09.10.14
THURSDAY
FOR GOD AND COUNTRY
Years
No. 2,271
N150
NIGERIA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL NEWSPAPER
Chibok DAY Diary
178
Leadership Newspapers
@leadershipNGA
2 DAYS TO GO... FG, NEMA Have Abandoned FIRST GRADUATION CEREMONY OF Chibok, Community Laments > Page 2 BAZE UNIVERSITY, ABUJA 30
Jonathan Ranked 6th Richest African President By GeorGe AGBA, UGochUkwU IrokA, Abuja with agency report
President Goodluck Jonathan has been ranked the sixth wealthiest leader in Africa by Rich Lifestyle, a US-based website. In an article entitled, ‘Richest
Presidency condemns report, threatens legal action
African Presidents 2014, the website compiled a list of the
nine richest presidents and kings in Africa. According to the article,
President Jonathan shares the sixth spot with King Mswati III,
US Records First Ebola Death > Page 4
the king of Swaziland, each with a net worth of $100 million. The leaders on the list, according to how they were ranked on the site, are as follows; Angolan president, Jose ➔ CONTINUES ON PAGE 5
Jubilation As Ngilari 5 Takes Over In Adamawa Why Fintiri lost out INEC suspends Saturday’s by-election Yola
Adamawa
May 29, 2011
Governor Murtala Nyako was sworn in.
June 18, 2014
Governor Murtala Nyako was impeached.
July 15, 2014
Speaker, Hon Umaru Fintiri, was sworn in as acting governor.
October 8, 2014
Court removed Fintiri, ordered Ngilari’s inauguration.
Former Deputy Governor of Adamawa State, Mr Bala Ngilari (middle), before a Federal high court in Abuja, yesterday ordered the chief judge of the state to immediately swear him in as the governor. Photo By nan
There Are Many Fifth Columnists In Armed Forces – CDS > Page 4
2
chibok diary 178
Thursday, October 9, 2014
DAY
Chibok TweeTs
@shehuas a responsible government,worthy of that tittle will not allow 1 citizen to be held by terrorists #wearehere #BringBackourgirls @FLoTUS @heardinLondon Because they deserve us not to forget they are still not home: #BringBackourgirls @gidi_Traffic "@austynzogs Members of the #BringBackOurGirls (BBOG) group during a meeting at the Unity Fountain in Abuja. PHOTO BY
"how can the world move on without 219 promising young women" #BringBackourgirls Movement @gidi_Traffic "@austynzogs: #BringBackourgirls is callin for a global week of action beginning october 11 to demand the immediate release of #Chibokgirls @_accalmie In Nigeria, hundreds of female students are still missing after having been kidnapped by Boko haram. #BringBackourgirls #BlackLivesMatter @abu_aaid "Don't talk, just act. Don't say, just show. Don't promise, just prove." #BringBackourgirls #StopBokoharam Day177 @rescueourgirls 177 days since hauwa M. Maina from #Chibok. will she ever come home? Never forget. #BringBackourgirls Compiled by Iroka UgoChUkwU
OYEDELE OMOKAGBO
FG, NEMA Have Abandoned Chibok, Community Laments We have not, NEMA responds BY EjikE EjikE, Abuja
The chairman of Chibok community in Abuja, Tsambido Hosea-Abana has lamented the abandonment of the Chibok community by the federal government and its emergency agency, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), saying they failed to offer assistance to the community since the current insecurity, which has greatly affected the community began. Speaking to LEADERSHIP yesterday, Mr Abana noted that since the wreaking of havoc and abduction of schoolgirls in Chibok, the federal government has refused to offer any assistance to the community. The chairman, however, explained that some days before the visitation of the presidential fact-finding committee on the abducted schoolgirls to Chibok, some NEMA officials brought a few bags of rice and
garri and dumped them carelessly in the village, where some people packed them. He said, “It has become so bad that even the government has refused to help us out. We are pleading for help so that those who are really affected by this insurgency would benefit from whatever help that may come from government”. Meanwhile, the spokesperson for NEMA, Sanni Datti has described as misleading, the allegation that NEMA abandoned Chibok. While responding to the above allegation, Datti told our reporter that Chibok has benefited immensely from NEMA’s intervention. He also noted that an evidence of the agency’s intervention could be seen on http://sanidatti. blogspot.com/; NEMA facebook page or even on a visit to its Abuja headquarters where proof can be obtained. Datti further noted that the agency has also held a meeting with the finance minister and concluded plans to send more relief materials to Chibok.
WHY YOU SHOULD CARE ABOUT TOILETS SANITATION IS A GLOBAL NEED BUT A NEGLECTED PRIORITY
1/3
BECAUSE IN RURAL
AREAS OF DEVELOPING COUNTRIES 1 IN 3 PEOPLE HAVE NOCHOICE BUT TO DEFECATE IN THE OPEN
BECAUSE EVERY 20 SECONDS, A CHILD DIES AS A RESULT OF POOR SANITATION
BUT STILL SANITATION REMAINS A NEGLECTED ISSUE. ONLY 1/4 OF TOTAL WATER AND SANITATION FUNDS ARE SPENT ON SANITATION
3
our stand Thursday, October 9, 2014
Stop Stigmatising Ebola Survivors
S
ince the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) was imported into Nigeria by the index case, Patrick Sawyer, the Liberian-American, we have witnessed uncommon determination on the part of all and sundry to defeat the disease. Mercifully, the various measures put in place by government, corporate organisations and the citizenry have yielded positive results. So effective have the measures been that the minister of health, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, had the confidence to declare that Nigeria is now Ebola-free. The total number of confirmed cases of EVD in Nigeria as at September 10 2014 was put at 19. On the global plane, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported a total of 4,846 suspected cases and 2,375 deaths (2,898 cases and 1,386 deaths being laboratory confirmed). In many areas where stigmatisation and ostracisation of victims and their relatives are rife, many infected people and those who have had contact with them have gone underground.
That development led to the unprecedented shutdown of businesses and human movement in Sierra Leone and Liberia, in order to identify and quarantine infected persons. Ebola has since found its way into the United States of America through another Liberian national, Thomas Eric Duncan. The US Centre for Disease Control has promised to stop the disease in its tracks so that it doesn’t spread to others. But the recent announcement that a Spanish nurse at Madrid’s Carlos III Hospital who treated a patient repatriated from Sierra Leone had twice tested positive for Ebola, reminded the world once again that this is a disease that respects
Editor Sadiq Abdullateef Deputy Editor Kazeem Akintunde Editorial Board Safiya M. Adamu, Chairman Christian Ochiama, Deputy Chairman Standards Aniebo Nwamu, Director ’Lara Olugbemi, Assistant Director
Founder Sam Nda-Isaiah
no borders. Her husband and another nurse have also been admitted to hospital and are in isolation. The Spanish are fighting the disease with all their might. In Nigeria we have conquered the disease. For once, we have a reason to beat our chest and tell the rest of the world to come learn from us. But we are yet to win the war against stigmatisation, as shown by the case of the two Ebola survivors who were sacked by their employers in Lagos for fear of spreading a disease that no longer afflicts them. According to the state commissioner for health, Dr. Jide Idris, “The social problem being faced by discharged cases ranges from stigmatisation, eviction from their accommodation, being asked to stay away from work and termination of employment.” We join the Lagos and federal governments to appeal to all Nigerians, particularly employers of labour, not to discriminate against Ebola survivors. Stigmatisation in this case is not only irrational and unscientific, but also socially irresponsible. We must win this other war against discrimination too.
Chairman Hajiya Ireti Kingibe Group Managing Director Azubuike Ishiekwene Group Executive Directors Michael Okpere Dr Kazeem Durodoye Divisional Directors Iyobosa Uwugiaren Ademola Oladosu Salisu Alhassan Bichi General Managers Aminu Abubakar Sule Abdulmumin Balogun Zipporah D. Tanko Joy Adekanye
Leadership Holdings
Managing Director Abraham Nda-Isaiah Executive Director Nnamdi Samuel New York Office Mohammed Bello Shehu London Office Dr Bello Salihu Johannesburg Office Abiodun Oguntuase
LEADERSHIP is a national paper symbolically embedded in the nation’s capital. We shall stand up for good governance. We shall defend the interest of Nigerian people even against their rulers, and we shall raise our pen at all times in defence of what is right. These are the values by which we intend to be assessed. We shall never, ever for any reason forget the noble reason of our coming into being: For God and country!
4 news extra
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Group News Editor: Tony Amokeodo There Are Many Fifth Columnists In Armed Forces– CDS The Chief Defence Staff, Air Marshal Alex Badeh, yesterday raised the alarm that there were too many ``fifth columnists’’ in the armed forces as the national security adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki, said terrorism was tearing the country apart. The two top security chiefs stated this in Abuja at the on-going three-day workshop on ``Security/Media Relations in Crisis Management,’’ organised by the office of national security adviser in conjunction with Trim Communications Nig. Ltd. Reacting to some lead papers presented by the director of information in his office, Major General Chris Olukolade, Dr Tonnie Iredia, Professor Pat Utomi, Dr Tom Adaba and a BBC correspondent, Badeh used the occasion to clear Olukolade over the statement credited to him that the Chibok girls had regained freedom. “If your people are misleading you, what do you do? There are too many fifth columnists, too many fifth columnists. There was a report which says oh, we have seen some of the Chibok girls, only eight are missing, it was a very senior officer that gave that information from Chibok area. “ We are dealing with that situation. That was when people started saying watch what (Maj.Gen.) Chris Olukolade says. But he was misled by one of us,” Badeh said.He compared the counter insurgency war in the country to the ones in Iraq and Syria, but lamented that while helps were coming to both countries from the international community, none was extended to Nigeria. “If you look at what is happening, what is happening in Nigeria with Boko Haram is not different from ISIS in Iraq and in Syria, in fact our own people are more vicious but everybody has gone to Syria, to go and assist but who have come to assist us? We are just being left alone to do it.” Terrorism Is Tearing the country apart- Dasuki In his contribution to the discourse the NSA, Dasuki has called for collaboration with the media in the fight against terrorism, stressing that insurgent activities was undermining the unity of the country. He urged the media to join hands in fighting the insurgents by publishing stories that would not celebrate the activities of the criminals. Dasuki said, “Insurgency is tearing what holds our country apart. Their activities are new not only to Nigeria, but to the whole world. The media should stop celebrating their activities and ensure professionalism takes priority in their reports.
By Alo Abiola, Ado-Ekiti
L-R: Chairman of the occasion, Alhaji Muktar Baba-Ahmed; former Ekiti State governor Niyi Adebayo; former head of state Gen Abdulsalami Abubakar, and outgoing Ekiti State governor Kayode Fayemi, at the commissioning of the administrative block and library of the School of Nursing and Midwifery, Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital in AdoEkiti, yesterday.
Abdulsalami Pleads With Insurgents, Seeks For Dialogue By Alo Abiola, Ado-Ekiti
Former Head of State, Gen Abdusalami Abubakar (Rtd), has pleaded with the Boko Haram insurgents to shealth their swords and dialogue with the federal government to put an end to the crisis rocking the nation. Abubakar, whose administration returned the country to democratic rule in 1999 after his short stint as the military head of state , also advised politicians and the electorate to give peace a chance and be
law abiding before, during and after the 2015 general elections. He made the plea yesterday in Ado Ekiti while commissioning the administrative block and library of the School of Nursing and Midwifery, Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado Ekiti built by Governor Kayode Fayemi-led administration. While decrying the activities of the insurgents which has led to the death of thousands of innocent Nigerians in the northeastern part of the country the
ex-military leader said, “As someone who was privileged to survive the civil war , and saw our country return to democracy, I am troubled by the challenges currently confronting our country.” Also speaking at the event, Governor Fayemi said his administration’s huge investment in the health sector was aimed at banishing poverty from Ekiti, saying, “I have always believed in the age- long axiom that health is wealth.” The introduction of social security scheme for the elder-
ly according to him, was to back up to the free health mission, where over 500,000 people had benefited in the last four years, knowing full well that poor health condition could be caused by poverty. Gen Abdusalami, who expressed sadness at the terror attack on the Nigerian nation, which he said has given the country a bad name among the comity of nations, said, “Never in history has our country been subjected to this kind of bloodletting and disrespect for the sanctity of human lives.”
US Records First Ebola Death By Abiodun Oluwarotimi, New York, Winifred Ogbebo , Victor Okeke and George Agba, Abuja
The first patient diagnosed with ebola in the United States has died, a Dallas hospital announced yesterday. Thomas Eric Duncan, a Liberian man who contracted ebola prior to visiting Texas last month, died at 7:51 a.m. US time. He was 33. “He fought courageously in this battle,” Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital said in a statement obtained by our correspondent. Duncan’s case has shaken the public since late September, when he became the first person to arrive in the U.S. with an undetected ebola infection. No one had ever died of the virus in America until yesterday. The first U.S. case of ebola also called into question the preparedness of the nation’s healthcare system. The Dallas hospital had initially sent Duncan home with the diagnosis of a low-grade fever. He was brought back three days later
in an ambulance. Duncan’s condition had continually worsened since he was first diagnosed of ebola on September 30. 591 Nigerian Health Volunteers Set For Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea Nigerian volunteers from different health professions numbering up to 591 have offered to join the international force in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea to assist in the containment of ebola virus disease in these countries. Minister of health, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, who gave the hint yesterday after the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting noted that he had already disclosed the arrangement by Nigeria to send health volunteers to the three countries at a separate meeting on ebola which was attended by world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly held in New York. Ebola Becoming Airborne, Possible – CDC
The ebola virus becoming airborne is possible, the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) director, Tom Frieden, said yesterday. The outbreak involves Ebola Zaire, a strain that is passed through bodily fluids and not through the air. But some experts have expressed fear about viral mutations due to the unprecedented, and rising number of ebola cases. We’ll Produce Drugs, Vaccines In Nigeria- NIPRD DG The director-general, Nigerian Institute of Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD), Prof. Karniyus Gamaliel, has boasted that the institute has the capacity to produce drugs and vaccines for the dreaded ebola virus disease while bemoaning the lack of funds for research in the country. Gamaliel, who is the co-chairman of the Treatment Research Group (TRG) on Ebola in Nigeria, stated this at a press conference
organised by the group yesterday ahead of a stakeholders’ meeting organised by the federal government to review efforts at containing ebola. World Bank: Ebola, Terrorism, Threats To Nigeria’s Economy In 2015-16 Economic growth in Nigeria and some major African countries may exceed five per cent in 201516, but Ebola, terrorism and other risks still pose concern, the World Bank yesteday reported as it began its annual summit in Washington, DC. In the newly released World Bank’s new Africa’s Pulse a copy which was obtained by our correspondent yesterday morning, the global bank said African economies would continue to expand at a moderately rapid pace, with regional GDP growth projected to strengthen to 5.2 per cent yearly in 2015-16 from 4.6 per cent in 2014, despite weaker than expected global growth and stable or declining commodity prices.
NEWS 5
Thursday, October 9, 2014
LIVING LIVING TOTO BE BE 100100
One health tip daily Watch Out For Lead In House Paint
House paint containing lead is largely banned in the US and UK, but could be present in older houses. Leaded paint is Ngilari
Jubilation As Ngilari Takes Over In Adamawa By Donald Ojogo, Bayo Oladeji, Chibuzo Ukaibe, Kunle Olasanmi, Edegbe Odemwigie Abuja; Gbenga Soyele, Lagos and Mohammed Ismail, Yola
There was spontaneous jubilation in Adamawa State yesterday as Mr James Bala Ngilari, who served as deputy to former Governor Murtala Nyako’s regime for seven years, was sworn as the substantive governor of the state by the president of the Customary Court of Appeal, Justice Audu L. Lagre, at the council chambers of Adamawa State Government House, Yola. Signs that something out of the ordinary was in the offing started manifesting when the stakeholders’ meeting with political parties, civil society groups and others convened by INEC, which was scheduled for 10am, could not start as scheduled after all the stakeholders, including the acting governor, had all arrived at the venue. As the waiting game continued, news started filtering in that the Federal High Court in Abuja had sacked the acting governor, causing the atmosphere to become tense. Later, INEC chairman Professor Attahiru Jega apologized for the late commencement of the meeting, saying he had received information that the court had stopped the by-election. Double Tragedy for Acting Governor In what appears like a double tragedy, Fintiri was deserted by his political associates and aides when it became clear that his attempt to stop Ngilari’s swearing-in was futile. Following the Federal High
Court ruling which sacked him from office, the former acting governor filed an appeal against the judgement, praying for a stay of the orders of the court pending the hearing of his appeal. He also stayed put at the Dougirei Government House, Yola, surrounded by his aides and political associates who watched to see if his last-ditch effort would work. However, when they realized the futility of his attempt, and following the withdrawal of his security apparatuses and the arrival of the High Court Judge to swear Ngilari into office, they all deserted him and quickly rushed to register the allegiance to the new governor. Similarly, Fintiri could lose his seat as the speaker of the state Assembly in line with the federal character principle as he and the new governor hail from the same ward. Journalist humiliated by security agents The Adamawa State Correspondent of the Daily Newswatch was yesterday beaten to pulp while trying to snap pictures of the former acting governor who was packing out of Government House, Yola. The overzealous security men who wore gloomy faces descended on the hapless reporter, inflicting bodily injuries before he was rescued by some good Nigerians. The incident drew the ire and condemnation of the general public who called on the authorities to investigate the situation and bring the erring security operatives to justice as such action violated the reporter’s fundamental human rights. ➔ CONTINUED ON PAGE 6
an often ignored source of lead in the blood and the greatest source of lead poisoning in children.
