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Buhari plans to frame, detain me, Obasanjo cries out No, FG won’t frame-up anybody – Information Minister g5

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Wickedness: Air Peace foils attempt to traffic 3-month-old baby

SATURDAY, JUNE 9, 2018

VOL. 3

NO. 673

N150

Crew members stop 2 female traffickers on Banjul flight Baby’s uncontrollable cries expose traffickers’ game plan

Chukwuemeke Iwelunmo, Lagos Vigilant Air Peace crew members have foiled an attempt by two women to traffic a three-month-old baby boy on the carrier’s Lagos-Banjul flight.

Sources said the suspected traffickers were exposed mid-flight when the airline’s crew members noticed a baby crying inconsolably.

It was gathered that attempts by one of the suspected traffickers, who claimed to be the baby’s mother, to soothe him failed.

When the crew members suggested to the suspected trafficker to breastfeed the baby, she declined. Scared that the baby’s cries were attracting attention, the woman who claimed to be his mother requested for water from the crew.

The crew, however, noticed that the alleged mother was fumbling in giving the baby the water.

Suspicious that the baby was either stolen or being trafficked, it was

FG confers honours on Abiola, other heroes of June 12 Tuesday g4

Continued on page 4

Excitement as Muslims breakfast inside Anglican Church g4

Nollywood is an attraction for me - Seyi Shay L1 Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia lied to EFCC, not admitted in hospital as claimed – Doctor g5

Police arrest 7 using physically challenged children to beg

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Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 3, 2018

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News 4

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Air Peace foils attempt to traffic 3-month-old baby Continued from page 1 gathered, the crew summoned the alleged traffickers to the back of the aircraft for questioning.

The alleged traffickers allegedly told the crew members that the baby was a child from a surrogacy arrangement, sources said.

Dissatisfied with the alleged mother’s response, the crew notified Air Peace team at the Banjul International Airport in The Gambia of the development. When the flight landed in Banjul, Air Peace officials accosted the two alleged traffickers.

Sources claimed that when the two women were separately questioned, they gave conflicting accounts of how they came about the baby.

Air Peace officials in Banjul, it was gathered, quickly called for the intervention of Banjul International Airport (BIA) Police Station in The Gambia and the suspected traffickers were promptly arrested.

A source alleged that medical tests conducted by security operatives in Banjul showed no relationship between the baby and the woman who claimed to be his mother.

Another source said the two women later claimed that the baby was being taken to his father in Banjul.

The alleged father, it was gathered, told security operatives that the baby was his.

He, however, could not provide documents at the police station in Banjul to prove his claim.

It was also learnt that security operatives in Banjul asked the father to undertake a DNA test to prove his claim. The alleged father told the police that the DNA test would be conducted in Nigeria, it was learnt.

A source disclosed that The Gambia Police rejected the alleged father’s decision to do the test in Nigeria, insisting they could not trust the medical result from the country. Police in Banjul, insisted on the DNA test being conducted in The Gambia.

Reports, however, claimed the alleged mother of the baby again changed her account at the police station in Banjul. She allegedly claimed the baby was handed over to her by a distant relation who got pregnant for a man she could not identify.

A source, however, said the alleged traffickers had been granted bail by the police in Banjul in deference to The Gambia’s laws limiting the detention of suspects yet to be charged to court to 72 hours. An unidentified Gambian, it was gathered, took the suspects on bail.

A source further disclosed that the police in The Gambia were still investigating the matter to secure enough evidence to charge the suspects to court.

The baby, another source said, had since been transferred to SOS Child Care Centre in Bakothe in The Gambia for proper care pending conclusion

of investigation.

Contacted for his response on the development, Air Peace Corporate Communications Manager, Mr. Chris Iwarah, confirmed the incident. He, however, refrained from confirming the names of the suspects and the baby. He insisted that the matter was already being investigated by relevant security agencies in Nigeria and The Gambia.

He, however, pledged that the airline would cooperate with the relevant security agencies to unravel the true identity of the baby.

He assured that the airline and its crew would remain vigilant to ensure the safety of its guests as well as continue to assist society in exposing suspected criminal acts.

Iwarah said: “On Air Peace Lagos-Banjul flight P47560 on Monday, June 4, 2018, our vigilant and experienced crew observed a baby crying inconsolably.

The crew members, therefore, approached the supposed mother to breastfeed the crying baby. She declined, giving a flimsy excuse for her decision.

“The alleged mother of the baby eventually asked our crew for water to give to the baby when he would not stop crying. Our crew members, however, observed that the alleged mother of the baby was struggling with giving the baby the water. At that point, our crew offered to assist and took the baby from the supposed mother. But when our crew attempted to return the baby to the woman who claimed to be the mother, the baby expressed fright and unwillingness.

“Given the situation, our crew summoned the alleged mother to the aft of the aircraft for questioning on her relationship with the baby and she claimed the baby boy was a product of a surrogacy arrangement and was being taken from Nigeria to Banjul in The Gambia. Unconvinced, the crew informed our ground staff in Banjul of the development.

When the flight eventually landed in Banjul, the two women travelling together with the baby were separately questioned and contradictions were observed in their different accounts. At this point, we had no choice than to report the case to security operatives at the Banjul International Airport, who took in the alleged mother of the baby for questioning to establish the true identity of the baby she claimed was hers.

“Investigation into the matter is ongoing and we trust that security operatives would be able to identify the true parents of the boy who appears to be three months old.

“For our part, we are ready to assist the relevant security operatives and agencies with any information within our purview to ensure the case is brought to a proper conclusion and we will continue to ensure that our flights are safe at all times for our esteemed guests.”

FG confers honours on Abiola, other June 12 heroes Tuesday Andrew Orolua, Abuja The Federal Government has said that it has concluded arrangements for President Muhammadu Buhari to confer Post-Humous national honour of Grand Commander of the Federal Republic (GCFR),on the late Chief M.K.O. Abiola the presumed winner of the annulled June 12 , 1993 general election on Tuesday.

This was disclosed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr. Boss Mustapha, in a statement made available on Friday.

The SGF added that President Buhari will also confer a Post Humous Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON) on legal luminary and human rights activist, the late Chief Gani Fawehinmi (SAN) while Ambassador Babagana Kingibe will be decorated with the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON).

According to the SGF, the investiture will take place on Tuesday at the Conference Hall, State House, Aso Rock Villa, Abuja at about 10am.

Accordingly, Kingibe , the family of the late Bashorun M.K.O. Abiola and that of Chief Gani Fawehinmi , along with key players of June 12 struggle are also invited for the event.

Those invited by the federal government include: “Members of the National Executive Committee of the Social

Abiola

Democratic Party (SDP) including States Chairmen and Secretaries at the time of June 12, 1993.

“All governors elected under SDP platform, former Senate Presidents – Iyorchia Ayu and Ameh Ebute and Speaker Agunwa Anekwe along with Principal Officers of the National

Assembly elected under SDP platform.

“Speakers of the States Assembly elected under SDP platform; All Chairmen of the States Traditional Councils from the six South-Western States.

“Others invited for the investiture are Prof. Wole Soyinka, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Chief Bisi Akande, Ms. Ayo Obe, Bayo Onanuga – The News, Kunle Ajibade – Tempo, Nosa Igiebor – Tell, Kayode Komolafe - Media Hope 93, Senator Janathan Zwingina - DG Hope 93, Comrade Frank Ovie Kokori and the Chairman defunct National Electoral Commission (NEC), Prof. Humphrey Nwosu .

“Also invited are Senate President, Bukola Saraki, Speaker, House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogora, Principal Officers of the National Assembly, Members of the Federal Executive Council and all State Governors.”

The statement added that, “Accommodation has been reserved for all invitees at the NICON Luxury Hotel, Tafawa Balewa Way, area 11, Garki, Abuja from Monday, 11th June 2018. For further inquiries please contact William Alo, Permanent Secretary, Special Duties Office, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation by telephone on +234 803 585 4332.

“Invitation letters have been despatched.

However, should the invitation arrive late, this publication serves as a formal invitation.”

Excitement as Muslims breakfast inside Anglican Church Excitement has continued to trail the action of St. Andrew’s Anglican Church in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirate (UAE), which on Friday opened its doors to serve Iftar (dinner) to Muslims in an unprecedented ecumenical gesture during the holy month of Ramadan.

Muslims and non-Muslims alike gathered for the fast-breaking evening meal at the church in the heart of the UAE capital.

ARAB NEWS reported that Khalid Al Ameri, the Emirati columnist and social commentator, was welcomed to St. Andrews by the Reverend Andrew Thompson

All the traditional favourites were served, including dates, vimto and laban, as the community of the ancient port city sat down together, in the spirit of ecumenical harmony, and partook in the fast-breaking meal while celebrating the holy month.

Police arrest 7 using physically challenged children for begging Benjamin Omoike The Decoy Team of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS), Lagos Police Command, has arrested seven suspects for importing eight physically challenged children into the state for the purpose of begging on Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way, Ikeja.

The seven suspects, along with six of out the eight beggars, were arrested at Mobolaji Bank Anthony way after almost a week of monitoring by the RRS. The arrest, according to the RRS Commander, ACP Olatunji Disu, was based on intelligence received from one of its social media platforms, indicating that some group of people were importing physically challenged children into Lagos and using them as beggars.

The suspects arrested are: Sanni Isiaku (40), Abubakar Gahu (50), Abdullahi Mohammed (45), Nasiru Yusman (21), Mato Abdullahi (20), Nura Idris (17) and Sagiru Ibrahim (26).

The physically challenged children found in their possession are: Aminu Kabiru (12), Yusuph Nasiru (9), Amina Kabir (12), Ayuba Idris (12).

During preliminary interrogation, Mato Abdullahi admitted that “I hired Amina Kabir from her mother who happened to be my sister. I brought her early in the morning to under the bridge to beg while I wait around.

“At the end of the day, we make between N3,000 and N4,000, I remove my share and the remaining to Amina’s mother.

“Before, we make between N5,000 and N6,000. But now, things have changed. We

don’t make up to that anymore. A lot of us are here now. Before you get to one car, another set of beggars have gotten there.

“We have other people we settle daily. He is like our overseer. He has his own cut in what everybody makes. He comes through for us whenever there are problems like arrests.”

According another of the suspect Abubakar Gahu, “I use my son for begging.

There are five of them. He is physically challenged. Three others are in school in Agege. The last one is still very young.

“He makes money while his brothers go to school. I brought him here for begging to maintaining the family.”

ACP Disu, said the case has been handed over to the Gender Department of the Lagos State Police Command for further investigation.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

5 News

FG plans to frame, arrest me over comments, Obasanjo alleges Abiodun Taiwo, Abeokuta and Andrew Orolua, Abuja Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Friday raised the alarm over alleged attempt by the Federal Government to arrest and detain him over some phantom charges.

Obasanjo in a statement issued in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, and signed by his media aide, Kehinde Akinyemi, said the desperation to frustrate, intimidate and blackmail him into abandoning his divine mandate to protect the rights of the people to better life and living continued unabated and has even taken a bizarre dimension.

The statement reads in part, “Impeccable security sources have alleged Chief Obasanjo’s name is on their Watch List and that the security of his life cannot be guaranteed.

“According to these informants, many of who are in the top echelon of the Nation’s security management and close to the corridors of power, the operatives are daily perfecting how to curtail the personal liberties of the former President and hang a crime on him.

“Ordinarily, we would not have dignified these reports with a response but for the fact that many of these informants are not known for flippant and frivolous talks. Secondly, this Government has demonstrably exhibited apathy, and in some cases, encouraged by its conduct, daily loss of lives and property in many States of the country, the office cannot be indifferent.

“We are currently in a nation where the Number Three citizen is currently being harangued and the Number Four citizen is facing similar threat within the same Government they serve. There is a groundswell of our nationals

that live in fear that they could be hounded, harassed, maimed or even killed as the battle for 2019 takes this worrisome dimension.

“For Chief Obasanjo, this is a joke carried too far and being someone who do not act on unofficial information, he had cautioned all informants and adopted a wait-and-see attitude to the bestial propositions allegedly being contemplated to cow, cage and embarrass him.

“The content of the alleged beastly designs, it was learnt are two-fold for now. One, to seize his International Passport and clamp him into detention indefinitely, in order to prevent him from further expressing angst on the pervasive mediocrity in the quality of governance, economic management and in the protection of lives and property by the Government.

But, since that could expose the Government to a swath of international condemnation, embarrassment and outrage, it is said that another plot being hatched is to cause the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to re-open investigation into the activities of Chief Obasanjo’s administration using false witnesses and documents. This will be a reenactment of the Abacha era in which Chief Obasanjo was one of the principal victims.

“The same EFCC that had conducted a clinical investigation on the activities of Obasanjo in and out of Government, it was said, would now be made to stand down the existing report that gave Chief Obasanjo a clean bill of health on the probes are now to get him, indicted, fair or foul for possible prosecution and persecution like it is being done to real and perceived opponents, enemies and critics of this Government. Dissent is a fundamental principle on which

Obasanjo

liberal democracy is predicated.

A true democrat must be ready to live with and accommodate dissent and opposition.

“While it is regrettable how the Government has sunk in its shameless desperation to cow opposition, a resort to blackmail, despotism and Gestapo-tactics being employed by the goons of this Government would not hold water. And no government ever remains in power forever.

“For the record, Chief Obasanjo reiterates his readiness to face probe again after that of the House of Representatives, the Senate, the ICPC, and the EFCC, but before an independent, objective and credible panel of enquiry to account for his stewardship in Government and beyond. Chief Obasanjo reiterates that he has taken a principled position to ensure that the ship of the Nigerian State does not capsize and he remains steadfast in his resolve to turn the tide of maladministration, poor economic management and rudderless governance model that has tore Nigerians apart on account of religion and ethnicity which is a great threat to our

democracy.

“We would like the Government and its supporters to understand that no amount of campaign of calumny, no matter how well contrived, orchestrated or marketed would deter Chief Obasanjo from calling a spade by its name. Chief Obasanjo is a patriot whose sole agenda is to ensure that the country’s unity, progress and democracy are not negotiated on the altar of incompetence and provincialism and mediocrity.

“It is important to point out that Chief Obasanjo is one former President and Head of State who has engaged the current administration privately and in a bilateral manner on several issues of direct interest to the government and other matters of national concern. That channel of private engagement remains open and continues.

“However, should there be the need for public engagement, the right to free speech will always be exercised and jealously guarded, again in the best interest of Nigeria and the government” But the Federal Government has said that

the administration will never engage in a frame-up of innocent citizens.

The government said that is neither in the character of President Muhammadu Buhari nor in that of his administration to frame up anybody, adding that only the guilty should be worried.

The Minister of Information, Alhaji Lia Mohammed stated this on Friday while reacting to allegations by Obasanjo that the Buhari administration is plotting his arrest on false charges.

Obasanjo made the allegation on Friday in a statement by his aide, claiming that there were plans to detain him indefinitely as punishment for speaking out against what he called the federal government’s maladministration and ineptitude.

But Muhammed said that innocent citizens should have nothing to fear, adding that an African proverb, had it that “a man who has no wife cannot lose an inlaw to the cold hands of death”.

According to Mohammed, Buhari’s administration is strongly committed to the tenets of democracy, including freedom of speech and the right to dissent.

He said, “ But we understand that those who, in their time, were untethered to those principles would find it hard to believe.”

The Minister also added that it was curious that the frame-up and witch-hunt allegations came a day after a major presidential proclamation reversing some past acts of injustice was made, to the relief and acclamation of a long-expectant nation.

Mohammed said, “Apparently, the impact of this proclamation was too much to bear by those who, through acts of omission or commission, helped to deepen the wounds

inflicted by the blow of injustice that followed an election that was widely acclaimed to be free, fair and credible, hence they felt the need for a red herring that will distract the nation. ”Added to that is the frustration brought about by the fact that the contraption they have so much hyped as a freeway to power has failed to gain traction.

“Faced with this double tragedy, even the strongest of men may begin to succumb to a figment of their imagination.

They may start crying wolf where there is none.”

Mohammed also said the “unprecedented achievements of the Buhari Administration are also enough to cause sleepless nights, with the attendant symptoms that include phantasm, for those who had better opportunities to make the country great but floundered on the altar of narcissism”.

The minister also disclosed that Buhari Administration will not be distracted by “frivolous allegations from any quarter, especially those cleverly choreographed to divert attention from a widely-acclaimed presidential proclamation and to shore up support for a waning and egotistical cause”.

He said, “ This administration is “too busy trying to clear the mess of 16 years and build on its unprecedented achievements over the past three years to waste its energy and time on framing up anyone or dwelling on issues that are not grounded in fact”.

He further said that while “those who have skeletons in their wardrobes should be afraid, even of their own shadows, innocent persons need not worry about any investigation, whether real or imagined”.

Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia lied to EFCC, not admitted in hospital as claimed – Doctor A medical doctor, Dr Olumuyiwa Solanke, said on Friday informed a Lagos High Court in Ikeja that the embattled judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Rita OfiliAjumogobia, was not admitted as a patient in hospital as she claimed to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Ofili-Ajumogobia is alleged to have lied to an officer of the EFCC that she was admitted at the Goldcross Hospital in order to evade questioning by the anti-graft agency over alleged corruption.

Solanke, who works at the Goldcross Hospital, Lagos, said this while being led in evidence

by Mr Rotimi Oyedepo, the lead EFCC prosecutor.

The medical doctor said hospital records of patients

admitted on Oct. 19,2016 revealed that the judge was not in hospital on that date.

He said: “I got a call from Hon. Ajumogobia that she was not feeling better after using her drugs, I told her to come back to the hospital that I will come and visit her the next day.

“I phoned the hospital to tell them to be expecting the honourable judge; meanwhile, the EFCC officials have occupied the hospital and were waiting.

“I first had a phone conversation with Mr Lawal, the EFCC official, before receiving that call from Justice OfiliAjumogobia.

“The call I received from Lawal of EFCC was when he told me they were in the hospital and I asked why.

“He told me they were in the hospital to see if Justice Ofili-

Ajumogobia was on admission and I told him that as at the time I left the hospital, she was not on admission. ” Earlier in his testimony, Solanke, who runs the Goldcross Hospital, revealed the procedure for admission of patients at the medical facility.

“A patient usually comes through the front desk and is allowed to see a doctor who listens to complaints and makes diagnosis.

“If he deems fit for admission, he (doctor) will inform the nurses at the medical records.

“On discharge, once the doctor has discharged the patient, the nurse will take them to medical billing, once she settled her bills, she is then allowed to go.

“She came in as a patient and made complaints to me and

after assessing her, I decided that she should be admitted for further investigations and bed rest on Oct. 7, 2016.

“For Oct. 7, there was a different procedure because she came in as a private patient, also being a judge, she was accorded a VIP status.

“As a VIP we allowed them to go straight to their wards and the nurses are allowed to go straight to them to receive data,” he told the court.

He added: “She was admitted and placed in private ward, drugs were administered, various investigations were carried out and she was also seen by the cardiologist.

“She was discharged on Oct. 13, 2016. And upon discharge, she was given drugs and a sick leave paper for one week to continue the rest at home.

“At 7.00 p.m. on Oct. 19, 2016, I was called at the hospital that there were EFCC officers at the hospital.”

On cross-examination by Mr Olawale Akoni (SAN), OfiliAjumogobia’s lawyer, Solanke insisted that at the time the hospital records were made, Ofili-Ajumogobia was not on admission at the Goldcross Hospital.

After Solanke’s evidence, Justice Hakeem Oshodi granted an application brought by OfiliAjumogobia to renew her seized international passport which was in the court’s custody.

Justice Oshodi ordered that the passport should be released and that the old and new international passports should also be returned to the Chief Registrar of the court before June 24.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that OfiliAjumogobia is standing trial with Mr Godwin Obla, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) on a 31-count charge bordering on corruption.

They are also jointly charged with two counts bordering on perverting the course of justice.

Obla is facing a two-count charge of offering gratification in the sum of N5 million to Ofili-Ajumogobia while serving as a judge.

Ofili-Ajumogobia faces a 27-count charge of unlawful enrichment, taking property by a public officer, corruption, forgery and giving false information to an official of the EFCC. Justice Hakeem Oshodi adjourned the case until Sep. 14 for continuation of trial. (NAN)

News 6

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Couple, 1 other in court over alleged theft of rubber slippers, bags Three persons were on Friday brought before an Ikorodu Magistrates’ Court, Lagos State, over the alleged theft of slippers and bags worth N445, 000.

The accused: Adeola Alade, 37; his wife, Omotayo Alade, 26, and Baraka Tajudeen, 21, are facing a two-count charge of conspiracy and stealing.

The couple resided at No.

3, Fowosere St., in Ikorodu, while Baraka, resides at 10, Bello St., Kokoro Abu, Ikorodu.

According to the Prosecutor, Sgt. Bosede Adegeshin, the accused committed the offences on Jan. 28 at Afowoji Market, Ikorodu.

Adegeshin said the accused stole the items from

the shop of the complainant, Mrs Basirat Bakare.

She said said Omotayo and Baraka, who were salesgirls at the complainant’s shop, stole stole the items and gave them to Adeola to keep.

“They had the intention to sell the goods and share the proceeds, but things went bad when Baraka found out that Adeola had displayed

the stolen goods in his shop.

“She told the complainant what they did and the case was reported to the police,’’ she said.

The offences contravened Section 287 and 412 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

The accused all pleaded not guilty to the charge.

In his ruling, the

Magistrate, Mr E. O.Ogunkanmi, granted the accused bail in the sum of N300, 000 each, with two sureties each in like sum.

Ogunkanmi said the sureties must be gainfully employed and should show evidence of tax payments to the Lagos State Government.

The case was adjourned until July 12, for mention.

L-R: Oyo State Deputy Governor, Chief Moses Adeyemo; Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo; and Oyo State Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi; and Secretary to the State Government, Mr. Olalekan Alli (front row), and other state executive council members during the VP’s courtesy visit to the governor in his Office, Ibadan... on Friday. Photo: Governor’s Office

Amaechi warns against militancy in Niger Delta The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi on Friday warned that if the youths of Niger Delta don’t stop militancy, it could lead to under-development of the region in the future.

Amaechi said this at the sideline of the inspection of the Dualisation of the East-West road in Rivers on Friday.

He urged the youths in the region to be peaceful and

stop kidnapping those on assignment to develop the region.

The minister explained that the issue of kidnapping of contractors on site was prominent in the region compared to other regions, which had increased the engagement of security personnel on site projects and cost.

Amaechi, however, noted that the Federal Government

won’t wait for a particular region to be peaceful before embarking on development projects, saying that there are other regions that need developmental projects.

“I am not too happy with the militancy, you will see every contractor with soldiers and police and that is not the right thing to do.

“I am working as the Minister for Transportation on LagosIbadan and no army or police is

attached to the Chinese.

“Nobody is kidnapping them, no communal clashes, nobody is harassing them.

“But here, once you bring one project management everybody gathers. We must tell our young men that it cannot continue.

“If we do, other parts of the country will leave us behind. In the cabinet, nobody is looking at your face, they are looking at the country and if any part is not ready for development, other

parts won’t wait for them.

“You cannot tell anybody from Igbo land to wait until you develop south-south, or anybody from Sokoto to wait until you develop Rivers state, no way,” he said.

He said that when ItakpeWarri rail started, they kidnapped a black man, which was bad, urging the youths in the region to be peaceful and stop kidnapping those on assignment to develop the region.

Women farmers reach agreement with Kogi, Synergos on rice production The Kogi state chapter of Small Holder Women Farmers Organisation of Nigeria (SHOWFON) has entered into an agreement with the state government and Synergos Nigeria on rice production.

The state Coordinator of SHOWFON, Hajiya Safiya Yahaya, who disclosed this in an interaction with journalists on Friday in Lokoja, said that the deal would cover rice milling, packaging and marketing.

Yahaya said that under the agreement, the Kogi State Agricultural Development Project (ADP) would be in delcharge of the rice milling machines acquired by the state government, while Synergos Nigeria would handle the rice packaging aspect.

She said that the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), which visited the site of the mill, had approved its operations, adding that by end of

June, the SHOWFON-packaged rice would be in the market.

Yahaya said that through the venture, women rice farmers in the state would be empowered, adding that the women farmers hitherto struggled to get buyers for their produce.

“This time around, the women rice farmers will convey their harvested paddy to the mill where it will be milled, packaged and sold; the women farmers would get paid for their produce immediately,’’ she said.

She said that over 500 SHOWFON members from the 12 local government areas of the state, who were participating in the Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP), had been assisted with machines, herbicides, fertilisers, improved rice seeds and cash under the programme.

She said that the SHOWFON members had constituted the largest number of beneficiaries of ABP, under the aegis of the Rice Farmers Association of

Nigeria (RIFAN).

Besides, Yahaya said that the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) had set aside about N12 million for the “garri’’ processing project of SHOWFON in the state.

She said that the funds were being channelled to SHOWFON through a micro-finance bank in Abuja and before long, members of the association would be able to access the funds meant for the execution of the project.

ECONEC in Conakry on post-election follow-up An eight-member delegation of ECOWAS Network of Electoral Commission (ECONEC) on Friday began a five-day postelection follow-up mission to Guinea.

A statement by the network in Abuja said that the delegation was received

by President of Guinea’s Commission Electorale Nationale Independante, Mr Amadou Kebe.

The delegation, according to the statement, is led by the Prof.

Mahmood Yakubu, President of the ECONEC Governing Board, and Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of Nigeria.

Members of the delegation include Prof.

Emmanuel Tiando, ECONEC 1stVicepresident and Chair of Benin Republic’s Electoral Commission, ECONEC Secretariat and INEC officials.

It noted that the follow-upmission was part of measures instituted by the regional body to track and address risk factors that could negatively impact the conduct of peaceful and credible elections in member states.

The statement said that the delegation would during the visit meet with Guinea’s political stakeholders, especially the Electoral Management Body (EMB), Political Parties and Parliamentary Committees on Electoral Matters.

Other groups include Civil Society Organisations involved in the electoral process and institutions mentioned in the ECOWAS Election Observation Mission’s (EOM’s) recommendation.

The statement disclosed that the mission was supported by German International Development Agency (GIZ), Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA) and INEC. Guinea held its last Presidential Election in 2015, which was observed by ECOWAS. It will hold the next crucial presidential election in 2020.

The statement explained that usually, in post-election phase, ECOWAS Commission organised biennial electoral process reviews, bringing EMBs from across the region together under ECONEC, to contribute to peer-learning and dissemination of best practices.

“The main objective of the PEFM is to assess measures being taken by memberstate actors to implement EOM recommendations and identify possible areas of support required to enable full implementation of the recommendations ahead of next electoral cycle.’’

It added that from 2014, there had been a shift in the ECOWAS election assessment methodology, with a focus on cycle-wide approach.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

7 News

Evans used soldier as decoy during crime spree, says witness A member of the Inspector General of Police Intelligence Response Team, Insp.

Idowu Haruna, on Friday narrated at an Ikeja High Court how Chukwudimeme Onwuamadike, alias Evans, used a soldier as a decoy in his high profile criminal activities in Lagos.

Haruna, a policeman with 14-years experience, made the revelation at the ongoing trial of Evans and his codefendant, Victor Aduba, on four-counts of kidnapping and unlawful possession of firearms.

Haruna’s hour-long testimony began at 2 p.m.

While being led in evidence by Mr Adebayo Haroun, the State Prosecutor, Haruna said: “The second defendant, Aduba was a member of the Nigerian Army.

“By the time the first defendant was arrested, he mentioned the name of the second defendant in his confessional statement.

“He said that whenever they had an operation, he will call Aduba and the army officer while wearing his full uniform, will seat at the front passenger seat of their vehicle so that they can pass through police road blocks with ease.”

Haruna noted that when the soldier was apprehended by authorities, he faced disciplinary procedures at the Abati Barracks, Yaba, Lagos, before he was handed over to the police for questioning.

The policeman in his testimony also told the court about Evan’s alleged criminal career.

“The first defendant has been into kidnapping and robbery for a very long time.

He started in Edo State, when I worked there, we arrested about 10 members of his syndicate but he ran away to Lagos.

“Vincent Obianodo, the

boss of Young Shall Grow Motors was his first victim in Lagos, during Obianodo’s attempted kidnap, members of his gang were killed but Evans ran away.

“Evans was in charge of providing the arms and ammunition for his gang.

“He led the operation for the kidnap of Mr Sylvanus Ahamonu. He was the pilot of the vehicle. He is the sole negotiator of all the demanded ransom.

“He never allows other members of his gang to negotiate with victims’ families.

“He collected a total of 420,000 dollars from

Ahamonu’s family. $200,000 was personally received from Ahamonu’s family in two tranches.

“The remaining $20,000 was collected by Evans from the Ahamonu family for drinks for his boys.

“Aduba the dismissed army officer confessed to being involved in the kidnap of James Udoji, Ahamonu and one Ucheson, a businessman in Alaba Market,” he said.

The prosecution sought to tender the statements of Evans and Aduba as evidence.

However, Evans’ Defence Counsel, Mr

NEPZA Managing Director, Emmanuel Jime, and the Chinese Ambassador to South Africa, His Excellency Amb. Lin Songtian, at the on-going Opportunities & Challenges of China-Africa Industrial Cooperation in Pretoria (Sheraton Pretoria Hotel), South Africa....8th June, 2018. He is presenting him with promotional materials from NEPZA.

Olukoya Ogungbeje and Mr Emmanuel Ochai, Counsel to Aduba, objected on the grounds that the confessional statements were not voluntarily made.

Following the objection of the defence, Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo ordered a trial-within-trial to determine the voluntariness of the statements.

During the trial-withintrial, Haruna narrated to the court how the statements of the defendants were obtained by officers of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) at Ikeja, Lagos.

“The statement of Evans was recorded by my team member Sgt. Julius Okundaiye in a very conducive office.

“He was seated on a chair. My team members and I were also there, no one offered him anything for his confession and he was not tortured, it was not given under duress.

“I was even cracking jokes with him and he was laughing and admitted that his time is up and nemesis had caught up with him.

“After recording the statement, the recorder signed and Evans countersigned and he was taken to my superior, SP. Phillips, who read it aloud to him and he counter-signed it.

“The statement of Aduba was also recorded in the same SARS building at Ikeja

by Insp. Christian Ogbu.

“He cooperated with the police, having been a member of the Nigerian Army.

“After giving the statement, it was signed and counter-signed by both him and the recorder.

“His statement was recorded freely and not under duress,” Haruna said.

Taiwo adjourned the case till July 4 for continuation of the trial-within-trial.

State Assembly, judiciary get financial autonomy as Buhari signs 4 bills Mathew Dadiya, Abuja President Muhammadu Buhari has signed a bill that grants financial autonomy to state Houses of Assembly and judiciary making them to directly access funds to their credit without going through the state governors just as he signed three other bills.

The Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Senator Ita Enang on Friday told State House correspondents in Abuja that the President also signed an amendment that reduced

the duration for determining pre-election matters in courts to ensure that such matters do not get into the time of the elections and do not linger thereafter.

He said that another amendment increased the time the Independent National Electoral Commission has to conduct by-election in case of vacancy from the present seven days to 21 days.

Enang said, “I just want to inform you that His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari today (Friday) assented to the Constitution Fourth Alteration Bill which grants financial

autonomy and independence to the Houses of Assembly of the respective states and to the Judiciary of the respective states.

“Therefore, upon this signature, the amounts standing to the credit of the judiciary are to now be paid directly to the judiciary of those states and no more through the governors and from the governors.

“And then the amounts standing to the credit of the Houses of Assembly of the respective states are now to be paid directly to the Houses of

Assembly of that state for the benefit of the legislators and the management of the state Houses of Assembly of that state. This grants full autonomy now to the Houses of Assembly and judiciary of states.

“Another Act which has come into force today is Constitution Amendment 21 which relates to the determination of preelections matters. It has reduced the date and time of determining pre-election matters to ensure that the pre-election matters in court do not get into the time of the elections and do not linger thereafter.

“The relevant section of the Constitution has also been amended by this Act, therefore amending the constitution.

“The other one is Bill 16 which is now an Act. The intent of that Act is to ensure that where a Vice President succeeds the President and where a deputy governor succeeds a governor, he can no more contest for that office more than one more time.

