

Thompson had his left knee buckle upon landing, and he immediately fell to the floor in serious pain.

After initially heading to the locker room, Thompson returned to the court to make two free throws, which put the Warriors up 85-80 before Golden State took an intentional foul so that he would leave the game. He never returned.

A tightly contested first half featured 21 points by Lowry and 9-for-18 shooting on three-pointers by the Raptors, but also 14 lead changes and just a 60-57 Toronto lead.

Thompson had 18 points in the half, during which neither team led by more than nine.

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Gernot Rohr names the AFCON’s three favourites

Nigeria coach Gernot Rohr has picked Senegal, Tunisia and host nation Egypt as favourites for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) title.

Next week, Rohr will lead the West Africans back to the biennial showpiece. The Super Eagles will first face Burundi at the Alexandria Stadium on June 22.

After being ranked by Fifa as the third-best footballing nation in Africa, the 65-year-old gaffer stated that a semi-final berth remains the country’s target.

“We are not the favourites to win it, the favourite is Egypt at home then the team number one in Africa is Senegal, then Tunisia,” Rohr told Goal.

“We are number three in the

rankings officially so we should go until the semi-final, now we focus on the first match against Burundi. All our focus is on this match then we will see how it can go on. Of course, we have to come out of this group.

“The ideal [objective] will be [to finish in] first place so we could stay in Alexandria but it will be difficult, our opponents are good teams.

The Super Eagles will wrap up preparations for the Acon with a friendly match against Senegal in Ismailia on June 16.

Rohr also stated that the lessons learnt after their group stage exit from the 2018 Fifa World Cup in Russia would be vital for their success in Egypt.

“The experience of the World Cup is very important, we have

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15 players who made the World Cup and know how high the level is in international football,” he added.

“We learned a lot in the World Wup, we were the youngest team in the World Cup and I think even now, we are still the youngest team.

“Unfortunately, we do not have more than [Victor] Moses but our captain Obi [Mikel] is back, our young players need also a guide. The mixture between the youth and experience is very important.”

After their opening fixture against Burundi, Nigeria will play against Guinea on June 26 and then wrap up their group outings against Madagascar on June 30.

Caster Semenya to run 800 million in Rabat after court victory

Diego Maradona opens up on Dorados exit Diego Maradona has bid an emotional farewell to Dorados after he called time on his spell at the Mexican second division club to focus on his health.

Dorados confirmed on Thursday that the Argentina icon would step down from his role as coach as he prepares to undergo shoulder and knee surgery.

The former Argentina boss was appointed in September 2018, and led Dorados to the final of the both the Apertura and Clausura, but lost on both occasions to Atletico San Luis, therefore missing out on promotion to Liga MX. And, taking to his official Instagram account, the 58-year-old has thanked Dorados and their fans, as well as clarifying the reasons for his departure.

“I wanted to make it clear that my departure from Dorados has to do with my health,” Maradona posted on Friday.

“Unfortunately I have to step aside and leave the club, where they made me feel at

home. I thank all those who are part [of the club], from President Antonio Nunez, to the fans, who always accompanied us.

“To my technical team, and to all my players, who reached two consecutive finals for promotion. But today I have to think about myself, and my health.

“The doctors ask me to stop, because the years go by and every time it hurts more. I have to do two operations that I have been

postponing for a long time.

“None are risky, but it takes time and rest to be able to do them, and I believe that this is the moment. I thank all those who always think of me. I trust that we have left the club on a high, and tell Dorados and the people that we are united forever.”

Caster Semenya will run her specialist 800m distance at Rabat on Sunday, organisers said, after the South African two-time Olympic champion won the latest round of a bitter court

battle over gender rules.

Semenya was cleared to take part in the Diamond League meeting after Switzerland’s top court rejected an IAAF request to re-impose rules obliging her to lower her

testosterone before competing in certain events.

Organisers of the Morocco event had initially refused to allow the South African to take part but on Friday they “confirmed her invitation”.

Cristiano Ronaldo thanks Juventus fans for ‘wonderful welcome’ to Italy Cristiano Ronaldo has thanked the fans of Juventus and Portugal as he looked back on a successful first season in Italy.

Ronaldo saw Juventus to an eighth straight Serie A title while winning the Italian Player of the Year award, scoring 21 goals.

The former Real Madrid star was fulsome in his praise of the Turin faithful, giving them credit for their support in the club’s latest triumph.

“What an unforgettable season!” Ronaldo said on his personal Instagram page.

“New experiences, gigantic club, exciting city, broken records and three more titles.

“I have to thank all Juventus fans for the wonderful way I was welcomed in Italy!

“You’re an important part of all of our victories.”

On the international stage the 34-year-old forward captained Portugal to a win in the inaugural Nations League, netting a hat-trick to see off Switzerland in the

semi-finals.

Portugal added the Nations League to the 2016 European Championships and Ronaldo didn’t forget to single out his country’s fans in his post.

“Thanks to all my fans around the world and particularly to the Portuguese people who helped us win another historical win for Portugal,” the five-time Ballon d’Or winner continued.

“You’ll always have a special place in my heart!

Personally I’ll never forget the great moments and new record-breaking achievements I’ve had so far in 2019.”

He went on to enumerate the personal milestones he has surpassed thus far in the calendar year, before signing off by saying he was relying on his supporters to spur him on to continue to hit the heights.

“Italian Supercup winning goal; – Serie A win, Best Player and 21 goals

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“Nations League win and hat-trick; “First Player to reach 100 wins and 125 goals in Champions League; “First Player to win 10 UEFA titles; “First Player to score in all National Teams final stages: FIFA World Cup, UEFA European Cup, FIFA Confederations Cup and UEFA Nations League; “First Player to score in 10 consecutive National Teams final stages from 2004 to 2019; “See you soon! Together we’ll keep fighting for new and amazing conquests! I’m counting on you.”

Ronaldo will have a new manager in Turin next season as Massimiliano Allegri quit the team at the conclusion of last season.

Maurizio Sarri is widely expected to replace Allegri, and will hope to guide Ronaldo and Juve to Champions League glory.

The Bianconeri have not won that competition since 1996.

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