Jonathan Ranked 6th Richest African President FROM FRONT PAGE
Eduardo dos Santo, who has ruled Angola for 34 years, topped the list with a net worth of $20 billion. His daughter, Isabel dos Santos, has also been ranked on the Forbes Africa’s billionaires with a net worth of $3.8 billion. She’s currently Africa’s richest woman and also the world’s richest black woman. Coming in second is Mohammed VI, the king of Morocco with a net worth of $2.5 billion. He ascended to the throne following his father’s death in 1999 and is also ranked as the country’s leading businessman. In third position with an estimated net worth of $600 million is Equatorial Guinea’s Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo. He came to power in August 1979 by ousting his uncle Francisco Macias Nguema in a military coup. He has overseen the emergence of the nation as an important oil producer, beginning in the 1990s. Following close behind, with a worth of $500 Million, is Kenya’s Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta. According to the website, Kenyatta and his family own stakes in Kenya’s largest dairy company Brookside Dairies, media company Mediamax, Heritage Hotels, Commercial Bank of Africa and hundreds of thousands of prime Kenyan lands. The website named Paul Biya, the leader of Cameroon for 31 years, fifth wealthiest African leader with a net worth of $200 million. The sixth spot is shared by Jonathan and King Mswati III of Swaziland, both with estimated net worth of $100 million each. Chadian ruler, Idriss Deby, who has ruled for 23 years comes in eight position with a net worth of $50 million. Rounding off the list is Zimbabwe’s multiple election winner, Robert Mugabe, with a net worth of $10 million.
Jonathan
Jonathan Denies Being Worth $100m ...Threatens court action against authors of report President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday described as baseless and libellous the article in the website, RichestLifestyle.com, which listed him as the sixth richest African president with an estimated net worth of $100 million. Accordingly, he has threatened to drag the website as well as other media organizations that have reproduced the report to court should they fail to retract the report and tender an unreserved apology to him. A statement by his special adviser on media and publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, condemned the “totally unwarranted inclusion” of Jonathan’s name in the publication, describing it another attempt to unjustifiably portray him as a corrupt leader “and incite public disaffection against him.” Abati stated: “We categorically assert that there is no factual basis for ranking President Jonathan as the sixth richest African head of state with a net worth of about $100 million. As is well known, President Jonathan has never been a businessman or entrepreneur but a life-long public servant. “The President has held public office since 1999 and has regularly ➔ CONTINUED ON PAGE 6
6 NEWS
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Jubilation As Ngilari Takes Over In Adamawa FROM PAGE 5
The federal government yesterday averted a major constitutional crisis when it directed the chief judge of Adamawa State to swear in former deputy governor Bala Ngilari as governor of the state in compliance with the judgement of the Federal High Court. There were fears that the orders of the court may not be complied with until the appeal process launched by the sacked acting governor of the state, Umar Fintiri, was disposed of, a development that would have left the state without a governor in active or substantive capacity. The federal government’s directive, contained in a statement issued by the attorneygeneral of the federation and minister of justice, Mr. Bello Adoke, also called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to “keep in abeyance” arrangements for this Saturday’s by-election. “This directive is in obedience to the judgement of the court and the need to avert a vacuum in governance and possible constitutional crisis,” Adoke explained. The former Speaker of the House of Assembly, Alhaji Umar Fintiri, was also ordered to vacate office as the acting governor of the state. Adeniyi ruled that the alleged resignation of Ngilari on July 14 was invalid, null and void, as it breached the provisions of Sections 306(1), (2) and (5) of the 1999 Constitution because it was addressed to the speaker, rather than the governor, and acted upon by the House of Assembly. INEC suspends Saturday’s by-election INEC, in compliance with the court ruling and federal government directive, subsequently suspended the Adamawa by-election. The decision by the electoral commission to halt the election, which was contained in a statement by its acting secretary, Musa Adamu, noted that the court had granted an order restraining INEC from conducting a by-election to fill the office of governor of Adamawa State. “In compliance with the court order, INEC hereby suspends all preparations for the conduct
of governorship by-election in Adamawa State, which was scheduled to hold on Saturday, October ii, 2014,” it said. The court verdict In his judgement, Justice Ademola also ordered the Adamawa State chief judge or the president of the Customary Court to immediately swear in Bala Ngilari as the substantive governor on the ground that his purported resignation as a deputy governor was not effective in the face of the law. The court further stopped INEC from conducting byelection to the office of the governor as the said office was not vacant. Fintiri, who until his assumption of office as acting governor, was the speaker of the state House of Assembly had announced the resignation of Ngilari shortly before former Governor Murtala Nyako was impeached. The resignation letter was, however, read at plenary by the speaker after which the lawmakers approved it. After his impeachment, Nyako issued a statement saying that the letter written by his deputy was of no consequence because the constitutional stipulation is that the deputy should have written to him as governor. Ngilari had, however, approached the court through his counsel, Festus Keyamo, seeking to declare his resignation illegal and also give an order immediately removing the current acting governor of the state, Umaru Fintiri, and to install him as governor. He also want the court to order the Chief Judge of Adamawa State or In his judgement, Justice Ademola noted that the main issue in the suit was to determine whether the plaintiff effectively resigned his office as the deputy governor of the state. After listening to all the arguments of lawyers in the matter, the court held that, going by Section 306(1) (2) and (5) of the 1999 Constitution, the purported resignation letter displayed by the State House of Assembly was not valid within the contemplation of the law. “For a valid resignation, there must be a personal letter from the deputy governor to the governor. It is not the duty of the state House of Assembly to accept resignation letter of the
deputy governor. The condition precedent for resignation was not satisfied. It is not a valid letter of resignation. “There is no proof of letter of resignation before the court. Going by this, the plaintiff did not resign from office as the deputy governor of Adamawa State on July 15, 2014 as claimed by the defendants,” the court held. It also declared the former speaker’s swearing-in as unconstitutional and illegal and hence should he be removed immediately, asserting that going by Section 191 of the 1999 Constitution, after the impeachment of Nyako, the deputy governor should be sworn in. My Emergence, An Act Of God - Ngilari Ngilari was yesterday sworn in as the substantive state governor at Government House in Yola by the president, Customary Court of Appeal, Justice Audu Lagre, in compliance with the court order sacking acting governor Ahmadu Fintiri from office. In his address after taking the oath of office, Ngilari described his emergence as an act of “God who gives power to whoever He chooses. “We acknowledge the divine power of God in all that happened. The holy books of both religions subscribe to the fact that power belongs to God and He gives it in trust to whosoever he wills.” He further stated that he would run an open, transparent and all-inclusive government. “In this regard, I invite other arms of government, in particular the legislature and judiciary, not forgetting the civil service, to join hands with me to achieve these noble goals. “As a party man and a team player, I pledge my unalloyed support and loyalty to our great party and Mr President,” Ngilari said. He promised to build a society based on justice, adding that he would do away with all primordial tendencies in his government. “I’ll build a society based on justice, equity and fair play, and I will work with all arms of government for the speedy development of the state,” he said. In his first official function, the governor announced the
appointment of Mr Chubado Tijjani as his chief of staff. Fintiri Goes To Appeal Court Meanwhile, Fintiri yesterday appealed the High Court judgement that removed him from office. His lead lawyer, Chief Bayo Ojo, SAN, disclosed that a motion for a stay of the court orders pending appeal had already been filed at the Court of Appeal. In a statement, Ojo said: “The implication of this is that the orders of the court cannot be complied with until the appeal process is disposed of. This is the position of the law as the law allows anyone who is challenging an order of a court not to obey such order until his constitutional right of appeal is exhausted.” Adamawa APC reacts The Adamawa chapter of the All Progressive Congress (APC) yesterday described the court verdict sacking Fintiri as a welcome political development for the state. “One down. We are looking to the next judgement regarding (former governor) Nyako with full hope. Once more, the judiciary deserves commendation for checking impunity,” the APC state chairman, Madam Binta Garba, stated in Yola. Our members should obey court verdict – PDP Briefing journalists at the PDP national secretariat, the national publicity secretary of the party, Olisa Metuh, said the party had looked at the judgement critically and resolved that its members should obey the decision of the court. “The PDP is a law-abiding party, and we have, therefore, advised our members to obey accordingly. As done in every legal matter, there is right of appeal but, in the meantime, the PDP has enjoined our party members to obey the decision of the court,” he state. Judicial verdict delays PDP’s rejection – Atiku Former vice president and APC presidential aspirant Atiku Abubakar on his part said even though he was bound as a democrat to abide by the verdict stopping Saturday’s governorship by-election in
Adamawa State, it had only delayed the overwhelming desire of the people to vote out the PDP government in the state. Atiku, in a press statement by his media office in Abuja yesterday, said: “The judicial verdict that may have tacitly cancelled the governorship byelection in Adamawa State for now was a painful development for the membership of the APC in Adamawa State.” How Fintiri Lost Out Indications that Fintiri had fallen out of favour with the powers that be began to emerge as early as his early days in office as acting governor. While strategists within the PDP and the presidency had mulled that the governorship of the state should go in the direction of Adamawa South senatorial district, the insistence of Fintiri to run for the office had elicited political tension and raised many hard options. For one, even though Fintiri’s ‘recalcitrance’ as the governorship race heightened may have saved the PDP ticket from slipping into the hands of former EFCC boss Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, that courageous move may have been seen as stubborn, hence punishable at an appropriate time. Ribadu’s entry into the governorship race was hevily linked to the presidency. In effect, while Fintiri played the big brother role, particularly emboldened by the incumbency factor in paving the way for the ‘forced exit’ of Ribadu, he was perhaps oblivious of having committed some political offence, more so as he had rebuffed powerful forces in his desire to be governor. The presidency, the PDP NWC and the very influential PDP Governors’ Forum all viewed Fintiri’s ambition as ‘uncharitable’ and ‘ominous’: other speakers might want to embark on similar fortune drive to remove the governor and take over. This could be deduced from the swift disqualification Fintiri suffered in the hands of the PDP screening panel. Even though he was eventually cleared to participate at the party’s governorship primary, Fintiri was alleged to have threatened to work against PDP if the disqualification was not upturned.
Jonathan Ranked 6th Richest African President FROM PAGE 5
declared his assets as required by Nigerian laws. He has had no personal income since 1999 other than his official remuneration as deputy governor, governor, vice president, acting president and
president, which are matters of public record.” The presidential spokesman further stated that there had been no significant variation in the totality of Jonathan’s personal wealth as contained in his last assets declaration to the Nigerian
Code of Conduct Bureau in 2011 which, it said, was a far cry from the $100 million figure listed by the website. While threatening to go to court if the authors of the report fail to retract it and tender an apology to the president, Abati noted that the
insinuation of the publication was that the president had corruptly enriched himself while in office, which, he said, was certainly not the case. “We therefore demand a retraction and an unreserved apology from Richest Lifestyle.
com and all those who have reproduced the offensive article; otherwise, they should be prepared to substantiate their libellous claims against the president in courts of law within and outside Nigeria,” Abati warned.
news extra 7
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Etsu Nupe Preaches Fear Of God At Shettima Nupe’s Fidau The three days Fidau prayers of Shettima Nupe, Alhaji Mohammead Sallah Shettima took place yesterday in Bida with the Etsu Nupe, Alhaji Yahaya Abubakar calling for more commitment to the path of Allah because the world is transient. The late Shettima Nupe, who passed on Monday, 6th October, 2014 at the age of 63 after a brief illness, was one of the close confidants of Etsu Nupe. The Royal Father said at the Fidau Prayers, “This is to refer to what God said in his Holy Quran to mankind that we should always remember to move closer to God to observe the five pillars of Islam as no one knows the day he/she will return to God Almighty”. The Etsu Nupe described the late Shettima as a pragmatic, honest and patriotic person who was dedicated, hardworking, respectful and detribalised in all his dealings with people Etsu Abubakar said the late Shettima Nupe was a traditional leader, technocrat and moralist who sacrificed his entire life to ensure the growth and development , not only of the Nupe race but also of the entire Nigerians. “His death is a great lost not only to nupe land. Niger state but to the entire country, I pray to Allah SWT to grant the soul of Late Shettima Nupe eternal peace as well as grants the members of his family the power and ability to bear the repairable lost. By Abu Nmodu, Minna,
Buhari Has Not Appointed DG For Campaign – Lawal A political disciple of General Muhammadu Buhari, Engineer Babachir David Lawal has said that the former head of state has not appointed the director general of his campaign organisation as reported yesterday by the media. The national dailies were awash yesterday with the report that Buhari has appointed Dr Audu Ogbeh as the director general of his campaign organisation. He said the misrepresentation has to do with the name of Ogbeh who signed a statement as coordinator for the Buhari camp. Speaking with our correspondent yesterday, while reacting to the media reports, Lawal explained that the former national chairman of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was acting on behalf of Buhari’s supporters. “Chief Audu Ogbeh is a strong leader among Buhari’s supporters. He issued the statement on behalf of the group,” he said. By Bayo Oladeji, Abuja
L-R: President Goodluck Jonathan, welcoming Asagba of Asaba, Prof Chike Edoziem, during the visit of Anioma people to the Presidential Villa in Abuja, yesterday. PHOTO BY NAN
$9.3m Scandal: APC Asks FG To Explain AsariDokubo’s Involvement APC lied – Asari-Dokubo By George Okojie, Lagos Chibuzo Ukaibe, Abuja
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has asked President Goodluck Jonathan to explain to Nigerians what Mujaheed Asari-Dokubo was doing on the plane that illegally ferried US$9.3million to South Africa, where Asari-Dokubo, another Nigerian and an Israeli were said to have been arrested. In a statement issued in Abuja yesterday by its national publicity secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said since the federal government has taken ownership of the funds by saying the national security adviser (NSA) issued the end-user certificate for the arms purchase, the same government ought to know the involvement of all those aboard the plane. It said that the federal government has a lot of questions to answer on the whole deal, including whether Asari-Dokubo is the contractor or the end user, who he was procuring arms for and for what purpose. APC said the questions became pertinent because even the NSA, who issued the end-user agreement for the purchase, does not and cannot purchase arms for any of the armed services. “The service chiefs have separate budgets from the NSA for arms purchase. Under our Constitution, the NSA is an adviser and has no executive powers to
deploy troops from any of the services or purchase arms for them. “That the arms purported to be purchased from South Africa were ordered from the office of the NSA is nothing but a mere fabrication, and raises serious questions about the motive for the purchase. “Nigerians will, therefore, like to know on whose behalf AsariDokubo was purchasing arms. This is very crucial because Asari-Dokubo has been threatening that Nigeria will not know peace if his benefactor, President Jonathan, is not re-elected. Therefore, Nigerians will like to know whether he has started stockpiling arms to make his threat a reality, since elections are due in a few months’ time. “If these arms are meant to fight insurgency as the government has claimed, what is Asari-Dokubo’s business purchasing arms for the Nigerian military, if indeed they were for the military? Did it not occur to the Nigerian government that this man who once took arms against the state may not have jettisoned his sinister plan against the same state? Which country will ever allow a man who once carried arms against the state to now be purchasing arms for the same state? Even if it is true that he is purchasing the arms for the state, what prevents him from also using the opportunity to purchase arms for his own sinister motive? Could this be why Asari-Dokubo has been talking publicly and confidently, without official censure, that President Jonathan must
be re-elected or Nigeria will not know peace again?’’ the party queried. It further said, “In our press release on Tuesday, we again asked President Jonathan to come clean on the US$9.3 million and US$5.7 million deals. We also asked him to tell Nigerians the identity of the two Nigerians who were on the plane that illegally ferried the money to South Africa. Now that the Nigerians are known, and they are the president’s men, the story has taken a new dimension”. APC said since those who claim to be fighting for Nigeria’s unity may actually be the ones working against it, and since those who lay claim to patriotism may actually be anything but patriotic, it is more urgent now than ever, for the National Assembly to take these cash-for-arms deals seriously, instead of dismissing the concerns of Nigerians on the basis of some rules as the House of Representatives has glibly done. The party commended the media for keeping the story alive and for working hard to unearth the identity of the Nigerians aboard the ill-fated plane that illegally flew money into another country in violation of that country’s laws and all known tenets of decency. It called on the media, in pursuance of its constitutional role of a watchdog, not to relent in exposing the circumstances surrounding the cash-for-arms deals, which have seriously embarrassed Nigeria in the comity of nations and which have the potential to threaten Nigeria’s uni-
ty, going by the latest revelations. Meanwhile, the leader of the Niger Delta People’s Volunteer Force (NDPVF), Alhaji Asari-Dokubo has refuted claims that he was involved in the $9.3million arms deal in South Africa, stressing that the last time he entered South Africa was in 2002. Asari-Dokubo was reacting to a call by the APC for the federal government to explain his presence in the plane that was impounded by the South African government. A statement by APC’s national publicity secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, alleged that Asari was on the flight that carried the cash to South Africa. Asari who reacted from Saudi Arabia where he is performing the 2014 Hajj said the “APC has reduced itself to a party of liars,” noting that the last time he visited South Africa was in 2002. He said, “Can you enter any country without a visa? No person can enter any country without a visa. Presently, I am in Saudi Arabia performing my Hajj as the Amirul Hajj of Bayelsa State and this can be confirmed. I flew Flynass from Kaduna on the 27th. So, it is really a shame that Lai Mohammed who has defiled the name of Allah has become a pathological and award winning liar. “Nobody enters any country without a visa and I have not been to South Africa since 2002. My passport is present. I flew Arik Airline from Lagos on the 27th and went to Kaduna where I flew Flynass Airline and came to Saudi Arabia.”