“The effect is that having taken the oath of President once, he can only contest one more time and no more. That is the intent of this amendment.

“The other amendment is Bill

9 now an Act which gives the Independent National Electoral Commission sufficient time to conduct by-election. It has increased the time from seven to 21 days and generally widen the latitude of the INEC to handle election matters upon vacancy.

“These four bills, added to the Not-Too-Young-To-Run Act, have now been assented to by the President and have now become laws.

“The Constitution of Nigeria 1999 as amended is hereby further amended by the assent of the President to these bills today.”

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Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

News Analysis

Ebonyi 2019: APC’s fate hangs in the balance Charles Onyekwere, Abakaliki

Although, Ebonyi state All Progressives Congress (APC) is like other states of the federation where wards, local governments and states’ congresses held parallel. In fact, the crisis was expected because the party in the state had been enmeshed intractable crisis that gave rise to factions.

It could be recalled that the party has been plunged into leadership crisis over allegations of misappropriation of funds for the 2015 election. It was as a result of this, the party factionalised into two factions. Eze Nwachukwu Eze loyal to Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu. Lay claim as the chairman of APC. Eze Nwachukwu, who was the deputy chairman of APC in Ebonyi state, was made the chairman after they claimed to have impeached Ben Nwobasi loyal to Senator Julius Ali Ucha, the party’s 2015 governorship candidate in the state.This incident which led to emergence of two factions as Nwobasi still maintains he is the authentic Chairman.

During the party’s ward congress conducted recently, the battle of supremacy was intensified by the two factions while at the end producing parallel Executives at the ward level.

The congress committee arrived the factional Secretariat where they addressed the factional members of the party on their mission.

The chairman of the Congress committee, Ajayi Nicholas while addressing them said that he would meet with the leaders and stakeholders of the party with the aim of arriving at a consensus.

“If they fail, we will invoke the powers of the national chairman of the party and conduct the election according to our conscience. We have a state chairman, Eze Nwachukwu Eze. He will guide us. We will consult him. Is God that put him there. Where we discover that he’s playing pranks, we will suspend him and use a local government chairmen and conduct the election and write our result “, Ajayi said.

Ajay’s statement followed a comment by a former member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Peter Edeh, who advised the Congress committee to meet with all interest groups to avoid crisis in the Congress.

But it became visibly clear when it was observed that the two factions could not reach a compromise.

To this effect, the faction led by Hon. Ben Nwobasi conducted its Congresses across the 171 wards, with a committee they had set up to assist to the ‘hijacked’ congress committee.

While speaking to journalists, he accused the 7-man committee led by Mr Ajayi Nicholas of being hijacked by the group loyal to Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu. He further alleged that the Congress committee absconded while the exercise were still going on in the state.

“The committee arrived and went to the factional Secretariat, anchored by the state Vice chairman of the party, Eze Nwachukwu Eze who elevated himself as the Acting State chairman who was foist on the Party by the National Secretariat to please the Minister, Onu”.

“These issues were addressed when the committee arrived in Enugu where they lodged in a hotel. But after visiting the state Commissioner for Police, Titus Lamorde and the state Director of SSS, they returned back to their Enugu hotel. While we conducted our Congresses in the 171 wards in the state, we understood that Onu led group facilitated

by Nwachukwu went to Enugu to submit made- up results”,he said.

Senator Julius Ucha, a 2015 governorship candidate of APC, while speaking with Journalists on the development also alleged that instead of the committee to conduct the congresses, they relocated to one factional office of the party to allocate wards indiscriminately to some stakeholders.

“That’s why on our own seeing that the committee was not here to conduct congresses, but to call some people to say look I allocate four wards to you, I allocate three wards to you. I said look, this is to disenfranchise the teeming supporters of APC and

Odigie-Oyegun

Onu

create an impression that these our supporters are idiot who have no rights to vote.

“So what we did was that we have the three people we nominated as congress committee. We used them to conduct congresses all over the wards in the state.

INEC visited them and saw our men conducting congresses. They monitored it. We are going to present our results to the national leadership of our party”.

“In Ebonyi state, we were told that the congress committee arrived. We didn’t see anybody. We were told again that they were operating from Enugu state.

I told the chairman of the congress committee that there are two secretariats of APC in Ebonyi state.

‘If you were given directives to go to a particular place and you went to a particular office, he should have asked questions. There are two functional offices of APC in the state. What they should have asked the stakeholders was to get a hotel accommodation for them so that they will be neutral But the Chairman of the wards congresses committee, Nicholas Adekunle-Ajayi while addressing Journalists said the congress was peaceful.

He commended the stakeholders over what he termed maturity and dexterity they exhibited in paddling through difficult task of ensuring peaceful congresses.

He said that ten local government areas submitted their results and added that winners emerged through consensus achieved from negotiations and compromise.

“Article 21 of the constitution of our great party provided for the use of consensus to produce party leaders at any Congress or convention. The stakeholders and leaders of APC in Ebonyi invoked this Article to adopt the officials to occupy the various party positions at the various ward levels.

“The development is commendable and has made the exercise peaceful, acceptable and free from any rancour. The stakeholders and leaders of the remaining three local governments have been given some time to explore more avenues to resolve differences, harmonize and come up with consensus candidates.

“We in APC believe in internal democracy hence will be compelled to put all aspirants from the affected

local government areas to go and test their popularity should they fail to harmonize, “ Adekunle-Ajayi said.

He said that peaceful conduct of the congresses were indications of preparedness of the party in Ebonyi to wrestle power from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

“The peaceful exercise is an indication that Ebonyi people have decided for APC and ready to chase the PDP government out of the Government House in 2019. It an indication that they will be librated, it is an indication that the Ebonyi people love the policies and programmes of President Muhammadu Buhari,” he said.

He expressed delight that the committee did not receive any reported case of violence from any part of the state during the exercise. “So far so good the exercise ended very peacefully and we did not receive any report of violence or attack from any of the wards in the state.

The police, SSS and the Civil Defence operatives were on hand to provide adequate security and we were not alerted for security breaches throughout the period of the congresses,” he added.

It was gathered that unlike Nwobasi’s faction that went to the field to conduct the exercise and winners emerged, Nwachukwu’s faction reached a common consensus; though could not reach consensus in three LGAs, namely: Ikwo,Ishielu and Onicha local government areas.

After the congresses, the crisis rocking the state chapter of the party took another dimension as the State Executive Committee (SEC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Ebonyi state suspended indefinitely what they described as acting chairman of the party in the state, Mr. Eze Nwachukwu Eze, for conniving with some party leaders for tampering the party guidelines for the conduct of the The SEC said the suspension of Nwachukwu became unavoidable in order to bring lasting peace to the party.

They warned the public to Hence forth, be mindful of their dealings with him.

According to SEC, Nwachukwu and some State Working Committee (NWC) had adopted as a working document a report presented to it by a three man committee led by the Minister of Science and

“

It could be recalled that the party has been plunged into leadership crisis over allegations of misappropriation of funds for the 2015 election. It was as a result of this, the party factionalised into two factions.

”

Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, which proposed a new zoning arrangement for the state Congress of the Party.

The other two members of the committee were former Governor, Martin Elechi (representing Ebonyi Central) and an ex-Senator, Chris Nwankwo(representing Ebonyi North), who is also Elechi’s in-law.

According to the new zoning formula,Chairmanship position of the party is zoned to Mr Nwachukwu’s Ebonyi North zone and even narrowed it down to his Ohaukwu local government.

At a press conference after the 54th SEC meeting of the party held at the country home of the state publicity secretary of APC in the state, Mr Ngaji Nwodo, who read the resolutions of SEC said the adoption of the said new zoning formula presented

by Onu’s led committee by the acting chairman was a clear violation of the party’s constitution.

They maintained that the new zoning formula adopted by Nwachukwu and his cohorts was an antiparty activity and indiscipline,noting that it Was unfortunate that Mr Onu, who is a serving Minister in the government of the APC is championing it.

“SEC condemns the nocturnal and anti-party action of Mr Eze Nwachukwu Eze, Chief Martin Elechi, Ogbonnaya Onu and Chris Nwankwo, to tamper with the 2014 APC Congress guidelines which is still in force for the 2018 congress,”they said.

They also noted that the new zoning formula was not only done with disregard to the constitutional rights of members of the state Executive committee of the party in the state, but anti progressive in its entirety.

They added that the action of Nwachukwu and his cohorts must be dealt with decisively and timously.

SEC further directed Onu, Elechi and Chris Nwankwo to withdraw the purported new zoning arrangement within 24hrs or they would be constrained to invoke in full the party’s constitution to discipline them.

They further called on members of the party especially interested aspirants in the state’s congress to discountenance the purported new zoning formula by the Onu led committee.

In Ebonyi state, the two warring factions of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state produced two state Chairmen and other Positions in the party at parallel congresses.

As the leadership crisis continue unabated, the Onu faction produced Mr Eze Nwachukwu Eze as its chairman, the Ucha faction produced Dr. Sylvester Nwambe as its own chairman.

Nwachukwu was the Acting chairman of the party after the Onu faction removed Hon. Ben Nwobasi as Chairman and named Nwachukwu who was elected his Deputy his replacement. In the congress conducted by the Ucha faction, Nwambe, a former Commissioner in the state polled 521 votes to defeat two other contestants.

While Nwachukwu was declared winner with 775 votes in the congress conducted by the Onu faction.

In the parallel congresses,while the Onu faction elected a social media critic, Nwoba Chika Nwoba as its publicity Secretary, the Ucha faction re-elected Ngaji Nwodoh as its own publicity secretary.

The two factions of the party had gathered at a hotel along mile 50, Abakaliki owned by 2015 Labour Party governorship candidate in the state, Chief Edward Nkwegu who defected to the APC for the congress when three delegates from the Ucha faction were apprehended and whisked away by security agents.

The delegates had attempted to gain entry to the hotel for the congress. Other delegates of the faction clustered at the gate and were dispersed with tear gas and sporadic shooting on the air by the security agents.

The faction, however moved to APC factional secretariat in Abakaliki/Enugu Expressway where it held its own state congress and elected a former Commissioner in the state, Dr. Sylvester Nwambe as Chairman and other executives.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday June 9, 2018

Politics

9

Adamawa Assembly: Intrigues over tenure elongation of LGA chairmen and matters arising Tom Garba, Yola The Adamawa State House of Assembly (ADHA) as the second tier of government whose primary duty is to make laws and resolutions to the benefit of people living in the state has been on the path of progress since its inception.

But it appears that of recent there was a fracas when a request was made through a letter by the Association of Local Government Organisation of Nigeria (ALGON) wanting a tenure elongation to exceed their two years statutory term and the House is considering making a decision on the matter.

This act has become a topical issue and seems to be generating a public debate in many parts of the state.

Raising question of general public interest as to why the request at the moment? What is the veracity that the law amendment or making a new law will not temper or override the existing law that stipulated only two years for all the 21 LGAs chairmen?

Some are of the opinion that there is possible political under tone in the request and that it will alleviate some and to others scuttle their political dream, while others are wondering if there can be economic gains for both the LGA chairmen and or the 25 lawmakers? These are the disturbing questions in the mind of concerned citizens of Adamawa State.

It is a known fact that all members of an Assembly are elected to represent the specific interests of their constituents and also to represent their local government and must consider the needs of all indigenes while making laws. Whatever their political outlook, and regardless of which side of the Assembly they sit on, members’ duties and obligations are considerable in creating laws that are to the general interest of the public.

Members have a duty of oversight functions, whereby every work or ongoing projects in the state are within the approved budget and in accordance with the specification of the constitution. The duties of the lawmakers are also to check the executive on implementable budget.

Each service has various standards that must be met; for example, whenever the appropriation of a bill is passed on to the House they must ensure that estimates are critically analysed and resources are distributed in such a way that those in need are put in priority. They must also ensure that the money budgeted is efficiently utilised as intended.

When it comes to lawmaking, the House of Assembly must ensure that the laws are passed with the

Mijinyawa positive interest of Adamawa people at heart. The laws must also be practical and implementable over a long period of time.

This is to say that the law sponsored by Hon Suleiman Alkali sometime in June, 2016 which was aimed at reducing the tenure elongation of LGA chairmen from two and half years to two years has became a sanctity instrument that can never be joked with, like the sacred cows whose life is precious and protected at all times so are laws in our contemporary lives.

Changing it or tempering with it can lead to confusion within in the law, making it difficult to satisfy the desired goals it was created serve.

Looking at the scenario from its proper perspective, a public affairs analyst and lawyer, Mr. Sunday Joshua Wugira opined that the Adamawa lawmakers should not make any law to that effect

“

Gov Bindow because it is “null and void, and unconstitutional” as there cannot be law to override another Law. Recall that ALGON in a letter to the House dated 24th May, 2018 with a headline: “Re: Amendment of the Adamawa State Local Government System Establishment and Administration (Amendment) Law No.2008” Had said, “the purpose of this letter is to appeal to the honourable members Adamawa State House through your good office, to still revisit the above Law earlier passed by the House of Assembly with a view to reconsider the tenure of local government chairmen in Adamawa State.’’

Basing their reasons on the fact that in 2008 Justice Bimare Bamsi passed a similar judgment in favor of the then ALGON on tenure elongation.

Wugira urged the lawmakers

As lawmaking body we are to look at the passed judgements and their letter of request to know whether the law reducing their tenure elongation is applicable to them or those that will be coming after as chairmen. So the whole issue is not about tenure elongation, it is about interpretation, we are to carefully look at the past judgements and the stand of our Law, and also look at the period our Law came into existence to know either it corresponds with the timing of 2008 judgement and the time we equally passed our Law.

”

never to contemplate tempering with the law that was sponsored

by Honourable Suleiman Alkali that brings down the Chairmen’s tenure from two years and half to two years.

He continued “A law cannot come and invalidate a law that is in existence, the local government chairmen were elected for three years and the then lawmakers wanted to reduce the number of years by way of a law.

“The present House of Assembly must be well informed that they are treading on a very dangerous ground, it will not help them, it is not good for democracy and is not good for the polity in anyway,” Wugira said.

The House of Assembly through its Chairman House committee on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Hon Mohammed Hayatu Atiku also said that the law passed by the House of Assembly to reduce the tenure of elected LGA Chairmen from two years and half to two years stands and remains a Law. Atiku explained that the House does have a constitutional right to make a tenure elongation Law, but what ALGON are soliciting is to look at similar scenario that happened in 2008 when the tenure of local government chairmen was reduced from two years and half to two years, then ALGON went to court to challenge the House for enacting a Law that will reduce their tenure.

He further explained that the judgement of the High Court and Appeal Court was in favor of the LGA chairmen, he revealed that the

House of Assembly wouldn’t have passed that kind of law because the LGA chairmen had declared their interest to contest an election for a tenure of two years and half, done the nitty gritty of campaigns and screenings, waiting for an election to be conducted before the law was passed and the issue of one year tenure did not arise and so it’s not applicable to them. ‘’You cannot change the rule in the middle of the game,” he argued.

Honourable Atiku maintained that the letter of ALGON as an organisation who are loyal to this government is only drawing the attention of the House to look at similar judgement between the past House of Assembly and the past ALGON. According to him the letter that ALGON brought to the House was attached with the previous judgement, reminding the House that the law passed to reduce their tenure elongation from two and half year to two years was passed after all political routine exercises were done and cannot be applicable to them.

“As lawmaking body we are to look at the passed judgements and their letter of request to know whether the law reducing their tenure elongation is applicable to them or those that will be coming after as chairmen.

“So the whole issue is not about tenure elongation, it is about interpretation, we are to carefully look at the past judgements and the stand of our Law, and also look at the period our Law came into existence to know either it corresponds with the timing of 2008 judgement and the time we equally passed our Law. “We are never to make another Law as is being presumed in some quarters, we are to pass a resolution to the executive arm of government if ALGON request is attainable in the eyes of Law to extend their tenure or not based on our interpretation of the previous judgement and the time that our law came to be.

“The law is there, nothing can change it, we can only amend it and we are not ready for amending any law now, it is left for the governor after passing our resolution to extend their tenure or not to extend it,” Hayatu said The House during an investigation on the matter seems to have a common interest of only doing what is required by the provision of the Law in this matter.

The eyes of many are keenly watching to see the way and manner this will be resolved under the leadership of the speaker, Rt Hon Kabiru Mijinyawa who is having a greater majority of the lawmakers support because of his transparent style of leadership.

Politics 10

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Ikpeazu has done well and deserves another term–Okoro Dr. Eme Okoro is the Secretary to the Abia State Government and a member of the committee that organised the three year anniversary of Dr. Okezie IKpeazu as the state governor and also a member of Committee of the old Bende people that honoured the governor on the 1st of June, 2018, where the people said that the governor has done well and deserves a second term as equity demands. In this interview shortly before the Old Bende ceremony, Dr. Okoro x-ray Governor Ikpeazu’s tenure as the state governor, stating that the administration desires to leave a legacy in the state. SUNDAY NWAKANMA, who was there reports.

The people of old Bende will be expected to make a statement that Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu has done well and requires a second term. What is your reaction to this?

As a matter of fact, the Ikpeazu administration is about to complete three years and during these three years, we have tried to sustain the legacies handed over to us and we have tried to expand the scope and content of developing Abia.

We want to be able to look back over a three-year period, be able to survey, evaluate and assess how far we have come along through the period of promises where we made the campaign trail.

We want to be able to say to the people of Abia, this is how far we have come because we made these kinds of promises and we were able also within the context of Pillars and Enablers, we able to categorise our successes and our failure.

We will do that clearly, cleanly because we want to set up a narrative of economic development.

The social development paradigm that Ikpeazu is pursuing is that which is compartmentalised and we will tell the people of Abia that we shall provide the basis for judging us.

If we do so, we will be able to say, these are the pillars of doing so and if you want to build a house, you have to provide the resources and you have to have these resources as enabling to build those pillars.

Whether it is in agricultural development, whether it is in infrastructure development, whether it is in utility development, they are pillars, and there are enablers that you require to use.

We made those promises as we went through the campaign and we made those promises again at the background of inaugural address, when the governor was sworn in.

So, we are guided by those promises. We are guided by the vision and dream of Ikpeazu as a team leader.

So, after our third year which will come by on the 29th of May, we shall once again, take a look backwards, because if we do so, and look at where we are today, we can project where we will be going tomorrow.

So, those parameters give us the opportunity to tell our people, this is how you can assess us. This is what we said we can do, this is what we have done, these are

Okoro the ones we have not done, and the ones we have not done look at the reasons why we have not done them and those reasons are going to be practical reasons and verifiable reasons because, when you are a scientist, and you look at the principles of institutional building, you should be in a

“

position to explain to your people that in nation building, like Abia as a state and as a nation state, I am unable to complete this because; I am unable to do this because; I was able to do this because, and when you do so, you create credibility for yourself especially when we tell you the truth and provide you

Okezie has led the state for three years and he is going to go for the fourth one, it is the job of the PDP to ask him to perform more and more. Leave the rest to noise-making APGA, APC. Part of the kind of politics I play, is the politics of truth and politics of reality. If any person in this country can wave a flag and tell me that the APC government of this federation is doing well, they must be living in different counties of the world.

”

information as it is.

So, it is on this background that those of us who are insiders of the system are picking a second look at those promises over all the three geo-political zones, and we are also looking at Ikpeazu’s performance relative to governance at other times in other climes.

So, what we are going to do this time now is to say to our people, we have come a long way and old Bende is a very significant and political power base.

What we will be doing will synchronise with what others have done and the local governments of Abia State that fall within the geographical confines of old Bende, spans from Abia Central to the North.

So, we have had several in-house meetings, now brought in from those who are appointed, those in government to those who are citizens, principal stakeholders of this same geographical zone and we are going to evaluate the performance of Ikpeazu and because we know that when you have a dream, and you support it with a vision, it means that you have path ways which must be continued until success is achieved and success is measured by the veracity of what you have said to your people that you will do and also the veracity of your own performance.

So, people of old Bende have come to that conclusion that Ikpeazu should have an opportunity to sustain his successes of the last three years. So, it is along those lines that old Bende called a meeting and we have zeroed in on June 1 to lock the whole city down and make a statement.

We are not going to make a statement where people will say “a biakwa ha ozo” (they have come again) but going make a statement based on the veracity of what is on the ground and successes that are verifiable, because they are also identifiable by the people of Abia or by people who are not even Abians. We are also in a position to say this ones he say he will do, he hasn’t done. We have reasons which are also verifiable and when you are able to verify them and able to say, I will do this at this time given the background of resources availability, institutional growth, etc. we have very many reasons to say, let Okezie Ikpeazu go further than three years, go further than

four years and do like those he inherited power from, who did eight years and we say, let him do, let him continue and that is the basis of this meeting, that is the consensus, the “onu bu otu” (one mouth or common opinion) of Ndi Bende.

Are you now confirming that after his next tenure, power will shift to Abia North again in accordance with the provisions of the Abia Charter of Equity?

It is not up to me, it is up to the Ndi Abia. If we recognise what we call the tenets of our founding fathers that those three geo-political zones must be recognised, we are in the business of these zones. That means, we have given opportunity to old Bende itself, represented by Abia North to do eight years. We have also given Abia Central, one of the three pedals of Abia, to do eight years. We are also saying that what is fair, what is good for the goose, is also good for the gander. The Ukwa/Ngwa of the South should be allowed to be part of what the founding fathers set up and that is why the tenets of justice, fairness and equity allowed the old Bende hegemony to say, let it go to that axis and it has gone to that axis and we have said also to that axis also that old Bende is appreciative of the performance of the young man. So, if he finish his eight years in office, the onus lies on the people of Abia to say, “o gakotala” (it has gone round). It means no person will say “he did not see or he did not hear our voice or that he did see what the Ukwa/Ngwa of the South did.

Ukwa/Ngwa of the South will now have a record upon which their performance can be judged as led by one of their own as we had the opportunity to say Orji Uzor Kalu who led Abia North and who was a governor for eight years, look at what he has done. So we have an opportunity to evaluate the three zones and know whether we can go back to Abia North or come back to central or go back to Abia South to say “what you did, we love it. You should do more”.

In 2015, the APC gave PDP a big fight and 2019 is around the corner, how prepared is your party to really wrestle power with this and other parties rooted in the state?

Let me take the presidential election first. If you have your data, and do investigative journalism, you will find out that Abia has reached about 1.4 million registered voters. If I will use the science of biometrics and the science of political speculation, Abia voted just about 436,000. Whichever way you look at it, compartmentalise the voting of the people of Abia State, you will find out that Abia is a PDP state. You do the same across the whole geo-political zone called the South East, you will find out

Continue on page 11

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

11 Politics

‘Ikpeazu has done well and deserves another term’ Continued from page 10 that inspite of the gerrymandering in Imo State, the massive number that came in Imo State went to PDP. So, this is not a state where, apart from political noise making, where APGA would say, ‘we want to give them a part’. When I look at the election and look at the gap before it is our turn to go again, I will tell you that based on the performance of this man (Gov. Ikpeazu) I am going to turn out more of the registered voters to make a decision based on the type of performance that is making Abia North or old Bende to ask that he (Ikpeazu) be given the opportunity to complete four years.

PDP has a stronghold in this state, not card-carrying members, but I am talking about voting population. You take it through all the states of Ndi Igbo, PDP is firmly entrenched. The job of the PDP is made quite easy. Why? Okezie has led the state for three years and he is going to go for the fourth one, it is the job of the PDP to ask him to perform more and more.

Leave the rest to noise-making APGA, APC. Part of the kind of politics I play, is the politics of truth and politics of reality. If any person in this country can wave a flag and tell me that the APC government of this federation is doing well, they must be living in different counties of the world.

Ab initio, the governor of Abia State and I realised that we were in an economic depression which was the basis in which we were able to compartmentalise our problems and associate them with every particular part of Abia where we have to put people out of poverty by creating a base for infrastructural development. That is why we started from Aba, the hub of economic development for Sub-Sahara Africa, for the West Africa zone because, we realised which the APC government has not realised that the base of pulling people out of depression is to do work on infrastructure.

If you do that, provide the roads, provide small and medium enterprise systems, provide water and give the type of healthcare system that we are trying to develop and sustaining that development for Abia, you cannot beat us. Let people who want to put posters do that on the electric poles they have put in. those who want to build hospitals put their posters on their hospitals. Those who want to put posters on oil palms let them do that on their oil palms they have planted, who want to produce poultry in order that we deal with poultry energy, let them put their posters on those factors which they consider important to be able to beat PDP in the coming election. There is no basis. The only base is now performance. What we see, we believe in.

Part of the problem PDP had is imposition. As a stakeholder, what is your party promising Abians this time with regards to 2019 elections, should we still look forward to imposition?

This is the question that should be posed to the chairman of PDP

(in the state), because he is from old Bende. If he is not performing and doesn’t have the capacity and muscle to prevent people from lording it over him, we will kick him. What I am saying everywhere is that this is a system that requires to be innovated. Political parties in this country require to be reengineered. One question is, why would somebody leave PDP and go to APC and they leave APC and come back to the PDP and vice versa? So, there is no ideology linking political performance in this country. Therefore, if we want to have PDP re-elected, the sad romance of elected governors, we must also prove within the hierarchy of the party that there will be no lording or imposition of contestants on the people. You cannot rig election where you are not even popular. So popularity is one of the criteria we ought to look at when the candidates will emerge. Secondly, competence, qualifications, not when you get these riff rafts running around the place, you give them the opportunity. Let people know that there is ascendancy in the rank and file of the party, that people should be allowed to choose who will represent them. If you come to my community and they say that the thief should go and represent them in the PDP, it is the onus of the party itself to say no, we do not agree. This person is a thief. I am talking about efficiency, efficacy and also the ability, integrity of individuals who would run.

If I want to run, I have to show myself that I am competent and I have to prove beyond reasonable doubt for the hierarchy of the party to recognise me in my small domain in Ozuitem (in Bende LGA). So it is not a question of imposition. Are you going to impose people on those who don’t want them? Politics in this country has evolved. That is why social media can tell you what is happening in Ozuitem over time. It will be difficult for any person to impose any person on the generality of a people. The people will revolt. You saw it in the ram shackled APC (Imo State) congresses. It was a question of people said no, you don’t do it this way. If it can happen in APC, it can happen in PDP. So, that era should be forgotten. If there was any time that they imposed on people, that is why we said, come home, have a base and prove to your people that you can carry a flag of PDP in your home place. Let them say, look at the person that will go. It is no question that someone will go, but a question of democracy says, let the majority has its way, but let the minority have its say.

When this administration came on board, we had a whole lot of expectations and we have barely one year to go, can you say that this administration has really met these expectations?

Yes, that is why I segmented what I called the developmental pillars and then also to what the enabler are and I said those are the parameters you should us in judging us. I can beat my chest and say today, I give myself as an example. I am

Okoro saying there have been secretaries of government that have passed here. There have been secretaries of government elsewhere and I can comfortably sit here and say, if you talk about agriculture as a pillar, we have made tremendous progress.

For example, my wife cannot even find where she can sell her surplus garri. That is why, the governor in the next few days is going forward and will be talking about total value chain. I have already gone to the NNPC to tell them on invitation by them, look at the noise I hear being made in Abia. I am doing it with the faith and hope and veracity that we can produce a lot of feedstock of cassava.

Nigeria is the largest producer of cassava and we have tried to put Abia on a platform as one of the largest producers of garri in Nigeria, which means that if I talk about

“

value chain for cassava, I can beat my chest and say, we now have enough cassava that can go and become a feedstock for starch or ethanol. That is why, very soon, you will hear that Ikpeazu administration is about to work with the Federal Government or the NNPC to build an ethanol factory in Abia. We also hear that the SME is going to domesticate starch in Ikwuano (LGA). That means that our people would go beyond food security. That is why I said there is surplus and that surplus will go into the food basket and that surplus in terms of root and tuber will go into industrial base.

Again, I am looking at the period when there was war and there was a lot of kwashioko. We call it protein energy malnutrition.

Ikpeazu came and talked about poultry clusters and now, we have poultry villages. You go to the

We must also prove within the hierarchy of the party that there will be no lording or imposition of contestants on the people. You cannot rig election where you are not even popular. So popularity is one of the criteria we ought to look at when the candidates will emerge.

Secondly, competence, qualifications, not when you get these riff rafts running around the place, you give them the opportunity. Let people know that there is ascendancy in the rank and file of the party, that people should be allowed to choose who will represent them.

”

South, Nsulu (Isiala Ngwa North), they will show you that Ikpeazu is building poultry villages that will produce enough birds and enough eggs to meet the requirement of sustaining the feeding programme of our school children. So, I can beat my chest and say that even the intervention at the level of Federal Government special investment programme, this administration is going forward and making sure that we produce children, the youth that will take over tomorrow, but who are healthy and nutritionally stable. So, I am very comfortable to beat my chest about poultry, about oil palm and we are even giving oil palm to the local governments.

In the next couple of months, you will see that wherever there is an uneconomic, we will replace it with an oil palm. Indonesia brags about oil palm produce about $14bill annually. Indonesia got it from Malaysia and Malaysia from Igboland. So, how come that we who gave it to Malaysia and Malaysia who gave it to Indonesia, how come that Indonesia can make $14mill annually and we cannot? Ikpeazu’s administration has started from the concept of 7 million seedlings going out.

So, I can beat my chest saying, we have plan, we are progressing using science. If you look at health, the same thing goes. Now, you can buy your scratch card and you can call Telehealth. That is one of the major innovative things that have been done in Sub-Saharan Africa. I can tell that in the west coast, we are the first to do so. So, I can beat my chest and say, we are taking good care of the stomach infrastructure, we are also taking good care of their health and we are also synthesizing the capacity for even our workers to own their own houses. Walking with Trademore, a mortgage bank here, we have provided 600 houses for workers. So, if we house people, give them opportunity to feed, give them opportunity to be healthy and create room for them to find means of survival, that is why we have gone to the next stage of creating SME that will harness the resources available and then blossom into the SME capital of Nigeria. What is happening in Aba in terms of clothing, in terms of shoes, leather, and bags is not by magic, it is consistently showing that we are on the ground. How many times has the Vice-President been here? If he doesn’t like what we are doing, he won’t be frequenting here. So, all I am saying is that we have reasons to say, if we provided the basic infrastructure in Aba, that is why Gov. Ikpeazu spends time doing drainages and the drainages we have done in Aba will carry us throughout this rainy season to be able to continue with the roads and any road we build, we will also have electricity. So, if I provide that kind of base for Aba, I will exercise economic growth. If economic growth is superimposed or we put economic growth on our food availability, put in health, food and nutrition and put in SME and also give our people the opportunity to have roof over their head, I will beat my chest and say, I can take on any person.

Politics 12

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Ekiti guber: We’ll win, APC has no business contesting – PDP boasts Stories by Patrick Okohue The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in Ekiti State has boasted that it will win the July 14 gubernatorial election in the state despite President Muhammadu Buhari’s endorsement of the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, Dr. Kayode Fayemi.

The party, in a statement issued by its publicity secretary, Mr Jackson Adebayo, expressed confidence of winning the polls “because of the emerging confusion within the ranks of the opposition party in Ekiti State.”

According to Adebayo, the party is “confident of winning the election even if President Muhammadu Buhari moves the whole garrison to help APC,” adding that, “we believe that the army would turn to spectators when they see how Ekiti people would react with their votes.”

He described some party members that defected to the APC as “some disgruntled members of the party who are only destined to share in the imminent failure of APC at the forthcoming poll.”

The PDP claimed that “the rate by which members of the APC are defecting to PDP at the grassroots is highly encouraging to us, and that should be enough signal to the party that the game would not be on their side.”

According to Adebayo, “the defection into PDP by the caliber of grassroots mobilisers like a former majority leader in Ekiti State House of Assembly, Lai Oke; Chief Bode Agbeleye from Ijero Local Government and other leaders of APC across the state is enough testimony that APC has no business in going into the election in the first instance.”

While further criticising the APC, Adebayo added, “the confusion that rocked the flag-off of the APC candidate’s campaign where a former member of the House of

Representatives, Opeyemi Bamidele, and five others were shot, and the violence that marred their party’s attempt to elect a candidate are pointers to the confusion in the party.”

