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Ï My victory belongs to God, good people of Abia, says Ikpeazu Ï Invites opposition to work with him Ï Abians jubilate, expect more from Gov Ï CJN warns politicians against interference Tony Amokeodo, Andrew Orolua, Abuja and Sunday Nwakanma, Umuahia

ÏÏÏ The Supreme Court on Friday

put a final stop to any legal tussle over the authentic candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)

during the Governorship election in Abia State in 2015 as the apex court held that Governor Okezie Ikpeazu was the duly elected governor of the state on the grounds that he was properly nominated by the PDP. But in a post-judgment comment, the Chief Justice of Nigeria

(CJN), Justice Walter Onneghen, noted that there was a “security breach” in the course of preparing the judgment as some politicians were desperately looking for the justice that would be assigned to write the judgment.

The making of DTN Awards winners

Continued on page 6

L2&3

L-R: Former Lagos State governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu; former President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan; former Military President, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida; Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki; and Speaker, House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, during the wedding of Halimat, daughter of Gen. Ibrahim Babangida in Minna, Niger State… on Friday.

I agree I’m a fool for staying long in an abused marriage –Mercy Aigbe

L4

Yemi Alade, Timi Dakola, others for The Voice Nigeria Season II

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Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

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‘He wants to use me for money rituals’, woman cries out in court

ÏÏÏA Lagos house wife, Bose

Oguntoye, has pleaded with an Agege Customary Court, Lagos, to dissolve her five-yearold marriage, based on her husband’s alleged fetish practices and threats to her life.

Bose, a fashion designer, told the court that her husband is too money-conscious and is desperate to make money at all costs.

“I live in fear of the unknown because of all kinds of charms l see with him.

“He also beats me up at any slight opportunity, especially when he is not in a good mood,’’ she said.

Narrating her ordeal before the court presided by Mr. Phillips Williams, she said there was no more love between them again.

“Sometime in April 2015, when l became pregnant with our second child, my husband placed a charm on me and l became sick and eventually ran mad.’’

He took me to somewhere in Matogun, Ikorodu under the pretext of curing me and l was being fed with all sorts of assorted charms.

The petitioner further said that she is became healed due to the intervention of her family members who came to take her away, when her health was deteriorating.

“I was taken to Ikare in Ondo state where l spent five months, before l became

hale and hearty again.’’

Bose also accused that her husband did not relent in his fetish ways even after she returned to her matrimonial home “He took me to a Muslim cleric who gave me a substance and told me not to get close to my husband for sometime.

“On getting home, my husband told me to move to my parent’s house, which l refused.

This led to series of misunderstandings between us.’’

According to the petitioner, the respondent became con-

frontational with her.

“He told me that he wants to be rich this year under any circumstances. ‘l must build houses and buy cars,’ to which l replied, ‘there is no problem with that, as long as you don’t use me for money rituals.’”

Bose also told the court that the respondent used force to collect her two children from her, under the guise of being a police officer.

“They made me write a statement under duress, to release my children and they took them away from me, claiming

that l was mentally unstable.

“I had to run for my dear life when l realised he was making serious efforts to use me for money rituals.

The respondent, Adewale Oguntoye, an indigene of Ondo state, resident at No. 4, Oluyomi Olusesi St., IjuIshaga, Lagos, however, denied the allegations, but said he was ready for the dissolution of the marriage.

Adewale in his defense said, the relationship between him and his wife has not been smooth since she came up with

the idea of going to another church.

The estranged husband claimed that the petitioner had been keeping late nights and would not disclose her whereabouts.

“She started misbehaving, keeping all sorts of friends and became disrespectful to me.’’

Adewale said he suspected his wife was dating the pastor of the church she started attending, even after he vehemently disagreed and warned her not to continue, she remained adamant.

An accident scene at the Magboro, Lagos-Ibadan Expressway… on Friday. Photo: BOLAJI OLASUNKANMI.

Stakeholders suggest ways to end farmers/herdsmen clashes

ÏÏÏProf.

Garba Sharubu of the Usmanu Danfodio University, Sokoto, on Friday called on the federal government to regulate grazing activities in the country to curb the recurring farmers/herdsmen clashes.

Sharubutu made the call in a paper tittled: ‘Identifying Regulatory Control for Movement of Livestock and Cultural

ÏÏÏ

As Muslims prepare for the month of Ramadan, an Islamic cleric has charged faith adherents to lead a life of righteousness.

The Chief Imam of the Lagos State University (LASU) Mosque, Dr. Moshood Salisu, gave the charge during his Jumaát sermon on Friday.

He said that righteousness, in the sight of Allah, was more than just observing the five pil-

Relationship With Farming Communities: Option for Peace,’ at the two-day security summit organised by the Nigeria Police Force and the Leadership Newspapers.

He also called on all States and Local Governments across the federation to regulate the activities of the herdsmen to end the clashes.

The don said the states

should also produce and legislate rearing of animals as professional activities, while grazing by minors and movement of cattle in the night should be banned.

Sharubutu called for the deployment of massive security personnel to the local government and rural areas so as to be able to promptly respond to crisis.

He decried a situation where personnel of the Police, Army and the NSCDC were concentrated in the cities, asking “who is going to protect our riches in the bushes.’’

Sharubutu also called for the involvement of traditional rulers in resolving the recurring farmers/herdsmen clashes and other crisis in the rural areas, saying that they

had roles to play.

On his part, Prof. Armstrong Adejo of the Benue State University, called for continuous dialogue between the farmers and herdsmen to resolve the crisis.

Adejo also suggested a collaboration between the security agencies and traditional institutions in order to end the crisis.

Ramadan: Cleric tasks Muslims to lead life of righteousness lars of Islam.

“The five pillars of Islam, namely – faith, five daily prayers; zakat (charity), fasting and pilgrimage – are basic for all Muslims.

“But the concept of righteousness extends beyond those pillars.

“It equally has to do with good manners and consciousness of

Allah,” he said.

Salisu, also a lecturer in the Department of Religious and Peace Studies at LASU, urged Muslims to increase their acts of righteousness and make conscious effort to shun sin.

“Allah enjoins Muslims to keep their duties to him.

“We are encouraged to con-

verge to promote righteousness and discouraged to converge to promote sin or revolt,’’ he said.

The Chief Imam enjoined Muslims to make adequate spiritual and psychological preparation for fasting during month of Ramadan.

“In about a fortnight from now, the Ramadan fast will commence.

“Muslims should make adequate preparation for the month, and be prepared to increase their acts of worship and righteousness.

“Ramadan is a good opportunity to win and increase favours of Allah and Muslims are encouraged to approach the month with enthusiasm and great expectations,” he said.

5 News Pry. sch teacher divorces husband over “unattractive manhood” Nosa Akenzua, Asaba

ÏÏÏIn a mid-dram, a primary

school teacher in one of the public primary schools in Asaba, the Delta state capital, (name withheld), has asked an Asaba Magistrate Court to separate her and her husband over what she described as “unattractive penis” during their sexual intercourse.

In a no-bare revelation before the court, the school teacher, who broke down in tears in the court room said, “what pains me most is the way and manner my husband beats me when he cannot satisfy me.

Each time he make love to me, it is all full of regrets,” adding that she had been married to the husband for over six years ago without a child.

“I am tired and sick of this man your worship, he cannot perform as a man, instead he will be forming quarrels where he will be using me as a punching bag to cover up his weakness. The penis is very small and we have visited several doctors who said it was normal,” she fumed during cross-examination by the husband’s lawyer, Barr. Austine Ekeroweh.

But her husband (name withheld) a geologist, in a swift response, stirred up onlookers in the court when he fired: “she is not neat and I have complained severally and she had been adamant. She sleeps like log of wood and not romantic, your worship, I’m also tired, please let her go for me to have my rest.”

For close to 40 minutes, the court stood in load ovation and laughter from onlookers, including the Magistrate, Mr. Enemor, who after carefully listening to both parties, rules that the marriage be dissolved since the couple insisted with cogent reasons and without a child yet, while the man was asked to pay N20, 000 cost of the woman’s property he damaged during their quarrels.

Investigation revealed that over six marriages were in January 2017 dissolved at various magistrate courts in Asaba for alleged important and other related act on the part of the men, while others were on account of alleged witchcraft.

Those who spoke to our reporter outside the court on condition of anonymity condemned the housewife outburst over the alleged unattractive penis, saying that she was never ready for marriage.

News 6

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Buhari holistically transforming Nigeria - Onu ÏÏÏ 1Ə Ƒƍ Ɠ Ə ƍ ƋƈƐƈƅƈ ƈ Ɛ ƌƈ ƏƆƍƏƆ Ɔ Ɛƈ Ƈ ƅƐ ^L ô Ɔ ƋƐ Minister of Science and Technology, Ogbonnaya Onu, says President Muhammadu Buhari is holistically transforming Nigeria.

The minister told journalists in Zaria, Kaduna State that Nigeria has so many things to be happy about since the coming to power of the Buhari administration.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the minister was in Zaria to inaugurate a chemical laboratory at the National Research Institute for Chemical Technology (NARICT) and a plant for the production of high grade precipitated calcium carbonate and caustic soda.

“We have so many things to be happy with and to say yes that our country is on the move again.

“Yes, of course, we are on the move, we really want to transform Nigeria and we are very hopeful that by the grace of God we will transform our country,” Onu said.

He, however, tasked Nigerians on collective efforts towards the transformation drive.

“The problem of transforming the economy is something that will involve all Nigerians, so we need to work together.

“It is not just the research institutes that will do it alone, we need the industries too.

“Here we have the industry coming to assist research and developmental works of the nation, knowing that in the end, they will be the primary beneficiaries.

“The output will be of great interest and benefit to the nation’s industrialisation programme and all Nigerians,” he noted.

Also in an interview, the NARICT Acting Director-General, Prof. Mohammed Yakubu said the

projects inaugurated by the minister would add value to the quest for Nigeria’s industrialisation.

He appreciated the support of NOTAP, PZ and RMRDC for their contributions to the success of the research projects.

Meanwhile, the Buhari Youth Organisation, Lagos Chapter, on Friday, cautioned politicians against misrepresenting facts on the state of health of President Muhammadu Buhari in the interest of the nation.

The group made the plea in a statement jointly signed by Mr. AbdulWaheed Odunuga, the State Coordinator, and Mr. Adekunle

Aderibigbe, the General Secretary.

The statement said: “The President’s state of health should not be used to incite negative reactions that will debar Nigerians from going about doing their businesses in any part of the country.

“The president’s health should not be used to unsettle the peace we currently enjoy as we also pray that God should restore his health and strength to complete all the good work he has started.”

It also called on the Federal Government to sanction individuals or groups trying to use issues surrounding the current state of

health of the president to destabilise the nation.

“Speculations about the president’s health arouse various negativities in business and political activities in the country, such false information may cripple the economy and heighten instabilities.

“Some individuals capitalise on such speculations to issue various articles to unsettle the peaceful coexistence of multiethnic society with unfounded contents.

“Such rumours are widely spread on the internet and social media to create brouhaha triggering various differed emotions.

Reps threatens to arrest Shell chief, others for shunning summons Henry Omunu, Abuja

ÏÏÏ The

Policemen disembark from a chopper, during a security exercise on terrorism in Abuja... on Thursday.

Why Ikpeazu remains Abia Gov - Supreme Court

Continued from page 1

Justice Onneghen said the incident would be investigated and those culpable would be sanctioned.

He warned politicians to allow the judiciary to do its job without interference, as he said there were attempts by them to use court officials to get to know Justices of the Supreme Court that would prepare the lead judgment and what the court’s decision would be.

Delivering judgment on Friday in three separate suits filed against Ikpeazu by Samson Ogah and Friday Nwosu, the Supreme Court dismissed the applications on grounds that the suits lacked merit.

In the lead judgment written by a Justice of Supreme Court (JSC), Justice Musa Datijo Mohamed, and read by Justice Ejembi Eko, the apex court held that the appellants failed to prove his allegation

“As Nigerians, we should not condone such acts any longer in order for us to sustain our unity as a sovereign state where peace and justice reign.

“People should be held responsible for damages caused due to their wrongful acts,” the statement said.

It added that the government came in when Niger-Delta militants were busy destroying properties that they partly own.

The statement commended the government’s courage to fight corruption, provide security and ensure better living conditions for everyone resident in the country.

that the tax clearance of the governor was forged.

According to the apex court , tax of civil servants are normally deducted from source and being a civil servant at the time, Ikpeazu’s tax was deducted at source, insisting that if there are any irregularities, it is not the governor that should be held responsible.

The court further awarded a cost of N250, 000 in favour of Ikpeazu and the PDP. The fierce legal battle to unseat Governor Ikpeazu started after the verdict of the Court of Appeal in Abuja which in 2016 set aside the judgment by Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court in Abuja which removed Governor Ikpeazu from office.

The appellate court had in a unanimous judgment vacated the June 27, 2016 judgment of Justice Abang and held that the trial judge erred in law and that the judgment occasioned a miscar-

riage of justice against Ikpeazu.

A Justice of the Court of Appeal (JCA), Justice Helen Ogunwumiju, who delivered the lead judgment of the appellate court, held that Justice Abang “committed a grave violence against one of the pillars of Justice” relating to fair hearing.

Justice Ogunwumiju further held that Abang placed the law on its head when it directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to issue fresh Certificate of Return to Ogah.

Upholding Ikpeazu’s appeal, the Court of Appeal also awarded N100, 000 cost against Ogah and resolved all the five issues raised by the appellant in favour of Ikpeazu.

Justice Abang had in his judgments delivered on June 27, 2016 ordered the removal of Ikpeazu for allegedly disclosing false information in relation to his tax clearance details in his INEC

form nominating him as the candidate of the PDP during 2015 governorship election in the state.

Justice Abang had also in the said judgment, directed that the governor’s rival, Ogah, who was the first runner-up in the primary that produced Ikpeazu, should be the candidate of the PDP to take over the reins of government in the state.

The judge also added that Ikpeazu was not qualified to be PDP’s candidate, having disclosed false information to INEC in violation of his party’s Article 14(a) of the PDP Electoral Guidelines and Section 31 of the Electoral Act. But dissatisfied with the judgment, Ikpeazu approached the Court of Appeal, asking it to set aside Justice Abang’s judgment which removed him from the Abia State Government House.

The Supreme Court had, however, in its judgment delivered on Continued on page 12

House of Representatives ad hoc committee investigating the planned relocation of oil majors from Rivers State has threatened to subpoena the Managing Director of Shell Development Company (SPDC), Mr. Osagie Okunbo and the chief executives of other operators in the oil industry for failing to honour the summons extended to them to appear before the committee over the planned relocation from the Niger Delta by oil companies.

Chairman of the ad hoc committee, Rep. Ibrahim Isiaka (APC/ Ogun), issued the threat in Abuja, on Friday, when the chief executives of foreign oil firms shunned a meeting convened by the House committee.

Rep. Isiaka informed reporters that the committee was giving the affected chief executives another chance to appear before it, otherwise they risk being slammed with a warrant of arrest.

The lawmaker expressed displeasure that the oil chiefs invited were deliberately undermining the committee’s authority as enshrined in the constitution to summon anyone, no matter how highly placed to appear before it.

Specifically, he condemned the attitude of Mr. Okunbo and other stakeholders to appear before the committee in an otherwise reconciliatory meeting planned to get to the bottom of SPDC’ s planned relocation programme.

He declared that on April 4 and 10 as well as May 5, the managing director of Shell was officially summoned to appear before the committee, adding that on the three occasions he shunned the committee’s summons.

Daily Times Nigeria d ƐƑƏƗ ƕè L ƕ ơƢè ƾƠơƣ

Alleged N550m bribe: Court grants ex-FCT minister N500m bail Andrew Orolua, Abuja

ÏÏÏ A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) sitting in Gudu district, Abuja, on Friday, admitted a former Minister of the FCT, Senator Bala Mohammed, to bail in the sum of N500 million and two sureties in the like sum.

One of the two sureties, according to the court, must be a senator, while the other, a Director in the federal civil service.

In addition, all the sureties must have landed property in the Federal Capital Territory with a Certificate of Occupancy as well as evidence of payment of tax in the last three years.

On the part of the former Minister, he is to deposit his international passport with registrar of this court.

Justice Abubakar Talba, who granted the bail application in his ruling, asked both the prosecution and defence counsel to agree on the bail conditions.

This, the judge explained, was to strike a balance in the light of their different positions.

Justice Talba said: ‘It is trite that no matter the gravity of the offences, an accused person is assumed innocence until proven guilty under our laws.

“Bail is constitutional right and the purpose is not to set an accused person free but to grant him liberty to enable attend trial.

‘Although the prosecution has urged the court to consider the gravity of the offence as well as the issues raised in the counter affidavit. It is my view that such issues will be considered in the hearing of the

substantive matter.

“I am satisfied that the applicant has placed sufficient materials to warrant court to exercise its discretion in his favour.”

“Accordingly, his application is hereby granted.

However, the terms of conditions for his bail should be negotiated between the prosecution and defence.

“This is in order to strike a balance of the case because the prosecution had argued that if the court is mindful to grant bail, it should come with some stringent conditions while on the other hand, the defence counsel urged that the bail should be on selfrecognizance.”

Thereafter, the court stood down for 30 minutes to allow the prosecution and defence counsel to agree on a workable bail terms.

Mr. Johnson Ojogbane,

Lƈ ƈ ƐƆƏ Ƈ 9 Ƈ Əƌ Ɛƈ Ɨ ƑƋƐƑƏƆè Ƌ Ɖƈ G ƈ L ƌƌƆƗ æƏçè ƓƈƐ Ɛ Ɔ d ƑƐ ƇƏƈƅ 6ƈ ƌƌƈ ƈ ƆƏ Ɛ Mƈ ƆƏƈ è GƑƋƑ G Ƒƈ L Ƒ ƈè ƗƑƏƈ ƅ ƑƏƐƆ ƕ ƒƈ ƈƐ Ɛ Ɛ Ɔ Lƈ ƈ ƐƆƏ ƈ ƄƑƉ Č 0ƏƈƗ ƕê

leading the prosecution team and Chief Chris Uche (SAN) for the defendant, met and agreed on the above stated bail conditions.

Justice Talba, who resumed shortly after that, adopted the bail conditions as the ruling of the court.

He further adjourned trial to July 4, 2017.

Before he was granted bail, the former minister, who was arraigned on a six- count charge, was remanded in Kuje prison custody pending the ruling on his bail PPP on Friday.

The former Minister, who pleaded not guilty to all the charges, described his trial as politically motivated.

In moving the bail application, Bala’s counsel, Chief Uche urged the court to release his client on bail pending his trial.

The bail application was

the devastating effects of domestic violence across the country, some Nigerian celebrities have taken to their social media platform to speak out against the atrocity.

Oladapo Daniel Oyebanjo popularly called D’banj on his twitter handle @iamdbanj advised victims not to be in denial or be deceived by such men that hitting them was normal.

“Don’t be deceived. Anyone who is telling you ‘men hit, its normal’ is either in

denial or guilty. NO Excuse LEAVE!!!!!! God help us all.

“Love hath no Violence…

If he hits you, he is not a man. He is a Beast. RUN! Stay safe!

“Give yourselves all the nomenclature you want.

Wrong is wrong. When the head is cut off, the ears go with it. Be Wise. God Bless.

I’m D’Banj,’’ he said.

Peter Okoye of Psquare was not left out of the reaction against violence women.

He challenged any man that has the intention to beat a woman to start with

him (Peter).

He took to his twitter handle @peterPsquare to buttress his point, “But seriously some MEN can fall hand. Next time if u want to beat or hit a Woman. Pls try me…’’

However, his twin brother, Paul said that men also suffered violence adding that it was better for a partner to leave than stay in a violence relationship.

He reacted on his social media handle @ rudeboypsquare,“I know many men that are going through domestic vio-

was later withdrawn by the EFCC. The defence lawyer further submitted that his client has a good defence to the charge as he did not commit any offences charged or whatsoever, and he is prepared to stand trial and offer his defences to the allegations, which he strongly believes are politically motivated.

He disclosed that the former minister has a very health condition with a long history of lung collapse and disorder and his health situation was seriously deteriorated while in custody of the EFCC. He averred in his supporting affidavit that any further detention pending trial will further worsen the already deteriorated health condition of the former minister as is currently under observations by a United Kingdom Hospital.

9 Ɨ Ƒ ƐƆƏô ƓƆƗƗƈ ë 26 private jets, 4 police, Air Force aircraft land in Minna C Ɛ è d Ə Ɗƈè jƈ ƑƄƑè Ɛ ƆƏ Ə ƅƆ ƆƒƆ Ɛ Tony Amokeodo with agency report

ÏÏÏ In what can be described as the celebration of class and the gathering of who is who in Nigeria, 26 private jets, four police and air force aircraft on Friday landed in Minna, the Niger State capital, for the wedding of former President Ibrahim Babangida’s daugh-

D’banj, PSquare take stand against women abuse ÏÏÏ As most women face

brought under section 35(1) & (4) and 36 (5) and (6) of the 1999 constitution and section 158, 162, 163 & 165 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015.

Uche, who submitted that the alleged offences are bailable, narrated that his client had earlier been arrested, detained and investigated by the EFCC in connection with the account of his tenure as minister of the FCT, in respect of unsubstantiated allegations of conspiracy, abuse of office and money laundering, and had been in its custody between October 24, 2016 and December 9, 2016.

He further told the court that a High Court of the FCT had in November 29, 2016 released the former Minister on bail and he was subsequently arraigned before this same court on five court charge, which

7 News

lence….not only women… so guys!! Move on to the next one..Men don’t run, we move.’’

NAN reports that the condemnation comes after series of media reports about violence against women involving celebrities like Mercy Aigbe and Tonto Dikeh.

Some female celebrities also alleged to suffered domestic violence includes Monalisa Chinda, Fathia Balogun, and Foluke Daramola.

Others are Muma Gee, Tiwa Savage and Chika Ike.

ter.

The aircraft had brought the various dignitaries who attended the historic wedding of Halima, last daughter of Babangida, who married a businessman, Auwal Abdullai, the Sarkin Sudan of Gombe.

Some of the important personalities at the event were former President Goodluck Jonathan, his wife; Namadi Sambo, former vice-president; Senate President Bukola Saraki; Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC); a business mogul and richest person in Africa, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, former Secretary of the Government of the Federation, Chief Anyim Pius Anyim and many state governors.