8 news NATIONAL Insurgency: Royal Fathers Want Military Retirees To By Ejike Ejike, Abuja Assist FG The Economic and
Thursday, October 9 2014
Shell Gas Project: EFCC Refutes Bribery Allegation
Traditional rulers in the country have made a passionate appeal to retired military officers to regroup behind President Goodluck Jonathan in the fight against Boko Haram activities and other crimes that pose great threat to national development. The call was contained in a statement issued yesterday by the Governing Council of the National Development Summit of Traditional Rulers, ratifying the 14-point resolution of its 7th summit held recently in Abuja. According to the statement signed by its national secretary, Igwe (Prof) Laz Ekwueme, the summit believes that the experience and expertise of the nation’s retired military officers were germane in the ongoing war against terrorism. By Christiana Nwaogu, Abuja
Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has described the bribery allegation against some of its officials over the Gbaran Ubie Gas Project in Bayelsa State as a calculated attempt to deceive the public. A statement sent to LEADERSHIP by the commission, signed by its spokesperson, Wilson Uwujaren said, “The attention of the EFCC has been drawn to a report which was widely syndicated in the newspapers and online media on Monday, October 6, 2014, alleging the involvement of offi-
cials of the commission in a bribery scandal over the Gbaran Ubie Gas Project in Bayelsa State. “The commission is constrained to respond in the interest of readers who might have been misled by the sponsored story.” “For the avoidance of doubt, there is no truth in the claim by Chidi David Adebanya that officials of the commission demanded gratification from him to throw out the case, as it is inconceivable that any official of the commission would ask for a bribe, let alone promising to make returns to the attorney general and minister of justice, Mohammed Bello
Adoke. This is preposterous! According to Adebanya, the bribes were demanded in 2011. The important question is, why has it taken him three solid years to go public with the allegation?” The statement added, “The reality is that nothing of such happened. The contrivance is a ploy to discredit the case instituted by the EFCC against Adebanya. The petitioner is currently standing trial before the Federal High Court, Abuja on charges of obtaining money under false pretences. “He allegedly used his position as Interface Manager for Shell to extort his employer through a
phony consultancy in connivance with officials of the Bayelsa State Ministry of Urban Development.” “He allegedly awarded himself a consultancy contract using his company “Forstech” being run by his girlfriend, Uzoma Ibe, an accomplice. The “team” milked Shell of N1.9billion in consultancy charges for the Gbaran Ubie gas project.” The statement further said that rather than prove his innocence in court, Adebanya resorted to selfhelp by petitioning the House of Representatives and seeking to scandalise the EFCC through spurious allegations.
short news UNFPA Decries Female Genital Mutilation
Jonathan Will Be Re-elected In 2015 – GWW
The United Nations Funds for Population Activities (UNFPA) has decried the practice of female genital mutilation across the country and called for action to protect adolescent girls’ rights and health. Dr Babatunde Osotimehin, UNFPA executive director, made the call in a statement on the forthcoming International Day of the Girl Child. The statement, made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Abuja, noted that the event is held annually on October 11. Osotimehin said that over 70 million young women between the ages of 20 and 24 in developing countries were married before the age of 18. He said the practice is depriving them of their health, education and autonomy. By NAN
A group committed to the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan, Goodluck Jonathan Will Win Organisation (GWW), has expressed optimism that the president will be re-elected in 2015. A statement signed by its national coordinator and national organising secretary, Dr Titus Obiorah and Adamawa State governor Bala Ngilari (left) taking his oath of office before Justice Audu Lawal in Yola, yesterday. PHOTO BY NAN Comrade Habib Gajo respectively, said, “We believe that the obvious surge in the population of Nigerians who agree that President Jonathan has performed creditably to merit a second term is justified. By Osa Okhomina, Yenagoa oil theft. Commander Atewe added that “The opposition is yet to tell NigeThe commander of the JTF, recently, the force arrested sea piAuthorities of the Joint Military Major General Emmanuel Atewe, rates who are presently undergorians what it will do differently. It is Task Force (JTF) code-named while speaking during a call on ing interrogation and confirmed not enough to make a blanket state‘Operation Pulo Shield’ yester- him by the new Air Force Officer that about 22 illegal oil bunkerment that you will fight corruption if day declared victory in the secu- Commanding the Mobility Com- ing vessels have been arrested. elected. Nigerians need to know how rity actions against illegal crude mand of the Nigerian Air Force, He hinged the successes recorded the opposition will fight corruption.” oil bunkering, oil theft and vio- Yenagoa, Air Vice Marshal Umar on the cooperation of the securiBy Ruth Tene Natsa, Abuja lent crimes along the waterways Omeiza, said the outfit had made ty agencies attached to the outfit. and creeks of Niger Delta. tremendous inroads into the neOn the preparedness of the JTF According to the JTF, the secu- farious activities of illegal bun- for the 2015 general elections in rity actions launched by the JTF kerers, sea pirates and other vic- the region, Major General Atewe in the coastal communities, hide- es in the region. allayed fears of insecurity in the outs of sea pirates and kidnapAccording to him, the JTF is creeks of the oil rich Niger Delpers and illegal bunkering sites working in partnership with oth- ta region, saying that the outfit have led to the arrest of suspect- er security agencies to make the with other security agencies are The National Democratic Front ed sea pirates and 22 illegal bun- waterways free of criminals be- fully prepared to ensure hitch(NDF) has described the recent kering vessels involved in crude fore the end of the year. free elections. wave of endorsements of candidates by political parties as an impediment to Nigeria’s young democracy. The NDF further said that if not discouraged, it may continue to deprive the people the right to choose BY Kunle Olasanmi, Abuja spokesman of the Islamic Move- are brought to book. and the Role of the Military”. their leaders as practised in true dement in Nigeria, Ibrahim Usman The commission had also last Human rights groups across the The National Human Rights Com- and made available to newsmen world, both national and interna- month invited Sheikh Zakzaky mocracies. The national president of the mission (NHRC) plans to hold a said the commission told the lead- tional, have expressed readiness to and another witness, Dr Musa front, Comrade Agbese Philip, who special public hearing on the grue- ers of the Islamic Movement that ensure justice is done in the extra- Shu’aibu, a physician, for panspoke in Abuja yesterday, said the some killing of peaceful Quds pro- the public hearing is scheduled for judicial killings of innocent peo- el presentation but they were derecent endorsements of candidates testers by soldiers, in which 34 November this year. ple by Nigerian soldiers on July nied visa. in Ebonyi, Enugu and Kwara states members of the Islamic Movement Chairman of the NHRC, Dr Chidi 25, 2014. Sheikh Zakzaky and Dr Shu’aibu, which have a tendency to spread in Nigeria including three sons of Odinkalu had during a recent visThe Islamic Human Rights Com- however, addressed the panel via throughout the country is undem- Shaikh Zakzaky were killed, and it to Shaikh Zakzaky promised to mission (IHRC) had visited Nige- Skype, and the IHRC presented over 100 others wounded. ocratic. do all that is legally possible to see ria where it conducted preliminary the proceedings to the UN Human A statement signed by the that justice is done and the culprits findings on “The Zaria Massacre Rights Group in Geneva same day. By Kunle Olasanmi, Abuja
JTF Confirms Arrest Of 22 Illegal Bunkering Vessels In Bayelsa
2015: Endorsement Of Candidates Undemocratic – NDF
NHRC To Hold Public Hearing On Zaria Quds Day Killings
Thursday, October 9, 2014
news north-East, north-west 9 Taraba Guber: NIMASA Boss Drums Support For Ishaku Darius ty chairman, Abubakar Haruna In his remarks after receiv-
Gov Yero Declares Guber Interest For 2015 Releases 2013 SURE-P funds to LGAs BY MIDAT JOSEPH, Kaduna
Kaduna State Governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero yesterday declared his gubernatorial ambition ahead of the 2015 general elections under the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Governor Yero is the first sit-
ting governorship to declare interest in seeking for re-election in 2015. He submitted his letter of intention to contest the governorship seat amidst thousand of party faithful including members of the House of Assembly and members of the state executive council. Yero who was at the Kaduna State secretariat of Peoples Democratic Party to formally handover the letter to the par-
said the decision to contest was informed by pressure mounted on him by people to run. According to him, he had to accept the clarion call because of the need to consolidate on the relative peace achieved in the state under his administration. “I can’t say no to the wishes of the people when they called on me to contest. It would be a great disservice to them”, Yero stated.
ing the letter from the governor, the party chairman said the party members are happy now that he has finally signified interest to contest. Meanwhile, Governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero has finally released 50 per cent of the 2013 Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P) funds out of the total money accrued to the 23 local government areas of the state.
The deputy chief imam Sultan Bello Mosque, Malam Ibrahim Isah (Alarahma), leading funeral prayer for the daughter of women leader, All Progressives Congress (APC), KadunaState, Amrahtu Muhammed Baba, who died in an accident along Kaduna-Abuja expressway, in Kaduna yesterday. PHOTO GBENGA ABIOLA
short news Flood Affects 200 In Katsina The Katsina State Emergency Management Agency yesterday said 200 people have been affected by flood in the state this year. The executive secretary of the agency, Alhaji Hassan Rawayau, disclosed this in Katsina at the opening of a 3-day workshop on `’Strengthening Sub-National Humanitarian Co-ordination’’. The workshop was organised by the agency in collaboration with Coalition of Civil Society for Poverty Eradication (CCSPE), an NGO. By NAN
IITA, Syngenta Collaborate To Boost Food Production In Nigeria BY ISAIAH BENJAMIN , Kaduna
The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) an international non-profit organisation yesterday entered into partnership with another world’s leading company, Syngenta to boost the technological knowhow of farmers and food production in Nigeria. Speaking during the official signing of the agreement between the IITA and Syngenta at Shika Farms of the Ahmadu Bel-
lo University, the deputy director general for partnerships and capacity development, Dr. Kenton Dashiell said the joint efforts by both leading organisations will improve and promote cost effective production for maize, tomatoes, sweet pepper and cabbage and also increase yields and incomes from cultivating the crops. The partnership he said is to identify, adapt and make available to Nigerian farmers highyielding and superior maize and vegetable hybrids.
According to him, “We are working on six crops, maize, soyabean, cabbage, yam, cassava, plaintain, banana, and in each of these crops, we have programme to develop and improve varieties of hybrids towards the farmers. “Under the agreement, variety trials will be conducted at IITA sites in Nigeria using Syngenta’s hybrid seeds for the selected crops, crop protection packages and standard crop production protocols.
Sallah: 65 Involved In Auto Crashes In Sokoto – FRSC BY ANKELI EMMANUEL, Sokoto
No fewer than 68 persons were involved in auto crashes in Sokoto State within the four days of the festive Sallah period, Federal Roads Safety Commission ( FRSC), Sokoto State sector commander, Mr Kuteb Takum has
said. The commander who disclosed that, four persons died, while 48 others sustained various degree of injuries between October 4th and 8th, however, added that, some have been treated and discharged, while others are still receiving treatment at the Usmanu
Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto and Sokoto Specialists Hospital. Giving vivid account of the incidents, the sector commander hinted that the first two accidents that led to the death of one person happened along Sokoto Gusau road on October 6.
short news Ex-Kebbi NUJ Chairman Dies At 60 Former chairman of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) , Kebbi State chapter is dead at the age of 60. He died in the early hours of yesterday. Jika who died at his residence in Birnin Kebbi following a protracted illness was the deputy director , News and Current Affairs, Kebbi Radio. Late Jika started his journalism career with Rima Radio Sokoto in 1979 . He is survived by a wife and six children .His remains has since been laid to rest at Birnin Kebbi cemetery in Dukku. By Yahya Sarki Kebbi
The chairman of Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) board, Lt colonel Kefas Agbu (rtd) has charged Tarabans to support the aspiration of the minister of state, Niger Delta Affairs, Mr Darius Ishaku for the governorship position of the state. Agbu stated this while explaning to his supporters why he withdrew from the governorship race of the state yesterday in Jalingo. He told his supporters that Gen. T Y Danjuma (rtd) as an elder statesman had choosen Ishaku among the five of them from the southern zone of the state to contest on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Agbu said it was a difficult decision for all aspirants from the zone but added that such sacrifice was needed to actualise the ambition of power shift to the southern zone which he noted, was the ultimate goal.“All of us first believe in power shift to the southern zone of the state for equity and fairness and then our individual aspiration. “Danjuma in his elderly wisdom told us that all of us were eminently qualified but we should allow the eldest among us to lead. By Andrew Ojih, Jalingo
Kano Purchases N2.9bn Ductile Pipes To Boost Water Supply The Kano State government yesterday said it had spent N2.9 billion for the purchase of 1,000mm ductile pipes to boost water supply in Kano metropolis. The commissioner for water resources in the state, Dr Yunusa Dangwani, disclosed this while taking delivery of the consignment in Kano. Dangwani said the state government had also earmarked N200 million for the laying of pipes from Tamburawa Water Works through Eastern Byepass to Hadeja Road in the metropolis. ``This is the last consignment of the pipes, which will be laid soon to improve water supply in the city. ‘’When the project is completed, the issue of water scarcity will be history in the South-Eastern parts of the city, especially in Naibawa, Unguwa-Uku, Hotoro, Yan’kaba, Tudun Dakata and Kawaji.’’ Dangwani said the state government would also lay 600mm ductile pipes from Watari to Tsanyawa town, a distance of about 34 kilometres. By NAN
10
stories of the Thursday, October 9, 2014
...NEWS WITH A HUMAN FACE
THEFT: Teenager Docked For Stealing OSHUA DADA, Osogbo
For alleged unlawful entry and stealing, a teenager, Adewale Oluwatobi, was yesterday arraigned before an Osogbo Magistrate court. The accused person was alleged to have broken into the house of one Awofisayo Arike at Baruwa Area, Osogbo around 2 a.m, and stole property worth N75,000. He was said to have stolen one Bold five Blackberry valued at N45,000 and one Nokia phone valued at N15,000 with a cash sum of N15,000. The police prosecutor, Mr. Fagboyinbo Abiodun, informed the court that the accused person allegedly damaged the window of his victim adding that the purported window costs N15,000. Meanwhile, the accused person pleaded not guilty to the three- count charges of house breaking, stealing and unlawful damage, leveled against him by the police. Counsel to the accused person, Mrs. Nnena Ngwu, prayed the court to grant her client bail in a liberal term promising that he would provide reliable sureties, if granted bail. However, Magistrate Olusola Aluko, granted the accused bail in the sum of N50,000 with two sureties as he adjourned the case to November 7, 2014 for mention.
OIL THEFT: 8 Men Docked In Lagos By NAn
Eight men were yesterday charged before a Federal High Court in Lagos over alleged pipeline vandalism and theft of petrol valued at N970, 000 . The accused persons are Fidelis Bayo, Awawu Motiu, Lawal Aliyu, Akorede Ogunde, Afeez Oladiti, Opeyemi Bolaji, Kola Waheed, and Rilwan Adewale. the suspect are standing trial on a threecount charge of conspiracy, vandalism and stealing. The prosecutor, Mr Justin Enang, told the court that the accused, all residents of Alapere, a Lagos suburb, committed the offence on August 13, 2014. He said the accused conspired and vandalised NNPC pipeline in the area and siphoned about 10,000 litres of petrol valued at N970, 000. He alleged that the accused sold the commodity at No. 52, Onikoro Agboyi in Alapere area Lagos. But the accused, pleaded not guilty to the charge. The lawyer to the accused, Mr Ona Onun, urged the court to admit his clients to bail on liberal terms. Justice Mohammed Yunusa later granted the accused bail in the sum of N1million each with two sureties each in like sum and adjourned the case till Novermber 11.
Natives of Bosso in Bosso LGA of Niger State fetching water from an MGDs/CGS constructed motorise water bore hole. Photo by Patrick Ebi Amanama
THEFT: Church Member In Court For Allegedly Stealing N52,000 By NAN A female member of a congregation, Kemi Abbas, yesterday appeared before an Oshodi Magistrate Court in Lagos, for allegedly stealing her pastor’s N52,000. Abbas, 26, who resides at No. 216, Railway Line, Ilupeju, Lagos, pleaded not guilty to the charge. The Prosecutor, Mr Kehinde Olatunde, told the court that the accused committed the offence on Sept.30 at St. Christopher Spiritual Church, C&S Ilupeju, Lagos. He said that the accused stole N52,000 belonging to her pastor, one Kolawole Oye. ``The pastor was attending to some members of his congregation during a counselling session when his phone rang. ``He could not hear the caller because of the noise of the generator set, so, went outside to receive the call.”