The Ekiti PDP spokesman said, “nobody in the state can forget in a hurry how Fayemi’s government brought pain and wailing to the families of those who were cut down in their prime just for sharing different views with the APC candidate and Ekiti people would not want such a government to evolve again.”

He expressed optimism that the PDP would win the coming election in the state because “Ekiti people are angry with both Dr Kayode Fayemi, and APC as a party, because an average Nigerian sees the party as synonymous with suffering, pain and wickedness, while to Ekiti man Fayemi is coming to symbolise the negative acronym of his party which includes creation of cattle colony in Ekiti State.”

APDA commends Buhari for naming June 12 Democracy Day, honour for Abiola The Advanced Peoples Democratic Alliance (APDA) has commended the Federal Government for awarding the highest honour of the land, GCFR to late Chief MKO Abiola and declaring June 12 as the new democracy day.

While speaking with the media, the chairman of the party, Alhaji Mohammed Kabiru Shitu said the gesture is one of the highlights of the present administration which included awarding Chief Abiola’s running mate, Amb. Baba Gana Kingibe now a key ally of President Buhari alongside human-rights advocate, Chief Gani Fawehinmi SAN the title of the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON), the second highest award in Nigeria.

He said, “APDA is in support of the actualisation of the fundamental human rights of Nigerians and this is in line with recognising Chief MKO Abiola, Gani Fawehinmi and Amb. Kingibe’s invaluable contribution to Nigeria’s democracy.”

Buhari announced on Wednesday the honour to Chief MKO Abiola with Fawehinmi and Amb. Kingibe. Chief Abiola won the June 12, 1993 annulled presidential election under the Social Democratic Party (SDP). He was arrested and locked up in 1994 during the military government of General Sani Abacha while struggling to claim his mandate and died in custody in July 1998.

His wife, Kudirat, was assassination in 1996 in Lagos.

The party chairman called on the President to do all within the ambit of the law and abiding within the principles of a transparent government to conducts a free and fair elections in 2019 and to put an end to the challenges and obstacles faced by opposition parties in the country. He promised that APDA will surely participates in all elective posts in the coming elections and has their ace card soon to be unleashed on bad governance and leadership wiping away the sorrows of Nigerians.

APC congresses: Party leadership warns Okorocha

Members of the elected executive committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Bariga Local Council Development Area (LCDA), Lagos State

Lagos APC Congress: Bariga party leaders protest stolen mandate, urge Tinubu to intervene The crisis in the Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), may be far from over as leaders of the APC in Bariga Local Council Development Area (LCDA) in the state have cried out over an alleged attempt to substitute the popularly elected APC chairman for the LCDA at the just concluded local government party Congress, Mr. Lamoren Dimeji , by a former chairman of the LCDA, Hon. Hakeem Suleiman.

Briefing the media on the issue, the spokesperson of the party leaders at the LCDA, Mr. Onayemi Onakoya Dare Matins accused the former Council boss of betraying the leaders and the teaming party faithful in the area having been part of an agreement on the direction to go as well as those to emerge members of the executives of the party to be shared among the groups that made up the party in Bariga LCDA in the spirit of fairness and all inclusive principle canvassed by the party leaders to ensure everybody

is carried along.

According to Onakoya, “There was a stakeholders meeting prior to the Ward and local government Congress where agreement was signed by all in attendance on how the Congress should go and those who would emerge, especially the positions of party Chairman and Secretary at the LCDA. “Hon. Suleiman also signed the agreement, but was however, not present at the Lady Lack Primary School ground venue of the Congress where Mr. Lamoren Dimeji was overwhelmingly elected Chairman only to later come out with a list which was said to have been drawn in an unnamed hotel where he had allegedly lodged members of the local organising committee LOC for the Congress.”

According to the list of executive members written by Hakeem Suleiman, the name of Elder Timothy Eyashodun, aka Iyo who was nowhere seen around the Congress venue

however, topped the list of those unilaterally handpicked by Hakeem Suleiman as the LCDA chairman.

The party leaders have however, resolved to take the matter to the National Leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu for his intervention as not to allow the reckless abuse of privilege by Hakeem Suleiman who was said to have boasted of his influence within the party to bring APC into ridicule in the eyes of the public especially, the opposition parties.

Leaders of the party who signed the petition seeking the intervention of Tinubu and the Chief Tunde Balogun led Lagos State executive of APC includes; Senator Tony Adefuye, Hon. Wole Diya, member, House of Representatives, Hon. Rotimi Abiru, Chief Whip, Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Ademorin Kuye, former Commissioner for Local Government in Lagos State among other notable leaders within the LCDA.

The national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has warned the Imo State governor, Rochas Okorocha against making wild and unsubstantiated allegations regarding the party’s conduct of congresses in the state and its handling of the disputes.

Okorocha had accused the APC national chairman, John OdigieOyegun of trying to destroy the party because his tenure was almost over.

The governor also vowed to institute legal action against Oyegun for allegedly disobeying court orders.

Reacting to Okorocha’s claim, APC warned the governor to desist from making such allegation.

In a statement by its spokesperson, Bolaji Abdullahi, APC said, “In reacting to recent allegations by the Imo state governor, Rochas Okorocha that the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress APC, Chief John OdigieOyegun ‘disobeyed’ court orders regarding Congresses in Imo State and inauguration of the state’s Party executives, the APC wishes to state that these allegations are spurious as the Party did not at any time receive any court injunctions regarding the Congresses in Imo”.

APC therefore, “urged the Imo State governor to desist from making these kinds of allegations that have no basis in facts.

“In conducting the Congresses across the country, in considering the outcomes of each one of them

and in swearing in the respective State Chairmen, the National Working Committee NWC had strictly followed the guiding rules and the Constitution of the Party.

“There is always room for redress where justified, hence, we encourage the Imo State Governor to explore internal dispute resolution mechanisms spelt out by our Constitution to address his perceived grievances.

“While we urge compromise among Party stakeholders, the Party has already mandated the Deputy National Chairman (North), Sen. Lawali Shuaibu to head our reconciliation efforts following issues that arose from recently conducted ward, local government and state Congresses.”

Okorocha

TIMES SPORTS

Saturday, June 9, 2018

Roma fans select Nigeria’s shirt as best kit

World Cup:

Sports psychologist wants Super Eagles to feel superior

AYG: Wushu Kung-fu coach expresses delight with sport’s inclusion

Juan Martin del Potro has ‘nothing to lose’ against ‘king of clay’ Rafael Nadal Eddie Hearn: Joshua-Wilder deal may get done, but might not be next

Argentina is easy favorite, but who else will advance from Group D

Sam Sodje warns Eagles must defend as a team to shine at World Cup

Times Sports 14

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

John Ogu says he’s happy to play anywhere for Super Eagles to win at World Cup John Ogu has said he will be happy to fight and work hard at any position he is played for the Super Eagles to win at the World Cup.

R USS I A 2 0 1 8 S UPE R E AG LE S N E W S !

Israel-based Ogu has played at both defensive midfield and central defence for the Eagles in friendlies leading up to the World Cup.

“Any position the Manager wants me to play, I will fight and work hard as long as it is to win for my country!!” Ogu stated in a tweet.

The 29-year-old Ogu made his Eagles debut in 2013, but he did not make the final cut for Brazil 2014.

Roma fans select Nigeria’s shirt as best kit

In November, he scored his first goal for the team in a dead-rubber World Cup qualifier in Algeria.

He has said he hopes his performance in Russia will earn him “a dream transfer” to England after he won the Israeli league championship for the past three seasons with Hapoel Be’er Sheva.

Roma fans have overwhelmingly voted Nigeria’s kit as the best Nike home shirt on display at this summer’s World Cup in Russia.

The striking design – an incredible commercial success for the country and manufacturer,

with a reported three million preorders placed – ran away with the fan poll, securing over a third of the vote.

Nike’s designs for France and Brazil came second and third respectively. In total the company,

who also supply Roma’s kits, have 10 home jerseys on display in Russia this summer.

The selected shirts are; Nigeria, France, Brazil, Australia, Croatia, Portugal, Poland, England, Saudi Arabia and South Korea.

Gernot Rohr: Poor logistics affected Super Eagles in Czech Republic defeat

World Cup: Sports psychologist wants Super Eagles to feel superior

“We need a Super Eagles that feels it is psychologically superior than other teams to win the World Cup in Russia,’’ Dr Diana Asak, a sports psychologist said on Friday.

Asak from the University of Lagos, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that a team with inferior complex was bound to crash woefully at the World Cup. “Our boys should not only think they are better than others in the competition, but they should also interact with the other teams to build up their psyche.

“I am suggesting that our national

team handlers should act as though they are managing the most superior team in the competition,’’ she said.

Asak said fear or inferior complex had cost the national teams victory in past international football tournaments.

“To me, our overtly cautious approach, which is indicative of feeling inferior, when we play countries like Argentina or Italy, caused us to lose those matches.

“We usually come into a match with the fear of losing against these popular sides.

“But if we can come into the match

feeling like we are not the underdog, then there is the likelihood that we will outplay the admired teams.

“Both our male and female football teams can match any country skill for skill, and with the right mindset and may even defeat them,’’ she said.

Asak also urged the team handlers to evolve body languages and tendencies that would send shivers down the minds of their opponents.

“I am recommending body languages similar to the Brazilians, used in one of the past World Cups by filing out from their dressing

room, holding hands from the first to the last player.

“That singular act by the Brazilians send fears into their opponents’ spines and even the opposition’s supporters before the first whistle of the match,’’ she said.

The psychologist urged the technical team of the Super Eagles to take the psychological aspect of the team seriously.

She added that seasoned psychologists should be engaged to accompany the team to the World Cup to boost their morale and superiority complex.

Super Eagles head coach Gernot Rohr has claimed that arriving late at the venue of Wednesday’s friendly clash against Czech Republic affected his team’s performance.

The three-time African champions were far from their best in the encounter which they lost 1-0 following a Tomas Kalas effort in the first half.

The players, it was learnt, arrived at the stadium late from their training base.

“I think we need to change the arrangement before the game.

We arrived only one hour before the match and we didn’t have enough to do proper warm-up,” he told reporters.

“I hope the conditions will change for everyone in future.”

The Super Eagles are now expected to concentrate on their opening Group D fixture against Croatia on June 16 at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.

John Ogu says he’s happy to play anywhere for Super Eagles to win at World Cup John Ogu has said he will be happy to fight and work hard at any position he is played for the Super Eagles to win at the World Cup. Israel-based Ogu has played at both defensive midfield and central defence for the Eagles in friendlies leading up to the World Cup.

“Any position the Manager wants me to play, I will fight and work hard as long as it is to win for my country!!” Ogu stated in a tweet.

The 29-year-old Ogu made his Eagles debut in 2013, but he did not make the final cut for Brazil 2014.

In November, he

scored his first goal for the team in a deadrubber World Cup qualifier in Algeria.

He has said he hopes his performance in Russia will earn him “a dream transfer” to England after he won the Israeli league championship for the past three seasons with Hapoel Be’er Sheva.

Coach Rohr

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

15 Times Sports

RU SSIA 2 0 1 8 WO R L D NE W S !

Argentina is easy favorite, but who else will advance from Group D

By Kevin Baxter

outstanding player of his generation.

A look at the teams that make up Group D of the Russia 2018 World Cup:

CROATIA FIFA world ranking: 18 Last World Cup: 2014 Best World Cup finish: Third place, 1998 How qualified: Beat Greece in a European playoff.

Key players: MF Luka Modric, MF Ivan Rakitic, F Mario Mandzukic It’s a fact: An unofficial national team played Croatia’s first game nearly a year before the country declared its independence in 1991, introducing the team’s iconic checkerboard jersey inspired by the country’s coat of arms.

The skinny: Croatia’s roster reads like a European all-star team, chock full of players from some of Europe’s biggest teams. Three of them played in last month’s Champions League final. The midfield alone – boasting Modric, Rakitic, Ivan Perisic, Marcelo Brozovic and Mateo Kovacic – is so good, manager Zlatko Dalic can’t get everyone on the field at the same time.

But Croatia rarely plays with a solid identity or tactical approach and that leaves it less dangerous collectively than its players are individually.

ARGENTINA FIFA world ranking: 5 Last World Cup: 2014 Best World Cup finish: Champions, 1978, 1986 How qualified: Finished third in South American qualifying tournament.

Key players: F Lionel Messi, MF Angel Di Maria, F Sergio Aguero It’s a fact: Argentina has been held scoreless for 217 consecutive minutes in its last three World Cup finals, with all three games coming against Germany.

It also lost the last two Copa America finals, both to Chile, without scoring a goal.

The skinny: Sure Argentina will field one of the deepest, most talented teams in the tournament. But the storyline surrounding La Albiceleste will be all about Lionel Messi’s pursuit of the one prize that has eluded him, a World Cup title. Messi carried Argentina to the final four years ago, winning the Golden Ball as the tournament’s outstanding player but losing the World Cup to Germany in extra time. Messi will be 31 by the final in Russia and he clearly needs more than a consolation prize if he hopes to one day be remembered as the

ICELAND FIFA world ranking: 22 Last World Cup: First appearance Best World Cup finish: First

appearance How qualified: Won European qualifying group.

Key players: MF Aron Gunnarsson, MF Gylfi Sigurosson, D Ragnar Sigurdsson It’s a fact: One-fifth of Iceland’s population reportedly requested tickets to the World Cup. The skinny: The world may be watching and cheering for Iceland, and if it is, it’s likely to nod off while doing so. Because while Iceland has the tournament’s most compelling backstory, it also has a plodding, unattractive style of play that puts as many as 10 men behind the ball.

The attack is often limited to cautious counterattacks and set pieces, on which Iceland, with as many as eight starters taller than 6 feet, is exceptional. That makes every free kick and corner kick a scoring opportunity. But Iceland can’t control the ball and if it loses possession repeatedly in its own end, defensive breakdowns are inevitable.

NIGERIA FIFA world ranking: 47 Last World Cup: 2014 Best World Cup finish: Round of 16, 2014, 1998, 1994 How qualified: Won African qualifying group.

Key players: F Kelechi Iheanacho, MF Victor Moses, F Alex Iwobi

It’s a fact: Nigeria is the only African nation that qualified for both the 2014 and 2018 World Cups.

The skinny: Nigeria’s time to shine on the world stage will come – just not now. The Super Eagles have played in five of the previous six World Cups but have never gotten past the round of 16. They may not even get that far this time. Never mind. The team has talent and pace in a young trio of Iwobi, 22; Iheanacho, 21; and 21-year-old Wilfred Ndidi, who is battling a hamstring injury. Nigeria is particularly potent

Sam Sodje warns Eagles must defend as a team to shine at World Cup

Former Nigeria international Sam Sodje has told ScoreNigeria.com.ng that Super Eagles must defend as a team in Russia if they want to excel at the FIFA World Cup 2018.

The former Portsmouth

defender said the Eagles have forgotten the basics and fundamental act of defending which can be disastrous in Russia, if not corrected and acted upon.

“If we still don’t realise that to be a successful team, to

surpass our performance in previous editions of World Cup, we need to know how important it is to defend properly and defend as a team,” he told SCORENigeria “This doesn’t come because you pick good defenders, but

this happens when you have a solid defensive coach to coach the players on how to defend properly!

“Eagles were so poor the whole game against England. They didn’t even have the very little basic of defending.

“This is a fact, not just Nigeria but a lot of teams now forget the basic fundamental defending.”

Sodje therefore tasked coach Gernot Rohr and his crew to help the young team achieve success in Russia.

“The Eagles are young, we can see their desire to do well and improve,” he said.

“I really pray and hope they do well. But they can’t give what they don’t have so hopefully the coaching crew which I was proud of how they did something about the poor start against England and got it right should help these young lads to do well in Russia.

“All the same, I am wishing the team all the best at the World Cup.”

on counters, where it is not afraid to commit numbers forward, and the players’ flair and pace make them fun to watch. Just don’t expect them to win.

SCHEDULE June 16: Argentina vs. Iceland in Moscow; Croatia vs. Nigeria in Kaliningrad.

June 21: Argentina vs. Croatia in Nizhny Novgorod; Nigeria vs. Iceland in Volgograd.

June 26: Nigeria vs. Argentina in Saint Petersburg; Iceland vs. Croatia in Rostov-on-Don

Super Eagles may need Buhari’s magical touch to excel in Russia – Perm Sec

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Youth and Sports, Adesola Olusade, says the Super Eagles may need the “magical touch’’ of President Muhamadu Buhari to excel at the upcoming FIFA World Cup. Olusade made his assertion based on the historical achievement of the Golden Eaglets at the maiden FIFA U-17 World Cup in Beijing, China, when Buhari was the Head of State.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Nduka Ugbade-captained Golden Eaglets squad, defied all odds by beating the then West Germany 2-0 to lift the trophy 33 years ago.

He added that whether by accident or design, he was hoping for another stroke of luck from Buhari to propel the Super Eagles to greater heights in Russia.

“Taking us down memory lane, in 1985 when President Buhari was the Head of State, our then Golden Eaglets went for the FIFA World Cup and won the trophy.

“Now, we have him as the President again; and another FIFA World Cup tournament is holding, it’s like he has the

magic wand and it will work for us.

“President Buhari has bid them farewell, he urged them to play clean, fair and bring back the trophy which I believe he said with faith,’’ he said.

Olusade assured Nigerians that the Super Eagles would also bank on the overwhelming support of 180 million Nigerians to propel the team to greater heights in the tournament.

NAN reports that the Super Eagles are in Group D alongside Argentina, Iceland and Croatia.

The team will open its account against Vatreni of Croatia on June 16 at the Kaliningrad Stadium, in the City of Kaliningrad.

Times Sports 16

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Hotels - L e i s u r e - TREASURES SUITES & CONFERENCES

Plot 66, 1st Avenue by Shehu Shagari Way, Central Business District, Opp Federal High Court, Abuja HOTEL INFORMATION With facilities uniquely designed to cater to guests comfort at every level, Treasure Suites is located at Plot 66, 1st Avenue by Shehu Shagari Way, Central Business District, Opposite Federal High Court, Abuja, Nigeria. It boasts business related amenities such as a business centre and 2 meeting rooms.

It features 45 rooms categorised into Suite, King Suite and Deluxe Single Room. All rooms provide conveniences such as airconditioning units, refrigerator, coffee/tea making facilities, flat screen TV with satellite reception, sofas, free bottled water, in-room safe, hair dryer, desk and a private with shower and free toiletries. Some of these rooms also have a balcony.

Complimentary breakfast is served daily between 8 AM and 11 AM. Alongside the swimming pool with pool umbrellas and sun loungers, the hotel also has a fitness centre/gym where guests can engage in workout sessions. The on-site restaurant specialises in local and continental delicious cuisine and the bar serves a variety of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks which guests can enjoy and unwind at the lounge. Free Wi-Fi and self-parking are also available at the hotel which has a tight security network. It boasts business related amenities such as a business centre and 2 meeting rooms.

Cubana Suites

Barcelona Hotels, Abuja

20 Yedseram Street, Maitama, Abuja

23 Blantyre Street, off Aminu Kano Crescent, Wuse II

HOTEL INFORMATION Cubana Suites, located at 20 Yedseram Street, Maitama, Abuja, Nigeria, is a 3-Star hotel that overlooks Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida Golf Course.

HOTEL INFORMATION Barcelona Hotels, Abuja is a 4-Star hotel located at No 23 Blantyre Street, off Aminu Kano Crescent, Wuse 2, Abuja. It is situated in the heart of town and enjoys proximity to a number of public and private owned institutions.

Cubana Suites offers rooms with modern interior decor. The rooms are equipped with tile flooring, an air conditioner, work desk, telephone, flat screen TV with cable channels, a fridge, armchairs, balcony with a view of the pool and an en-suite bathroom with toilet paper, towels and linen provided free. Categories of rooms available are Cubana Classic, Superior Deluxe, Executive Deluxe and Supreme Deluxe. It offers complimentary breakfast with an option of room service.

Continental food options are offered at the restaurant while a wide variety of non-alcoholic and alcoholic drinks can be ordered at the bar on-site. A swimming pool is also available on the premises.

Barcelona Hotels, Abuja offers a number of spacious and tastefully designed rooms which come in the categories: Standard, Superior, Executive, Executive Twin, Diplomatic, Ambassadorial, Ministerial, Barcelona, Senatorial and a Presidential Suite. Each of these rooms comes with top quality facilities such as flat-screen television with a full cable subscription, sofas, luxurious bed, wireless internet connection, luggage storage and en-suite bathroom with shower facilities.

Barcelona Hotels Abuja also offers guests banquet, event and conference halls; a rooftop sit-out with a breathtaking view of the environs; a restaurant that offers a wide range of tasty dishes plus continental breakfast; an adequate parking space; a 24-hour power supply; gym facilities; a swimming pool and guaranteed security.

Additional services rendered by the hotel on request include concierge, laundry/dry cleaning, currency exchange, express checkin/check-out, car hire, room service for limited hours, luggage storage and airport shuttle.

Cubana Suites also offers services such as 24-hour front desk, 24 hours power supply, concierge service, luggage storage, cleaning services, daily maid service, ironing service, dry cleaning/laundry service, a meeting/ banquet facility and round-the-clock security.

A cache of extra services are also available to guests and these include: an elevator, a business centre, sauna, laundry and dry cleaning services, car hire services, airport pickup, daily newspaper delivery, housekeeping, valet service, room service, lawn tennis facilities, concierge, spa, Chinese cuisines, ballroom and casino.

Interesting Places to Visit near Treasure Suites Federal High Court (1.1 km) Harrow Park (1.8 km) Turf Arena (1.5 km) Durban Neighbourhood Park (0.95 km) Silverbird Cinemas (2.0 km) DHL Express (1.8 km) The nearest airport, Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, is only 37 minutes away.

Interesting Places To Visit Near Cubana Suites Millennium Park (4.5 km) Silverbird Cinemas (5.5 km) National Mosque Abuja (5.0 km) IBB Golf Course (7.5 km) Aso Rock (7.6 km)

Places Of Interest Near Barcelona Hotels Abuja Berger flyover Federal Ministry of Finance GSM village NAFDAC Wuse market

Terms and Conditions Check-In: From 09:00 am Check-Out: Until 12:00 pm Cancellation: Cancellation policies vary according to room type.

Children: Children are permitted to stay for free.

Pets: Pets are not allowed.

Cards accepted: Visa, MasterCard, and Cash Payments only.

Terms and Conditions Check in: from 12:00pm (Identification required) Check out: from 12:00pm Pets: not allowed Payment: Cash, Cards Smoking: In designated areas.

Terms and Conditions Check In: From 12:00 PM (ID Required) Check Out: By 12:00 PM Cancellation: Cancellation policies vary according to room type.

Children: All children are allowed to stay for free.

Pets: Pets are not allowed.

Payment: Cash, Visa and MasterCard are accepted here.

FAQs

Q: Does Treasure Suites offer free Wi-Fi? A: Treasure Suites offers free Wi-Fi to all checked-in guests.

Q: Does Treasure Suites have a swimming pool?

A: There is a swimming pool in this hotel.

Q: Does Treasure Suites offer complimentary breakfast?

A: Treasure Suites offers its checked-in guests complimentary breakfast.

Q: Is there a fitness centre/gym at Treasure Suites? What type of equipment are available?

A: Yes. A modern and well-equipped gym is available at the hotel.

Q: Does Treasure Suites have a restaurant?

A: A restaurant is available at Treasure Suites.

Q: What is the check-in and check-out time at Treasure Suites?

A: Check-in and check-out hours are 12:00 PM and 12:00 PM respectively.

Q: Does Treasure Suites offer shuttle services?

A: Treasure Suites renders airport shuttle service on request.

Q: Does Treasure Suites offer car hire services?

A: Treasure Suites renders car hire service on request.

Q: Does Treasure Suites allow pets?

A: Pets are not allowed at Treasure Suites.

TREASURES SUITES is a top-class hotel in Wuse, Abuja

Grand Cubana Hotel No. 6 Ebitu Ukiwe Street, Jabi, Abuja

HOTEL INFORMATION Grand Cubana Hotel offers a budget friendly accommodation in a very scenic environment at No. 6 Ebitu Ukiwe Street, Jabi, Abuja, Nigeria. It is appropriate for both business and leisure travellers.

All rooms are fully air-conditioned and fitted with king-sized beds, flat screen TV sets with satellite reception, wardrobes, refrigerators and an en-suite bathroom. These rooms can be categorised into Alcove, Standard Deluxe, Superior Deluxe, Executive Deluxe, Business Royal, Ambassadorial, Grand and Presidential Suites.

Grand Cubana Hotel has 24hours electricity and room service is available on request. The bar and restaurant provide guests with a variety of meals and drinks. The event hall is fully equipped and appropriate for social and corporate gathering; an outdoor pool and a fitness centre are available on-site. Parking is free and security is guaranteed.

Grand Cubana Hotel has a business centre and offers additional services such as laundry/dry cleaning, concierge, luggage storage, airport pickup and car hire.

Interesting Places To Visit Near Grand Cubana Hotel Utako Motor Park (0.7km) Patsy Plaza (0.35km) O’neal Centre (1.1km) Rock of Ages Mall (2.6km) Terms and Conditions Check In: From 3:00 PM Check Out: By 12:00 PM Cancellation: Cancellation policies vary according to room type.

Children: All children are allowed to stay for free.

Pets: Pets are not allowed.

Payment: Cash, Visa and MasterCard are accepted here.

FAQs

Q: Does Grand Cubana Hotel offer free Wi-Fi? A: Grand Cubana Hotel offers free Wi-Fi to all checked in guests.

Q: Is there a fitness centre/gym at Grand Cubana Hotel? What type of equipment are available?

A: A gym is not available at the hotel.

Q: Does Grand Cubana Hotel have a swimming pool?

A: There is no swimming pool in this hotel.

Q: Does Grand Cubana Hotel have a restaurant?

A: A restaurant is available at Grand Cubana Hotel.

Q: Does Grand Cubana Hotel offer complimentary breakfast?

A: No. Guests will be charged for breakfast orders.

Grand Cubana Hotel is a budget hotel in Jabi, Abuja

FAQs

Q: Does Cubana Suites offer free Wi-Fi? A: Yes. It offers free Wi-Fi to guests.

Q: Does Cubana Suites have a swimming pool?

A: Yes. It has a swimming pool.

Q: Does Cubana Suites offer complimentary breakfast?

A: No. It does not offer complimentary breakfast.

Q: Is there a fitness centre/gym at Cubana Suites?

A: Yes. It has a fitness centre/gym.

Q: Does Cubana Suites have a restaurant?

A: It has a restaurant with delicious delicacies.

Q: Does Cubana Suites have on-site parking? Is it free?

A: Yes. It is free.

Q: Does Cubana Suites offer airport pickup or shuttle services?

A: No. It does not offer airport pick-up/ shuttle services.

Q: Does Cubana Suites allow smoking in rooms?

A: No. It disallows smoking in rooms.

Q: Does Cubana Suites have an event centre/conference rooms?

A: Yes, It has an event centre.

Q: Does Cubana Suites accept cash, cheques, cards and bank transfers?

A: It accepts cards and cash.

Q: Does Cubana Suites have hair dryers?

A: No. It does not provide hair dryers.

Cubana Suites is a top-class hotel in Maitama, Abuja

HOTEL INFORMATION Sandralia Hotel is a high-class hotel in Abuja offering a mixture of luxury, elegance and comfort.

This hotel offers free Wi-Fi, adequate parking space and it’s situated at 1, Solomon Jabi, Abuja, Nigeria.

L a r

Way,

Sandralia Hotel gives guests the opportunity to experience the Piano Lounge. The Piano Lounge is a trendy and stylish bar offering an eclectic and original cocktails and drinks list with an accompanying menu of light bites. You can listen to beautiful Nigerian and international music every Monday to Friday from 9:00 PM to 1:30 AM performed by the hotel’s in-house band.

The conference rooms and facilities can accommodate any business or social event, from an intimate luncheon or a sumptuous reception to an executive meeting, with space to accommodate up to 300 persons for meetings and receptions. The restaurant offers a wide variety of a la carte and buffet services for both African and international cuisine at affordable prices. Furthermore, highly trained professional staffs are always on ground to give guests the best of hospitality services. The hotel also features a well-equipped gym for guests who fancy workout and body fitness exercises, a swimming pool for guests to take a relaxing dip in. An outdoor tennis court and playground are available on-site.

Additional services such as airport shuttle, laundry/dry cleaning, car hire, 24-hour room service, ironing and concierge, can be rendered by the hotel on request.

Q: Is there a swimming pool at Barcelona Hotels Abuja?

A: There is an availability of an outdoor pool for guests to utilise at Barcelona Hotels Abuja.

Q: Are there fitness facilities at Barcelona Hotels Abuja?

A: There are fitness facilities plus a well-equipped gym at Barcelona Hotels Abuja.

Q: Is there an internet facility at Barcelona Hotels Abuja?

A: Yes. It offers free Wi-Fi in each room category.

HOTEL INFORMATION The Missouri Hotel is located at No 8, Missouri Street, off Colorado close Minister’s Hill., Abuja, Nigeria. It is one of the luxury hotels in Abuja with its dynamic blend of artistry and elegance. The staff guarantee a warm reception. The Missouri Hotel is close to Millennium Park and National Mosque, Abuja. It is an 11-minute drive from Shoprite and 38 minutes from Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport.

All the rooms at The Missouri are uniquely and stylishly designed to the guests taste. Each room is air-conditioned, fitted with an ornate Persian rug, a flat-screen TV with satellite channels, armchairs, sofa and an en-suite bathroom. Tea/Coffee facilities are available in the rooms.

Complimentary high-speed Wi-Fi is available to all guests. A variety of dishes with buffet options and drinks can be ordered at the on-site restaurant and outdoor bar. Special diet menu is available on request. The dining room is available.

The Missouri Hotel has a beautiful garden where guests can relax. The hotel offers airport shuttle at an extra charge. Dry cleaning, room service, 24 hours front desk service and car hire services are rendered. There are designated smoking areas. Concierge services are rendered.

Interesting Places to visit near The Missouri Hotel Millenium Park (11 min) Shoprite (13 min) Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport (38 min) National Mosque (12 min) National Stadium (13 min)

Interesting Places to Visit near Sandralia Hotel National Mosque (11.7 km) Magic Land (16.3 km) Abuja Stadium (10.9 km) National Hospital (9.9 km) Federal Secretariat (10.2 km) Millennium Park (10.8 km) The Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport is only 10 minutes away.

Terms and Conditions Check in - From 12:00 pm (ID required) Check out - By 12:00 pm Payment - Cash, MasterCard, Visa accepted Cancellation - Cancellation policies vary with room type.

Pets - Not Allowed Children - Babies and Kids under 10 stay free.

Please note that non-refundable rates can only be booked via card prepayments and reservations made on these rates cannot be refunded.

Terms and Conditions Check-In: From 2:00 PM (ID Required) Check-Out: By 12:00 PM Cancellation: Cancellation policies vary according to room type.

Children: All children not older than 2 are allowed to stay free.

Pets: Pets are not allowed.

Payment: Cash, Visa and MasterCard are accepted here.

FAQs

Q: Does Barcelona Hotels Abuja offer shuttle services?

A: Yes. It offers such services.

8, Missouri street, off Colorado close Minister’s Hill.

It is equipped with 102 tastefully furnished rooms categorised into Superior Room, Deluxe Room, Executive Room and Suites. These rooms are designed with modern in-room amenities such as premium beddings, air-conditioning units, tea/coffee making facilities, flat screen TV with satellite channels, mini bar, work desks, plush sofas, ornate lampshades and an en-suite bathroom with free toiletries.

Q: Does Sandralia Hotel offer free Wi-Fi? A: Sandralia Hotel offers free Wi-Fi to all checked-in guests.

Q: Does Sandralia Hotel have a swimming pool?

A: There is a standard outdoor swimming pool in this hotel.

Q: Does Sandralia Hotel offer complimentary breakfast?

A: No. Guests will be charged for breakfast orders.

Q: Is there a fitness centre/gym at Sandralia Hotel? What type of equipment are available?

A: Yes. A modern and well-equipped gym is available at the hotel.

FAQs Q: Is there an event hall at Barcelona Hotels Abuja?

A: Yes, there is a well-equipped and spacious event hall at Barcelona Hotels Abuja.

