Daily Times e-Newspaper Issue 17 by Daily Times of Nigeria

ARPU, Vandalism, Others, Limit More Investment in Telecoms Sector Ugochukwu Onyeocha The telecommunications sector remains one of the few bright spots in the Nigerian economy. The sector has continued to generate positive

reviews and create more employment for millions of Nigerians as well as boost income and revenue since 2001. However, the sector has also had its fair share of challenges that has limited its massive impact and leaves many

P10 wondering when all will be well indeed. Considering the continued devaluing telecom services in the country, the solution readily available on the lips of many Nigerians would be for operators to make more invest-

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 - 23 2014

Fayose awarded N200m repainting contract to brother -APC

How Far Have You Gone In 2014?

Lagos To Walk Against Rape, Sexual Assault

VOL. 1, NO 17

Do The Crops!

Kanu Foundation Celebrates World Kindness Day

Female Bomber Kills 10, Injures 60 In Bauchi Explosion N

o fewer than 10 people were killed and about 60 others suffering various degrees of injuries on Sunday when a female sui-

cide bomber blew herself up at a busy mobile phone market in restive northeast Nigeria, a hospital source said.

AFCON: P 16 Tension as Eagles Keep Hope Alive

Anxiety, Disappointment Trails INECâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s PVC Distribution P8

P21

Nollywood Actresses and the Source of Their Luxury

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

news

Female Bomber Kills 10, Injures 60 In Bauchi Explosion

o fewer than 10 people were killed and about 60 others suffering various degrees of injuries on Sunday when a female suicide bomber blew herself up at a busy mobile phone market in restive northeast Nigeria, a hospital source said. The attack in the town of Azare in Bauchi state came just as vendors were packing up for the day and is the latest in a recent wave of suicide attacks. This attack occurred a few moments after the Nigerian Army had announced the recapture of Chibok community from Boko Haram insurgents. No one has yet claimed responsibility for the blast, but similar bombings have been carried out in the region by the Islamist militants of Boko Haram who are waging an insurgency against the government. The State Police Commissioner, Lawal Shehu, said that rescue operation was ongoing. The attack would be second in the town within a week following an earlier one on November 7 that killed 13 people. Earlier in the day, the Nigerian army had said that it had recaptured Chibok, where Islamic militants abducted more than 200 schoolgirls in April, provoking a wave of global outrage. The army recaptured the town from Boko Haram militants late Saturday, spokesman General Olajide Olaleye told

AFP in a text message. “Mopping up ops ongoing. (The) town is now secured,” he said. The operation came just days after Jonathan on Tuesday announced his bid for re-election, vowing to defeat Boko Haram whose brutal five-year insurgency has plagued his first term in office. Leading elder Pogu Bitrus told AFP that Chibok was recaptured in a joint operation with local vigilantes known as the Civilian Joint Task Force, who back up the military in several parts of the northeast where Boko Haram is active. He said the vigilantes fought inside Chibok while army soldiers “stayed outside the town to mop up the insurgents trying to escape”. Boko Haram fighters had captured the town on Thursday after a battle lasting several hours that local officials said left many victims among both the insurgents and the local militias. Several residents said the army had fled the assault, leaving the vigilantes to fight on their own against Boko Haram. There was no immediate information about any casualties from Saturday’s battle for the town, which witnesses say is virtually empty of residents. Chibok, in the northeast Borno state, has been under a global media spotlight since Boko Haram kidnapped 276

schoolgirls there in April, most of whom are still being held. The Islamists stormed the Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok on the evening of April 14 and forced the students onto trucks in a mass abduction that brought unprecedented attention to Boko Haram’s insurgency. After capturing Chibok on Thursday, Boko Haram militants torched its churches, although most of the town was already mostly in ruins after the April attack. The local police station and government offices were never rebuilt. Neighbouring villages were also set ablaze during Thursday’s battle.

Mark

Despite its sparse resources, the Civilian Joint Task Force appears to have become a substitute for the army in many areas of the restive northeast of Nigeria. Armed with bows, machetes, clubs and homemade rifles, the fighters retook the commercial hub of Mubi in southern Borno state from Boko Haram with the help of hunters. The insurrection by Boko Haram, which wants to create an Islamic state in mainly Muslim northern Nigeria, has claimed more than 10,000 lives in the past five years. The militants have seized more than 20 towns and villages in the northeast in recent months despite pledges by Jon-

Mohammed

Jonathan’s Government Is A Failure- APC Ugochukwu Onyeocha

igeria’s leading opposition party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), has taken a swipe at President Goodluck Jonathan for stating that he deserved to be re-elected having achieved so much in four years, claiming the president scored himself highly for ‘phantom achievements’. The APC said Jonathan’s administration had spent a whooping $32 billion on security and defence yet Nigeria is not any safer, with thousands of deaths, 221,000 square kilometres of territory captured by Boko Ha-

ram, 650,000 Nigerians internally displaced and also a daily harvest of death from ethno-religious crisis, clashes between pastoralists and farmers, armed robberies and kidnapping. In a press statement signed by the party’s publicity secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, on Sunday, the APC said Nigerians “could not wait to sweep away one of the worst governments to have even presided over their nation’s affairs.” Mr. President, Nigerians have asked themselves a simple question: Are we better off today than we were before President Jonathan assumed office, and they have unanimously

answered in the negative. This is why your declaration failed to resonate, despite the hired crowds you ferried to Abuja,” he said. ”Today, after the Jonathan Administration has spent $32 billion on security and defence, Nigeria is not any safer, with thousands of deaths, 221,000 square kilometres of territory captured by Boko Haram, 650,000 Nigerians internally displaced and also a daily harvest of death from ethno-religious crisis, clashes between pastoralists and farmers, armed robberies and kidnapping. ”To make matters worse, our once proud and globally-ac-

athan to boost security. Jonathan, who has been heavily criticised for his response to the abduction and only met with the hostages’ families in July, pledged last week to rescue the kidnapped girls as he announced his reelection bid. Africa’s most populous nation goes to the polls on February 14, with Jonathan effectively given a free run at a second term after the ruling Peoples’ Democratic Party endorsed him as its only candidate. The insurgency -- and Jonathan’s inability to stop it -- has been a feature of his presidency and a key point of criticism for his opponents.

knowledged military has been brought to its knees by lack of necessary fighting equipment, even with $32 billion spent. One wonders where the huge funds went to,” APC said. APC said while the government claimed to have created 1.9 million jobs in all of five years, the truth is that this is a mere tokenism. ”Even if the jobs they said they have created are not phantom, which we know they are, the situation on the ground is grim: 1.8 million Nigerians enter the job market every year, 5.3 million youth are unemployed and overall 20 million Nigerians are in the job market,

and these are very conservative figures. Therefore, creating 1.9 million jobs over several years cannot amount to any achievement,” the party said. The main opposition party also said that the President promised Nigerians to eradicate corruption in all sectors of the economy but the facts on ground do not back the promise. ”Mr. President, under your watch, Nigeria’s rating by the global anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International has fallen. In 2009, Nigeria was rated 133 out of 180 countries, while in 2013, the country was rated 144 out of 177 countries.

Impact On Lives, Mark Tells Politicians Lara Adejoro

akurdi- Nigeria’s Senate President, David Mark on Sunday called on political leaders to impact the live of the ordinary people. Mark made the call at the 50th birthday anniversary of Governor Gabriel Suswam of Benue State. According to him, power would be meaningless without improving the well-being of the ordinary people. He stated that Suswam had rendered purposeful leadership to the people of the state. “That is why it behooves those of us in positions of leadership to endeavour to use such positions to better the lives of the people or else the essence would be defeated.” Howevern in his speech,Suswam used the opportunity to apologise to those whom he must have wronged by omission or commission. He added that, “as for me, I have forgiven all those who must have wronged me in one way or the other; because in politics we always step on peoples toes. “Though we all hustle for political positions, politics must not be an issue of life and death, people must not threaten to spill blood if they do not win elections, because my experience in the last accident I was involved in clearly shows that it is only God who determines what should be.”

On electricity, the party said the statement by President Jonathan that his Administration’s ”bold move” in the sector has put the country ”on the road to guaranteed regular power supply in the months ahead” is nothing but sheer deceit. APC said the President’s claims that the country has met Millennium Development Goal 1, which is the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, flies in the face of the reality on the ground, adding: ”How can we claim to have eradicated extreme poverty and hunger when over 100 million Nigerians live on less than $2 per day, according to verifiable statistics?”

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

news

Osun: Tribunal Admits Results from Disputed Areas Mu’Sodiq Adekunle‎

he Election Petitions Tribunal hearing matters arising from Osun State governorship election has admitted election results from disputed local government areas tendered by the petitioner, Senator Iyiola Omisore as his evidence. Omisore, who is the candi-

date of the Peoples Democratic Party in the poll is challenging the victory of Governor Rauf Aregbesola at the tribunal. The Chairman of the three man tribunal, Justice Elizabeth Ikpejime, admitted the result sheets in evidence and marked them as exhibits before the panel. Counsel to the petitioner, Dr. Alex Izinyon SAN, sought to

tender certified true copies of forms EC8A from the disputed polling units. The counsel tendered the results after they had been sorted and verified by petitioner’s lawyers and respondents’ counsels. The petitioner had on Tuesday evening tendered the results from four disputed local government areas and he com-

pleted tendering forms EC8A from the remaining 13 local government councils when the tribunal resumed hearing on Wednesday. Counsel to the first respondent ( Aregbesola), Chief Akin Olujinmi SAN, raised an objection to the admissibility of the documents. He, however, said that he would adduce the reasons for

Ekiti APC, PDP Declare War

he All Progressives Congress in Ekiti State has accused Governor Ayodele Fayose of awarding the repainting of the Governor’s Office to his “blood brother” at the cost of N200m. It also accused the governor of awarding a contract to put marble in front of the Government House, which he (Fayose) had earlier described as too expensive; and relaying of asphalt on an already asphalted road leading to the lodge. In a statement by the State Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, on Sunday, the APC said, “To add salt to injury, artisans working on the marble are all imported from Ibadan, when many Ekiti artisans could do the job. This a man who claims to be a friend of the masses. “He is repainting the Governor’s Office, awarded by direct labour at the cost of N200m awarded to his blood brother. “He told the Permanent Secretary, General Administration Department and Head of Service to find alternative entrance for civil servants, who work within the Governor’s office building because he doesn’t want to be meeting the ‘evil servants’ while coming in at the main entrance. “This has been effected as civil servants in the Governor’s office now pass through the

back to their offices. Yet this is the class of people he professed to be their friend before the election‎ and he has also cancelled the appointment of eight permanent secretaries that were legally appointed after passing necessary examinations according to the service rules.‎” Fayose, who, however, spoke through his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Idowu Adelusi, denied awarding the repainting contract to his brother as alleged by the APC. Adelusi said the contract was awarded to an indigenous firm and the owner is not a brother to the governor. He also denied the allegations that the marble contract was awarded to a non-indigenous firm. “We are not like APC that pauperised the people for the four years. All the contractors handling the job including the marble are from Ekiti. They are, however, free to source their materials from anywhere in and outside Ekiti,” Adelusi added. Olatunbosun, who also alleged that Fayose had not kept to his promise to give better life to the people, regretted that while it was the standard practice in other states to celebrate their governors after a month in office, the experience in Ekiti State was that of gloom, anger, frustrations and disappointment by the people.

his objections to the document at the written address stage. Counsel to the second respondent ( All Progressives Congress) Mr. Kemi Pinheiro SAN, also raised an objection to the admissibility of the election results. He also told the court that his reasons would be given during the address stage. Counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission, Mr. Ayotunde Ogunleye, also towed the line of the first and second respondent by telling the tribunal that he would state reasons for his objections at the address stage. The disputed local government areas whose results were tendered by the petitioner are: Osogbo, Olorunda, Ede North, Ede South, Ejigbo, Ifelodun, Ilesa East, Ilesa West, Irewole, Iwo, Obokun, Irepodun, Atakumosa East, Ayedaade, Boripe, Ola-Oluwa and Oriade. Omisore, who was physically present at the tribunal later told journalists in an inter-

view that he was satisfied with he way the proceedings were going. He said that he was sure that the tribunal would do justice in the case, saying he had tendered some of the evidence he had to prove that the election which was held on August 9th was “massively rigged.” Olujinmi also told journalists shortly after the tribunal had adjourned to reconvene at 3:00 that the fire respondent decided to reserve his objections to the admissibility of the petitioner’s evidence to the address stage in order to save time and ensure speedy hearing of the petition. Security was beefed up at the tribunal as policemen and operatives of the Department of State Security cordoned off roads leading to the State High Court which is the venue of the tribunal. Only those who had genuine business at the court were allowed to enter while human and vehicular movement were restricted.‎

Fayose

Fayose awarded N200m repainting contract to brother -APC

all imported from Ibadan, when many Ekiti artisans could do the job. This a man who claims to be a friend of the masses. “He is repainting the Governor’s Office, awarded by direct labour at the cost of N200m awarded to his blood brother. “He told the Permanent Secretary, General Administration Department and Head of Service to find alternative entrance for civil servants, who work within the Governor’s office building because he doesn’t want to be meeting the ‘evil servants’ while coming in at the main entrance. “This has been effected as civil servants in the Governor’s office now pass through the

was awarded to a non-indigenous firm. “We are not like APC that pauperised the people for the four years. All the contractors handling the job including the marble are from Ekiti. They are, however, free to source their materials from anywhere in and outside Ekiti,” Adelusi added. Olatunbosun, who also alleged that Fayose had not kept to his promise to give better life to the people, regretted that while it was the standard practice in other states to celebrate their governors after a month in office, the experience in Ekiti State was that of gloom, anger, frustrations and disappointment by the people.

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NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

news FG to Take $4.11b From Oil Savings

he Federal Government has stated that it plans to use about half of its $4.11 billion oil savings Excess Crude Account to meet ongoing expenditures, the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said on Sunday. “We are not trying to deplete it. But we might go to tap about half of it or slightly less than half to be able to meet expenditures that are crystallizing at the moment that we need to make,” Okonja-Iweala told newsmen. She added that the Federal Government has proposed a review of the oil benchmark from $77.5 to $73 for the 2015 budget. Okonjo-Iweala said this at a media briefing in Abuja on

government’s strategic response to the decline in global oil prices. She said the proposal would be sent to the National Assembly for approval, adding that there would be review of the entire Medium Term Expenditure Framework. The minister said government was adopting the best scenario approach to address the current situation, adding that there was expectation that the price decline would continue in the nearest future. She said government would adopt additional fiscal measures with appropriate monetary policy measures to cushion the effect of the decline on expenditure. According to her, government expenditure would drop

from N4.8 trillion initially submitted to MTEF to about N4.6 trillion this time. Okonjo-Iweala said: “We are proposing a benchmark price of $73 per barrel and, based on that, we are reviewing the entire MTEF and we have decided to maintain the same quantity at 2.27 million barrels per day. “This will mean a drop in projected oil revenues from N7.287 trillion to N6.833 trillion, which also indicates that we need to do something about aggregate expenditure in the budget. “Even though the drop in oil price is a serious challenge, it is an opportunity for the country to focus on greater diversification and refocus efforts towards the non-oil sector.”

Okonjo-Iweala said part of the measure was the decision to raise non-oil revenue by the Federal Inland Revenue Service by evolving a system of enlarging the scope of taxes. “Only 25 per cent of the Small and Medium Enterprises in the country are currently registered as tax-payers, and more SMEs will be captured for broader tax sources,” she said. The minister expressed optimism that the FIRS would meet the additional N75 billion target and promised to strengthen tax administration to drive the non-oil revenue by blocking the leakages. Okonjo-Iweala said there would be introduction of surcharges on luxury items to enable the well-to-do individ-

uals in the society to be able contribute to government’s purse. She said government would continue to invest in infrastructure, job creation, human capital development and security, as well as prioritising investment in key sectors of the economy. “Government will also make enabling policies which will encourage private investors to continue to invest in the key sectors of the economy,” the minister said. Okonjo-Iweala said government would no longer fund any foreign travel and overseas training by public servants from 2015, adding that only essential cases would be allowed. She added: “As part of the efforts to reduce expenditure,

international travel within the public service will be severely curtailed. “Also, unaffected are public sector wages as well as key initiatives in education, health and other areas critical to the country’s human development.” The minister said the economy was still strong in spite of the falling global oil price. She said IMF’s estimate showed the country’s GDP remained among the best in the world. Okonjo-Iweala said creating more spending by printing more money by the government, as suggested by some people, would lead to inflation which the country had been able to tame to 8.3 per cent.

Jonathan Deserves A Second Term, Says Olejeme Lara Adejoro

agos- One of the leading governorship aspirants under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Delta State, Dr. Ngozi Olejeme on Sunday urged Nigerian politicians to emulate the noble ideals and legacies of the Rt. Hon. Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe. Olejeme who was the special guest of honour at the 18th Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe Commemorative Event in Lagos extolled the rare virtues of the late leader, describing him as an initiator of women in political leadership roles in Nigeria. “Dr. Azikiwe who was a leader on the continent of Africa, appeals to so many people in so many ways. To some, he is being remembered on his dogged fight for freedom from the colonial and imperialist rules. To others, he was a world vanguard of human rights, dignity and respect. However for me, Dr. Azikiwe was a true nationalist, a detribalized Nigerian, an initiator of women in political leadership roles in Nigeria and one of the few politicians who believe that politics is essentially for service”. Explaining, Olejeme said Dr. Azikiwe believed in the politics of compromise and the liberation of womanhood.