Olatunde said that when the complainant came back to his seat, he discovered that an envelope left on his table that contained N52,000 had disappeared. ``He quickly raised an alarm and threatened those he left in the office with death if the money was not immediately returned and confession made,’’ the prosecutor said. Olatunde said that the accused fell on the ground and confessed that she saw the envelope but only took N5,000 and did not know who took the rest along with the envelope. The offence, the prosecutor said, contravened Section 285 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011. Section 285 stipulates three years imprisonment for anyone liable to theft. The Magistrate, Mr Akeem Fashola, granted the accused bail in the sum of N25, 000 with one surety in like sum and adjourned the case until Oct. 30 for mention.
AUTO CRASH: 12 Die In Motor Accident By NAN
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Katsina yesterdaay said 12 persons were killed in a ghastly motor accident on Katsina-Dutsinma road, Katsina State on Tuesday night. The FRSC Rescue Officer in the state, Alhaji Umar Ibrahim, disclosed this to newsmen in Katsina. Ibrahim said the accident, which occurred at Dabaibayawa village, involved four vehicles. He said the accident involved three Golf saloon cars and a Toyota, but declined to give their registration numbers. He blamed the accident on dangerous overtaking by one of the drivers that
resulted in a head-on collision by two vehicles. The rescue officer said the vehicles also collided with two oncoming vehicles that tried to dodge the mishap. According to him, 12 persons died instantly, while the remaining passengers who sustained injuries were rushed to Katsina General Hospital for medical treatment. Ibrahim said that when FRSC received report of the accident, the rescue team rushed to the scene, evacuated the dead ones and took eight injured persons to hospital. He advised motorists to always abide by traffic rules and regulations and drive with extra caution during the night.
ABDUCTION: Suspected Mad Woman Disappears With 2 Kids By Kola Eke-Ogiugo, Asaba
What appeared to be a mystery yesterday rocked Asaba and its environs in Delta State when a suspected mad woman was reported to have disappeared with two children in a house where she allegedly begged for water to drink. It was reliably gathered that trouble started when the suspected mad woman under disguise claimed she missed her way to Abakiliki; a situation where she begged for direction. While the episode lasted, the mother of the two children was said to have raced to a nearby shop to ask for some money to give to her, unsuspectingly leaving her two kids in the company of the suspected mad woman. The police public relations officer in the state, DSP Celestina Kalu, who confirmed the incident, disclosed that while the sympathizer was in search of the money to give to her “August visitor”, the suspect allegedly disappeared into thin air with the kids. It was further gathered that the suspect had arranged for a waiting vehicle and quickly ferried the kids of between two and four years into the waiting vehicle and zoomed off. But speaking further, DSP Kalu said the police have sent out their drag net to fish out the strange woman as soon as possible. Some residents of Bonssacc where the incident occurred, who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity, described the disappearance of the kids as mysterious and called on the police to ensure that the perpetrators are fished out while the mother of the kids at the time of this report was seen wailing profusely, calling for help.
STORIES OF THE DAY 11
Thursday, October 9, 2014
day
Photo News
TRAFFIC OFFENCEs: FRSC Arrests 12,000 In 3 States By Kola Eke-Ogiugo, Asaba
No fewer than 6,127 road traffic offenders were arrested for violating traffic offences and 6,766 drivers convicted by the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Edo, Delta and Anambra states. The FRSC Zonal Commander, Mr. Nseobong Akpabio, told newsmen in Onitsha, Anambra that the statistics covered operations in the three states under FRSC Zone S for the month of September. Akpabio gave the statistics after briefing FRSC officers and men while monitoring
the ongoing Eid-el-Kabir Special Operations code-named “Operation Push” on Benin-Onitsba Expressway. “Our patrol team covered 63,072 kilometers collectively by patrol vehicles in Edo, Delta and Anambra on all strategic road crash prone routes to reduce traffic crashes in September. “Within the same month, 827 road traffic offenders were arraigned before the mobile courts in Edo, Delta and Anambra, 766 drivers were convicted. According to him, these include commercial, private and government drivers that committed various offences.
L-R: Representative of the President and Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati; husband of late former Managing Director, News Agency of Nigeria, Mr Vincent Oyo and son, Otome, during a condolence visit to the family in Abuja, yesterday. Photo By Nan
FRAUD: 2 Bizmen Remanded For Issuing N3.5m Dud Cheques Nan
The Kaduna Chief Magistrate’s Court yesterday remanded two businessmen in police custody for issuing dud cheques for N3.5 million. The accused persons, Umar Balewa, 37 and Muhammed Tajudeen, 54 pleaded not guilty to the charges against them. The Chief Magistrate, Bashir Shittu, said the accused should be kept behind bars pending the conclusion of investigations. Earlier, the prosecutor, Sgt. Simon Abba, told the court that the case was
in May 2014 reported to the police through a letter addressed to the deputy commissioner of police in the state. He said on May 19, a woman, Mrs Chinyere Okafor of Wushishi Road, Kaduna, reported that the two men conspired and collected office furniture valued at N3.5 million. ``They also issued a Unity Bank cheque to Okafor which was dishonoured on presentation. ``The accused later issued a GTBank post dated cheque for N3.5 million with account no. 311-2199396110 which also bounced.’’
L-R: INEC chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega; INEC national commissioner, Dr Nuru Yakubu, and state electoral commissioner, Mr Kasim Gaidam, at the opening of INEC stakeholders’ meeting on the forthcoming election in Yola, yesterday. Photo By Nan
ABUSE: Teacher Sacked For Spitting At Student By NAN
The Fijian Government announced on Wednesday that a teacher in Fiji has been fired for spitting at a student. The Department of Information said in a statement that the spitting incident happened at Ratu Latianara College in Serua Province but did not disclose further details. Fiji’s Minister for Education, Mahendra Reddy, described the incident as unacceptable and a violation of the right of all students to be treated with respect. ``We look to our teachers to be role models for good behaviour and in this instance, the teacher involved failed to meet the re-
quired standard. ``Following consultations with the Minister for the Public Service, I have terminated this individual’s employment, ’’ Reddy said. The minister said he wanted to make it clear to all teachers in Fiji that they needed to uphold the highest standards of personal behaviour. ``However challenging a classroom environment may be at times, there is no excuse for teachers to breach the values of the civil service and normal standards of behaviour,’’ he said. Reddy is a member of the Fiji First party, which won a landslide victory in the country’s general election on Sept. 17.
Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido exchanging pleasantries with his cabinet members and supporters when he returned from Hajj, in Dutse, Jigawa, yesterday. Photo By Nan
ROBBERY: 1 Killed In Bank Raid BY SAM EGWU, Lokoja
Early morning Union Bank raid by armed robbers at Egume, Dekina Local Government of Kogi State claimed the life of one police officer’s life, while an undisclosed amount was stolen. A source disclosed that the robbers, numbering about nine, shot sporadically into the air to disperse people around the
bank before they gained entry unchallenged. The source, who would not want his name on print, stated that the armed robbers operated for about one hour before security men could make any effort to get there. All attempts to contact the Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, of Kogi Police Command, Mr Elvis Aderuge was unsuccessful as he was said to be away on official duty.
Chief Financial Officer, Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Ltd (BASL), operator of the Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal Two (MMA 2), Lagos, Mr. Olusola Olayinka (left); CEO, Mr. Christophe Penninck; area manager, South West Africa, International Air Transport Association (IATA), Mr. Samson Fatokun, and IATA’s external instructor, Mr. Hatem Ibrahim, at the training workshop organised by IATA for officials of BASL at the MMA 2, yesterday.
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Why We Want Gov Aliyu In Senate – Shehu Dabo By Abu Nmodu, Minna
The former executive secretary of Lakpam development area and a stalwart of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Shiroro local government area of Niger State, Hon. Shehu Dabo has said that Governor Muazu Babangida Aliyu would be the best candidate to represent Niger East senatorial district in 2015. Dabo who stated this in an interview yesterday with journalists noted that Governor Aliyu by his achievements in the state would be the best candidate to represent Niger East senatorial district and not those who would just go to the Senate and remain docile. According to him the governor is better experienced than the incumbent Senator Shem Zagbai in the politics of the country because he was a former federal permanent secretary.
short news Group Drums Support For Gov Ahmed, Kwara APC The Association of Kwara South Indigenes Nationwide has called on the people of the stat to support Governor AbdulFatah Ahmed for a second term in office. The group made the call during a joint celebration of Eid-el-Kabir held in Isin local government of the state. The event was attended by Kwara South local government chairmen from the seven local government areas in the district, party chairmen, youths and women leaders. The group consisting of Kwara south natives in Abuja, Lagos, Oyo, and Port Harcourt among others commended Dr. Bukola Saraki for endorsing Governor Ahmed for second term. By Abdullahi Olesin, Ilorin
“The governor’s experience as a governor and a former permanent secretary in the federal civil service far outweighs that of Senator Zagbai who got elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the recent by-election in Niger East senatorial district to replace late Senator Dahiru Awaisu Kuta,” he declared. He explained that Zagbayi was only elected to replace and complete the tenure of late Senator Kuta which had nothing to do with 2015 general elections. “I am an indigene of Shiroro local government and I reside in Erena. I know how terrible it has been with us while crossing the River Kaduna. For over three decades after the construction of the Shiroro Dam it has been very terrible for Lakpam people to cross the river, in fact many villagers have died trying to cross the river.”
We’ll Sustain Polio Immunisation, Kogi Tells WHO Kogi State government has assured the World Health Organisation (WHO) that it would sustain its 2013 polio and routine immunisation rating. Kogi State governor, Alhaji Idris Wada, gave the assurance when he received officials of the WHO, who were in the state on an advocacy and sensitisation visit. The deputy governor, Mr. Yomi Awoniyi, who represented the governor lamented the strike action by health workers in the local government areas early this year, which he noted affected the immunisation coverage of the state in the first quarter ratings, but assured that efforts had been stepped up to cover the lost grounds. The governor stated that the forthcoming October, November and December, 2014 week long immunisation day programmes, which he noted has received the backing of his administration, was aimed at covering lost grounds. Wada disclosed that government has since the inception of his administration given the health needs of her citizens appropriate attention and assured that no stone would be left unturned in making the health needs of the people a priority. By Sam Egwu, Lokoja
short news
Panic In Jos Over Blockage Of Rukuba Road Panic in Jos over the allege secret trial of over 133 officers and men of the Nigeria army who are facing court martial. LEADERSHIP investigation revealed that the road leading to 3 armored division Rukuba Maxwell Khobe cantonment became a no go area as it was blocked with heavy presence of stern looking security personnel. This development cause panic and tension as people were not allowed to move closer to the road. When contacted the assistant Director Army Public Relation Col. Texas Chukwu on telephone asked our correspondent that: What is your problem. ‘You people keep on calling me asking me of the court martial currently going on here which I told them that there is nothing like that. By Achor Abimaje,Jos
Former head of state, Gen Abubakar Abdulsalami, making a speech during a sallah visit to Niger State Governor, Babangida Aliyu at his residence in Minna. PHOTO BY GOVERNMENT HOUSE.
Tension In Nasarawa PDP Over Plot Of Mass Defection BY DONATUS NADI,Lafia
Tension has grip the ranks of the Nasarawa state chapter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over plans by some stakeholders to defect from the party over their grievance of being sidelined by the National headquarters of the party. Checks reveals that most of those threatening to abandoned the party are not happy with the manner the national headquarters of the party is handling the affairs of the party with particular reference to matters that affect the state.
Findings indicate that the state chapter of the party (PDP) has been unable to secure an appointment in the last three months with the National headquarters of the party to discuss vital issues confronting the party in the state. Absence of three State governors in Lafia, the Nasarawa state capital during the visit of the north central intergration and reconciliation committee namely Serika Dickson, Bayelsa state governor, Sule Lamido, Jigawa state and Sulivian Chime of Enugu state was said to have angered most stake-
holders. The secretary of the committee Alh Yusuf Ayitogo who doubles as the North Central vice chairman of the party however defended the state governors saying that they sent in apologies. “They send their apologies because they were handling other national assignments” he said. The three state governors are members of the North Central integration committee inaugurated by the National headquarters of the party to mediate among aggrieved members of the party.
Ebola: Kwara Schools To Resume October 15 By Abdullahi Olesin, Ilorin
The Kwara State governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed, has directed that all schools in the state should reopen on October 15. The state commissioner for education and human capital development, Alhaji Saka Onimago disclosed this in Ilorin yesterday. He said, “Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed after consultations with stakeholders today(yesterday) directed all schools in Kwara State both private and public schools
to re-open on the 15th of October, 2014. That is, on Wednesday, next week. “In view of this, the state government has also put necessary mechanism in place and will organise health seminar for all health teachers in both primary and secondary schools”. The commissioner said the decision to reopen the schools was reached after a meeting with all stakeholders including the NUT, ANCOPS, NAPS and teachers in the primary schools. Onimago also announced that
Governor Ahmed has approved funds to ensure security in the schools across the state. He said government has procured a temperature equipment for testing of Ebola virus disease, liquid soap as well as sanitisers, while buckets with tap control will also be provided which would be used by the pupils in schools to wash their hands. The commissioner also announced that the state would organise a two-day training programme for health teachers.
Plateau Trains 510 Personnel On Ebola Response By NAN
The Plateau State government has commenced training of 510 personnel from the 17 local government areas of the state on rapid response and containment of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). The state commissioner for health, Dr Fom Dakwak, said this at the opening of the training programme in Jos yesterday.
Dakwak said that the workers were being trained to handle any possible outbreak of the disease. He said the programme was part of the state government’s efforts to respond to the outbreak of Ebola or any other epidemic. He said the participants would be trained on rapid response and surveillance on the disease to prevent its spread. Represented by the director of Administration in the ministry,
Mr Solomon Musa, the commissioner said the five-day training was taking place simultaneously across the local government areas. In his welcome address, the chairman of Jos South local government, Mr Peter Dung, commended the state government for providing both human and financial support to contain any outbreak of communicable diseases.
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Thursday, October 9, 2014
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265,142
During the first quarter of 2014, a total of 265,142 passengers arrived at the domestic terminal
Niger Signs MoU With German Govt, EU On Rural Electricity By Abu Nmodu, Minna
In view of the disclosure that Nigeria was still in need of 35,000 megawatts of electricity, Niger State government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the German government and the European Union for sustainable electricity supply to rural communities in the state. Governor Aliyu, who led government’s team to sign the MoU yesterday in Minna, stated that Nigeria required 35,000 megawatts of electricity to attain stable power supply across the length and breadth of the country.
Consequently the MoU funded by the European Union and the German government was to improve access to electricity in the rural areas. Governor Aliyu said as a result of the shortfall in the supply of electricity to all parts of the country, Niger State has not achieved the required growth. The German Ambassador in Nigeria, Mr Michael Zenner, assured that his country would assist Nigeria to solve its electricity problem. Zenner stressed the need for the country to go into renewable energy technologies L-R: Head of Glo Value Added Service, Viswanath Nagasai; head IT, Nigerian Educational Research and Development which he said,= was best Council (NERDC), Christian Obi; sales director, Glo 1 Enterprise, Bolanle Ogundogba, and Lagos State chairman of NUT, suited for the electrification Segun Raheem, at the launch of Glo Mobile Tutor held in Lagos, recently. Photo BY Benedict Uwalaka of remote areas.
Casualisation: Banks, Publishing Firms Top Culprits – Labour BY Michael Oche, Abuja
The organised private sector unions have accused employers of hiding behind what they call the ‘core’ value of their business to casualise over 70 per cent of their workers. This disclosure was made known at a joint press conference held by the organised private sector unions and the industrial global union. The unions also said the growing culture of casualisation by employers was more incessant in sectors like, banks, insurance and financial institutions, food and beverage sector with notorious
FAAN Records One Million Passenger Movements At Lagos Airport By NKEM OSUAGWU, Lagos
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) said it recorded a passenger
employers like La Casera. Addressing journalists in Abuja, chairperson of the Industrial Global Union Sub Sahara Africa, Comrade Issa Aremu, said organised labour was determined to end precarious working conditions in the country. He said organised labour would today, hold a protest in Ikeja, Lagos, to protest against the growing trend of casualisation of workers in the country. He said, “Currently, worldwide and in Nigeria too, workers are exposed to worsening health and safety situations with increased cases of deaths and injuries at movement of about 1, 007, 823 passengers who passed through the remodeled Domestic Terminal 1 of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, between January and August 2014. FAAN said the terminal has become passenger’s choice after its remodelling, adding that the figure was expected to rise in the last quarter of 2014, as three new domestic
work. “In Nigeria, companies are replacing their full-time workforce with temporary, casual, outsourced and contract workers at a frightening rate. Employers now hide behind what they call the ‘core’ value of their business to casualise over 70 per cent of their workers. “Low incomes, job insecurity, delayed payments of salaries and pensions, long hours of work without overtime payment, denial of sick leave and payment for sick leave, denial of annual leave and maternity leave, job insecurity,
airlines have concluded plans to commence operations at the terminal in October 2014. Air Peace Airlines and Azman Airline will soon commence scheduled operations, while Discovery Airline has already commenced operations at the terminal. According to Yakubu Dati, FAAN’s spokesman,
lack of redundancy benefits, poor health and safety conditions and non-payment of compensation for injuries sustained at work, poor working conditions, poor motivation and lack of social protection. “The growing culture of impunity by employers is spreading across sectors with like, banks, insurance and financial institutions, food and beverage sector with notorious employers like La Casera and UTC Ilupeju. In the aviation sector with employers like First N-ation and in the printing and publishing sector with employers like Macmillan.”
the breakdown of the figure shows that a total number of 507,542 passengers arrived at the terminal, while 500,281 departed from the terminal during the period under review. During the first quarter of 2014, a total of 265,142 passengers arrived at the domestic terminal, while 258,845 passengers departed from it.