The Missouri Hotel

No 1. Solomon Lar way, Jabi

Q: Does Sandralia Hotel have a restaurant?

A: A restaurant is available at Sandralia Hotel.

Q: What is the check-in and check-out time at Sandralia Hotel?

A: Check-in and check-out hours are between 2:00 PM and 12:00 PM. Q: Does Sandralia Hotel offer shuttle services?

A: Sandralia Hotel provides an airport shuttle on request.

Q: Does Sandralia Hotel offer car hire services?

A: Sandralia Hotel renders car hire service on request.

Sandralia Hotel is a luxury hotel in Jabi, Abuja.

FAQs

Q: Does The Missouri Hotel offer free Wi-Fi? A: Yes. It offers free Wi-Fi to each guest.

Q: Does The Missouri Hotel have a swimming pool?

A: No. It does not have a swimming pool.

Q: Does The Missouri Hotel offer complimentary breakfast?

A: No. It does not offer complimentary breakfast.

Q: Is there a fitness centre/gym at The Missouri Hotel?

A: No. It does not have a fitness centre/gym.

To u r s

Afri Hotels

Plot 281 Herbert Macaulay Way, Opposite National Defense College HOTEL INFORMATION Situated at Plot 281 Herbert Macaulay Way, Opposite National Defense College Afri Hotel Abuja is a citadel of excellence and homeliness. Its location sets it strategically between various places of interest like Millennium Park and other businesses.

The rooms at Afri Hotel come in a wide variety of choices. They include: Afri Standard, Royal, Deluxe, Ambassador, Super Diplomat, Luxury Suite, Exotic and Executive. Each of the 100 room is fitted with top class features such as television sets with satellite channels, a microwave (on request), refrigerators with free bottled water, work tables and chairs, air conditioners, private bathrooms, free toiletries, and hair dryer.

Free continental breakfast is served daily to guests at Afri Hotel. The on-site restaurant serves well prepared and tasty meals and of course you can relax in the lounge after a stressful day. The in-house barbeque grills and coffee shop are stocked to suit the guests looking for variety in their cuisine.

Guest at the Afri Hotel may also make use of the outdoor pool for a relaxing swim or simply enjoy the on-site bar/lounge and terrace. A Gym/Fitness centre is available for those looking to stay in shape and keep fit. There is also a business centre and free Wi-Fi access is available throughout the premises. For guests interested in holding meets, office retreats and other cooperate events, the conference centre at Afri Hotel is available and well equipped to meet those needs.

Afri Hotel also provides a variety of other services such as airport shuttle, 24-hour front desk & room service, daily housekeeping, laundry service, concierge service, free newspapers in the lobby, luggage storage, porter/bellhop, for the comfort of its guests. The hotel complex comes with various levels of security with a presence of professional security guards. Parking at the hotel premises is safe and free.

Interesting Places to Visit Near Afri Hotel Nigerian National Mosque (2 km) National Hospital Abuja (3.1 km) Federal Secretariat (3.2 km) National Assembly (3.9 km) Millennium Park (4 km)

BARCELONA HOTELS is a top-class hotel in Wuse 2, Abuja.

Sandralia Hotel

17 Times Sports

Q: Does The Missouri Hotel have a restaurant?

A: It has a restaurant with delicious delicacies.

Q: Does The Missouri Hotel have on-site parking? Is it free?

A: Yes. It is free.

Q: Does The Missouri Hotel offer airport pickup or shuttle services?

A: Yes. It offers airport pick-up/shuttle services.

Q: Does The Missouri Hotel allow smoking in rooms?

A: Yes. It has designated smoking area.

The Missouri Hotel iis a top-class hotel in Maitama, Abuja

Terms and Conditions Check-in : From 7:00am Check-out: At 12:00pm Payment: Card, cash deposit required at check-in Government-issued photo ID required at check-in Minimum check-in age is 18 Pets: Max is 2 pets per room Children: Cribs/infant beds available at a surcharge Rollaway/extra beds available at a surcharge Guests must contact the property in advance to reserve a crib (infant bed)/rollaway bed

FAQs

Q: Does Afri Hotel offer free Wi-Fi? A: Yes, Wi-Fi is available and for free Q: Does Afri Hotel have a pool?

A: Yes, a pool is available at the hotel.

Q: Does Afri Hotel have a restaurant?

A: Yes, a restaurant is available onsite.

Q: Does Afri Hotel have onsite parking? Is it free?

A: Yes, self-parking is available/free.

Q: Does Afri Hotel offer airport pickup or shuttle services?

A: Yes, airport shuttle services are available.

Q: Does Afri Hotel have an event centre/conference rooms?

A: Yes, an event centre and conference rooms are available.

Q: Does Afri Hotel offer room service? What are the hours?

A: Yes, 24-hour room service is available at the hotel.

Q: Does Afri Hotel allow pets?

A: Yes, pets are allowed at the hotel. A maximum of 2 pets per room Q: Does Afri Hotel have cribs?

A: Yes, cribs are available at a surcharge.

Q: Does Afri Hotel have irons?

A: No, irons are not provided in the rooms.

Afri Hotels is an affordable hotel in Central Business District, Abuja

Kryxtal Suites 120, Aminu Kano Crescent, Wuse 2 HOTEL INFORMATION Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2, is an exclusive boutique hotel located opposite GLOBACOM Headquarters in Abuja and a few seconds from KFC. This hotel is very well appointed and its one of the reference points in the Wuse area of Abuja for visitors and Abuja residents.

It is situated at 120, Aminu Kano Crescent, Opposite Glo Office, Wuse 2, Abuja, Nigeria.

Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 has 20 exclusive spacious bedrooms categorised into Classic, Deluxe and Superior. Each room is very well fitted with exceptional facilities such as air-conditioning units, flat-screen TV with international channels, a reading/dressing table and an en-suite bathroom with slippers and free toiletries.

Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 has some awesome facilities such as free Wi-Fi available throughout the hotel, uninterrupted power supply, a 24-hour front desk service, and a restaurant and bar where guests can order from a wide range of meals and drinks. Free private parking space is also available within the hotel complex and it’s well guarded by security personnel. It has a banquet hall/meeting rooms for various meetings, conferences and events.

Laundry/dry cleaning, car hire, airport shuttle, a 24-hour room service, safety deposit boxes, luggage storage and concierge are made available on request. An ATM is available on-site Interesting Places near Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 Cameroon Embassy (2 km) Afro-Asia Garden (0.4 km) Ecowas Court (0.7 km) City Park (0.6 km) Globacom Office KFC The nearest airport to the hotel is the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport which is about 23 km away.

Terms and Conditions Check In: From 12:00 PM (ID Required) Check Out: By 12:00 PM Cancellation: Cancellation policies vary according to room type.

Children: All children not older than 12 are allowed to stay for free.

Pets: Pets are not allowed.

Payment: Cash, Visa and MasterCard are accepted here.

FAQs

Q: Does Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 offer free Wi-Fi? A: Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 offers free Wi-Fi to all checked-in guests.

Q: Does Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 have a restaurant?

A: A restaurant is available at Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2.

Q: Does Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 have a swimming pool?

A: There is no swimming pool in this hotel.

Q: What is the check-in and check-out time at Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2?

A: Check-in and check-out hours are between 12:00 PM and 12:00 PM

Q: Does Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 offer complimentary breakfast?

A: No. Guests will be charged for breakfast orders.

Q: Does Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 offer shuttle services?

A: Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 renders airport shuttle service on request.

Q: Is there a fitness centre/gym at Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2? What type of equipment are available?

A: No. A gym is not available at the hotel.

Q: Does Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 offer car hire services?

A: Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 renders car hire service on request.

Kryxtal Suites Wuse 2 is a budget hotel in Wuse 2, Abuja

Times Sports 18

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

AYG: Wushu Kung-fu coach expresses delight with sport’s inclusion Ojo Adelusi, National Coach, Nigeria Wushu Kung-fu Federation (NWKF), has expressed delight with the inclusion of the sport in the 2018 African Youth Games (NYG) in Algiers, Algeria.

Adelusi told reporters on Friday in Lagos that it was a dream come through and described it as a positive development for the practitioners.

Our correspondent reports that Sheriff Mostafa, President of African Wushu Kung-fu Federation (AWKF), announced that Wushu has been accepted as an official sport in the 2018 AYG from July 18 to July 28.

He said the Solomon Dalung-led Ministry of Youth and Sports had taken the advantage to consider Wushu as part of sports that the nation would feature in at the Games.

“We have overcome one of our major challenges since the beginning of the AYG, I am glad that wushu sport has been given official recognition as an event at the forthcoming AYG.

“Our appreciation goes to the sports minister for ensuring that we join other African countries to book a place in the newly introduced Wushu sport at the Games.

“The jinx of limitations of our young athletes to compete at the AYG have been broken, they will have greater opportunities of exposure and improvement in the sport,’’ he said.

He noted that the sport had lots of medal chances due to the multi-events and categories in the Sanshuo and Taolu usually at stake in standard championships.

According to him, the participation of the nation’s athletes in the sport would go a long way to boost the medal hauls of Team Nigeria at the Games.

“Now, Nigeria’s medal table is going to increase because Wushu has lots of medal opportunities which is going to be the target of athletes that are going to compete,’’ he added.

Wushu Kungfu is a martial art which originated from China.

Parker vs Whyte in heavyweight fight in London on July 28

Eddie Hearn: Joshua-Wilder deal may get done, but might not be next

Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn says that he believes a deal to put Anthony Joshua in with Deontay Wilder is coming soon, but that it still may not be their next fight, as WBA mandatory challenger Alexander Povetkin is also “very close” to a done deal.

Personally, I think Hearn would be a bit nuts to put Joshua (21-0, 20 KO) in

with Povetkin (34-1, 23 KO) if he can get a deal done with Wilder (40-0, 39 KO).

Yes, Joshua would be the favorite against the Russian veteran, but a lot crazier things have happened in the history of boxing than Alexander Povetkin upsetting Anthony Joshua. I know it’s a mandatory, but every step of the way they’ve talked like that could be

put off with an exception to face Wilder first. If you can get Joshua-Wilder done, I think you have to pull the trigger on that and put other fights aside.

Now if that’s not possible, if the WBA won’t allow an exception, then sure, Joshua doesn’t want to give up his belt.

One of the selling points of JoshuaWilder, after all, is that it would be a full unification of the heavyweight division.

Ghana to dissolve football association over bribery allegations Ghana has decided to dissolve its national football association a day after officials, including the body’s president, were shown in a documentary taking kickbacks, Information Minister Mustapha Abdul-Hamid said on Thursday.

The two-hour documentary, “When Greed and Corruption Become the Norm’’, by undercover journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas, was provided to the authorities last month before being screened in public

for the first time on Wednesday.

Association President Kwesi Nyantakyi did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

The Football Association said it would cooperate with any investigation.

Germany’s Mesut Ozil doubtful for World Cup Germany playmaker Mesut Ozil is reportedly facing a race against time to be fit for this summer’s World Cup. The Arsenal midfielder scored the opening goal during Germany’s friendly defeat to Austria on Saturday, but was forced off 14 minutes from time after picking up a knee injury during a challenge with Watford defender Sebastian Prodl.

German publication Bild reports that Ozil has not returned to full training since the incident, instead being limited to fitness and conditioning work.

The 29-year-old missed the final seven Premier League games of the season due to various injuries, and is now not expected to feature in Germany’s final warm-up game against Saudi Arabia on Friday.

The defending champions get their World Cup campaign underway against Mexico in 10 days’ time, leaving Ozil as a doubt for the opening stages of the tournament.

Ozil has won 90 caps for Germany and was part of the team which lifted the trophy in Brazil four years ago.

Dillian Whyte says Joseph Parker blew his “big moment” against Anthony Joshua and hopes he leaves his “running shoes” at home when they fight on July 28 in London.

The heavyweight contenders hope victory at the O2 Arena will secure either a rematch against Joshua or a fight with WBC champion Deontay Wilder, even though the division’s two highest-profile fighters remain in discussions about a fight of their own.

Parker (24-1, 18 KO) conceded the WBO title to Joshua when in March he was outpointed in Cardiff while fighting largely on the back foot.

The aggressive Whyte (23-1, 17 KO), who was stopped by Joshua in December 2015 in a far more bruising fight, believes it is something he will regret.

“He had his big moment, and he didn’t do enough,” Whyte said.

“It was after five, six rounds, he knew he was losing on points, he knew he was in another man’s country, he knew (Joshua) was the champion, so you think, ‘Throw caution to the wind and go for it.’

He didn’t do that.

“Joseph Parker will be hungry, motivated. I just hope he leaves his running shoes at home and comes to fight.

“Massive respect to him - he had his moments versus Joshua, he could have had a couple of easy fights, but he wants a challenge. It’s a big mistake.”

Since losing to Joshua for the British title, Whyte has repaired his standing with seven straight wins, including knocking out unbeaten Australian Lucas Browne in March.

Following his own first professional defeat, Parker has taken the unusual step of accepting a risky fight.

“I feel it’s a great time to come back,” the New Zealander said.

“Credit to Dillian and myself for putting our hands up to fight each other. He looked tremendous in his last fight (against Browne); he said he wants a war, let’s make it happen.”

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Harry Kane: Tottenham striker signs new contract until 2024 England captain Harry Kane has signed a new six-year contract with Tottenham Hotspur until 2024.

Striker Kane, 24, scored 30 Premier League goals as Spurs finished third in the table last season and is about to lead England at the World Cup. He recently became Tottenham’s leading scorer in the Premier League era.

Kane’s previous contract, which was announced in December 2016 and was reportedly worth more than £100,000 a week, had been due to expire in 2022.

In May, Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino signed a new five-year deal, keeping him at the north London club until 2023.

Kane finished 2017 as the year’s top goalscorer in European football with 56 goals for club and country.

He broke former England captain Alan Shearer’s record for the most Premier League goals scored in a calendar year, netting 39.

Mario Balotelli urged to join Marseille

Florian Thauvin is excited by the prospect of playing with “one of the best in the world” in Mario Balotelli and urged the Italian to join him at Marseille.

After a difficult couple of years at Liverpool and AC Milan, Balotelli surprised many by joining Ligue 1 side Nice ahead of the 2016-17 season.

In France, Balotelli has gone some way to rediscovering his best form, scoring 33 times across two Ligue 1 seasons and he looks set to move on once again, with his contract about to expire.

Although Balotelli is expected to return to Serie A, Marseille coach Rudi Garcia expressed his admiration for the striker at the end of May and Thauvin has echoed his manager’s words.

“I spoke for a few seconds with Mario Balotelli during half time against Italy,” Thauvin told reporters.

“Of course, it would be a pleasure if Mario Balotelli joins us at Marseille. He is a really great striker.

“For me, he is one of the best in the world when he is at his best. Of course, it would be a pleasure to have him with us at Marseille and we are waiting for him.”

19 Times Sports

CHAN Eagles star Atuloma proud to be father for first time CHAN Eagles midfielder, Emeka Atuloma has told Scorenigeria.com.ng he is proud to be a father after his wife, Oluebube Gold Atuloma, delivered a bouncing baby girl on Monday.

“I couldn’t be any happier”, Atuloma said excitedly.

“The birth of my daughter, Favour, makes me happy and I’m now a proud father.

“Both mother and daughter are doing good. I am grateful to God almighty”.

The Rivers United man said the birth of Favour is a sign of better things to come

to his life and family.

Following a decent performance at the 2018 Championship for African Nations, CHAN, concluded in Morocco earlier this year, Atuloma has become a transfer target for several Europe clubs.

His intermediary and elder brother, Chimaobi Atuloma, informed Scorenigeria.com. ng they have narrowed their options to two clubs.

“We’re in talks with two clubs right now so in the coming weeks, we will see how things will span out”, he said.

World Cup restrictions weigh heavy on ordinary Russians Keen to prevent a repeat of ugly scenes from previous tournaments, authorities in Russia have imposed draconian measures during the World Cup, cracking down on everything from alcohol to kebabs.

Here are some of the new restrictions that affect Russians as well as international fans during the tournament, which runs from June 14 to July 15.

– Sale of alcohol – On matchdays and the day before, the sale of alcoholic drinks and all drinks in glass bottles will be banned in fan zones, around stadiums and in other busy locations such as parks and railway stations in host cities.

The authorities also intend to revive the Soviet institution of drunk tanks, run by the police, where drunk fans will be taken to sober up.

– Registering with police – Both foreigners and Russians who travel to one of the World Cup host cities will have to register with police within 3 days of arrival, displaying proof of identity and showing they have accommodation.

Previously, Russians were only supposed to register with police if they stayed in another city for more than 90 days. In any case, these rules had rarely been implemented in recent years.

Foreigners who travel to several of the 11 host cities and stay in each for more than 3 days will have to register multiple times.

While hotels will organise registration, this is more complex for those renting private flats with the owner expected to register them.

Some journalists covering the World Cup have already had problems after failing to register in time on arrival.

– Crackdown on protests –

A decree signed by President Vladimir Putin drastically curtails the rights of Russians to hold protests during the World Cup. Public events unconnected to sport can only be held in certain places and at times approved by the authorities.

For example in the city of Yekaterinburg in the Urals, demonstrations must not involve more than 100 people and can only be held between 2 and 4 pm.

Music festivals planned for this summer in Russia have also had to move their dates to after the World Cup. – Sightseeing – While prices for hotel rooms and rented flats have soared, the authorities have also decided to squeeze out organised tours, which are particularly popular with Russians.

Coaches of sightseers will be banned from entering host cities and pleasure boats will not be allowed to sail on their rivers.

The authorities have identified 41 locations over which all of types of flights will be banned during the World Cup, while the use of drones is banned in an 100-kilometre

radius around the host cities.

A special army squadron will be deployed to set up electronic jamming around stadiums.

In Moscow, known for its snarled traffic, as well as in other big cities, some streets in the centre and near stadiums will be closed, risking further jams.

The mayor of Kaliningrad, one of the host cities, has even urged residents to leave the city and have a relaxing break in the countryside during the matches.

– Barbecue ban – Already hit by sanctions banning European meat and other foods, Russians will now find it harder to fire up barbecues to grill their beloved kebabs (known as shashlik).

Due to forest fires that have spread over large areas this summer, particularly in Siberia, the authorities have ordered tougher restrictions on lighting fires outdoors during the World Cup. The rules to be implemented by the host cities call for bans on campfires, setting fire to grass and cooking meat al fresco in areas that lack special facilities.

Winter break for Premier League clubs in February from 2019-20

Premier League clubs will have a winter break in February from the 2019-20 season.

The break will be staggered across two weeks, with five matches on the first weekend and five the following weekend.

The FA Cup fifth round will be moved to midweek to accommodate the break, with replays being scrapped at that stage.

The Football Association described it as “a significant moment for English football” that “will greatly benefit club and country”.

“It’s no secret that we have a very congested fixture calendar and over recent years we have been working with the whole game to find a solution,” said FA chief executive Martin Glenn.

All three divisions of the English Football League (EFL) will remain unchanged, with a full programme of fixtures taking place on each of the weekends where there is a break.

‘We play too many games’ - the players Almost 90% of players questioned in a recent survey

by Fifpro said they wanted a mid-season break, with an average preference of two weeks.

The world players’ union surveyed 543 players from clubs in some of Europe’s biggest leagues, including England, France, Germany

and Italy.

Nearly half of national team footballers who play in 50 or more matches a season said they felt they played “too many” games.

Winter breaks are already factored into schedules of the top leagues in Germany, France, Italy and Spain, though they all take place between December and January, which is the busiest period for Premier League teams.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said in January that the festive schedule was “killing” his players, while earlier in the 2017-18 season his Manchester United counterpart Jose Mourinho said the lack of a break was hampering English clubs’ hopes in the Champions League.

However, former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger once said he would “cry” if a winter break was introduced.

The Gunners played six games in 19 days during the festive period last season, the Frenchman’s final one in charge.

The 2019-20 will be a season of even more change following the announcement that Amazon will show 20 Premier League matches a season for three years from 2019 after winning one of the final two broadcast packages.

The other unsold package of 20 games was bought by BT Sport for £90m.

20

TIMES SPORTS

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Polish super fan, 78, heads to his 11th World Cup

Dressed in a patriotic red and white suit and a golden crown adorned with small footballs, Andrzej Bobowski is getting ready to attend his 11th soccer World Cup in Russia.

The 78-year-old Poland fan has been to every World Cup since 1978, even when his own national team did not qualify.

There are no such worries this time, though, “I actually dreamt that we’ll play in the final against Russia.

“I am going to attend the first match with Senegal at Spartak stadium. Then I fly to Kazan … then to Volgograd,” he said.

Well-known at home as “king of Polish fans”, Bobowski, nicknamed Bobo, said he had been told by fans he has met at previous tournaments to expect a “royal welcome” in Kazan.

The former builder, who also supports the Polish club champions Legia Warszawa, has seen 135 World Cup games since he headed to Argentina in 1978 with a ticket bought by his wife.

Since then, he has married again and even at 78, does not baulk at making the complex travel arrangements for two people.

“I worked out my routes using the internet: first – where I land, second the hotel, third how to get to the stadium from the hotel,” he said.

He said his outfits are already prepared.

For day wear, he has a T-shirt with the contest’s emblem on the front.

He also has a list of all the World Cups he has attended on the back – with a question mark for Qatar in 2022.

For the matches, he will wear an appropriately regal coat in Poland’s red-and-white, with its white-eagle crest on the back.

The coat, made by a local theatre company, has a white furry collar and cuffs with a motif of small footballs.

Under the coat will be a white tail-coat, red shirt, red bow tie and red trousers.

And on his head, above the mandatory scarf, a soft golden crown, decorated with badges from the tournaments he has attended, and emblazoned with the slogan “King of Polish fans”.

Juan Martin del Potro has ‘nothing to lose’ against ‘king of clay’ Rafael Nadal

Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro said that he will have “nothing to lose” in his French Open semi-final clash with Rafael Nadal on Friday, after not even knowing whether he would play in the days before the tournament.

The former US Open champion, who almost retired from the sport two years ago after persistent wrist injuries, had said he would make a “last-minute decision” on his Roland Garros participation after suffering a leg injury at the Rome Masters.

But fast-forward 12 days and the affable Del Potro is preparing to take on 10-time champion Nadal in his first French Open semi-final since 2009.

The enormity of the situation clearly dawned on him after beating Marin Cilic in the quarterfinals on Thursday, as he sobbed tears of joy at

the side of the court.

“I’m feeling so, so happy to make the right decision to play here. I am doing well,” he said after edging out third seed Cilic 7-6 (7/5), 5-7, 6-3, 7-5.

“I came here without big expectations, just seeing how my body feels match by match.

“Now I’m (in the) semi-finals, which means something great to me. So I have nothing to lose tomorrow. We’ll see what can I do against the king of clay.”

The fifth seed, who stunned Roger Federer to win the 2009 US Open at the age of 20, said he never imagined that the likes of the 20-time Grand Slam champion and Nadal would still be standing in his path at major tournaments almost a decade later.

“I thought that after nine years I will play a

St. Jude Classic: Phil Mickelson & Brooks Koepka trail first round leader Seamus Power by one shot in Memphis

Phil Mickelson and US Open champion Brooks Koepka trail Irish leader Seamus Power by one shot after the first round of the St. Jude Classic in Tennessee.

Mickelson and Koepka are among a group of 11 players on four under par after rounds of 66 at TPC Southwind.

Power, who went to university in Tennessee, had six birdies and one bogey in his 65.

World number two Dustin Johnson is just a shot further adrift after a round of 67, which included a chip-in birdie.

Johnson holed a wedge from the edge of a water hazard on the par-four 12th after removing his right shoe and sock to take his stance in muddy water.

“I actually didn’t hit it very well and got lucky and it went in the hole,” he said.

Mickelson will again try to complete the career Grand Slam at Shinecock Hills next week after six runners-up finishes at the US Open.

The 47-year-old, who won The Open in 2013 to add to his PGA Championship and three Masters titles, said: “I had a nice simple round going and then I missed the last four fairways.

“I finished the round off, even though I didn’t quite have it there at the end, I was able to gather myself and control my thoughts a little bit better.”

Koepka, who has missed a lot of this season with a wrist injury, conceded “I didn’t play well at all,” adding he was “all over the place”.

“I’m a good putter. I just need to figure out everything else.”

different one, not Rafa or Roger,” he added.

“But all my semi-finals in Grand Slams were against them. The last one in US Open I lost against Rafa.

In Wimbledon I lost against (Novak) Djokovic. Here with Federer.

“It’s amazing for the tennis, the tennis world.”

Del Potro will be playing in a Grand Slam semi-final for the fifth time when he steps onto Court Philippe Chatrier, with a place in the final against either surprise package Marco Cecchinato or Dominic Thiem up for grabs.

But reaching such heady heights would have seemed a long way off when he started his 2016 season ranked outside the world’s top 1,000.

“Everybody knows that I was close to quitting this sport two years ago, but then I, for one reason, I never give up,” said Del Potro.

“And I have been trying and trying every day to fix my problem in my wrist. And in the end, I got it, and now I’m having a great present, looking forward for the future.”

Nadal has never failed to win the title when reaching the last four at Roland Garros, but knows that Del Potro, who he has lost to five times, is a dangerous opponent.

“Del Potro has achieved great victories this year. He has fantastic potential,” said the 16-time Grand Slam champion.

“I have to play aggressively. If I play

defensively and I don’t take intensity, I will be lost.”

– Cecchinato has ‘lots in his favour’ – World number 72 Cecchinato stunned Roland Garros on Tuesday by following up his surprise wins over top-10 seeds David Goffin and Pablo Carreno Busta with a breathtaking victory against 12-time major champion Djokovic.

The Italian, who had never won a Grand Slam match before the tournament, faces seventh seed Thiem in the last four.

Gustavo Kuerten clinched the first of his three French Open crowns as a little-known 66th-ranked Brazilian in 1997.

“It’s kind of the same run. The advantage, of course, is you play (with) nothing to lose,” said Kuerten, who went on to become the world number one.

“You know, you have a lot in (your) favour. And the lack of experience and knowledge of being on these last rounds, that’s always the risk. But I think he’s very enthusiastic.”

But Austrian Thiem will see this as a fantastic opportunity to reach a maiden Grand Slam final, after losing to Djokovic and Nadal at the semifinal stage in each of the last two years in Paris.

“I think for me it’s time to move on to make a great step, because I’m turning 25 (in September). I’m not that young anymore.”

Dina Asher-Smith sets new British 100m record at Diamond League Bislett Games Dina Asher-Smith broke her own British 100m record with a run of 10.92 seconds at the Diamond League meeting in Oslo.

The 22-year-old, who set the previous national mark of 10.99 as a teenager in 2015, was narrowly denied victory by Ivory Coast’s Murielle Ahoure.

“I’m over the moon, to get the British record is amazing,” she said.

Earlier, Scotland’s Chris O’Hare set his season’s best in winning the 1500m - a race outside Diamond League classification.

The 27-year-old Scot came home in three minutes 35,96 seconds.

Asher-Smith’s performance will raise expectations for August’s European Championships in Berlin and a possible showdown with defending champion Dafne Schippers.

The Londoner was fourth in the 200m at the World Championship

in London last summer despite her season being seriously disrupted by a broken foot.

She did not compete in the 100m at April’s Commonwealth Games, taking bronze in the 200m instead.

However, she looked sharp over the shorter distance at the Bislett Games in Norway, finishing well clear of Trinidad and Tobago’s Commonwealth Games 100m champion Michelle-Lee Ahye.

“I’m so happy with how the race went,” Asher-Smith added.

“This year is all about focusing on the European Championships in Berlin in August. I’m free from university now so I can really focus on my racing.”

Elsewhere, compatriot Adam Gemili came home fourth in the 200m in a season’s best 20.21, while South African world and Olympic champion Caster Semenya cruised to victory in the 800m.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

21 Change of Names

Landlady, 58, charged for stealing tenant’s valuables worth N139,000 A 58-year-old landlady, Mariam Abdullahi, was on Friday brought before an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court for allegedly burgling her tenant’s apartment to steal valuables and cash totaling N139,000.

The accused is facing a two-count charge of burglary and stealing before Magistrate F.F. George.

Abdullahi, who resides at IyanaIyesi, Ogun, however, pleaded not guilty, and was admitted to a bail of

N250,000 with two sureties in like sum.

George said that the sureties should be gainfully employed, and also show evidence of two years tax payment to the Lagos State Government.

The prosecutor, Sgt. Godwin Awase, told the court that the accused committed the offences on March 10 at Capitol Road, Agege in Lagos State.

He said that the accused broke

ciTy of lighT minisTry inTernaTional

The general public is hereby informed ThaT The above-named minisTry has applied To The corporaTe affairs commission for regisTraTion under parT “c” of The companies and allied maTTers acT of 1990.

The TrusTees are: 1 ayang emmanuel eKpor senior pasTor 2. emmanuel nebechi vicToria 3. achu chrisTian aims & obJecTive 1. To preach The gospel of our lord Jesus chrisT. 2.

To organize , convene summiT, conferences, crusades, convenTion seminars, meeTings, dialogue and seminars in nigeria on peace and reconciliaTion and in oTher parTs of The World. . any obJecTion To The regisTraTion should be forWarded To The regisTrar general, corporaTe affairs commission, ploT 420 Tigris crescenT, off aguiyi ironsi sTreeT maiTama, abuJa WiThin 28 days of This publicaTion. signed: ayang emmanuel eKpor (snr- pasTor)

Joseph uWem

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agWu chiKaodiri

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emmanuel faiThful

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mrs ambrose nandaK

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pasTor (mrs) Joseph chinWe

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oKechuKWu ezenWa

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eTTah felicia

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oKoJie -eze blessing

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into the one-room apartment already rented out to one Miss Blessing Nwakibu, to steal her valuables and cash totaling N139, 000.

“When Abdullahi rented out the apartment to Nwakibu, the accused gave the complainant a pair of the key to the room.

“The Accused retained the duplicate, claiming some of her belongings were still in the room.

“When the complainant entered

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uche onyediKachi

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the room few days after packing in, she discovered that the accused had already packed her remaining belongings.

“She also discovered that her own property had been stolen.

“The accused stole six pieces of wrappers, five pairs of shoes, three pairs of sandals, three pairs of slippers, all valued at N132,000, and a N7,000-cash, all totaling N139,000.

“The case was reported at the

gifT ese

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confirmaTion of name

police station which led to the arrest of the accused,” the prosecutor said.

The prosecutor said that the offences contravened Sections 287 and 307 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015 (Revised).

Section 287 attracts three years’ jail term for stealing, while Section 307 prescribes seven years for burglary.

The case was adjourned until June 26 for mention.

Kazeem olanreWaJu

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ariyibi balKis

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eJarogan shammah

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ude chrisTiana

BENJAMIN ABIGAIL ODUFA

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mrs Kareem remileKun

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free space

BENJAMIN ABIGAIL ODUFA, OF NO 24 FIELD BASE SECOND GATE SULEJA, OF THE ABOVE NAMED AND ADDRESS IS THE SAME PERSON BEING BENJAMIN ABIGAIL OSIOSE, AS IT WAS WRONGLY TYPED ON MY ACCOUNT NAME AND BVN, THAT FROM NOW HENCE FORTH WISH TO BE KNOWN AND CALLED BENJAMIN ABIGAIL ODUFA. GENERAL PUBLIC TAKE NOTE.

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eJarogan shammah

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free space

22

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

For the Record

Buhari is planning to arrest me – Obasanjo

Buhari and Obasanjo

Since Chief Olusegun Obasanjo declared in his State-of-the-Nation Special Statement on January 23, 2018, the desperation to frustrate, intimidate and blackmail him into abandoning his divine mandate to protect the rights of the people to better life and living continued unabatedly and has even taken a bizarre dimension.

Impeccable security sources have informed Chief Obasanjo of the emergence of his name on their Watch List and that the security of his life cannot be guaranteed.

According to these informants, many of who are in the top echelon of the nation’s security management and close to the corridors of power, the operatives are daily perfecting how to curtail the personal liberties of the former President and hang a crime on him.

Ordinarily, we would not have dignified these reports with a response but for the fact that many of these informants are not known for flippant and frivolous talks. Secondly, this government has demonstrably exhibited apathy, and in some cases, encouraged by its conduct, daily loss of lives and property in many states of the country, the office cannot be indifferent.