Others who graced the event were many former governors like Ahmed Makarfi (Kaduna), Attahiru Barfarawa (Sokoto), Shinkafi Mamuda (Zamfara), Isah Yuguda

(Bauchi) and Sule Lamido (Jigawa). Ibrahim Shema (Katsina), Abubakar Dakingari (Kebbi), Aliyu Wammako (Sokoto) and Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano) were also there.

The former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Idris Kutigi, Ahmed Yayale, former head of service, Senator Ben Obi, Ibrahim Haruna, chairman, IBB Golf Club and Sani Zangon Daura were in attendance.

Also in attendance were former ministers, serving and former senators, and many others.

According to NAN, Abdullahi (the bridegroom) paid a bride price of N500,000 and 10 cows.

A former minister of information during the administration of former President Shehu Shagari, Garba Wushishi, handed over Halima to Abdullahi, while Gombe State Governor, Ibrahim Dankwanbo, received the bride on behalf of the groom.

News 8

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

FG considers capacity to create jobs as basis for incentives Mathew Dadiya, Abuja

ÎÎÎThe

federal government has said that it is committed to its youth empowerment programmes and is considering adopting capacity to create jobs as one of the criteria for offering government contracts and assistance.

Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, who gave the indication at a forum with members of the 25th Regular Course on Policy, Strategy and Leadership of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) in Abuja, said the Federal Government views the unemployment situation in the country with great concern and has made job creation one of the major objectives of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP).

The minister said the Plan aims to create jobs by developing labour-intensive sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, housing and construction and is also launching a number of public works programmes as well as encouraging private-sector participation in

the economy.

Government, he said, is developing infrastructure in sectors with the capacity to create demand for labour and will sustain the N-Power programmes as well as continue to support small scale enterprises to maximize their potential for job creation.

According to him, there are other policies in place to encourage job creation including apprenticeship programme, supporting and patronizing Made in Nigeria Initiative to encourage local manufacturing.

To further give impetus to the drive, he said government will give necessary support to institutions that focus on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics as a veritable foundation for building a knowledge-based economy.

He pointed out that the bulk of the initiatives under job creation will prioritize youth as beneficiaries and this is being pursued through direct job creation by the Federal Government and those created in the informal and formal sectors by the private sector, and skill-building programmes.

Tor Tiv says ranching is panacea to farmers, herdsmen clashes ÎÎÎThe

Tor Tiv, Prof.

James Ayatse, said establishment of ranches was the only solution to the recurring clashes between Farmers and Herdsmen in the country.

Ayatse said this on Friday in Abuja at a two-day National Security Summit.

He said that regulating the movement of the herdsmen would be difficult, adding that it was only practicable on paper.

Ayatse said that the country stood to benefit from the introduction of ranches as jobs would be created for Nigerians.

He said that ranching would not stop free movement of herdsmen especially if they were passing through a particular state.

“If you allow free movement without control, you put everybody at risk and this is what we are seeing in Benue, ranching is part of the control,“he said.

The Tor Tiv said that creating ranches did not go against the ECOWAS Treaty of free movement of persons in the sub-

region as it was being thought.

He said that a committee had been constituted in conjunction with the police in his domain, to identify the “bad eggs” and hand them over to the police.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Benue House of Assembly had recently passed a Bill prohibiting open grazing and allowing the establishment of ranches in the state.

The bill is entitled:“Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law, 2017’’.

The bill stipulates that anybody who engages in open nomadic livestock herding or grazing in the state, outside the authorised ranches, shall be guilty of an offence and shall on conviction, be liable to five years imprisonment or N1 million fine or both.

On criminality in the country, Ayatse blamed unscrupulous politicians for breeding thugs and abandoning them after elections.

Cross-section of winners, Sorochukwu Nwefuru from Government Technical College, Abakaliki; Miss Igwe Amarachi from Government Technical College Agba; Miss Ikechukwu Mary from Uburu Secondary School; and Ori Catherine from Government Technical College Agba, during the award of University scholarship to them by the Governor of Ebonyi State, Engr. David Umahi, for their outstanding performance in Mathematics and Oral Mental Arithmetic competition in Abakaliki…on Friday.

My husband threatens to make me mad, wife alleges Titilope Joseph

Ï Ɗ ƅ ƑƏƐ Ɛ Ɔƍ Ə ƐƆ Ɛ Ɔƌ

ÎÎÎ

make her run mad.

“Please, separate me from this man. I want to live to take care of my children with my sanity intact,” she pleaded.

The petitioner who informed the court that she does not love her husband any more also alleged that he is very deceptive.

“He pretended and lie to me when we started the relationship and my mother warned me severely against getting married to him.

“I married him because I thought we were in love but he has questionable characters and he is not responsible.

I paid for my discharge fee after I had my first child

A caterer, Nike Adegboyega, has dragged her estranged husband before a Customary Court in Lagos over threats to life with charms, and alleged battery.

Nike, a mother of two who resides in Ogba, Lagos on Thursday, begged the court to dissolve the 8-yearold union between her and her husband, Moshood, because, she alleged, he is irresponsible and troublesome.

She told the court that she had sought the court’s help over the dissolution because she is not safe with her husband who she accused of threatening to

through ceasarian section.

When he could not afford the fee, he had to charter a tricycle to take me to the hospital with drip in my arm to withdraw money from my account.

“He beat me often and he has once battered me over a bag of pure water which I insisted I will not buy. They know us at Area G police station because I had reported him there on several occasions.

He does not drop feeding allowance for me and the kids, I single-handedly takes care of the family because I work as the head of the caterering in a hospital.

“My husband sometimes displays money before me

and he will tell it to my face that he was going to a brothel to sleep with a prostitute.

“I ran away from the house when he threatened to make me go mad and I was advised to leave his house before he make do with his threat.

I have to break into the house because immediately I left, he changed the locks.

“Please dissolve the union between us because he keeps so many charms at home and I don’t know what he is doing with them”, Nike begs.

The husband, Moshood Adegboyega, a commercial bus driver, denied the allegations, pleading with court not to dissolve the union.

Israeli govt to award scholarships to over 100 Nigerian IDP kids ÎÎÎThe State of

Israel is planning to award scholarship to over 100 children among the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) from Adamawa, Israeli Ambassador, Mr Guy Feldman said on Friday.

Feldman disclosed this during a courtesy visit to the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC), Headquarters in Abuja.

The Ambassador said that the embassy delegation met with the Gov. Bindo Jibrilla of Adamawa and discussed the area of agricultural projects and how to invest in the children.

He noted that the embassy went all the way to observe the Israeli’s in-

dependence celebrations and organised a football league among the IDP kids.

“We celebrated our independence day but not as usual.

“We cancelled the celebration and took all the funds and organised a football league in Adamawa with kids from the IDP camps.

“We are going to send hundreds of kids to school with scholarship. We talked about agriculture projects and get to the attention of the kids because they deserve a future.

“We should all invest in them,” Feldman said.

In his remark, Mr Gideon Behar, Special Envoy for Africa, Israeli Government, said that the relationship between Is-

rael and Nigeria needs to be strengthened so that both countries would gain from each other.

He also said that there are a lot to be done in the areas of agriculture, food security, water, education, health and also economic development of the country.

“We really want to strengthen the relationship between Nigeria and Israel.

“We think there is a lot to be done in the fields of agriculture, food security, water, education, health and also economic development.

“We are fully aware of the big challenges of Nigeria; we really love to be of assistance in these challenges,’’ he said.

Behar advised that there

should be a dialogue to find a mechanism to assure safety of pilgrims to and from the Holy Land.

He promised to bring the same company from Israel that was working on their data to also come and work with the commission so that there can be a free exchange of information.

Reponding, Rev. Tor Uja, Executive Secretary, NCPC, urged the embassy for visa procurement process as the commission was still having some challenges securing visas for intending pilgrims.

“We still request for assistance in our visa procurement process, we are still having a lot of difficulties; sometimes there are visa rejections that do not have explanations.

Politics

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May13, 2017

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9

Patrick Okohue The event was meant to be for the upper class members of the society and for royalty and the turn out was not disappointing, the attendance list shows that it was not an all comers event.

It was a public lecture, the first in the series by the Oba (Dr) Sikiru Adetona Professorial Chair of Governance, department of Political Science, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye and the guest lecturer who is also the occupier of the chair, Prof Ayo Olukotun, was not blunt, firing on all cylinders.

The venue was Adeola Odutola Hall, Ijebu Ode, Ogun State and it was filled to capacity with men and women who were gathered to listen to the theme of the lecture, ‘Governance and the Media in an Emergent Democracy: A Study of the Role, Record and Changing Profile of the Nigerian Media 1999 – 2017’.

The event which was part of activities to mark the birthday of the Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba (Dr) Sikiru Adetona, also witnessed fund raising to solicit funds to keep the sponsorship of the chair worth N500million.

To kick-start the event, chairman of the Board of Trustees of the chair, Olatunji Ayanlaja, urged the people to continue to assist them in making the dreams and desires of the sponsor a reality.

Prof Olukotun, a professor of political communication and former chairman of the Editorial Board of the defunct Nigerian Compass, noted that the Nigerian media constitute an important plank of Nigeria’s democracy.

“Undoubtedly, the Nigerian media, which are the largest and most vibrant in Africa, and regarded as the epicenter of Nigerian civil society, constitute an important plank of our democracy.

This is particularly so in the area of accountability of elected officials where they have been in the vanguard of reform causes.”

He was however quick to add that the role of reformer of the society played by the media came at a cost, “needless to say that the advocacy and reform-oriented role of the quality media have been hard-earned. For example, journalists continue to suffer intimidation from state officials both before and after the signing into law on May 28, 2011 of a Freedom of Information Act after ten years of struggle.

“There are the peremptory arrests, prosecution and persecution of critical journalists, as well as the seizure of copies of independent newspapers such as occurred in June 2014 when the Nigerian army carried out searches leading to confiscation of copies of Leadership, The Nation, Daily Trust and The Punch. Although justified on security grounds, a typical opinion is that of ‘Reporters without Borders’, which argued that the action obstructs the Nigeria’s public right to information.”

“Such breaches of press freedom were replicated throughout the period under study. This is further illustrated by the forcible closure of Weekly Insider in September 2004 and arrest of its key staff, the shutdown of Freedom Radio in Kano in 2006, Channels Television in September 2008 and detention of its editors for 78 hours.

“There was also, in November 2013, the inability of Premium Times, a prominent online news site to post links to Facebook pages from its website. This was believed by its editors, to have been engineered by state security using individuals who complained that the links were ‘abusive’.

“We can add to these the arrest in January, 2017 of Dapo Olorunyomi, publisher of Premium Times and one of his editors over a critical report on the Chief of Army Staff, General Tukur Buratai.”

He noted that despite the efforts of the media to extend the frontiers of democracy, that it is contradicted by factors such as the incorporation of prominent journalists into an elaborate, spoils sharing arrangement through seductive

L-R: Sen. Kaka, former Deputy Governor Ogun State; Pastor Ighodalo; Oba Akiolu; Oba (Dr) Adetona, and his Olori Oluwakemi, and Mr Ayanlaja (SAN), former Governor Ogun State Otunba Gbenga Daniel at the event

Media’s role in developing Nigeria’s democracy, a don’s perspective appointments.

“Shining as the role and the record of the media have been, the story contains contradictions and rough patches. Hence, as mentioned previously, the effort of the media in extending the frontiers of democracy is contradicted by factors such as the incorporation of prominent journalists into an elaborate, spoils sharing arrangement through seductive appointments.

“One of the most prominent examples is Dr. Reuben Abati, a widely respected columnist of The Guardian, who was appointed as President Goodluck Jonathan’s Special Adviser on Media and Communication. Before Abati, the Late President Umaru Yar’adua appointed Mr. Olusegun Adeniyi, former editor of ThisDay to serve in the same capacity under his government; while President Muhammadu Buhari who took office on May 29, 2015, appointed the respected Femi Adesina, former President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors to a similar position.

“This pattern is replicated around the states in the country, and is believed by some to be one of the reasons why the media have lost their bite, and for the most part failed to carry out investigative reporting.

“More insidiously is corruption of journalists, which is arguably on the increase because of the practice whereby employers owe their workers several months of salaries, expecting them to fend for themselves.

“A corollary trend which may have heightened corruption in the media is the collapse of several newspapers, usually preceded by prolonged defaults on workers’ salaries.”

While chronicling a list of Nigerian newspapers which have closed shop in the last few years due largely to the harsh economic climate where they operate and also perhaps due to the influx of the online media, Olukotun argued that the harsh economy made it difficult for many newspapers to get involved in investigative journalism without government support.

According to him, having no support from government, most of the media houses are

forced to depend on advertisers who in turn try to influence media content because of the advertising money they are bring into the business.

He added that those media houses that tried to do journalism the way it should be done have ended up closing shop, giving example of Next newspaper.

“In this respect, the demise of Next newspaper which excitingly deepened accountability through investigative journalism is typical of the difficulties faced by independent newspapers seeking to make a mark. Adaobi Nwaobani captures this dimension of the problem when she wrote that: “But revenue soon began to dry up. In Nigeria, established newspapers are paid to keep big stories off the front page. Adverts are supposed to buy silence. Often, Next would run a story in its popular weekend edition, only for editors to arrive at the office on Monday to meet an aggregated marketing team- certain big advertisers had terminated their business that morning.

After one revelation about corruption in the oil trade, scores of advertisers instantly pulled out.

“The point being made here is that advertisers exercise indirect veto on editorial content by sanctioning independent private media, which set out to be fearless and daring. Considering that the state is the biggest advertiser, it has often used this power to skew the media playing field, in favour of state-owned electronic media as well as compliant and complacent, private media.”

While bemoaning the rate newspapers go off newsstand, Prof Olukotun said a varied range of reasons is to blame, including cost of doing business, as he said survival instinct has made many newspapers to thread softly so they could remain afloat. He however added that even electronic media are not left of the struggle for survival.

He quoted Mr. Steve Ojo, President of Galaxy television, an independent medium, who while drawing attention to this problem argued that “Government has not supported the industry; the infrastructural facilities that would ensure

that the industry thrives are not there. For example- we supply our own power, water and every other infrastructure we need. Under any circumstance, anywhere else in the world, the government provides all these facilities. In Nigeria the reverse is the case.”

He went further to point out that the craving to have newspapers or media to fight the cause of a particular region has also not helped the situation, “Noticeable too, is what may be called the return of the North to Nigeria’s discourse map because of the rebirth of the Northern media in the years understudy.

“In an ethnically divided country, and given Adebanwi’s jibe that Nigeria lacks a national media, but instead has an Arewa media, Ngbati media and Nkenga media, this rebirth is crucial.

“As backdrop to this development, it should be noted that the former governor of Nasarawa State, Dr. Abdulihi Adamu, lamented the virtual absence of a Northern media from the nation. Entitled “Where is the Northern Press?”

Adamu, in a lecture to the Arewa Media Group elaborated: “Is there something, I wonder that makes it impossible for newspapers to survive in this part of the country? Perhaps, the answer lies in the stubborn refusal to appreciate the role the news media play in the development of societies and in the contest for power, particularly in a democracy. The balance of power or the balance of terror is a stabilising factor in every society. I do not argue for a press war. I argue for freedom from other people’s mass media in order that we may be heard.

“At the same time as Adamu made these remarks, the New Nigerian had become comatose; it however, did not suspend publication until February 2012. What is of interest is the recent establishment and relative profitability of a clutch of newspapers based in Abuja such as Leadership, Daily Trust, People’s Daily, and Abuja Inquirer, among others.

In this list, easily the most successful are

CONTINUED ON PAGE 11

Politics 10

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13. 2017

Why passage of 2017 Budget was delayed – Hon. Ndukwe Hon. Ukole Ndukwe, member representing Arochukwu/Ohafia Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives has called on Nigerians to understand with the Legislature in the late passage of the 2017 Budget. He informed a team of journalists in Abuja that the reason for the delay in the passage of the Budget was due to the non approval of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework submitted by the Presidency due to unanswered questions by the Executive arm. He spoke on this and many other issues.

EMMANUEL IRIOGBE was there.

What do you have to say concerning President Muhammadu Buhari’s health, do you think he should step down?

Concerning the health of the President, I can clearly tell you that we are in a constitutional democracy, It is stated clearly that another can represent him, so I don’t quite agree that there is a lacuna in the development of the economy, because the Vice President has been carrying on well. The President has not appeared on three consecutive occasions at the Federal Executive Council meetings, there may be other reasons as to why he did not show up, so I think he has his own right as a human being.

Our President as we all know stands for anti corruption in the country and that is very clear and if his health is affecting him, as a President, he knows what to do, we should also be aware that age is a factor, we don’t expect him to perform like he would have done in his youth, so I believe Nigerians should be patient with him, he is a mortal and a human being like any of us, anything can happen to anyone, whether as a President or not, so I don’t believe that the country is drifting. The vice President has been performing well on behalf of the President, that is why both of them were elected at the same time and that is why one person is suppose to stand in for the other when the need arises. It is a constitutional matter.

We are in a democracy, people are expected to voice out their opinion and I don’t think people’s opinion is the position of the President, he can decide to come out and say what he knows, so I urge Nigerians to wait for him to make whatever pronouncement he wants to make, we should not put words in his mouth because we are in a constitutional democracy and our constitution must be respected and upheld.

Would you agree with those that proclaim that we are out of recession in the country?

By what I get from the Federal Government’s statement, oil prices have increased, people keep mixing these issues up. We have observed that the production of oil has gone up to 2 million barrels per day and oil price is not what we met in 2015 and 2016, if that is what they mean by saying we are out of recession, I don’t think so, because the indices are still the same, the exchange rate has not improved, government itself devalued naira to N305, the prices of things are going up and money has not translated to the spending power, so the economy too has not been stimulated, so I don’t really agree with the term that we are out of recession, the economy we have now is not strong enough, our naira is not always stable and it affects our productivity and our spending power have not increased.

Look at the agitation of labour, minimum wage has not improved so it’s something I don’t agree with, that we are out of recession.

How do you view the chances of your party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in the 2019 general elections es-

Hon. Ndukwe

pecially with the crisis facing it?

Without fear of any contradiction, PDP is stronger than APC and even APC knows that. The politically active politicians in APC today are mostly PDP, most of the governors were once PDP, it is only President Buhari that has no PDP blood in his vain so that is why I say that PDP is still a very strong and vibrant party.

The opposition we see in PDP today is by the government itself, the government is sponsoring the crisis in PDP because we have seen that when a court of competent jurisdiction gives a verdict, the government chooses which one to obey, the Inspector General (IG) of Police is even a strong opposition to the PDP, they choose the law to obey.

The government itself is afraid of PDP because the party is still a strong and formidable party. Take a look at the issue of Sheriff and Makarfi, the owners of the party took a decision and brought you in, the same people said we don’t want to extend your tenure then you decide to fight the party, is an individual greater than constituted authority of the party? These are issues we should consider. Somebody somewhere is fighting the

The Medium Term Expenditure Framework was brought without clear cut economic parameters we also said no, this is not just about passing the budget; we can’t pass the budget without the MTEF. We should also ask questions like what is the performance of the 2016 budget that was passed. Nigerians don’t ask questions. Have we implemented it to a good point? Section 83 of the constitution solves whatever fear Nigerians are worried about, the President knows what to do, we don’t garbage in and out in the National Assembly, and we have professionals here.

party and I know PDP will bounce back.

The judiciary will do the right thing I believe because Nigeria is headed for a one party system, which is not good for any democracy. Other political parties are also there, they are the minority in the minority, while PDP is the majority in a minority situation. We are not retarded as a political party by anybody as a party, no matter the referees.

We are talking about whistle blowing in corruption, look at the killings in Southern Kaduna, why can’t they even bring lines men that can raise flags.

I was so disappointed when listening to the commissioner of police who said these attackers comes at night, that means all of us are at a very high risk, which means police go to sleep at night so then what is the job of a security personnel, so government should have that will power to bring lines men to raise flag for the police when these attackers come at night.

These are issues when looked at is beyond imagination, governance should be about politics, after elections, the next thing should be governance. We should settle down and govern the people well; APC is still trying to find its feet in terms of governance. Whoever can deliver must belong to a political party, but APC should look for good hands that can assist them out of our challenges.

In your opinion has the APC fulfilled its promise to Nigerians on security?

It terms of security, when we see all that is happening in the country, you now talk about what is the promise , there are certain areas they have done well which I will commend

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13 , 2017

11 Politics

Media’s role in developing Nigeria’s democracy, a don’s perspective CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

Leadership, founded in 2004 by Sam Nda Isaiah, most recently, a Presidential candidate on the platform of the All Progressives Congress in the 2015 election; as well as the Trust group of publications which includes, Weekly Trust, Daily Trust, Sunday Trust and the Hausa language Aminiyah.

“These independent newspapers appear to have broken the jinx of frequent collapse of newspapers in that part of the country. When you add to these, private television stations such as, Desnims, founded by Halifa Baba Ahmed, Gotell TV based in Yola, as well as the Kano based Radio Freedom owned by Bashir Dalbatu among others, one gets a sense of the bounce back of a Northern regional media.

“The consequence of this is that of an increasingly level playing field, with regards to the access of diverse ethnic groups to the media. In this same connection, the vacuum created by the eclipse of Champion newspapers, has been filled to a large extent by the newspaper chain of former governor of Abia State, Dr Orji Uzor Kalu. The chain include: the Sun, New Telegraph, and The Spectator. Although these are based in Lagos, they draw a substantial part of sales and advertising revenue from the SouthEast and the South-South.”

He also pointed out that, a good number of newspapers and electronic media are owned by politicians across the political spectrum, adding that “although to some extent, ownership of media by politicians tends to widen the discourse space, it carries nonetheless, the price tags of partisanship and censorship of journalists who work in these newspapers.”

He went further to point out that, study after study have confirmed the basic division of media in Nigeria into ethnic, regional and religious lines, “although it will be simplifying a complex problem to try to read opinions of newspapers or television stations from the identities of the writers or publishers. For, obviously, there are cross-cutting lines and cleavages, such as politics, which, for example, mandates presidential candidates to have support across the nation’s geo-polity.”

“That said, there is no running away from

Prof. Olukotun

the fact that despite the efforts of our media to build trans-ethnic identities and in some cases increase their market share across our federal geography, ethnicity, region and religion remain potent divisive issues.”