He said the second quarter of 2014 witnessed a total number of 241,436 departing passengers and 242,400 arriving passengers. “The attraction of airlines to the terminal cannot be over emphasised as a total number of 12,564 aircraft movements were recorded at the terminal between January and August 2014,” he said. Chidoka
BUSINESS QUOTE If you think your boss is stupid, remember: you wouldn’t have a job if he was any smarter. John Gotti, gangster (1940-2002)
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Thursday, October 9 2014
Standard Chartered Bank Introduces Consumer Price Tracking BY FRIDAY ATUFE, Lagos
Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria has introduced the Standard Chartered Premise Consumer Price Tracker for Nigeria in a bid to obtain real-time, accurate price data in the country and other developing countries where data gaps have persisted over the years.. Head, Africa Macro Research, Standard Chartered Bank United Kingdom (UK), Razia Khan, disclosed this via teleconferencing at a media roundtable in Lagos yesterday, adding that the bank was partnering with Premise to adopt innovative crowd sourcing technology to provide a solution to data gaps in Nigeria. She said the data obtained by the bank
when it flagged-off the initiative in August 2014, “suggest that price pressures eased between September and August,” adding that falling prices for grains, flours and starchy vegetables are a key driver of this price trend.” She observed that ahead of official consumer price index (CPI) released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) among others, there were often limited means of observing underlying price trends which contribute to information asymmetry, greater uncertainty and costs for market participants. Khan noted that by adopting innovative crowdsourcing technology, “we provide a potential solution to this problem, adding that, “We have
partnered with the Premise Data Corporation to provide more accurate, real -time price information. The effort will initially be focused on Nigeria, concentrating on the more populous centres of Lagos and Kano (alongside a few Abujabased observations).” Khan said the service was only being provided by the bank in China and India and now Nigeria was being added to it as the first African country where it is being rolled out because of the recent rebasing of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP), a development which made it the biggest economy on the continent as well as enhanced its attraction to foreign portfolio investors. She said the bank planned to roll this out in other African economies
over time, remarking that more than 350 people were engaged in capturing price information on their smartphones, taking photographs of food staples and their price tags and uploading them to a central database. “Where price tags are not on display, information on prices is entered manually. Each week, price information on about 21, 000 data items is captured in this way. Geo-tracking provides location information. Participants are paid through top-up mobile phone credits. This allows for real-time collation and understanding of price trends and their geographic dispersion, much sooner than it is likely to be available from any other source,” Khan said.
Banks’ Profit To Drop In 2015 – Fitch By Bukola Idowu, Lagos
Fitch, an international rating agency has said Nigerian banks’ asset growth and earnings was expected to fall by the end of the 2015 financial year on the back of policies by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to protect the economy and bank customers. Although the CBN had reintroduced charges on remote-on-us automated teller machine withdrawals, other policies such as the facing out of commission on turnover (COT) by 2016, as well as the increase of cash reserve requirement on public and private sector funds. Also, The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), a state company created to buy bad debt from lenders after the country’s 2009 financial crisis, last year raised its annual levy on banks from to 0.5 per cent of their assets from 0.3 per cent. In its report entitled: “Nigerian Banks: Peer Review,” released yesterday, Fitch said Nigerian banks
were performing well despite the twin hurdles of tight monetary policy actions and new banking rules. The report which cited the CBN’s stance on protecting customers through its revised rules on banking charges introduced in 2013, said, “All these moves led to weaker profitability and stemmed credit growth in first half of 2014, a trend that is likely to continue into 2015. Banks are now seeing some asset quality deterioration with rising absolute NPLs, reflecting fast loan growth since 2011. Most banks’ NPL ratios remain below the five per cent prescribed by the CBN, but Fitch views this as unsustainable in the lon-g-run. Very high loan concentrations by borrower and sector expose banks, particularly the smaller banks, to significant event risk. “Earnings pressure was exacerbated by high operating costs at most banks due to a higher AMCON levy and network expansion strategies,” it added.
Schneider Vows To Fight Counterfeit Electrical Components In Africa By Chika Izuora, Lagos
Worried by the socioeconomic consequences of use of counterfeit electrical appliances in Africa, Schneider Electric said it would intensify efforts to curtail circulation of such products. The company said it was concerned about the economic plight which the use of such materials would cause consumers. It therefore reiterated its commitment towards fighting electrical products counterfeiting in Africa. S c h n e i d e r Electric’s global anticounterfeiting manager, Mrs Tracy Garner,who raised the concern said the organisation would continue to ensure it rewards efforts aimed at exposing the dangers which counterfeit products pose to the society. “ E l e c t r i c a l counterfeiting has become a lucrative business in Africa which affects its social and economic wellbeing;
with consumers facing exposure to serious health and safety risks associated with counterfeit electrical products, retailers bearing the legal risks associated with the sale and distribution of counterfeit products whether sold with intent or without knowledge and manufacturers suffering direct loss of sales, goodwill, irreparable damage to corporate brand/ reputation, trademark dilution and many others,” Tracy said. Tracy further noted that Schneider Electric has over the years ensured that genuine electrical products were readily available as one of the organisation’s way of battling counterfeits. The manager emphasised that the company would continue to identify ways to educate and protect the consumers from counterfeit electrical products. Tracy said Schneider Electric was extremely proud to organise
the very first Media Awards on Electrical Counterfeiting in Africa It will be recalled that earlier in the year, Schneider Electric launched a counterfeit product training course in Dubai specifically designed to help provide customs officers and other law enforcement personnel with the information needed to identify some of their branded products that are often subject to counterfeiting in the organisation’s fight against counterfeiting crimes, an innovation that has since seen 31 other countries sign up for the e- learning course. Schneider Electric also implemented a report programme for information about companies and individuals making or supplying counterfeit Schneider Electric products as well as providing additional information on counterfeiting and steps that can be taken to better recognise counterfeit products.
Thursday, October 9, 2014
BUSINESS/AGRICULTURE 17
Sustaining ATA Through Growth Enhancement Scheme The Growth Enhancement Support (GES), a programme on the platform of the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA), was created in 2012 with the sole aim of providing subsidised seeds and fertilisers to farmers while at the same time tackling the massive corruption practised in the system for over 40 years. Today, the revolution in the seed and fertiliser sector is creating a revival that has never been seen in the sector. In the past, it was recorded that less than 11 per cent small holder farmers had access to the subsidised seeds and fertilisers procured and distributed by government, whereas government invested heavily in the sector, corrupt government officials profited to the detriment of small holder farmers who could not access the subsidised inputs and even when they did, the inputs were adulterated. A major success story of President Jonathan’s government was the massive overhaul of the national fertiliser and seed supply system, in which the federal government ended 40 years of corruption within 90 days. The success was attributed to the elimination of direct procurement and distribution of fertilisers and seeds as companies now sold directly to farmers rather than to government. Contracts for such supplies were scrapped and government’s monopoly was also scrapped as procurement and supplies were left to the hands of private companies. The GES was launched to provide targeted support for seeds and fertilisers to five million farmers in its first year and 20 million farmers within four years through the creation of a farmer data base. As at December 2013, over 10 million farmers had been registered in the data base with over six million of them receiving the federal and state government subsidised fertilisers and free seeds. Speaking on the successes of the GES, the minister of agriculture and rural development, Dr Akinwumi Adesina said, “We ended four decades of fertiliser sector corruption within 90 days and with it the era of government buying and distributing seeds and fertilisers, and replaced it
with a private sector-driven system.” Adesina has revealed that a major success of the GES is the growth of seed companies from 11 to 70 while
agric focus
poor funding by banks among several other challenges.” Meanwhile, the minister is optimistic about the success of BY OLUKAYODE OYELEYE the ATA/GES and said, “Today, agriculture has become central to our economy. Due to the ATA, Nigeria’s food import bill declined from $6.9 billion in 2009 to $4.34 billion by the end of 2013, reducing foreign exchange deficits. Between 2011 and 2014, national food production expanded by an additional 21 million mts of food, surpassing the 20 million mts of food production target set for 2015. Nigeria met its millennium development goal (MDG) on hunger and malnutrition, two years ahead of the 2015 target set by the United Nations. Over three Co-chairman, Kenya-Nigeria Joint Business Council, Dr James Mwangi and chairman, Sani Dangote, signing an MoU at the Kenya-Nigeria Agribusiness Forum while the minister of agriculture and rural development, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, looks on. million farm jobs were created, putting young people to work has far outstripped supply. World Bank has recently global seed companies have as the agricultural revolution Private sector investments in decided to scale up Nigeria’s also invested in Nigeria and deepened across rural areas fertiliser manufacturing have e-wallet system to several new investors such as Dangote African countries. and agricultural value chains, also expanded, with $5 billion are putting up the largest urea leading to reduction in rural to of private sector investments India, Brazil and China plant in Africa at $3.5 billion. urban migration.” in fertiliser manufacturing have also expressed interest Records show that “the GES He maintained that “the within the past three years. in adopting Nigeria’s e-wallet has empowered both farmers private sector has woken up The minister, during system. Nigeria is now and agro-input dealers in to see agriculture as the new the 2011-2013 Score Card exporting transparency across several ways: it is farmer wealth sector. Between 2011 presentation assured that the world. friendly as it allows farmers and 2014, the agriculture “in ensuring he success of “To further enable the to conduct transactions in sector attracted over $5.6 this scheme one of the first private sector seed companies their local dialects, stimulates billion of private sector steps the federal government to develop and thrive, we rapid growth in the agro investments – a record ended government’s monopoly took through the Ministry input private sector while anywhere in Africa – including of Agriculture was develop over foundation seeds and the programme has saved the recent decision by an electronic wallet system opened it all up to the private government a lot of money Dangote to invest $1 billion sector. Spurred by the demand in which mobile phones were through direct contributions in commercial rice production used to deliver seeds at no for seed through the e-wallet by farmers, state and the cost, while 50 per cent subsidy in Nigeria – the largest ever system, the number of seed federal government, among single investment in food companies in Nigeria rose from was provided on fertilisers other successes.” production in Africa.” 5 to 80 within three years. One for a maximum of two bags to At the heart of our The role of government farmers.” of the local seed companies, policy reform is what I shifted to providing targeted Maslaha Seeds, has become the The minister, who is often call “government-enabled farm support directly to pride of the nation, increasing praised for the success of the private sector led agricultural farmers for seeds and its seed sales from 14,800 GES which has since gained transformation” paradigm. fertilisers via electronic metric tonnes (mts) in 2011 to international recognition and Under this new paradigm, the coupons on mobile phones about 150,000mts by 2013,” prominence, revealed that the government must become or “e-wallets.” Between Adesina said. scheme has also been fraught innovative just like the private 2012 and 2014, a total of 14 He stated that aside the with challenges, including sector and develop innovative million farmers received their above successes, multinational “limited coverage of rural policies and institutions that subsidised farm inputs using seed companies have begun areas by mobile networks, will expand opportunities for electronic vouchers on their to invest in Nigeria, including low density of coverage of the private sector, especially mobile phones to directly pay Syngenta and Dupont, two of Nigeria by functional agro farmers who themselves form private sector input retailers,” the largest seed companies in dealers, low financial capacity the largest private sector. he said, and added that the the world as demand for seed of participating agro dealers,
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LEADERSHIP CONFERENCES LIMITED (A SUBSIDIARY OF LEADERSHIP NEWSPAPERS GROUP)
2014 ANNUAL
CONFERENCE & AWARDS CEREMONY Chairman MR. SAM AMUKA Publisher, Vanguard Media Limited Keynote Speaker MR. BABATUNDE RAJI FASHOLA, SAN Executive Governor, Lagos State STAR AWARDS 2013
LEADERSHIP PERSON OF THE YEAR General Yakubu Gowon GCFR LEADERSHIP GOVERNOR OF THE YEAR Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan
LEADERSHIP POLITICIANS OF THE YEAR The G-7 Governors Dr. Babangida Aliyu (Niger) Dr. Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano) Alh. Sule Lamido (Jigawa) Alh. Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto) Alh. Abdulfatah Ahmed (Kwara) Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers) Alh. Murtala Nyako (Adamawa) LEADERSHIP BUSINESS PERSON OF THE YEAR Mr. Olatunde Ayeni
AWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE 2013 LEADERSHIP CEO OF THE YEAR Simdul Shagaya CEO, Konga.com LEADERSHIP COMPANY OF THE YEAR Chi Limited LEADERSHIP BANK OF THE YEAR Diamond Bank LEADERSHIP ICT COMPANY OF THE YEAR Jumia LEADERSHIP BANKER OF THE YEAR Mr. Philips Oduoza GMD, UBA LEADERSHIP GOVERNMENT AGENCY OF THE YEAR Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) LEADERSHIP AUTHOR OF THE YEAR Malam Nasir Ahmed El-Rufai
LEADERSHIP PRODUCT OF THE YEAR Nagari Farm Yoghurt LEADERSHIP MICROFINANCE BANK OF THE YEAR LAPO Microfinance Bank Limited LEADERSHIP TELECOM COMPANY OF THE YEAR Swift Networks Limited LEADERSHIP PUBLIC OFFICER OF THE YEAR Dr. Akinwumi Adesina Minister of Agriculture & Rural Development LEADERSHIP BRAND OF THE YEAR SAMSUNG LEADERSHIP ARTISTE OF THE YEAR Ice Prince LEADERSHIP YOUNG PERSONS OF THE YEAR The Golden Eaglets LEADERSHIP SPORTS PERSON OF THE YEAR Stephen Okechukwu Keshi
Venue: ThisDay Dome, Abuja Time: 9:00am Date: October 14th, 2014
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Thursday, October 9, 2014
LEADERSHIP CONFERENCES LIMITED (A SUBSIDIARY OF LEADERSHIP NEWSPAPERS GROUP)
2014
ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND AWARDS PROGRAMME
9:00am
Arrival
9:05am
National Anthem
9:10am
Opening Prayers
9:15am
Introduction of conference theme and dignitaries by conference comperes
9:25am
Welcome address by the Chairman, LEADERSHIP GROUP, Hajiya Ireti Kingibe
9:35am
Opening remarks by the Chairman, Mr. Sam Amuka, Chairman, Vanguard Newspaper
10:05am Lecture by the Executive Governor, Lagos State, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN Title: “Rebuilding the Nation: Lessons from other Lands” 12:25pm The Awards Ceremony 12:45pm Responses 1:15pm
Vote of Thanks
1:20pm
Closing Prayer
1:25pm
National Anthem
Date: Tuesday, October 14th, 2014
Venue: ThisDay Dome
Signed: ABDULMUMIN S. BALOGUN Director, Conference 0806 972 7798
20 BUSINESS/mines & steel
Thursday, October 9 2014
Victims of lead poisoning
Zamfara: 5 Years After Lead Poisoning When in 2009 Zamfara State was in the news over the deaths of 400 children as a result of lead poisoning, many wondered what government was doing to treat victims, remediate the environment and prevent a recurrence. Ruth Tene Natsa, looks at the current situation. In May 2012, when the federal government met with stakeholders, it was agreed that the sum of N850 million was required to tackle the lead poisoning incidence. The money was to be specifically focused on remediation (the process of removing the lead from the home environment) of Bagega village, treatment of victims and creation of awareness on safe mining practices. The intervention fund was subsequently released in February 2013, in three folds, to the Ministry of Environment for remediation purposes, Ministry of Health for the treatment of victims and the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development for sensitisation on the practice of safe mining practice. In an earlier report by Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders), it was revealed that communities that suffered the lead poisoning emergency were reaching a crises point as no solutions were forthcoming. But subsequently, with the release of the funds, much work started as treatments, remediation and awareness creation had begun to take shape in Zamfara. In an exclusive interview with LEADERSHIP recently, the former director, Artisanal and Small Scale Mining (ASM), Ministry of Mines and Steel Development and chairman, Safer Mining Projects, Obiorah Azubuike, said mining was one of the major catalysts of diversifying the nation’s economy, and a profitable venture as long as it was done in accordance with the law. He said, “You know that most of these illegal activities are poverty driven. People who believe that there are some mineral resources
within their areas which must be exploited go ahead to do so without knowing that there are certain rules and regulations which must be adhered to before exploiting them.” He maintained that the safer mining programme which the ministry was into will bring in wet milling machines to be installed in three centres in Zamfara. “They have already been ordered for as they cannot be procured within Nigeria and should arrive around May. What has also reduced the lead poisoning, even though they are still operating the dry milling method, is the use of safety gears such as the use of mufflers to stop the inhalation of mining dusts. That has significantly reduced the inhalation of the lead in processing areas,” Azubuike said. Reacting to government release of funds for remediation efforts, he said, “Remediation is just one aspect of what is supposed to be done in respect to lead poisoning. The money that was released were for three major activities, remediation of a village in Anka local government area, Bagega, to be done by the Federal Ministry of Environment, safer mining practice by the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development as well as the continuation of treatment of victims by the Ministry of Health. “So you can see that there are three programmes with respect to lead poisoning. Remediation is just the removal of the contaminated soil and replacing it with fresh soil and to this effect the Ministry of Environment has done more than 50 per cent of the remediation activity as reported at the stakeholders
meeting held recently. By now, they should have done beyond 50 per cent. Recalling that challenges in the treatment of victims was blamed on delayed release of funds, Azubuike said I know that what was given to us for safer mining was N158,300, which is the aspect the Ministry of mines and steel is handling, while the Ministry of Environment and Health also had their own allocations. He said if you are treating an affected person and fail to treat the cause of the ailment, it means that you will be moving in circles. So the first thing was to ensure that people live in clean environments. The chairman recalled that the original cause of the infection was the inappropriate methods used in the extraction of gold from the ore. He said, “before the infection the locals used the dry milling method, whereby in the process of removing the gold, dust is generated and people around the processing centres inhale the dust which is full of lead, primarily responsible for the lead poisoning.” Responding to measures taken so far, he said, “When we started the sensitisation programme, we first of all placed a stop work order in Zamfara, then asked them to remove the processing centres from the villages. We informed them of the need to adopt the wet milling method. “So when we see these people, what we do is to bring them together to formalise them and form them into cooperatives to ensure that they do the mining in accordance with the minerals and mining Act. Illegal mining is a challenge, though not one that cannot be surmounted with time.” He added that even at the very high level, there was a legal mining task force established, which had started operations, adding that all these were geared towards ensuring that illegal mining was reduced or completely eliminated.