“History attests to the fact that Dr. Azikiwe under the leadership of the National Council of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC) in 1953 nominated the first set of women into leadership positions, namely: Mrs. Janet Mokelu, Chief (Mrs) Olufunmilayo Ransome Kuti and Chief Mrs Margaret Ekpo, all of the blessed memories. Azikiwe worked tirelessly to ensure their victories at the poll. He also permitted the office of the First Lady which was honorably occupied by Mrs. Flora Chinwe Azikiwe as the First Nigerian First Lady”. Recalling the age-old belief in the importance of women in our society, Olejeme said the role of women in the society should not be limited but that all human should be encouraged to serve their societies accordingly to their gifts and capacities, regardless of their gender. “When women are empowered, the resultant facts are that our children are empowered to face their world, our families are entrenched and flourishes like a tree planted by the riverside, our societies stand out with pride in the community of States and nations”. Olejeme who described her gubernatorial bid as the people’s desire for development, appealed to politicians to allow the life and times of the Great

Zik of Africa to guide their steps in enthroning women in leadership roles. “In Trust Fund Pensions Plc, Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund, NSITF, Ajaokuta Steel Company Ltd, Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment programme (SURE-P) and others, I excelled tremendously to the delight of Nigerians. I demonstrated sheer commitment, honesty and managerial competence. I touched lives of Nigerians, particularly Deltans. I added values to the lives and livelihoods of the underprivileged and widows. I also equipped Nigerian youths with viable skills and employment” she said. Continuing, she said “I therefore call on all noble minded citizens of our great country, our beloved President, Governors and all leaders to lend tacit support in the task of enthroning our women in leadership positions in 2015. I urge you all to support me”. Olejeme who also donated two million naira to the NdiIgbo Cultural Society of Nigeria urged Nigerians to support President Goodluck Jonathan to enable continue his laudable programmes and women empowerment. “Mr. President has done a lot for the country. He deserves our support. He deserves second term” she added.

Olejeme

Okonjo-Iweala

2015: Desist From Use Of Weapons, Thuggery, Taraba CP Warns Lara Adejoro

alingo- Ahead of the 2015 general election, the Taraba State Police Commissioner, Mr. Ademola Omole, has warned politicians in the state to desist from the use of thuggery, use of weapons and other vices for a violence-free campaign and elections. Omole gave the warning in Jalingo at the weekend at a seminar organised by the police command for senior police officers and political parties. He said whoever is caught engaging in violent acts would not be spared. “I am using this medium to sound a note of warning to pol-

iticians, who have already purchased arms and ammunitions for their thugs to desist from such acts, as anyone caught will not be spared. “Politicians should say no to thuggery, use of weapons and other vices for a violence-free campaign and elections,” he warned. The police boss said the command was committed to ending the culture of arson, rigging, assassinations among other crimes that usually characterised the electoral process in the country. Delivering a paper titled: “Public Order and Control of Procession Ahead of 2015 Election”, Mr. Ibrahim Effiong called for legislation on public

order to maintain law and order. Effiong, the immediate past chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in the state, expressed concern over the abrogation of the existing public order act by the Court of Appeal without any urgent moves to provide an alternative. According to him, “As I am talking to you, the public order act in the country has been abrogated by the court of appeal and the Supreme Court has not yet made a pronouncement on that. “It means therefore that in the eye of the law, there is no act currently regulating public gatherings and rallies in the country,” he said.

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

africa news Ebola: Chinese Medical Staff Arrive in Liberia

bout 160 Chinese health workers arrived on Saturday in Liberia, where they are due to staff a new $41 million Ebola clinic that, unlike most other foreign interventions, is being built and fully run by Chinese personnel. China, Africa’s biggest trade partner, had come under fire for the level of its response to the Ebola crisis. But it said

this week it would send 1,000 personnel to help fight an outbreak that has killed over 5,000 people in West Africa. “Up to now in Liberia, China is the only country which provides not only the construction of an ETU (Ebola treatment unit), but also the running and operation and the staffing of an ETU,” Chinese Ambassador Zhang Yue said. The United States has pledged more

money and personnel than any other nation pitching in to fight the worst Ebola outbreak on record. But its response is based on building clinics and training locals to run them. Zhang said the new team in Liberia included a mix of doctors, nurses, technicians and engineers. “They experienced SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome). They are very knowledgeable in this area,” he

said, referring to the contagious illness that was first identified in China in 2002 and killed several hundred people across the world. On arrival, the Chinese health workers had their temperature taken and were made to wash their hands, a ritual adopted across the region as part of efforts to stem the disease. Zhang said the establishment of the clinic in Liberia brought China’s con-

tribution to the anti-Ebola effort in the country to $122 million. Before China’s pledge to send 1,000 personnel, Cuba was the largest contributor of medical contingents to the crisis. Both nations will see their teams work closely alongside the United States, which is providing much of the infrastructure of the international response.

UN Cancels Contract With Clinic After Missing Ebola Case

he United Nations mission in Mali has cancelled plans to renew a contract with a private clinic providing care to its peacekeepers after a case of Ebola was missed and spread from there. This second Ebola alarm in Mali, coming just as it seemed to have contained its first case last month, raised doubts about the country’s ability to protect itself from the epidemic that is ravaging three other states in West Africa. More than 5,000 people have died, almost all in Liberia, Sierra Leone and in Guinea, which shares an 800 km (500 mile) border with Mali. The U.N. mission in Mali, whose peacekeepers are helping to protect the nation against Islamist rebels, reversed on Saturday a decision taken earlier in the week to renew the contract with the Pasteur Clinic in Bamako to care for sick or injured troops. A U.N spokesman said the decision was taken “due to prevailing circumstances” but

gave no further details. It followed the death in the clinic in late October of an elderly imam, or Muslim religious leader, from Guinea. The sick man was never tested, but his case directly led to a chain of confirmed deaths from Ebola, including a 25-year-old nurse who treated him and a woman who washed his dead body. The clinic, one of Bamako’s best known and used by expatriates and the country’s elite, denies any wrongdoing. It says it followed all its procedures for treating Ebola and that the imam never showed any signs of the fever. On Tuesday last week, Mali’s health minister declared there were no more confirmed cases in the country after it appeared to have successfully contained its first Ebola case of an infant girl who died last month. But by nightfall the same day, the 25-year-old nurse from the clinic had died of the disease and authorities are now trying to trace over 400 potential fresh contacts.

Four Killed in Libya Clashes Around Tripoli Airport

rmed clashes broke out in Libya’s capital Tripoli closing down the city’s main working airport, local residents and an official said on Sunday. Tripoli has been mostly calm since the Libya Dawn force, an armed faction allied to the city of Misrata, took over the capi-

tal in the summer and set up its own government in rivalry to Prime Minister Abdullah alThinni. It was not immediately clear who was involved in Sunday’s fighting, and there was no confirmation from health authorities of any casualties. A spokesman for the civil aviation authority said Mitiga

airport had been closed because of the security situation. Mitiga has operated as the capital’s main airport since fighting in the summer damaged and shut Tripoli international airport. Thinni’s internationallyrecognised government and the elected House of Representatives are holed up in the

eastern city of Tobruk, and the two factions are now vying for control over Libya and its oil resources. In the three years since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has struggled to overcome instability with heavily armed rival factions who once fought side by side to oust the autocrat now competing for power.

Bodies of South Africans in Synagogue Disaster Flown Home

he bodies of 74 South Africans, killed when a church guesthouse collapsed in Nigeria in September, arrived home on Sunday, with South Africa looking to ease diplomatic tensions that flared after the disaster. A cargo plane carrying the bodies flew into a military airforce base in the capital Pretoria, and a sombre reception ceremony, shown live on television, was held in a hangar, attended by grieving families and politicians. The building collapse at a church compound run by popular preacher T.B. Josh-

ua killed 116 people, 81 of whom were South Africans. The identification process is still continuing, meaning that not all the South African bodies were repatriated. The Sept. 12 disaster was the worst suffered by South Africans on foreign soil since the end of apartheid in 1994 and sparked a diplomatic spat with Nigeria. Pretoria accused Lagos of not doing enough to investigate the accident and said Nigerian authorities did not react quickly enough to rescue those trapped under the rubble. It also complained that Nigeria took too long to release the bodies.

South African President Jacob Zuma sent a team of ministers to Nigeria to push for swifter repatriation, but on Sunday, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa played down the dispute. “This tragedy has reinforced the warm and fraternal relations between our two countries,” he said. However, ordinary South Africans and relatives have been scathing of Joshua, one of Nigeria’s most influential evangelical Christian preachers, and have urged their government to take a tough line with the Nigerian authorities. “I call on the affected families to unite and advocate for

the suspension of what’s left of the diplomatic ties between Nigeria and South Africa,”

Thanduxolo Doro, whose sister died in the tragedy, said in an open letter.

A court inquest into why the building collapsed is underway in Nigeria.

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

world news

Poland Decides: Conservatives Sweep First Round of Local Elections

olish voters handed a surprise victory to the opposition Sunday in the first round of regional and local elections seen as a key test of the ruling party, according to an exit poll. The conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party pulled in 31.5 percent of the vote, while the Civic Platform, in power

since 2007, got 27.3 percent of ballots, according to an exit poll from public television. “It`s very good news,” said PiS president Jaroslaw Kaczynski. “It`s news that gives birth to good prospects (for the future)”. Coming in third was the Polish Peasant`s party, a Civic Platform ally, which took 17

percent of the vote. Opinion polls had given Civic Platform a comfortable 32 percent of the vote, versus 27 percent for its main rival. More than 30 million voters were eligible to cast ballots in the race to pick nearly 47,000 municipal and regional representatives and about 2,500 mayors.

The second round is to be held on November 30. The government, led since late September by Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz after former premier Donald Tusk resigned after he was tapped to become the next European Council chief in December, is tasked with preparing the country to join the eurozone.

Napoleon`s Two-Pointed Hat Auctioned Off For 1.9m Euros

Victor Ponta Concedes Surprise Defeat in Presidential Vote

omanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta on Sunday conceded defeat in a presidential runoff he had been widely expected to win, after early exit polls showed he was neck-and-neck with his conservative opponent Klaus Iohannis. “I congratulated Mr Iohannis for his victory. The people are always right,” Ponta said. The prime minister, who had been the overwhelming favourite to win the race, was slightly ahead according to two

exit polls which gave him 50.7 percent and 50.9 percent of the vote. But three other surveys put Iohannis narrowly in the lead. The exit polls do not take into account the votes cast in the second-round runoff by Romanians abroad, seen as more likely to vote for Iohannis. The election is seen as pivotal for one of the poorest countries in Europe which has struggled to combat an entrenched culture of corruption. Ponta, 42, had hoped to

become Romania`s youngest ever president and cement his Social Democrat party`s hold on power in the former communist state. “I voted so that our parents can live in a better country and our children have a future here in Romania,” Ponta said earlier Sunday as he cast his vote, with his wife and two children in tow. In the first round on November 2, Ponta took 40 percent of the vote against 30 percent for Iohannis. But 46 percent of the ballots

cast abroad were for Iohannis compared to just 16 percent for Ponta. According to exit polls, some 61 percent of voters turned out for the election, a record in a formerly communist country plagued by voter apathy. Experts had earlier said that a high turnout could well tilt the balance in Iohannis`s favour. First official results are expected overnight from the seventh presidential election since the fall of dictator Nicolae Ceaucescu 25 years ago.

ne of Napoleon`s famous twopointed hats was sold on Sunday to a South Korean collector for nearly 1.9 million euros ($2.2 million) at an auction outside Paris. The black felted beaver fur “bicorne” hat is one of only 19 examples left of the unusual headwear sported by the French emperor, one of the country`s best known historical figures. It sold for 1,884,000 euros, almost five times its estimated value, at a two-day auction of Napoleon memorabilia by Monaco`s royal family which raked in a total of 10 million euros, including fees, said French auctioneers Osenat, Binoche and Giquello. The hat was bought by Lee Tae Kyun, the manager of Korean food industry giant Harim. “I came for my boss, the head of the company. He wanted to buy it because we have a new building and the hat means something there, for the new generation,” said the bidder, requesting anonymity. “We want to show this hat to make people come ... and because the employees of our company are the same (as Napoleon). We are pioneers in Korea.”

More Than 2500 Migrants Picked up By Italian Navy In One Weekend

he Italian navy and merchant ships picked up more than 2,500 migrants from the Mediterranean over the weekend as the flow of refugees seeking to reach Europe rose again. More than 860 migrants, mostly Syrian families, were taken to the Sicilian port of Pozzallo Sunday, showing that many people are still

ready to risk the perilous crossing from north Africa in search of a new life. And on Sunday evening, the Italian coastguard reported it had picked up a total of 320 people off the island of Lampedusa 240 on one boat and 80 crowded onto a dinghy. The Italian navy rescued 150,000 people in just over a year before its Mare Nos-

trum search-and-rescue mission ended on November 1 after other EU governments refused to help Italy meet operational costs that Rome estimated at nine million euros ($11.25 million) a month. The mostly Syrian refugees landed in Pozzallo on Sunday included an unusually high proportion of children, the Italian news agency ANSA reported. Around 100

of the migrants were from Morocco, a country not usually represented among the people landing in Italy. On Saturday a total of 477 migrants were delivered to Porto Empedocle on Sicily`s southern coast by Panamanian tanker the Gaz Concord and a navy patrol boat put 354 ashore at Pozzallo. Greek oil tanker Byzantion picked up 230 people

from their distressed boat on Friday evening and another 80 were taken ashore off the heel of Italy after the yacht in which they had travelled from Turkey was intercepted by coastguards. Another navy boat, the Vega, was due in the mainland port of Reggio Calabria on Monday morning with a load of 230 migrants.

The bicorne, meaning two horizonal points, was a variation on the tricorne or three-pointed hat which was popular in the 17th century and favoured by American colonists around the time of the American revolution. Made by French hatmakers Poupard, Napoleon wore them sideways rather than with points at the front and back so he could be easily spotted on the battlefield. Only two or three of the remaining hats are in private hands with the rest scattered in museums across the world. The headpiece went under the hammer at Fontainebleau along with some 1,000 pieces of Napoleon memorabilia that belonged to Prince Louis II of Monaco (1870-1949), the great-grandfather of current monarch Prince Albert. The hat was acquired by Joseph Giraud, a vet in Napoleon`s household, and remained in his family until 1926 when it was sold to Prince Louis` collection. Other items sold include a pair of Napoleon`s stockings, a shirt and a red cotton scarf, which sold for 32,200 euros. A massive bust of the former emperor sold for 700,000 euros and a painting by French artist Paul Delaroche went for 460,000. “It`s a very well-known collection, the provenance of the pieces is incontestable,” Thierry Lentz, director of the Napoleon Foundation said. Two hundred years after his reign, Napoleon remains a deeply popular historical figure. The main French association in his memory currently has around 4,000 members. Poland is obliged to join the single currency bloc as part of its 2004 European Union entry deal but has dragged its feet on the move, which would require it to amend its constitution.

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

politics Atiku And The Politics Of N APC’s Presidential Ticket

Ugochukwu Onyeocha

igeria’s former Vice President and one of the presidential aspirants in the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, is certainly not a stranger to the intrigues and manipulations that accompanies the scramble to grab the nomination to contest for the presidential seat at the poll. Some Nigerians would vividly recall that in his first term as the number two man in the country, he was practically the de-facto President or general overseer of the country from 1999 to 2003 when his boss, the former President Olusegun Obasanjo had to embark on multiple travels in a bid to launder the image of the country abroad. When it was election time in 2003, it took a kneeling president aided by some PDP elders to prevail on the then powerful Atiku not to contest against his boss in the PDP primaries as Atiku had the support and endorsement of the governors and other notable party stalwarts. Most actors in that dispensation remain positive that if the former vp had thrown in his hat to contest against his boss, he would have humiliated the army general which many would have considered humiliating. Ironically, Atiku who was the Mr ‘fixer’ in 2003 got fixed by an unforgiving Obasanjo who felt it was time to take his pound of flesh on Atiku on expiration of his second term in 2007. Atiku after a long drawn battle with Obasanjo and his henchmen left the ruling PDP to contest the presidential seat on the platform of the Action congress (AC), later renamed Action congress of Nigeria (ACN) against late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua in the highly disputed 2007 poll. Atiku it would be recalled came a distant third and could not even deliver his state to the AC. On his return to the PDP, after mending fences with Obasanjo, he once again had an unsuccessful outing for the ticket of the party against incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan whose agents were accused of practically shutting out Atiku from gaining access to the delegates at the party’s convention held at the Eagle square in Abuja. Even before Atiku who is credited to have a hand in virtually all gathering of politicians in the polity heeded the clarion call of the progressives in the APC, watchers of happenings within the ranks of the PDP agree that the move was the wisest decision he had taken in view of the way and manner he was sidelined in the PDP. When Atiku declared to bid for the presidency on the platform of the All Progressive Congress (APC), it didn’t come to many as a surprise considering the fact that the only es-

Atiku

sence of his stay in politics is to keep fighting until he grabs the highest position of the land through popular vote. Atiku who was assured that the APC would be a far departure from the PDP which just handed its presidential ticket to President Jonathan unopposed has expressed willingness to go into the primaries to fight for the ticket with former Head of State General Muhammadu Buhari, Kano State governor, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and the Leadership Newspaper publisher, Mr Sam Nda –Isaiah. The APC constitution which has just been amended at the party’s extra -ordinary national convention primarily has put to rest the controversy surrounding the modalities required to host the party’s presidential primaries billed to take place in the first week of December this year. Though the party has okayed the use of the modified direct primaries, it however has no quarrel with the option of consensus to determine its flag bearers for the upcoming poll. One of the disciples of the opponents of Atiku, Mr Osita Okechukwu, is not relenting on the need to resort to a consensual arrangement in picking the presidential candidate of the APC arguing that the idea was in line with Article 20 of APC Constitution and Section 87(6) of the Electoral

Act, as amended. Okechukwu who is apparently speaking the mind of his preferred candidate and former military Head of State, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd), maintained that a consensus arrangement would save the trio of Atiku, Kwankwaso and Buhari the prospects of flexing financial muscle at the party’s primaries at a period when the ruling PDP is boasting that it would rule Nigeria for 60 years uninterrupted. Okechukwu who saluted Atiku for closing ranks with Buhari in the bid to oust the President Jonathan led administration noted: ‘I have no doubt in my mind that we both share a common concern about rescuing our dear country from the deadly grip of the PDP and its on this note that I do warmly welcome him on board in this very important national rescue mission. I look forward to meeting him in an open, free and fair contest for the ticket” Urging Atiku to consider supporting Buhari, he contended: “I am making this passionate appeal on many grounds, one the bitterness, rancour and ill temper which a gruesome monetized indirect primary will most likely generate; definitely poses grave danger and may scuttle the earnest yearning of Nigerians for regime change.’