We are currently in a nation where the Number three citizen is currently being harangued and the Number four citizen is facing similar threat within the same government they serve. There is a groundswell of our nationals that live in fear that they could be hounded, harassed, maimed or even killed as the battle for 2019 takes this worrisome dimension.

For Chief Obasanjo, this is a joke carried too far and being someone who does not act on unofficial information, he had cautioned all informants and adopted a wait-and-see attitude to the bestial

propositions allegedly being contemplated to cow, cage and embarrass him.

The content of the alleged beastly designs, it was learnt are two-fold for now. One, to seize his international passport and clamp him into detention indefinitely, in order to prevent him from further expressing angst on the pervasive mediocrity in the quality of governance, economic management and in the protection of lives and property by the government. But, since that could expose the government to a swath of international condemnation, embarrassment and outrage, it is said that another plot being hatched is to cause the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to re-open investigation into the activities of Chief Obasanjo’s administration using false witnesses and documents.

This will be a re-enactment of the Abacha era in which Chief Obasanjo was one of the principal victims.

The same EFCC that had conducted a clinical investigation on the activities of Obasanjo in and out of government, it was said, would now be made to stand down the existing report that gave Chief Obasanjo a clean bill of health on the probes are now to get him, indicted, fair or foul for possible prosecution and persecution like it is being done to real and perceived opponents, enemies and critics of this government.

Dissent is a fundamental principle on which liberal democracy is predicated. A true democrat must be ready to live with and accommodate dissent and opposition.

While it is regrettable how the government has sunk in its shameless desperation to cow opposition, a resort to blackmail, despotism and Gestapo-tactics being employed by the goons of this government would not hold water. And no government ever remains in power

forever.

For the record, Chief Obasanjo reiterates his readiness to face probe again after that of the House of Representatives, the Senate, the ICPC, and the EFCC, but before an independent, objective and credible panel of enquiry to account for his stewardship in government and beyond. Chief Obasanjo reiterates that he has taken a principled position to ensure that the ship of the Nigerian state does not capsize and he remains steadfast in his resolve to turn the tide of maladministration, poor economic management and rudderless governance model that has tore Nigerians apart on account of religion and ethnicity which is a great threat to our democracy.

We would like the government and its supporters to understand that no amount campaign of calumny, no matter how well contrived, orchestrated or marketed would deter Chief Obasanjo from calling a spade by its name. Chief Obasanjo is a patriot whose sole agenda is to ensure that the country’s unity, progress and democracy are not negotiated on the altar of incompetence and provincialism and mediocrity.

It is important to point out that Chief Obasanjo is one former President and Head of State who has engaged the current administration privately and in a bilateral manner on several issues of direct interest to the government and other matters of national concern.

That channel of private engagement remains open and continues. However, should there be the need for public engagement, the right to free speech will always be exercised and jealously guarded, again in the best interest of Nigeria and the government.

Kehinde Akinyemi Media aide

23 News

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Gov Al-Makura pardons 63 prisoners in Nasarawa Nasarawa State governor, Umaru Al-Makura on Friday granted pardon to 63 prisoners serving various jail terms in the state, under the prerogative of mercy.

Al-Makura, represented by his deputy Mr Silas Agara announced this at a ceremony in Lafia adding that his administration was committed to decongesting prisons in the state.

He said government was concerned over growing

number of inmates across the five prisons in the state, saying that the administration would partner relevant agencies to ensure the prisons were decongested.

“The gesture is aimed at achieving dual purpose of decongesting prisons in the state as well as providing opportunities for the freed prisoners to reunite with their loved ones for proper reintegration into the society,” Al-Makura said.

The governor noted that acts of criminality were threats to the internal security of any nation, hence the enactment of laws and appropriate sanctions for offenders in order to ensure a safe society.

“However, we must realise the need for reformation, rehabilitation and reintegration of errant citizens so that punishment does not become counter-productive.

“It is in this connection that when our attention was

recently drawn to the case of prison inmates, who deserve the state prerogative of mercy and those convicted with option of fines but could not pay, we decided to intervene,” Al-Makura said.

He said the inmates being granted pardon had shown improvement in their conducts and character in the course of serving their jail terms.

Al-Makura urged the freed inmates to accept their experience as part of destiny

and to engage in productive venture after returning home.

Also speaking, the state Chief Judge, Justice Suleiman Dikko, charged the freed inmates to desist from acts capable of returning them back to prison.

Dikko, was represented by Justice Mustapha Rahman.

Meanwhile, Mr Elijah Wase, one of the freed inmates, who was serving a 21-year jail term for armed robbery, expressed gratitude to God and the state

‘Water Bill: FG’s intention misunderstood’ The Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Sen. Ita Enang, says the intent of National Water Resources Bill 2018 is misunderstood by Nigerians and lawmakers who kicked against its passage in Senate.

Enang, who made this known while briefing newsmen on Friday in Abuja, said the misunderstanding of the Bill accounted for its rejection at the Senate.

He said the Executive

forwarded the Bill to National Assembly in 2016 and that it sought to bring about consolidation of all existing laws on control and management of water flowing from one state to another.

He explained that the bill did not intend to confer any new powers on the Federal Government with regard to management and control of waterways.

The president’s aide said that the essence of the bill was to harmonise all the laws and Acts into one document, adding that

it was to ensure that Nigeria’s waterways practice was in tandem with global practice.

He said that prior to the National Water Resources Bill, various extant laws like the Water Act of 1993 and National Water Resource Institute Act of 1985 gave the right of control and management of rivers to the Federal Government.

Others in that category, he said, were River Basin Development Authority Act of 1986 and Nigeria Hydrological Act Services Agencies Establishment Act of 2010.

Enang pointed out that the government was empowered by the 1999 Constitution with right to the use, management and control of all surface water and ground water affecting more than one state.

He said that such power was in pursuant to item 64 of the Exclusive Legislative list in part one of the Second Schedule to the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

Enang said the purpose of his explanation was not to argue against or condemn the Senate for stepping down the

bill, but to make Nigerians know that there was no sinister motive behind the bill.

The National Water Resources Bill 2018 was stepped down on May 24 when it came up for third reading.

The bill seeks to establish regulatory framework for the water resources sector to provide for equitable and sustainable development.

It is also meant to ensure the management, use and conservation of Nigeria’s surface and ground water resources, among other things.

Cross session of members of the Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN), during a one-day training for environmental field monitors and reporters held in Yenagoa, Bayelsa.

Minister urges food, beverage companies to implement EPR policy The Minister of State for Environment, Alhaji Ibrahim Jibril, has advised food and beverages companies as well as waste management stakeholders to implement the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) policy.

Jibril gave the advice on Friday when a team of officials from Food and Beverages Companies Alliance and some waste management stakeholders paid him a visit call in Abuja.

In the field of waste management, EPR is a strategy designed to promote the integration of environmental costs, associated with goods throughout their life cycles, into the market price of the products.

The minister said that the implementation of EPR would go a long way in supporting efforts to clean the environment and make it pollution free.

Jibril urged food and beverages companies to set aside a certain percentage of their profits for a campaign to sensitise Nigerians to the need to collect and recycle plastics and plastic bottles.

“Part of what I want you (companies) to be doing is to set aside a portion of your profit for public sensitisation.

“You need to also sensitise your workers to form a team to take it upon themselves as part of your social corporate responsibility to clean the environment to make it free of

pollution,’’ he said.

The minister urged the companies to encourage the recycling of plastic bottles and devise strategies that would motivate consumers to return the used bottles for recycling.

According to him, there is need for the organised private sector to actively support the current efforts to beat plastic pollution.

Jibril, who said that plastics were not degradable, said that they remained in the land, rivers and ocean for ages, thereby harming marine life.

He urged the producers of plastic bottles to support the government’s efforts to create awareness on how human actions were causing plastic

pollution and harming the environment.

Mr Clem Ugorji, the Director, Public Affairs and Communications, West Africa Business Unit, Coca-Cola Nigeria, said that five firms constituted the alliance.

Ugorji said that members of the alliance were Coca-Cola Nigeria, Nigerian Bottling Company, Nestle Nigeria, Nigerian Breweries and Seven Up Bottling Company.

He, however, said that other food and beverages companies had indicated their interest to join the alliance.

According to him, the alliance is working to create a framework that will ensure effective collection and

recycling of bottles.

Ugorji said that the alliance was working to become EPRcompliant, while making it mandatory for all food and beverages companies to discharge their social corporate responsibility.

Prof. Oladele Osibanjo, the National President, Waste Management Society of Nigeria, said that the society was collaborating with the alliance to organise a workshop to proffer solutions to the menace of plastic pollution in the country.

Osibanjo, who said that the workshop would be held in Lagos, said that it would attract relevant stakeholders in the waste management sector.

governor for granting him pardon.

He told newsmen that he had already spent two out of his 21-year jail term.

“I give God all the glory for what he has done in my life today, out of the five of us involved in the robbery operation, four were killed and I survived by the mercy of God. “I found God while in prison and he changed my life for good and I will encourage other inmates to look up to God and be of good behaviour in order to obtain his mercy,” Wase said.

Market indices nose-dive by 0.96% after 4 days growth After four days of upward movement, market indicators of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) dropped by 0.96 per cent, following profit taking on Friday.

The All-Share Index shed 372.88 points to close lower at 38,669.23, compared with 39,042.11 recorded on Thursday.

Similarly, the market capitalisation which opened at N14.142 trillion lost N137 billion or 0.96 per cent to close at N14.007 trillion.

Seplat recorded the highest loss, to lead the laggards’ table dropping by N23.90 to close at N711.10 per share.

SkyeShelter trailed with a loss of N5 to close at N95, while Dangote Cement Industries declined by N3.40 to close at N235.50 per share.

International Breweries lost N1.80 to close at N41 .80, while Cement Company of Northern Nigeria was down by N1.40 to close at N26.60 per share.

Conversely, Nestle led the gainers’ table for the day, gaining N20.20 to close at N1, 450.20 per share.

Mobil Oil followed with a gain of N8.30 to close at N174.30, while Unilever gained N2 to close at N55.20 per share.

Stanbic IBTC appreciated by 70k to close at N48.20, while Cadbury grew by 60k to close at N12.65 per share.

In the same vein, the volume of shares traded dropped by 57.32 million shares valued at N3.89 billion achieved in 4,141 deals.

This was against the 492.05 million shares worth N7.62 billion exchanged in 4,726 deals on Thursday.

Dangote Sugar Refinery was the most active stock for the day, trading 27.93 million shares worth N539.19 million.

It was followed by FBN Holdings with an account of 23.23 million shares, valued at N247.73 million.

Guaranty Trust Bank traded 19 .88 million shares worth N1.01 billion, while FCMB Group sold 14.04 million shares valued at N33.86 million.

News 24

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Nigeria’s population explosion portends danger – FOMWAN

EFCC arraigns woman over forgery, diversion Andrew Orolua, Abuja The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibadan Zonal Office, on Friday arraigned one Mrs. Aderonke Abimbola before Justice A. N. Akintola of the Oyo State High Court sitting in Ibadan, on a 6-count charge for obtaining money by false pretence.

Abimbola, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

In view of Abimbola’s plea, prosecution counsel Harrison Ibekwute prayed the court for to fix date for trial and remand the defendant in custody.

A statement by Head, Media & Publicity Mr. Wilson Uwujaren said defense counsel, Oluwatosin Salawu informed the court that she has an application dated and filed June 7, 2018 seeking bail for the defendant. She moved the application.

Prosecution counsel said bail is at the

discretion of the court.

Justice Akintola admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N250,000 and one surety in like sum, preferably her husband. Surety shall swear to an affidavit of means and must be resident within jurisdiction of court.

The surety shall present three years tax clearance certificate.

The case has been adjourned to September 24, 2018 for trial.

Abimbola’s journey to the dock followed a petition to the Commission from a Community Savings Scheme alleging that the defendant whilst an employee of the company, manipulated the accounts of customers and made withdrawals of the sum of over N600,000.00 and diverted same to her private use, that all efforts made by the petitioner to get the money back failed.

Tom Okpe, Abuja

Aderonke Abimbola during her arraignment at the Oyo state High Court in Ibadan

FG gives neonatal equipment, ambulances to National Hospital

The Federal Government on Friday in Abuja gave 10 incubators, 20 Phototherapy machines and two ambulances to the Neonatal Department of National Hospital Abuja.

Senior Special Assiatant to the President on Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s), Mrs Adejoke Adefulire, who made the presentation at the National Hospital, said the government had a mandate to ensure safety of lives.

Adefulire said the directive which was given by President Muhammadu Buhari, was to ensure that the rate of infant

and maternal mortality reduced drastically in the country.

“The presentation of 10 incubators, 20 Phototherapy machines and two ambulances to the neonatal department of National Hospital is to compliment the effort of the hospital and the Ministry of Health.

“The equipment is meant to save the lives of many babies delivered both in the hospitals and those referred to the hospital.

“The ambulances will also be used for pregnant women, patients as well as referrals from other hospitals during

emergencies.

“The joy of every mother after carrying her pregnancy for nine months is to carry a healthy baby in her hands, and this is our concern as a government.,’’ she said.

Adefulire noted that similar equipment were donated to other hospitals in Abuja and other states which include, Lagos, Oyo, and Kano among others.

She said the government had also intensified its effort in ensuring that immunisation of children from zero to five years was ongoing and would continue so that the Nigerian

child remained healthy and strong.

Adefulire called on private and international organisations to partner with the government in ensuring that infant and maternal mortality reduces greatly in the country.

Chief Medical Director, National Hospital, Abuja Dr Jaf Momoh, who received the items at the hospital, commended the effort of the government in providing the equipment.

Momoh said the equipment would serve the hospital and patients and those on referrals in the most needed areas.

He said that the incubators

and phototherapy machines were already in use for babies with low birth weight, premature babies and those born with several complications.

According to him, the two new ambulances will be very useful as most of the fleets in the hospital are old and needed to be replaced.

Momoh added that the provision of the equipment to the Hospital was of great advantage, noting that the facility had specialists and experts in Neonatology to man the equipment and provide professional care to infants.

WHO reports ‘strong progress’ in fighting Ebola in Congo Congo has made great strides in fighting Ebola, but the virus is not yet under control, a senior World Health Organisation (WHO) official said on Friday, a month after an outbreak was declared in the country.

WHO Emergency Health Chief, Peter Salama, said this at

a news conference in Geneva.

Health workers have so far tracked down 91 per cent of the more than 600 people, who are known to have had contact with infected patients, Salama.

Of those, who were tracked down, 98 per cent were vaccinated.

“That gives us a lot of source

for optimism. In summary, there has been very strong progress in outbreak response,’’ Salama said.

According to the latest data, 62 cases and 27 deaths have been reported in Congo, up from 54 cases and 25 deaths oneand-a-half weeks ago.

Among the reported cases,

38 have been confirmed by laboratories so far.

Salama warned, however, that even one undetected patient, who goes on to infect others could lead to a new spike of Ebola, a fever disease that can lead to bleeding and is highly lethal.

WHO is now entering a new

phase in which it moves its focus from urban areas to the extremely remote forest areas in north-western Congo where the outbreak began.

“We are cautiously optimistic, but there is a lot of very tough work to do to be able say we are on top of the outbreak,” Salama said. (dpa/NAN)

The Federation of Muslim Women Association of Nigeria (FOMWAN) has described the nation’s population growth rate as a danger sign.

In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja, Mrs Sa’adatu Hashiu, President of the association, attributed the country’s population rate of 198 million on poor Family Planning (FP).

Hashiu also blamed men as responsible for the explosion as some of them marry as many as three, four or more wives and give birth to children they could not cater for, thereby compounding the nation’s demographic problem.

The FOMWAN president noted that the northern part of the country has the highest burden of the growth.

She explained that some of men engaged in multiple marriage, give birth to children they are unable to take care of due to misinterpretation of the Qur’an thereby flooding the streets with beggars, popularly known as ‘Almajiri’, among others.

Hashiu decried the rate of children roaming the streets and begging because of irresponsible parenting to have them in school or engaged in a trade.

According to her, if this problem is not addressed in the next 20 years there will be high rate of insecurity, hunger and accommodation problems, among others.

“In the next 20 years considering our population growth, it will triple and a lot of the people will find it difficult to feed, have no place to rest their heads and lack access to farm land, among others.

“The explosion is a danger sign in the sense that we all love to have children, we hope for rain but fear the lightening because we know that it will come with thunder. So explosion is the thunder, so we should be very careful about it.

“All the children that are now on the street doing all sorts of things will as well marry out of ignorance and have children in that regard as well,” she said.

The FOMWAN president recommended massive public enlightenment to curb the menace, urging traditional and religious leaders to rise up to their responsibilities in enlightening the populace on the need to marry, space and have the number of children they can conveniently cater for.

According to her, such efforts will go a long way in addressing the societal ills with regard to insecurity, hoodlums, children roaming the streets begging and hawking, among others.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

25 News

Nursing mother, 6 month old baby, 2 others allegedly killed by military in Bayelsa Akam James, Yenagoa There was pandemonium in Bayelsa State over the killing of a six months old baby, her mother and two others by armed soldiers during a security operation at the Oluasiri Clan in Nembe Local Government Area of the state.

The sad incident, which occurred in the early hours of Thursday, according to the Oluasiri community, claimed one Mr. Wilson Patason, madam Beauty Christian Gamage and her six months old baby.

Many others were also confirmed to be on critical list with various levels of injuries.

Though the authorities of the Joint Military Task Force code named Operation Delta Safe (ODS) did not respond to media inquiries and phone calls to Major Ibrahim Abdullahi, the security operation was launched to dislodge suspected militants and sea pirates hiding in the community.

While some security personnel claimed the soldiers opened fire into the community following gunshots attacks from the suspected militants, the indigenes of the Oluasiri community debunked the claim and insisted that the military attack was unprovoked.

A community source told our correspondent that some suspected sea pirates and militants had forcefully been residing within the community, “the armed militants were residing in the community forcefully. The Armed militants had become lawless and this may have caused the security Operations. “But as you know, these boys also pay some military men and may have been tipped off by some of their military friends.

They had left the community before soldiers arrived. The Soldiers arrived in six gun boats and started shooting indiscriminately. It is sad and unprofessional.

“The Oluasiri community in a statement described as “reckless and nefarious” the wanton invasion of BenAma and Tengele-Ama by

the Nigerian Military, which reportedly left four persons dead including a mother and her six months old baby and several others critically injured.

The Oluasiri community, in a statement jointly signed by the President of Oluasiri Development Union, Deacon Gamage Difurotogu, and the President of Oluasiri Youth Federation, Kienworio Tanga, the people called on the Federal Government and Civil Liberty Organisations (CLO) to carry out an investigation in order to unravel the mysteries behind the ugly incident.

According to the community, “the incident is show of stark recklessness and nefarious for the military to invade hitherto peaceful communities with six gunboats, causing undue pandemonium, all in the name of searching for suspected criminals in the area.

“The people of the affected communities are law-abiding citizens, noting that it was

malicious for security agents to carry out the act.

“We urged the Nigerian military to go and search for the criminals at their various hideouts in the creeks, as no Oluasiri community is a safe haven to criminals.

“They stated categorically that the people of Oluasiri are always ready to support the Nigerian military and other security agencies in the fight against oil bunkering, sea piracy and kidnapping, but pleaded that such should be done in complete adherence to international best practices, while upholding the sanctity of human life.

The statement further commiserated with families of the affected victims, while enjoining the people of Oluasiri not to take laws into their hands. The Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) through its Bayelsa Chapter Chairman, Chief Nengi James condemned the military invasion

describing it as barbaric and unprofessional.

According to Nengi James, “the unprofessional killing of innocent people in Oluasiri and some other communities of the Niger Delta, is unacceptable.

It is an act against humanity.

The Federal Government should immediately set up an investigative team to look into the incident.

“And the Military should, instead of reckless killing, adopt intelligence gathering mode and determine if those being sought are actually in the community. Now that they have killed innocent people, did they arrest the suspected criminals?

“Also reacting, the Ijaw Youths Council (IYC) worldwide, through its President, Barr. Eric Omare condemned the invasion as dastardly act by the military in the guise of looking for suspected criminals.

The IYC called on the

military authorities to comply with the rules of engagement in their operations in the Niger Delta. According to IYC, “It is only in the Niger Delta that soldiers routinely kill innocent people in the name of looking for criminals.

The attention of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) worldwide has just been drawn to the invasion of Ben-Ama and Tengele-Ama Communities in Oluasiri Clan, Nembe Local Government Area of Bayelsa State by soldiers in the early hours of Thursday June 7, 2018.

“The information available to the IYC is to the effect that among others; a woman and her daughter were killed in the process of the invasion and several others injured.

The soldiers were alleged to be after suspected criminals in the communities. “The IYC calls on the military authorities to comply with the rules of engagement in their operations in the Niger Delta. It is only in

the Niger Delta that soldiers routinely kill innocent people in the name of looking for criminals. This is condemnable and unacceptable.

“It is illegal and unconstitutional for the life of anybody to be taken without the due process of law. This is one killing too many in Ijaw land and must stop.

“The IYC call on President Buhari who is the Commander in Chief of the Armed forces of the federal Republic of Nigeria and the Minister of Defence to take all necessary actions to immediately bring to the justice the military officers involved in this act of criminality.

“We wish to warn that the consistent invasion and killing of innocent Niger Deltans is capable of leading to another round of hostilities in the Niger Delta region. The youths of the Niger Delta region would not sit back and allow their communities to be recklessly invaded and people killed like animals.”

L-R;Tellco Europe Nigeria Managing Director/COO, Dr. Victor Fodeke;Tellco Europe Nigeria, Director,Chief Ayo Opadokun;Consul General of Switzerland in Lagos,Yves Nicolet;;Tellco Europe Nigeria, Chairman, Prof. Wale Omole, OFR and Tellco Europe Nigeria Executive Vice Chairman & CEO, Mr. Olawale Akinwumi at the 2018 World Enviroment Day and Press conference organized by Tellco Europe Nigeria held at the Office,GRA, Ikeja Lagos...on Friday.

Attacks: LG boss tasks Egbura, Bassa on peaceful co-existence Chairman, Toto Local Government Council, Nasarawa State, Mr Dauda Nuhu, has urged the Egbura and Bassa communities to live peacefully as brothers and sisters by avoiding attacks.

Nuhu made the call on Friday while inaugurating the newly elected Deputy Chairman, Mr Kabiru Musa, and 12 newly elected councillors of the council at Toto, Toto local government headquarters.

The State Independent

Electoral Commission (NASIEC) conducted the Local Government election on May 26.

He enjoined the warring communities to sheath their sword, tolerate and accommodate each other for peace and development to reign in the area.

He regretted incessant loss of lives and properties resulting from skirmishes between the two ethnic groups.

The chairman said that peace is priceless and non-negotiable

during his administration.

According to him, there is no substitute for peace and the community can only experience rapid development when people learn how to tolerate with one another and be their brother’s keeper.

He advised the people against doing anything that would sabotage government efforts in maintaining peace and order.

Nuhu promised not to disappoint the people of the area while assuring the electorate

of his commitment to execute projects and policies that have direct bearing on the lives of the people of the area.

He advised the newly inaugurated councillors to be transparent and accountable in discharging their duties at all the times in the interest of peace and for the overall development of the area.

Nuhu solicited for the support of the people to enable his administration team succeed delivering dividends of

democracy.

The council boss commended Gov. Tanko Al-Makura for his prompt response in deploying security to the area for the maintenance of peace.

Mr Yakubu Dangana,the Chief Magistrate of Toto, while administering oath of allegiance on the deputy chairman and the councillors charged them to abide by the oath of office taken by shunning all negative acts while discharging their duties.

Responding on behalf of his

colleagues, the deputy chairman promised to discharge their duties without fear or favour.

NAN recalls that on April 24, there was a communal clash between the Egbura and Bassa ethnic groups of Ugya in Toto local government area which claimed several lives and property.

Many lives and properties were destroyed in another communal clash between Egbura and Bassa tribes on May 23.

News 26

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

APC convention: Aspirant says North can’t produce Youth, Women leaders APC that both women and youth because some of our leaders that mobilization of any of lead the wing.

Tom Okpe, Abuja convention: wings should not go to the from the north, who believe the wings will be easier in the “I am contesting for the Ahead of the National same region. in my capability and equity Southern part ahead of the office of the National Youth Convention of the All Speaking after he returned conscious, have decided that 2019 general elections.

Leader because the voice of Hajia Progressives Congress his nomination forms to the if the North should produce While commending some the young people in the party (APC), one of the leading Secretariat of APC Convention the National Women leader, groups and individuals who has been silenced. I want to Salamotu National Youth Leadership Planning Committee on then the South, where I comes believe in his aspiration from make sure that confidence is aspirants, Ambassador Fabura Friday, Dagogo said some from should produce youths the North, Dagogo urged restored in APC youth wing. I joins women Dagogo, has said the party prominent Northern leaders leader”. the convention committee believe that my leadership will should not allow the Northern of the party have realized the According to Dagogo, by to ensure that internal revive innate abilities in the region to produce both implications of such move, allowing the Southern region democracy becomes the watch young men and women of the leadership National Women and Youth hence their support for his to produce either the women word. party to believe in themselves leaders for sake of equity. ambition. leader or youth leader, such The youth leader aspirant by vying for elective offices race Dagogo, however, urged the party to take cognizance

He said: “I must say that I’m not alone in this race

will give a sense of belonging to both the region, adding

promised to carry everyone along if given opportunity to

for the interest of the party at all levels”, he said.

Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki (second right), representative of the Speaker, Edo State House of Assembly and Majority Leader, Hon. Asoro Roland (right); Chairman, Edo State Chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC), Barr. Anselm Ojezua (second left); and the Secretary, Edo State APC, Mr. Lawrence Okah (left), during the Edo State APC Executive Retreat in Benin City. . . on Friday.

Nollywood’s Anita Joseph, Thelma Nwosu feature in Prof Johnbull Nollywood stars, Anita Joseph and Thelma Nwosu, will feature as guest artistes in this week’s edition of popular television comedy series, Professor Johnbull, which is sponsored by telecommunications firm.

The delectable duo will form part of the cast to look at the inclination by many parents and guardians to

send their children and wards to expensive schools, thinking such ‘big’ schools will guarantee qualitative education.

Entitled ‘Expensive Schools’, the new episode highlights how some parents put undue pressure upon themselves just to “meet up” with expectations.

Such parents go through difficulties to send their

children to expensive schools in order not to appear inferior to their neighbours and friends who are comfortable enough financially to pay such high tuition for their wards.

Several issues will be examined in the course of the episode. For instance, are expensive schools really the best schools or are they just status symbols? Does high

school fee eventually translate to academic accomplishments for the child? Should parents abandon the upbringing of their children to the teachers after paying the high school fees? Why are our educational institutions fast turning to business establishments?

The experience of Elizabeth (Queen Nwokoye), Professor Johnbull’s daughter, who does

OAU matriculates 8,158 students The Obafemi Awolowo University, (OAU), Ile-Ife, on Wednesday matriculated 8, 158 students and warned them against social vices.

Vice-Chancellor of OAU, Prof.

Eyitope Ogunnbodede, gave the charge while addressing the students during the 2017/2018 academic session matriculation ceremony at the Oduduwa Amphitheatre of the university in Ile-Ife. Ogunnbodede urged the newly admitted students to desist from any antisocial behaviours capable of disrupting the smooth

running of the university.

According to him, the university has zero tolerance for cultism, examination malpractices, violent behaviours, flagrant disregard to constituted authority and sexual harassment.

He said that the warning was imperative to safeguard their studentship and ensure successful academic career in the institution.

“I will strongly advise that you steer clear from these deplorable behaviours and other similar vices in order to safeguard your studentship and ensure successful academic career,” he urged.

Ogunbodede appealed to all freshers to support the management for all hands be on deck and shun indiscipline in order to complete every session on scheduled.

He observed that their admission to the university coincided with a period of near economic recession in the country, when funds were not readily available for constant provision of municipal services.

He, however, assured them of the readiness of university authority to address issues affecting students as promptly as possible and give priority for the provision of essential

needs.

Ogunbodede advised them to combine academic excellence with culture of “omoluabi” in a challenging, competitive and diverse academic environment.

“Omoluabi” is being ones brother’s keeper.

He urged them to beware of their colleagues who would want to lure them to join bad groups.

The matriculating students had undergone two weeks orientation to familiarise themselves with the university’s environment to enable them inculcate the ethics of the institution.

home-teaching in the episode, is also used to dramatise the issue of parents and guardians who hire home-call teachers to give extra lessons to their children and wards.

It will be interesting to see how the lead character of the TV drama series, Professor Johnbull (Kanayo O. Kanayo), tries to counsel his “proximate people” on what constitutes good education notwithstanding the amount of money charged as school fees.

Viewers will also find out what he thinks are the roles society, educational institutions, proprietors, teachers and parents should play in the upbringing of their children.

Professor Johnbull is shown at 6.00 p.m. on Sunday on DSTV Africa Magic Family and GOTV Channel 2, with repeat broadcast on Thursday at 9.30 p.m. on the cable TV channels and on NTA Network, NTA International on DSTV channel 251 and NTA on StarTimes at 8.30 p.m. on Tuesday and Friday.

It is also aired on Anambra Broadcasting Service at 8.30 p.m. on Wednesday and Saturday.

Tom Okpe, Abuja In preparations for the forthcoming All Progressives Congress (APC) National Convention, the first aspirant into the position of women leader, Hajia Salamatu Umar-Eluma, has obtained her nomination forms, promising to provide all inclusive and pro-active leadership for Nigerian women.

Hajia Salamatu also promised to institute a Think-tank, for women to brainstorm and throw up ideas and solutions on issues affecting the Nigerian women.

Addressing newsmen after submitting her nomination forms on Friday in Abuja, Hajia Salamotu, who was accompanied with leadership of APC in Kogi state at all levels, said her past experiences and her capacity to deliver have prepared her for the job.

She said: “I intend to bring fresh and dynamic ideas to the administrative structures and office of the National Women Leader.

I will also introduce innovative programs to address issues of women mobilization, inclusion, empowerment, p a r t i c i p a t i o n , enlightenment on genderrights and protection; create women in media platform to track issues and developments relating to womenfolk in Nigeria in order to be pro-active in keying into crucial trends”.

While urging womenfolk and delegates to the convention to buy into her aspiration, Salamatu, who is said to be a philanthropist, assured that she will be in active opposition to violence against women in all its manifestations.

“I will advocate women reproductive rights.

Organize education, enlightenment and empowerment fora for the intellectual and economic enablement of women in Nigeria. I will also influence legislation in favor of women rights and empowerment at states and national levels, actively mobilizing every form of support for female candidates of our party aspiring for elective positions”, she added.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

27 News

Ozubulu church massacre trial: Judge angry with prosecuting lawyer Moses Oyediran, Enugu

There was harsh altercation at the Awka High Court on Friday between the judge handling the Ozubulu Church Massacre trial, Justice Fidelis Aniukwu and the prosecution counsel Jay Jay Ezeuko, SAN, over the latter’s lack-lustre attitude to the case.

The prosecution counsel brought only two witnesses who merely repeated what the 10 other witnesses volunteered previously.

The judge was furious over the poor presentation of witnesses by the counsel and threatened to reconsider the bail application denied the accused persons

some weeks ago.

“This case is becoming irritating. The prosecution is slowing down the matter. As at 10.45 am, the prosecution could not bring more witnesses contrary to the instruction I gave during the last adjourned date that the prosecution should increase speed and bring as many witnesses as possible.

“The prosecution just smuggle witnesses and the judge’s time is being wasted. Why not tell those who employed you that you are not willing to continue the case, and save us from wasting our time in court,” Justice Aniukwu said.

In the resumed sitting at the Awka High Court, Anambra

state on Friday, two witnesses testified in the August 6, 2017 massacre at st Philip’s Catholic Church, Ozubulu during which 13 persons were killed while 24 others were wounded.

Led in evidence by Jay Jay Ezeuko, prosecution counsel, Timothy Nwadike, a native of Egbema Ozubulu and 11 the witness in the case told the court that it was Qunitus Onyebinamma, a.k.a. Obasanjo that reviewed that Gozilla and Afam were responsible for the August 6, massacre.