The original cause of the infection was the inappropriate methods used in the extraction of gold from the ore
Sada
mines & steel REPORT
Solid Mineral Devt is on Course – Sada
By Ruth Tene Natsa, Abuja
The federal government, through the minister of mines and steel development, Mr Musa Mohammed Sada, has said that mineral development is on course in the country. The minister, who was represented by the director, Mines Inspectorate department in the ministry, Mr Dauda Awojobi, said this during a recent inspection visit to Royal Salt Limited, Abakaliki ,Ebonyi state. According to Sada, “the federal government was impressed with the level of mineral development in Royal Salt Limited,” adding, “This is to show that mining is beginning to take its root in Nigeria.” The minister said the ministry was hopeful that the project would be of immense benefit to the host communities and the nation at large, particularly, in terms of wealth creation, employment opportunities and revenue generation. “Royal Salt limited has gone on with their exploration and mining development which will lead to beneficiation of the ore and they will eventually make use of the end products that is the lead, zinc and brine water which will be converted to edible salt for Nigeria and the West African sub-region,” Awojobi said. He said the present administration was working proactively to develop the nation’s minerals and metals sector for the benefit of its citizens. “What we are doing as government is to keep the mineral resources in trust for the good people of Nigeria; whatever revenue we get from this area will be paid into the federation account, the derivation formula will be applied and the 13 per cent will go to the state where the mineral is exploited.” He pledged more federal government’s support to the mining operators in their goals to develop the country’s abundant mineral resources. In his remarks, the project geologist, Mr Sadasiva Rao, said the group has over 30 years experience operating a variety of manufacturing and production units such as the ceramic industry, salt manufacturing plants, etc, which had bolstered the confidence of the group. He noted that the capital estimates of the entire project at mining lease (ML) 188 in Ebonyi state is $65 million, out of which $30 million had so far been expended. Rao said, “Most of the metallic industries are very comfortable investing in the country,” while further explaining that the company had carried out detailed core drilling across the mineralised zones.
ENERGY /BUSINESS 21
Thursday, October 9, 2014
energy news GE Sponsors 15 Nigerian Technicians To Brazil For Capacity Training In furtherance to its commitment to create jobs, build skills and ensure technology transfer in its operations in Nigeria, General Electric has sent the first batch, out of its 15 newly recruited technicians and engineers, to Brazil for training in the assembly and test of subsea equipment. The young Nigerians, most of whom are just fresh from school, departed Nigeria over the weekend for the onemonth training. GE Oil and Gas chief operating officer, Uzo Nwagwu, who made this known in Lagos, also disclosed that over the next months, the team will proceed to Aberdeen for the next phase of training in GE’s Bridge of Don manufacturing facility where they will receive further hands-on exposure to subsea equipment
manufacturing activities. According to Uzo, “The trainees include three manufacturing engineers and 12 technicians who form the core team for assembly and testing of subsea equipment. GE is investing approximately $3.6 million in the training and development of these employees.” The company said that since their recruitment in April, all 15 trainees have been engaged in rigorous training programmes which include the GE New Employee Orientation (NEO) training, a 90day assimilation training program in GE’s Port Harcourt office and workshops at the Onne facility. These trainings are geared towards providing a pipeline of talents and resources for GE’s manufacturing and assembly facility in Calabar.
OTL To Unveil Downstream Initiative The upcoming Oil Trading and Logistics (OTL) Expo, the premier downstream oil and gas event scheduled to hold in Lagos, would witness the unveilling of an initiative aimed at resolving some of the teething logistics problems in the downstream oil sector. The theme of the 2014 Expo, which includes a conference, exhibition and industry dinner, is ‘The Future of Petroleum Products Supply’ and it is poised to shape business and policy for operators across the industry value-chain. The organisers of the event, OTL Africa Downstream and the Petroleum Products
Pricing and Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), announced that as part of a strategic effort to promote excellence and innovation in the downstream industry, they will this year, unveil the “OTL Downstream Innovation Challenge.” The initiative focuses on enhancing industry value through increased efforts in research and development. The chairman, OTL Africa Downstream, Emeka Akabogu, said under the initiative, an innovation of significance that can multiply value in downstream petroleum business and operations in Africa will be unveilled and celebrated annually.
How Egina Established Biggest Oil Industry Infrastructure In Nigeria STORIES By Chika Izuora, Lagos
The Egina oil field is one of the wells operated by Total Upstream, France oil major in oil and gas extraction in Nigeria. The field is located 130 kilometre (km) off the coast of Nigeria, in 1,750 metre water depth. The field is currently under development and the production is scheduled to begin at the end of 2017.
In 2010, Total signed an agreement with the Nigerian government to ensure that a portion of construction for its offshore projects be performed in Nigeria. Today, the company has fulfilled this gesture using the Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics (LADOL) base shipyard which is now building at least one of its planned floating production, storage and offloading
(FPSO) vessels. The Ladol shipyard facility is certainly going to attract foreign investment and boost deepwater output in the country. Last weekend, the LADOL inaugurated a facility intended to boost direct foreign investment in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector and raise national output by giving foreign technology and service providers a secure base of operations in West Africa.
Oil Operators To Address Local Content/Transparency At SITEI STORIES By Chika Izuora, Lagos
Worried by lack of transparency in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, key operators in the sector would be participating in the third Sustainability in the Extractive Industries (SITEI) conference up in Lagos. The theme for the conference is ‘Local Content Participation, Accountability and Transparency’ and the event will address the challenges of local entrepreneurs, job seekers, policies and critical issues surrounding the implementation of quality local content participation in the extractive industries and proffer practical solutions towards
improving entrance, accountability and transparency in the sector. The conference organised by a non-profit organisation devoted to the advancement of social ethics, social responsibility and corporate governance in Africa, the CSR-inAction, is one of the industry’s platform to address the major challenges of the sector. According to the CSR-in-Action’s executive director and conference convener, Bekeme Masade, the conference is a call to action for players, aspiring entrepreneurs and professionals in the sector to play more active roles towards better industry practices and a more rewarding experience for all. “We are hoping the conference
would encourage the youths in particular to explore the unique opportunities that abound in the sector in Africa and leverage on the current boom in investments in mining and associated infrastructure. We are also hoping that investors, lenders and bigger companies reduce the entry threshold for healthy competition and the empowerment of the average, focused citizen,” she enthused. Speaking further, she added, “We want to see more emphatic commitments by the big players to ensure merit-based increase in local content participation to drive Nigeria’s economic development into the future.”
Camac Sees Huge Oil Recoverables In Nigeria Camac Energy has announced that an updated independent assessment of the company’s prospective resources for four offshore Nigeria prospects located within Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) 120 and 121 by DeGolyer and MacNaughton (D&M) has increased the company’s unrisked recoverable resources from 537 million barrels of oil (MMbbl) to 2,377 MMbbl in four of its top exploration prospects. Drilling locations have been identified on each of the four prospects, and technical work is continuing to allow for the first exploration well to be drilled in the first half of 2015.
“The increase in P50 resources on these four prospects and what that represents in term of the potential of our deepwater Nigerian assets is monumental,” said Camac’s chairman and chief executive officer. “These results have been achieved through a combination of both the focused efforts of the skilled geoscientists on our team, who bring tremendous local knowledge of the basin and who have played key roles in the discovery of other giant fields within the vicinity of OMLs 120 and 121, and the application of superior techniques that have led to successful discoveries in the Nigerian deepwater by other
operators.” “The team has spent considerable time developing the regional framework, utilising the latest in geoscience and enhanced quantitative interpretation techniques, to define these four high-impact prospects with combined un-risked recoverable P50 resources of almost three billion boe. This is a near fivefold increase from our previous assessment of these prospects. Moving forward, we believe these resources, coupled with substantial near-term increases in production, will deliver significant value for our shareholders.”
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Thursday, October 9 2014
commerce REPORTS
BOI To Provide Business Support Plans For SMEs Operators
L-R: Director, administration and human resources, SMEDAN, Mallam Shehu Ibrahim; director-general,SMEDAN, Alhaji Bature Masari, and Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, during a press briefing on the ongoing Made- in- Aba Trade Fair in Abuja, yesterday. PHOTO BY JANE OKEKE
Nigerian Economy Can Record $11.6bn From Biotechnology – MONSANTO
By Stories BY Kingsley Alu, Abuja
Nigeria’s economy stands to record an economic output of about $11.6billion if it embraced biotechnology in its agriculture. Vice president, International Row Crops and Global Vegetable Business, Mr Mike Frank, has said. Frank said at a news conference in Abuja that with the technology, the country’s smallholder farmers would ultimately be able to have access to ‘another tool in their toolbox’ to make planting decisions and make important contributions to increase food security. Stating that farmers want this whole technical support so that they could maximise yield, he said: “According to FAO, in developing countries, smallholder farmers produce most of their countries’ food. However, they
tend to be generally poorer and less food-secure than the rest of their countries’ populations. More than 60 per cent of people in rural areas live below the poverty line – and the majority are farmers. Many of these farmers struggle due to limited, if any, access to technology and advanced tools to improve farming conditions and increase crop yields,” he noted. Frank said the effort is rooted in the company’s strategic determination to commercialise and develop the market for genetically modified (GM) crops and other products, adding that it would be reaching out to the different companies in Nigeria that would be involved in the whole process. He also said that the technology was safe as scientists around the world and even prominent organisations, including the most prominent scientific bodies
in the world - the World Health Organization (WHO), the British Medical Association, the United States National Academy of Science, the French Academy of Medicine, and others have studied and discussed the issue of the safety of biotech products and found no evidence that genetically engineered products were inherently unsafe. He also disclosed that the country would need to double its corn production to meet the rising demand for poultry adding that the company would be pleased to be a part of the success story. “We know that in the next five years, the demand for poultry will be high and the demand for corn will increase. With biotechnology, smallholder farmers will be able to match up with demand,” he said adding that MONSANTO had brought over 40 varieties of corn that would be tested in the country.
‘Nigeria Imported N2.7bn Worth Of Fake Phones In 2013’
Close to one million fake phones were imported into the country with a total value of N2.7billion in 2013. This was disclosed by the minister of communications technology, Omobola Johnson, at the Consumer Roundtable on Phone Rights to mark the 2014 World Consumer Rights Day organised by the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) yesterday in Abuja. Johnson also revealed that the federal government was ready to engage with state governments that make their states conducive for ICT infrastructure to be rolled
out by prioritising telecom investments in those states. While informing that a pilot would be held in six states in the coming months, the minister stressed that the figure on the number of fake phones in Nigerian market may be higher this year and lamented that unless this trend was discouraged, it may have a pronounced effect on the country’s ability to attract investments into the telecoms sector while the phone user continues to be at the receiving end. She stated that the problem
of poor quality of service from telecom operators also emanate from inadequate or weak regulation to inadequate infrastructure , non- transparent billing and customer service , but emphasised that enforcing phone rights of the subscriber was not by any means an attempt to punish the network operators and service providers as always misconstrued, “but actually to bring much more to the fore that the 100million subscribers in Nigeria today are not just 080/070/090 numbers but real people with real needs who need good customer service.”
The Bank of Industry (BOI) has disclosed plans to provide business development support plans for the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in order to reduce the incidence of business failure which often leads to non-repayment of loans. In a presentation at the Senior Executive Course 36 of the Nigeria Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Jos weekend,managing director of the bank, Mr Rasheed Olaoluwa, stressed that the business development support programme would assist in giving necessary direction to any entrepreneur with viable business plans as it would avert business failure responsible for non-repayment of loans. While also hinting that the bank would in addition set up a loan monitoring unit and that will address the issue of non-repayment of loans, he denied the allegation that the bank’s loan conditions were unnecessarily cumbersome.
AfDB Approves N21.3bn To Zenith Bank For SMEs Lending The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved the sum of N21.3billion ($125million) Line of Credit (LOC) to Zenith Bank Plc for lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria. The LOC which was approved by the AfDB’s Board of Directors in Tunis is the 4th to the bank and would enable it gain access to long-term foreign currency funding to generate additional lending to its SME clients operating in various sectors of the Nigerian economy including agriculture and agribusiness, transportation and manufacturing. The AfDB in approving the LOC, noted that one of the major impediments to SME growth and development was limited access to bank credit and despite the various widely documented positive reforms to the banking sector since the crisis in 2009, access to credit for the SMEs was still severely constrained adding that the LOC would therefore contribute to filling this critical financing gap.
Lagos-Badagry Expressway: LCCI Seeks Speedy Completion BY OLUSHOLA BELLO, Lagos
The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has sought for improvement partnership between the federal government and Lagos State government in ensuring the speedy completion of the reconstruction work on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, considering the regional economic activities that take place on the corridor. In a communique issued at the end of the council meeting by its director-general, Muda Yusuf, said, “The LCCI Council welcomes the proposal by the federal government to partner with the Lagos State Government to ensure the speedy completion of the reconstruction work of the Lagos–Badagry Expressway. This collaboration is long due. There is tremendous wisdom in allowing national development concerns to take precedence over partisan considerations at all times.”
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job search Thursday, October 9, 2014
INTERVIEWS NETWORKING PERSONAL BRANDING JOB SEEKER PROFILES
10 Tips for People Who Hate Networking
Networking has a bad reputation as a forum for superficial small talk. Yet real networking is about establishing mutually beneficial, lasting connections, one person at a time. And with my modern approach to networking, even you can shine and thrive at a board meeting, convention, or freefloating cocktail party. The reason so many of us hate networking – and profess to stink at it – is because we’ve been futilely following the wrong rules. Rules that only work for a paltry 15 per cent of the population and require us to be phony – a sure fire way to short circuit. This new and improved definition of networking means being true to you; capitalising on your strengths, and tossing aside ‘rules’ that don’t match your temperament. The book’s self-assessment identifies your networking style. However, here are a few titbits designed especially for you:
1. Be True To You You are better qualified to be you than anyone else. Stamp out networking advice that demands you behave in ways that drain you. Harness natural abilities as networking strengths rather than liabilities. Like to listen, not talk? Do it. Energise alone? Go for it. Prefer one-on-one conversation? Arrange it. 2. Realise Less Is More Be selective. Go to fewer events and be more focused when attending – rather than dragging your weary self to every business opportunity and showing up like a networking prisoner. 3. Plan Your First Impression Cognitive scientists say it can take up to 200 times the amount of information to undo a first impression as it takes to make one. Who has that kind of spare time? Not you! Show up with the best version of you, every time. You never know who you are meeting. 4. Volunteer
Many of us dislike networking events because we don’t know what to say to a group of strangers. Free floating through a room is a fast track to free-floating anxiety. What to do? Simple. Volunteer to help out. Voila! You have a purpose and something to talk about. Even better, you position yourself as someone helpful – proving how indispensable you are rather than telling everyone about it. 5. Get in Line This strategy is brilliant. You walk into a networking event with nowhere to go and no one to glom onto. What’s a desperate networker to do? Get in a queue. Any queue. The longer the better! Why? A queue gives you a place to put your body and a temporary purpose in the world. There are only two people to talk with – the person in front and person behind you. There is a reward – whatever is given out at the front of the queue. And a natural ending – the front of the queue. Nice meeting you!
Ta-ta! 6. Set Challenging yet Achievable Networking Goals Well-formed goals vary by personality. At a networking event, task yourself with meeting one or two people, not a dozen. And follow up. 7. Show Don’t Tell Rather than boring others with a canned advert of how marvellous you are, demonstrate live-time your fabulous self. Be useful and gracious. Greet others with a warm smile and leap at every chance to be helpful. 8. Research Rather than wandering cavernous expo halls at industry events, do your pre-work. Learn in advance what organisations are of particular interest. Spend more time with fewer people. Impress key targets with your knowledge of who they are and why you are a perfect match. 9. Listen Ever sense your remarks just shoot off a cliff and crash to the ground? Who needs that kind of pressure? Instead focus on those around you, asking thoughtful questions. Network via a sincere interest in others rather than promoting your fine self. 10. Follow-Up or Forget About It If you’re not following up, you’re not networking! We forget half of what we hear within 48 hours. Write personalised follow-up within two days or risk having your brilliant remarks erased permanently from the minds of those you wowed. If you’re not following up, you’re not networking.