“Secondly, is it not better to harvest the celestial bond between Buhari and Nigerian masses and the middle class, a bond which made it possible for him to garner with modest means in a micro political party, over 12 million votes in 2011 presidential election?’ ‘’Thirdly, Buhari no doubt is better equipped more than any of our eminent presidential aspirants to prosecute the first cardinal program of APC; that is war against corruption and national re-orientation, given his antecedents in public service. Simply put, GMB as a president will provide maximum security, wage war against corruption, enact law for devolution of power, the tiny top elites are fully aware that GMB as a president will stridently in line with the manifesto of the APC wage war against corruption. They know he will build new refineries, having built two before as Petroleum Minister; hence putting a stop to refined petroleum products importation where they make billions without query. “They know he will not carry raw cash to South Africa to buy military equipment or under-fund the Army. They know that only him and Tam David-West are the only former Ministers of Petroleum who neither own an oil block nor a petrol tation. They know that GMB is the face of APC,

that with him as a presidential candidate, the raging puzzle debate that there is no ideological difference between the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and APC will stop.” But the members of the Turaki Vanguard, a political pressure group operating independently of the Atiku Abubakar Campaign Organization, which had been monitoring and observing recent pro-Buhari activities maintained that Buhari should give way for Atiku who has a rich credential as a democrat that enjoys the support of Nigerians irrespective of religious and ethnic divide. National President of the Turaki Vanguard, Mr. Oladimeji Fabiyi who the national President of the group noted: “We are making this call on the former Head of State with all sense of responsibility having in mind that General Buhari will neither enrich the race nor enhance the political fortunes of the opposition APC whom Nigerians hope will salvage their country from the 15 years of death grip and mis-governance of the PDP. “Clearly, the PDP is championing the emergence of General Buhari on the grounds that they (the PDP) have mastered the art of defeating him and as such the PDP is comfortable with a Buhari candidacy. It is no longer a secret that the PDP has armed itself with the ammunition to defeat General Buhari whom its National Publicity Secretary says is the “easiest to defeat”, because as he said, the ruling party had mastered the art of defeating him as evidenced in the 2003, 2007 and 2011 presidential elections. At a recent parley with journalists in Abuja, Atiku’s media aide, Malam Garba Shehu shed light on why an Atiku’s presidency would be beneficial to Nigerians thus; “Atiku campaign is about ideas; campaign of ideas against emotion. Atiku is not presenting himself to be president of Nigeria because he is a northerner, or because he is a Muslim or whatever emotional identities that are there. “Atiku believes that he has the credentials to be the next president of Nigeria because he is the only aspirant who is prepared to be president. He would hit the ground running on day one the moment he gets into office. He is the only one who is organising the thinking of Nigerians towards solving the problems of this country.” “There are a number of ideas that he has been canvassing, foremost CONTINUED ON PAGE 9

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

politics

Anxiety, Disappointment Trail

Ugochukwu Onyeocha

he ongoing distribution of the Permanent Voters Card (PVC) by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has once again raised fresh concerns on the ability of the commission to conduct a credible election for the country come 2015 judging by Nigeria’s history of flawed elections. The third phase of the distribution of the Permanent Voters Card (PVC) and Continuous Voters Registration by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which commenced on a sour note, has heightened suspicion that the commission is out to conduct a ridiculous exercise in the name of elections leaving many to doubt the sincerity of the commission for the upcoming general elections. In a repeat of the preceding two phases, INEC has come under a lot of criticism for the shoddy handling of the process, especially, the logistics. Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Enugu, Gombe, Kebbi, Kogi, Taraba and Zamfara states were in the first phase. The states involved in the second phase of the programme are Anambra, Bauchi, Cross River, Delta, Jigawa, Kwara, Ondo, Oyo, Sokoto and Yobe states. The FCT was also involved in the second phase. States in the phase 3 PVC distributions and CVR exercise are Adamawa, Borno, Kaduna, Katsina, Kano, Plateau, Nasarawa, Niger, Imo, Lagos, Ogun, Edo and Rivers. However this third phase has generated more heat for obvious reasons. First, some of the states in this phase have the highest voter propensity. These states are Lagos, Kano and Rivers States and also they are under the control of the leading opposition party, the All Progressives Congress (APC). According to INEC, out of the 70, 383, 427 eligible voters in its register, Lagos has 5, 426, 818; Kano has 4, 751, 818; while Rivers State has 2,466,977. Moreover, the commission has severally maintained that there will be no use of temporary cards as only permanent cards would be used for the electoral exercises 2015. The National leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu berated INEC over the way it was going about the distribution, declaring that the electoral body failed in the distribution of PVC in the state. He said in every one of the 11 lo cal governments in the state where the first phase of the distribution of the PVC was monitored by key party of ficials, the reports brought back were unanimous that INEC’s performance

was abysmally poor. He emphasised that the best thing for INEC to do was to start afresh, stat ing that what has happened smacks of a collusion to rig the election in favour of the government at the centre. His words: “This is a colossal failure and it has eroded my confidence in INEC to be able to midwife a success ful 2015 election.” The Governor of Lagos state, Babatunde Fashola, also said INEC has failed in the state, PVC, alleging that the manner the exercise was conducted suggested that the commission planned to disenfranchise the people of the state. “It seems to me that if INEC does not mean to disenfranchise them, the exercise must be extended. You cannot say you do not intend to disenfranchise us and not give us the fullest opportunity to collect what enfranchises us, then what you say is unimportant because the only measure of proof that we have is what you do”. With some of these reservations expressed early in the process, the commission quickly postponed the exercise in some of the states. They described the hiccup as technical reasons with a promise to commence the exercise on November 28, 2014 in some states. However in Edo State, there was a challenge of a different kind as about 4, 658 PVCs, were snatched in various parts of the state during the distribution of the cards.

The Edo State Residential Electoral Commissioner, Baritor Kpagih, who disclosed this, added that the commission had since reported the theft to the Nigerian Police for investigation and prosecution of those found culpable in the crime. He assured that anyone found with PVCs that were not legally given to them by INEC during the general elections would be arrested and handed over to the police. Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo state, however praised the process. He said the turnout of registered voters who had come out to collect their cards was impressive and also commended the ad hoc staff of INEC for sticking to the rules. “I am encouraged by the turn out, and I also commend members of the National Youth Service Corps, who are being used to distribute the PVCs. You can see that they are sticking to the rules, because I came to collect my PVC but forgot my temporary card at home; they didn’t give me my PVC until I sent somebody home to get the initial card.” The governor, who noted that reports of hitches in some areas had reached him, however, expressed the belief that INEC would take steps to address the issues. He said that before the end of the exercise, both INEC and the political parties would reconcile the number of cards available with the number of reg-

istered voters in the 2, 627 polling units across the state. For Kano State, the exercise before it was postponed had experienced a large turnout of eligible voters who thronged polling units to grab their voter cards. In Fagge local government area, the exercise commenced at 8 am, as scheduled by the electoral body, and there was a huge crowd of people at the polling units, in several places in the area. Similarly, in Ja’en area of Gwale local government area, it was gathered that the polling units were chaotic due to high number of people gathered to collect their voter cards, though there was no report of violence in the area. In Katsina State, where it was also postponed, residents have continued to express mixed feelings over the exercise. While some are optimistic that the exercise will record little or no hitches judging by the level of preparations and arrangements made, others are sceptical about the whole exercise. Speaking to newsmen, the Katsina state chairman of APC, Dr Mustapha Inuwa said INEC have no reason to fail in Katsina State as it ought to have learnt one or two lessons from what happened during the distribution in other states. “We expect INEC to do what it ought to do in ensuring orderly distribution of these cards and indeed, hitch

free conduct of the continuous voter registration. But then we have some suspicion that the state government is trying to interfere” Responding to a query about his expectations, Wada Siyaya, the PDP chairman of Musawa council area said “We expect to see an orderly distribution, devoid of serious hitches. At our own level as political leaders, we will support the exercise because it is central to our democracy.” In Rivers State, before the postponement of the exercise, Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi had declared Friday, November 7, a work-free day to enable people of the state participate in the exercise, as he sympathised with INEC over its inability to carry out the exercise in all the 23 local government areas of the state, and prayed that the commission find solution to the problem very soon. Addressing journalists at Government House, Port Harcourt Amaechi said, “We sympathise with INEC and we join them to pray that they find a solution to the remaining local government areas. In my local government area, there are some units that were registered but the names of some people have been omitted completely. So, there will be fresh registration.” The governor, who is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), called on the people of the state to ensure that they collect their Permanent Voter Card (PVC), while those who

CONTINUED ON PAGE 8

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

politics

INEC’s PVC Distribution

Jega

did not register during the last voters’ registration exercise to do so, in order to vote out the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2015. He said, “For our votes to count, every Rivers man or woman, and who

is a Rivers man or woman? It is anybody who lives in Rivers State. That person is a Rivers man or woman and you will have the support of the Rivers State government to go and collect the PVC.

“Having said that, even those who are in PDP too, it is important for all of us to go and collect our voter cards. And those who have not registered, there are some wards or units that their names were either omitted or. I think about 18 in Rivers State, they should also get registered afresh. For Imo State, residents lamented the shortage of materials for the continuous Voters Registration (CVR)in the state. However, the state deputy governor, prince Eze Madumere who monitored the exercise expressed his disappointment with the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) who he said have not shown their seriousness. When contacted, the state Resident Electoral Commissioner, Selina Oko explained that the machines were provided one each for the wards in the state. However as the criticisms trail the third phase of the distribution of PVC INEC quickly denied allegations of delisting voters and foul play, admitting however that the process faces “temporary challenges.” Also, the electoral commission specifically denied allegations that it has removed the records of 1.4 million persons from the Register of Voters compiled in 2011 in Lagos State. INEC which admitted that it announced a figure of 6.1m registrants in the state by 2011, however said the

figure was reduced to 4.6m after the data was subjected to the Automated Fingerprints Identification System (AFIS) as well as discovery that there were data losses. While, the commission has repeatedly stated that only voters with the PVC will be allowed to vote in the 2015 general elections, the phase three distribution of permanent voter cards approved by the INEC for Kano, Edo, Plateau, Ogun and Imo states kicked off November 7 with complaints. Chief Press Secretary to the INEC chairman, Kayode Idowu in a statement said “contrary to allegations in some quarters, no duly registered person has been delisted from the Register of Voters; neither will any be denied his / her PVC. “This reassurance is against the backdrop of temporary challenges that have been experienced in the third phase of the distribution of PVCs in some states, which the Commission has been making vigorous efforts to remediate. “INEC has since Friday, November 7th, 2014, been distributing PVCs to registered voters in nine states across the country under the third phase of the exercise. “Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) is scheduled to hold in the same states from Wednesday, November 12th to Monday, November 17th, 2014.

“Similar exercises have already been conducted in 24 other states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) under the first and the second phases of the programme. “The Commission deferred the distribution of PVCs in four other states it had earlier listed for this third phase because the cards for those states have not been fully delivered by printers. It is partly for the same reason that the Commission rescheduled the distribution of PVCs in limited areas of Lagos and Nasarawa states. “The outstanding cards will, however, be certainly distributed in good time before the 2015 general election. They are presently being produced and have been scheduled for distribution under the fourth phase of the exercise from Friday, November 28th to Sunday, November 30th, 2014.” “The Commission has made provision for eligible persons for whom PVCs could not been printed due to data loss or defective data to come out from Wednesday, November 12th to Monday, November 17th, 2014 for their data to be recaptured during the CVR. “In special consideration for the 1,792 polling units in Lagos State where the challenge of data loss is much pronounced, the CVR will take place at the polling unit level, as against the Registration Area (RA) level in other parts of the state.”

Atiku And The Politics Of APC’s Presidential Ticket CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7

among this is Atiku’s desire to create employment for our teeming young people. It is on record that sixty percent of Nigerians youths are jobless. This is a recipe for trouble. But Atiku has the experience and the knowhow because he knows how business work; he has an understanding of how to create jobs, how to transform an economy relatively backward into an advanced economy. He is looking at models like Dubai, a desert transformed into a living economy.” “Atiku is looking at the regulatory environment in this country because it is too restrictive; ours is one of the worst business environment because it has rated every year. He wants to change all of that so that foreign capital will flow into the country, develop Nigeria and create jobs for our young people.” “Of course other matters that affects the nation concerns him like issues of security because he has a first hand experience of what it takes to tackle the challenges we are facing.

Atiku knows that without security, there can be no progress. Of course he is interested in the provision of infrastructure. When Atiku worked with former President Olusegun Obasanjo, they had a blueprint for the transport sector, power in particular and they were determined to unbundle it.” “Look at what they did in the telecom sector or the transformation in the banking sector. Today banking is a seven-day business in the country. It was because Obasanjo and Atiku were forward thinking and they formulated the groundwork for the deregulation of these sectors.” “People say he is desperate to be president but it is not so. He thinks this country has had so many unwilling presidents, people had to be cajoled to come and become president and they performed woefully because they were never prepared for it. So he is a deliberate candidate and so that was why he has been preparing for the job to hit the road from day one.” IN one of his reactions to the much

talked automatic ticket Atiku said, “there is nothing like automatic ticket. Those who are championing that might have been coming from a political background that did not know contest before. You know the APC is amalgamation of political parties that relinguished their identities to pursue democratic goals.” “APC as currently constituted cannot escape an elective primaries. There has to be primaries because there is no zoning. So what basis are you going to say it would be automatic? And as they do in the PDP, there is nothing like that.” Faulting the notion that he remains an outsider in the APC, who is coming to reap from where he did not sow, he contended that the ticket of the presidency is open to all members of the party irrespective of their leanings. “Such view that I am an outsider in the APC is wrong. In the first place I was a founding member of the ACN, I gave it the name ACN before I eventually left to join the PDP and

now at the request of the APC leadership, I joined the party.” As far as zoning is concerned, we don’t have zoning in the constitution of APC, so the race is very open that is why you hear that Governor Rochas is running for the presidency also. It would be recalled that Atiku has pledged to remain in the APC even if he fails to clinch the party’s ticket. Atiku had stated that the APC is his “final bus-stop” and that he would remain in the APC and work towards the success of the party at the poll even if he fails to clinch the presidential ticket at the primaries, he insisted that the APC is far better than the PDP in terms of the practice of internal democracy. “For sure so far the internal democracy we have practised within the APC is a better than what is being done in the PDP, obviously there is no doubt about that. You can see that in the last few bye-elections we have gone through a very transparent processes in term of nomination.

So I still believe that the APC holds a brighter future in terms of internal democracy.” “On whether he would be discouraged if he loses out at the primaries, Atiku who has offered to serve the country for free if elected said: “Why can I be discouraged? You are just asking me to give up on Nigeria. How can I be discouraged when I don’t have any other place to go. There is no way I can give up until i don’t have the capacity to change the country for the better.”