According to him, Onyebinamma, chairman of Ozubulu development union, South Africa branch summoned all the chairmen and Obis of all

the quarters in Ozubulu to relay a message from Gozilla from Nnobi and Afam from Oba, all in Anambra state, currently in prison in South Africa, to the effect that they were responsible for the killing of Ozubulu sons and daughters.

“He brought out a video clip from his phone where there was a raging fight and showed us hired killers and their victims, including his manager that was shot in South Africa.

“He said it was these people that sent him to tell Ozubulu people that they were responsible for the massacre irrespective that they were in prison. At a point he put a call through to the duo in South African prison and we

heard their voices.”

Nwadike told the court that Gozilla made it clear that he had scores to settle with Aloysius Ikegwuonu, a.k.a.

Bishop; Nkwado Onyeka,a.k.a Ebubedike and Christian Oruche, a.k.a Utonwa. “He said these persons have always reneged in their agreement and that is why the killing will continue. He said that there is only one good person among Ozubulu sons in South Africa. He said that the person is Chinedu Akpunonu, the first defendant”. During cross examination, he denied knowledge of the phone number Onyebinanma used to call Gozilla and Afam. He also denied that Gozilla and

Afam ever mentioned the killer squad that massacred people at Ozubulu.

In his testimony, Ikechukwu Akpunonu, 12th witness a public servant and former youth leader said he was equally threatened by Gozilla on July 27 and 29, 2016 to resign his position as youth leader or be ready to ‘dance the spirit dance’.

He said he was accused of being sponsored by Ikegwuonu to wreck havoc in the house of their “boss”. He told the court that he eventually bowed to pressure to save his life and those of his family members after reporting to law enforcement agents.

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode (2nd right), with Australian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Paul Lehmann (middle); Second Secretary, Australian High Commission, Nigeria, Mr. Fabien De Vel-Palumbo (2nd left); Commissioner for Special Duties & Inter-Governmental Relations, Mr. Oluseye Oladejo (left) and his counterpart for Transportation, Mr. Ladi Lawason (right) during a courtesy call by the Australian High Commissioner at Lagos House, Alausa, Ikeja. . . on Thursday

APC Congresses: Stop making baseless allegations, party tells Okorocha Tom Okpe, Abuja The national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has warned Imo state Governor, Rochas Okorocha against wild and unsubstantiated allegations regarding its conduct of congresses in the state and its handling of the disputes thereof.

The party stated this while reacting to reports which quoted Okorocha as vowing to send the National Chairman of the party, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun to jail for disobeying what he said was a valid court order.

In a press statement signed by the party National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi on Friday, the party said: “In reacting to recent allegations by the Imo state

governor, Rochas Okorocha that the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress APC, Chief John OdigieOyegun ‘disobeyed’ court orders regarding Congresses in Imo State and inauguration of the state’s Party executives, the APC wishes to state that these allegations are spurious as the Party did not at any time receive any court injunctions regarding the Congresses in Imo”.

The Party therefore urged the Imo State Governor to desist from what they described as “making these kinds of allegations that have no basis in facts”.

The party further said; “In conducting the Congresses across the country, considering the outcome of each one of them and in swearing in the respective

State Chairmen, the National Working Committee NWC had strictly followed the guiding rules and the Constitution of the party.

“There is always room for redress was justified; hence, we encourage the Imo State Governor to explore internal dispute resolution mechanisms spelt out by our Constitution to address his perceived grievances. While we urge compromise among Party stakeholders, the Party has already mandated the Deputy National Chairman (North), Sen. Lawali Shuaibu to head our reconciliation efforts following issues that arose from recently conducted ward, local government and state Congresses”.

Meanwhile, the party

has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for declaring June 12 as Democracy Day as well as granting posthumous award of Nigeria’s highest National Honor, Grand Commander of the Federal Republic (GCFR) to Moshood Abiola, winner of the annulled presidential election of June 12, 1993, calling on the President to consider granting similar honor on Alhaja Kudirat Abiola.

The APC believes that Alhaja Kudirat Abiola who paid the supreme price with her assassination in Lagos on June 4, 1996 at the heat of the mobilization for the restoration of her husband’s mandate as the winner of the 1993 presidential election, deserves to be honored in her own right as a heroin and martyr of democracy in Nigeria.

The Party recalls how she mobilized market women, students, activists and other human rights community against Military rule and the struggle for a truly democratic nation.

The Party in a statement on Friday in Abuja also commended the decision to honor Abiola’s running mate, Babagana Kingibe, and late human rights activist, Gani Fawehinmi SAN with the second highest national honor, Grand Commander of the Niger (GCON).

“In taking this courageous and patriotic decision, the President has again displayed a sincerity of purpose and his well-known penchant for doing the right thing irrespective of political and sundry

considerations. As a Party, we remain resolved in our struggle to deepen our democracy and continue to improve on the transparency and credibility of our electoral systems. We reiterate that regardless of its imperfections, democracy remains the best form of government that can best serve the interest of our people”.

“We affirm that this decision by President Buhari yet again exemplifies APC’s commitment to the sanctity of popular elections and respect for the right of the people to freely choose their leaders in accordance to that fundamental principle of democracy that no man has the right to exercise power over other men, except with their consent”, the Party said.

News 28 Hope rises for East West Road as FG assures on early completion Idu Jude, Abuja The federal government has rekindled hope of completing the East West road which it said is the economic base of the people.

This promise was made by the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs Pastor Uguru Usani Uguru Thursday, while in company of the Federal Government Inter-Ministerial Committee on assessment tour of the East-West Road.

Pastor Uguru, observed that the Federal Government was prioritising its early completion to deliver on its promise to the project that has been in comatose for the past 9 years.

The Federal Government inter-ministerial committee is made up of the Ministries of Niger Delta Affairs, Transportation, Power, Works and Housing and Information and Culture.

Speaking at the end of the Thursday’s tour, across the Niger Delta region, the Honourable Minister disclosed, “The Federal Executive Council gives priority to the East-West road project, this led to the setting up of this Inter-Ministerial Committee to come and do its assessment, for government to source for funds for timely completion of the project.”

Usani expressed satisfaction on the progress of work, saying it has been more progressive than previous years. He added that contractors only needed more funds to execute the job.

Corroborating the statement of his colleague in Niger Delta Affairs’ Ministry, the Minister of Transportation, Rt. Honourable Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi noted that the tour had changed his perception on the Project that government was doing nothing on it.

“If I did not come on this inspection myself, I would have been among those who are saying that nothing was being done, but we drove all the way from Benin, through the East-West road from Warri to Porth Harcourt, there were no potholes,” Amaechi added.

“It is important that we the South-South people appreciate the contribution of the Federal Government led by President Muhammadu Buhari, to the development of the Niger Delta region.

The Minister of Transportation appealed to the youths in the Niger Delta region to desist from vices that can impede the development of the oil-rich region and take it backward among other regions.

It would be recalled that the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs inherited the East-West road from the then Federal Ministry works on its establishment in 2008 and had been battling with its completion over the years.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Oil coys urged to adopt sports devt as part of social responsibility Akam James, Yenagoa Major multinational oil companies hosted by the states of Niger Delta region has been tasked on the need to invest on grassroots sports development, as part of their social corporate responsibilities.

The governor who gave the task on recently, while speaking at the grand finale of the 2018

Governor Seriake Dickson Football Tournament at the Samson Siasia Sports Complex in Yenagoa, also doled out the sum of N11 million to the four best teams of the tournament.

The final match, which was won by the Peretorugbene Community Football Club, who beat Opu-Nembe by two goals to one took home the price money of N5 million, while the first runners up,

Opu-Nembe went home with N3 million and the second and third runners up took home N2 and N1 million respectively.

The Governor said why it is necessary for the oil companies to invest in sports is because it plays a key role in promoting peace, unity and stability for sustainable socio-economic development in any society.”

He expressed satisfaction with the quality of performance

and assured youth of the state of his administration’s preparedness to provide more opportunities for them to develop their innate potentialities with a view to making the state proud.

The Director General of the Restoration Cup, Mr. Onoriode Akpe, explained that, the rationale behind the competition is to harness the sport potentials in the youths of the state and

dissuade them from cultism, violence and other social vices.

Akpe noted that, over 150 teams took part in this year’s edition of the community-based competition, in which not less than 30 talented players have already been penciled down for training at the state owned sports Academy, Asoama in Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area and Samson Siasia Academy in Abuja.

Delta plans special budget for reproductive health The Delta Government says it plans to create a specific budget line for reproductive health issues in 2019 to improve maternal health in the state.

The state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Mordi Ononye, disclosed this on Wednesday

in Asaba at a programme on Contraceptive Technology Update (CTU) organised by Challenge Initiative (CTI) for policy makers.

Ononye said the state prioritised planning and budgeting for development purposes with consideration to

the population of the people.

The commissioner said such planning would enable the state government to provide good governance to the citizenry.

He commended Challenge Initiative for its intervention through advocacy and technical assistance in promoting

reproductive health issues in the state.

Earlier, Dr. Jude WinfulOrieke, the Executive Director, State Primary Health Care Development Agency, lauded the activities of CTI in Delta and urged it to sustain the tempo.

Windful-Orieke said the

Wife of the Ondo State Governor, Arabirin Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu (right) handing over grinding machine to a beneficiary during the empowerment of women and youths in Ese-Odo Council area of the state.

meeting on CTU would afford the state government an opportunity to create a road map for the implementation of family planning policies and strategies to achieve results.

In a presentation, the State Programme Coordinator of the TCI, Mrs. Nwanne Kalu, disclosed that the group was presently carrying out intervention programmes in 13 local government areas of the state.

Kalu said the efforts of the organisation were geared towards promoting family planning and maternal health awareness in the state.

She urged the state government to replicate same intervention activities in the remaining 12 council areas of the state.

The programme coordinator further disclosed that TCI provided technical assistance to the state Ministry of Health, through the Reproductive Health Unit to improve maternal health in the state.

According to her, the technical assistance through innovative family planning models helped to improve services and promote awareness as well as increase the number of family planning users in the state.

Lagos tricycle owners jubilate as court grants autonomy to operate Esther Taiwo, Lagos There was wild jubilation among Lagos tricycle operators popular known as ‘Keke Marwa’ under the auspices of Tricycle Owners Association of Nigeria (TOAN), as an industrial court sitting in Ikoyi has pronounced the Association as the only Body authorised by the Registrar of the Trade Unions cap.14 of the 2004 of the Trade Union Act of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to regulate, coordinate and protect the interest of all tricycle workers nationwide.

It would be recalled that the matter, which had been in court since 2016 among the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Road Transport Employees Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) and Tricycle

Owners Association of Nigeria (TOAN) when TOAN sought for autonomy of operation has generated a lot of controversies and crises in the past before the court judgment.

Also, due to the crises being generated among the factions, Lagos State government suspended ticketing activities of all the associations until the outcome of the court judgment.

Addressing journalists recently, at the Secretariat of the Trade Union Congress in Lagos, Acting Chairman, TOAN Lagos State chapter, Chief Tunji Oyeniyi said TOAN was registered as a Trade Union organisation on January 26, 2016 as an affiliate of Trade Union Congress of Nigeria by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment with its primary objective being to coordinate, regulate and monitor the

activities of all three wheels in the country.

“It is noteworthy that this became necessary due to the challenges of undue exploitations and avoidable interferences by Bodies, individuals, groups or organisations who pretend to represent the interest of tricycle workers whereas the entire workers continue to wallop in abject poverty and degradation as a result of high level exploitation and negligence”, he said.

He said moreover, it is the opinion of the present body to reposition tricycle operations in the State and Nigeria at large by ensuring that tricycle operations are more acceptable, enduring, viable, effective and sustainable as a poverty alleviation programme that can be accommodated in a mega city plan towards a metropolitan

city like Lagos.

The acting chairman called on members in the state and other tricycle stakeholders nationwide to identify with the body as soon as possible as well as to remain loyal and law abiding citizens.

Counsel to the Association, Barrister Femi Aborishade congratulated members of TOAN fundamentally for being law abiding and patient in the cause of proceedings since 2016 before the judgment was finally given, especially those that suffered various forms of attacks from the other factions.

He said since the judgment has been delivered in favour of TOAN, it means Lagos State government now gives the association due recognition as the body recognized by Trade Union Congress that can carry out profit making activities of

tricycle operators in Nigeria.

“We now call upon the Lagos state government as a state created under the Nigeria constitution to also obey, observe and enforce the judgment of the court that is equally created under the same constitution, we also call on security agents to ensure that all other persons behave according to the rule of the judgment by not taking laws into their hands”, he said.

He said NURTW and RTEAN are no umbrella organisations as Nigerian Union Congress and Trade Union Congress stressing that NURTW and RTEAN cannot admit any other body according to law and if they do so, it is illegal because NUC and TUC are the only recognized body under the Law that any Body or Association can affiliate with.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

29 News

VC counsels new students on good conduct Chiangi Avese, Makurdi

Vice chancellor, Benue State University, Prof.

Moses Msugh Kembe has charged the newly matriculated students in the university to be of good conduct and shun acts capable of tarnishing the image of their respective families, communities and the institution.

Prof. Kembe gave the charge at the 26th matriculations and oath taking ceremony of the Benue State University Makurdi, Friday.

The matriculation, the Vice Chancellor said marks the formal conferment of student status on the freshers.

“Today’s occasion is, therefore, a realization of your dreams of becoming students of the university and this,

no doubt, will ever remain indelible and green in your lives and that of your parents, guardians and relations”.

At the ceremony, over 5000 students were matriculated into the faculties of Arts, Education, Environmental Sciences, Law, Management Sciences, Science, Social Sciences and College of Health Sciences.

The Vice Chancellor emphasized that, “in our university, we not only ensure but insist on quality assurance in the minimum admission requirements and processes”.

In keeping with the above, whereas the current Joint Matriculation Board (JAMB)’s UTME cut-off mark for placement into undergraduate programmes of Nigerian Universities is 120 points, we

have maintained ours at 180 points. For ordinary national diploma (OND), National Certificate of Education (NCE), we have maintained the minimum entry requirement into our undergraduate programmes at upper credit, 9 points and 7 points respectively”.

Prof.

Msugh Kembe said the university’s post UTME minimum scores for placement into programmes of the institution are 30% for science courses, 40% for Arts, Education, Social Sciences, Management Sciences, Environmental Sciences and 50% for Law and Medicine.

He pointed out that the University is not only committed to quality assurance, but also moulding students in character and

learning which is the basis for awarding degrees to deserving students in Benue State University. He therefore enjoined the students to earn grades by studying hard and be of good behaviour.

Entreating the new students to abide by the spirit of the matriculation oath and focus on their studies, the VC urged them to set high standards for themselves and aim at academic excellence.

He advised the students to imbibe the culture of patience and dialogue which are central to resolving disputes in all civilize societies.

“As you join the membership of your student union, play the game by the rules, follow the prescribed official channels of communication, avoiding unwarranted and ill-motivated

protests, shunning all forms of violence, and securing the university property especially hostels and lecture halls from vandalisation”, Prof. Kembe said.

The Vice Chancellor said, “I hope to reposition the university as an information and communication technology-driven centre of excellence impacting on the state and national development by producing cutting-edge innovation and training manpower capable of competing anywhere in the world. And to deploy all the available human and material resources at the disposal of the university to its growth and development as well as giving quality education in line with the mandate, vision and mission of the university”.

Bayelsa State Governor, Hon. Seriake Dickson (R), commiserates with the family of the Secretary to the State Government, Barr. Kemela Okara, over the untimely demise of their 2nd son, Oyindeinyefa Okara, at the New Commissioners’ Quarters, Opolo, Yenagoa. From Left: Wife of the SSG, Mrs Chineze Okara, their daughter, Miss Tamarapreye Okara, and the SSG, Barr.

Kemela Okara.

Photo by Michael Owi.

205 women at UNAIDS dismiss claims of sexual harassment More than 205 women from UNAIDS Offices across the world, from every level and every continent, have dismissed speculations of sexual harassment in the organisation.

This is contained in a statement from UNAIDS made available to journalists

by Mr Charles-Martin Jjuuko, Communications and Global Outreach Officer, UNAIDS Nigeria, on Wednesday in Abuja.

The statement quoted the women describing reports quoting a staff member of the

organisation as false.

The statement said the women were reacting to speculations that UNAIDS had allowed a “sexist culture”.

It quoted the women as saying that they took exception to claims that they are a window dressing and that “there is an expectation to trade sexual favours for promotions and other advancements’’.

“We categorically reject this portrayal as it does not represent our experience of working at UNAIDS and diminishes and discredits us as professionals and our many years of

dedicated service.

“We strongly believe that no one person can speak to our individual experiences or our values, especially without our collaboration and consent.

“We represent a diversity of culture, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, HIV status and expertise; we are united by our commitment to the AIDS response, women’s empowerment and the right to live free from violence and harassment,’ ’ the statement read in part.

It said that the women renewed their commitment

to

support and stand by all people who have experienced sexual harassment.

It said the women are active and committed participants in the process of change at UNAIDS to ensure an inclusive environment with zero tolerance for all forms of harassment.

“We stand in solidarity with the AIDS response as one of the most remarkable responses to an epidemic in modern history.

“We are proud to work for UNAIDS and the people we serve through our work,

bringing hope, dignity and health to millions around the world,’’ the statement said.

NAN recalls that the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board (PCB) had adopted terms and scope for the Independent Expert Panel on prevention and response to sexual harassment at the organisation.

The panel was one of several measures designed to strengthen the culture of zero tolerance for sexual harassment, abuse and unethical behaviour at UNAIDS.

Saraki has questions to answer, Police insist The Nigeria Police Force said it had not withdrawn its invitation to President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki to report to its office over alleged criminal indictment by five suspected gang leaders involved in the recent Offa bank robbery.

Recall that the police on Sunday, June 3, invited Saraki for questioning over alleged criminal indictment by five suspected gang leaders alleging to be his political thugs.

Saraki had twitted on his Twitter handle that the police had withdrawn the invitation for him to report to the Force Intelligence Response Team office in Guzape, Abuja.

He also said that the police had asked him to respond to the questions in writing.

The Force Spokesman, ACP Jimoh Moshood, made the disclosure while briefing newsmen on the update on the alleged indictment of Saraki on Wednesday in Abuja.

“The Senate president is still under investigation in connection to the Offa bank robbery and the police will do everything possible to ensure that justice is done in this case,” he said.

The spokesman said that there was no deadline for Saraki to report to the police.

Moshood was also evasive from the possible action the police would take if Saraki failed to report to the police.

He said that the force would not be cowed or succumb to intimidation from any quarter in carrying out discreet investigation on the matter.

Moshood said that two out of the three more suspected thugs working for Saraki, mentioned by the overall gang leader of the Offa bank robbery have been arrested.

The suspects are: Alhaji Kehinde Gobiri, 47, a.k.a.

Captain and Oba Shuaib Olododo, 57, a.k.a Jawando, from Ilorin East and South Local Government Areas respectively.

He said that the suspects, who have admitted to the various crimes they have committed, are currently in police custody in Ilorin, Kwara.

“They are currently under investigation and will be charged to court on completion of investigation,” he said.

Moshood said that the arrest of the two suspects followed further confessions of the five gang leaders earlier arrested by the police.

The five suspects are: Ayoade Akinnibosun, Ibukunle Ogunleye, Adeola Abraham, Salawudeen Azeez and Niyi Ogundiran.

Moshood said that the two suspects who were also arrested with fire arms are in the custody of the police in Ilorin, Kwara.

Saraki recently alleged a plot by the Inspector-General of Police, Mr Ibrahim Idris, to implicate him in a criminal case.

30

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Foreign Affairs Zuma makes second court appearance for corruption trial

Trump seeks end to Russia’s expulsion from G7

Ousted South African President Jacob Zuma, Arrived At The Durban High Court On Friday For His Second Appearance On Corruption Charges Relating To A $2.5 Billion Arms Deal In The Late 1990s, A Rare Example Of An African Leader Being Held To Account For His Actions.

Zuma, who was removed by his party, the ANC faces 16 charges of fraud, racketeering and money laundering relating to the deal to buy European military hardware to upgrade South Africa’s armed forces after the end of apartheid in 1994.

The national prosecutor this week turned down a request by the 76-yearold to delay Friday’s hearing pending the outcome of a separate legal challenge over the state paying his legal fees.

The speed with which prosecutors have moved against Zuma is a sign of his waning influence since he was replaced as head of state by Cyril Ramaphosa, his former deputy, four months ago.

Ramaphosa, has made the fight against corruption a top priority as he seeks to woo foreign investment and revamp an ailing economy.

Zuma’s supporters say the former president, whose nine years in power were marked by economic stagnation and credit rating downgrades, is the victim of a politically motivated witchhunt. (Reuters/NAN)

US President Donald Trump has called for an end to Russia’s expulsion from the G7, as he prepared to fly to Canada to attend part of the three-day conference.

Russia was ousted from the elite group in 2014 as punishment for President Vladimir Putin’s annexation of Crimea and its support for pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine. The suspension was supported by the other members of the group, including the US, Canada, Japan and four European nations.

Special counsel Robert Mueller is currently investigating whether Trump associates colluded with Russia in a bid to sway the 2016 presidential election in Trump’s favor.

Other leaders of the G7 are set to clash with Trump when they pressure him to lift sanctions on steel and aluminum they fear could lead to a trade war. Trump is scheduled to leave early on Saturday for Singapore to prepare for a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Tuesday.

Ex-NBA star due for Singapore ahead of US-N Korea summit

Zuma

Burundi’s President pledges not to seek re-election Burundi’s President Pierre Nkurunziza, pledged not to seek reelection when his term ends in 2020, easing fears of fresh violence in the impoverished country.

Nkurunziza, had been widely expected to take advantage of recent changes to the constitution to stand for two more terms - raising concerns Burundi could see a repeat of the unrest that erupted after he stood for a third time in 2015.

But he told a ceremony: “I wish to

inform Burundians and the world that I will not change what I said. My term is ending in 2020.”

“This constitution was not modified for Pierre Nkurunziza as the country’s enemies have been saying. It was amended for the good and better future of Burundi and the Burundian people,” he added in the speech broadcast on the state RTNB television station.

Last month voters in the small central African nation approved changes to the

constitution that also extended the length of a presidential term from five to seven years.

The opposition said the vote was marred by intimidation and fraud - a charge the government denied.

Burundi has been gripped by violence and lawlessness since Nkurunziza’s opponents took up arms against him, protesting against his move to stand for a third term in 2015.

He stood and won re-election in the same year.

REUTERS

Last Friday of Ramadan: Worshippers throng Makkah Grand Mosque for prayers A mammoth crowd of worshippers converged on the Grand Mosque of Makkah to perform Friday prayer.

Crowds made up of Saudis, residents as well as foreign visitors, performing Umrah, filled all corners of the Grand Mosque, as captured by a Saudi Press Agency photographer.

Muslims everywhere tend to visit mosques more often during the last 10 days of the holy month of Ramadan to take advantage of what remains of the month by multiplying their prayers and worship in the hope that prayers are answered and that they usher in a blessed period after Ramadan.

The security forces, tasked with keeping peace and order at the Grand Mosque, have also stepped up their preparations, monitoring entry and exit processes, in the hope of keeping the Sacred Mosque, its squares and visitors safe.

Former National Basketball Association star Dennis Rodman said on Friday he will be heading to Singapore for the planned June 12 summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. “I will be flying to Singapore for the historical Summit. I’ll give whatever support is needed to my friends, @realDonaldTrump and Marshall Kim Jong Un,” Rodman said in a Twitter post.

There was no indication Rodman would be involved in any official talks at Tuesday’s summit in Singapore. The White House did not immediately comment on his announcement.

However, Trump, before leaving to attend the Group of Seven summit in Canada, was asked whether Rodman was invited to Singapore and he said, “No, he wasn’t.”

Rodman is one of a handful of Westerners to have visited reclusive North Korea and met with Kim, and he most recently traveled there a year ago as a private citizen.

After that five-day visit in June 2017, Rodman told reporters: “I’m just trying to open the door.”

This trip, like the last one, is sponsored by potcoin.com, the crypto-currency provider for the legal marijuana industry.

Before Trump became president, Rodman appeared twice on his “Celebrity Apprentice” show and praised the billionaire real estate developer on Twitter during the 2016 presidential campaign.

Rodman has faced ridicule and criticism for his trips to North Korea, which some US politicians and activists view as serving only as fodder for North Korean propaganda.

His earlier visits to North Korea included a basketball game that he organized, an event chronicled in the documentary film “Big Bang in Pyongyang,” which featured Rodman singing “Happy Birthday” to Kim, as well as scenes of inebriated and erratic behavior by the basketball Hall of Famer.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

31 Foreign Affairs

Who benefits as DRC’s neighbours jostle for influence?

Stephanie Wolters Recently, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) government spokesperson Lambert Mende Omalanga publicly demanded an explanation from French President Emmanuel Macron for his ‘subliminal proposals, (which are), to say it clearly, full of ambiguity’.

Mende was referring to the statement Macron made about the situation in the DRC in a joint press conference with Angolan President João Lourenço, who had been visiting France. ‘France supports the initiative taken by the president of the African Union (Rwandan President Paul Kagame) in close coordination with the Angolan president,’ said Macron.

Lourenço’s visit followed Kagame’s visit to France a week earlier. Speaking at the same press conference, Lourenço said elections in the DRC were a priority and that DRC President Joseph Kabila should not stand again.

Macron’s statement is indeed full of ambiguity. And perhaps this was intentional. Those familiar with Great Lakes history know that Angola and Rwanda have played a deciding role in the DRC’s internal politics repeatedly over the past 22 years.

In the 1996-97 war to oust Zaire’s president Mobutu Sese Seko, Angola and Rwanda were allies, but then became rivals vying for influence over new Congolese president Laurent Kabila.

When Rwanda and Uganda turned against Kabila in 1998 and launched a new campaign to oust him, Angola sided with Kabila and saved him from being overthrown. The relationship between Rwanda and Angola never fully recovered.

More recently, Angola used its presidency of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) in 2015-17 to wrest control of regional politics away from Uganda and Rwanda, and associate more closely with the politics of the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Angola did this at a time when relations between Rwanda and South Africa – the SADC heavyweight – were low due to accusations that Rwanda was assassinating its political enemies on South African soil.

This dynamic appears to be changing. Angola has a new government that is making numerous shifts, as are other countries in SADC, notably South Africa and Zimbabwe – once staunch Kabila supporters but now more closely aligned with the

L-R: Rwanda President, Paul Kagame and DRC President, Joseph Kabila in a handshake during a recent meeting Angolan view.

In early May, the Angolan interior minister travelled to Kigali. It is therefore no real surprise that the Angolan presidency and Kagame’s visit to France have prompted furious responses from the Congolese, condemning attempts to interfere in the DRC’s internal affairs.

Rwanda and the DRC have been on quite good terms recently, with Kinshasa ranging from facilitating to simply tolerating Rwanda’s military and economic interference in the eastern DRC. Perhaps because the situation suits it, Rwanda has not been as plain-spoken as Angola. But as AU chairperson, Kagame must publicly support the view that it is time for Kabila to leave office, echoing AU Commission chairperson Moussa Faki’s words.

For both Rwanda and Angola, what happens in the DRC is important.

And when change happens in the DRC, Angola and Rwanda will not want to be caught on the sidelines.

The very public diplomacy between France, Angola and Rwanda on the DRC has been interpreted by some as a signal to Kabila that powerful players are coming together to

pressure him not to stand for another term. How and whether these forces will be coordinated and channelled, however, isn’t clear.

Angola and Rwanda have their own, very different security and economic agendas. Angola is looking for some measure of stability to prevent events in the DRC from spilling across its borders. And Lourenço openly stated in France how essential it would be that the elections have credibility: ‘These elections must be accepted by the international community, because you can have elections, but if no one recognises them, nothing will be achieved.’

For Rwanda, open access to resources in the eastern DRC is important. It also wants to prevent a threat to its existence from emerging there. The common factor for both countries is maintaining influence over who is in charge in Kinshasa.

But times have changed since Mobutu was overthrown. The AU does not tolerate coups, and neither Angola nor Rwanda can afford to be engaged in covert military operations aimed at overthrowing a head of state. It would certainly be a mistake to champion an armed

solution driven by regional players as a durable resolution to instability in the DRC. Angola and Rwanda could try to use the ICGLR as a vehicle for influence in the Congolese situation.

They may even choose to associate SADC with such an initiative, although SADC is much harder to steer than the relatively weak ICGLR. If this is the path they choose to take, it must also involve the AU, which has been relatively handsoff in the DRC since the failed 2016 mediation under Edem Kodjo.

Central to their actions should be the message that the credibility of the electoral process is paramount to restoring confidence and stability.

Jointly, Angola and Rwanda should continue to push for a restoration of political freedoms and the application of the 31 December 2016 political accords that prohibit Kabila from standing for a third term. This scenario could put the DRC back on the path towards stability.

Wolters, is Head, Peace and Security Research Programme (ISS) Pretoria, South Africa.

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FLASHBACK in Times: June 9, 1949

SATURDAY, JUNE 9, 2018

VOL. 3

NO. 673

N150

Published by FOLIO COMMUNICATIONS LIMITED. Operational Headquarters: Lateef Jakande Road, Agidingbi, Ikeja, Lagos Corporate Office: 9 Osun Crescent, MaItama, Abuja Email: info@dailytimes.ng Managing Editor: BONAVENTURE MELAH, Tel: 08036062975, Email: bonamelah123@gmail.com

Editor: TONY AMOKEODO, Tel: 08111811228, Email: tonyamok@gmail.com

Business Times

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Lagos holds key role How infrastructural in promoting tourism development will enhance Nigeria’s economic growth globally – UNWTO

‘Why we need more airlines’

National carrier: ART insists on caution, queries involvement of government agencies Chukwuemeke Iwelunmo Industry think tank group, the Aviation Round Table (ART) has called on government to be cautious in their approach of establishing the proposed national carrier and charged the committee directed to midwife the process to avoid influencing the process emotionally.

The group made this known in a statement made available to newsmen stating that they were not comfortable with the use of government agency chiefs to set up the carrier.

ART stated that it would like to see a minimal involvement of Government in

the process .

The statement in part read,” ART knows that an ideal national carrier must be domestically registered with support and encouragement of the citizens through the objective actions of government irrespective of party affiliation.”

“The ART is not in sync with the committee made up of Government agency heads to midwife the process of setting up the proposed National Carrier. We as professionals in the industry are advising a cautious approach to this project.”

“The probability of the directed committee’s emotional influence on the

finished product is not very encouraging. We would perhaps encourage not just a minimal involvement of Government in the process but also her restriction to establishing a level playing field for the Nigerian public’s participation as investors.”

On seeking out professionals to manage the carrier when it comes into being, the ART said that managerial challenges were a reason previous attempts failed.

“If and when as expected, this process goes ahead towards the finish line, it would be helpful to consider the employment of reputable headhunters in the nomination of even the startup management team as “management

challenges” played a prominent role in the demise of previous failed attempts.”

“It is also noted that the concurrent missteps of participation in the past, contributed to make such projects a mirage. we expect government to carefully and transparently work out the involvement of operating local airlines that may be seriously considered.”

“ART’s position is patriotic and so geared toward avoiding the possible colossal and usual loss of both revenue and man hours from our commonwealth as experienced with the past unguided attempts. Whichever way it goes, we wish our dear country Nigeria the very best.”

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode (2nd right); Australian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Paul Lehmann (2nd left); Second Secretary, Australian High Commission, Nigeria, Mr. Fabien De Vel-Palumbo (left) and Commissioner for Transportation, Mr. Ladi Lawason (right) during a courtesy call by the High Commissioner at Lagos House, Alausa, Ikeja, on Thursday, June 7, 2018.

Subscribers on Glo network hit 4m in April • Adds 400,000 new customers in one month Motolani Oseni

Total telecommunications solutions provider, Globacom, received a boost in its subscriber base as over 400,000 new customers joined the network in the month of April.

According to a telecom industry report published on the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) website, Globacom’s subscriber figure leapt from 39,042,979 in March to 39,523,811 in April with an increase of

480,832 new customers.