Networking Tips for Introverts 1. Be True To You Stamp out networking advice that demands you behave in ways that drain you. 2 . Plan Your First Impression Go to fewer events and be more focused when attending – rather than dragging your weary self to every business opportunity. 3. Get in Line You walk into a networking event with nowhere to go and no one to glom onto. Get in a queue. Any queue. The longer the better!
Interviews 10 Reasons You Didn’t Get a Call back For the Interview (2) 6. Your Salary Requirements This is a catch-22. If you don’t include them when they are requested, you can be penalised for not following instructions. If you do include them and they are too high, you may be removed from consideration. To improve your chances of getting a call, research the salaries of positions in your industry and in your city, and cite them in your cover letter. In the best case scenario, you get a return call with an opportunity to negotiate. 7. You Didn’t Submit a Cover
Letter Even if a cover letter is not requested, include one anyway. This is your opportunity to expand upon how you can make a contribution to the position and to the organisation. 8. Applicant Software Companies rely on applicant software to make their jobs easier. Unfortunately, these programs are eliminating otherwise qualified candidates if they don’t meet all of the qualifications specified in the posting.
Try to match your resume to the job posting as closely as possible by using as many keywords listed in the posting. Do not lie or exaggerate the truth. 9. You Had Grammar & Punctuation Errors Your writing skills can get your resume to top of the pile or thrown in the garbage. Edit your resume and cover letter for grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. If writing is not your strength, pay someone to review and edit your resume. It’s worth the investment.
10. Your Voluntary EEO SelfDisclosure Form Like social media profiles, the information you provide on the EEO disclosure forms may be used against you in two ways. First, you are providing “protected” information which can result in pre-employment discrimination. Also, many companies are actively recruiting veterans, which greatly reduce your chances of a call back. Since the completion of this form is voluntary, do so at your own discretion. Compiled by Olujide Olusola
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Thursday, October 9 2014
Top BUSINESS SCHOOLS (3)
Hong ➊ Kong University
of Science & Technology Founded in 1991, HKUST focuses on business in mainland China and its connections to the rest of the world.
J0BS NEWS
500,000 Jobs Created In 6 Months – NBS
Lancaster University Lancaster University, officially The University of Lancaster is a public research university in Lancaster, Lancashire, United Kingdom. The university was established by Royal Charter in 1964 one of several new universities created in the 1960s.
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Univer➌ sity of Manchester
Founded in 1965, the Manchester Business School was one of the first two business schools in the UK. Manchester focuses on international business through realworld learning.
Univer➍ sity of Navarra IESE
Business School A globally minded business school, IESE is centered in Barcelona but has locations in Madrid, New York, Sao Paulo and Munich.
Pan➎ American University,
Ipade Business School Founded in 1967 by prominent Mexican businessmen, IPADE now has seven campuses in Mexico and one in Houston, Texas. IPADE was founded to build business leaders with Christian principles, and the school remains connected with the Catholic group Opus Dei.
14 Things That Impact the Quality of Your Personal Brand Quality and personal excellence are two key elements of your personal brand. The degree to which you fully embrace the importance of these elements is communicated to others on a continuous basis and is incorporated into others’ vision of who you are (i.e. the personal brand that you broadcast). Those who are fully aware of this fact can definitely undertake action to broadcast a personal brand that elevates their professionalism through conscious focus on quality and personal excellence. Here are 14 things that impact the quality of your personal brand: 1. Every e-mail message you send to someone else. 2. Every voicemail message you leave for someone. 3. The voicemail message others hear when they try to reach you. 4. Your e-mail “signature.” 5. Any and all social media
profiles you have on networking sites online: LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook. 6. Every written deliverable you submit to anyone else – report, analysis, memo, white paper, article, newsletter, letter, and brochure. 7. Any presentation you make in front of anyone else. 8. Every business card you hand out to someone else. 9. The manner in which you greet a stranger or anyone else you meet for the first time. 10. The manner in which you present yourself physically – your style of dress and grooming. 11. Every conversation you have with another person. 12. The quality of the people you “hang around with.” 13. The role you play in community and professional organisations. 14. The degree of kindness and compassion you communicate to others in every interaction you have.
Each of the above activities represents an opportunity to communicate a high level of quality and personal excellence. Missing the beat on any one of these activities represents a chink in your chain of successfully offering a consistent message of your commitment to quality and personal excellence. Take an inventory of how well you are broadcasting your personal brand elements of quality, excellence, and professionalism through all of the above activities. Commit today to a personal program of continuous improvement. In today’s market, there is no question the personal brand elements of quality and personal excellence is more important than ever. The value you add to your employer, your clients, your professional network, and your personal network will be significantly enhanced through relentless attention to these elements.
Mr Ayodele Fayose
500,224 jobs were created in Nigeria in the first half of 2014, the latest job creation figure released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), recently showed. The figure was announced by the Statistician-General of the Federation, Dr. Yemi Kale, at a workshop organised by the NBS for the review of definition and methodology for computing unemployment statistics in Nigeria. According to www. informationng.com He said the new figure was arrived at through a recent job creation survey carried out by the NBS for the first and second quarters of 2014. According to him, the scope of the survey covered formal and informal establishments and public institutions in the country. According to the report, in the Q1 of 2014, the formal sector recorded 76,018 new jobs; informal recorded 158,894 new jobs, while the public sector recorded 5,959 new jobs. The total new jobs for Q1 of 2014 was 240,871, representing a decrease by 10.3 per cent from the previous Q, which recorded 265,702 jobs and lower than the 431,021 jobs created in the corresponding quarter in 2013. Compiled by Olujide Olusola
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healthful
Thursday, October 9 2014
Anopheles mosquito
. . . C O N D U C I V E TO G O O D H E A LT H O F B O D Y O R M I N D
Lowering Blood Sugar
Burn Surgery
A Bout Of Gout
“ I didn’t know that women could get gout!” said the 52-year-old financial adviser who limped into the office leaning on a crutch. 1 had mentioned that the two leading possible causes of her rightknee pain were an infection and gout. “I was fine yesterday and had only a little ache in the right knee when 1 went to bed,” she told me. “I was awakened about 3 in the morn- ing by the worst pain I’ve ever had. 1 couldn’t bear the covers touching my knee, which was swollen, bright red, and hot to the touch.” A quick consultation with a rheumatology colleague led to the removal of some clear, yellowish fluid from the knee joint. Microscopic examination of the fluid showed typical needlelike sodium-urate crystals. The diagnosis of gout was assured. Charles Dickens’s 1836 novel, The Pick wick Papers, established the image of a gout victim as a stout, middle-aged, pipe- smoking gentleman with a bandaged foot resting on a hassock Aches and Pains and a glass of port within easy reach. While dietary excess and overindulgence in alcohol can indeed trigger the symptoms of gout, that 19th -century stereotype looked nothing like my slim, teetotaling female patient. A common disease Gout affects about 6.1 million adults in the U.S., and the number of cases is increasing. It tends to attack suddenly. The favored joint is the large one at the base of the great toe, though elbows, knees, and ankles are also vulnerable. The pain is excruciating, and anyone who can wait seven to 10 days for the attack to subside on its own has got to be a masochist. Repeat-
ed gout episodes can leave deposits of sodium-urate crystals (tophi) that cause joint enlargement and nodule formation in the arms and legs. Three or four times more men than women develop gout, but the difference narrows with menopause, since estrogen promotes uric-acid excretion in the urine. And that simple chemical substance-uric acid-is the culprit. Virtually all mammals are able to break down ingested protein into a harmless, easily excreted substance, allantoin, with the help of an enzyme, uricase. That enzyme completes the last step-the metabolism of uric acid to allantoin. Not so in humans and their cousins, the great apes, in whom the Darwinian evolutionary plan inexplicably saw fit to eliminate uricase so that protein metabolism ends with uric acid, which is hard for the body to get rid of. Gout results when uric-acid crystals irritate a joint lining and cause inflammation. The causes for this uric-acid buildup in- clude eating too many protein-rich foods (especially meat and seafood), drinking alcohol or soft drinks, and consuming food containing fructose. Those who drink large amounts of coffee, consume dairy products, or take vitamin C supplements tend to have lower rates of uric-acid production. But the main problem for most people might be simply an inherited tendency for the kidneys to hold on to uric acid.
Treatment is effective Once gout is diagnosed, treatment is simple. The condition responds as if by magic to anti-inflammatory med-
Top 7 Facts About Prostate Cancer ication (so if you’re the doctor, the patient becomes your friend for life). Corticosteroids (prednisone, prednisolone) and nonsteroidals (ibuprofen, naproxen) in full anti-inflammatory doses are now the treatments of choice. Colchicine, an inexpensive and popular gout remedy known since 1820, was, oddly, not approved by the Food and Drug Administration until 2009. It is now available only as a relatively expensive brandname product, Colcrys, which has been downgraded to a second-line drug, probably be- cause it frequently causes diarrhea. For long-term treatment to prevent episodes of acute gout as well as the formation of tophi and uric-acid kidney stones, the preferred medicine is allopurinol (Zyloprim and generic). An expensive alternative, febuxostat (Uloric), was approved in 2009. Generic probenecid, a treatment alternative, lowers blood uric acid by increasing its excretion in the urine. I put the financial adviser on a week long regimen of prednisone. Her knee was almost back to normal the day after she started the medication. Her blood uric-acid level, usually increased in people with gout, was borderline at the time of the attack. We are following it periodically, and I have advised her to switch to a low-protein diet with increased dairy intake. Her chances of having a second attack within the next year are about 60 percent. We’ll keep our fingers crossed.
Culled from Guide to Better Health
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It is most common type of male cancer in the world
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Age is a major risk factor as it common with older men
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Men of AfroCaribbean and Africam origin are at higher risk than white men
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Symptoms are similar to urination problems
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it is diagnosed by clinical examination and laboratory tests
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High dietary fat intake is a another risk factor
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In its early and curable stages, it has no symptoms. Do regular physical exams
We put hamburgers on buns, chicken patties on buns, fish on buns, hot dogs on buns .. .if it’s a meat we find a way to put it on a bun, wrap it up, and sell it as fast food. We even put vegetable bur- gers on buns. When you assess foods placed between two buns, the real- ity is this: buns are a problem for people with blood sugar; what’s inside is not (unless it has a bread coating). Not only are buns a major source of carbs but they are almost always made from white flour, which is the least healthy type of flour. Buns have little fiber and high carbs. They lounge in your colon too long, block things up, and cause general mischie£ Consider the common McDon- ald’s cheeseburger. It is made up of the following ingredients: the bun, the beefburger, cheese, some bits of onion, and ketchup. There are a total of 33 grams of carbs in this burger. The carb grams break down as follows: 28 come from the bun, 1 from the cheese, 1 from the onions, and 2 from the ketchup. Those 33 grams are too much and are actually about the same you would get from a candy bar. But you can do a quick carb-reduction surgery and make the situa- tion much more to your needs. I have done it over and over again. Open the wrapping, pull off the top bun, use the top bun to wipe off most of the ketchup (you can leave a little on for taste), place the top bun in the wrapper, squish it thoroughly for satisfaction, and eat the burger minus the top bun. We might assume we have just cut our bun carbs in halE But in most cases we will have done a little better than that. Usually the top bun is plumper and heftier than the bottom bun, so by taking off the top bun you have probably cut the carbs by about 60 percent. A Big Mac contains a total of 45 grams of carbs, 39 of which come from the bun. The Big Mac bun actually contains a middle bun layer as well as a top and bottom. By removing the top and middle layer, you have Bun Surgery gone from a 45-gram carb meal to something like an ll-gram carb mealand have done a significant favor for your pancreas and the rest of your body. Obviously you could save more carbs by getting rid of the bottom bun as well, but now you’ve got a really messy meal you won’t be able to hold in your hands and eat without looking like a complete idiot, or else you’ll have to eat it with a knife and fork. Culled from 60 ways to Lower Your BLOOD SUGAR
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$ 10m
According to Nexim, Nigeria spends over $10 million on food importation annually
30%
Anopheles mosquito
A recent poll states that about 30 per cent of Nigerians depend on pure water sachet as source of water
drugs to avoid whenever possible After 24 years of publishing WDDTY, we are still searching for one single drug out there besides antibiotics that actually cures something. We still haven’t found one. Virtually all drugs are for maintenance-that is, they manage, ease or suppress symptoms, but they do not cure. In spite of assurances from the pharmaceutical industry that drugs can target certain recep-
Horse Stance Starting Position
Your active back exercises A good exercise to help prevent low back pain is the squat. Learning how to squat with good technique will help you when you have to pick up or move something heavy. From the science of motor learning we know that the body operates in patterns of movement, so if you train in the gym with good squat technique, there will J be carry over to your daily life. Squatting also helps to strengthen the muscles of the thigh, which have also been shown to correlate with a low-
er incidence flow back pain. In the gym, the squat exercise can bed one until the muscles are fatigued (see right) every the day or three times a week, adding a second and third set (again to fatigue levels) if there is minimal post -exercise soreness between sessions. Allow two days of rest after the third squat workout of the week. A variation of the squat, which can bed on eat work or at home with no equipment necessary, is the breathing squat (see below right). This form of squat-
Vitamin E intake Critical During ‘The first 1,000 days’ Amid conflicting reports about the need for vitamin E and how much is enough, a new analysis suggests that adequate levels of this essential micronutrient are especially critical for the very young, the elderly, and women who are or may become pregnant. A lifelong proper intake of vitamin E is also important, researchers said, but often complicated by the fact that this nutrient is one of the most difficult to obtain through diet alone. It has been estimated that only a tiny fraction of the population consumes enough dietary vitamin E to meet the estimated average requirement. Some of the best dietary sources of vitamin E -nuts, seeds, spinach, wheat germ and sunflower oil -don’t generally make the highlight list of our diet. One study found that people who are highly motivated to eat a proper diet consume almost enough vitamin E, but broader surveys show that 90 percent of men and 96 percent of women don’t consume the amount currently recommended, 15 milligrams per day for adults. In a review of multiple studies, published in Advances in Nutrition, researchers outlined some of the recent findings about vitamin E.
To begin these exercises, position yourself as follows: I (1) hands should be placed directly under the shoulders; I (2) knees should be placed directly below the hips; and I (3) the spine should be parallel to the floor and neutral (no exaggeration of curves at all), with the hands and face I parallel to and facing the floor and lower legs parallel to I each other, feet perpendicular to the floor. Bend the elbows I slightly and point them towards the thighs to bring the torso parallel to the ground.
10 Health Tips For Your Pet’s Well-Being
Over 50% of pets are considered overweight or obese, with numbers climbing steadily. Just as with people, pet obesity has become an epidemic in the US. Dr. Mark Verdino, Animal League America Vice President and Chief of Veterinary Staff states, “The most common cause for obesity in animals is overfeeding and lack of exercise. In this regard, most overweight animals can easily be put on a path to lose weight.” In honor of National Pet Obesity
tors in the body with laser-like accuracy, the fact is that many unrelated systems in the body have identical receptors-which is why drugs invariably affect other parts of the body as well and cause side- effects. There is a better, alternative solution to virtually every chronic health problem except emergency medicine, which is where orthodox 75 Anticho’ inergic medicine comes into it sown.
Awareness Day on Wednesday, October 8th, North Shore Animal League America would like to share some important Pet Health Tips for you to incorporate into your four-legged family member’s life: • Have your pet evaluated by a veterinarian to develop a plan for healthy living. Unchecked obesity in pets can lead to debilitating diseases such as arthritis, diabetes, cancer and more. • • We love to snack, and so do our pets. Although satisfying, unhealthy snacking can put on a couple of unnecessary pounds. Avoid from feeding snacks and table scraps to your cat or dog. • Exercise with your pet. From running an errand to going for a jog, take your dog with you. Exercise is quite essential for your pet’s health as it increases strength and longevity. • Wellness through water. Water is key for digesting food and will help your pet’s body absorb important nutrients. Make sure your pet’s bowl is filled with clean, clear water on a daily basis. • Feed on a schedule. Avoid accidental overfeeding by sticking to your pet’s recommended daily feeding guide.
healthful Q &A As I’ve grown older, I’ve started getting muscle cramps. What can I do about them? For most cramps, stretch. If a spasm strikes the calf (by far the most common cramp site), pull the front of the foot up toward the knee. Since cramps usually result from muscle fatigue, you may be able to prevent such spasms by gently stretching be- fore you exercise your calves. Stretching before bedtime can also help prevent unexplained nighttime spasms. If the cause isn’t muscle fatigue, your physician may find other, possibly treatable causes. These can include circulatory problems, hyperventilation, an underactive thyroid, and low blood levels of calcium or possibly magnesium or potassium.