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

business

Drop In ARPU, Vandalism, Others Limit More Investment in Telecoms Sector Ugochukwu Onyeocha

he telecommunications sector remains one of the few bright spots in the Nigerian economy. The sector has continued to generate positive reviews and create more employment for millions of Nigerians as well as boost income and revenue since 2001. However, the sector has also had its fair share of challenges that has limited its massive impact and leaves many wondering when all will be well indeed. Considering the continued devaluing telecom services in the country, the solution readily available on the lips of many Nigerians would be for operators to make more investments, especially in optimising and upgrading their facilities. However, some industry experts and onlookers are not looking at the situation as an open and close case of throwing in more money. Some believe that certain level of transparency and support must come from government to guarantee the operators that such investments would not end in futility. A couple of areas have been identified as key factors to reasons why more financial investment might not be made in this multi-billion dollar industry. A few of them would be critically examined to show what needs to be done for the industry to witness more investment and growth. Vandalism of telecom facilities Apart from the financial difficulties, the current state of security for telecom infrastructure is not encouraging for any potential investor. Every savvy rational investor considers the safety of its assets when making an investment decision. Unbeknownst to most Nigerians, vandalism of telecoms infrastructure is a major problem. About 2% to 3% of Nigeria’s BTS are shut down at any point in time due to vandalism, resulting in a loss of about $50m to $100m every year. Vandalism on Telecom infrastructure occasionally occurs in error during excavation, but for the most part is perpetrated through acts of sabotage and theft of equipment. In 2013, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) noted that it had recorded about 1200 fibre cuts in just a few months. These acts of vandalism are common in rural areas of the country,

which are characterized by high poverty and unemployment rates. The low standard of living and lack of opportunity leads youth to revert to such actions to extort telecom operators. The actions of vandals create significant expenses for operators in terms of repair and replacement costs, lost revenue, and also “appeasement” fees From a decision making standpoint, rolling out more equipment in an environment where the assets are not protected presents a significant risk. Delays in investment are also encouraged by market uncertainty due to the current antagonistic environment between operators, regulators and government. Investors in the Nigerian economy are not new to theses uncertainties, in the petroleum sector about $100bn worth of investments is being delayed due to the delayed passage

of Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) according to the international oil companies (IOCs). Such uncertainty in the telecoms sector can have a knock-on effect for the consumer. The US in the early mid 1970s was a perfect example of what market uncertainty can do. According to Jerry Hausman, a professor of Economics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), regulatory issues delayed the introduction of cellular telephones in the United States for 7 to 10 years. The delay purportedly cost consumers about $31- $50bn (1994 dollars) each year. In recent times, telecom operators have been attacked by regulators or government through fines and unregulated tax charges. This does not provide the incentivizing platform needed for investors to commit more funds to capital expenditure. The story of the telecoms sector will mirror that of the Nigerian petroleum industry if a

proper regulatory and fiscal structure is not designed and enforced by relevant stakeholders. Critical National Infrastructure This is one sector that must speedily receive attention. Protection of telecommunication infrastructure in the country, especially in remote areas, is a paramount need for operators. There have been recent talks of the potential passage of a bill by lawmakers, which seeks to give telecommunication infrastructure the status and legal protection of Critical National Infrastructure as well as other critical infrastructure such as power. The bill is a step in the right direction; however a delay in the passage will endanger the $25bn investment in the ICT industry as well as future investments will be endangered for the foreseeable future. It is also important to acknowledge that passage of the bill is not sufficient; awareness

and enforcement are the true determinants of the effectiveness of the bill. A comprehensive plan is needed to communicate to Nigerian residents the need to protect all critical infrastructures and the penalty for violating the law in the country. Lastly, a well-defined and legally backed fiscal and regulatory framework is needed to eliminate uncertainty about the telecom companies’ operations and potential investment. There is need for a uniform tax and levy framework across the nation which has a legal backing. This would protect the operators from exploitative charges as well as the creation of unbudgeted new levies/taxes. Ultimately, a properly designed tax and levy framework will increase the positive perception of due process in the industry. Consequently, investor confidence in the environment will be improved

CONTINUED ON PAGE 11

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

business

How Far Have You Gone In 2014?

elcome to the month of November 2014, a month keeping me in check as regards my business decisions so far. My heart has been pounding and running wild – asking so many questions about the current status of my business and my planned goals for 2014. On Saturday morning, I woke up thinking and feeling a bit out of place in my heart because major targets that we set in our organization have not be attained. Especially when I remember some instructions and suggestions I gave to my colleagues on attracting clients to our training for November

to December that has not been implemented. I must confess, I was angry that the results expected where not coming, overheads are running high month in, month out; real turnover has not been achieved – hence profit at the end of the year maybe out of reach. Perhaps I may be the only entrepreneur going through this end of year reassessment nightmare! Or maybe I am in the over 60% of business people mounting pressures on ourselves, our staff and everything around us for the current state of our businesses. Sincerely, I had quite some fights in my heart that played out in my dreams. Dear friends, I saw my myself in my dream scream-

ing at my colleagues and also carrying out verbal evaluation of their performance so far – I went as far as telling them “no result, no pay”. When the year is coming to a close for a lot of SMEs, the nightmare of little achievements in the year can be worrisome and heart wrenching. You feel a lot of adrenalin, stress, unmet targets, regrets in steps you ought to have taken, the decisions not taken and a whole of barraged thoughts. Some questions that may creep into your mind: will this cycle of struggle ever end in the pursuit of running world class organizations? When will the breakeven (not about the profit this time) moment happen in

the business? Why are customers not paying the desired price for our product and services? Why are competitors getting stiffer every day? Is government policy designed to favour the big companies only? When will banks truly start giving real support or loans to SMEs? I did honestly ask myself some of these questions. One secret I discovered: “you cannot make effective decision or generate creative solutions for your business if you are bitter, fearful, scared, full of regrets and not willing to review what you have done so far that got you where you are”. I have listed below some strategic steps you can follow to ascertain your current position, regain

traction to continue what you have truly set out to do. •Determine your mission (why are you in business) •Select your goals to pursue (what do you see and envisaged happening in business?) •Formulate assumptions about the environment (what is happening in your industry and other related industries) •Identify opportunities & threats emerging (opportunities and threats are what your products & services thrive on) •Assess your internal strength & weaknesses •Identify feasible alternatives/options •Critically analyze the options •Choose alternatives to pur-

sue •Develop implementation plan to achieve goals •Design a control or feedback system to monitor performance as you implement The journey of entrepreneurship is a lonely path. Its challenges can be enormous and discouraging – but its rewards at the end of the tunnel can be really soothing and enjoyable. At daily times, we believe in the success of your business and will be available to provide support on this great journey of adding value to people and the Nigeria economy. Till we meet next week Monday, do have a successful business week ahead!

Drop In ARPU, Vandalism, Others Limit More Investment in Telecoms Sector CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10

which will in turn increase the probability of more capital investment in the industry. Drop in ARPU Ordinarily, the fundamental shift in the industry from a voice dominated environment to a data dominated environment is a threat to the viability of most operators. As at December 2012, the national monthly Average Revenue per User (ARPU) was N912 (~$6), an 87.5% decrease from its 2003 level of N6,384 (~$48). The Nigerian people need to appreciate the fact that justification for additional capital investment becomes a harder sell for the management of telecom operators due to the lower ARPU. The operators’ cost structure is equally unfavorable and a major drawback in the quest to increase capital expenditure in the country. A key component of telecoms infrastructure is the Base Transceiver Station (BTS), which essentially connects mobile phones to the network. About 15% of all BTS in the country are connected to the power-grid, which leaves operators dependent on fuel-powered sites. Fuel costs associated to operating BTS in the country account for about 60% of operators’ network costs. To put it in perspective, network costs in Nigeria are about two to three times more expensive than in other African markets due to fuel costs. It is estimated that Nigerian operators spend about N10bn a year to power their

base stations. Solutions for costs, Security & Uncertainty Evaluating the dynamics of the telecoms environment, it is clear that there is still a strong need for increased capital investment in the industry. The publicized customer satisfaction levels with telecom operators serve as enough evidence for the need for improved services. However, until a solution is provided for the operators to deal with issues surrounding its operating costs, security, and uncertainty, Nigeria may not achieve the telecoms investment per capita observed in some of the emerging economies such as South Africa and Brazil. The ICT industry is critical to support the economic growth needed to maintain Nigeria’s status as the largest African economy. Hence, all stakeholders should participate in providing a conducive environment for the required capital investment to improve the telecom industry’s quality of service. A key win would be in the area of power supply. Unfortunately, the benefits of the electricity reforms of the Goodluck Jonathan administration are not realizable in the short term. However, it is important for the government to show its commitment to the blueprint of achieving significant growth in the generation and distribution of electricity across the country. True commitment and observed

improvements in the power sector should serve as stimulus for increased investments in the Nigerian economy. The envisaged cost savings should be reallocated to improvement and deployment of infrastructure for more efficient service delivery to the customers. Roles govt should play It is fair to say that telecom operators are generally evaluated by consumers without consideration of the rough operating and financial environment. However, if the

government and all other stakeholders can play their roles to provide a more suitable environment, then it will become crucial that each operator provides world class and cutting edge service. High expectations of a telecom investment per capita at par with countries such as South Africa will be the norm. As Edward Teller said, “The Science of Today is the Technology of Tomorrow”. The delayed action to improve the effectiveness of the industry will only lead to a lag in the technological and economic devel-

opment quest for Nigeria. We have attained the status of the largest economy in Africa; ICT should be supported to play its role in making us an economic power on the global front. It is indeed necessary that the telecom industry gets urgent intervention for more investment that would further improve Nigeria’s growing economy. Action must be taken to address these areas so as to see the desired results on investments that would be of benefit to every stakeholder in the industry.

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

leisure

Is Stephanie Okereke Pregnant?

Omowunmi Akinifesi Reacts To Butt Transplant Rumour

im Kardashian’s recent butt pictures may have sparked more people to think some other ladies have gone to have butt transplant. Not only id Kylie Jenner being accused of going through butt transplant, our very own Omowunmi Akinifesi is facing such too. The ex beauty queen has been bombarded with lashes from eagle-eyed commentators who said she may have gone the way of Kim. Reacting to the tales,

Omowunmi says her butt has always been there but just got noticed because of Kim Kardashian’s ‘breaking the internet’ nudes. Of course, the above picture sparked the rumour and she replied on her Instagram, “Relaxxx geeez the butt has always been there. Now they saying i got butt transplants. hahahahahahahahhahahahahahhaha. when you get yours, i’ll get mine. yikes!!no cant do. all natural. no implants. no surgery. can never go under the knife. guys chill. hehe “.We believe her.

P-Square To Drop New Video To Mark Birthday Tuesday!

he pop duo of PSquare will be adding another year to their age Tuesday, Nov.18 and something else is dropping that day!

The brothers hinted of a new video coming up to mark their day, and it’s a new video, ‘Shekini’. So fans of P-Square, better get ready for this...we hope it will be worth it!

e hope Stephanie Okereke is truly pregnant because she deserves to be happy on all sides! The actress was spotted looking bigger at the “Polo Avenue Fashion Series” premiere at the Polo Avenue boutique on Ozumba Mbadiwe Avenue, Victoria Island last weekend. Aside that she’d gone natural, there was this unique glow about her. She’d added weight and some folds of flesh could be seen bulging from her dress as she sat. Maybe she wore a girdle that did a naughty job of pushing up her flesh. Or maybe it’s not pregnancy but fat. We do really wish her wish including ours come true!

Taiwo Ajai-Lycette Still Rocking It!

ersatile Nollywood cum Hollywood actress, Mrs Taiwo AjaiLycette is still living the life of a teenager even though she’s over 70. Many find it hard to believe age has ran past her, especially due to her young-atheart attitude, always being flocked around by youths... she’s also fun to be with. I remember experiences with her...not forgeting, she enjoys taking loads of self-

ies. So there was her after a live interview at the NTA office located on the Island, excitedly jumping here and there for photographs while humourously cheeping in the word “attitude”, motioning to those around her to add some attitude into their poses for better result. She’s obviously still rocking it. No wonder much more younger men still chase after her and want her hand in marriage.

Do You Know D’banj’s Wife-tobe? See Her!

f you are still one of those who think D’banj and Genevieve Nnaji are still coming back together, you may have to think twice because the Koko master has since moved onto the next! Adama Indimi is the daughter of billionaire oil merchant, Alhaji Mohammed Indimi. She is a stunner. There was a time rumour

spread that the duo dated back then but the two were quick to deny. Yet recently at D’banj’s mom’s birthday, the beauty was spotted amidst the family picture portrait. Adama, holds a Master’s degree from Lynn University, Florida, and currently runs a successful travel agency called Kauna Solutions.

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

leisure

Movie talk Writer- Seyi Babatope/ Diche Enunwa/Temitope Bolade Cast- Weruche Opia, OC Ukeje, Beverly Naya, Oreka Godis, Gideon Okeke, Keppy Epeyoung Bassy and Shaffy Bello. Time – 1:40:00 Year – 2014 Genre – Romantic Comedy

henever you hear the title of the movie; ‘When Love Happens’, the first thing that may come to your mind is ‘the same old faces, same script, just recycling the same old stuffs and our filmmakers don’t just get it right’. That’s why lots of people don’t like Nigerian romantic comedies, the always find a way to zig zag the story to ‘and they lived happily ever after’. We might not be wrong to call this movie a spectacular one because this time around the director surprises with a very brilliant and a delightful romp. The movie tells a story of a 28 year old event planner; Moduroti Bankole, who is desperately looking for love when what she is looking for is right before her. It

When Love Happens starts with Mo awakened by a phone call from her long time friend, Jenifer who shares the good news to her that her boyfriend just proposed and she would want Mo to be the event planner for the wedding. This ‘good news’ isn’t quite’ good news’ for Mo as she is shocked and bothered that things are not just going right with her. What comes to her mind is like’ even Jenifer is getting married and am still single’. This propels her to start dating and all sorts of guys with the dream of finding the perfect one for her. One thing that strikes me in the movie is the use of new faces. You will agree with me that when it comes to romantic comedies, Nollywood uses the same faces like Genevieve, Omotola Jim Iyke , Ramsey Noah and lots more. The casting was indeed superb. We commend the director for filling the movie with young Nollywood and just a few old faces. The actors matched profoundly to their roles. Mo was played by Weruche Opia and she did a good job with her role. We would love to see her in more movies. She put her best foot forward and created an indelible impression in the minds of many as a star to watch out for .we can

say the sky is her oyster in Nollywood. Her constant transition into pidgin made the movie more original and brought out the ‘Nigerianess’ of the elite class. We also had Tobe Okoronkwo played by Gideon Okeke and Tseju played by Oreka Godis. We all know Gideon from the popular hit TV series; Tinsels as ‘Philip Ade Williams’ as a cocky, annoying guy and am afraid that that’s still the image I had of him in the movie. I honestly didn’t really feel Gideon in the role he was given and thought it could have been better. Also, Oreka did a good job for her debut movie but I think her makeup was just too prim and proper for someone that never took life too serious. Jennifer was played by Beverly Nanya and we have to give her applause for this. One would almost think that she is bitchy and arrogant for real. She totally nailed it. We also had Nollywood’s sweetheart, O.C Ukeje. O.C was the Mr. Lover Lover, player sort of guy in the movie

and we commend him for doing an excellent job and he was funny at the same time. Of course we also see older Nollywood stars. Keppy Ekpeyong and Shaffy Bello form a happy couple in the movie. Their chemistry was deep and that could be why their daughter was desperate to get hitched. The production was superb including the sounds and picture. I also think that the sound track was well thought -out and embellished the movie. The cinematography, costuming and location were spectacular. I must comment that the script looked like something that was recycled with few

The November Man Screenwriters: Michael Finch, Karl Gajdusek Time;108 minutes Genre; Action Thriller Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Olga Kurylenko, Luke Bracey, Bill Smitrovich, Will Patton, Eliza Taylor, Lazar Ristovski Director: Roger Donaldson Producers: Sriram Das, Beau St. Clair

hen I finished watching the movie; The Equalizer, the movie “The November Man” just attracted me I thought that it will be a movie that

will put me at the edge of my seat. Unfortunately the movie was annoying and frustrating. It attempts to be like a James Bond or Jason Bourne movie; the kind of film where satellites and drones are used to track the bad boys, but the plot totally didn’t work. The movie starts with a brief flash-forward. Government assassin Peter Devereaux played by Pierce Brosnan slams his trainee, David Mason which was played by Luke Bracey, for not following the instructions he gave which was to foil an assassination but ended up causing the death of a child. Fast forward to Five years later, David is ordered by his new boss to kill a former Russian double-agent named Natalia played by Mediha

Musilovic, She broke into the office of the soon-to-be-elected president, Arkady Federov (Lazar Ristovski). The reason he wants to kill Natalia is to prevent her from revealing the information she stole which would be an embarrassment for the agency. The Corrupt former general; Arkady Federov wants to be the next president but has committed lots of atrocities and wants to eliminate everyone who knows something about his past. But Devereaux has a deep bond with Natalia as she was a woman he once loved (and who secretly bore him a daughter). He tries to prevent her from being killed by his former student David or by Russian agents. Meanwhile, David also tries to kill his old men-

tor. When Natalia is finally killed, It becomes a revenge between Devereaux and his old protégé; David. In my opinion the cast didn’t quite make an impression when I compare the movie to genres of its type. However I will say that Brosnan, matched impressively with his role as Devereaux. Brosnan is an experienced actor and has been acting such roles for over 20 years starting with his version of James Bond. “The November Man” fails to earn the power it summons whenever it shows us scenes of people threatened with torture, or bloodily maimed, or raped. The movie also fails to develop the most important people in Devereaux’s life as characters.

changes made here and there. When I got to the middle of the movie, I almost knew how it was going to end and some old movies came to my mind most especially ‘Baggage claim’. Also, another flaw I observed in the movie is that they were not able to show transition in which Mo and Tobe moved from neutral friends to lovers. That was low point. But I totally loved the proposal. We can’t possibly end this review without saying kudos to the mighty man behind the directing, Seyi Babatope, who did a magnificent and innovative work in the movie. This movie is by far one of the best productions in Nigeria this year and will defi-

nitely be taking lots of awards soon.. For a production that took him 7 months unlike the normal rush to do a movie in Nollywood which can even take two days. The technique of thought tracking where important moments in the movie were freezes for emphasis is totally foreign and inventive to Nigerian movies. Big ups Seyi babalola. On the whole, ‘When Love Happens’ conveys a love story that shows us that sometimes what we are looking for is just totally staring at us in the face without us knowing. The Romantic comedy will totally keep you bursting into laughter. It’s already out in the cinemas so find time to watch it.