Another issue of critical concern in the media’s role in helping to develop democracy in Nigeria is the issue of corruption, adding that as “previously mentioned, as a contradiction to media reformism, is the issue of corruption which although, is a global problem, tends to be uniquely expressed in Nigeria, the media inclusive.”

He also pointed out several incidents of corrupt practices by journalist or even media owners to buttress his argument, but also pointed out “that there are several cases where journalists refused to take bribes, which were offered to stop investigative stories they were doing.

“One example is that of the award-winning

journalist and Enterprise Editor of the defunct Next newspaper, who has now moved on to be the Managing Editor of the online Premium Times, Mojeed, who broke several investigative stories of monumental corruption in the oil sector under the Jonathan administration narrated his experience, as follows: “We were offered bribes.

Some characters who portrayed themselves as agents of the minister and other persons named in the story wanted us to name our price for dropping the story. I was later told that my publisher was offered a huge sum in foreign currency bribe, which he rejected. Pressures were put on us through close friends, publicists and professional colleagues. Some officials of the NNPC frequently threatened me. When those didn’t work, the police and other security agents began to harass us.”

The don added that a few newspapers are now in the habit of putting a disclaimer notice to warn people not to offer bribe to their re[porters and to report anyone who demand such from them.

The Nigerian media, he said, mirror the ideological barrenness of the political class without transcending it. It would have been interesting if the media, as you have it in Western Europe for example, contain a few left leaning publications that focus more on what Oyovbaire described as: “The critical problems of social classes as class formation, increasing poverty and pauperization of the Nigerian social formation, the surge of mass unemployment of even graduates from tertiary institutions.”

“To be sure, it is not that our media do not sometimes raise these issues; it is simply that they do not make them their foci,” he added.

In a few words of exaltation which centers on the ‘Power of Giving’ Pastor Ituah Ighodalo told the audience which included former governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu, Mr M.A Gbadegesin, who represented the Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu,Semiu Okanlawan, who represented the Osun State governor, Rauf Aregbesola, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, Prof Jide Owoeye of the Lead City University, former Senators Olorunimbe Mamora and Gbenag Kaka among others that, some things are difficult in life.

He pointed out those things to include, hard work, discipline, prayer, fearing God, giving, noting that those things are difficult because the average man thinks of himself first.

While congratulating the monarch for his gesture of instituting the professorial chair, Ighodalo said he is doing the right thing and urge the people to emulate him, because no one takes anything out of this world “But giving is one of the most powerful things on earth.

“When you get to a certain age and level, you should plan for your future, your future here on earth and your future in the great beyond.

“It is what you do now that determines what happens to you tomorrow, what you are today is as a result of what you did yesterday ... many wasted yesterday , are spoiling today and will end up destroying tomorrow, unless they change or God is merciful.

“How do you plan for tomorrow?” He asked, “decide where you want to end up and walk towards it. Decide if you want to be remembered at all, and what you want to be remembered for.

“Most people want long life, but what are you living for? All these houses, cars, clothes, who will use them.

“Decide what you need to eat and drink and move around, decide what you want to give the children, sell the rest and give to the poor. No man will live forever, death is sure and giving is powerful. Die empty, give all that you have,” he counseled.

The event ended with a vote of thanks from the acting Vice Chancellor of the Olabisi Onabanjo University, the benefiting institution, Prof Ganiyu Olatunde.

‘Why passage of 2017 Budget was delayed’ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10 them for but overall, their performance in terms of security have not really yielded much result. They should step up because it is something they have sworn to uphold, the lives of people is our responsibility. As a federal lawmaker, we always give to them whatever they want as far as it relates to security so that they can deliver, we are not yet there but I believe we will overcome.

What is your take on money recovered so far by security agencies?

It is left to Nigerians to decide. This is a matter that the Vice President and his high powered delegation is handling. When you see matters like this arising, you begin to wonder where we are going. Looking at the Lagos money that was discovered, we saw that the money was wrapped with seal of 2016 meaning while he claimed that the money was released by former President Jonathan in 2014 for a particular operation, did Jonathan ask him to park the money in a particular house three years down the line, even when you are blowing whistle it should be something that should have been looked up, but we saw the key to the safe there on the safe.

You see there are some intelligent questions, were they meant to victimise some

persons? Last week, Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State said there was a plot to plant monies in his house and that he wants to come and stay in Abuja, just recently too, the Senate President raised the same issue, I mean, what do they intend to do, do they want to wipe out opposition? These are pointers to the fact that all is not well with that whistle blowing, it is targeted at some certain individuals and they should really tread with caution, whoever is doing that should tread with caution. Like I said, let us see what comes out of the Vice Presidents investigation. But you see they are being a judge in their own case, they should have allowed independent body to come into the issue.

In the case of the judiciary, you see the doctrine of separation of power is really being undermined. For instance, in the case of the judges, the same DSS who blew the whistle are the same people who said the EFCC boss was not fit; it appears to me that the constitution has been suspended. It is unfortunate too that the President is not given the right perspective; otherwise, what happened in Osborne, Ikoyi wouldn’t have happened.

I believe the President received that news with shock.

Why was the passage of the 2017 Budget so delayed?

Nigerians should always remember that the National Assembly would go extra mile to make sure that things are done properly.

If we can recall, the President in the synopsis of the 2016 budget made a demand of a loan running into billions to fund the capital component without any backing, we asked him to explain, that was to the best interest of Nigerians. The Medium Term Expenditure Framework was brought without clear cut economic parameters we also said no, this is not just about passing the budget; we can’t pass the budget without the MTEF. We should also ask questions like what is the performance of the 2016 budget that was passed. Nigerians don’t ask questions. Have we implemented it to a good point?

Section 83 of the constitution solves whatever fear Nigerians are worried about, the President knows what to do, we don’t garbage in and out in the National Assembly, and we have professionals here. This is the common house of the masses, so we take our time to do the right thing, they should be patient. We are doing a thorough job.

There is this talk about the executive arm undermining the legislature, how true is this?

The legislative arm is being lenient and considerate with the way the executive abuse the powers of the legislative arm. We

have seen our Vice President who is a professor of law come out to say that section 171 does not require the National Assembly, Senate confirmation to appoint the EFCC chairman. This should be left with the judiciary to interpret .This interference is not only in the National Assembly, it’s also affecting the judiciary which is an affront on separation of powers. The same DSS that gave a report that has led to the trying of the judges is the same people who gave report that Magu is not fit for the job. These are some certain things I have observed. Why these selective justice? That is not what the rule of law is about and I know the President is on top of the issue and justice would be done at the end of the day.

How have you impacted your constituents through constituency projects?

In terms of constituency projects, I was allowed to nominate within a threshold of 150 million into the constituency budget MDA. I am doing a water scheme project, I renovated two health centres, two secondary schools, built six class room blocks and another one block of five class rooms on my own, I have assisted indigent students pay their registration fees for the first school leaving certificate and we have five hundred of them . I have equally done boreholes and have over thirty projects for 2016 alone.

News 12

Daily Times Nigeria d ƐƑƏƗ ƕè L ƕ ơƢè ƾƠơƣ

Why Ikpeazu remains Abia Gov - Supreme Court Continued from page 6 Friday, stopped the dream Ogah and upheld the election of Governor Ikpeazu.

The apex court also made a far reaching pronouncement on Ikpeazu, saying that he was validly nominated by the PDP to fly the flag of the party in Abia State.

Reacting to the verdict, Governor Ikpeazu said he is dedicating his victory over Uche Ogah at the Supreme Court to the people of Abia State, even as he invited his opponents to join hands with him to reposition the state.

Speaking with newsmen in Government House Umuahia after a church service, on Friday, Ikpeazu said the dedication of the victory to the people was because they stood by him all through the period of litigations.

The state Governor, who regretted that for the past two years, he has been in court with his fellow brothers from Abia, also called on all Abians to join hands with him to ensure accelerated growth and development of the state, stating, “It is a call for the re-dedication to the goals and vision of our government to take Abia to the next level. Victory is for Abians”.

Meanwhile, following the announcement of the victory of Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu against Samson Ogah at the Supreme Court, Abuja, on Friday, it was jubilation all through Abia State, though minimal in Umuahia and most areas of Aba North and South LGAs. In Aba South, the road leading to the council headquarters was entirely blocked by the supporters of the governor, while other areas were quiet, even in Aba North LGA. In Umuahia, the sound of guns shots came from the seat of the

Government, the Government House, as security executives used the occasion to express their joy over the victory, while elsewhere in Umuahia metropolis, it was not celebrated as would have been expected.

At the Government House gate, pockets of faithful carrying placards were seen jubilating as the governor zoomed out to attend an official function in Aba after addressing the Government House Press Corps.

Speaking with newsmen, the Deputy Chief of Staff in the office of the Governor, Chief Ukpai Agwu Ukpai, said the victory was through the instrumentality of God, stating that he really expected the victory.

He said before now, arguments

of various school of thoughts tilted the victory towards Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu, stating that this was evident in the electoral law that said that if one did not participate in any election, he “cannot for any reason be awarded any position.

Then DCOS, Office of the governor, said that despite the distractions, Ikpeazu has been doing well, expressing happiness that now that the distractions have been dismantled, the governor is going to concentrate and do more works for the states.

Also reacting, the Security Adviser to Governor Okezie Ikpeazu, Capt Awa Kalu (rtd) expressed excitement over the victory “for the Governor, the state government and for the people”, stating that

it is the day Abians were waiting for so that the state will move forward.

He stated that with the victory, he expects that the dividend of democracy will get right down to the grassroots, stating that what Ikpeazu has done will filter down and that the governor is going to do more “be it road construction, water construction, health, agriculture, security, in fact the five pillars of what he wants to do.

This is the time for him to be fully concretised and for Abians to realise that the governor is not only an intellectual, but somebody who believes in Abia and wants Abians to have the best.

Also reacting, the Methodist Archbishop of Umuahia, His Grace Chibuzo Raphael Opoko ex-

pressed happiness that the issue of court actions has finally came to rest, stating that over two years, the state has been bedeviled with litigations that has made the state not to be stable.

According to him, now that the Supreme Court has laid the issue to rest, it is then will of God as the state cannot have two governors at a time, with one on the seat and the other in Government House.

Expressing his happiness, a former Managing Editor of The Daily Times of Nigeria, and a former Chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Chief Onyema Ugochukwu, described the judgment as a landmark and a sign of good thing for the state.

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Senate not stalling anti-graft bills, says C’ttee chair Chris Emetoh, Abuja

ÏÏÏ Chairman, Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, Senator David Umaru, has said that the reports on anti-corruption Bills in the Senate are ready and will be laid for passage soon.

Umaru, who was reacting to remarks credited to the Attorney General of the Federation to the effect that the President is disappointed that the National Assembly has refused to pass the bills, said the AGF’s comment was made out of lack of understanding with regards to workings of the legislature.

He said that the 8th Senate does not delay bills but takes its time to ensure that it passes bills that would stand the test of time and in line with international best

practices.

Umaru in an interview with reporters in Abuja said: “The comment of the AGF is not a fair comment. It is a comment made out of lack of understanding with regards to workings of the legislature.

“In this 8th Senate, we do not foot-drag on any Bill. We have a rule and process that guides all our legislation. Each Bill that comes up must go through the whole gamut of the process.

“Take for example the Criminal and Mutual Assistance Bill of 2016. When the President’s letter was read on the floor as an Executive Communication that constituted the First Reading of the Bill.

“Then, it went through Second Reading, and after that, it was sent to the Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, which I Chair, to handle

it jointly with the Committees on Anti-Corruption and Foreign Affairs.

“For a Bill like this, it is incumbent on us to conduct a public hearing. Hence, we did conduct one, where we took public views from stakeholders that included the Ministry of Justice, Law Reforms Commission, EFCC, and CBN. “After we sought the views of experts, we then sat down as a Committee, to review every clause, vis-a-vis, the opinions expressed by stakeholders and experts. This is virtually concluded.

We are now working to produce the Report, which will see it being presented to the plenary for consideration”.

On when the report is expected to be presented, the Senator said: “The report will be presented very soon. Any moment from

now,” while noting that every bill goes through the same processes.

According to him, the 8th Senate has decided that it will not rubber-stamp any Bill that has not gone through the laid down procedure and scrutiny, including taking the opinion of the public.

“Therefore, I do not expect the AGF to think that when he brings a Bill to the parliament today, tomorrow he gets the law. The laws we make here, including this one, are laws for all Nigerians not for the executive or the legislature alone.

“This is why the people must get what they fully deserve. Our laws must meet international standards. Therefore, international best practices must be observed in law making.

“Every Anti-Corruption Bill before the National Assembly is being worked on. They are all re-

ceiving adequate attention. We are determined to support the executive in this lofty goal of fighting corruption.

“We will not waver on this. The Senate President is committed — and he has shown the capacity to ensure that all such Bills receive expeditious but thorough processing.”

On the Whistle Blower Bill, Umaru said: “This Bill has also gone beyond Public Hearing stage. The report is being prepared, so that it can be laid at the Senate plenary.

“There is also another AntiCorruption Bill, with the AntiCorruption Committee, and I am sure that they are working seriously on it. Therefore, there is no basis to conclude that the Senate is stalling the passage of any executive or anti-corruption Bill.”

Page Thirteen

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

s

13

PHOTO TIMES

Editorial Sultan and prosecution of killer herdsmen

T

he Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar 111, recently called on the Federal Government to prosecute Fulani herdsmen engaging in destructive and other violent acts in the course of grazing their livestock.

The Sultan, who branded such herdsmen as criminals, said their activities were not only repugnant; they do not represent the religious or political interests of Muslims.

We are totally in agreement with the Sultan, even as we believe that it is in the interest of the authorities to checkmate the orgy of violence that has become the trademark of herdsmen across the country.

It is a fact that Fulani herdsmen have become the new face of terrorism in Nigeria. Nigerians are not only miffed at the recurring menace, they are also scandalised at the government’s tardiness in disarming these AK 47 rifle-wielding marauders. Due to the peculiarity of the activities of the herdsmen, they move from one place to another in search of pasture.

During their journey, they frequently trespass farmlands owned by locals in their host communities, destroying crops and valuables.

Attempts by farmers to prevent them from causing havoc are usually met with stiff and violent resistance.

Most times the farmers are overpowered, injured and even killed while properties worth millions of naira are destroyed.

Past attempts to curb the excesses of the rampaging herdsmen are always seen as attack on the Fulani ethnic nationality and this perhaps explains why successive governments shied away from dealing decisively with the problem. Even at

Publisher/Editor in Chief

that, concerns as to the identity of those behind these attacks have been frequently raised. Though some people insinuate they are members of the Boko Haram sect, masquerading as Fulani herdsmen, many Nigerians believe that President Muhammadu Buhari has deliberately shied away from confronting these marauding herdsmen or even checking their mayhems, because he is from the Fulani ethnic group.

We are not unmindful of the fact that any Nigerian is guaranteed the freedom to live in any part of the country as enshrined in Section 41 (1) of the 1999 Constitution as amended. However, we are restating that this does not confer on them the right to intimidate and violate the rights of their host communities.

The criminal impunity of herdsmen has continued to thrive because of government’s failure to maintain law and order and bring perpetrators of criminal acts to justice. It is worth noting that the history of conflict between farmers and herdsmen has been long with attendant debilitating costs. Beyond the sorrows, tears, blood and human casualties the herdsmen leave behind after these attacks; their activities pose a great danger to the Nigerian economy.

A report published in 2015 by Aid agency Mercy Corps said Nigeria could save $13.7 billion annually if clashes between farmers and herdsmen stopped in several states.

Government should do something about the Fulani herdsmen-initiated killings and harassments of Nigerians in any of the areas they graze.

There is no denying that if these attacks are allowed to continue, it could become the single existential threat to the unity of Nigeria since the civil war.

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R-L: Wife of the Rivers State Governor, Justice Eberechi Suzzette; Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike; Former First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan and Professor Uche Nnamdi Azikiwe, during the Women’s Day of the Rivers Golden Jubilee Celebration in Port Harcourt… on Thursday.

Acting President Prof, Yemi Osinbajo (l); Katsina State Governor, Aminu Bello Masari (r) and others, during the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises programme for entrepreneurs in Katsina… on Friday.

Words On Marble :

– Fidelis Anosike

Group Managing Director Noel Anosike

Deputy General Manager Northern Operations Tony Ailemen 08036073601

Abia State Governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu (m), praising God at the Unity Chapel Government House, Umuahia after his Supreme Court victory in Abuja… on Friday.

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STATEMENTS BY THOSE WHO MATTER

Goodluck Jonathan

Matthew Ashimolowo

Julius Nyerere

“Nobody’s political ambition is worth the blood of any Nigerian”.

“If you must make a difference in life, then change your mind set”.

“Independence cannot be real if a nation depends upon gifts.”

News 14

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13 , 2017

Lassa fever kills youth corp member serving in Obubra, C’River State Edem Edem, Calabar

ÎÎÎA

National Youth Corp Service member serving in Community Secondary School, Ofodua, Obubra local government area of Cross River state, identified as Stanley Samuel Onwuegbuzie, has been reported dead. He died of Lassa fever. The deceased gave up the ghost yesterday

at the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH) after been in coma for few days.

Confirming the dead, the state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Inyang Asibong, told Daily Times on phone on Friday that the youth corper died of lassa fever, saying “he was serving in Obubra local government area of the state, unfortunately we lost him yester-

day. He has been in coma at the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH) for a few days and was first admitted at the General Hospital Obubra before he was referred to the UCTH but we loss him.

“We are already doing contact-tracing of all his possible contacts. He was teaching in a secondary school in Obubra and was residing at the cor-

pers’ lodge. We have isolation centre in case we have any other case. Already, unspecified number of people have been quarantined and we are doing a lot of sensitization and awareness on the signs and symptoms of lassa fever.”

The deceased, according to our findings, was from Delta state and Dr. Asibong said government had contacted the

family and they are fully aware of the incident.

“We have contacted the family in Delta State and they are aware of the death and we are handling the corpse in the right way” and on what the government was going to do in terms of compensation, the commissioner said, “The state government is working on it but cannot give categorical

statement for now,” she said.

She however said that samples were taken to the laboratory and it was a confirmed case of Lassa fever and the corper diedmoments ago in the facility (UCTH) and urged the people of the state to go about their normal duties as the state was currently following the WHO protocol on the case and we have begun our meetings.

Anambra to set up computerbased vehicle inspection centre Tony Nwakaegho ÎÎÎThe Anambra state government said that it would set up a computer-based vehicle inspection centre to replace the old ways of checking vehicles for road worthiness.

The Head, Vehicle Inspection Office, Ministry of Transport, Mr. Christopher Okeke, made this known in Awka on the sidelines of the ongoing week of the 2017 edition West African Road Safety Organisation (WARSO) titled ‘Save Lives, Slow Down.’

He added that the state government is committed to

ensuring rickety vehicles are easily detected and ordered off the roads.

“The vehicle inspection, when established, centre will ensure that vehicle inspection will no longer be done manually.

“Before any vehicle in Anambra state is issued certificate of road worthiness, the vehicle must have undergone the computer-based testing.

“This effort will go a long way in minimising accidents on our roads,” he said.

According to him, the centre would be a multi-purpose one with facilities for checking head-lamps, brakes and other parts of vehicles.

Kogi state not owing staff salaries — Gov Bello Tom Okpe, Abuja

ÎÎÎGovernor of

Kogi state, Yahaya Bello, has dismissed speculations that he owes workers of the state salaries insisting that he is up to date in the payment of workers’ salaries.

Governor Bello, who spoke to newsmen when he visited the national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the national secretariat in Abuja on Friday, stated that he has even paid the four months’ salary arrears owed to workers by the previous administration.

Reacting to state of the party in Kogi and his mission to the headquarters, Governor Bello who stormed the party secretariat with thousands of supporters said: “APC Kogi state is intact, strong and solidly behind me. I am here in the headquarters to discuss family matters and it went on very smoothly. On the issues discussed, I can tell you that I came to discuss the progress of our party and the administration and progress in the state”.

Dismissing the insinuation

that there is crisis in the state and the recurring arrears of unpaid salaries to workers, he said: “All of us in the state met before the reconciliation committee to discuss family matters and it went very well. Kogi state has never been peaceful as it is today under my leadership.

The State has never been that secured as it is today under my leadership and we are bound for one indivisible Kogi state”.

“On the salary payment in the state, I will simply refer you to Kogi state web site so you can get the fact from there,www. kogistate.gov.ng. You are going to see from there those four months arrears owed by the previous administration have been cleared.

“Month by month, Kogi state has paid its workers’ salaries.

Workers’ salaries have been cleared. Those that are not cleared surely cannot be paid.

If you go to our website you will see month by month, Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) by MDAs and those that have not been cleared have reasons they have not yet been cleared and that has been there.

Electric pole lying across the road at Ashabi Cole street, beside Mobil Filling Station, Lateef Jakande road, Agidingbi, Ikeja, Lagos… on Wednesday.

PHOTO: AKEEM ADEBAYO.

Red Cross celebrates day, lauds Obiano on security Alphonsus Nweze, Awka

ÎÎÎGovernor Willie Obiano

of Anambra state has been lauded by the state chapter of Nigeria Red Cross Society for providing security in the state thus guaranteeing the security of lives and properties of the people.

The state chairman of the Red Cross and also a former Chief Judge of the state, Justice P. A. C. Obidigwe, said the provision of security in the state and other infrastructural facilities have helped to reduce disasters, which would have tasked the ability of the society.

Justice Obidigwe, who spoke in his address during the 2017 World Red Cross Day celebration in Awka, said that Governor Obiano had equally done a lot to improve the health system in the state.

“State public hospitals and health centres in Anambra state have been appro-

priately considered with governance financing, infrastructural installations, appurtenances, staffing and disaster emergency situation of any sort have been expanded and enhaced with the available human and material resources. He has embarked on more road construction and flyovers and agricultural produce,” said Justice Obidigwe.

He requested public spirited and individuals and organizations to sponsor or support the society to enable it perform its functions vigorously and enable it to actively respond to emergency situations.

The chairman listed some of their needs to include six ambulances, four Pick–up vans, 1,000 first aid boxes, 10 bales of blanket, 1,000 plastic cups and plates each, 1000 spoons, and 500 stretchers.

He said these would enhance the capacity on disaster preparedness, Mitiga-

tion and rapid response to the most venerable in times of human needs and drug worth N4.5 million.

Speaking on this year’s theme, which is ‘Together for Humanity,’ Justice Obidigwe said it was to strategically appraise and evaluate the vantage roles of the society, stressing that volunteers and massive Red Cross membership underpines the activities of the society.