With the new statistics, Globacom retains its position as the second largest telecommunications operator in the country with 25 per cent share of the market, having added 1.36 million more subscribers to its network this year.

Since January 2018, the network’s upward trajectory has been phenomenal, rising from 38,169,780 at the end of December, 2017, to 38,228,018 in January, 38,423,184 in February, 39,042,979 in March and 39,523,811 in April.

Another cursory appraisal of the company’s performance in the last one year showed that it grew its subscriber base by 2.25 million, as the customer base grew from 37,270,100 in April, 2017, to 39,523,811 in April, 2018.

Industry watchers say Globacom’s growing customer base is premised on the attractive and user-friendly packages which give a lot of benefits to prepaid and postpaid phone users, thereby making its products and services the most competitive and accessible.

Figures from the NCC report further

show that connected telephone lines in the country reduced marginally from 242.6 million in March to 242.53 million in April. These include GSM, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Fixed Wired/Wireless and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). In the same vein, GSM lines remained dominant with 238.1 million connections in March and 238.03 million in April.

Cumulatively, active telephone lines across the networks in Nigeria grew from 148.6 million in March to 160.1 million lines at the end of April.

Minimum wage: NASS will fast track passage of bill – Sen Ohuanbuwa The Deputy Chairman of the Senate Committee on Labour, Sen. Mao Ohuanbuwa, on Friday said the National Assembly will fast track the passage of the new national minimum wage bill, once the executive bill is sent to it.

Ohuanbuwa made this known while speaking with journalists in Geneva, Switzerland.

He said the Senate President had already given the assurance that the bill would be given express hearing and passage by the legislature.

Ohuanbuwa said, “We are going to fast track the bill for accelerated passage and that is what the Senate President had said.

“It is unfortunate that both the ministry and the executive have been going back and forth. We thought that by now, that would have been resolved.

“So we are looking forward to that bill because it is going to come out as an executive bill.

“We are looking forward to rounding off or concluding that bill before we go on our annual break.

“But the way it is, it looks like we are going to wait. You know there is little or nothing we can do because it is an executive responsibility.

“They are the ones who will make the payment. Ours is that we have to support and agree that there is very urgent need to review the minimum wage.’’

He said the need to review the minimum wage is sacrosanct.

“But we cannot go ahead as a parliament to legislate on that without the executive coming up with a bill. We are waiting for them to do that.

“We will allow the executive and the labour leaders to resolve their differences. What we had promised and we still stand on is that once that bill comes to us, we are going to give it accelerated hearing.’’

He called on the Federal Government and the organised labour to resolve their differences on the issue of the new national minimum, in the interest of Nigerian workers.

Ohuanbuwa said that states should be allowed to negotiate with labour on what they would be able to pay.

Business News B2

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

How infrastructural development’ll enhance Nigeria’s economic growth – NCC boss Ladesope Ladelokun The Executive Vice Chairman, The Nigerian Communication Commission, (NCC), Prof. Umar Dambatta has said that economic development of Nigeria could only be facilitated and accelerated by the presence of infrastructural development as being practised in developed countries.

This was disclosed in the Business Journal 10th Anniversary Lecture and Award held at Sheraton, Ikeja themed ‘Infrastructure and Economic Growth: Exploring the Strategic Alliance’.

Danbatta, who was represented

by The Assistant Director, Technical

Standards NCC, Mr Edoyemi Ogo said that telecommunication was an infrastructure industry that contributes to all economic growth drivers in one way or the other.

He said that the liberalisation and deregulation in the telecom sector placed Nigeria in a position to increase the contribution of the industry to overall GDP. “With the advancement in telecommunication technology, the world has experienced a rapid growth in communications.

“Telecommunication sector development has acted as a catalyst to drive growth and efficiencies in many other sectors. Telecommunication

infrastructure has a direct and indirect positive effect on economic growth”.

“This effect can be seen in the economic growth indicators which include real GDP, Industrial production, employment, price stability, education, technology and innovation, “Danbatta said.

He added that the World Bank had found out that a 10 percent increase in broadband penetration in developing countries results in a commensurable increase of 1.38 percent in GDP. Danbatta also said that the telecom sector contribution to Nigerian GDP had increased from less than 1 percent in 2001 to about 8.66 percent in December 2017.

Speaking also, Chairman Open Media Group, Mr. Ernest Ndukwe said that infrastructure remains the biggest problem in Africa.

He said that power was very critical to the development of the telecommunication industry, therefore, urged the government to build enough infrastructures for electrical power.

“Many small-scale industries would have done very well but because of the inadequate power supply, most of them are dead.

“We as a nation cannot develop without infrastructures; it is needed so that we can grow our economy”, Ndukwe explained.

L-R: Head, Sponsorship and Experience, 9mobile, Modupe Thani; Chief Executive Officer, 9mobile, Boye Olusanya, and Head, Marketing Communications, 9mobile, Seni Ogunkola, at the presentation of Cristal Awards won by 9mobile to the CEO in Lagos.

NSE closes low as market indices shed 372.88 points Motolani Oseni Following a four days upward movement, the All-Share Index of The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on Friday shed 372.88 points to close lower at 38,669.23, compared with 39,042.11 recorded on Thursday.

The NSE dropped by 0.96 per cent, following profit taking on Friday, while the market capitalisation which opened at N14.142 trillion lost N137 billion or 0.96 per cent to close

at N14.007 trillion.

Seplat recorded the highest loss, to lead the laggards’ table dropping by N23.90 to close at N711.10 per share.

SkyeShelter trailed with a loss of N5 to close at N95, while Dangote Cement Industries declined by N3.40 to close at N235.50 per share.

International Breweries lost N1.80 to close at N41 .80, while Cement Company of Northern Nigeria was down by N1.40 to close at N26.60 per share.

Conversely, Nestle led the gainers’

table for the day, gaining N20.20 to close at N1, 450.20 per share.

Mobil Oil followed with a gain of N8.30 to close at N174.30, while Unilever gained N2 to close at N55.20 per share.

Stanbic IBTC appreciated by 70k to close at N48.20, while Cadbury grew by 60k to close at N12.65 per share.

In the same vein, the volume of shares traded dropped by 57.32 million shares valued at N3.89 billion achieved in 4,141 deals.

This was against the 492.05 million

shares worth N7.62 billion exchanged in 4,726 deals on Thursday.

Dangote Sugar Refinery was the most active stock for the day, trading 27.93 million shares worth N539.19 million.

It was followed by FBN Holdings with an account of 23.23 million shares, valued at N247.73 million.

Guaranty Trust Bank traded 19 .88 million shares worth N1.01 billion, while FCMB Group sold 14.04 million shares valued at N33.86 million.

Buhari appoints Shonubi as new CBN Deputy Governor Mathew Dadiya, Abuja President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the nomination of Mr. Folashodun Adebisi Shonubi as Deputy Governor at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity Garba Shehu, who announced the

appointment in a statement issued on Friday, said, Shonubi’s appointment is subject to Senate confirmation.

Shonubi is currently the Managing Director of the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc (NIBSS) – the financial payments, facilitation and settlement platform – which has been instrumental to the growth in electronic payments in the Nigerian

financial industry.

Before assuming the headship of NIBBS in 2012, Shonubi had garnered decades of executive-level experience in financial service operations, notably as Executive Director at Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, Renaissance Securities Nigeria Ltd and Ecobank Nigeria Plc. The president had in November appointed two other deputy

governors for the CBN-Aisha Ahmad and Edward Lametek but it took the senate over four months to confirm them. The delayed in the confirmation of the nominated CBN deputy governors also affected the holding of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting which takes key decision on monetary rates and other economic indices.

Why we sealed 5 petrol stations in Niger State – FG Chukwuemeke Iwelunmo The Weights and Measures Department of the Federal Ministry of Industry Trade and Investment says it has sealed five petrol filling stations in Niger for allegedly tampering with their handpump machines.

Assistant Director Legal Metrology, Alhaji Salim Mohammed, announced this in Minna on Friday after inspecting some filling stations.

He said that the five filling stations were North Bridge Petroleum, Total Service Station, Forte Oil, Bida, MRS Service Station and Ekowa Service Station in Agaie Local Government Area of the state.

He expressed satisfaction with the level of compliance in most of the stations visited.

He, however, warned fuel marketers against selling above tolerances level on flowmeter dispensing pumps in the state.

According to him the constitution of Nigeria confers on weights and measures department to issue specifications tolerances and test method on weighing and measuring equipment used for trade and package goods.

He also advised customers who felt they were cheated to report to the desk offices in all states for redress.

He also said that the team visited business premises such as petrol stations, gas retail outlets and open markets.

“We would not tolerate any act of sabotage as any filling station found cheating motorists would be dealt with decisively.

“We have visited more than 60 filling stations in and outside the state capital to monitor the sale of petroleum products and ensure strict compliance, ” he said.

He also appealed to members of the public to assist with information that would assist to effectively monitor the sale of the product to motorists in the state.

“If you buy products at any filling station and find out that the product is not what you paid, feel free to report to us and we will swing into action.

Don’t just keep quiet, because we cannot do it alone. We cannot be everywhere at the same time, if you report to us your identity will be covered.

“We have our apparatus to check if actually the hand pump is in perfectly good condition or tampered with.

“Once we discovered that a filling station is selling above official pump price, I assure you that we will seal it off”, he warned.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

B3 Business News Obaseki raises the alarm over forest depletion • Assures of new law,

policy to check trend

L-R;Tellco Europe Nigeria, Chairman, Prof. Wale Omole, OFR;Consul General of Switzerland in Lagos,Yves Nicolet;Tellco Europe Nigeria Executive Vice Chairman & CEO, Mr. Olawale Akinwumi and Tellco Europe Nigeria Managing Director/COO, Dr. Victor Fodeke at the 2018 World Enviroment Day and Press conference organized by Tellco Europe Nigeria held at the Office,GRA, Ikeja Lagos...on Friday.

IMF projects economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa at 3.4% in 2018 The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected economic growth in subSaharan Africa at 3.4 percent in 2018 from 2.8 percent in 2017, as the recovery gradually strengthens in the continent’s largest economies.

Papa N’diaye, chief of IMF’s regional studies division, stated: “Growth is expected to rise to 3.4 percent in 2018, from 2.8 percent in 2017 in sub-Saharan Africa.”

At a presentation on the 2018 Regional Economic Outlook in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the IMF stated that the region is experiencing a modest growth uptick, and about two-thirds of countries in the region reportedly saw accelerated growth over the

past year.

N’diaye said the overall growth in the region could be linked to improved global growth, higher commodity prices, and continued strong public spending.

He noted that, beyond 2018, growth was expected to plateau below four percent, modestly above population growth, reflecting continued sluggishness in the oil-exporting countries and sustained growth in non-resourceintensive countries.

The 2018 outlook report notes that the region is home to a very diverse set of countries, resulting in uneven growth performance, adding that there was, therefore, a “need for policies to respond to the deep macroeconomic imbalances

in the region.”

The need to foster private investment and increase domestic revenue mobilization were amongst the recommendations highlighted. N’diaye said these would improve and sustain growth in the region, and further added that “weak private investment has weighed on growth.”

He emphasized that, attaining the SDGs world require reducing macroeconomic vulnerabilities and raising medium-term growth.

The IMF’s projection is coming after World Bank projected the growth in the region to rise to 3.1 percent in 2018 and to 3.5 percent in 2019, from 2.6 percent in 2017.

World Bank’s projections were contained in its ‘Global Economic

Prospects’ report released on Tuesday, June 6, 2018, for subSaharan Africa.

The bank said a modest economic recovery has continued in sub-Saharan Africa, supported by rising oil and metals production, spurred by higher commodity prices, by improving agricultural conditions and by increasing domestic demand.

The report further stated that several countries, including Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria, experienced a pickup in manufacturing activity, while renewed government commitments to macroeconomic and governance reforms have boosted investor and consumer confidence in Angola, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.

The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has said the state government has resolved to take proactive steps to regenerate and preserve the state’s forest assets to conform to global practices.

Obaseki said this after receiving the report from the 16-man Advisory Committee on Forestry, inaugurated in April to assist the state develop effective frameworks in managing her forest assets in line with international best practice with focus on forest reservation, preservation, conservation and regeneration based on a report presented

by Pro-Forest.

He said the state’s forest assets require urgent action on regeneration, noting, “An executive bill for a law on forest regeneration has to go to Edo State House of Assembly and we will not waste time in implementing the law.”

He said the state government would study recommendations made by the committee and lead conversation around forest regeneration, adding, “We will come up with policy guidelines and action plan based on the recommendations before the end of June.

“We must do something urgently on forest reservation. Our advantage is that we have a history and something to fall back to on forest reservation. It is our responsibility to restore our forests.”

Chairman of the 16-man Advisory Committee, Dr. Felix Idumah, said the committee was set up because of the governor’s concern about rejuvenating the state’s forestry assets.

He said findings in the report revealed a high level of degradation, deforestation and depletion of the state’s forest resources, noting, “The forest assets are no longer there. If nothing is done to halt the trend, we will not have any forest.”

Customers complaint: NCC moves to sanitise telecom industry, introduces 622 Toll-Free-Line Ladesope Ladelokun

The Nigerian Communication Commissions (NCC) has urged customers of telecommunication operators to lodge their complaints of unsatisfactory services through its 622 Toll-FreeLine.

Prof. Umar Danbatta, the Executive Vice Chairman of the commission said this at the 95th Edition of Consumers Outreach Programme in Dutse on Friday.

Danbatta, who was represented by the Director, Consumers Affairs Bureau of the commission, Felicia Onwuegbuchulam said that the

commission was disturbed with the various complaints from customers.

The complaints include unsolicited text messages and calls, failure/refusal to roll over unused data services at the expiration of data bundled by service providers.

Others are automatic renewal of data services upon expiration and activation, subscription to data and Value Added Services (VAS) without the consent of subscribers.

“It is in response to these complaints that the commission as a proactive institution has taken appropriate steps to address the issues raised,’’ she said.

Onwuegbuchulam said that the

commission had issued directive to service providers to desist from forceful subscription of data services and VAS unless they got the consent of the customers.

“It is on this note that we develop 622 Toll-Free-Line for customers to lodges any unresolved complaints to us between them and their providers.’’

She said that failure to comply with the directive by any telecom provider would attract penalties by the commission.

“This is because we believe that a consumer is a king and as such he needs some basic rights and privileges like the right to be heard,

right to be educated, right to choose, right to redress as well as right to safety.”

Onwuegbuchulam said that the Consumers Outreach Forum was an initiative of NCC to bring together telecom consumers in urban areas with network operators and regulators to discuss and offer solutions to consumer’s related issues.

“This is to ensure consumers have value for their money through effective service delivery,’’ he said.

Gov. Muhammad Badaru of Jigawa, who was represented by his Deputy, Alhaji Ibrahim Hadejia decried of the fluctuating nature of

services by network providers.

Hadejia said that people had to climb mountains or go near network masts before they could make calls or send messages.

He urged the telecom providers to provide free network sites or provide some services at subsidised rates for e-learning as obtained in advanced society.

While commending the NCC for the tripartite meeting between consumers, telecom operators and regulator, he urged telecom operators to build good networks for optimum advantage and utilisation for political, economic and social benefit of the customers.

Business Interview B 4

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Why we need more airlines What is Akanu Ibiam International Airport (AIIA) Enugu doing to control the outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease in the Democratic Republic of Congo?

At the moment, the Port Health Authority which functions here in collaboration with other agencies at the airport held a meeting quickly to plan on how to forestall Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). This is because international flights are coming in three times a week. While planning for all these, we created an area where we can take away any passenger that we discover has an abnormal temperature, that area in the arrival hall where we keep them and also check their temperature discreetly while they are coming in without their knowing.

We also have sanitisers in different corners at the airport where people can wash up themselves. Even before we created the space where we kind of take away those who are suspected, we had a sensitization talk with all the agencies in the airport. We were fortunate that World Health Organisation (WHO) came to our assistance immediately to give those talks and discussions; not just centering on Ebola but other communicable diseases that are possibly moveable through the air or by means of air travel. You know air travel is the quickest means of moving around from continent to continent. So if there is a contagious disease of such magnitude it can easily move from country to country. So WHO has been here and has equally assisted us in giving talks on how to tackle it and what to watch out for and what to do to prevent the spread. That is what we have done so far. So every Tuesday, Thursdays and Saturday we all monitor jointly the movement of passengers into the airport particularly. We actually pay greater attention to those moving into the airport because most of them may be coming from Addis Ababa but they may be transiting from other areas of the world. So we want to be very cautious and we don’t want anything to go wrong.

Looking at the runway 08 and 26, the runway markings are ongoing. What is the level of work there?

I can say the percentage covered is almost 70 per cent of the painting or marking really. The kinds of painting they are doing are the reflective types that dry out within 10 minutes of painting. And it is for clear visibility for Airmen when they are flying in to land. Commencing from the less active part of the runway which is the 08 proceeding towards the two seats, we try to capture the centre lines first because they are very critical to pilots. It serves as a guide to where you put your nose both in taxiing and in landing. The touchdown zone markings too, will commence from 08 heading towards 26. Much of them about 70 percent of them have been remarked. About one third of the runway surface lengthwise have been covered with remarking because the runway measures 3,000 meters of 3km in length but we have not covered the edges, more than 1000 meters. It is like two third of the work remain at the edges but I know we should be able to do that if the weather permits since we are in rainy season. But I can assure you that in a week’s time, we should have gone far in making the marks very clearly visible from the air. They should be visible enough to be visible from about 8 miles to touchdown. That is what we have been doing so far.

Mgbemene

Despite various challenges facing by Akanu Ibiam International Airport (AIIA) Enugu, from obstructing communication masts to inadequate water supply and uncompleted terminal building, Mr. Orjiakor Mgbemene, an airport manager, in this interview with CHUKWUEMEKE IWELUNMO spoke on increase in passengers’ traffic, the Ebola disease and compensation of land acquired for the airport runway expansion.

In view of the ongoing work at the airport, what is your message to passengers?

My message to them is to fly through Enugu. Enugu airport is safe for flying. We have all the necessary navigational aids that will aid safe landing and take-off. The only thing we are still waiting is to add at the two ends of the runway approach light for night landing. We do not encourage night landing yet because we have not fixed the approach light. So our operational hour for now is just 12 hours from 7am to 7pm. As soon as the issue that surrounds the installation of the approach lights are tidied up which is actually hanging on compensation issues because the land in which those things are going to be fixed belongs to Enugu indigenes or the surrounding communities of host communities believe they have not been properly compensated for the land acquired when we increased the length of the runway from what it used to be. It used to be 2.4km, and then we increased to 3km

‘ ,

or 3,000 meters. That required having a more robust approach light system. What we had initially when it was 2.4 km was a simple approach system but now that we increased the runway, we need something more robust that will take care of a runway of 3000 meters which should be able to accommodate a medium size to large size airport. And this now being upgraded to international airport, we actually need to have those approach light because that will ensure we have 24 hours light to accommodate both scheduled and most particularly, non-scheduled cargo flight operations because they come from long distance and different time zone. So, there is need for them to be able to land here anytime of the day or night.

Last time we came here, you did say that some airlines are signifying interest to start operations into Enugu. How far about that?

So far, we are still waiting. Every of these things hang on the facilities we have on ground to be able to accommodate

The aviation industry is information based; people have this information at the tip of their fingers. So they are waiting patiently for us to provide a bigger terminal

the airlines. For example, we are still managing the terminal building for both local and international operations. The terminal building was kind of remodeled or expanded a bit but what we have on ground, we cannot process more than one flight in the arrival hall at a time. If we have two wide-bodied aircraft that carried 300 passengers at a time, within 20 minutes, the whole arrival hall may not be able to process all that. Again, the issue of provision of permanent independent water supply system for the replenishment of the fire trucks; preventions of accidents or to be able to fight fire incident, we don’t have much water for now. We actually need an independent power system because the public system is almost zero.

We are making do now with water tankers which will not suffice. Our consumption level here is about 20,000 litres per day whereas what we should be consuming by the time we process the new international terminal building which is built to take in three large body aircraft type for passengers; we should need 100,000 litres of water per day to process all that. The aviation industry is information based; people have this information at the tip of their fingers. So they are waiting patiently for us to provide a bigger terminal. That is ongoing and I am assuring that less than 18 months, we should have the new international terminal. That one should process, at least three medium to wide body sized aircraft at a tinme and then the water too for fire-fighting and for replenishment of the fire vehicles.

As we speak, if we should have more than one aircraft at a time having issues with fire-fighting, it might be a little challenging to replenish the water but if you have your independent water supply, in less than 3 minutes you can refill the tanker or a fire fighting vehicle that has capacity of 11,000 litres of water within less than 3 minutes., then you can go back and fight. Those are the things that the airmen know that we have not got to the standard it should be.

That is the only thing preventing them from commencing flight operations but the passengers are there. Since December, one would have been expecting us to have downturn in passenger movement.

Ironically, there has been an increase in passenger movement which means the airport has a better ambience and that it makes people more comfortable to travel through here. The only airline operating which is Ethiopia keeps bringing 300-seater aircraft, 3 times a week which shows from the statistics that the passengers’ movement is on the increase instead of decrease.

One of the things that make airport have more passengers is if the passengers feel comfortable at the airport. They tend to fly through here as much as possible. So we are expecting more airlines to come because the passengers are there.

What about the issue of power?

We need a dedicated power line to the airport. That will be very helpful because at the moment, we rely more on our secondary power supply. We have approached the Enugu Electricity Distribution Committee (EEDC) to discuss that largely and more robust with FAAN to see a way of getting a dedicated line. It will help us a lot in provision of power for processing of passengers for luggage and every other business.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

B 5 Business Feature

Between corporate social responsibility and public relations Godwin Anyebe

The idea of corporate social responsibility (CS R) has increased significantly in business and professional practice in the last four decades, expanding from t he business realm to the public relations field.

Nevertheless, the perceptions of PR professionals and their relationship with CSR programs remain largely unstudied.

The connection between corporate public relations and its use of effective communication and relationship management, and social responsibility is still developing. Specifically, questions as to the chosen message and how it affects the reputation or perception of an organization as responsible remain.

Analysts expressed positive perceptions of CSR initiatives but adamantly opposed public relations’ ownership of the programs.

Rather, these Analysts advocated a cross-functional approach with public relations in a supportive or complementary function. The results closely align with trade and mainstream literature.

As a matter of fact, companies are moving toward more active responsibility programs, leveraging company capabilities and employees’ skills to produce the greatest positive impact on surrounding communities and the broader society. These active programs illustrate the strong support for corporate social responsibility within the company through extensive volunteerism.

Experts mentioned the cost-effective benefits of employee volunteerism. Not only is it an inexpensive way to make a substantial impact in the community, but it also humanizes the company.

One professional involved in CSR planning, execution and communication who don’t want his mention in print explained, “When you have employees engaged in the community, we’re not that big faceless corporation that might take up a city block. We’re not the plant down the street behind the gate. We’re your neighbors... we’re part of the community.”

This trend of greater involvement extends across companies, business sectors, private and governmentregulated firms, and even national borders. With most firms boasting international reach, this trend of active corporate responsibility is evident in companies such as Nigerian Breweries, Promasidor, Dufil Prima, among others.

Linked to the strong positive perceptions of corporate responsibility, the professionals also indicated that CSR programs are not intended to serve solely public relations goals.

According to these professionals,

L-R: Vice-Principal Academics, Government Junior College Maroko, Ms. Omowunmi Alawiye; The Principal, Government Junior College Maroko, Mrs. Abiodun Awujoola; Chief Financial Officer, LG Electronics West Africa Operations, Mr. Seungwoo Ha; and Vice-Principal Government Junior College Maroko, Mrs. Kudirat Abe, during LG Electronics tree planting and donation of cleaning tools to Government Junior College Maroko to mark 2018 World Environment Day in Lagos.

public relations goals are viewed not as the driver of the CSR programs but as a secondary consideration.

Nevertheless, they conceded several PR objectives, including reputationbuilding, mitigating risk and increasing shareholder value, were met by well-managed corporate social responsibility programs.

Craig Pearce an experienced corporate communication practitioner explain that, “on a superficial (but potentially still useful) level, CSR entails programs which manifest themselves through an organisation investing into areas which its stakeholders find of benefit. For example, school curriculum resources, scholarships and sponsorship for community organisations. On the other hand, the notion of an organisation changing the way it operates based on stakeholder interests and concerns is essentially what public relations, at its most fundamental, is about. This is the most desirable form of what is called two-way symmetrical communication, the most fundamental and rigorous of the theoretical constructs which underpins PR.” While speaking further on CSR and PR strategy, he stressed that, One of the fundamental tenets of PR is that it includes mechanisms which enable organisations to determine and understand the issues, interests

‘ ,

and opportunities of its stakeholders.

As a result of this, the strategic and sophisticated PR practitioner is an invaluable repository of information that can inform and advise the organisation on approaches to best enhance its reputation.

According to him,“no matter the position one holds on what defines PR or CSR and which discipline should have the responsibility for ensuring as much organisational alignment with stakeholder interests as possible, there is no doubt the two areas can profitably work together.”

“The lazy way for this to manifest itself is by using PR as a simplistic mechanism to broadcast information to stakeholders on organisational CSR efforts, including the securing of media coverage. For PR to be used for this alone is a perilously non-strategic utilisation of a powerful business discipline”, he said.

Also speaking on this issue, a brand and marketing analyst, Samuel Ajayi told Daily Times that; “Corporate Social Responsibility exists to ensure that an organization takes the right measures to be responsible and contribute positively to the communities they operate in. In many organizations, the PR department monitors the relationships between the company and its internal and external

In many organizations, the PR department monitors the relationships between the company and its internal and external environments. When CSR is done correctly, it boosts a company’s image and reputation

environments. When CSR is done correctly, it boosts a company’s image and reputation. Anything make the society more friendly can be good for an organization’s image.”

According to him, “a public relations professional’s job is to manage the two way flow of communication between an organization and its publics. In other words, the PR department wants to receive feedback from the organizations stakeholders to find out their thoughts, wants, and needs to improve and maintain the organization’s image in response to their concerns. This way, the consumers feel as if they matter and are involved with the organization.”

Now you are probably wondering how public relations ties in with Corporate Social Responsibility. When an organization reaches out to the community, they need to inform the public about their initiatives. Who better to communicate their CSR plans than public relations professional?

PR can help inform the public about how an organization is helping out in the community, working to better the lives of their employees, and becoming more eco-friendly.

“When PR communicates the organizations endeavours to the public, it benefits the organization greatly.

When often dealing with competitors, having a proper CSR plan can give an organization a great advantage over its competitors. The public is more willing to respect and engage in an organization that is giving back to its community. As well as benefiting consumers, having the proper CSR also benefits the company itself. It improves employee morale, improves recruitment rates, and reduces staff turnovers.” He added.

Tourism B6

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Lagos holds key role in promoting tourism globally – UNWTO Secretary General of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), Mr. Zurab Pololikashvili, has said that Lagos would play a pivotal role in the organisation’s quest to promote new tourism destinations across the world.

Pololikashvili, who made this known when he led a high powered delegation, consisting eight Ministers of Tourism and representatives from 44 countries across Africa on a courtesy visit to the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, said the Technical Visit to the State, as part of the activities for the just concluded 61st UNWTO/ CAF Meeting in Abuja, was a pointer to the role Lagos would play in developing tourism in the continent.

Describing the visit to Lagos as the best part of the meeting, the UNWTO Scribe said, “We are here to promote new tourism destinations.

You can count on us, thanks to you, to promote this fantastic place. Thanks for receiving us and rest assured that Lagos will be one of the most important parts of our strategy branding.”

Responding, State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode said the massive investment in infrastructural renewal by his administration was a well thought out strategy to position Lagos as a

tourism hub.

He said his administration was not unmindful of the massive economic benefits yet untapped from the tourism sector, adding that conscious efforts are being made to maximise the potentials for the benefit of the people.

“We believe that with the kind of population and the market that Lagos has, we must start to create tourism infrastructure to be able to grow the economy, that’s why as you move across Lagos, you would observe that it is technically a construction site; from the airport and as you go on the bridges and also when you go to the Eko Atlantic City.

“But the ultimate goal is that these infrastructure will now drive people to come and spend their weekend here, just the way you have decided to spend your Wednesday here in Lagos and the government gets some form of revenue from taxes when people use our hotels.

“So there is a cycle of development that tourism tries to drive and that is why we have continuously supported whatever has to do with tourism and let me reiterate also that we would continue to support everything tourism because anything that can integrate and bound the continent together, that’s where we should go because we are the next

story,” Governor Ambode said.

He said a UN report in 2016 showed that 86 people enter into Lagos every one hour, with only Mumbai coming close with 79, followed by New York and London with 7 and 9 respectively, adding that it was a viable opportunity to use tourism to drive human and capital development.

“Lagos has almost a population of 24 million right now. According to UN report, as at 2016, 86 people enter into Lagos every one hour and most likely not wanting to go back. Next is Mumbai, 79; New York 7; London, 9.

“So, why are people coming to Lagos and not wanting to go back? It means that at a point where we are not able to provide jobs for them, we need to start looking at the area of tourism to be able to create that next port of building the State’s GDP and tap into the creative mind of our people, which is something that we have not really been doing across Africa,” the Governor said.

Welcoming the delegation to the State, Governor Ambode said the technical visit by the delegation was auspicious, as it would provide an avenue for top players in the tourism sector from the across the continent to rub minds and forge a common course towards making Africa the choice destination for tourists across the world.

L-R: The General Manager, Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency, (LASEPA), Ayodele Antonio; Public Affairs Manager, Lagos & West, Nigerian Bottling Company Limited (NBC), Ifeoma Okoye and National Environmental Manager, NBC Ltd. Chigozie Ejimogu during the presentation of award and certificate to NBC as the best multinational company for environment at an event organized by LASEPA to mark the World Environmental Day in Lagos.

Ethiopia to accept foreign investment in aviation, telecom sectors Ethiopia is opening the state-owned telecommunications company and airline to foreign investors for the first time, a move that indicates new Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is more receptive to outside interests in Africa’s second-most populous nation.

Ethiopia will sell minority stakes to foreign and domestic investors in state monopolies such as Ethio Telecom and Ethiopian Airlines Enterprise, the continent’s biggest airline, as well as Ethiopian Shipping & Logistics Services Enterprise, the staterun Ethiopian News Agency said late Tuesday, citing the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front.

“Foreigners with knowledge and foreign capital

can play a critical role in our growth,” it said.

The East African country of more than 100 million people has long been a target of the biggest phone companies in Africa, including MTN Group Ltd. and Vodacom Group Ltd., the largest by sales and market value respectively. The government has until now been strict about keeping the industries in-house, but there are signs it’s opening up to the world since Abiy’s rise to power earlier this year.

The move hints at Abiy’s intent for the nation ranked by the International Monetary Fund as Africa’s fastest-growing economy. He’s already reduced the role of Ethiopia’s military in construction and similar projects, and lifted a

state of emergency introduced after former Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn quit in February.

Ethiopian Airlines has turned the nation’s capital, Addis Ababa, into Africa’s equivalent of the Persian Gulf hubs, linking almost 70 global cities with almost 60 across the continent. It’s also planning to take equity stakes in new operators in Zambia, Chad, Mozambique and Guinea.

Earlier in the week, Ethiopia agreed to implement a peace deal signed at the turn of the century with Eritrea after Abiy undertook two months ago to normalize relations with its neighboring long-time foe. The deal was originally signed in 2000 to end a two-year border war that killed thousands of people.

Marriott Int’l announces $500m plan for Sheraton transformation Marriott International has announced its transformation vision for Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, the third largest brand in its portfolio, and the largest outside of North America in terms of room count.

The company, during the week introduced its new Sheraton guestroom late last year, showcasing its vision for Sheraton’s public spaces at the NYU International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference in New York, bringing to life for owners and investors the company’s brand strategy as well as its signature focus on guest experience, hotel operations and design philosophy.

“From the moment we closed the Starwood merger in late 2016, the revitalization of Sheraton has been a top priority for our company,” said Arne Sorenson, President and CEO of Marriott International.

“We knew that the way to restore this incredible brand was focus and collaboration with our hotel owners.

We wanted to build on Sheraton’s rich legacy of sitting at the heart of communities across the globe, but also to create a differentiated positioning and compelling proposition for our owners.