health

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

Fashola Is A Tyrant –Lagos NMA Chairman Expressing his displeasure over the non-payment of salaries for doctors employed by the Lagos State government and the poor state of the health sector, poor working conditions, the Lagos State Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association, Dr. Tope Ojo in this interview with LARA ADEJORO says any nation waging war against the health of his people by targeting the custodian of health is only destined to ruin.

hat is your take on the non-payment of salaries for doctors employed by the Lagos State government? Tell Fashola that he is a tyrant. Anybody that attended a Nigeria University 25 years ago, who is a graduate of the first generation and the second generation of a Nigeria university that has gone through a university at a cost that is equal to no cost and he’s now saying that a Nigerian child should pay N300,000 in a state university, that person is breeding a milieu for potential Boko Haram, prostitute, criminals, armed robbers. The milieu will be built because the common woman who fries plaintain, runs a small boutique or that guy who vulcanises your tire or those that earn meagre salary cannot afford the pay and those children will come back to be what? I attended a university when the entire education for me to study medicine was not up to N20,000 for six years because I was only paying tuition, I was paying N45 for accommodation per section, I was taking N90 or N120 per month between 1986, 1987 to 1993 and it still doesn’t matter because we all belong to the same generation and Fashola belongs to that because he is just in his 50s. So, the same level of tyranny is what will inform him to have hated the Lagos State employed doctors. Why he hates them is simple, his predecessor and his political god-father, Tinubu pretending to be an advocate of a democracy in 1999 was able to ride on the euphoria of that moment to deal a decisive blow on Lagos State employed movement when that culminated into the sack of Ayodele Akele, then they thought he was rude but because of the high level of intellectualism among doctors, they continued with the battle. The only people that formed a formidable opposition which led to protest of the Lagos State doctors between 2007 till date is why the Lagos State Government is bent on annihiliating the medical profession. And you know, health is wealth, any nation that is waging war against the health of his people by targeting the custodian of health is only destined to ruin. Since the last 3 years, the Lagos State Government has refused to employ any doctor on full-time basis, whereas all other employee has been done. Our Comrade in Edo State, Governor Adams Oshiomhole was casualising the workers too, he casualised

almost all the work force of Edo State but because he could see the massive tsunami of protest and uprise of the Edo people, he unequivocally reversed that. In fact, he had to sacrifice his permanent secretaries that failed to comply. So, in Edo State, casualisation has been completed wiped out but Lagos State is the only state in the country that has continued to employ doctors on casualisation because the doctors have been the only ones confronting the state government since 2007. We just came back from a strike and the strike was not to ask for increment of salary, we were saying that all Nigerians should have access to health, that if your family member dies from Ebola, he should have life insurance, hazard allowance, these are basic things we were talking about. We were saying the post-graduate programme should be all encompassing for Nigeria to produce more specialists and are these things wrong? They flattened it and said doctors are asking for money and at the end of this, the Federal Government and the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) had a truce. The truce was such that, there will not be any victimisation and negotiation will be on going but Lagos State said, it’s a policy of no work, no pay. When for 8 months, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) went on strike, the Lagos State chapter was paid, when the judiciary workers were on strike, they were paid. The polytechnic staff went on strike and they were paid and they were saying no work, no pay for doctors. Since the strike has been called off, we have written over 50 letters and the Governor never replied. But the Lagos State House of Assembly already said they were going to intervene on that? There are a lot of good people in the House of Assembly but the Lagos State Government is like the proverbial dog that will get lost, that will never listen to the flute of the hunter and that is what Fashola represents. So, what has been happening? They’ve not paid doctors since July maybe except for the few that are sycophants but as far as I’m concerned, they’ve been owing doctors since July, August, September. In fact, it took a threat for them not to withhold October salary and I’m aware that a few people are not even paid in October. So, we’ve done a lot of advocacy ini-

a policy that rests on chicken legs, definitely can no longer guarantee peace in the health sector. We have written several letters of friendship, trying to exist together on the basis of genuity but that has been completely rebuffed by the state government.

...any nation that is waging war against the health of his people by targeting the custodian of health is only destined to ruin. Since the last 3 years, the Lagos State Government has refused to employ any doctor on full-time basis... Since the strike has been called off, we have written over 50 letters and the Governor never replied. tially, thinking that we could work together but we have found out that the state government is unrepentantly bent on destroying the health of Lagosians because once you are annihilated from your doctors, I wonder what you want to do. A lot of facilities they are building are devoid of personnel because they don’t have any recourse for the medical association on the basis of planning and an encompassing participation to say this is what is required. You can’t just say there is a General Hospital in Ijede, it must be a situation that, if anybody has bone injury, you tell him or her to go to Gbagada, then you have others but they are do-

ing it based on their own shallow understanding. The Lagos State Government has systematically over the years replaced intellectualism with mediocrity. Now that over 50 letters have been written to the state government with no reply, what is the next step? Those that made possible change in the words of Frantz Fanon is violent change inevitable, that is the reality of it. If the Lagos State government has made things to fall apart, then surely the centre will definitely not hold. Advocacy of 5 months down the line and doctors are being singled out based on

What will you say about the strike embarked upon by the Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU)? You see, in a country where you have common sense been replaced by some tendencies that is based on petty material gain, in a country where legislation has been reduced to money bag legislation rather than democracy and common sense, then you have this. What they are telling you now is that even the cleaner can become a consultant. Who is a consultant? A consultant is a doctor who has gone for another six years of excruciating academic sojourn through the post-graduate colleges and then becomes a consultant, that is a specialist in the various fields. When going to the hospital, will you say you are going to see your consultant nurse. These are the issues because what the Nigeria government is doing is illegalising the system into eternal destruction. Don’t you think there are adverse effects on the fact that the health workers are on strike. Won’t the doctors be over-burdened in the discharge of their duties? It doesn’t make any difference. Whether there is strike or not, the health sector is now dangerous. There is going to be increased mortality based on anarchy. Now, we are trying to deal with impersonation from allied health workers who parade themselves as gynaecologists when they are midwives, parade themselves as orthopaedic surgeons when they are plaster room technician, and now you are giving them the room, it is death, death and death. That is the meaning. The Nigeria government has over-stamped death certificate in Nigeria based on this. For Nigerians, it is a sad story that the Nigeria ruling class is eternally corrupt morally, socially, monetarily. You talk about what happen in America but does this kind of policy hold forth? What is the hope for the patients and Nigerians generally? There is no hope. They should be on the street, fighting against the death sentence that has been passed on them by the Nigeria government.

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

health Lagos To Walk Against Rape, Sexual Assault By Lara Adejoro

s part of the annual United Nations 16 days of Activism on Violence Against Women to be held on Tuesday, 25 November through to 10th December and in celebration of the first anniversary of the Mirabel Centre, the Partnership for Justice with support from Justice For All (J4A) project of the Department for International Development (DFID) UK is organizing a walk to create awareness about high incidents of rape, protective measures and available support services to citizens of Lagos State. The walk with the theme “Not In Our Communities,” according to the Programme Officer of the Partnership For Justice, Ivy Fidelia Basil-Ofili is to provide a platform where all stakeholders in the fight against rape and sexual assault, can mobilize the community to take action against perpetrators of rape and report such cases to appropriate authority. The walk is scheduled to start at Ikeja under bridge at 9am and billed to end at the Office of the Deputy Governor, Mrs Ajoke Orelope-Adefulire Basil-Ofili said, “Ikeja Motor Park was strategically chosen as the meeting point as this will enable us to create awareness among different sectors of the community who use the motor park including road transport workers, bus drivers, okada riders, etc. The route, from the motor park to the Deputy Governor’s office, is a busy

road in the metropolis and thus many people we believe will benefit from the awareness created by the walk.” The walk is organized in collaboration with the Lagos State Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Response

Team (DVSART), Lagos State Gender Advocacy Team (LASGAT), Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja, Ministry of Justice, Office of the Public Defender, Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Al-

leviation. Others are the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Social Development, Ministry of Health, Medical personnel, WG8 on violence against women, counselors, victims/survivors, NGOs,

community and the media. Mirabel Centre is a project of Partnership for Justice where rape and sexual assault victims can access free forensic medical and counseling services.

Lagos Doctors Express Displeasure Over Non-Payment Of Salaries By Lara Adejoro

octors employed by the Lagos State Government have expressed displeasure over the non-chalant attitude of the government towards the payment of the emolument of doctors under the state’s employment. Investigations by Daily Times reveal that doctors under the state’s employment are yet to be paid for four months following the 55-day old nationwide strike embarked upon by the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) in July 1, 2014. A medical doctor at Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja, who spoke with our reporter on condition of anonymity said, “the Lagos State government is yet to pay us, yet we are working, we’ve been attending to patients and the government is doing nothing about it. Despite our several letters of advocacy, nothing has been done. The government of the state is about blackmail.”

Also lamenting, a female medical doctor who doesn’t want her name mentioned said, “we’ve been suffering yet working. That is what happened to May 2012 salary, we were not paid except for doctors who were posted out of this place but for doctors here at LASUTH, we’ve not been paid and it is sad. “I can’t even encourage my child to study medicine because the working condition is terrible. Many of the doctors have travelled out of Nigeria for greener pastures. Honestly, I can’t encourage my child to be a doctor except if it’s his destiny. These issues should be addressed,” she said. In an interview with the Lagos State Chairman of the NMA, Dr. Tope Ojo, he said before the July 1 strike was suspended, there was a truce between the Federal Government and the NMA but the Lagos State government is not complying. “Th truce was that, there will not be any victimisation and negotiation will be on going but Lagos State said, it’s a policy of no work, no pay.” Giving reasons while the doctors

must be paid, Dr Ojo said, “When for 8 months, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) went on strike, the Lagos State chapter was paid, when the judiciary workers were on strike, they were paid. The polytechnic staff went on strike and they were paid and they were saying no work, no pay for doctors. Since the strike has been called off, we have written over 50 letters and the Governor never replied.” Quoting Frantz Fannon, he said, “Those that made possible change is violent change inevitable. If the Lagos State government has made things to fall apart, then surely the centre will definitely not hold. Advocacy of months down the line and doctors are being singled out based on a policy that rests on chicken legs, definitely it can no longer guarantee peace in the health sector. We have written several letters of friendship, trying to exist together on the basis of genuity but that has been completely rebuffed by the state government,” he said.

Fashola

sports

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

Equatorial Guinea

Accepts to Host 2015 AFCON

Mu’Sodiq Adekunle

IFA match commissioner and CAF General Coordinator, Mr. Paul Bassey, has expressed joy over the decision of oil rich central African country, Equatorial Guinea, to host the 2015 African Nations Cup. Bassey, who spoke moments after

CAF named the new hosts, said it was a welcome development, as a shift in date would have affected African football adversely. “What would CAF have told their sponsors and partners? What would they have done with the calendar that would have been disrupted. So many things would have gone wrong with African football. I m happy CAF have

eventually gotten a host. It’s a big relief and I want to congratulate President Hayatou and the executive Committee for salvaging the situation,” Bassey said. Bassey pointed out that the decision of CAF over the years to allow the socalled “smaller countries” to host the tournament is yielding dividend. “If Equatorial Guinea had not host-

ed with Gabon in 2012 they wouldn’t have been in a position to bail the continent out at this crucial moment,” Bassey stated. The widely travelled Nigerian soccer buff said he is confident Equatorial Guinea will do a good job of the hosting right in spite of the short notice. “They have good hotels in Malabo and the stadia in Malabo and Bata are

good, so the challenge of playing host is one they can easily surmount. And one thing is clear, the country has more to gain from hosting the tournament.” Equatorial Guinea is stepping into the shoes of Morocco that pulled out from hosting the tournament over the looming presence of dreaded Ebola virus disease in some parts of West Africa.‎

AFCON: Tension as Eagles Keep Hope Alive Mu’Sodiq Adekunle

ongolese fans on Saturday threw caution into the winds with an attack launched on the Super Eagles following their two nil lose to the African Champions in the AFCON 2015 qualifying tie. The entire Stade Municipal arena become tensed up after Nigeria’s Aaron Samuel came on in the second half to increase the tally and also took the game beyond the Congolese reach. The unruly action of the fans however forced the center referee from Egypt, Grisha Ghead, to stop the proceedings for about ten minutes before play resumed. Security men fired tear gas canisters to disperse the worrying fans and restore sanity in the stadium. The Congolese action could attract

sanctions from the Confederation of African Football (CAF). The Eagles also got an hostile reception on arrival in Congo with open intimidation by angry local fans who chanted ‘Nigeria Ebola!’ as the team made their way for a final training in Pointe Noire. However, goals in the second half by Ikechukwu Uche and Aaron Samuel against Congo in Pointe-Noire yesterday have kept African champions Nigeria alive in the AFCON 2015 qualifiers. The win in Congo means Nigeria are now second in Group A with seven points ahead of Congo, who also have seven points but are third on the headto-head stats. And if Nigeria beat group leaders, South Africa, in Uyo on Wednesday they will then finish behind Bafana Bafana and qualify automatically for

Equatorial Guinea 2015. Vi l l a r r e a l striker Uche celebrated his long-awaited return to the Super Eagles in style when in the 59th minute he tucked away a penalty after Congo goalkeeper Massa fouled goalbound Emmanuel Emenike. Congo failed to draw level in the 65th minute, when Vincent Enyeama saved a penalty taken by Thievy Bifouma after Godfrey Oboabona handled a goal-bound shot inside his box. Substitute Aaron Samuel then made

the goal save for Nigeria a minute to full time when he struck from inside the box. It was a goalless first half with home team Congo carving the bigger chances to take the lead.

I n the 38th minute, Ferebory Dore smashed his shot across the face of the Nigeria goal but there was no Congo player to connect home. Nigeria’s best chance fell to Mikel in the 22nd minute but the Chelsea star failed to direct his header from a corner on target.

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

sports Unique Habits of Highly Successful Golfers

....Why Barack Obama and Co Prefer Golf to Other Sports

olf is one of the sports that records less spectators but it’s players earn respect and accolades. Due to the nature of the sports, the style of living of its players are unique. Mu’Sodiq Adekunle writes What makes Golfers fresh and reserved is a mystery to many sports lovers, most especially the fact that the sport is usually played by people of dignity. Among them is President Barack Obama of America. Here are some of the things, experts say Golfers have as their habits. They practice in the right way Life is short. So why anyone would want to spend hundreds of hours trying to improve in the wrong way is crazy. Beating ball after ball at the same target at the driving range and coming away thinking you’ve mastered the game only takes you backwards. How many golfers wish they could take their range game to the course? 99% of them. The other 1% (the elite), practice in a way that is challenging and simulates course conditions. Hitting a bucket of balls to the same target over and over is easy and it’s nothing like playing on the course. The top players make every second count when practicing, so they’re working all areas of the game to the max. The first thing to do in trying to get better at golf is to think about the way you practice, and change your routine. I’ve worked with many players of all abilities and the thing that correlates most to performance is the way you practice. Make practice hard and as much like the golf course as possible. They Stay in the Present Staying in the present means that you give whatever you are doing your complete, undivided attention with no distractions of the past or

ing through the same sequence right up until you swing, means there’s no time for negative thoughts to creep into those crucial seconds before a taking the club back.

future. In golf, this means your’re not thinking about your score, how your playing partners might be judging your performance, why you think you just sliced that tee shot or 3 putted the last hole. All your energy is on the process of hitting shot at hand and then enjoying the walk in between. It’s easy to see how counter-productive it is not to be in the present – just think back to your last round where you started playing well and then thought about shooting your best score (into the future), only for your game to unravel. The same thing happens when you start to think about bad shots you hit (in the past). Being solely in the present is easier said than done I know (like everything else it takes practice), but there are good techniques to prevent these tension causing shifts in thinking. I’ve got a few in my free eBook. They continually work on the fundamentals Good players understand the importance of the fundamentals as it’s the foundation for a good golf swing. How you grip the club, how far you stand from the ball, how good your posture is, how good your ball position is and how well you align to the target are all way more important than just trying to swing the club correctly. The fundamentals need to be worked on continuously as it’s easy to get into bad habits, even for Tour players. It’s always worth a check up from your local pro to make sure you have these right. Alignment is the one that requires the most maintenance. They play with visualization and feel, not swing mechanics The eyes are probably the golfer’s most important asset. Once they commit to a target, the top players imagine exactly how the shot will

They know how to calm themselves down when the pressure is on. I’ve worked with enough players to know that the good ones know powerful techniques to calm themselves down to prevent nerves turning into panic and negatively affecting performance. They use nerves to their advantage. There are many ways to do this such as breathing techniques or having special thoughts/places to go in your head in between shots. This could be looking up at the sky or the trees, anything to switch off your golf brain so you’re not thinking about your score or swing. I recently heard of a player that would try to solve math problems in his head when it all got too much out there! So there are countless ways to do it.

look, even what the ball’s going to do when it lands. How clearly you define your target and your shot shape before playing each shot will have a huge impact on how well you execute it. It’s your subconscious mind, more than your conscious that should play a golf shot and that part of the brain uses images to tell your body what it needs to do. So start to become aware of how different shots feel i.e. ask yourself when you’ve hit a fade how that felt. Associating a feeling with a shot shape will give you a better chance of recreating it in

the future. They work on a highly repeatable routine. The top players in the world all go through the exact same routine before (and after) every shot, even down to the number of practice swings and looks at the target. Watch the top players in the world and you’ll notice that the number of seconds it takes to go through their preshot routine is the same, every time. The routine acts to prepare you as best as possible for the shot, and go-

They know the power of acceptance and moving on: Being able to accept every shot whatever the outcome should become a key part of your game. The optimal state for golf would be to become emotionally indifferent to good and bad shots. Most Tour pros have acceptance built into the routine and they tell themselves that althogh they have a positive intention for the shot, if it doesn’t go where they want it to, it’s better to accept it and move on, than get disappointed or frustrated. Try verbalizing this in your head before your next shot. Also, try making a deep breath or the action of putting the club back in the bag your signal that the shot is over and it’s time to get back into the present. There’s plenty of time to analyze your round when it’s over!