The chairman said that this year’s theme was in recognition and honour of the teeming volunteers of Red Cross Society all over the 187 member nations with more than 250 million supporters.

He said “at the same time, Red Cross is focusing and highlighting on concerted efforts of humanitarians all over the world. It is basically to draw the attention of the world leaders and latent global organizations on the pertinent need to embark on rapid response to disaster

emergencies and funding of humanitarian operations. It is very imperative to create enabling environment in order to achieve global security and safety which is central to world economic and social order and major pivots to global growth in all facets of human endeavour.

In his speech the vicechairman, Anambra state Red cross Society, Prof.

Emeka Katchy, commended those who attended the occasion, assuring that the society was committed to rapid response to disasters and emergencies.

He urged public spirited individuals and organizations to support Red cross to enable it perform satisfactorily its statutory functions such as communal conflicts, internal displacement, herdsmen invasion, kidnap trauma among others.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

Taraba Assembly sets up ad-hoc committee over herdsmen, farmers clash Okerafor Athanatius, Jalingo

ÏÏÏ Owing to the recent crisis between suspected Fulani herdsmen and farmers in some parts of Takum and Ussa local government areas of Taraba state, which claimed several lives with property worth millions of Naira destroyed, the Taraba State House of Assembly has set up an Ad-hoc Committee to investigate the remote and immediate causes of the crisis in the affected areas.

Daily Times gathered that the Ad-hoc Committee set up by the lawmakers followed a Motion of Public Urgent Importance, jointly sponsored by the Legislators representing the affected areas in the State Assembly (Habila Timothy Anderifun of Ussa Constituency, Mark Useni Bako of Takum II and Hosea Ibi of Takum I.) Speaking during Plenary, held at the Hallow Chambers of the Assembly Complex, Jalingo, Hon. Habila Timothy Anderifun of Ussa Constituency, who described the crisis as unfortunate stressed the need for the state government to beef up security in the areas to avert future occurrences.

He condemned the actions of the suspected Fulani herdsmen who he disclosed, attacked and slaughtered a boy who was peacefully taking his bath in a river in a village in Takum local government adding that the herdsmen also attacked and killed some youths in some parts of Ussa local government area of the state. According to him, the Fulani herdsmen go about in military uniforms destroying not only lives but houses and other properties belonging to their victims, who are farmers.

The lawmaker further noted that the Peace Agenda of Governor Darius Dickson Ishaku for the people of the state has been bastardized by the incessant attacks of the herdsmen saying proactive measures must be taken against the plans of these herdsmen of causing unrest to the people of Southern Taraba and the state in general.

Umahi offers scholarships to four best mathematics students ÏÏÏ The governor of Ebonyi state, Engr. David Umahi, has awarded university scholarships to four junior secondary students for their outstanding performance in Mathematics and Oral Mental Arithmetic competitions.

He announced this during the presentation of the students to the State Executive Council at the Government House, Abakaliki on Wednesday.

The four students are Miss Igwe Amarachi from Government Technical College Agba, who was the overall best competitor; Miss Ikechukwu Mary from Uburu Secondary School; Sorochukwu Nwefuru from Government Technical College, Abakaliki and Ori Catherine

from Government Technical College Agba.

Umahi, according to a statement on Friday by his Chief Press Secretary, Emma Anya, was particularly impressed with the intelligence displayed by the students while answering questions on the subjects without using four figure table or calculator He said that the fund for them to study Medicine after their secondary education would be made available to them ahead of time to ensure that nothing constituted a barrier to their study.

The governor directed his Personal Assistant, Mr. Silas Onu, to liaise with the parents of the children to open accounts for them, adding that payment

of their school fees into the account would commence next week. Clarifying that the money would not be accessed until they gained admission into the university, Umahi said that the scholarship would last six years.

His words: “I will pay your school fees for Medicine in advance. We’ll open accounts for four of you and I will know how much the school fees for each and everyone of you are. I will pay the money into the accounts. It will stay there so that as you enter the university, you will not have problem of school fees. We will tell the bank not to release the money until you start university education.”

In an interview, one of the organisers of the programme, Mr.

ÏÏÏ A

35 years old woman, Mr. Jumoke Oladapo, was on Wednesday evening, delivered of a baby girl in Oshodi Bolade, Oshodi Lagos state.

Mrs. Oladapo, who already had two children, was reported to have been having the pangs of labour while she was in a commercial bus, saying “I thought I could hold it till I get home. To God be the glory for thje safe delivery.” she said.

Alike Friday, said that students from 12 schools drawn from the three senatorial district of the state participated in the training.

He explained that they were taught how to do addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and others off hand.

Friday disclosed that 37 students were chosen for the competition by the National Mathematical Centre out of the 124 who took part in the two weeks training.

Responding on behalf of others, the best student, Miss Amarachi, expressed her gratitude to Governor Umahi for the gesture and appealed that more students be allowed to participate in the exercise in future to enable them benefit.

Inject fresh ideas in national politics, Okwubanego charges new party

ÏÏÏ Young

L-R: Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria(CAN) Abia State chapter, Emmanuel Agomuoh; Bishop of Umuahia Archidiocese, Chibuzo Raphael Opoko; Methodist Church Nigeria, Bishop Godfrey Aluka and Abia State Coordinator, Nigeria Pray, Chuks Alozie, at a one- day solemn assembly on, O Lord thy will be done, in Abia State for the judgement in Abuja between Okezie Ikpeazu and Uche Ogar in Umuahia, Abia… on Thursday.

Woman delivered of a baby at Oshodi market Akeem Adebayo

15 News

An elderly woman, Mrs. Moriamo Salami, who suprintended the delivery process, said “when I saw the pregnant woman moving towards my direction, feebly putting her hands on her waist, I quickly grabbed her to assist and with my experience as a mother, I knew the baby was coming.

Then, with the support of others, I took her to a corner for the delivery,”she explained.

A trader, Mrs. Rofiat Akinrimole, also provided a matronly help in the process.

According to her, “when Mama (Mrs. Salami) was coming with the pregnant woman, I quickly untied my wrapper for the coming baby, but miraculously, i found the baby on the floor before I even spread the wrapper.”

Another trader, Miss Gani Aminat, also shared her expericene saying “when the placenta was not forth coming, I was asked to fetch orogun (turning stick), bottle, oil and some other material, but before I could come back, the placenta

was out.”

According to another witness, “the baby is a wonderful child as she was effortlessly given birth to in the market.

Wonders shall never end in her life,” she remarked.

The new nursing mother was eventually showered with some amount of money to assist in transporting her and her baby home, in addition with gift items by the traders in the market, who became her instant care-givers. .

people in Nigeria have been charged to participate actively in politics at all levels in order to reinvigorate the system of governance with fresh and innovative ideas in line with current global trends.

Mrs. Obby Okwubanego, Chief Executive Officer of Winning Clause, an Abuja based property investment company, threw this challenge when the national leadership of Young Democratic Party (YDP) paid her a courtesy visit at the company’s Mabuchi Abuja office on Thursday. She said even though Nigeria has recorded significant growth and development over the years, the country cannot afford to be left behind when the rest of the world is moving at a fast speed.

The former Anambra State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Woman Leader expressed confidence that Nigeria will overcome its current economic challenges and emerge strong and prosperous, saying young people are critical stakeholders in achieving the nation’s dreams.

“There is no better time to have a party of young, dynamic and vibrant men and women who are driven by a common passion of love of the country, citizens’ wellbeing and national development than now. Nigeria needs a crop of new leaders with the requisite skills, knowledge and fresh narratives necessary to help the system cope with current and emerging development in science, technology, medicine, education, shelter, safety of our environment, food growth and production, among others,“ Okwubanego said.

16

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

17

News 18 Corruption is a dream killer, ICPC tells children ÏÏÏ

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has described corruption as a dream killer that Nigerian children should not tolerate.

An official of the commission, Mrs. Azuka Ogugwa, said this when some students of Praxis Catholic e-School, Life Camp, Abuja, visited the headquarters of the anti-graft agency in Abuja on Friday.

Ogugwa urged Nigerian children and youths to assist ICPC to protect their legitimate dreams and future by standing against corruption and allied vices.

Using a pictorial PowerPoint presentation, she took the students through the rudiments of corruption including its definition, types, manifestations and effects on their lives and the society generally.

The children exclaimed in surprise as images of dilapidated schools and hospitals, deplorable roads, slums, scenes of terror attacks, among others, rolled through the screen.

Ogugwa said, “As you can see in these pictures, corruption can stop you from achieving your dreams! If you do not fight it, it will fight you and kill your dreams.

“You cannot sit back and say, `It does not concern me, I am too small. My parents are giving me food.’

“You have to stand up for the future you want. If you want that dream you have in mind to come to pass, you have to act against corruption.’’

Ogugwa said they could do this by being honest and standing for integrity, in addition to reporting acts of corruption at homes and in schools to their parents and authorities or trusted adults.

She also sensitised the students on what the commission is doing to stop corruption including prevention, enforcement and public enlightenment/education.

The official enjoined school management and teachers to contribute their quota by forming anti-corruption clubs for their students and declaring their schools corruption-free zones.

Later in an interview with newsmen, Ogugwa advised parents to set good examples for their children and inculcate good values into them with rewards and punishment when necessary.

In separate interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), some of the students, including the Head Girl of the school, Miss Miracle Anatogu, described the visit as memorable.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

N125bn budget for NASS inadequate, says Rep ÏÏÏA member of

the House of Representatives, Nicholas Ossai (Delta-PDP), has said that the N125 billion appropriated to the National Assembly is not adequate to carry out its functions effectively and efficiently.

Ossai made the assertion in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja, insisting that the legislators need more funds to discharge their duties.

NAN reports that the National Assembly on Thursday published its 2017 budget of N125 billion, which was higher than the N115 billion approved in 2016.

Ossai, however, said that the additional N10 billion inserted in the budget would strengthen oversight functions by members of the National Assembly.

“This is necessary so that Nigerians will have the impact and value creation of what has been budgeted.

“Nigerians are not looking at that, we are looking at the National Assembly as 360 members of House of Representatives and 109 Senators; calculate it with the money that has been budgeted without looking at other aspects.

“We are not looking at other agencies under the National Assembly like the Public Com-

plaints Commission, National Institute for Legislative Studies, the National Assembly Service Commission and supporting staff.

“The committees are carrying out national functions in line with Section 88 of the Constitution to expose corruption.

“That committees not only expose corruption, but block leakages; definitely, we need a lot of money to address these issues.

“To the best of my knowledge, that money is not enough to address the issues of carrying out the national functions of the national assembly,” Ossai claimed.

Meanwhile, a legislative aide told NAN on ground of anonymity that they were being owed Duty Travel Allowance (DTA) amounting to N1.3 billion.

“We have been owed since 2015 and the management informed us that the allowance was not captured in the 2016 budget.

“With this development, we are aware of what is appropriated for legislative aides in the 2017 budget, we are now sure the money is there and there will be no room for excuses anymore.

“The DTA for an individual is N75, 000 and about 3, 000 aides are being owed,” the aide said.

A breakdown of the 2017 estimates shows that N23.7 billion would go to personnel cost, N85.8 billion for overhead and N14. 9 billion to finance capital projects.

The National Assembly Management has N14.9 billion with the Senate taking N31.3 billion and the House of Representatives N49 billion, while the National Assembly Service Commission gets N2.4 billion.

The budget provides N9.6 billion for legislative aides, while the Senate Public Accounts Committee takes N118.9 million and that of Reps N142.7 million.

Nasarawa workers embark on indefinite strike Augustine Kuza, Lafia

ÏÏÏ Workers on the payroll

of the Nasarawa state government on Friday embarked on an indefinite strike after the state government failed to meet their demands before the expiration of the ultimatum of 12 am on Thursday it issued to government.

State secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Mohammed Naibi, expressed delight with the level of compliance to the strike on Friday in Lafia, the state capital.

According to him, the strike became imperative after the expiration of the ultimatum given to the state government to meet the demands of the union before 12am on Thurs-

day 11, 2017.

He added that “for the past six years, all civil servants in the state were stagnated, with no promotion, no annual increment, pensioners were not paid their full entitlements as at when due among others.”

Naibi said the doors of the union are still open for negotiation with the government and directed that workers should

stay at home pending further directive.

He also urged workers to shun rumours from any quarters to the effect that the strike have been suspended, adding that workers should await further directive from the union leadership.

He therefore said that the union had given the state government enough time to re-

L-R: Regional Operations Director, North Region, Bashir Ibrahim; Director, Human Resource, Gbemiga Owolabi, both of Airtel Nigeria; renowned Life Coach and Motivational Speaker, Lanre Olusola; and Director, Customer Service, Airtel Nigeria, Tolulope Tope-Awofeko, during the Airtel Health and Wellness week in Lagos… on Friday.

Amaka Agbu, Port Harcourt

ÏÏÏNigerian

women have been advised to struggle for political power, rather than expect that men will bequeath power to them on a platter of gold.

Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike gave the advice during the Women’s Day of the Rivers Golden Jubilee Celebration in Port Harcourt on Thursday.

Governor Wike said that nobody is stopping women from excelling in the political arena, pointing out that women must work for their political eman-

solve these issues, yet the government was playing politics with workers welfare.

Our correspondent reports that the indefinite strike action has received total compliance as government activities in the state have been paralyzed.

When The Daily Times visited some government ministries and schools among others in Lafia, they were deserted as offices were under lock and key.

This was even as officials of the organized labour in the state were going round all government ministries, departments and parastatals to check workers compliance to the directive.

Meanwhile, the state government has threatened to deal with any staff who fail to report to his or her duty post.

The state Head of Civil Service, Mr. Thomas Ogiri, called on workers to disregard any call for strike saying that there is disarray in NLC. He added that any staff that failed to report to his duty post would be held liable.

He directed Permanent Secretaries, Chief Executives of Commissions, Boards and Parastatals to take attendance of their staff.

Struggle for political power, Wike tells women cipation.

He said: “When it comes to power, you have to struggle for it. If you are prepared for politics, you must equip yourself “.

The governor urged women not to beg for positions. He said they should set up structures that would help them get political mileage.

He however, assured Rivers women that he would continue to work for their development and growth in all spheres of life.

The governor announced

that his administration would construct a women development centre with all facilities to empower Women.

Former Nigerian First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan declared that Governor Wike had worked hard to empower Rivers women.

Dame Jonathan said Rivers women would remain grateful to Governor Wike for giving them political and professional leverage.

She said that the governor’s

choice of female deputy governor and the appointment of the first female Chief Judge and President of Customary Court of Appeal ensured that Rivers women took their pride of place in politics.

Wife of the Rivers State Governor, Justice Eberechi NyesomWike described her husband as a women-friendly governor who is implementing policies and programmes to uplift women.

Justice Nyesom-Wike said the Women’s Day is set aside to

honour women for their contributions to the creation and growth of the state.

While saying that efforts to empower Women must be strengthened, Justice NyesomWike noted that women have attained positions of responsibility, not envisaged before.

In her lecture, Wife of Former President of Nigeria, Professor Uche Nnamdi Azikiwe said violence could only be reduced across the world when women assume leadership.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

19 News

Our train of infrastructural devpt still on course –Ambode Benjamin Omoike,

ÏÏÏLagos state governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, has commissioned newly reconstructed 10-storey doctors quarters at the General Hospital, Lagos, and refurbished Onikan Health Centre, reassuring Lagosians that the train of infrastructure development and rehabilitation is still on the move.

The Governor, who spoke at the twin events through the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Mr Tunji Bello, added that plans are at an advanced stage to upgrade various healthcare facilities across the state which includes secondary healthcare facilities at Apapa, Epe, Ifako Ijaye, Agbowa and Lagos Island Hospital in due course.

He also used the occasion to restate his administration’s determination and commitment to reduce avoidable disabilities, maternal and child morbidity to the barest minimum across the state.

“Since the inception of our administration which will be two years in a couple of weeks, we have committed ourselves to infrastructural renewal and development that will enhance productivity and boost the morale of public servants to improve service delivery to members of the public.

“I have confidence in the ability and capability of our healthcare personnel to deliver excellent service comparable to what

obtains in developed countries.

As we strive to upgrade our health facilities with the provision of modern infrastructure and equipment, we shall continue to give due attention to issues of welfare and human capital development,” the Governor said.

He explained that the present administration has continuously endeavoured to raise and sustain the confidence of members of the public on its healthcare

service delivery while ensuring avoidable disabilities and reducing maternal and child morbidity to the barest minimum.

He described the facility as a foremost medical facility established by the government which has however been overstretched by population growth, adding that its upgrading became necessary following the standard policy of a functional secondary healthcare facility in each Local

Government Area of the state as advocated by the federal government.

“The refurbished two-storey facility has been enhanced with fully functional offices, radiology unit, laboratory, consulting rooms for 204 healthcare personnel with specialized professional competency in pharmacy, clinic services as well as emergency services,”the Governor said.

He informed that the rehabilitated Doctors Quarters consists of 29 apartments with self service quarters attached to provide accommodation for medical personnel and their families.

He listed other additional benefits derivable from the rehabilitation of the structure as the 24 hours availability of specialist medical personnel to attend to patients on admission especially on emergency cases.

A 35-year-old woman, Jumoke Oladapo, who delivered a baby girl on the road at Bolade, Oshodi, Lagos… on Wednesday night.

Photo: AKEEM ADEBAYO.

Stigma, neglect kill HIV patients faster than the virus –DG Kano AIDS agency Yakubu Salisu, Kano

ÏÏÏ The

Director General, Kano State Agency for the Control of Aids, Dr. Usman Bashir, has stated that stigma and neglect shown to People Living With HIV (PLWH) by the society mostly causes their death rather the effect of the virus especially.

The director made the disclosure on during a live phone-in radio program broadcast by Arewa FM in Kano.

The medical doctor advised members of the society to embrace and show affection to PLWHA so as to encourage them to live healthy and longer lives.

Dr. Usman reassured PLWH that the present administration of Gov. Abdullah Umar Ganduje, is working around the clock to ensure all the needed care and support service are provide across the state.

We won’t award contracts that Artisans, youths applaud FG over will put people into debts –Okowa release of Chibok school girls Nosa Akenzua, Asaba

ÏÏÏDelta state governor, Dr. If-

eanyi Okowa, has said contracts for the execution of projects will be awarded based on availability of funds.

The Governor in a no-holdback town hall meetings held at Ozoro and Oleh Isoko North and South local government areas respectively of Delta State, disclosed that his administration was committed to delivering infrastructure that will stand the test of time.

According to the governor, “there has been a lot of destruction of our pipelines and resources to our state is limited, we cannot award contracts when we don’t have the capacity of paying, it will be wrong for us to award contract and contractors will be

borrowing money to execute the projects and at the end of the day, some will commit suicide because of their inability to pay their debts to their bankers.”

While disclosing that most of the projects his administration has executed throughout the state was as a result of proper planning culminating in the phasing of payments to the contractors, Governor Okowa assured Deltans that his administration would continue to ensure prudent management of funds to the benefits of the people.

The governor who stated that since early 2016, large quantities of crude oil have not been lifted from the state as a result of the destruction of the Forcados Export Trunkline, observed that the economic recession that rocked the country, also, affected revenue accruing to the state gov-

ernment.

“The prices of oil went down and unfortunately, it is the main revenue earner for Nigeria including Delta State, so, with such, our revenue went down; apart from the revenue going down, starting from February 2016, half of the oil production in Delta State has not been exported because of the destruction of pipelines but, by the grace of God, the Forcados Trunkline will come on stream in the next few weeks which will bring about more funds to the state and we will have to also assist the local government councils,” he said.

He observed that the issue of payment of salaries of local government staff and primary school teachers was a great challenge because, the allocation to that tier of government could not pay their salaries.

ÏÏÏYouths under the aus-

pices of Artisans and Association of Professional Plumbers of Nigeria, Lagos state branch have expressed happiness with the federal government over the release of 82 Chibok school girls kidnapped by Boko Haram sects.

The association’s governor-elect, Adeshina Ogunkoya, who spoke on behalf of the association, called on President Muhammadu Buhari and security agencies not to relent in their efforts to get the remaining abducted school girls in the captivity of the sects released.

Adesina said this recently at the Annual General Meeting and election

of new officers to pilot the affairs of the association for the next three years with the theme: ‘Artisans, Youths and State of the Nation,’ held at the association’s secretariat in Erunwen, near Ikorodu, Lagos state.

According to the outgoing president, Mr. Olufemi Awotoye, who supervises the election, “there is nothing better than democracy; our election was conducted in the atmosphere of democratic system where campaigning, votes were allowed. It is the highest votes cast that carries the day.”

The newly elected officers are: Adeshina Ogunkoya, Governor;

Lanre Adeleke, Deputy; Bayo Akerele, Secretary; Abanigo Cambridge Asst Sec, Azeez Oyelakin, treasurer 1; Stephen Olorundare, Fin Sec; Samson Omolade, PRO, among other officials.

Adeshina therefore advised members to strictly abide by the constitution of the association and guided by the constitution while in office for the association to make progress.

Speaking on behalf of elected officers, the first executive governor, Mr. Adeshina Ogunkoya thanked the National President on his advise and promised members that the newly elected executives will not disappoint the association but rather improve on what they met on the ground.

20

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

v

Enterpreneurship The Government has also launched a CBN Anchor Borrowers’ Programme targeted at farmers. This is expected to grow the agricultural sector significantly and create more jobs. The fund will go to cover the training and funding of 100,000 farmers of priority agricultural products in its first phase. and provide a guaranteed market for their produce.

Out of an approved N150billion earmarked for the government’s Social Investment Programme, N65billion has been released so far. The scheme will cater for the feeding of school children across the nation, a N30,000 stipend to over 200,000 graduates – beneficiaries of the government’s N-Power programme designed to drastically reduce youth unemployment and a further 1,000,000 traders are to get subsidized loans to support their operations.

Massive developmental projects have been carried on across the country since the inception of this administration and further planned infrastructural spending will help boost economic growth. It is evident that the government intends to engage in massive expenditure going by the proposed loan requests it has sent to the National Assembly and the bonds issued and proposed. This increase in public spending assumes that it wants to spend its way out of the recession as part of its strategies.