With our Sheraton transformation plan, we’ve put together all of the pieces of the equation to work cooperatively with our owners to set this iconic brand on a new, disciplined and successful path. We are ready, our vision is clear and the energy is robust for Sheraton.”

Owners are already responding to the new vision with optimism and energy, committing an estimated half-a-billion dollars in renovations of hotels across the U.S. Globally, 25 percent of Sheraton hotels have committed to renovations with some already underway.

This week, Sheraton has built out a 4,200-square-foot vignette at the NYU International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference that brings its vision to life, allowing investors to understand and experience Sheraton’s transformation plans firsthand, particularly the concepts for the hotel’s public spaces.

Reverting to its roots as the gathering place for locals and guests, Sheraton today amplifies that legacy by leaning into services and design that enable socialization, productivity, and personalization.

Its strategy features collaborative venues, technology enabled designs, and a host who helps deliver a unique experience that is exclusive to Sheraton.

“Marriott International is well positioned to deliver a comprehensive strategy for Sheraton’s brand transformation and we already have great momentum. This is the first time in years that the brand has been above competitive benchmark in both rate and occupancy,” said Tina Edmundson, Global Brand Officer, Marriott International.

“We have improved brand standards, increased group bookings, and have ramped up our business engine over the last year as a first step in a multi-phase, multi-year plan, leveraging our experience in revitalizing lodging brands.”

The company undertook a repositioning of the Marriott Hotels brand beginning in 2013, redesigning the guest room and MClub Lounge working in close cooperation with Marriott Hotel owners.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

B7 Business Int’l

Global foreign investment drops by 23 per cent – UNCTAD Global flows of foreign direct investment fell by 23 per cent in 2017.

The latest report released by United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) indicated that cross-border investment in developed and transition economies dropped sharply, while growth was near zero in developing economies. With only a very

modest recovery predicted for 2018, this negative trend is a long-term concern for policymakers worldwide, especially for developing countries, where international investment is indispensable for sustainable industrial development.

This troubling global investment picture underscores the importance of a conducive global investment environment, characterized by open, transparent and

non-discriminatory investment policies.

The theme chapter of the report shows that over 100 countries have adopted industrial development strategies in recent years. New types of industrial policies have emerged, responding to the opportunities and challenges associated with a new industrial revolution. The report presents options for investment policy tools in this new environment.

Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki (right), receiving the Report of the 16-man Advisory Committee on Forestry, from the Chairman, Dr. Felix Idumah, at Government House, Benin City.

Africa Early Stage Investor Summit to hold in South Africa Africa’s early stage investor community will convene on November 11th and 12th, 2018 for the 5th Africa Early Stage Investor Summit in Cape Town, South Africa.

This was contained in a press release distributed by APO Group on behalf of Venture Capital for Africa (VC4A).

The exclusive investor-only event unites key ecosystem stakeholders from across the continent and beyond, to exchange best practices, learn from peers and recent transactions, and do deals. For the second consecutive year, the Summit will be hosted at Workshop17 in the V&A Waterfront, Cape Town, South Africa.

This year, the Africa Early Stage Investor Summit is set to kick off Cape Town’s Global Entrepreneurship Week, encompassing a number of leading industry events and numerous networking opportunities.

The Summit’s speakers and guests represent the leading angel networks, VC funds, impact investors, accelerators, corporate venture divisions, industry associations, and public sector agencies.

Headlining the Summit are renown international and local investors from Nigeria, South Africa, Cameroon, Egypt, Ghana, Morocco, Kenya, Liberia, Senegal, Ivory Coast, France, US, UK and The Netherlands, amongst many other countries.

The 2017 edition brought together over 300 investors from prominent African angel networks and VC funds, such as Singularity Investments, Accion, Blue Haven, 4Di Capital, Lagos Angel Network, SABAN, AngelHub Ventures, Teranga Capital, Outlierz, Algebra Ventures, Grey Elephant Ventures, Ringier, GSMA, Orange Digital Ventures.

Among the attendees were international organizations and policy makers, such as IFC, the World Bank Group and the European Commission.

Following a rigorous due diligence process, the event showcased 20 African digitally-enabled scale-ups from across the continent, resulting in a number of series A deals totaling over $12mln.

The 5th summit promises to further raise the bar, featuring renowned investors from overseas and stellar entrepreneurial talent from the continent.

The Africa Early Stage Investor Summit brings together a diverse network of people with a common interest of starting and building sustainable companies that solve real problems.

Industry leaders explain the reasons they participate in this annual conference.

Siemens CEO urges more countries participation in China’s Belt Initiative China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) represents a “new world trade order”, says Siemens global president and CEO Joe Kaeser.

In a keynote address at the first Belt and Road International Summit, in Beijing, China, this week, he urged more countries to get actively involved in the BRI. To date, the BRI is worth €1-trillion and contributes 50% to global gross domestic product, with about 70% of the world’s population benefitting from it.

Kaeser reiterated that the BRI was a promoter of free trade where partners benefitted equally.

“It is imperative that we promote trade and liberalisation globally as this will ensure a better world”.

During the summit, Siemens also advocated for a digital ecosystem to foster future-oriented infrastructure development.

More than 1 000 industry leaders and delegates from over 30 countries attended the summit, with more than ten cooperation agreements signed with Chinese enterprises.

Under the terms of the agreements, companies from Nigeria, Mozambique, Indonesia and the Philippines will enter into partnership with Chinese engineering, procurement and construction companies.

Siemens has partnered with Chinese companies that form part of the BRI by providing them with innovative technology solutions that cater for industries such as infrastructure, oil and gas, energy and chemicals.

Siemens CEO urges more countries participation Airbus is set to close a deal to take a controlling stake in Bombardier Inc’s CSeries jetliner programme, effective July 1, the companies said on Friday, in a move expected to kickstart the European planemaker’s ability to put its marketing and costcutting muscle into the Canadian plane program.

Bombardier agreed in October to sell Airbus a 50.01 percent stake in its flagship commercial jet for a symbolic Canadian dollar, as the plane program battled sluggish sales and low production, which made it harder to keep a lid on costs.

Airbus, by contrast, will be able to offer airlines deals by packaging the CSeries with its own jets and is expected to use its purchasing prowess to drastically cut the price of parts, along with improving efficiencies internally.

Bombardier will now own about 31 percent, while Investissement Quebec, the investment arm of the province of Quebec, will hold a 19 percent stake.

The Quebec government, through its financing arm, took a 49 percent stake in the CSeries program in 2015 for $1 billion. Quebec’s share, most recently worth 38 percent, slipped to 19 percent following the deal with Airbus.

REUTERS

B8

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

Saturday, June 9, 2018

Nollywood is an attraction for me - Singer, Seyi shay

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Daily Times Nigeria

Saturday, June 9, 2018

Life & Times

Nollywood is an attraction for me - Singer, Seyi shay Seyi Shay is one of Nigeria’s beloved songstresses who took the music industry by storm with her music after years of working with diverse artistes outside Nigeria. The songstress who recently released a brand new body of work’ The Electric Package EP’ has equally found her way into the hearts of many fans via with her debut into Nollywood with Biola Alabi’s Media (BAM) new body of work titled ‘ Lara and the Beat’ where she played lead role alongside rapper, Vector. In this chat with MUTIAT ALLI, Seyi Shay talks playing Lara Giwa in the coming movie, her attraction to Nollywood, challenges amongst others. Enjoy:

How easy was it transcending through the different personas you had to take on in the movie?

Well, I haven’t been extravagantly rich, and I haven’t been extravagantly poor before, so that is why I tried to keep it in the middle and try to portray the real, raw emotion of what a lady or woman might feel like if those things were happening to her. I just tried to stay true to myself.

Let’s talk your role in the coming movie ‘Lara and The Beat’ where you played Lara Giwa?

Well, I had a great time. I saw the

script, I loved it, I loved the story and I really wanted to dedicate it to Lara.

So I embodied Lara, I fabricated a life, I dreamed her, I ate her and I slept her.

I imagined what kind of moves she might make as a person. I had to create and bring Lara Giwa to life literally.

You showed a lot of different emotions in many scenes, how were you able to channel those emotions, was it not difficult going to the extreme as in some cases?

I am a drama queen, you obviously know that. Seyi Shay is a drama queen naturally. So, like I said to you, I lived,

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, June 9, 2018

breathed and slept Lara Giwa. She’s a typical young lady whom you see in different lights.

You see her really rich, you see her very poor, you see her in between, you see her fall in love, you see so many different emotions in her.

So I wasn’t really thinking more about those elements per say, I was just thinking more about every girl, every lady, every woman that is going to watch the movie; how they would react in certain circumstances that Lara Giwa was in within the movie. I tried to portray that so that whoever is watching can relate.

There were some very emotional scenes visible in the trailer, what memory did you channel, what welled up in you that provoked those tears you shed on screen?

Like I said earlier in the hall, a lot of times, I had to really try to use my imagination to take me to a place of reality. I had to think like this “how would I feel if this really happened to me?” Remember that, based on the story; I had already spent one month exercising the role of Lara, so I became her. I was already her in my mind; I was a hedge fund baby. I was already flying jets. So when I now got to the part that I had to act as if I had lost everything, it felt real.

So that’s how I translated those emotions.

What was the most difficult or challenging part of playing Lara for you?

Oh! That was the part where she was a real bitch, earlier in the movie. Even though we can all be bitchy as women, right? It was quite hard for me to be that honest with myself on camera, knowing that millions of people are going to watch it. Do you understand? That’s because a lot of people have the misconception that actors behave like their real selves when they act. So I don’t want people to think that I am as horrible as she is, but the beauty of this movie is that I showed the reality and the truth of a young lady’s real emotional transitions. So it was such a fluid storyline, I didn’t really have many problems portraying a young lady.

Is there any similarity between the personalities, Lara Giwa and Seyi Shay?

Yes there is, that is why they casted me. Now I know. When I got on the set and I was reading the script, I was like “you guys planned this thing.”

Pairing up with Vector was interesting for most people who saw the trailer, how was it for you?

It was great, Vector is my friend, and so it was easy.

How about the steamy kiss, what was it like?

The kiss with Vector was cool, there’s a bit too much kissing in the movie though.

But how did that make you feel?

It was like kissing my friend, like “oh, my brother!” because that’s what we are now.

If the script had not had anything to do with music, would you still have accepted to play the role?

I definitely would have, now, in hindsight, because I enjoyed the process so much. I did not think I would enjoy seeing myself on the big screen as much as I did today. I really like it.

Do you have plans on taking a step further in Nollywood?

Yes. Nollywood is definitely an attraction and I am currently open to good scripts.

I am a d e e d n i Drama Queen

- Seyi Shay

L3 Life & Times

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Daily Times Nigeria

Saturday, June 9, 2018

Society Circle Another joy in Osinbajo’s family Just like the holy book says, be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, the former attorney general of Ogun State welcome a bouncing baby boy from his second wife, Arike Osinbajo after the demise of his first wife, Oluwatoyin.

This is coming as a sweet reward for the family after the younger sibling of the

Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), loss his first wife to the cold hand of death.

As a modest and quiet person, who loves to keep his family affairs private, Akin and Arike opted for a lowkey naming ceremony celebration at their Ogba, Lagos home. The Child christening was held on 27th of May, as only few guest

attend.

The child was named Ayokunmi Osinbajo amidst splendor and modest palour and compound celebration.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo was unavoidably absent due to the children’s day celebration held today in Abuja but was represented by his wife Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo, who came to share in their pot full of joy.

Former CBN deputy governor, Adebayo Adelabu’s next move Stories by Isaac Oguntoye

That Adebayo Adelabu, the former deputy governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, resigned from his position is no longer news. The gist here is that, the young but vibrant big boy who was an Executive Director/Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of First Bank of Nigeria Plc before moving to CBN resigned to pursuit his long time dream. Before now, the First Class graduate in Accounting from Obafemi Awolowo University, IleIfe has been nursing the ambition of delving into

politics as soon as he gets to the peak of his career.

Now, it was learnt that Adebayo resigned from the CBN to contest Oyo State governorship election. He is a member of Ikoyi Club 1938, Jericho Businessmen Club and Ibadan Golf Club.

In case you don’t know, he is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and a member of the Institute of Directors of Nigeria. He had his professional training with PriceWaterhouse (now PricewaterhouseCoopers), an international firm of

Chartered Accountants and Management Consultants where he worked for seven years. While with the firm, he led and managed various audit and consultancy engagements for large banks and non-bank financial institutions within and outside Nigeria. Mr. Adelabu had attended various local and International trainings, seminars and conferences including the University Of London School Of Management Development and the United States Institute of Internal Auditors in Orlando, Florida. He is married with children.

Canadabased

artiste veers into Nigerian music scene

Canada, Toronto-based Nigerian artiste, Kelly Anthony, real names, Kelly Anthony Osaretin Osifo, born in Benin City, Edo State Nigeria. Kelly Anthony started his music career at 11 yearold, and he has been greatly influenced by top musicians like R. Kelly, Akon, Mavin Gaye and Jay Z. He recently dropped the audio and visuals of his new single, which he titled, “Unstoppable.”

The song Unstoppable is a rhythm we can all relate to, because we all have been through the struggles and hustles of life.

Kelly Anthony attended

Michael Power Saint Joseph Catholic, Toronto, Canada, where he honed his musical skills with all dexterity. As a child, Anthony thought he wanted to be a doctor, because his father always used to call him Doctor Kelly, but later in life, he realized that was his dream not his.

As a musician, his greatest challenge is the blatant dishonesty from producers, who tend to take you for a ride, at the expense of your talent. ‘I want to however see the world gravitate towards my music. It basically shows that my hard work is starting to pay off. My goal for my image is to be a great

role model to all my young Africans and others across the world. I want to teach them to never give up on their dreams and to stand tall and work hard for what they believe in.’ For the record, Kelly Anthony can boast of many released projects, and is now detouring into the Nigerian music industry with a bang, and intends to achieve this ultimate goal by doing what he is fond of doing and he is also frantically looking forward to working with star artiste, R. Kelly and Akon in the near future; and this has nothing to the likelihood of Kenny in the name of his idol, R. Kelly.

Daily Times Nigeria

Saturday, June 9, 2018

Indeed, life is a series of beginnings, not endings. Just as graduations are not terminations, but commencements.

Creation is an ongoing process, and when we create a perfect world where love and compassion are shared by all, Kayode Abraham Ajulo strongly feels suffering will cease.

To say the founder of Kayode Ajulo &Co. Castle of Law, Dr. Olukayode Ajulo does it better than the rest legal practitioners who are not just about recording financial achievement but believe law as a tool should also be engaged in seeking the liberation of the oppressed, will be immodest and uncharitable.

However, what has distinguished this light skinned and slim built barrister at law is that he’s genuinely passionate about fighting for the oppressed that he his gestures indicated his penchant for human right activism from inception of his career.

His interest for activism so early in his career could have easily been termed a result of exuberance as Dr. Kayode was relatively very young when he was called to bar, but it is however amazing that many years down the line and inspite of the enviable successes he has recorded, both as top politician of high repute and lawyer who handles briefs for big wigs, he’s remain committed to his passion even as he’s taken it from just committing intellectual assistance but equally offering financial aid. These gestures of his, explain why he’s been tagged as one who manages the rich and defend the poor.

With his popularity that announces his steps, only cynics will deny knowledge of his compassionate advocacy as well as his innovations to the law practice. Frontline Niger Delta elder statesman, Chief E. K. Clark, at different times had openly spoke glowingly of this brilliant and intelligent lawyer so much he often submitted his ways are worthy of emulation.

It is also on record that the spokesperson to former Head of State, Ibrahim Babangida, Kazeem Afegbua eulogized Ajulo for rendering free services to him during his infamous trial with The Nigeria Police, that declared him wanted following dispensing his professional duties as the mouth piece the former military ruler.

And most recently, controversial personality, Kemi Olunloyo, in her tweet testified Ajulo provided the one million naira for her when she was detained in prison facility as a result of her alleged libelous moves against a Port Harcourt based man of God, Pastor David Ibiyeomie of Salvation Ministries.

On another note however, the Ondo state born founder of a Non-governmental organization, Egalitarian Mission of Africa, Ajulo, in his usual manner is up to something new that is entirely out of his law practice. Information about this is still sketchy but the point is that he’s planning to host an investment submit that is expected to revolutionize investment in the Africa.

The compassionate advocate, Kayode Ajulo

Dr. Kayode Fayemi steps down

Lawmaker, Femi Gbajabiamila’s gift If you have been following the happenings on social media lately, you must have come across one of the trending news of Nigeria Lawmaker, Femi Gbajabiamila who gave his wife a new G-wagon with “Assurance” license plates for her 50th birthday.

The House of Reps Majority leader may have regretted flaunting such gift on social media as it generated some buzzes with trolls of curses from Nigerians.

Many condemned this judging by the hunger and poverty among the people, and at a time the image of the National Assembly is very poorlyrated; how can a lawmaker, who is very stingy to his constituents, be flaunting a whopping N100million worth of SUV to his wife, while his constituents are wallowing in poverty?

Now, many of his constituency members are waiting for him as they promise to frustrate his 5th term ticket agenda.

L5 Society Circle

After winning the primary election in Ekiti State to contest as the next governor of the state, Dr Kayode Fayemi, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development stepped down from his the post.

Fayemi made the announcement last Wednesday at a valedictory briefing in Abuja, in order to pursue his governorship ambition in Ekiti State.

The former minister had earlier

Chief Derin Adebiyi’s focus As the 2019 Ogun governorship election approaches, every party in the state have started strategizing on how to come out triumph. Prior to that, the new Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ogun State chapter, Chief Derin Adebiyi, who emerged the new state chairman at the recent state congress of the party have resigned his appointment as the Senior Special Adviser on Political Affairs to Governor Ibikunle Amosun so as to enable him focus and map out strategies needed for the election.

Adebiyi has been described as an experienced politician, very intelligent, reliable, tested and trusted in the field of politics.

emerged as the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate for Ekiti State in the party’s rescheduled primary election, which held on May 12.

Now, the question on the lips of everyone is how Fayemi will regain his long loss seat from Ayodele Fayose who promised to do everything within his capacity to install his deputy as the new governor of the state.

Gist L6

Daily Times Nigeria

Saturday, June 9, 2018

Lekan Babalola features Dr. Olu Taiwo on Yoruba Sonnets UK cities tour Stories By Mutiat Alli Acclaimed Grammy Awards-winning percussionist, Lekan Babalola is bringing his music to a wider audience alongside his co-travelling Sacred Funk Sextet in a new concert series tagged Yoruba Sonnets.

The multi-city gig will take place across major United Kingdom cities featuring Babalola’s kindred spirit, the accomplished spoken word poet and scholar, Dr Olu.Taiwo. Their artistic chemistry on stage will pick up from the successful Ebo Tour which held last year.

Together, Lekan who is releasing a new album soon and Olu will bring to the stage the Yoruba Sonnets – a unique experience, presented by two very talented, very different

individuals. The Yoruba Sonnets pair spoken word poetry and mime from Dr Olu Taiwo with live music from Lekan Babalola’s Sacred Funk Sextet. The result is a unique performance of ancient Nigerian verse incorporating Afro-beat music and the contemporary sound of Western Funk.

Yoruba Sonnets will serve its first instalment in full doze on Saturday, July 28 at the Birchfield Jazz Festival, St Mary’s Church Hamstead and continues on Saturday, October 13 at The Performance Gym, University of Winchester, Hampshire. The music train continues at Cheese and Grain, Frome on Sunday, October 21 while curtains fall at Charney Manor, Wantage.

Twice Grammy award winning Nigerian percussionist, Lekan Babalola, is well known

for his innovative musical style, using his native Yoruba tongue infused with traditional music, Afrobeat and funky dance overtones.

In addition to being a talented musician, Lekan has also undertaken education work as part of his artistic programme and has on-going relationships both in the UK, USA, Europe, Caribbean and Africa as a percussionist, art curator tutor, band leader / composer and producer.

Dr Olu Taiwo is Senior Lecturer in Performing Arts at the University of Winchester.

He has worked on identity and performance and is a wellestablished performer using digital technologies. He is engaged with critical debates around the interaction of body, technology and the environment.

Super Balat features Reminisce in new song, ‘Local’ Next rated star singer, Balogun Lateef who is popularly called Super Balat has featured Reminisce on his new song.

According to him the song is titled ‘Local’. The song illustrates how Nigerians don’t appreciate indigenous materials and talents.

But Nigerian materials are now taking over the world.

“The brain behind this song is that Nigerians don’t celebrate their own talents, and what they have.

They will later appreciate when the whole world is celebrating the talent. Like Anthony Joshua, the great boxer who is carrying Nigeria flag at the moment as far as Boxing is concerned at the world level, people initially didn’t

appreciate his talent, until he gets to the top. That is the reason I featured Reminisce in this song.

Reminisce is an artiste I respect so much. He sings with our indigenous language; which a lot people would say is local. So that is what brought the idea of the song. Nigerians must appreciate and celebrate what they have. The song, Local is produced by Puffy T”, Super Balat said.

The rising star singer, songwriter, and performing artiste have also dropped his new video, Mama.

The video is trending on television stations within Nigeria and out of our shores as you are reading this.

Super Balat is an independent artiste signed to Super Worldclass label in Lagos.

Chigurl, Lolo 1, others attend Rule Number One movie premiere The premiere of the highly anticipated movie; “Rule Number One”, took place on Tuesday, May 29th, 2018, at Genesis Cinemas, The Palms Shopping Mall, Lekki, Lagos.

The dress code for the night was “Formal Glam” and guests did not disappoint as they showed up in gorgeous outfits, striking poses on the red carpet.

The premiere had some of Nigeria’s most celebrated and influential individuals in business and entertainment in attendance, including Okey Bakassi, Chigurl, Lolo1 of Wazobia FM, Wofai Fada,

Mel Rouge, Delphinator, Wole Ojo and Matthew Gbinije who is also the executive director of the movie.

The highlight of the evening was the screening of the hilarious romantic comedy, Rule Number One. It raised smiles, bursts of laughter and excited rounds of applause from guests.

Produced by Lulu Afurobi and directed by Lindsey Efejuku; Rule Number One features stars like Bucci Franklin, Chinonso Young, Keira Hewatch and Omalicha of Rythm 97.3 FM. It is currently showing in cinemas nationwide.

Antilia Heights Production plans big for Davido, Bovi US tour Popular Nigerian entertainers including Davido and Bovi have concluded plans to partner US-based event and TV production firm, Antilia Heights Production Company for their shows in the US.The company which is piloted by Nigerian-born showbiz impresario, Steve Egboro has ramped-up promotions to stage the soaraway Man On Fire comedy gig hosted by Bovi on June 22 at the expansive Infinite Energy Theatre, Georgia, Atlanta.

Similarly, Antilia Heights Production is also joining forces with popularly Nigerian singer, Davido to extend his highly soughtafter 30 Billion Gang Concert to ‘God’s Own Country’.

Registered in Georgia, Atlanta as a limited liability company, the company operates in key areas such as arts, entertainment, and recreation. In a short time, the firm is establishing a niche for itself among the blacks and non-black US communities.

Under its production arm, Antilia Heights TV, the company is on the movie set filming a feature length Nollywood flick entitled The Heir Apparent.’ Directed by veteran filmmaker, Robert

Peters, the movie is stars Nollywood hunks, Richard Mofe-Damijo (RMD) and Joseph Benjamin in leading roles among an array of tested thespians. Antilia Heights’ modest effort is already getting noticed as it was not long ago awarded a Certificate of Honors by organizers of the Nollywood Travel Film Festival.

Speaking on its plans, Steve Egboro, who spearheads the organization, noted that American fans are prepped for summer just as anticipation is high for entertainment and unique content from Nigeria among American.

He said, “we are quite excited to be working with very talented entertainers who also understand the business. This is important for the reputation Antilia Heights Production is building I’m the industry and we plan to raise the bar high and continue to push the frontiers of Nigerian music.”

“The dynamics of the industry is on another level and Nigerian talents own their fair share of the fan base. Our music and comedy transcend racial barriers in an interracial community like America,” explained Egboro.

Daily Times Nigeria

Saturday, June 9, 2018

L7 Mixed Grill

Style Focus Emmy Collins London, the multi-faceted top end fashion brand based in London, is set to unveil its latest designs in Lagos and has finalized arrangements to host an upscale fashion event tagged ‘Trendless Style Weekend’ at the African Arts Foundation (AAF) Gallery in Victoria Island Lagos.

The brand that caters for menswear/womenswear in the global fashion market has built a reputation for designing exquisite runway pieces and ready-to-wear outfits for both sexes .The ‘Trendless Style Weekend’ according to its Creative Director, Emeka Collins, is a prelude to the return of Emmy Collins to Nigeria.

“We are headquartered at the creative hub of London - Shoreditch, East End - catering for our global clients but we are set to establish physical presence here in Nigeria with offices opening soon in Ikoyi, Lagos” he said.

Endowed with the elegance of quality British tailoring and design, Emmy Collins is a force to be reckoned with in the contemporary world of fashion, but wants to extend the gains of the brand back home to the very discerning and fashion loving Nigerians who like quality and innovative pieces. Since debuting 16 years ago, Emmy Collins has made clothes for local and international clients including some private and public sector leaders, businessmen, industry bigwigs, upwardly mobile executives, fashion icon as well as stars in the music, movies and Nigerian entertainment industry.

“Nigerians are some of the biggest shoppers in the world as statistics from Selfridges, Harrods and some of the global departmental stores have shown. I am convinced that Nigerians will be willing to shop locally if they find the right quality of apparels. We are poised to bridge that gap and reverse that trend, with tastefully designed pieces that are designed and tailored to global standards” he said.

Guests at ‘Trendless Style Weekend’, will be opportuned to view some of the designs on display and worn by models, whilst the Creative Director will be on ground to take orders for the made-to-measure pieces.

Additionally, the guests will be afforded the opportunity to browse through and choose suiting fabrics sourced from Holland and Sherry of Savile Row, London and fabrics from Ringhart Shirting for their made-toorder suits/jackets/trousers/shirts.

Connect with Emmy Collins London via twitter@emmycollins, instagram@emmycollinslondon, linkedin@emmycollins and www. emmycollins.com

Emmy Collins London unveils latest designs, hosts T rendless Style Weekend in Lagos

Gist L8

Daily Times Nigeria

Saturday, June 9, 2018

Africa Magic announces Debbie Odutayo as head judge for 2018 AMVCAs Stories By Mutiat Alli As preparations shift into gear for the forthcoming sixth edition of the prestigious Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards (AMVCA), Africa Magic, the continent’s leading provider of entertainment content, has announced the appointment of veteran film and television professional, Deborah “Debbie” Odutayo, as Head Judge.

Debbie brings over 30 years’ experience spanning television production, content creation and administration, and is famous for being one half of the brains behind Nigeria’s leading content creation and production company, Royal Roots Communication Network, which birthed Royal Roots Television (R2TV) and Royal Roots FM (R2 92.9FM) in Ibadan, Oyo State.

Speaking on Mrs. Odutayo’s appointment, the Director, M-Net West Africa, Wangi Mba-Uzoukwu, said: “Debbie Odutayo is a respected and seasoned television professional who brings extensive experience and renown to the AMVCA judging process. Her appointment as Head Judge is in tandem with the AMVCAs being the biggest

celebration of film and television talent in Africa, with its impact seen in the improvement of the quality of entries, year after year. Debbie’s appointment reiterates yet again our commitment to excellence and professionalism, even as the AMVCAs mark another milestone by entering the sixth successive year.”

Mrs. Odutayo is the immediate past President of the Electronic Media Content Owners Association of Nigeria (EMCOAN), the umbrella body for Corporate TV Content Producers in

Nigeria, serving as the first woman President of the association. She is a Member of the National Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts Practitioners (NANTAP), and was also the very first Nigerian female judge for the first AMVCAs whilst serving as a judge on other editions.

“Besides being renowned and respected in the African film and TV space, Debbie also boasts experience with the AMVCA judging process, having worked on all previous editions.

We are thrilled to have her with us as Head Judge, and we ask that our viewers stay tuned as preparations for the show enter the final stages,” MbaUzoukwu added.

After a hiatus necessitated by a busy production calendar, Africa Magic in association with MultiChoice, announced the 2018 AMVCAS in February. Entries for the awards opened on the 1st of March 2018, and closed on the 30th of April, 2018 with films, madefor-television movies or television series previously entered into or nominated for an award, being eligible for submission. The 2018 AMVCAs will be broadcast LIVE on all Africa Magic channels on the 1st of September, 2018.

Tino Tipsy out with new song ‘Fresh’ Fast rising Afro-pop super star, Paul Egbule better known as Tino Tipsy is a Nigerian singer and songwriter whose music delivery is unique. With several other songs to his credit, Tino Tipsy is out with a brand new song titled ‘Fresh’ as produced, mixed & mastered by Brym.

The SBG record act was born in Warri Delta State, Nigeria but grow up in Lagos State. Knowing education is key Tino Tipsy Studied Computer Engineering in Canada (While in university, he decided to pursue music as a career alongside his studies) On his musical influence, Tino is inspired by the happening around him little wonder why he choose 2Face Idibia and Asa as his role models in the entertainment industry.

However, while Tino is still a work in progress, he hinted that he has no focus on collaborations at the moment as he is currently positioning himself in the industry.

He said ‘ while I focus more on my brand, if in the nearest future there is opportunity for collaborations, it will definitely be with 2Face and Asa because they are phenomenal and greater brand’.

Adekunle Gold’s ‘About 30’ debuts at Number 9 on the Billboard Chart Adekunle Gold has recorded another remarkable feat with his recently released sophomore album; ‘About 30’, as it debuts at number 9 on the Billboard chart in the World Albums category.

The album; which was released on the 25th of May has received worldwide acclaim, with several music critics praising Adekunle’s new-found approach to his artistry; experimenting and exploring new sounds and courageously stepping out of his comfort zone to create the masterpiece.

‘About 30’ shares the top 10 spot in the World Albums category with other widely acclaimed music albums and soundtrack albums, including ‘Love Yourself: Tear’ by South Korean boy band BTS, ‘Lost Souls’

by Canadian singer Loreena McKennitt, Marvel’s hit ‘Black Panther: Original Motion Picture Score’, among others.

The 16-track album (two bonus tracks inclusive) will mark Adekunle Gold’s first debut on the Billboard chart, adding another commendable feat to his career.

The singer has since taken to social media

to share the news; writing “That’s ya boy on #9. Thank you guys. You did it. I didn’t. #About30”. Fans and fellow artists have equally used the medium to heartily congratulate him for the achievement.

‘About 30’ is a direct follow up to Adekunle’s 2016 debut album; ‘Gold’ – the album picks up from where ‘Gold’ left off; with the opening track starting at number 17; since ‘Gold’ ended at track 16.

The album is available worldwide and can be purchased on Tidal, Spotify, Google Play, Deezer, Apple Music and more.

Nigeria Environment Award set to hold Organisers have announced that the first ever Nigeria Environment Award will be holding soon. According to them, it is high time for Nigerians to pay more attention to the environment like the rest of the world is currently doing.

Ibinabo Fiberesima, the producer of the award said this while addressing men of the press in Lagos on the 5th of June 2018, the World Environment Day. The maiden edition of the Miss Earth Nigeria Environmental Awards (MENEA) is slated for October, 2018 as the organisers hinted that the award is an initiative off the Miss Earth Foundation with the maiden edition of the award tagged ‘Beat Plastic Solution’ where organisers advocates the total eradication of plastic bottles instead have your own reusable water bottles.

According to the producer, Ibinabo Fiberesima, one of the key essences of the award is to encourage a sustainable proactive environment and to equally celebrate those who are already environmental friendly and have gone green, to also inspire others to go green because the world is green.

The awards equally seek to acknowledge individuals, states, corporation in Nigeria that have achieved significant environmental footprint and have support for waste management amongst others.

With all hands on deck towards a successful outcome, it is noteworthy that the award team goes out to inspect each state that will slug it out in the following categories that includes Sustainable Banking industries, Recycling/ up cycling industries, Best collaboration for ronmental sustainability, Renewable energy sector, Best state government with sustainable urban renewal projects, Best state government with ecological solutions amongst others.