Kanu Foundation Celebrates World Kindness Day Mu’Sodiq Adekunle

he coordinator of Kanu Heart Foundation (KHF), Pastor Onyebuchi Abia, has tasked Nigerians, especially school children, to always find ways of putting smiles on the faces of their fellow human beings for the society to be a better place.

Kanu Heart Foundation, the brainchild of former Super Ea-

gles skipper, Nwankwo Kanu, joined the rest of the world in celebrating the World Kindness Day on Thursday in Lagos. The event took place at the Hardley Apartment in Victoria Island. Speaking at the occasion, which was attended by people from all walks of life, including students and pupils from notable institutions like White-Field School, Corona, Bowen College, Nigerian Navy and Binta International School, Abia, who is a member of the board of

trustees of KHF, said people’s ability to put smiles on faces of their fellow human beings matters a lot in life. He said: “Kindness is the only word the blind can see and the deaf can hear. So, I urge everybody present here to always take it as a point of duty to be kind to one another. Always find a way to put smiles on the faces of your fellow human beings because that is what KHF stands for in the society,” Abia said. He used the occasion to thank

Nigerians, who had contributed in one way or the other to the success story of the Foundation. The Group Managing Director of Complete Communications Limited, Alhaji Mumini Alao, thrilled the school children with his lecture entitled ‘Touch the heart.’ The event also witnessed the investiture of Miss Intercontinental Beauty Pageant, Juliet Chioma Okafor, as Kanu Heart Foundation’s (KHF) Ambassador.‎

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

tourism Z imbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in southern Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. The capital is Harare. Zimbabwe achieved de jure sovereignty from the United Kingdom in April 1980, following 14 years as an unrecognised state under the conservative white minority government of Rhodesia, which unilaterally declared independence in 1965. The name “Zimbabwe” is based on a Shona term for Great Zimbabwe, an ancient ruined city in the country’s south-east whose remains are now a protected site. The country is mostly savannah, although the moist and mountainous east supports tropical evergreen and hardwood forests. As one of Africa’s most beautiful destinations, Zimbabwe has been off the mainstream tourism radar for years. Tourism collapsed when white farmers were driven from their land, and famine and hyperinflation ensued. Since adopting the U.S. dollar as its currency in 2009, economic healing has slowly begun, with foreign investment driving much of the recovery. Now, the country’s stunning natural and cultural attractions are recapturing the attention of both foreign travelers and investors keen to capitalize on that interest. Here are some spots that have attracted tourists the most in the last five years

Harare Harare is a busy working African city but it’s also a city that is attractive and well designed with wide avenues and numerous open spaces and parks. Flowers, shrubs and trees are in abundance and when the jacaranda trees are in full bloom (September and October) the city is full of purple blooms. Situated high on Zimbabwe’s central plateau the air feels crisp and clear and whilst many will not want to spend extensive time in the city, it is certainly pleasant for an overnight stop. There are various places of interest to explore, such as the Botanical Gardens which have more than 900 species of trees and shrubs from all over the

‘Great’ Zimbabwe

‘Great’ Zimbabwe country. The National Gallery has Shona soft stone carvings as well as exhibits from all over the world whilst the National Archives houses notebooks, diaries and more from some of the most famous African explorers. Zimbabwe is known for its beautiful craft work and a fun way to spend an afternoon is browsing through the curio stalls admiring the basketry, carvings and intricate beadwork on offer. With a collection of comfortable hotels and guesthouses and some excellent restaurants a night in Harare is invariably an enjoyable experience. Great Zimbabwe

Great Zimbabwe is located southeast of the town of Masvingo and is one of the best preserved stone cities in subSaharan Africa. The site itself is 722 hectares and the name is derived from Shona words meaning houses of stone. The ruins have been the subject of heated debate over the years from the early Europeans believing Africans could not have built them to Cecil Rhodes attributing the ruins to the Phoenicians. Historians believe that the first structures were erected around AD1100 and these were added to up until the 15th century with the purpose being more religious and political rather

than for fortification. The city was developed over the years as a tribute to a long succession of rulers whose kingdom stretched far and wide and was situated at a key trading position which lead to great wealth. At its peak it is thought to be home to some 18,000 people who traded in cloth, beads and ceramics from Arabia and China, via traders from East Africa, for gold, ivory and copper. Lake Kariba By volume, Lake Kariba is the largest artificial lake and reservoir in the world; it is over 140 miles long and up to 20 miles in width. It is located on the Zambezi

River, about halfway between the river’s source and mouth, about 800 miles upstream from the Indian Ocean, and lies along the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Lake Kariba was filled between 1958 and 1963 following the completion of the Kariba Dam, flooding the Kariba Gorge on the Zambezi River. Before Lake Kariba was filled, the existing vegetation was burned, creating a thick layer of fertile soil on land that would become the lake bed. As a result the ecology of Lake Kariba is vibrant, including fish such as the kapenta and tiger fish, crocodile, hippopotamus and abundant birdlife such

as the fish eagle and cormorant. A particularly atmospheric and beautiful lake, Lake Kariba will no doubt enchant you with spectacular sunsets and dramatic vistas. Victoria Falls The small town of Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe is less than two kilometres south of the Zambezi River and the border to Zambia. Until Zimbabwe’s political problems surfaced, it was the place to stay to see the waterfalls and the town was buzzing and vibrant. Whilst the past few years saw troubled times for the country, Victoria Falls Town was one of the few areas that managed to retain a semblance of a tourism industry. Recently the town has really begun to come to life again with hotels receiving refurbishments and new restaurants opening.

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

tourism

The streets are now busy and everything from washing powder to wooden curios are readily available in local shops and stalls. The town has a number of hotels, including the famous Victoria Falls Hotel which was always was, and still is, the place to have tea on the terrace. You can walk to the Falls from many of the hotels and enjoy a leisurely morning exploring the rainforest pathways with the backdrop of chattering monkeys. Easily reached from the parks in Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana, Victoria Falls Town is once again, a wonderful start or end to any safari. Hwange National Park Hwange National Park is the largest game reserve in Zimbabwe. Located on the border with Botswana, its 1.4 million hectares are home to a rich variety of

different habitats, vegetation and wildlife. The park’s mopane and teak woodlands, grasslands and scrub areas provide a true wilderness experience and some fantastic game viewing opportunities. Hwange was proclaimed a national park over 75 years ago and is known for its herds of buffalo and elephant and a huge diversity of over 100 different mammal species. Black-backed jackal, bat-eared fox, baboon, porcupine, aardwolf, spotted hyena, caracal, leopard, African wildcat, lion, southern giraffe, hippo, warthog and Burchell’s zebra are all found in Hwange to name just a few! The large numbers of plains game and antelope in the park provide a rich source of food for the predators. A number of white rhino have also recently been reintroduced to Hwange. The park boasts superb birdlife. Kalahari birds are found

‘Great’ Zimbabwe

here including red-billed spurfowl, crimson-breasted shrike, Kalahari scrub-robin, cutthroat finch, red-eyed bulbul and southern pied babbler. The plains are alive with pipits, larks and wheatears while raptors including the martial eagle are also plentiful. In the summer

months the bird list is greatly increased by migratory species like southern carmine bee-eaters, black kites and broad-billed rollers. Mana Pools National Park On the middle reaches of the Zambezi River, a hundred kilo-

metres below Lake Kariba is the Mana Pools National Park situated in the heart of the Zambezi Valley. It is a remote, beautiful place with spectacular views of the broad flowing river, floodplains, the tree canopy and the mountains of the Rift Valley escarp-

ment over the border in Zambia. The park covers 2000km² and much of it is inaccessible except of foot making it a truly unspoilt habitat. This stretch of the Zambezi River is famous for its four pools: Main, Chine, Long and Chisambuk, which are remnants of channels of the river which stopped flowing years ago. These and smaller seasonal pools dotted further inland hold water all year round, drawing a wide variety of wildlife and birdlife. Riverine forest fringes the river and pools and huge old acacia trees provide a shady canopy for the vegetation below. This beautiful area is Zimbabwe’s second world heritage site. The area is renowned for large numbers of elephant, buffalo, hippo and eland, especially in the dry season when they concentrate along the river. The protein rich seed pods of the ana trees provide vital sustenance for many species and are a favourite food for elephant. Predators are regularly sighted and the birdlife is superb, particularly for both mopane woodland and riverine species with numerous local specials like collared palm-thrush, racket-tailed roller, purple-banded sunbird and black-throated wattle-eyes. Mana Pools has large tracts of wilderness with no roads and therefore only accessible on foot. Walking safaris here are lead by some of Africa’s most experienced guides and reveal big game as well as many smaller things such as animal tracks, insects and brightly coloured birds.

news arts

& culture

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

Traditional Markets:

An integral part of Nigeria’s culture By Desola Akindele

remember years ago, when my mother would say: let’s go to the market. It was always with mixed feelings. Thoughts of the muddy floors, sweaty and vegetable smell, chicken being slaughtered, pulling and shoving by buyers and seller etc. By the way, these were the old traditional markets. The only times when I was happy to go to the market, especially the provision store was when I had to get provision and goodies to go back to school including a new school bag. The traditional markets in Nigeria are not structured. Buyers and sellers meet and discuss prices, and this is the only true market in economic sense, because prices are fixed based on spontaneous forces of demand and supply. Buyers have to haggle the price with the seller. You are also privileged to meet persons willing to help you carry the goods you have bought to your waiting vehicle for a cheap fee, they are called ‘Alabarus’ Drive through a slow traffic in Lagos, another form of mar-

ket will suddenly appear to you. Unexpected products would be displayed by this ‘traffic hawkers’. If you feel you would not buy from them, you must be deceiving yourself. Arguable, you would see an item that you had planned to buy or a product that had been out of stock at your usual market place. You could actually cook any kind of food in the traffic in Lagos; ranging from pots, spoons, plates, vegetable, ingredients to water. Untapped Olympians are among the traffic hawkers, with the way they outrun a speeding vehicle to sell their wares. Unbelievable!!! The Nigerian market place is always an eye watering spectacle. I have always wondered how the big markets started. The likes of Aba market, Oja Oyingbo, Onitsha market, Boki market, Idumagbo, Jankara, Alaba market etc. How did people move there? Who started it? So many unanswered questions. In Nigeria, every ethnic group has its own stories of where its ancestors came from. These vary from tales of people descending from the sky to stories of migration from far-off places, so no one

can really tell. Markets have been an important factor to the development of Nigeria. Markets have become one of Nigeria’s cultures. For example, trans-Sahara trade with North Africans and Arabs began to transform the Nigerian northern societies greatly. Increased contact with the Islamic world led to the conversion of the Kanem-Borno Empire to Islam in the eleventh century. The trans-Sahara trade also brought with it revolutions in wealth and class structure. The market phenomenon crosses across the Nigerian geopolitical terrain. The markets have influenced the culture in so many ways. The Fulani people carry their stocks and animals travelling from one location to another. This had been a long tradition. The Igbo people in the Southeast; have four market days of Afo, Nkwo, Eke and Orie. On the day of the Nwko market day in my village, the city square would be filled up with market women. Most of them had travelled from the neighboring villages to sell their stocks.

The same tradition can also be traced to the Southwestern part. The idea by which the Yoruba market women divide their market place in stalls can be traced back to tradition. Some markets had remained in the same location for ages. Many of the sametraditional foodstuffs sold in market places, the ancestors of modern Nigerians had sold them at the same location. So too, these practice have some beliefs, practices and social norms that endured the onslaught of centuries of colonial and slavery influence. The marketplace is an appropriate metaphor for understanding the multicultural of modern Nigeria. For centuries before the arrival of the Europeans, the marketplace was the community center for a town and the surrounding settlements. It was the center of commerce, the local town hall, and the main social center all rolled into one. The characteristics are still true till today. The traditional market place created the today’s Nigerian middle class society. The middle class that own large stalls at Onitsha and Alaba markets.

That sells and imports car spare parts and electronics. Many other middle class members also involve in one trade and travels from one location to another. The travelling zeal and characteristic in the Nigerian market place includes its diversity, dynamism, and the balance between different traditions and cultures. With much said about the old traditional markets in various parts of Nigeria, the colossal openmarkets which have traditionally been the heart of shopping in Nigeria are being challenged by a crop of new Western-style shopping centres. Both of these have their advantages if you want to experience Nigerian shopping culture while the traditional sprawling, hectic markets are fascinating to explore, some of the recently built shopping centres contain the stores of up-and-coming Nigerian designers who have a special ethical focus and ease with which you do it. While markets remain the beating heart of Nigeria’s shopping scene, a series of Western malls and shopping centres have

opened up in the past few years. Head to City Mall on Lagos Island, and find over 50 shops, restaurants and a two-screen cinema, or to the Palms Shopping Mall, on the Lekki Peninsula, for even more shops, a six-screen cinema, and a bowling alley. Selling a range of different products, these new shopping centres rival the traditional markets but, while it’s a more modern Nigerian experience, it’s no less an authentic one. Another great place to purchase clothes with a made-in-Nigeria label is in the Mega Plaza on Lagos’ Victoria Island. Selling a wide range of electronics, household goods, and clothes, and with a self-contained food court, the mall also has a designer’s outlet store where Nigerian and West African designs are showcased. This new shopping malls are characterized by silent walking zombies walking round the halls, touching goods and checking price tags without interacting. While some younger folks pose down the aisle, taking photographs of their ‘selfie’ by their friends. I do not think those were the thoughts of our forefathers that created the traditional markets that have become an integral of who we are. I was shocked on my 10th birthday when I saw two people I used to see at the traditional marketthat my mother frequently visits. One was Iya Sikira, as my mum would call her, she sells yams and vegetables, even till today. The other was Mama Ufom, she sold provisions then. I would always remember Mama Ufom because she always added something to the provisions mum bought, especially when they were for me. It is these kinds of interaction that is been lost by the uncontrolled uprising of these shopping malls that tend to monopolize the market structure and portraying that they sell things cheaper. The government can come into the traditional markets and help pave the roads and make it cleaner than it may be at present. Our traditional markets cannot become like the shopping malls unless they lose that fun, aura of everlasting relationships that are preserved even when the price is higher than expected. Untapped tourism is our traditional markets. Traditional markets have become a part of our long lasting culture, we must fight to preserve and protect it. Take your child to one today; he or she would remember the experience like going to a reality cinema.

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

people

Chika Ike

Ini Edo

Cossy Orjiakor

Daniella Okeke

Nollywood Actresses and the Source of Their Luxury

e love our Nollywood actresses, the fame, the luxury, the expensive accessories, the endorsement deals and the entire money they make. Sometime we just envy their job. We admire their extravagant lifestyle and this could be why lots of people especially young girls see acting as the one thing that will free them from poverty. Young ladies are moved by this supposed wealth of actresses that they could do almost anything get a role including sleeping with male producers and lesbians .They do this with the anticipation that when they get these movie roles, they would be paid heavily for it. False! The wealth that these actresses flaunt is not earned from the movies they make. It is true that some of them have other businesses that they do aside acting but that still cannot foot the bill of their lavish lifestyle. Ever wondered why they own the houses in Lekki and Victoria Island, open different businesses, drive expensive cars and travel the world, and their male counterparts don’t have anything near to what they have. Some actors even live in slums and earnestly pray for a miracle to happen so that they can make earns meet. That’s because top politicians and society men are responsible for their wealth Just before you choose to become an actress because of their seemingly luxury, this is how the industry works. From our investigations, up and coming actresses who just walk up to any regular audition merely earn between N0 to N10,000, and you will really be lucky to get up to 10, 000 because as a matter of fact the producers will want you to pay them for giving you a role. After they demand for 10,000 to twenty thousand from you, some of them will ask the up and coming actress to meet them up in a hotel room, mostly in Surulere, to finalize the business, after that, they could just give them a miniature role popular called ‘Waka Pass’ and that is it. That’s the industry

we have in Nigeria. We can also tell you that a good number of big names still do this Then if you are lucky to get a role from reputable producers like Emen Isong, Kunle Afolabi and more, you could get 20,000 to 50,000 depending on the type of role you play. It is after a while that you start getting recognized that you will increase your fee to N5000000, 7000000. Averagely most of them don’t act more than 7 movies in a year, that’s for an active actress. So if in a year the best of them gets N8 million, then where do they get multimillions to buy a house for N120 million or N2million just to rent a yatch for two days. Like we earlier stated, some of them have politician and powerful men backing their pockets. That’s the secret to their expensive lifestyle. If we were to talk about each of them, we will grow a long list. So we will just concentrate on those that have been trending.