The Federal Government just recently released its Economic Recovery Strategy, a Medium Term Development Plan 2017 – 2020 that focuses on economic stability and diversification. A GDP growth of 7% and inflation rate of under 10% by 2020 is envisaged by the increasing of oil output as the oil sector is reformed, opening up of new farmland and boosting investment in power, roads and ports in order to diversify revenue. The plan states the government’s determination to create 15 million jobs by 2020. As part of the move to reform the oil sector, the FG plans to cut its stake in joint-venture assets and other holdings. Selling the assets will “optimize their efficiency and reduce

21

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

Africa’s Troubled Giant: Reflections on economic recession in Nigeria - (5) fiscal burden on the government,” according to the Ministry of Budget and National Planning’s website.

Conclusion and the way forward: There are indications that the Nigerian economy is well on its way out of recession considering the 2016 overall and last quarter Gross Domestic Product reports. With an expected sustained increase in oil production output, the gradual gain in oil prices, planned infrastructural spending, Social Investment Programmes and passage of the 2017 budget there is going to be gradual rebound of the economy.

From our statistics earlier above, the trend in nearly all the sectors showed a nominal growth improvement and with inflation expected to moderate, GDP growth will return. These figures also show that the recession may have bottomed out as seen from the improving trend. It is worthy of note that the IMF and the World Bank project that Nigeria will experience a modest 1% growth in GDP in 2017 given the present circumstances.

Furthermore, there is a better outlook for revenues from the petroleum sector with revenues set to increase with oil production now over 2m barrels per day while oil prices holding relatively steady at an average of about $55 per barrel. This improved outlook for the oil and gas sector is closely linked to the ongoing engagement and dialogue between the Federal Government and various communities in the Niger Delta.

With an ever increasing population there is need to expand earning and production base of the economy and as Sanusi rightly points out “through wise investment and very difficult, but appropriate decisions” or we will end up in a classical Malthusian situation, where the resources cannot support the population and we start having wars and pestilence. We need to improve on our capital expenditure by improving

and investing more in power, roads, schools, hospitals, housing etc.

The present administration has been very effective in their war against corruption, although it had been accused of being selective, the truth is that it has done more than all the other past administrations in recent times put together performed far better in the quest to sanitize the system.

It is no longer business as usual. One of the ways to revamp the economy is the fight to end the scourge of corruption.

If the present regime will effectively pursue and execute its proposed agriculture roadmap as well as the solid minerals sector roadmap, there will be real economic, export, and revenue diversification as well as import substitution.

It will help us take a model that is investment-driven, rather than consumer or consumption-driven. A high investment to GDP will de-

liver high growth that is also inclusive.

We should further the creation of an encouraging atmosphere for our domestic industry competitiveness and establishing protection for our industries, we should properly align our companies with national interest by changing the incentive system within which they operate. The tax structure should encourage industrial revival, particularly in industries which have been hit worst by unfair foreign competition.

The leadership of the CBN has tried in steadying the ship in the face of the storm. The raising of iinterest rates has been a move at stabilizing the currency, because the truth is that where we are today, the only way we are going to reverse this recession is to increase liquidity in the foreign exchange markets and reduce the gap between the official rate and the parallel market rate. And this is what I think

the Central Bank needs to keep doing.

A flexible exchange rate regime and a positive real interest rate will combine to bridge that gap, bring in the dollars that we need to finance imports, and those imports of raw materials are the things that will increase production, and that production is what will lead to growth.

In order to boost production, efforts need to be stepped up in the area of adequate power generation and distribution with appropriate tax policy that will encourage the required conducive atmosphere for increased investment. Enough needs to be done in these areas if we must achieve our aim of properly diversifying our economy. Some states of the federation have begun to respond positively to the need for self-reliance and sustenance especially as they have stepped up efforts in enhancing their agricultural output capaci-

ties. Such efforts must be encouraged so that they can perform better.

Simon Kolawole (2016) wrote on Recession, Recovery and our Relapsing Fever that there are three options to the path of recovery dubbed the 3Ms – the Miracle, Mayday and the Marathon. This present administration is harnessing every tool in restoring the economic greatness of the nation and to do this it is focused on dismantling the defective structures that crippled us and putting in its place proactive, healthy, sustainable and conducive structures. These efforts of government may not be the quick fix strategy (Mayday) that everyone is looking to in order to immediately get out of the burden of hardship but it has to be a conscious careful effort aimed at restructuring the economy. It is a long-term-longrun strategy (Marathon). In the opinion of Simon “We want to stop importing hay, but we cannot plant grass today and get the feed tomorrow — especially as we did not make hay when the sun was shining. You can’t diversify government revenue base overnight”.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo adds that “there is no reason why any Nigerian child, at this point in time, should not have basic education, food and nutrition, and not only the Nigerian child, any Nigerian should not go to bed without food. We have the resources to achieve all that. If we are not achieving it, does not mean we don’t have the resources, it is because we haven’t managed our resources well.”

We have been through difficult economic times but with some of the actions this present administration has taken, there is hope for the Nigerian nation. The sleeping Giant is rising again, her economy is poised to take a turn for the better. As Nigerians groan under the burden of the recession, we are comforted to know that respite is in sight.

In order to boost production, efforts need to be stepped up in the area of adequate power generation and distribution with appropriate tax policy that will encourage the required conducive atmosphere for increased investment. Enough needs to be done in these areas if we must achieve our aim of properly diversifying our economy.

Nwaodu Chukwuemeka, is a consultant with IDEAS Exchange Consulting, Lagos. He can be reached at nwaodu.lawrence@hotmail.co.uk (07066375847)

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Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

Features After a recent baptism of six weeks old baby Vanessa at a Catholic Church, recently, some officiating priests attempted to demystify the practice, defending its significance and why Catholics insist on the ancient tradition. Features editor, GBUBEMI GOD’S COVENANT SNR periscopes the discourse.

A cluster of colourfully dressed ladies gathered outside the vestry door of the parish house of St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, Aboru, Ipaja, in Lagos, cuddling a bundle of beautiful creation, a baby girl, awaiting baptism. The date was Saturday April 29, 2017. At the dot of 10 a.m. the priest and two assistants ushered everyone in and the ancient ritual began.

Holding the infant in his ar ms between flames from two giant candle trees, parish priest, The Very Monsignor Livinus Ukah received the name of the child from her parents, then said: “Vanessa, the Christian Community welcomes you with great joy.

In this name I pledge you to Christ our Saviour and the sign of the cross I now trace on your forehead and invite your parents and God-parents to do the same.”

The homily progressed in the an-

Msgr Ukah with another baby at a previous baptism.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

s

23

Reasons behind infant baptism in Catholic liturgy

Baby Vanessa with mum Nkechi (right) and sister Ijeoma before the Priest at the baptism

cient Catholic liturgy for some ten minutes and climaxed with the baptism proper. “We anoint you with the Oil of Salvation, in the name of Christ our Saviour. May He strengthen you with his power through which He reigns forever and ever.

“By water and by the Holy Spirit, Vanessa, receive the gift of New Life through Christ our Lord,” and

the saints chanted…“Amen.”

Also named kositochukwu, Chinye, baby Vanessa was bor n on March 17, 2017 at St. Leo’s Catholic Church. Her young mum, Mrs. Nkechi Ugboko told The Daily Times after the ceremony her husband, Mr. Wisdom Chinye Ugboko resides and works in London.

“He had to retur n to work two weeks before the birth of our baby but he called the parish priest, Monsignor Ukah to baptize our daughter.”

While concluding arrangement to join her husband with her baby shortly, an excited Nkechi said she was glad everything went well. “I am glad to have my child, my husband is happy also to have his daughter.

As the priest has directed, we will be Vanessa’s guidance in the path of Christ for the rest of our lives.”

The couple, who hails from Asaba in Delta State, tied the knot on May 9, 2015 and Vanessa is the child that broke the matrix.

Significance, other Sacraments In a close chat with The Daily Times afterwards, Monsignor Ukah explained the necessity for obedience to the order.

“Every new bor n child is bor n with original sin, and after a week or two, the child is brought for baptism so that the original sin would be washed away. Other Churches baptize only after they are grown up, but it is a tradition of the Catholic Church

worldwide to baptize children at infancy.”

Taking the discourse further, Mercian Missionary Priest, Rev. Fr Christopher Princewill, defending infant baptism said one of the significance of infant baptism in the Catholic world is initiating the child into the Church. His analysis went like this: “The Church represents the Omni-womb that gives birth to Christians; and through infant baptism, a child is initiated and welcome into the Christian fold. Though some school of thought says the child has no faculty of reasoning and cannot exercise self will, but the child is being baptized on the faith of the Church and on the faith of the parents, so that initiation helps the child to get other sacraments as he or she grows up in the jour ney through life. It especially makes the child a member of God’s kingdom and joint-heir with Christ according to the Scriptures.”

The clergyman acknowledged that the Church has recorded Catholics who grow up and deviate from the faith inspite of having been baptized at infancy.

“It does happen, but baptism is an indelible footprint in the soul of the child, so whether he or she denies the faith or leaves the Church in later life, the baptism injunction cannot be removed from his soul.”

Features 24

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

Lagos also is our success story!

– Lagos Orange Musketeers Gbubemi God’s Covenant Snr They come trooping from the rural and grassroots areas of all the 36 states of the federation and beyond, all headed to the undisputed commercial capital city of Nigeria.

Eko, as indigenes fondly brand Lagos, ranks first amongst the most hospitable geo-entities anywhere. Her hands are always open to all comers and she has something for everyone, no matter your nativity, nationality or color – and Ambode will assure you Lagos does not insist on passport or visa to receive and accommodate all Ekaetes, Okoroas and Abdulrahims!

Now, one or two people selling the same item by the wayside anywhere may not draw attention, though it may raise eyebrows on account of competition. Traders generally love to shield their domain from intruders who want to shortchange them of their customers and half their total sales at the end of each trading day.

The Daily Times gathered that though some traders may not bother, others do - and could go the extra mile – even going diabolical to expel the ‘intruder’ from his or her domain.

Bond of unity But when three people selling the same product sit together and they do it religiously with passion, joy and love, the sight radiates and transmits a colourful aura that interprets and redefines the beauty of our humanity.

So it was exciting when our correspondent spotted three unique individuals who have carved a niche for themselves in a trade as ordinary as peeling and selling of oranges. The sight underlines the saying that there is power in the number three.

The wise King Solomon proclaimed that a threefold chord is not easily broken. A native Yoruba adage also says Aromete ki da obenu (The threelegged burner does not spill the soup).

Along the Iyana-Ipaja to Egbeda route in Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos, you will find them ever present at the Gowon Estate gate just before the very busy Egbeda bus stop.

Perched just by the road side, the three orange musketeers can be found at their duty post from 4pm to wee hours of the night.

Our correspondent stopped by on a cool Saturday evening and found the three ladies in their early 30s are close relatives from Ogoja in Cross River State.

Understandably uncomfortable talking to the press, The Daily Times managed to find out the secret that bind them together.

They live in the same neighbourhood with their families and do virtually all things in common.

Their quest to make ends meet and leave the class of idle and dependent housewives conceptualised the idea of buying orange from the same source and selling at the same spot all year round, except Sundays.

One would wonder, of all the numerous thriving trades in Lagos, why orange? The answer is not farfetched. These women know how to go about the business in a unique way; they chose a very busy spot overflowing with people most hours of the day and also capitalise on the ’rush hours’ of every day - till the night hours.

Religiously, they arrive the spot around 4pm to

Unique, demonstrable bond

We started when we realised we cannot sit idle at home and expect manners from heaven. So we saw it as something we can do and make a living. We did not emulate anybody, we just ventured into it and we have never looked back

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

25

Features

It’s not good for a woman to be idle begin the business of each day. Despite the sameness of their product, these women go about their business without friction. They never argued over which customer is buying from which of them, or who is making higher sales than the other.

The beginning The most outspoken of the three who first warned they won’t give their names and ‘no photographs’, gave a small account of their beginning.

“We started when we realised we cannot sit idle at home and expect manners from heaven. So we saw it as something we can do and make a living. We did not emulate anybody, we just ventured into it and we have never looked back.’’

In times of scarcity of the fruit, the musketeers have a solution.

“Orange doesn’t go out of season,” Chinyere (pseudonym) corrected. “We know where to hunt for orange; although when it becomes very scarce, we still get it but at a very high cost.

“During such periods, some orange sellers back out to try their hands on something else, but we still buy. What we do is that we just reduce the quantity we sell.

“For example, if we have been selling five oranges for N100, we reduce it to three.

Our customers understand

bad day, they demand N1500 and we pay.”

If politicians will allow the six geopolitical zones to flourish and bond together like these simple orange sellers, the quest for economic turnaround and national stability will be over and they do endure the trying periods with us, so business continues.”

Had they ever clashed over customers or one outselling the other?

Chinyere laughed and

The musketeers serving Lagosians at night hours

shook her head.”Never, wemuch do you pay for this don’t do that. Even if one per-space? son did not finish her own we “We normally pay N50 for all share what is left and sellcouncil ticket every day; but it off.” when the Kick Against IndisConsidering you stay by thecipline (KAI) people comes roadside without cover, howaround, we pay N1000. On a

The late night shift “Sometimes we leave here around 9:30 or 10:00pm, depending on sales. We have to go home and attend to our families.’’

Survival in Lagos is not restricted to daytime alone; business starts from dawn till the wee hours of the night.

At night hours, every corner is busy with traders selling their wares using rechargeable lamps of all kinds.

The three orange musketeers are not left out. If you come around when it is dark, you will see these exceptional women dutifully selling with rechargeable lamps firmly tucked under scarf !

The sight makes one marvel at the tenacity of the Nigerian woman, especially these ladies that work tirelessly round the clock even to the wee hours of the night to get their families going.

Happily, while the musketeers boast that Lagos is their success story, they are not without higher ambition.

“We are looking forward to going into other big business in the nearest future if such opportunity comes our way.

We are preparing for that until God will open a way for us.”

Would they be doing the same kind of business like they are doing now?

“Why not? We are very working together. It gives us strength and confidence.”

Their message to fellow women “It is not good for a woman to be idle. Whether you marry or not, do not be idle. There is joy in making your own money and taking charge of your personal needs and saving for the future.

“Every married woman should engage in some trade to assist her husband to cater for the needs of the home,” she counselled.

There is a lesson to be learnt here: if politicians will allow the six geo-political zones to flourish and bond together like these simple orange sellers, the quest for economic turnaround and national stability will be over, for if a three-fold chord cannot be easily broken, a six-fold chord would lay a solid foundation for future generations where

International 26

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

FBI chief sacking: Trump warns Comey over leaks to media ÎÎÎUS President Donald Trump

has warned fired FBI chief James Comey against leaking material to the media.

In a tweet on Friday, he said Mr Comey had “better hope that there are no ‘tapes’ of our conversations”.

Mr Comey, who had been leading an inquiry into possible collusion between Trump election campaign officials and Russia, was fired on Tuesday.

Mr Trump has since insisted he was told by Mr Comey that he was not under investigation.

Twice over dinner and once over the phone Mr Comey had told him he was not a target of the inquiry, the US president said.

His comments raised accusations among opponents that he was interfering in the investigation.

Mr Trump also said this week that he alone was responsible for the decision to sack Mr Comey, calling him a “showboat” and “grandstander”.

But this explanation appeared

to undermine earlier comments from administration officials that Mr Comey had been fired on the recommendation of Attorney General Jeff Sessions and his deputy Rod Rosenstein.

The first line of Mr Trump’s letter sacking Mr Comey refers to a memo written by Mr Rosenstein and says: “I have accepted their recommendation”.

But he later told NBC he was “going to fire him regardless of the recommendation”.

Apparently angered by criticism of the different accounts, Mr Trump used another of his tweets on Friday to say: “As a very active President with lots of things happening, it is not possible for my surrogates to stand at podium with perfect accuracy!”

He added: “Maybe the best thing to do would be to cancel all future “press briefings” and hand out written responses for the sake of accuracy???”

Mr Trump has dismissed the FBI investigation as a “charade” and has said Democrats are using

ÎÎÎ

US President, Donald Trump, Rusian PM and another after a meeting at White House, Washington DC, ... recently. “fake news” about collusion with the Russians as an excuse for losing the election.

It was unclear whether Mr Trump’s reference to “tapes” suggested there might be secret

recordings of conversations that could be used to challenge any statements by Mr Comey, or whether it was simply a way of warding him off from comment.

Zika virus: Brazil says emergency is over

Whistleblower sparks Hyundai, Kia recall of 240,000 cars

had declared a national emergency in November 2015. The threat led to a campaign to eradicate the mosquitoes which carry the virus.

There were 7,911 cases of Zika from January to April this year, compared to 170,535 cases reported in the same time last year, the health ministry said in a statement (in Portuguese).

No deaths related to the virus have been reported this year, it added, saying that eight people died last year.

Although the virus is mostly spread by mosquitoes, it can also be sexually transmitted Few people die from Zika and only one in five people infected is thought to develop symptoms.

These can include fever, a rash and joint pain It was first identified in monkeys in Uganda in 1947. The first human case was detected in Nigeria in 1954 and there have been further outbreaks in Africa, South East Asia and the Pacific Islands But in May 2015 it was reported in Brazil and spread rapidly As there is no treatment, the only option is to reduce the risk of being bitten.

dai’s i30 hatchback, its Sonata midsize sedan, the luxury Genesis and Kia’s ordered carmakers Hyundai and Kia Mohave as well as its Carnival miniMotors to recall about 240,000 cars, afvan. These models and others were ter a tip off from a whistleblower. found to have issues with vacuum The ex-Hyundai employee raised pipes, fuel hoses, parking brake light concern about defects which affected issues and several other faulty parts.

12 different car models.

The planned recalls will add to the It is the first time the country’s 1.5 million cars which Hyundai and transport ministry has issued a comKia offered to fix last month in South pulsory vehicle recall.

Korea and the US over possible engine Hyundai and Kia had earlier restalling. fused to act voluntarily, saying there In a statement Hyundai Motor said was no safety risk. it accepted and respected the recall, Kia is an affiliate of Hyundai, and but that there had been no “reported officials are reportedly asking the injuries or accidents from the cited iscountry’s prosecutor to look for any sues”. evidence of a cover up at the carmak“Safety is always Hyundai-Kia’s ers. number one priority and we make deThe models affected include Hyuncisions on recalls or any other customer protection steps in compliance with regulators around the world and stringent internal procedures.”

Whistleblowing is rare in South Korea, and rarer still when the country’s big family run conglomerates - or chaebols as they are known - are involved. The corpoMoon, new South Korean president

ÎÎÎBrazil

ÎÎÎSouth Korean Government has

Mexican mum who investigated daughter’s death killed

rate culture and obeisance to the top bosses means that very few speak out of turn.

But they do exist. Last month I met Kim Gwang-ho, the 55-year-old man behind this specific Hyundai recall.

He told me he’d decided to expose what was happening at the firm, because he couldn’t - in good faith - allow passengers to travel in vehicles he knew to be faulty.

Mr Kim had worked at Hyundai for more than 25 years, and it was obvious to me that he cared deeply for the firm and was very proud of the work that he’d been involved in.

But he also pointed out that his decision to speak out was calculated. He was nearing retirement, and didn’t have as much to lose as his younger colleagues.

A job in a chaebol is often seen as the only path to success in South Korea. And because getting one can be extremely competitive, many employees end up just toeing the line.

But Mr Kim’s story, though, seems to have a positive ending. Just this month, Hyundai Motor dropped its lawsuit against him, reinstated him to his old job, and reimbursed him for the lost years of employment.

It was what South Korea’s Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission ruled years ago, but it took Hyundai until now, perhaps amidst the changing political environment, to heed it.

Mexican businesswoman who headed a group of 600 families searching for their disappeared relatives has been killed.

Miriam Rodríguez Martínez was shot in her home in the town of San Fernando in Tamaulipas state.

She was known for successfully investigating the kidnap and murder of her daughter by a local drug cartel, the Zetas.

The information she gave the police ensured the gang members were jailed.

But in March one of them escaped and her colleagues said she started to receive threats.

She was killed on Mexico’s mother’s day, 10 May. Her colleagues said she had asked for police protection but was ignored.

State prosecutor Irving Barrios told a news conference that security needs had been met and police officers made rounds three times a day.

Her family disputes this.

The Mexican human rights commission issued a statement saying it deplored her murder and called for a full investigation.

Mrs Rodríguez founded the local group for families who were victims of violence after her daughter, Karen Alejandra, was kidnapped in 2012.

She had managed to find her daughter’s body in a clandestine grave and put her murderers in jail.

She also foiled an attempted kidnapping by the Zetas of her husband, when she chased the gang in her car, at the same time notifying the army who then managed to arrest them.

According to one of her fellow campaigners, Mrs Rodríguez felt she could not sit back after her daughter’s killers were caught.

“She told us that she was incomplete, that although she had found her daughter, nothing would ever return to normal for her,” Graciela Pérez told the BBC. Ms Pérez, who also has a missing daughter, described the murdered activist as someone “with a very strong, caring and cheerful character”.

The group she established was part of a wider trend which mushroomed after the October 2014 disappearance of 43 students from Ayotzinapa in the southwestern state of Guerrero.

Frustrated by a lack of government help, groups of families began their own searches for people who had disappeared in their areas, taking courses in forensic anthropology, archaeology, law, buying caving equipment and becoming experts in identifying graves and bones.

There are now at least 13 of these groups across the country.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

27 Africa

Karabo Mokoena murder: Suspect appears in South Africa court ÏÏÏThe man believed to be

the boyfriend of a 22-yearold woman whose killing has shocked South Africa has appeared in court in Johannesburg to face murder charges, local media report.

Karabo Mokoena’s mother wept as she arrived at the hearing.

A widespread online campaign to find Mokoena was called off on Wednesday when her father confirmed her death.

The case has sparked a

Uganda requests more international aid for refugees

fierce debate about the levels of violence faced by women in South Africa.

Police are still waiting for DNA tests to confirm the identity of the body, which they said was “badly burned”.

The case has prompted an outpouring of anger and grief in South Africa, mostly by women who took to social media to share stories of abuse they had suffered at the hands of their partners.

The suspect will remain in custody after the case was adjourned until 24 May, local

Jacaranda News reports.

The hashtags #RIPKarabo and #MenAreTrash have been trending across the country as women call for an end to violence against them.

South Africa has among the highest rates in the world for the rape and murder of women.

More than 40,000 cases of rape are reported every year, figures which are thought to only represent a fraction of actual attacks.

Being a woman in South Africa is like being trapped in a locked room - you can hear

someone walking outside and you know someone will come one day and you won’t be able to stop them.

There is nothing you can do to stop him.

Nothing can protect you - not the pepper spray in your bag, not the self-defence classes you got as a gift for your birthday when your breasts developed, not travelling in groups, not the NO you’ve been taught to say should that day come - nothing.

It is learning to be “vigilant” before you even know what it is to feel safe.

It is feeling unsafe everywhere, all the time.

African societies are built on patriarchy - every young girl grows up knowing that a man is the head, that he is powerful, that he is a go-getter, a conqueror. We are taught to admire these very traits about you, and I do. But dear God I am afraid of you - and with good reason.

The statistics in this country are not in my or any woman’s favour. They say that one day I, or someone I know, will be your victim.

US deploys more troops to Somalia

ÏÏÏ

Uganda, a country known for its “progressive” refugee policy, is hosting more than 1.2 million refugees and asylum seekers, with about 920,000 of them from South Sudan. And so the government is asking for international assistance.

Uganda’s prime minister, Ruhakana Rugunda, said his country has been receiving an average of about 2,000 refugees per day for the last six months.

“The above numbers are placing a huge strain on our already stressed ability to cater for the full water, sanitation, health and educational needs of the refugees and their host communities,” said Rugunda.

So next month, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the U.N.’s refugee agency are hosting the Solidarity Summit on Refugees, with the aim of securing $2 billion per year for the next four years to help meet the funding gap.

As the refugees pour into Uganda, they bring a host of medical needs, further highlighting the need for additional resources.

Dr. Martina Fuchs is the CEO and founder of Real Medicine Foundation (RMF), the humanitarian aid and development organization tasked with providing much of the health care in Uganda’s Bidibidi, now the largest refugee settlement in Africa. The settlement hosts more than 272,000 South Sudanese refugees.

“The largest disease burden is malaria, a very large percentage, especially in children and then also pregnant women with malaria,” said Fuchs. “So malaria is the highest. And then, gastrointestinal tract infections — diarrhea, watery diarrhea — then, respiratory tract infections, pneumonia. And then, in smaller amounts, HIV/AIDS.”

American troops in Somalia

ÏÏÏDozens of

American soldiers have been deployed to Mogadishu to train and equip Somali and AMISOM (African Union Mission in Somalia) forces fighting extremism in Somalia, U.S. military officials have said.

The troops’ arrival marks the first presence of American military forces in Somalia, other than a small unit of counterterrorism advisers, since March 1994 when the U.S. pulled out of the U.N. intervention operation in the war-torn state, five months after 18 U.S. special forces personnel were killed in a battle with Somali militiamen that inspired the movie Black Hawk Down.

“United States Africa Command will conduct various security cooperation and/or security force assistance events in Somalia in order to assist our allies and partners,” U.S. Africa Command spokesman Pat Barnes told VOA on Thursday.

The move is another example of the acceleration of U.S. efforts to help combat violent ex-

tremism across the globe, a second military official said. The goal of the operation is to build partner capacity while helping to improve the logistics of local forces battling the military group al-Shabab.

A few dozen troops from the 101st Airborne Division in Ft. Campbell, Kentucky, arrived in Mogadishu on April 2 at the request of the Somali government, a U.S. military official told VOA. The team is carrying out a train-and-equip mission that is expected to last through the end of September, according to the official.

Former Deputy Secretary of Defense Rudy DeLeon, a senior fellow with the Center for American Progress, said the U.S. team will help instill the professionalism and discipline that the local force can use to create the terms for security.

“It gives them the tools to help themselves,” DeLeon said in an interview with VOA. The U.S. usually has a small unit of between 3 and 50 Ameri-

can troops in Somalia supporting U.S.-Somali military-tomilitary relations, and advising and assisting Somali troops. The new arrivals from the 101st Airborne Division will not be added to the mission of those Americans currently on the ground in Somalia, a military official said, “but there will be some overlap.”

Last week, Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed called on al-Shabab fighters to surrender within 60 days in return for education and jobs.

Days later, a car bomb targeted senior officials leaving a military base in Mogadishu, killing at least 15 people and destroying a minibus carrying civilians, the Somali military said. AlShabab militants claimed responsibility.

Battle of Mogadishu The mission of the troops sent from 101st Airborne Division, who are training in logistics and not participating in combat or peacekeeping, is nothing like the United States’ peacekeeping role in the country more than two decades earlier.

In the early 1990s, the United Nations attempted to provide and secure humanitarian relief in Somalia while monitoring a U.N.-brokered cease-fire in the Somali Civil War. The U.S. deployed thousands of American troops to carry out these peacekeeping missions.

By late 1993, the mission had expanded to try to restore a government in Somalia.

An American special operations team was sent into Mogadishu on October 3 to capture two top lieutenants of the warlord Mohammed Aidid.

During the mission, two Black Hawk helicopters circling overheard were shot down. Men sent to remove soldiers from the crash sites became pinned down elsewhere, and a 15-hour battle raged that killed 18 Americans and hundreds of Somalis.

Days later, then-U.S. President Bill Clinton announced that he would remove all American combat forces from Somalia by March 31. The U.S. has not sent combat troops for peacekeeping missions in the country since.

Leaders attending international confab on Somalia voice support for security plan ÏÏÏParticipants at Thurs-

day’s international conference on Somalia say they will support a plan aimed at enabling the country’s fledgling and poorly-equipped army to defeat al-Shabab militants and take over national security from African Union troops.

Troops with the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), consisting of more than 20,000 soldiers from five East African countries, are due to start leaving the country next year.

In anticipation of the pullout, the Somali government recently reached agreement with the country’s federal states to strengthen the national army, police and intelligence agencies.

“We want to see the integration of Somali regional forces and an increase in Somali capacity, as this will be crucial in allowing the resumption of offensives against the remaining al-Shabab strongholds in southern Somalia,” said British Prime Minister Theresa May, addressing the conference in London.

“As part of this pact we want to see more detailed plans for Somali security reform so that Somalia can take responsibility for its own security and enable the drawdown of AMISOM troops as conditions on the ground allow,” May added.

At the conference, Somalia appealed to the United Nations to fully lift a longstanding weapons embargo so the national army can obtain heavy weapons.

“Time has come for Somalia to be able to get access to qualitatively better weapons than terrorists,” Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed told the conference.

Turkey’s Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, center, participates at the 2017 Somalia Conference in London, May 11, 2017.

The president said his country also needs a “robust economic program” to fully recover from a quarter-century of war and chaos.

“The insecurity situation cannot be changed without addressing its root causes, which is abject poverty and mass unemployment. Too many of our young generation are sitting idle, creating fertile ground for terrorists to recruit from,” he said.

Now is the time for the international community to support the plan, said Djibouti’s Ambassador to Somalia, Aden Hassan Aden.

28

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13 , 2017

Health

s

NAFDAC gets new laboratory to boost food, drug safety

Angela Onwuzoo, Lagos

As part of efforts to ensure safety of foods and drugs and other regulated products in Nigeria through improved laboratory analysis, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), has acquired a new state of the art Agilent High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) laboratory instrument to strengthen its regulatory operations.

Commissioning the equipment in Lagos on Tuesday at the agency’s Central Drug Control Laboratory (CDCL) in Yaba, Acting Director-General of NAFDAC, Mrs. Yetunde Oni, said the agency was able to procure the instrument through effective support and collaboration with the Bank of Industry (BOI).

Her words: “This instrument procured with the support of BoI will avail our laboratory analysts the opportunity to work with user-friendly, high output, sensitive instrument with multiple detectors that can handle various product types thus improving timelines of analysis of pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, veterinary and other regulated products.

“It will also equip our ana-

lysts to detect and pronounce on substandard and falsified medical products as well as unwholesome foods in our collective efforts to protect public health.”

Oni said that the goal of the agency is to achieve zero tolerance to counterfeiting of NAFDAC regulated products and to safeguard the health of the nation.

“We are determined and committed to ensuring that only the right quality foods, drugs and other regulated products are manufactured exported, imported, advertised, sold and used in Nigeria.

“We are also committed to ensuring quality and timing releases of laboratory reports, hence our quest for top-notch laboratories with adequate equipment and well trained staff to perform optimally at all times,’’ she said.

Soliciting support from other stakeholders in keeping the equipment functioning which she described as capital intensive, Oni appealed to the Federal Ministry of Health to assist the agency with a Staff Clinic, considering the hazardous nature of its operation and also to ensure a healthy workforce.

In her remarks, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Health, Mrs. Binta Bello, called for stronger collaboration between health and other sectors of the economy as it would help to reposition the

Mrs. Oni, DG, NAFDAC

health sector in areas of infrastructure support, capacity building and delivery of quality health

services.

Bello said that HPLC Laboratory would help to tackle effectively

the scourge of fake, counterfeit and substandard medicine that had been a challenge to pharmaceutical industry and the general populace as millions of Naira and thousands of lives have been lost because of the scourge.

“The use of HPLC and other very sensitive analytical techniques will be a great tool in effectively identifying counterfeit pharmaceuticals and in combating counterfeiting.

“The problem of fake drug proliferation in Nigeria has affected the credibility of the healthcare system and has exerted very harmful effects on the consumer resulting to illness, disability and even death”, she said.

Bello also added: “It is encouraging to note the various unrelenting approaches, including cutting edge technologies employed by NAFDAC in tackling this menace and bringing it under control.

“Some of the technologies deployed over the years by NAFDAC to combat the counterfeiting challenge include Truscan Device, GPHFMinilab, and Mobile Authentication Service.”

On his part, Acting Managing Director, BoI, Waheed Olagunju, said the essence of the donated equipment was to ensure that product registration time for manufacturers was reduced and efficiency increased.

WHO recommends 784 midwives for Cross River State

Edem Edem, Calabar

With a view to reducing maternal mortality rates in Cross River state, the World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended employment, training and posting of 784 midwives to all the 18 local government areas of the state. This, the organization says, was the recommended standard of 4 midwives per each of the 196 wards in the state.

Speaking at the occasion to mark the 2017 International Day of the Midwives in Calabar, Dr Edmond Egbe, Head of Office in Cross River State, said that WHO and United Nations Population Fund, UNFPA are the key Partners and are very committed in strengthening healthcare delivery in the state.

Dr Egbe maintained that the organisation has supported two functioning Schools of Midwifery with two buses and other needfuls and stressed

the need for full accreditation for the remaining Schools of Nursing and Midwifery in the state. “Cross River State needs 784 Midwives across the state at the rate of 4 Midwives per ward” he reiterated.

Speaking also at the occasion, the Executive Director of UNFPA, Dr Babatunde Osotimehin who was represented by the Head of Office in Cross River State, Dr Kenneth Ehouzou lamented women the lack of access to the services of Midwives which resulted in the dying of some 30,000 women during pregnancy and childbirth, while 3 million babies do not survive the first month of life, while another two and a half million babies are stillborn.

“UNFPA has since 2009 worked with partners to support over 600 Midwifery Schools, educating more than 80 000 Midwives. We have also strengthened national midwifery associations in 75 countries and helped enhance the regulatory framework for midwifery practice to ensure accountabil-

ity.

“To achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, we need to expand midwifery programmes, therefore I urge all governments and development partners to join UNFPA in supporting Midwives so more women survive, and their families and communities thrive,” Dr Osotimehin said.

Also speaking, the Commissioner for Health, Dr (Mrs) Inyang Asibong expressed regret toward lack of midwives in the state, explaining that in some local government areas (LGA) like in Biase, Boki, there was a humongous gap before now but as the state commences the recruitment of Midwives, that gap will gradually be closed up.

She said about 600 Midwives retire yearly and the schools of Midwifery is not functioning well to produce the capacity to bridge that gap, but they are advocating for adequacy to replace that. Consequently, the Director General Cross River State Primary Health Care Development Agency Dr (Mrs)

Executive Director of UNFPA, Dr Babatunde Osotimehin

Betta Edu said the state governor, Prof Ben Ayade is committed to bring in Midwives on board.

“He has given approval for employment of Midwives to fill our facilities across the state.

The employment is going to be done for people who reside in various LGAs; we don’t want someone who resides in Calabar going to work in Yala,” Edu said.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

29

Saturday, May 13, 2017

EXTRATIME

30

ENGLISH PREMIERSHIP… ENGLISH PREMIERSHIP… ENGLISH PREMIERSHIP…

Pochettino, Son, Pedro, bag EPL Awards T

ottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino has won the Premier League Manager of the Month award for

April.

The news will come as little consolation for the Argentine; however, as May began with a damaging 1-0 defeat at West Ham that effectively ended Spurs’ title challenge.

Pochettino led his side to six successive wins in April - scoring 16 times and conceding just one - as the north London team threatened to push Chelsea all the way.

But the 1-0 setback at the London Stadium means they will likely have to settle for second place and automatic qualification to the Champions League next season.

Son Heung-min won the Player of the Month award to make it a Spurs double.

The South Korea forward scored five goals in four consecutive matches in April to become the first man to land the award twice in 2016-17.

Chelsea forward Pedro was handed the Goal of the Month prize for his stunning effort in the 3-0 win at Everton on April 30.

The Spain international picked the ball up on the edge of the area before turning back and hammering a leftfooted shot past Maarten Stekelenburg.

Bayern boss Ancelotti denies Ribery rift B

Ribery

ayern Munich head coach Carlo Ancelotti has denied a rift with Franck Ribery following rumours of a falling out between the pair.

Reports in the French media suggested that Ribery has been at odds with Ancelotti in recent months, including a disagreement during the return leg of their Champions League quarterfinal tie with Real Madrid.

But Ancelotti, who has led Bayern to the Bundesliga title in his first season in charge at the Allianz Arena, was quick to dismiss such claims.

“No, I have no problems with Franck,” he told a media conference previewing today’s clash against secondplaced RB Leipzig.

The Italian jokingly added: “He does not understand my decisions when I’m referee in training, but I’m sure I’m the best referee at Bayern.”

Ribery has made 20 Bundesliga appearances this term, contributing four goals.

Klopp calm in pursuit of Reds transfer targets

J

No Europa final action for De Gea—Mourinho

S

ergio Romero will keep his place in the Manchester United starting line-up for the Europa League final, manager Jose Mourinho has confirmed. The Argentina international has started the last 10 matches in the competition, including both legs of the semifinal win over Celta Vigo, keeping six clean sheets in the process.

There had been suggestions Mourinho would restore David de Gea for the showpiece in Stockholm in what is a huge game for United, with a third trophy of the season and a place in the Champions League group stages at stake. However, Mourinho says Romero will retain his spot and spoke in glowing terms about the good relationship between his top two goalkeepers.

“They are two fantastic goalkeepers. I never saw, in all my career, two goalkeepers be such friends,” he said after Thursday’s 1-1 draw at Old Trafford, which saw United scrape into the final to face Ajax.

“You always have a little bit of rivalry, especially if you are both the

same kind of level. We’re speaking about the Argentina national goalkeeper and Spain national goalkeeper.

“They support each other all the time. I never saw a bad face, I only saw them support each other. I think it’s fair that Sergio plays the final and David accepts that. Especially because he played two Europa League matches, so if we win, he wins the trophy. “If everything goes normal and there are no problems, Sergio plays the final.”

United’s preparations for the final have already taken a hit as a result of Eric Bailly’s red card in the closing stages against Celta.

The centre-back was dismissed following an altercation with John Guidetti during a fracas in the middle of the pitch, which also earned Facundo Roncaglia a straight red.

Mourinho says there is little point in appealing against the decision and will instead use Bailly in United’s last three Premier League matches of the season in order to grant other defenders rest.

urgen Klopp is remaining patient in his pursuit of transfer targets for next season and concedes Liverpool qualifying for the Champions League will have an impact on their dealings in the market.

The Reds are locked in a tight tussle with Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United to finish in the top four and have just two matches to play this season against West Ham and Middlesbrough.

Klopp is already thinking ahead to next term, though, with Liverpool in discussions with players over possible moves to Anfield.

However, the German accepts several of Liverpool’s targets are also in talks with other interested parties.

“The players we are talking to, I know they have offers from other clubs. It’s important for the club,” he said.

“There’s a lot of money in the Champions League, as a football club we have to do this.

“Getting in the Champions League has an influence. But should I go to the players in the dressing room and say, ‘boys, the better you play the better the players that replace you next year are’?”

Liverpool make the trip to London Stadium on Sunday with Klopp monitoring the condition of Roberto Firmino and Lucas Leiva (both muscle injuries).

However, Adam Lallana and Daniel Sturridge, who both came off the bench against Southampton, should be fit for selection.

Saturday, May 13, 2017

EXTRATIME

31

Dalung tasks NSF electoral committee members ANDREW EKEJIUBA

T

Minister of Youth and Sports, Barr. Solomon Dalung.

he Minister of Youth and Sports, Barrister Solomon Dalung, has charged members of the Electoral Committee for the upcoming National Sports Federations (NSF) elections to shun corrupt practices capable of marring the elections and deliver selfless service for the success of Nigerian sports generally.

The Ministry of Youth and Sports released a list of the committee members on Thursday as each Federation will have a Chairman and two other electoral committee members during the elections.

According to Dalung, mem-

bers of each committee of the NSF elections were carefully chosen based on merit, experience and ability to deliver following wide consultations with the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC).

“The Ministry is determined to deliver democratically elected National Federations which will move sports to the next level. In achieving this, we are guided by rules and regulations that are not only limited to us but inspired by International best practices.

“I therefore urge those contesting not to be distracted by desperate desires to undermine the ongoing reforms in the sector. However, we must

concentrate on seeking genuine and credible support from the people for leadership.

“I urge you to resist any temptation of acting outside selfless service for our dear country. At trying moments like these, the call to duty can be Herculean but posterity will record our judgement positively. I congratulate the electoral committee members and wish them the best,” Dalung said.

Elections Congress for the election of Zonal Representatives, Vice Presidents and Presidents of National Sports Federations will proceed as rescheduled for June 13, 2017 while the adjusted program leading to the elections will be released in due course.

‘Hemery won’t repeat Joshua’s mistake’ ANDREW EKEJIUBA

C

alvin Hemery’s dad has reiterated his son’s desire to play for Nigeria declaring it’s not good for the country to repeat the mistake of Anthony Joshua.

Ehi Henshaw-Aigbekaen revealed his 22-year-old son is good enough to bring glory to Nigeria after he continued his winning run at the Dayak Tennis Championship Nigeria F2 Futures holding in Abuja.

“He is willing to play for Nigeria because he sees himself as more of a Nigerian than a Frenchman. He wants to put on Nigeria’s colour at international tournaments,” said Henshaw-Aigbekaen, who hailed from Edo State.

Continuing, he said, “He’s playing as a Frenchman but he doesn’t get as much support when he is playing abroad; they see him more as a black man but he is not complaining. All he wants is to play for Nigeria.

He talked so much about Nigeria and says he loves the country. And I think it’s not good for Nigeria to repeat the Anthony Joshua mistake in tennis.”

Calvin Hemery in action at 2016 French Open qualifiers in Paris.

Wemimo

Wemimo hints of clean up in Sunshine

S

unshine Queens head coach, Matthew Wemimo has hinted of possible cleansing of underperforming players ahead of the second stanza of the Nigerian top-flight.

The ‘Owena Mermaids’ ended their first stanza campaign on a 1-3 loss at FC Robo Queens on Wednesday in Lagos.

Wemimo said many things were not right at the start of the season which must be corrected to put the side on firm footing to compete favourably in the second term of the season.

“We have just finished our campaign in the first round of the league with a 1-3 loss to FC Robo Queens.

“We are already planning ahead for the second half of the season with a view of correcting and perfecting the loopholes that cheated us of good performance in the first stanza.

“We started the season very late as the old board was almost concluding plans to disband the club before the new management came in.

“Within the period of indecision quite a number of our first team players left the side to competitors leaving us with players who could not secure a greener pastures elsewhere.

“We only resumed barely ten days to the season’s opening match against Ibom Angels, I can say we were damn lucky to have won the match.

“Right now we are through with the first round of the league we need to fortify the team for the challenges of the second term.

“We need to do surgical operation of the entire playing force sure many underperforming players will be asked to look elsewhere while few new ones will come to take their places.

“We have well over 30 players on the call list I learnt the management said they need only 25 quality players.

“We will bring in players who are worthy to wear our colours and ready to fight at all times for good result.

“I believe that the second term will be fine in term of performance and result to help us take our rightful position in the league,” said the Falconets assistant coach.

The Akure landladies ended the group’s first term campaign on the fifth spot on seven points, five behind league leaders and champions, Rivers Angels.

April nominees for LBA revealed ANDREW EKEJIUBA

T

he League Bloggers Awards (LBA) has announced its shortlists for performances in the month of April in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL).

The LBA named Kennedy Boboye of Plateau United, Nasarawa United’s Kabiru Dogo, Ifeanyiubah’s Ghanaian manager Yaw Preko and Abdu Maikaba of Akwa United as the men to contend for the manager’s award for April.

The players’ shortlist has Katsina United big striker Chinedu Udechukwu, Akwa United’s Alhassan Ibrahim, Nasarawa United defender Yinka Onaolapo and Anthony Okpotu of

Lobi Stars.

Boboye, Maikaba and Preko led Plateau United, Akwa United and FC Ifeanyiubah respectively to unbeaten streaks in the month under review.

Dogo, named for the second time on the bounce among the LBA nominees, suffered a 1-0 reverse at ABS FC with Nasarawa United whom he guided to win their two other games in April but still squeezed himself among the top-four performing managers.

In the player’s category, Udechukwu accounted for three of four goals scored by Katsina United in the month of April while Akwa United’s Alhassan scored four goals including a hattrick in his team’s 4-2 win over 3SC on 2

April. Alhassan also provided the assist for Akwa United’s winning goal at Kano Pillars.

Onaolapo did not only put in a big shift for Nasarawa United defensivewise, his bombing runs forward also yielded a goal and two assists for the month of April from his right-back position.Okpotu completes the list of nominees vying for the April player’s award. The Lobi man helped his team to their only win of the month under review when he netted a memorable hattrick in their 3-1 win over Sunshine Stars.

The LBA will announce the winners of the player and manager’s award for April, next week.

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Why we initiated Okpekpe road race —Oshiomhole ANDREW EKEJIUBA

A

head of the 2017 Okpekpe 10-kilometer marathon road race scheduled for today, former Governor of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole has revealed the reason behind the initiative.