Chika Ike

Ask yourself, when last did you see Chika Ike in a block buster movie or in any movie at all? The highest paid movie she has ever done in her life was in 2013 where she was paid 5millon to cut her hair for a certain role. Aside that she merely gets N400,000 to N500,000 for movies. But this year, she has acted only two movies,’ Miss Teacher’ and ‘Mirror of beauty’. So where did the money for all those luxury trips that she flaunts on Instagram come from? Haven’t you ever wondered why she suddenly became wealthy when she divorced her husband who accused her of infidelity? She was acting while she was married but became rich when she got divorced. This is because the no 3 citizen in Nigeria is her boyfriend David mark was the one that got her a Honda Cross tour 2012 worth N12million as a valentine gift. He opened a multimillion naira fashion accessory store for her in Abuja. He was also responsible for her January trip to Dubai

where she lodged in emirate palace hotel, that is said to be one of the most expensive hotel in the world. He also is the one responsible for her reality show where he splashed N20 million. After shooting the reality show, Chika Ike travelled to Dubai to cool off for her Pre-birthday vacation. She lodged in another expensive hotel; Jumeriah Beach Hotel. She publicized it via Instagram that she rented a yatch for two days which cost over N2 million and after that she moved the vacation to Turkey. She was slammed for posting every single expense she made on Instagram. Nigerians accused her of having a poverty mentality by letting the public know about each kobo she spends

Ini Edo

Ini Edo is a fantastic actress. She is paid between N700, 000 to N1, 000,000 to do a movie. She recently started trending when her 5 year old marriage to Philip Ehiagwina crashed. Ini was reported to have purchased a house worth N75 million and a 2014 Mercedes-Benz G65 which was later debunked. Ini Edo is a successful actress no doubt and she is rated as one of the topnotch actresses in Nigeria. However, the money she makes from acting doesn’t match with her opulence. She has no other business aside doing movies because the bakery store which she opened May this year has since crumbled. Our sources have confirmed that Ini Edo’s house is worth 75 million but other expenses including renovation, agency fee and furnishing cost 50 million. Ini Edo has been linked to several top politicians. The biggest was the governor of Akwaibom state. By the way, the Akwaibom state governor is the richest and the most sought after governor by actresses, society ladies and other runs girls. He is indeed very generous and it was reported that she and Rita Dominic had a rift over him. Their affair got to its cli-

max and became the hottest gossip in the industry. When the first lady of the state got wind of the affair; she embarrassed her and told her never to return to the government house again. The governor was present in the premiere of her first movie ‘I’ll take my chances and he reportedly gave her 40 million. He also got her a mansion in Uyo. Her affair with the governor also influenced the divorce from her husband Ini has another politician lover who is based in Rivers state and also has investments in oil and gas. He is actually the one responsible for her new Lekki house and even reportedly wants her to relocate temporarily to the US because she is still traumatized from the divorce.

Cossy Orjiakor

You probably know Cossy more as a massive breasted woman who loves to bare it all the time than an actress. Unlike other actresses, so many people have never watched a movie done by the actress. All we hear is that she is an actress, but she has just a few movies to her credit. She doesn’t hide her dark side that she is a flirt and sleeps around with big men. She once described herself as the prostitute that other prostitute look up to. Well, since she has described herself with the right words, let’s not bother ourselves doing so. The last time Cossy was in a movie was last year in a movie titled; ‘1 million boys’ and it was the only movie she did that year. This year she has done no single movie at all. So where did the queen of boobs get money to build houses in areas like Kuja and Maraba, both in Abuja, and of course she has a mansion in Lekki, and Ikoyi worth millions.

Daniella Okeke

Daniella Okeke’s source of wealth can never be from the movies. Though she is one actress that is trending right now, she just started acting last year but she has a luxurious mansion in Lekki which is already completed.

metro (south)

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

Female Suicide Bombing: An Emerging Tactics Of Terrorism

as anyone ever thought a woman created to be the giver of life will be brain-washed into becoming one who now pushes her children to death? Who could ever imagine that a woman could conceal a device fabricated In an improvised manner incorporating lethal chemicals designed to kill under her veil covering her head and chest for the sake of modesty Even though the pictures of terrorists on our minds have been that of a fierce looking, desperately wicked man seeking whom to devour but Nigeria is currently witnessing the rise of female suicide bombers in northern Nigeria. Women have in recent times stabbed the hearts, pierced the soul and caused wailing, pains, heartaches and sorrow to empathisers and survivors of loved ones who are victims of their dastardly acts. Terrorism in Nigeria took a significant evolution in April 14, 2014, when one of the major features was the use of women against the Nigerian government by the dreaded terrorist sect- Boko Haram to demand the release of its fighters in exchange for the over 200 school girls abduct-

ed from Government Girls Secondary School (GGSS), Chibok, Borno State. As the government is yet to permanently quash the uprising by the sect in the north-eastern part of Nigeria, the sect now have a shift to include women in its operations, in response to increased pressure on male operatives. The first reported female suicide bombing occurred on June 8, 2014, when a woman died in an attempt to attack a barracks in Gombe State. The lady suicide bomber who primed herself with an improvised explosive device was intercepted by troops mounting a security checkpoint at a Barracks entrance while she was attempting to gain entry into the barracks According to the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a private tax exempt institution focusing on international public policy issues, women are especially vulnerable to recruitment by militants for two reasons First, the violent loss of their loved ones may lead to a desire for revenge, making them relatively easy to convince to carry out terrorists’ attacks. Second, militants reportedly re-

cruits some women, including individuals who have not lost a loved one because they are perceived as emotionally vulnerable and easy prey for militants On Friday, July 4, the military arrested three female boko haram recruits, .One of them named Hafsat Usman Bako, is said to be the widow of a Boko Haram fighter. The women are said to have targeted widows and young girls, promising them marriage to Boko Haram members. At least five persons lost their lives in Kano following twin explosions on Sunday, July 27th, 2014. The first blast which went off at Kofar Nasarawa, near the North-West University was carried out by a 16 year old girl according to the Kano State police commissioner, Mr Aderenle Shinaba, while the second explosion happened at St. Charles Catholic Church on Zungeru Road in Sabon Gari. Also, a suspected female suicide bomber blew up herself at the NNPC mega station in Hotoro, Kano, on Monday, July 28th killing three persons and injuring eight others Barely four hours after this gruesome attack, another female suicide bomber targeted the Trade Fair Complex in Kano injuring six persons.

While majority of Nigerians have risen up to condemn suicide bombing in its entirety irrespective of the gender, there are fears that the recent upsurge in the use of female suicide bombers can be traced to the Chibok girls and also the several number of women and children abducted by members of the Boko Haram sect. Speaking in an interview with Daily Times, the President, Campaign for Democracy (CD), Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin said, “I sincerely and prayerfully hope that this is nothing than insinuations. By the grace of Almighty God, they are insinuations and remain just so. “Our girls cannot be used as suicide bombers. Although the terrorists have no human face and may be capable of doing it, but our hope remains that they are rather safe. I do not see myself in the light of discussing our girls as cat’s paw used to perpetrate these heinous crimes”, she said. Joe Okei-Odumakin is not the only Nigerian worried about the increase in female suicide bombers in the country, majority of Nigerians are mostly the leaders of the popular #BringBackOurGirls group. The increase in the number of suicide

bombers from the first day the first female suicide bomber was revealed is really scary. Bearing in the mind that it would be difficult to suspect them, it has become easier for female suicide bombers to succeed with their plot than their male counterparts. Recent attacks across the North have shown that the participation of females in the deadly suicide bombing trade is increasing by the day. From attacks in Kano, Kebbi, Niger and the most recent one in Bauchi, female suicide bombers have been ruthless in their assignment leaving many dead and countless others suffering various degrees of injury in their wake. One surprising feature in the action of the bombers is the fact that the dastard act is being embraced all around the world. Many would vividly remember that the horrendous attack on a Kenyan shopping mall which left hundreds dead was rumoured to have been orchestrated by a woman. It is hoped that the society at large would rise up to educate persons must likely to be used in carrying out such acts and spread the message of love and peace in order to make the world a better place.

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

metro (north)

Karasina II, Snake Eating Community In FCT

fter the day’s activities and the hustling and bustling associated with living in the city of Abuja, most people need a place where they could relax and unwind with cold drinks and some delicacies. Such relaxation outlets dot the nooks and crannies of Abuja but there are a few that are different in terms of what they offer. While many joints have become popular for the delicacies they offer on their menu, Karasana II village located along the very busy Kubwa expressway has become popular for a special kind of bush meat – Snake Meat. Interestingly, snake according to those who eat it is a very special delicacy for the people of and most of the villagers talk proudly of the legendary eating of snake meat. Despite the growing popularity of snake meat and its growing demand, this reporter would later discover and interesting part of this community – they don’t sell their snakes. Investigations by Daily Times reveal that in joints where snakes are sold, depending on the size, one single smoked snake goes for between N1000 and N1,500 and a plate goes for N3000. Speaking to Madaki of Karasan II, Danlami Danjuma said not everybody in Karasana eats the reptile but said those that eat only eat big ones. He said, “Our ancestors forbid us to sell. The only bush meat we sell is rat and that for our Sunday pocket money” He also said the reptiles are going into extinction because of development coming to the area. Snakes are reptiles that are found in most countries in the world. Some snakes are venomous, meaning that they can inject poison into the bloodstream through a bite. Snake meat is commonly eaten in the Southwest, South-South and some states in the North Central region of Nigeria. The popular recipes include rattlesnake chili and barbecued snake meat. Other cultures generally eat their own, locally found snakes. Snakes are considered medicinal in Chinese lore, as a “warming” food, and the blood of snakes is often mixed with liquor to produce a virility enhancer. Traditional South American medicine includes dried or powdered snake meat which is believed to cure several different illnesses. Snake meat is usually said to taste like chicken, but a closer approximation is frog legs. Snake meat can be very tough if not prepared well. Research shows that snake meat contains protein like any other type of meat. Protein is necessary for

many body systems, including the development of muscles. Protein provides amino acids the body cannot obtain any other way, which do everything from building cell walls, to regulating hormones. Snake meat contains roughly 93 calories per 100g (3.5 oz) of raw meat, depending on the type of snake. This is roughly half the calories and one

third the amount of fat of a similar amount of sirloin beef steak. Fewer calories and less fat content for the same weight of meat can aid dieters in controlling their weight. Experts however warned that as snake meat has been linked several times with severe strains of salmonella, which grows in the snake’s gut.

This bacteria is neutralized by proper handling and by cooking. Snakes, like other animals, may also contain parasites and other infections that can be transmitted to humans, which can also be neutralized by proper handling, freezing, and thorough cooking. Snake venom must enter the blood stream to pose any danger

to people, so there are no concerns about poisoning from eating most snakes. Snake meat is relatively low in fat and calories, high in protein and some consider it a rising star in the food industry. However, like any type of meat, it should be prepared and cooked carefully to ensure it does not result in infection or food poisoning. However, snake eating community is legendary and Danjuma said there has never been reported case of anyone being poisoned. He said they consider the snake meat like every other bush meat and said it taste extremely nice. Other residents, who spoke, said they enjoy eating snake and that it is a delicacy that has passed on for many generations. Also speaking, a prince in Karasina II, Abdullahi Bayero who is a teacher at the only Nomadic School in the village lamented on the issue of government taking their land without compensation. He said being an indigenous community they should benefit from the ‘encroachment’ on their land through some form of compensation

relationship

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

Erectile Malfunction? By Ngozi Ndubisi

lso called “impotence,” erectile dysfunction (ED) is a condition in which a man is unable to achieve or sustain an erection during sexual performance. In other words, it’s when your little man is acting up (it keeps bowing down instead of standing up straight and saluting). Although ED is more common as men age, sexual malfunction is not a normal part of the aging process of men. For all who wrote in asking for solutions and how to handle this, here is to enlighten you as far as our research goes. Does ED Mean Poor Libido? ED refers specifically to problems in achieving or maintaining erection. Other male sexual dysfunction/ malfunction includes poor libido and problems with ejaculation. Men with ED often have a healthy libido, but their bodies fail to respond in sexual activities by producing an erection.

Who Can Experience ED? Sexual dysfunction is more common as men age. According to medical research, about 40% of men experience some degree of inability to have or maintain an erection at age 40 compared with 70% of men at age 70. I found out the first time I ever treated this topic, that men who had, had sex with men might later in marriage have ED, when their grave for same sex sex will return. What Went Wrong? A number of factors can increase the risk of ED, since achieving an erection involves the brain, hormones, muscles, and blood vessels. A problem with any of these can block the normal functioning of the penis. However, if the condition lasts for more than a few months, see your doctor who likely will diagnose ED, but the good news is, it is treatable no matter how long its being for. As long as you follow religiously the recommended treatments, be it natural treatment or medical treatment. Treatments might

include prescribed medications, supplements, herbs, change in lifestyle or even through Acupuncture. What Causes Erectile Dysfunction (ED)? The link between underlying chronic disease and ED is most striking with diabetes. Approximately half the men with diabetes experience ED. Nevertheless, good blood sugar control can minimize this risk. Other causes include: o Chronic Disease: Cardiovascular, atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), kidney disease, and multiple sclerosis each can lead to ED. By interfering with blood flow or nerve impulses, any of these diseases and others could cause ED. o Alcohol in Take: While thinking of alcohol as putting you in the mood, it can equally cause sexual issues for you. “Too much alcohol is poison to your body and to your erection. Best advice; do not rely on alcohol as sexual stimulant. o Tobacco Use: Nicotine constricts blood vessels and so limits the blood flow

needed for erection. In recent studies of men who had erection problems due to lack of blood supply to the penis, 87 to 97 percent were smokers. o Anxiety and Stress: Stress, fear, anxiety, worry, and frustration cause the body to release adrenaline which compress’s the blood vessels, and kills the chances of a good erection. If and when your mind is worrying over emotional, financial or any other type of worries forget sex, rather talk to your spouse and relax your mind before any good can come out of that department. Stress, fear, anxiety, worry, and frustration cause 20 to 30 percent of ED in men. o Fatigue is a common cause of erectile dysfunction. Being constantly overtired can affect your interest in having sex and this will result in ED. Restoration is achievable after a good sleep, clearing of the mind and after a good exercise routine. Page two How to Cope and Achieve

100% Erection Erectile Dysfunction is treatable and curable if reported in good time, though you it could still be rectified even after year of ED. Like my saying goes “a stitch in time safes you Erectile Malfunction.” Treatment Options May Include: Psychological Treatment: may include sexual or couples counseling, which is readily gotten from Marriage Counselors, Oral Medication Treatment: The three most common oral prescriptions for ED are; (see your doctor) to avoid abuse of medication. Other Treatments Include: • Hormone replacement therapy. • External vacuum aids. • Penile injections. ED can be stressful, scary and confusing for both you and your partner. Take steps to deal with the problem and help both of you to cope. Take further steps towards

a healthier lifestyle Some cases of ED are as the result of a lifetime of unhealthy habits in order to have a good erectile function, do the following as it affects you:  Quit smoking.  Exercise more.  Reduce Stress.  East a healthy, wellbalanced diet that is high in fruits and vegetables, lean proteins and whole grains. You could Cope and Manage by: Being flexible with sexual acts: Maintain open lines of communication with your spouse. Learn new ways of giving and satisfying each other’s sexual and intimacy needs that will help take the pressure off you and shift focus away from actual intercourse until when its possible to again. Joining support group for ED sufferers: Talk to your doctor if there are groups that meet any where or join an ED support group online. Communicating with others who suffer from the same problem can be a big help in learning to cope with ED.

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

relationship

Lara Adejoro

he birth of a new-born baby should always be a thing of joy regardless of resentments, angst or prevailing circumstances that may not warrant merriment. A baby’s cry, gurgle, slosh or even the mere sight of its tiny bundle of life can be a source of immeasurable pleasure and fulfilment for a parent. However, as much as the child is a great source of joy and pride to parents, it comes with a sense of responsibility and the spirit of self sacrifice. This can be said of the clamour for attention from fathers when a new baby is in the house. No doubt, as a mother the need to give majority if not all of the attention to the new born may occur and this shift in attention has been a source of constant worry for most men. Lamenting the shift in attention by his wife, Kunle Ojo remarks; “My wife now shifts attention to our child. There is now a difference in the kind of love she has for me. She spends more time with the boy more than when we first got married. “It worries me. She argues that the child is her bundle of joy and the baby needs to be taken care of. The worst is that her mum supports her each time I complain. How do I help

When The Man Becomes Jealous Of The Baby this situation?” cries Kunle. Ope Akintayo urges Ojo not to be perturbed as it happens sometimes because children are tender and young needing more time and attention. “Unlike a grown-up man who doesn’t need anyone to babysit him, the child requires a lot of attention, nurturing and care which is the reason attention is usually more on him. Another factor is that he woman spends more time with the child than the father does so the child in most cases becomes more used to the mother which makes the closeness more; it is just a natural situation in life,” she said She said, “because of this closeness between the mom and the child, men sometimes become jealous of the relationship and as such, they complain of being neglected.” Akintayo however advised that, “Notwithstanding the bond between the mother and the child, it must be balanced and mothers must endeavour to strike a balance at all times

and still act up to their wifely responsibilities as a wife and also as a mother to their children. It must not be lope sided else, it could push the man to turn elsewhere for love which will in effect be of serious detriment to the entire family,” she said. Akintayo says amidst her busy schedule as a working mother, she still finds the time to spend some quality time with her husband. “After my son has gone to bed at night, I spend time with my husband watching television, eating together and gisting.” In her opinion, a hair stylist, Mrs Naomi Etim said, a woman who wants to keep her home must give both the husband and the baby the needed attention. “I have a year-old baby but once I get home from my shop, I make sure I feed my baby and lull him to bed and at the same time, I cook for my husband.” She added that, men are more jealous than children, and “wom-

en should not forget that they are meant to be together forever. Men are like babies too, they need to be pampered else, you will lose your home. “Never the less, the husband should talk to the wife about it. They should have a better way of sorting issues out.” Jude Nebo who went through same experience advised Ojo to be the man and talk to his wife about it “After all, you both own the child. When I had same issue with my wife, I was disturbed, I was almost forced to get the love elsewhere but I discussed it with her with love. Surprisingly, she didn’t know she had changed, she apologised and we continued to live happily again.” “The husband should summon the courage to have a one-on-one talk with his wife, draw her attention to the lapses or else the home might hit the rock especially if the man decides not to talk about it.” Proferring solution to this, Psychologist Okey Martins Nwokolo

said, it is a developmental stage and a transition which is eventually out grown. “It’s more than the physical attention that women instinctually redirect to their babies,” he said. Continuing, he said, “For most parents, newborns are hopefully better extensions of themselves. The delicate nature of newborns implies that mothers’ time and attention focus on them. “Regarding jealousy, a couple of theories exist; ranging from sigmund freuds penis envy, attachment theories; etc but I think that women who generally involve their husband’s in baby care, who take turns in feeding and getting food ready, and who participate in singing lullaby and songs, are generally low in expressing jealousy. “Men with excessive drive for sexual activity including sucking may find this waiting period frustrating. Some men who engage in extramarital affairs have higher case rates

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

fashion Male Accessories T

here is a myth that being a stylish man requires tremendous effort. The truth is, there are dozens of quicker and easier ways to look better, more stylish, all with a minimum effort. As you already know, the dapper look is becoming more fashionable these days. Lots of celebrities and actors wear dapper style looks. Short blazer combo is one way to keep causal yet stylish on that special date, gig, and concert and family outings. Although an unconventional style yet, capable of making heads turn in your direction Here are some fashion tips for you. Dapper means to be a gentleman and looking smart and stylish. These tips are not expensive and are essential for every dapper looking man. First of all, wear handkerchief folded in a pocket near the chest area, that’s a must have for every gentleman, then do not fasten all buttons of your suit (leave one unbuttoned at the bottom), pay attention to your ties length, as it should reach the belt; cuffs look best if they lean out of your suit jacket at about 5-6 mm.