Speaking with Extra Time, Oshiomhole explained that he instituted the Okpekpe road race to bring government’s presence to the surrounding communities, as well as to take advantage of the natural landscape of the area.

Also, Edo State Deputy Governor, Comrade Philip Shiabu yesterday declared open, school pupils’ sports programme, tagged ‘Let’s Play’ as part of events heralding this year’s road race.

While addressing the pupils at the Edo University, Iyamo Sport Complex, the Deputy Governor encouraged the pupils to engage in all kinds of sports for their physical and mental development.

Comrade Shiabu described sports as a sector that keeps children busy meaningfully aside from keeping them away from social vices. He urged teachers to always encourage their pupils to engage in sporting activities.

Oshiomhole

Hazard eyes Ballon d’Or! E

Hazard

den Hazard is confident he can one day land the Ballon d’Or playing for Chelsea, but accepts he may have to wait for perennial winners Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to retire.

Ronaldo and Messi have combined to win the last nine but Hazard has made a strong case for consideration for the 2017 prize by playing a key role in Chelsea’s title bid.

And the 26-year-old Belgium playmaker is optimistic his chances will not be harmed by playing in the Premier League.

He said: “I hope to win the Ballon d’Or one day. It’s in my mind. “If I don’t, it won’t be a problem. I try to make a good career - the best I can - but I think some other players deserve to win it also.

“When Ronaldo and Messi retire, maybe it will be another couple of players like Neymar, Paulo Dybala or Antoine Griezmann, who knows? We will see. It’s not something I think too much about.

On plans to have a wider coverage for the exercise, Comrade Shaibu explained that government is currently working out a plan to provide sports facilities in all primary schools across the eighteen Local Government Areas of the state to regenerate grassroots sports. On his part, one of the organizers and former Super Eagles striker, Victor Ikpeba, explained that the Let’s play Initiative was born along the Okpepe race to expose the children to different kinds of sports and encourage them to engage in physical training to keep fit.

A teacher who brought his pupils out for the training, Evans Uhunamure called on government to include sports as a core subject in the curriculum of Primary and secondary schools to further develop grassroots sports.

Some of the pupils who spoke on the Let’s Play sports initiative, thanked the organizers and Edo state Government for the opportunity, describing it as a good way to keep the children fit and to better build their mental frames.

In the football match between the pupils, former governor, Adams Oshiomhole side (males team), defeated the females team led by his wife Iara and the deputy governor by 2-0.

v

Business Times Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

Naira on steady rise despite analysts’ projections Page B2

First Bank educates SMEs on access to CBN special FX window Afolabi Adesola As part of its commitment to fostering economic development and business growth, First Bank Nigeria Plc on Thursday organized a forum on Foreign Exchange (FX) accessibility for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) The forum which brought together Nigerian entrepreneurs from various segment of the country availed small businesses of the information needed to access FX from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Late April, the CBN announced that SME’s will be allowed access to foreign exchange, once they apply through a special window created for the ease of business transactions.

The forum opened with a presentation titled “FX for SME’s: Eligibility and Exploitation handled by the head of Head Product Development, Elohor Ogunde.

Elohor simplified the requirements, eligibility and benefits of the recently introduced policy by the Central Bank of Nigeria which gives Small and Medium Scale Entrepreneurs access to forex.

She explained that the new policy allows for a maximum of $20,000 per quarter to every

I want to make Sam Mbakwe Int’l Cargo Airport more flourishing – Efobi

Page B4

Unclaimed dividend fraud: The enemies within Page B3

NSE market capitalisation drops by N80bn

After over a week bullish trend, activities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on Friday ended negatively with the market indices dropping by 0.81 per cent.

The market capitalisation shed N80 billion or 0.81 per cent to close at N9.745 trillion, against N9.825 trillion posted on Thursday.

Also, the All-Share Index dipped 231.24 points or 0.81 per cent to close at 28,192.46, compared with 28,423.70 recorded on Thursday.

A breakdown of the price move-

ment chart showed that Dangote Cement recorded the highest loss, dropping by N8.50 to close at N165 per share.

Unilever followed with a loss of N1.44 to close at N38.01 and Okomu Oil dropped by N1 to close at N50 per share.

Stanbic IBTC was down also by N1 to close at N26, while Oando declined by 92k to close at N8.62 per share.

Conversely, Nestle led the gainers’ table for the day, gaining N35 to close at N835 per share.

Seplat followed with a gain of

N16.43 to close at N400 and Nigerian Breweries increased by N6.19 to close at N149 per share.

Total Nigeria improved by N5.90 to close at N268.90, while Guinness increased by N2.94 to close at N69 per share.

In spite of the drop in market indices, the volume of shares traded closed higher as investors bought and 1.06 billion shares valued at N9.19 billion exchanged in 5,342 deals.

This was against the 801.08 million shares worth N7.82 billion transacted in 6,481 deals on

Thursday.

The banking stocks remained the most traded with FBN Holdings emerging investors delight, accounting for 538.31 million shares worth N2.16 billion.

Zenith Bank followed with 106.35 million shares valued at N1.97 billion and GTBank traded 74.86 million shares worth N2.27 billion.

Diamond Bank sold 59.19 million shares valued at N59.56 million and FCMB Group achieved a turnover of 45.44 million shares worth N49.75 million.

L-R: Oludolapo Adigun, Group Head, Lagos Mainland (Retail) FirstBank; Olusola Oworu, Director, FirstBank; Ibukun Awosika, Chairman FirstBank; Shade Bembatoum-Young, ChairmanCEO, African Sustainable SME Export Trade Solutions; James Odogwu, Executive Director Operations, HIMAJ Logistics Ltd at the FirstBank/SME engagement forum tagged FX for SMEs Simplified…Thursday

CONTINUED ON PAGE B2

Use local content for economic development – Expert FISH project: 500 people get employment in Jigawa Managing Consultant, National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Mr. Asipita Umar, on Friday advocated the use of local content to foster economic development in the country.

Umar told newsmen in Abuja that for any country to develop economically, it must be a consumer of what it produces.

BUSINESS TIMES Head Business Azubike Nnadozie Asst. Business Editor Simon Ugwu Capital Market Editor Bonny Amadi

He further said that local content should be a critical issue in Nigeria’s economic development, adding that it was important for the country to begin to look inwards.

Umar said, “There is no country, no nation that has ever developed economically without becoming a consumer of what it produces. “`The best security any nation can have is food security, which means that you are able to feed your people.

“We must ensure that every item in our market and every item we take to our homes for consumption, the local content in such item is not less than 60-90 per cent.

“This will mean that we are consuming what we produce and

most importantly, it will give job to our people”.

According to Umar, the increase rate of unemployment in Nigeria was because the country import and consume what other people produce. ‘’When we depend on the produce of other countries, we are indirectly exporting jobs, we are taking away jobs to those people that produce what we import and consume”.

He said Nigerians must encourage local producers by adopting the use of Made-in-Nigeria goods for unemployment to be addressed quickly in the country.

On the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), Umar said the plan was unique, adding that its content encompassed all sectors of the economy.

The Controller, Federal Ministry of Works, Power and Housing in Jigawa, on Friday, said that no fewer than 500 people had been employed through the Federal Integrated Housing Scheme (FISH) in the state.

Chiambe, who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Dutse, said that 15 contractors were currently handling the project in the state. ‘’No fewer than 500 people, including professionals, labourers and artisans have been gainfully employed through this programme.

“Also, local food vendors, sachet water and soft drink sellers as well as barbers, clothes and hats sell-

ers, commercial motorcyclists and even photographers, are making money out of this project.

“People from the Niger Republic are being employed by some contractors, as security men while cart bull operators are not left behind. ‘’They are sometimes being engaged to transport sharp sands and other goods to the site due to the sandy nature of the environment. ‘’This is because some of the available vehicles cannot pass through such sandy areas.

“So there has been a cash flow, I mean money is changing hands among all categories of people and CONTINUED ON PAGE B2

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

Stories by Motolani Oseni Contrary to projection made recently by some foreign exchange analysts that the Nigerian currency, the Naira, will depreciate further this week, the local currency at the end of trading on Thursday rebounded against the three major foreign currencies at the black market.

The naira gained slightly against the dollar, closing at 390 against 391 it traded on Wednesday, while Pound and the Euro were exchanged at 494 and 420 respectively from the previous rate of N495 and N422.

Just last week, Ecobank Research team has said that the local currency may depreciated further this week, while explained that multiple exchange rates in the country, has doubt over the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) ability to sustain the present momentum in the medium term.

According to the bank, the naira would depreciate by -1.8 percent to -18 percent in the next one week as it would exchange between N315.5 to N378 against the

B2 Money Market

Naira on steady rise despite analysts’ projections

CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele

dollar during this period.

Although, the bank in its latest report projected that forex inflows would increase further with planned $300 million diaspora bond, following USD1bn and

$500 million Eurobond sales in Q1 2017.

Earlier in the week, the local currency against all odds appreciated against the dollar at the parallel market, gaining three points to exchange at N388 to the Dollar, stronger than N391 it traded at the beginning of the week on Monday, May 8.

At the Bureau De Change (BDC) window, the Naira was sold at N362 to the Dollar, while the Pound Sterling and the Euro closed at N495 and N423.

Trading at the interbank market showed that the Naira closed at N305.7, while the Pound Sterling and the Euro closed at N453.18 and N386.28.

Similarly, the naira at the Investor and Export window, gained to close at 383.23 per dollar recording a significant appreciation from 400 to a dollar rate sold few days

ago.

Although, it is worthy of note that the window was designed to allow investors, trade in the currency at market-determined rates. However, trading sources said investors were demanding rates above N400/dollar while locals were quoting rates as low as N350/dollar.

Traders, worried about illiquidity in the currency market despite making the exchange rate market-determined for investors, said no resolution was reached at the meeting.

“We have done deals around N400/dollar levels,” one trader said, adding that, “Some of the off-shores investors are insisting on N400/dollar.”

The CBN had in April said it would allow investors to trade the naira at market-determined rates, a move intended to improve the dol-

lar supply and attract foreign investors who bolted from Nigeria at the start of the latest naira crisis.

But forex traders believed that the liquidity boost at the spot FOREX market responsible for the local currency appreciation.

It would be recalled that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has indicated its readiness to inject more foreign exchange through intervention segments of the market, thereby heightening expectations that the Naira will appreciate significantly.

The spokesman of the apex bank, Isaac Okorafor, earlier in the week confirmed that the Bureau De Change (BDC) and the Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) along with other major segments will receive the adequate intervention with a view to providing liquidity in the entire foreign exchange market.

CIBN, top bankers to meet in 12 days

L-R: Finance Director, Mrs. Adesola Sotande-Peters; Chairman, Board of Directors, His Majesty, Nnaemeka Achebe; Managing Director, Mr. Yaw

Why NDIC debunked financial distress in Nigeria’s banking system Managing Director/Chief Executive of Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), Alhaji Umaru Ibrahim has called on members of the public to ignore rumours of financial distress in some banks that are being circulated through text messages and social media to de-market those banks and destabilize depositors’ confidence in the banking system.

The NDIC boss made this call during a courtesy call on the Corporation at the NDIC head office in Abuja by the Executive Members

of the Alumni Association of the National Institute (AANI), Abuja chapter led by its Chairman, Arc. Bola A. Balogun.

He explained that the corporation had over the years played a very critical role towards ensuring that banks were safe and sound through effective supervision of the banks, financial and technical assistance to deserving financial institutions and adoption of timely failure resolution options to problem banks.

NDIC boss informed the AANI Executive Members

that the Corporation, since its inception, had continued to closely monitor the challenges affecting the banking industry such as poor corporate governance, insider loans and non-performing loans in order to further safeguard depositors’ interest in the banking system, adding that with the NDIC’s strict supervision and regulation of the banking industry in collaboration with the CBN, depositors should have full confidence in the safety and security of their funds in the licensed banks.

He further said that the Corporation had enhanced the effectiveness of its mandate as well as its vast experience in the complex exercise of failure resolution and sought to share the experience through documentation and publication of the failure resolution of twenty (20) cases of failed insured Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in five (5) volumes.

The compendium, he added, had highlighted key lessons learnt by the Corporation in the exercise in order to prepare itself for the future.

Following the successful organisation of the 22nd World Conference of Banking Institutes, the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), in 12 days from now, the institute has again concluded all plans to meet with top bankers in the country.

In line with the tradition of organizations to render yearly accounts to their members and other stakeholders, CIBN has said that all necessary arrangements are in place towards hosting the 2017 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Institute, Scheduled for Saturday, May 20, 2017 at Ijewere Hall, Bankers House, 19 Adeola Hopewell Street, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Prof. Segun Ajibola, President/Chairman of Council, of the Institute will preside over the meeting, and according to the institute, it will attract top bankers and other distinguished dignitaries from other sectors of the economy such as Chairmen and Chief Executives of banks, Past Presidents of the Institute, Presidents of other professional bodies, top Government functionaries, Fellows, Honourary Senior Members, Associates and among others.

The meeting will consider the Annual Reports,

Accounts and other important matters affecting the Institute and the welfare of members.

It is expected that members of the Institute all over the country will turnout en-masse as well as participate actively at the discussions for the interest of the banking profession and industry.

It would be recalled that professionals and Stakeholders in the banking industry, who attended the just concluded world banking conference in Lagos, recently, cautioned deposit Money Banks (DMBs) against the practice of sending spinsters, young and married women after net worth individuals and members of the public to source for deposits with outrageous targets.

They believed that such deposit mobilization strategy is bad because it exposes these women to various kinds of inducements.

According to Mr. Adjiedj Bakas, a distinguished thought leader and author of the Future of Banking in his presentation, advised banks to embrace technology, use the ideas of young people, start financial education, recognize the grassroots in their financial inclusion drive and never be afraid to try something new.

B3

Business Analysis

Unclaimed dividend fraud: The enemies within Bonny Amadi At the last Capital Committee Meeting (CMC) of the Nigerian capital market which held in Lagos Nigeria, Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was unable to divulge the current figure of unclaimed dividend in Nigeria.

Mr. Mounir Gwarzo, SEC Director General said during a post CMC media briefing that the real figure of total unclaimed dividend figure in the Nigerian capital market is uncertain, and that it is continually dropping based on utilisation of EDividend platform.

Though, the SEC DG, could not reveal figure of unclaimed dividend paid in the last one year, he said that he cannot give a figure as current value of unclaimed dividend, but was certain that the unclaimed dividend is continually declining.

When data is tied to information, it becomes more certain and could be used as basis for assessment of progress, as well as projections for the future. This also gives guidance to any form of whistle blowing in unclaimed dividend related fraud.

However, in a statement by the SEC on 16th January, the commission while extending deadline for free e-dividend registration, announced that “over N30b unclaimed dividends has been paid so far” from the backlog of unclaimed dividends.

According to a statement by the SEC “With a view to ensuring all investors benefit from the EDividend programme free of charge, the SEC had committed to pay the cost of enrolment throughout the year 2016, and had resulted in getting about 48% of investors to enroll for the e-dividend payments. Arising from this exercise, over N30 Billion which was hitherto unclaimed have so far been credited to respective Bank Accounts of Investors.

SEC DG, Mounir Gwarzo had recently said that efforts made by the commission to ensure that

the era of stale dividends and huge unclaimed dividends in the market become a thing of the past was already achieving result with the e-dividend registration system.

However, in January 2016, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) disclosed that the total value of unclaimed dividends in quoted companies stood at N90 billion as at 30th September 2015.

Cross section of market stakeholders , reacting to the inability of the SEC DG to pronounce value of unclaimed dividend , even if it were as at 31 December 2016, said that the development could be tied to different allegation of fraud cases arising from unclaimed dividends.

Okezie Boniface, of Progressive shareholders Association of Nigeria (PSAN) speaking to Daily Times recently said that through the e-dividend platform, a lot of people are claiming money that does not belong to them.

“Look at what happened in the Afribank shareholders unclaimed dividend form, SEC said that they are investigating, till today, they have not made public , their findings” Okezie Boniface said ““I see danger looming over E-dividend arrangements that is not properly addressed before its implementation and the good it meant will definitely lead to crises. So therefore let us all sit down to chart a new way forward to solve the issue of unclaimed dividends in the capital market.

He said “How did SEC arrive at the sum of N45billion that have already been paid out by the registrars in unclaimed dividends within one year” Okezie had earlier blown a whistle of N280, 000,000 fraud from unclaimed dividends belonging to the shareholders of Afribank, of which a copy was forwarded to the apex capital market regulator.

He said that there are more of such frauds, which could also be component of the N45 billion so far paid from the unclaimed dividend

He said that the real players have been relegated to the background, while the operators, have now assumed duties as players and regulator as well, which is negatively impacting market confidence.

“Operators are now dictating the whole market that is fraud. They should concentrate on their position of making sure that they are coordinating the market and protecting players, but now, the reverse is the case, which is corruption”

Gwarzo fund. “the fraudsters are pretending to be paying to the original shareholders while they were diverting the monies into various individual accounts purported to be shareholders which turns out to be fake shareholders” Okezie’ alleges.

A senior stockbroker who spoke to Daily Times Nigeria on condition of anonymity said that he is always careful with transfers coming stockbroking from that are dormant, usually target of unclaimed dividend fraudsters, He said that his company is cautious because fraudsters zero down on dormant stockbroking firms, hence there is no activity in them and it is usually from here, that they transfer accounts to be defrauded.

“My suspicion is that this trend is being replicated in the unclaimed dividend funds. In this case, the Registrars with stockbroking subsidiaries

connive with fraudsters to fraudulently claim and converts unclaimed dividend funs to their accounts” the broker said.

According to him, the fraudsters having been provided with requisite information by the registrar and brokers, now approach the front desk of a Registrar , give details of their unclaimed dividend in their procession, mainly from N100 million and above, and the process of opening bank accounts in the dividend owners name commences.

The broker revealed that from his findings, the fraudulent accounts are usually opened in the names of owners of such large amount of unclaimed dividends.

Having also fraudulently secured all other necessary documents and other relevant identifications, they may be required to provide by the registrars, which the fraudster will forge, the fraud is processed.

“Having met the re-

quirements of the registrars, the fraudsters will be issued with the e-dividend mandate form by the registrars and the moment they med the necessary conditions, the amount will be paid in the fraudsters account through e-dividend. “At the end of the day, the money will be shared between the fraudulent registrar, the broker and the fraudster” the broker divulged.

Ambassador Olufemi Timothy of Renaissance shareholders Association of Nigeria told Daily Times that corruption in the capital market fuels fraud, and this could be traceable to the market players.

When you think of the capital market, you have to think of the operators, the players and then, the regulators’ among this three set of people, we have to find out who is in control and who is actually supposed to be in control.

Olufemi said that the market operators having taken over everything in the market, now serve as operators, players as well as regulators. “Go to the regulators, you will see the operators there, the DG SEC was an operator in the market, he is a stockbroker” He said that an operator being a regulator cannot be fair in regulating the market, and there is no way such a regulator can regulate his constituency, adding that bias, equity, fairness and justice, may be lacking under such circumstance.

“The cause of individual corruption cases in the capital market is because the system has not been fully regulated, those who are doing the playing, regulation, they saw a lot of loopholes and they are exploiting such loopholes to commit a lot of infractions and which cannot be controlled” Olufemi said.

Meanwhile, based on the figures earlier provided by the SEC, the N90 billion unclaimed dividend in 2015, may have been pruned down by either 50 per cent or below. The onus according to stakeholder’s lies on providing public information that shows beneficiaries of the N45 billion unclaimed dividend paid within one year.

However, the general believe of cross section of capital market stakeholders and shareholders within the investment community, is that the capital market fraud on unclaimed dividend is fired by the enemies within.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

B4 Business Interview

I want to make Sam Mbakwe Int’l Cargo Airport more flourishing – Efobi

Pleases can you tell us about yourself ?

My name is Henry Efobi.

I have worked in Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria FAAN for 27 years. I started as Aviation Security (AVSEC) Officer and I have worked in many airports in their aviation security units. I have headed quite a number of airports in terms of security. Two years ago, precisely, 2014, the management of FAAN found me worthy to be appointed as airport manager and they posted me to Sam Mbakwe International Airport. Coming here, I saw what was happening. Overtime, the airport has improved in terms of structure. We tried as much as possible to improve on it.

My priority when I came here was to first motivate the staff in whatever way.

Since then, we have been doing in-house training for the staff.

How about the cargo terminal, is it ready?

From my observation since I came here, the cargo section here is being done by the State government. It is one of the promises the governor gave to his people.

The cargo section is moving fine and the structures are coming up as we now have about six to seven buildings there now. The state government is doing something to make sure it takes off as soon as possible What is the relationship between the management of the airport and the state government?

The relationship between the management of the airport and the Imo State Government is cordial. The relationship has been very fantastic. We are working together for the common good of the people. We hold meetings and sometimes I visit the governor as well.

Whenever, I visit and he knows am there; he always responds positively. In such meetings, I do tell him what we need to do and he listens to me. The relationship has been very fantastic.

Are you getting any assistance from the Imo State government?

The Imo State Government is doing well. The governor has done some things in terms of security. He has renovated the police sta-

Mr Henry Efobi is the Airport Manager of Sam Mbakwe International Airport, Owerri, the Imo State capital. In this interview CHUKWUEMEKE IWELUNMO, the airport manager speaks on the activities of the international cargo airport and his plans to take the airport to the next level. Excerpts… tion. With respect to the police, he is doing very well.

On the cargo terminal, he has taken some steps in that direction. He came and we discussed. We told him our challenges, especially the issue of communities encroaching into the airport premises. The governor played a very big role in that regard; he even sent his deputy at a point, telling the communities that they should not encroach into the airport premises.

He also made them to understand that the existence of the airport is basically for their own good. On our own part, we are not relenting but trying to see what we can do.

There is this issue of communities holding the airport manager hostage; did you experience it?

I have not experienced that. Since I came, they have not done that because I studied their grievances and I know what they are looking for. I told my Managing Director about the issue and he listened. So, we adopted some strategies.

For example, the indigenes constitutes about 60 per cent of the 185 staff that is in our pay roll. We have been helping them through employment. We were able to do this through the goodwill of FAAN MD, Engineer Saleh Dunoma who is a very good administrator and most importantly, a listening leader. With Dunoma’s focus and robust leadership qualities, we were able to contain any kind of hostages. We also have meetings with the communities where we discuss ways forward and I am in contact with them and their leadership.

Whenever, they want to do anything, they tell me and I give them advice too.

Such understanding and rapport have helped to reduce that agitation, which they feel is against them.

The federal government, on their own part has also been doing something, especially in the area of security. We now have the Nigerian Air Force which

came into the area only few months ago. They are supporting us and we now have full time patrol around the airport premises. We have strong arms support as a result of the presence of the Nigerian Air Force in the area. In addition, the Commander of the Base 211, Group Captain Lazarus is a very fine and proactive officer. With them, I think the issue of security in the area will be a thing of the past.

Do you have plans to generate revenue from non-aeronautical areas?

Yes, we have such plans.

We are working on those areas. There are some of the things I marshalled out and we have formed a committee to look into those areas so that they can fine tune how they can work out effectively to generate revenue. We want to open a General Service Area where shoe makers, vulcanizers, wrist watch repairers, tailors and other artisans can trade and do business in the environment. We are also planning to commence branding of Sam Mbakwe International Airport. Such branding is going to start with water.

We want to start branding portable water and we are already talking with some consultants to know how to go about it. When I came, a lot of people were complaining of food poisoning, arising from impure water.

When we brand with water, it will not only create awareness for Sam Mbakwe Airport but will assist in improving the health of the people through pure and reliable water source.

What are you doing to see that FAAN has staff buses and staff quarters at Sam Mbakwe International Airport?

That is a very serious issue which I met when I took over. When I came, staff buses were working and I repaired some vehicles which we use to carry our staff. However, we have some plans and if it materializes, those issues would be solved. For staff

Efobi quarters, our management is aware of that. But I am planning to talk to developers so that we can see how to synergize and come up with something. You know I don’t have the power to approve, so I will lay it before the management for them to look at it. These are the things we have in mind. The state is also listening to us in that regard but such projects involves a lot of money.

We have some airlines coming into Sam Mbakwe Airport; are you expecting more?

The issue of airlines coming has always been there.

Most of them like to come during festive periods because of the high traffic and load factor during that period. Airport operation is capital intensive. So everybody wants ways to make money. However, I have to thank Air Peace.

They are making us proud and we are so proud of them. In my own capacity, I have promised that we would do anything humanly possible to make sure they maintain that process.

How are you coping with power supply?

The issue of power is very difficult and I tell you that we don’t have a dedicated line. Though efforts were made in the past, because a team was set up to tackle that issue shortly before the change of government. We don’t have dedicated line; we don’t even have power.

The independent power generators have not been helping. We pay as soon as they bring their bills; even though they don’t give us light. This is because we don’t want to give them the room to cut our light.

With the magnanimity of the headquarters, we have 1,000 KVA power generating plant and one other 500KVA. So that is what we have been using. We live on diesel and it is a very expensive diesel. You people should pray for us because the pressure is high.

Is there any firefighting mechanism and what is the level of your firefighting system?

We have firefighting system. For now, we have category 8 fire tender.

What is the relationship between FAAN and other aviation agencies?

We have very amazing rela-

tionships. We have avenues where we meet. We have airport security committee meeting where we meet. It is held once every month where issues are discussed.

Once we have any report, we make sure they have it too.

Give us a picture of your dream Sam Mbakwe airport in the future?

I want Sam Mbakwe Airport to be like Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) or Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. My dream is to make it to be more flourishing, so that FAAN would make their money while passengers would also have a beautiful place where they can relax in a cool environment. We want to do it in such a manner that when they go they tell others.

What message do you have for stakeholders?

My message is that I want stakeholders to pray for us for God to give us the wisdom and proper direction to make their passage in this airport a very formidable and sweet memory. I want them to sell the airport to other passengers.

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

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Saturday, May 13, 2017

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L3

The making of DTN Awards winners Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan won this grammes he launched during his tenure. These include the Presidential Initiative for the Northeast (focused on improving infrastructure and economic growth in the region), the Victim Support Fund (a partnership with the Private Sector that raised an estimated 60 billion Naira to help empower and rehabilitate the victims of terrorism), and the Safe School Initiative (centered on creating a safe environment to encourage children in the communities to acquire education).

As Tuesday, May 16, 2017 date for the Daily Times of Nigeria Awards approaches, facts have emerged on how distinguished Nigerians and Africans were selected, among myriads of others. The winners of the Awards as found by Daily Times are not just great achievers, but great minds that relish in excellence.They serve as eyes through which millions of others see the world. Below is a summary of these heroes and heroines.

Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo of Gombe State The only Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governor elected in the North on 11th April 2015, Governor Dankwambo won the Times Heroes Governor of the Decade Award for his commitment to the unity of Nigeria, enduring democracy and institutionalization of democratic ethics. form. He works out of his comfort zone as the only governor from a minority party in among zone dominate by governors from the ruling party, yet he exhumes performance and leadership that transforms.

He demonstrates the saying by Roy T. Bennett, author of stepped outside your comfort zone that you begin to change, grow, and transform.”

Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo

Muhammadu Buhari President Muhammadu Buhari Nigerians acknowledge that President Muhammadu Buhari, at 72, is not a quitter.

Defeated in the last three elections, he achieved a historic victory in the 28th Dr. Okezie Victor Ikpeazu

Dr. Okezie Victor Ikpeazu of Abia State Renowned biochemist, teacher and a highly acknowledged Public Servant, Dr. Okezie Victor Ikpeazu of Abia State, won the Times Heroes Governance Award for his commitment to the redevelopment of the state through reinvigorated skilled entrepreneurship and provision of infrastructure.

Governor Ikpeazu, in his leadership style demonstrates “Success is not how high you have climbed, but how you make a positive difference to the world.”

economy. Governor Jibrilla has remained great inspiratory to many others, bringing out the lessons that chief want every one remains who to inspire them to be what they know, they would be.

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) when he came into power on 7th January 2016.

The arrest of the decline of the Ghanaian cedi brought some relief to investors and business owners and

position among democratically advanced nations of the world and a leading position in Africa, thus, a mirror of democratic Africa, where rule of law reigns supreme.

Dr. Olusola Saraki

Dr. Ibe Kachikwu

Gen. Yakubu Gowon Former Military Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, Times Life Impact Award winner, has continued to make positive impact on the most populous nation.

His commitment to unity of Nigeria and ensuring national cohesion and true integration has built bridges across hearts, communities, states and ethnic nationalities For his commitment to enduring peace, good leadership and sustained national political, socio-economic development has remained the watch word of many Nigerians who have now become disciples and propagators of the movement “Go on with One Nigeria (GOWON).

erment and economic advancement of the country. Under the watch of Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, the oil and gas sector, particularly the NNPC is beginning to live up to its mandate of producing fuel for local consumption and export to the international market – for the economic survival of the Nigerian nation. Kachikwu has made life time impact on the lives of Nigerians across all geo-political zones, as under his supervision, the Nigerian petroleum sector has recorded impactful progress, revitalising loDr. Ibe Kachikwu -

Dr. Oby Ezekwesili Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, Life Time Award winner has remained an incorruptible human right advocate, laced with ecclesiastical lesWillie Obiano

other person by planting a lasting smile on his/her face.

From her high academic height, Dr. Ezekwesili has always humbled herself to feel the pulse of the common man, rendering her support, strength and power to secure better living for not just the under privileged, but the oppressed, the neglected, the forgotten and the abandoned among many others.

Dr. Oby Ezekwesili

Lt. Gen Danjuma (rtd) Lt. Gen. TY Danjuma (rtd) has continued to make lasting impact in the lives of many people across Nigeria and beyond, either through the corporate fronts, through the TY Danjuma Foundation and from his personal contributions.

Danjuma, as Times Life Time Award winner is committed to enhancing the quality of life of Nigerians by supporting initiatives that improve access to health and educational opportunities, peace, entrepreneurial development and national peaceful co-existence amongst others.

Times Woman of the Decade Award Mrs. Ibikunle Awosika Mrs. Ibikunle Awosika, the Times Woman of the Decade Award winner, has

Pastor Paul Adefarasin

Governor Ezenwo Nyesom Wike of River State Nigerian lawyer and ace politician, Gov Nyesom Wike of River state won the Times Heroes Governance Award for his restoration of peace in the state and state infrastructural development.

Pastor Paul Adefarasin has continued to make notable impact on lives of people across the globe from his standpoint in Nigeria.

Adefarasin spreads the gospel that sible to God. God builds back the pieces by taking the powder and reforming it to

Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State

Bindow Jibrilla

President Nana Akufo-Ado President Nana Akufo-Ado of Ghana towered above his peers with his record of at least, one achievement a day in the

business.

Times Life Impact Award winners

Gen. Yakubu Gowon

Nana Akufo-Ado

National Assembly (NASS) a new drive aimed at making national assembly budget/ expenditure public.

Saraki trails on wisdom, experience, quality and determination to lead the largest legislative body in Sub-Saharan Africa, creating positive leadership impressions and demonstrating democratic tents which synergizes with the true Nigerian tradition.

Saraki has through his leadership style, demonstrated that he is not only a politician, or democrat, but also a teacher that inspires.

The Senate president has through his administrative style at the Nigerian Senate always demonstrated, in the words of Jim Rohn , that “the challenge of leadership is to be strong but not rude; be kind, but not weak; be bold, but not a bully; be humble, but not timid; be proud, but not arrogant; have humor, but without folly.”

from less than $6 billion to $8 billion, among others.

Akufo-Ado who defeated an incumbent, is consistently working to lift the living standard of Ghanaians and ad-

Akinwunmi Ambode

Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State The Lagos Mega City brand Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode won the Times Heroes Governance Award for his urban renewal and infrastructural development.

the 6-3-3-4 education system to be elected governor, won the Times Heroes Governance Award for establishing unity and political harmony among the constituent parts of the state.

direct investments (FDI).

Goodluck Ebele Jonathan

Abubkar Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi state, won the Times Heroes Governance Award for his commitment to agriculture and agric related businesses.

Abubakar Atiku Bagudu

to perform its statutory duties as well as relative non-interference with electoral and judicial matters, resulting in great numbers of governorship elections that were won both at the polls and in the court by opposition parties in Anambra, Imo, Osun states, among others.

It would be recalled that GEJ, as Jonathan is fondly referred, opened up Nigeria to the global business commu-

and civilian.

Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State

Chief Willie Obiano, Governor of Anambra State The security conscious Governor of Anambra state, Chief Willie Obiano, won the Times Heroes Governance Award for his enhanced and sustained state security and infrastructural developments among other giant strides.

Willie Obiano, is not just doing great things in Anambra state, but also as a great leader, empowering his people to do the greatest things

tenure. It was calculated that about 67% of Nigerians had access to potable water as against 58% before his administration.

History credits him with the conduct of free and fair elections in the country, including the 2011 poll which was adjudged to be the most credible election of its magnitude that has ever been conducted in the country, though it was

retains a rare reputation for honesty

Governor Bindow Jibrilla of Adamawa state Business tycoon turned politician, Governor Bindow Jibrilla of Adamawa state won the Times Heroes Governance Award for his motivation for the youths and laudable development Ezenwo Nyesom Wike

opposition candidate in Nigeria to defeat an incumbent.

He is seen as incorruptible and a disciplinarian, therefore Nigerians love him for his strict campaign against indiscipline and corruption.

In addition, most Nigerians are impressed with his praiseworthy effort

Senate President, Dr. Olusola Saraki

Yahaya Bello

approach that has re-injected live, hope, Pastor Paul Adefarasin new positive aspirations into millions of people across the globe.

Mrs. Ibikunle Awosika

professionals, entrepreneurs as a global lous country.

Awosika has remained a strong force and role model for all, and her contribution to overall development of Nigeria, economies across the country and Sub-Sahara Africa, has remained indelible.

Lt. Gen Danjuma (rtd)

George Opong Weah Liberian humanitarian, politician, and retired professional footballer has made and in many years to come, will continue to make an indelible mark creating happiness in the lives of millions of people across the world including in his home country, Liberia.

The celebrated African Footballer, George Oppong Weah, who is noted more as an African than being a Liberian, is seen as a light, motivator, and enigma by many youths who aspire George Opong Weah to evolve as professionals in which ever profession they have chosen.

Interview L4

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

I agree I am a fool for staying that long in an abused marriage –Mercy Aigbe Aigbe also revealed that the last incident started few days before when she discovered that her husband was sleeping with a lady, a lady she claimed to be her friend whom she was close to. This was a regular attitude of her husband; a man she claims has slept with a lot of people close to her, even her PAs. She confronted him and it led to a huge argument which was turning violent before she had to keep quiet.

On the day of the incident, Mercy had informed her husband that she was attending a burial of her colleague. After his hesitance, she explained that it would not be fair on the lady since she had promised to be there and even invited him to come along.

Mercy revealed that it was her refusal to go and pick her husband up while she was still at her on her. He was said to have driven there and started to beat her in the presence of everybody.

“Immediately, I opened the door, he kept beating me. I was begging him and asking why he was beating me. He said he would destroy my face such that no make-up would Many who have been following the marriage crisis of talented Nollywood actress, Mercy Aigbe, in the past three week may have heard enough of the issue as both parties are at loggerhead.

Mercy had accused the husband of physical violence that has affected her sight and caused her to bleed internally from the physical abuse allegedly meted out to her on Easter Sunday, April 16, 2017.

When she was asked why she came out to say her husband never touched her, she was quick to refute it. “I never for once came out to say that my husband did not beat me. The video people were referring to what happened in 2013 when there were rumours of such and I did a video recording alongside my husband to debunk the claim. At that time, I had to do it to protect his image and my marriage. I had to do a live video at that time”, she said.

About Beating…

“He beats me consistently.” When probed on why she stayed that long after the consistent beating, Mercy revealed that she did so because she wanted a home. “I stayed because I loved him and because every time he beats me, he begs and gets family and friends to beg me. He promised regularly to change but he never did. When my husband gets angry, he gets physical, not only to me but to anyone. He has done that with my house help who reported him to the Police years ago.

“I stayed because of my children and because a lot of people look up to me. I was a role model of some sort and I really wanted to keep it together. I just wanted a home.

Why she wants to leave now…

who was possessed. I told him “Lanre, mo ma bi mo fun e” (translated as “I have a child for you).

In the exclusive interview, the Nollywood star said she agrees that she was a fool for staying that long even with all the beating and humiliation. “I believed that a wise stayed that long”, she said.

The Nollywood actress revealed that her husband broke her orbits which will necessitate a surgery for her to see properly.

“My husband was in detention for over seven months and I never left him or went anywhere. Why would I want to go now? He said all this is make-up. He is not showing any form of remorse and still sponsoring lies against me.

However, the recent court verdict by the Lagos Magistrate court sitting in Ikeja last Tuesday where Mr. Gentry was arraigned in court on a three-count charge bordering on breach of public peace, assault and causing grievous bodily harm to his wife brought the issue to the public space again.

The court heard that the Mr. Gentry constantly beat up the Nollywood actress and in the last assault, hit her on the nose, which caused her to bleed profusely.

Police prosecutor, Inspector N. Peter said the offence was contrary to and punishable under sections 157 (f), 168 (a) and 171 of the Criminal Law No II, Vol. 44 Laws of Lagos State of Nigeria 2011.

DailyTimes reports that Gentry pleaded not guilty to the three-count charge offence.

The presiding magistrate, Mrs. O. Aje-Afunwa, reportedly granted him bail in the sum of N500, 000 with two sureties in like sum.

According to the reports, both sureties must show

she revealed.

Lagos with title documents.

him I was going to pack out for some time while my husband seeks therapy. I just wanted to feel safe, that is why I moved my things out. This last beating was brutal. I actually thought I was going to die”.

Life&

Gentry was reportedly remanded in Ikoyi Prisons for failing to perfect the bail conditions before the close of the day and would remain in prison custody until he perfects his bail.

It is, however, important to note that since court sat on Tuesday; DailyTimes can authoritatively state that Mr. Gentry is still in Kirikiri as he is yet to perfect the conditions of his bail.

Despite none interest shown by the daughter of the actress saga, Nigerians on social media have come for the 15 yearold Michelle via Instagram asking her position on the matter with much reference bieng made on the supposed injury sustained by her mother.

Why mercy needs to focus more on health……

Although the news of the marriage saga of Mercy and her hotelier husband, Lanre Gentry, is currently one of the most trending topic on social media, TV and print media; some have backlashed the actress for wanting to remand the husband in prison over assault, others are more concerned According to a reliable source, Mercy is expected to leave the shore of the country soon to undergo an eye surgery as a result of the broken orbit of the left eye.

Daily Times Nigeria

Saturday, May 13, 2017

Relationship L5

Nwaokocha Daniel

Dairy of Abigail Dead.

TTT

Marvis

Gist L6

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

Mutiat Alli

Kemi Afolabi shoots multi-million naira Ariya Repete: Ten artistes selected for quarter finals in Osogbo, Abeokuta all- female cast movie, Mo’ Dorisa winner, each for Fuji and each from Osogbo and AbeoRepete, a talent hunt competi-

other artistes thrilled the audience with contemporary music from both

each clinching a grand

and Fuji performances

-

-

the winners were held in Osogbo

In Oshogbo, three Fuji and

Akure, winners from both cities will compete with others selected in Akure, Ibadan, Ilorin,

two Fuji contestants were cho-

in Abeokuta with the

teresting, educating and unique story line

Ariya Repete, an ini-

Written by Yinka Olaoye, Produced by -

the stables of Nigerian panded music talent hunt platform that seeks

the strength, importance and problem-

genre in from Abeokuta are Alha-

further attest to the saying that what a man

plans are currently towards the nation wide importance of sustaining our rich cultural -

DStv premium subscribers set to enjoy series pop-up with M-Net Binge to roll? Because, instead of waiting for another week, you want to watch

od drama indulgence – are

watching has become a

will offer a special lead-up to the much-anticipated

a chance to binge on their

Nigerian-British acwill act in the coming

true story about an African-American doctor who was tried for mur-

will bring you all nine epithemed and curated con-

special treat for fans of ries: a brand new, weekends-only “record channel” mium customers across the African continent the opportunity to record an entire season of top-notch were screened on chan-

episodes, will come your way in three batches on

troit

neighbourhood

clearly distinguish between channels built around fresh

neighbours

runs between 05:00am until midnight and chan-

self - resulting in the death of a white man and a murder trial for

recent highly acclaimed spoon and Nicole Kidman leading a powerhouse

the true story of the

fans to catch up with the best of the best shows that

-

indigenous Yoruba music that includes Fuji

David Oyelowo to star in ‘Arc of justice’

If so, reach out for the reremote control, because

different locations would be reduced to 10 and this would be further pruned -

It was a night of fun as Antenna

While themed binge when the end credits of

the two indigenous Yoruba music genres and commitment to promote the culture of the people

Fathia Balogun and producer, Kemi Afolabi, on set

In a bid to further promote our rich cultural heritage, talented Nollywood actress, Kemi Afolabi, has engaged top Nollywood talents in her multi-million naira project ies featured the likes of Fathia Balogun, -

manuel Agu said, “the brand is using Ariya

attempt-

Daily Times Nigeria

Saturday, May 13, 2017

Mutiat Alli

International act, Zmny, releases ‘Hater Free Ft. Ray J’

alongside

big

acts

like

Mixed Grill L7

The Voice Nigeria: Yemi Alade joins Timi Dakolo, others in season two

Zmny

How Nigeria can build a positive Image—PR expert A PR executive and Chief executive

especially

in and

Comic actor, Samuel Ajibola, to host Obasanjo Presidential Library Confab

by

the positive image Speaking

on

announced as host of the upcoming

“One of the things vast that

employment is

because

ing

Timilehin Bello ised by the Youth Development Cen

and I am so glad to be the pilot of the

Peace Advocate and Development to the development of the nation

Entertaiment Feature L8

Daily Times Nigeria Saturday, May 13, 2017

Binyelum Ewulluh

How Adesua Etomi was the highlight of my first #NECLIVE5 experience beyond her acting skills and beauty.

Maybe the fact we both attended the same secondary school had a little to do with my admiration (even though I never knew her back then), but I sure do love the woman.

Other panelists included actor, Toyin Abraham, veteran broadcaster, Patrick Doyle, MD, Multichoice Nigeria, John Ugbe and moderator, Channels TV reporter, Seun Okinbaloye.

here and there.

Things got quite interesting when Adesua pointed out that the Nigerian movie industry did indeed have some (a call it a well-functioning one.

Patrick Doyle, who was having none of that, reminded her of how this same industry she was now attacking gave Thankfully, she had the perfect answer, reminding him that she could have stayed back in the UK where she spent skills, but instead chose to bring those same skills back home to share with her own people and make Nollywood and urge to stand up and give a resounding round of applause at this point.

Not missing a bit, Toyin Abraham added her voice and

Adesua quickly defended herself by reminding the now heated panel session that her point was not to condemn the industry, but start a conversation that would make

My admiration for her doubled with every word that came out of her mouth.

NECLIVE, I had been a little ill and was afraid I might miss out on it after all. Uh oh, there goes my chance of hearing Adesua Etomi speak, was my most dominant thought.

Thankfully, I was slightly better the next day and was good enough to attend. I luckily, registrations were still ongoing so there was just enough time to settle in properly and get ready for the big event.

Ade Bantu, Frank Donga and moderator, Listening to people like Frank Donga

– who spends most of his time making jokes and doing his best to look like the most clueless person in the world – speak intelligently on important matters that concern the entertainment industry was quite an interesting surprise.

My ears were on major alert mode all through. It was quite an educative panel.

Next came my all time favourite panel forward to this particular session made it a lot easier for me to immediately connect with the conversation.

Not only was I curious about the topic:

to seeing a different version of one of my favourite actresses, Adesua Etomi, who I admired for many reasons that went

living in denial of their shortcomings as an industry. There was a roaring round of applause at this point, the loudest being mine of course.

A few minutes later, the panel came to an end and everyone was back to smiling at each other and pretending like they were not close to throwing blows (I exaggerate) minutes before.

I was super excited to have witnessed that intense conversation.

I rushed after Adesua the minute she got off the stage and headed towards the back. She struck a few poses for our ready cameras and phones, a kind smile lighting up her face every now and then.

So much beauty and talent in one petite body, I thought in admiration as I watched her take a few more photos with some fans and answer some questions before leaving.

There were four other sessions and a few break-out day and nothing could beat that for sure.

And so, I spent almost the entire day sitting through a conference, which ordinarily should have been boring, but I left there with the feeling of someone that had just been on an interesting adventure.

It was well worth it.

And by the way, congratulations on your engagement, soon-to-be husband, Banky (who I happen to love as well) a happy home.