Timepieces

A Man’s Watch: It has been argued that with all the electronic gadgets we surround ourselves with, the man’s watch as an accessory is becoming antiquated. If a man enjoys wearing a watch, he should have at least two in his wardrobe, one for sport and one for more formal occasions. The general rule is the simpler the watch, the more versatile and formal it is. Digital watches with plastic bands are for sport while large timepieces with multiple moving hands, gauges and metal bands are for the office. The most formal watches are simple timepieces with a single set of hands and leather band. Every guy should have a timepiece they can rely and fall back on when the situation arises. Whether you prefer a timeless and refined black/ brown leather strap or a durable and masculine stainless steel bracelet, stick to a classic round face design and you won’t go far wrong. Consider buying an alternative warm-weather strap at the same time. Watches have been around for over 500 years, surviving wars and tech revolutions

Belts

This man’s style rule is easy to get right: If your pants have belt loops, wear a belt with them. You’ll want to have at least three men’s belts so you’ll have the right belts to wear with all of your clothing: a black leather belt to wear with black shoes; a brown leather belt to wear with brown shoes; and a casual belt either leather or cloth to wear with sporty shoes Choosing the size of your belt is easy; just choose one size larger than your pant size. For example, if you wear size 36 pants, then choose a size 38 belt. If you are only going to start with one belt, get one that is versatile and will go with all your clothes. That means a simple leather strap, either black or dark brown, with a simple buckle. A belt will have a buckle with a silver stick one side that will have to fit through the holes on the other side of the belt once it goes all the way around you. A good belt

fits in the middle hole. A new leather belt is generally pretty stiff and will feel uncomfortable for a day or so as it breaks in. Don’t give up on it - give it time to soften and conform to your waist.

Cufflinks

If a man owns a French cuff shirt he needs cufflinks and/or cuff knots. The number you need depends more on how flashy your cufflinks are instead of how many shirts actually need them (although a general guideline is two sets for every shirt that requires them). The logic here is that simple conservative cufflinks, such as plain silver or solid coloured knots, draw little attention to themselves and create a positive but not deeply memorable impression. A set of Elvis cufflinks on the other hand are going to be remembered and are therefore limited in how often they can be worn. It is advised you start your collection with simple, timeless designs; once you have three or so sets of links and perhaps 6 inexpensive knots, then you can introduce a few fun cufflinks. Cufflinks, more than any other accessory a man can wear, stand out even when you try to hide them. A pair of cuff links can really tie your look together. Men do not require cufflinks at work on dayto-day basis simple button-down shirts with buttoned cuffs are appropriate most of the time. Since cuff links are formal, it may contribute to an awkward work environment at the office, setting some employees apart from others. In formal social settings, it is much more appropriate for men to wear cuff links without giving as much thought to event. During formal social events, like weddings, receptions, parties men should feel at liberty to wear cuff links.

Bracelets

Generally speaking, bracelets are a tricky area for men. In many cultures around the world they once symbolized power and position. Think bracelets are for chicks? They are. But they’re for dudes too. In fact, if you take a look at the wrists of the most stylish guys you know, there’s a strong chance they’re accessorizing this joint. But today a jewelled bracelet on a man is more of a fashion trend and not something recommended for the average guy. Here are four different types of bracelets that any man like you can rock from the beach to the office and everywhere in between. Whatever your budget, whatever your style, we’ve got your wrists covered.A deep, rich brown bit of leather on your wrist signals refined masculinity. Hints of leather are a great way to express your inner rebel without going overboard. If you’re con-sidering wearing several bracelets on one arm for a stylishly accessorized look, a leather bracelet serves as a great anchor piece. Wrapping some woven fabric around your wrist is a great way to bring some colour to the party. The beaded bracelet is definitely having its moment. Once relegated to the arts and crafts activity area of summer camps, refined grown man versions of the beaded bracelet can be seen on the wrists of many even in suit.

Sunglasses

Both metal and plastic eyeglass frames are durable and fashionable; just look for eyeglasses that complement your skin and eyes. If you have warm skin tone or brown eyes, gold metal frames and red or tortoiseshell plastic frames will suit you. If you have cooler tones in your skin or blue eyes, silver metal frames and black or blue plastic eyeglass frames will be perfect for you. Choose eyeglass frames that fit correctly and are in scale with your face .The frames of your glasses should be as wide as your face. As far as the shape goes, you’ll want to pick something that contrasts with the shape of your face. For example, if you have a square jaw and broad forehead, look for eyeglasses that have rounded edges. Your sunglasses should be clean and compliment both your face and the situation you’ll be wearing them in. It is recommended that a man have at least two pairs of sunglasses in his wardrobe – a classic, quality pair for everyday use that can be worn with either a suit or polo shirt and a cheaper, disposable pair that can be worn in situations where the likelihood of them never being seen again is high (boating on Lake Travis). If you are active in outdoor sports, you’ll at some point want to consider a pair of athletic wrap-around sunglasses. However, understand these sport sunglasses should not be worn with business attire.

Wallets and Money Clips

Which wallet you choose depends on your needs. If you’re a frequent traveler, a billfold that is large enough for a passport, pen, and various other incidentals is handy. A slim billfold that fits in the back pocket, however, is more suited for daily use. Just remember that if you have the space, you’ll fill it. Therefore the best way to avoid walking around with two inches of backside bulge is to own a wallet that doesn’t tolerate that type of expansion Consider what you need to carry regularly and choose a wallet that can hold it all: cash, a few credit cards, an identification card and maybe a few business cards. A thick wallet makes an asymmetrical bulge under your clothes. It looks like some sort of tumor, not stylish. A heavy wallet in one jacket pocket makes the whole thing sit slightly lopsided. Your shoulders will look uneven and a little hunched. You’ll use your wallet every day, so purchase leather men’s wallets, which are durable enough to stand up to that kind of wear. Using the same thick wallet day in and day out will eventually create faded creases in whatever pocket you use and in the shape of the wallet, shortening your clothes’ life span. If leather wallets aren’t your style, a nylon wallet is a casual alternative. If you prefer carrying cash, be sure to shop for men’s money clips. Some leather money clips include a card holder, too, which can be very helpful. Business card holders may come in materials to complement men’s money clips or wallets. All these make you as a man look perfect any day anytime and create the confidence in you.

DAILTY TIMES NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014

technology

Here Comes Xiaomi

or years coming, we have known the best playing phone brands from China to be the likes of Samsung, Lenovo and Huawei amongst others, but now in the super-popular country has emerged the mobile market player Xiaomi as the new favourite. According to a report from Canalys, Xiaomi has risen to the king of the Chinese market in only a year, now holding 14 percent of the market share. Starting out as a lowly device maker, the brand is looking into other parts of Asia and even beyond. The company was founded just four years ago by Lei Jun. In the past year, Xiaomi only held 5 percent rank of China’s second-quarter smartphone shipments and at the first quarter of this year, the brand had reached 10.7 percent of the market share, while Samsung and Lenovo held 18.3 and 11 percent respectively. Today’s figures put Xiaomi at 14 percent while Samsung, Lenovo and Yulong each hold 12 percent. The figures represent 15 million smartphones, a 240% progress covering the same period last year. The brand’s performance shows that Xiaomi has advanced from a niche player in China to a major challenger in its market of origin. Xiaomi’s success is largely thanks to a well-rounded and very tightly executed strategy, said Chris Jones, vice president and principal analyst. It offers very affordably priced phones, but it has focused on sales from apps, games and themes to increase profits. Peculiarly, Xiaomi has a nature of weekly updating its software called MIUI, thereby offering its users new and customizable features based on their feedback, a routine followed with targeted and skillful marketing. New releases are made every Friday. Potentials for Growth The privately-held company is well known in China with its rabid fan-base, but is hardly known outside of its country. 97% of Xiaomi’s mobile phones are sold within China, and even then its success at home makes the brand the fifth-largest smartphone maker in the world, behind Samsung, Apple, Huawei and Lenovo. “While smartphone penetration rates are nearing the saturation point in North American and other mature markets, regions like China, India and Brazil will continue to see dramatic growth over the next several years,” Colin Gibbs, an analyst at Gigaom Research, told the E-Commerce Times.

... More for the Lovers of China Made Phones

ucts in China if it is to retain its pace.

Despite the opportunities in emerging regions like China, Xiaomi’s swift rise to the top is still surprising to analysts who noted that Xiaomi is quietly missing one component which most of its competitors offer, and that is 4G network enabled phones. Canalys’ Jones said “Xiaomi does not have a 4G phone in its portfo-

lio so it is months behind its Chinese competitors such as Yulong, Lenovo and ZTE, whose low-cost 4G phones are selling well”... “so Xiaomi generated huge demand for non-4G phones at a time when mobile operators try to move consumers to 4G phones”. Even so, experts say the brand still does need to deliver 4G prod-

In Business One thing of note in the company’s success is its business model of relatively low-priced smartphones which are sold solely online. Xiaomi phones, which are sometimes criticized as Apple knockoffs, typically sell at around $130 – one-third the price of Apple’s devices. Canalys analyst Jessica Kwee says “Its aggressive pricing model will certainly resonate beyond China, but the challenge it faces in scaling its model for success on a global stage should not be underestimated,” and “That said, Xiaomi does have the potential to be a disruptive force beyond China and international vendors should take note.” Sources hint that the company actually makes its profits through content, add-ons, apps, games and services rather than from the sales of the devices themselves. The company is also known for its creative marketing which have earned it a mass of loyal customers, furthermore, in customer relations, Xiaomi software engineers speak directly to consumers, which helps them directly understand the feedback which they use to update the company’s software. Here And Onwards... Having conquered China, Xiaomi

plans to exploit on its success and expand into international markets aiming to get into Indonesia, Mexico, Russia, Thailand and Turkey amongst other countries by the end of the year. The brand has already begun making flash sales in India while it is also working on certifying its products in Brazil. In the quest to enter into new markets and keep its momentum, Xiaomi will need to adopt the right marketing strategy for each new one. Experts also note that the company needs to ensure that its devices keep up with current market trends and consumer demands considering its solely 3G based products. “Xiaomi’s business will have to evolve quickly in China, as 4G networks continue to be deployed and data consumption ramps up,” Gigaom’s Gibbs said, “but the company has already established itself as a high-profile provider of smartphones and mobile services, and it has a chance to build on that momentum by expanding to markets such as Russia, Mexico and perhaps Brazil.” Also in its growth quest, the company has been amassing tech experts to build its corporate value of over $10 billion. Reports have it that the company poached Hugo Barra, a former Google executive in order to realize its ambition of becoming a global player.

NOVEMBER 17 – 23, 2014 DAILTY TIMES

opinion

Is Nigeria Ready for democracy Will there be a Nigeria in 2015?

here have been concerns in various circles that Nigeria may not be ready for democracy. Also, as we just finished celebrating 54 years of independence from the British and the centenary celebration of the amalgamation of the Northern and Southern Protectorate to form the enterprise called Nigeria; many also wonder whether there will be a Nigeria in 2015. The doomsday prophets are both Nigerians and foreigners, especially our American allies. Their fears are also connected to the desire/agitation by the northern elite for power to return to them. If the country does not divide, then clearly Nigeria needs true statesmen in 2015. How do you define or know a Is true statesman? American Congressman Forbes posted on Christian Coalition website on October 13, 2014 that “True statesmanship depends on a commitment to lead by principles and values. Perhaps more than that, it depends on the ability to come together to build consensus, not a patchwork of compromises. True statesmanship births a desire for common ground. If we posture ourselves as statesmen, we come to the table with respect for each other, an open mind to ideas, and an understanding of each other’s unwavering principles. Statesmanship requires hard work and respect. It is not the easy way out. But it’s necessary if we want a healthy, thriving, functioning government.” To reproduce a portion of an article titled: 2015 Preventable Implosion, “In the year of our Lord Two Thousand and Fifteen, there was a country called Nigeria, in the western part of Africa. The country was rich in natural resources and human resources. Unfortunately, it imploded and suffered self-destruction. Some say it was because of visionless and corrupt leadership, while others believe it was because of its morally decrepit citizenry However, all observers agree that the

various malaises that led to the downfall of that great country were preventable.” “What legacy are we leaving our children?” a reader asked. There is accusation on the northern part that they a feeling of “entitlement-to-rulethe country” running through their blood veins. The north whose original African culture is very intermingled with the culture and religion of the Arab invaders/conquerors. The north is rich with various original languages and beliefs. Yes Islam is common, along with Hausa language, but there are many Christians and non-Hausa speakers. The South should not be deceived into believing that the north is their enemy or that there is unity in the South. Some of the supposed “unity” is anchored on a distrust of the north. The unity of Nigeria has been stated to be non-negotiable, but the elections of 2015 could be a watershed moment and the world is watching. Our democracy, though going, is suffering from many weaknesses. Incessant decamping, political in-fighting, mistrust, unemployment/ poverty, infrastructure decay, rudderless leadership, and immoral followership are some of the various ills facing Nigeria. For 2015 general elections, President Goodluck Jonathan has emerged as the consensus presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). This has been described as anti-democracy by critics and Dr. Abdul Jhalil

So, we will still have most of these parties. Many of the other opposition parties are expected to adopt President Goodluck as their candidate just like they did in 2011, while the others may field unpopular candidates. We are less than 106 days away from the February 14, 2015 elections are there is palpable tension in the air. We should prove the doomsday

Rev. Akpodiete, a public affairs analyst writes from Asaba. He is the Editor-inchief of Politics Governance and also an aspirant for Udu/Ughelli North/Ughelli South Federal Constituency in Delta State. Contact him on 08138391661 or Profatawa@gmail.com.

True statesmanship births a desire for common

Let’s Think

Talk

By Alex O. Atawa Akpodiete

Tafawa Balewa, his only challenger so-far, has taken the matter to court. Dr. Balewa, the son of Nigeria first and only Prime Minister, is insisting on a Primary. The opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) has four candidates that have picked up nomination forms. They are: former head of State, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd.); former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar; founder of LEADERSHIP Newspaper, Mr. Nda-Isaiah; and Kano State Governor, Alhaji Rabiu kwankwaso. The major problem plaguing APC

PDP PRESIDENTIAL ASPIRANTS/CANDIDATES

Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan

prophets to be fake. Think about it!

Dr. Abdul Balewa

is whether they will be fielding a Muslim-Muslim ticket. Given our pre-occupation with religion. Pundits point out that this is not June 12 where Abiola/Kingibe was a Muslim-Muslim ticket. Some of the political parties in Nigeria include: Accord, Action Alliance, Advanced Congress of Democrats, Allied Congress Party of Nigeria, African Peoples Alliance, African Democratic Congress, Alliance for Democracy, All Progressives Congress, All Progressives Grand Alliance, Citizens Popular Party, Democratic People Party, Kowa Party, Labour Party, Mega Progressive Peoples Party, National Conscience Party, New Nigerian Peoples Party, People for Democratic Change, Progressive Peoples Alliance, Peoples Democratic Party, Peoples Party of Nigeria, Social Democratic Party, United Democratic Party and United Progress Party. The court has recently ruled that INEC is not authorized to de-register political parties duly registered under the 199 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

ground. If we posture ourselves as statesmen, we come to the table with respect for each other, an open mind to ideas, and an understanding of each other’s unwavering principles APC PRESIDENTIAL ASPIRANTS

Muhammadu Buhari

Sam Nda-Isaiah

Atiku Abubakar

Kwakwanso