Culled from Guide to Better Health
30
Thursday, October 9, 2014
CELEBRATING BAZE UNIVERSITY’S Baze University, a world class private university in Abuja holds its first graduation ceremony on Saturday October 11, 2014.
FIRST GRADUATION CEREMONY
The visioner and Pro-chancellor, Senator Baba Datti Ahmed Phd, invites friends and well-wishers to witness the making of history. LEADERSHIP, the official newspaper of the university, will publish a special pull-out on the landmark achievements and defining impact of the school. It’s an inevitable platform for your adverts and congratulatory messages!
www.bazeuniversity.edu.ng
Please contact the following numbers for adverts placement:
HENRY on 08068640944 e-mail: henro101@yahoo.com MR. IBE REGINALD on 08037880164 e-mail: ibereginald@yahoo.com
YOU CAN’T BEAT THIS!
education Thursday, October 9, 2014
2015
31 UTME excercise is to be fully CBT
F E AT U R E S N E W S R E P O R T S I N T E R V I E W
CBT Examination
JAMB: Total CBT 2015 And The Raging Storm
The decision by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) to regulate the registration procedures of 2015 Unified Matriculation Examination (UTME), has not been a palatable news and has hitherto attracted protests from cyber café operators who accused the Board of stifling employment opportunities and promoting fraud in the admission exercise. Kuni Tyessi writes.
A representative of the cyber café operators, Obi Stephen, said the body was wrong to exclude café operators in the registration.
The Cyber café operators in their protest against the decision by JAMB to standardize the UTME registration exercise for 2015 said they were marginalized by that decision and are currently threatened by massive unemployment as their activities have been taken over by the few that were favoured in the deal. LEADERSHIP recalls that the Board had resolved to implement full blown computer-Based Test in the 2015 UTME and had consequently fine-tuned arrangements with selected CBT centers nationwide to register prospective UTME candidates. But the cafe protesters said the decision by JAMB would breed corruption in the examination
system as well as send them out of their jobs. They further accused the examination body of attempting to use the CBT centers to create a cartel to exploit candidates. They wondered how the Board intended to carter for the large number of prospective candidates with only 300 CBT centers across the federation. They insisted that JAMB was creating room for manipulation as most of the candidates would end up writing their exams in the CBT centers. A representative of the cyber café operators, Obi Stephen, said the body was wrong to exclude café operators in the registration. He said, “We fault the decision of JAMB to shut us out of business. He said “JAMB is now asking
candidates to register where they will want to write their exams. That is legalizing corruption and reducing the standard of education in Nigeria. Also, Adewale Adeniyi, another protester, lamented that the CBT centers were not accessible to candidates, adding that he was asked to go to a far distance to be able to register his child for the exam. He called on the Board to review the decision. However, a parent Mr Danladi Azaba, commended the Board over its boldness to take this step. He said in the last exercise he registered two of his children and paid 1500 Naira for each of them even when he was aware the Board had set 700 as the highest amount yet their passport was mixed up and the could not write the examination as the cafe used a different passport for them hence they were suspected to be impersonating. He said i have now registered them for 2015 exercise and was charged only 700 on each of them as required by the Board. I
think the Board should be allowed to senitized the system. Reacting to the protests, the public Relations Officer of JAMB, Fabian Benjamin, said the Board’s policy is to sanitize the examination process to eliminate all forms of malpractice. He dismissed the argument that the decision will breed corruption and unemployment and accused café operators of collaborating with candidates and operators to perpetrate fraud. In fact the new regime will create more jobs and better the system he said. “It is about sanitizing the process to eliminate malpractice, especially impersonation, which the café operators have been found culpable. “The conditions to operate a CBT centre which allows your to register candidates is more stringent and will enable us to effectively monitor the entire process,” he said. The JAMB spokesman further assured that the Board has over time worked round the clock to ensure that its examination meets
32
32 EDUCATION/NEWS
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Ebola: Stakeholders Call For Improved Sanitation, Hygiene In Schools
short news
Jubilation In Bayelsa Varsity As Dickson Confirms Ogoni As Ndu VC
Kuni Tyessi, Abuja
Stakeholders have called on the Federal, State Governments and other providers other providers of Basic Education in Nigeria to step-up sanitation and hygiene in schools to prevent Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) infection and other diseases. This is one of the resolutions reached at the end of the 13th Quarterly Meeting of Universal Basic Education Commission Management with Executive Chairmen of State Universal Basic Education Boards (SUBEBs) held in Gusau, Zamfara State. The communique issued at the end of the meeting and made available to newsmen in Abuja on Thursday by the Principal Public Relations Officer of UBEC, Mr. David Apeh, urged education providers not to relax because of the containment of the Ebola virus in Nigeria. Delegates to the quarterly meeting also urged the Federal Government to carry out needs assessment of the state governments before intervention in Basic Education. LEADERSHIP gathered that Chairmen of SUBEBs at the meeting raised concerns over certain interventions that were not really the problems of some of the schools. The delegates particularly observed that the Exercise books procured by the office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on MDGs (OSSAPMDGs) were yet to be delivered to most states and the FCT.
Osa Okhomina, Yenagoa
A teacher trained in Ebola prevention, Mrs Nwamaka Uchegbu, screening pupils on Ebola at the Akoka Nursery and Primary School in Lagos, yesterday. Photo By Nan.
AUN Academy Donates Learning Resources To IDPs By Kuni Tyessi, Abuja
The President of the American University of Nigeria institution, Professor Margee Ensign has led the AUN community and some journalists to distribute learning materials to IDPs in Mubi, Adamawa State. The internally displaced persons learning resources included 300 textbooks, 252 notebooks, five packets of pencil erasers, eight packets of ballpoint pens, 10 boxes of pencils, and a carton of printing papers donated by AUN Academy. Also on the list are bags of detergents and drinking cups. The President who presented the materials to the Adamawa State Emergency Management team said that AUN represented
an educational institution whose mission is to support the community. She further expressed the vision of a development university as one that ensures its host community is living in peace, and growing economically and socially. “It is not a huge donation but it is a contribution to show that education must go on under any circumstance,” she said The Principal of the school, Mr. Ashish Gill, noted that their contribution is “a drop in the ocean of knowledge.” Receiving the items on behalf of the IDPs, Permanent Secretary of the Adamawa State Emergency Management Agency, Mr. Haruna Hamman-Furo, thanked the AUN community and the AUN Academy staff for their benevolence in the
service to humanity. He said, “We registered about 4,478 IDPs and more than 2,000 are between the ages of five and 10.” Mr. Furo expresses the danger behind uneducated Nigerian children as a “catastrophe to the nation” if nothing is done. “Among the IDPs we have principals, headmasters, and teachers; so we want to teach the kids basics before they relocate back to their homes.” Mr. Hamman-Furo assured the AUN community that they will give the children the best terms of education. Meanwhile, some of the IDPs will be engaging in AUN’s “Waste to Wealth” initiative. The team was also at St Theresa’s Catholic Church, Jimeta, where about 7, 500 people are taking refuge.
policy on computer based Test (CBT) and regulated registration exercise which the Board said will create over a million direct and indirect job opportunities deserve the support of all and sundry and a chance to succeed rather than being vilified. It might make the system better and acceptable irrespective of who’s interest it affects. We must be ready to pay certain price or make sacrifice if this nation must move forward. Education has suffered so much condemnation in Nigeria and now that an agency of government is determined to address the challenge, it only behoves on us to corporate with it and not allow those that are benefiting from the rot to sentimental mislead us. Contrary to the misconception
by the cyber café operators the regulated exercise is not designed to favour anybody or section of the country. It’s a system designed with certain criteria that are seen to protect and sustain the sanctity of public examination and whoever meets this condition will certainly be allowed to participate. The clamor for the Board to water down the requirements in the interest of quantity of centers should therefore be seen as grossly dis service to education and the nation. The regulated registration exercise dose not in any way confer any advantage on any candidate as candidates only choose their examination town during registration and their centres are randomly selected by the Board.
JAMB: Total CBT 2015 And The Raging Storm 31
international best practices, a determination that has spurred it to make a number of innovations, thus placing it at a vantage position where other examination bodies troop in to benchmark on its success. As we speak the Registrar is in CITO, the Netherlands with some staff of the Board on their invitation to benchmark with the Board on its success. Not a few stakeholders have rejected the argument put forward by the cyber cafe operators as they believe the conduct of any credible examination must begin with a credible registration process hence the need for a regulated exercise. Given the obvious short comings experienced by the candidates while patronizing
the cyber cafes over the years in the areas of impersonation, multiple registration and other vices associated with examination malpractice, sanitizing the entire process in preparation for a full blown CBT exercise appears the best way forward The newly introduced regulated system, it is believed, will create more quality jobs as each of the centers have a capacity of over 150 terminals with some having over a thousand terminals. Most of the protesting cafes might be the itinerant ones that operate under make shift locations who when put together does not have what one CBT centre has and have no capacity to engender multiple employment opportunities. From every indication the
The campus of the Bayelsa owned University,the Niger Delta University, Ammassoma in Southern Ijaw Area of the State was thrown into jubilation over the confirmation of the appointment of Professor Humphery Ogoni as the substantive Vice Chancellor of the Institution. Professor Humphery Andrew Ogoni,who was the Acting Vice Chancellor of the University since 2012,edged out three other candidates in a very competitive interview and assessments.
EDUCATION/INTERVIEW 33
Thursday, October 9, 2014 by Taiwo Ogunmola Omilani, Lagos
Although the problems of part time seems to be the same all over the world, manifesting syndromes , academic indiscipline, low credit earning students and less educational development classes, efforts are constantly made in other jurisdictions to remedy the situation for the products to be at par with those from full time faculty programmes. But the continued frustrations being experienced by part time students in Nigeria tend to defeat the essence of establishing school of part time which is to take education nearer and closer to the people. Thus, it has failed probably to solve problem of manpower requirements of a particular State. Though, National Universities Commission (NUC) has suspended all part-time Programmes run by universities in the country, the reality on ground showed that the move is not the solution to the problems. The Executive Secretary of the commission, Professor Julius Okojie, said the suspension of the part- time programmes was to enable the regulatory body “streamline’’ them. He added that work of the universities’ regulatory body was becoming more difficult because of the “products of the system’’ and urged the institutions to cooperate with the NUC to evolve a more focused and credible system. “For now all part time programmes have been suspended. We are going to streamline them. No university should have more than 20 per cent of their student population on part-time with excess capacity to teach. “All part time programmes must be located on campus. We do not want satellite campuses anymore,’’ he said. As Lagos State University is planning to close down its School of Part, the current students lamented of delay in results among other problems. Students of the Lagos State University External System,
Okojie, NUC Boss
Bringing Nigeria’s Part Time Learning Centres To Focus (LASUES) recently made a peaceful protest against alleged fraudulent practices and mass failure of students by the institution management. They registered their grievances with various inscriptions on placards condemning the hike in their fees, non-release of examination results and poor treatment by the school authorities, among others. The students said since 2012, LASUES had only conducted three examinations, adding that it was not in accordance with global
practices on education. Speaker of the Students Representative Council,( LASUES), Bolaji Azeez, said part-time students, deserved the same quality of instruction and treatment given to regular students. He lamented the poor running of the school’s external programme, noting that such had made nonsense of the exercise. He alleged that students were not being issued identity cards and that examinations were not conducted regularly as obtained in normal academic programmes.
N30b Spent On Textbook Supplies, Waste Of Public Fund-Group
FUNAAB VC Harps On Quality Assurance In African Varsities Gbenga Adeboye, Abeokuta
Trending Education Stories ➊Unity still on closed wirh no resumption date in sight ➋ 2015 world Teachers Day was cancelled due to the Ebola threat
Bujumbura, the capital of Burundi, recently hosted the 6th International Conference on Quality Assurance in Higher Education where heads of ivory towers on the continent brainstormed on quality assurance in the tertiary institutions. The platform presented a unique opportunities for heads of tertiary institutions in Africa to deliberate on the all important issue of quality of education in African institutions. In his remarks, the President, Association of African Universities (AAU) and Vice-Chancellor,
Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), Professor Olusola Oyewole, at the conference joined other educational administrators across Africa to support quality assurance practice in tertiary institutions. Oyewole noted that the quality of African higher education remained under severe pressure. The conference stressed the need for quality assurance agencies in Africa to become more acceptable as the number of national quality assurance agencies rose from mere six in 2006 to 23 today, while new initiatives were also being launched to promote further developments.
“With all these problems, the students were made to part with between N68, 000 and N75, 000 as school fees, much higher than what the regular students are paying. Is it a sin to be part-time students?” The management of the debunked the allegation leveled against them, saying the students are to be blamed. The Deputy Vice Chancellor Academics of Lagos State University (LASU), Professor Sena Bakre explained that government is not responsible for the running of the External school System of LASU, saying the refusal of the students to pay their tuition fee deterred them from writing examinations. According to her, we run the same curriculum we used in main campus with external students and that is why they are under the department in the main campus. The Registrar of LASU, Lewis Akinwunmi Oladapo explained that the tuition fee paid by the students are used for the payment of Lecturers salaries, refusal to pay will delay both the examination and the results of the students. He went on: “The State Government doesn’t have anything to do in the running of the external school, we used their tuition fee to run the institution. The allegations by the students are not tenable. “In the main campus, we take attendance of the students and they are being monitored but most of the external students don’t border to attend lectures; they feel they are at liberty to do whatever they like. “They involved in examination malpractices because some of them don’t attend lectures. We have also uploaded over 30,000 results on the LASU website but for students who have not paid their tuition fee would not have access the result. “We release results within 24hrs because computer mark their scripts that make it easier for us”. The duo emphasized that the External Students are not suppose to have union, saying its illegal. LASU only recognised Student Union Government (SUG) in the campus.
by Onukogu Kanayo Jubal, Abuja
25
countries will be participating in this year’s fifth annual Olympiad
The Federal Government has been urged to stop the huge sums of money expended annually on supply of textbooks in Basic Education in Nigeria. A group, Education Rights Initiative (ERI) on Thursday in Abuja, described the supply of textbooks to Primary and Secondary Schools by the Federal Government through the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) as a waste of public fund. ERI National Coordinator, Mr. Dickson Itodo, told newsmen in Abuja on Thursday that over N30 billion has been spent by the Government through UBEC on the
supply of books to schools in the last three years without serious impact. He said: “This waste of public funds should not have happened in the first place or should it have been allowed to go on for so long with over N30 billion down the drain”. Minister of State for Education, Barrister Nyesom Wike, had recently disclosed that since the Federal Government commenced the Free Textbook Initiative in 2010, a total of N52 billion has been expended. He, however, said this included supply of supplementary library and reading materials to primary and secondary schools.
34 ISSUES
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Nigerian Military: Between Mutiny And Murder By Ibrahim Usman
The soldiers are covered and have a case, for they acted on self defence. They were protesting a situation in which they were deliberately rendered ill-equipped in the midst of well-equipped enemy
Twelve Nigerian soldiers, all in their 20s and ranged in rank from private to corporal, drafted to fight the socalled Boko Haram insurgents in Maiduguri were on September 8, 2014 sentenced to death by firing squad for alleged mutiny and attempted murder of their commanding officer. There were series of revolts from the Nigerian soldiers during the period. Journalists were barred from attending the trial, but were only invited to hear the reading of the verdict issued by the nine-member court martial panel headed by Brigadier General Chukwuemeka Okonkwo. The said offence of the military officers is well known to all. A troop of handicapped soldiers was ordered to drive at night on a road frequently attacked by the so called Boko Haram insurgents. The soldiers initially refused, on the firm belief it was a suicide mission. But they eventually followed orders and were ambushed on May 13 by the insurgents on the road from the northeast town of Chibok, town where more than 270 schoolgirls were kidnapped a month earlier. Many of the soldiers were killed by the insurgents as a result. When the bodies of the ambushed soldiers were brought to the barrack in Maiduguri on May 14, the soldiers revolted, throwing stones at their commanding officer, Major General A. Mohammed firing into the air and then shooting at him. Several bullets hit the armorplated vehicle in which he sought refuge. He was unharmed. The demoralised soldiers have told The Associated Press and BBC that they were outgunned by the insurgents, frequently not paid in full, abandoned on the battlefield and left without enough ammunition or food. They decried the endemic corruption in the Nigerian military, where millions of dollars budgeted for the fight against the so called insurgents went into pockets of their superiors. Evidently, the military had no option but to pass this judgment to cover up the widespread allegation of corruption, where security vote is being siphoned by the high ranking officers while placing lives of the junior officers in great danger. A simple definition of mutiny by Merriam Webster dictionary describes it as “a situation in which a group of people (such as sailors or soldiers) refuse to obey orders and try to TAKE CONTROL (emphasis mine) away from the person commanding them”. An indepth definition of the word is hereby presented in the book, Military Law and Precedents (Vol. 2) thus: “Unlawful opposition or resistance
to, or defiance of superior military authority, with a deliberate purpose to USURP, SUBVERT, or OVERRIDE the same, or EJECT with authority from office”. From the above definitions we can deduce that intent should be the focus, and not the act itself. The intent distinguishes the act of mutiny from other offences in the armed forces. A further reading from the same book says any act “not characterised by a deliberate intent to overthrow superior authority do not constitute in general the legal offence of mutiny, but are commonly to be treated as “conduct to the prejudice of good order and military discipline”. By these definitions and the prevailing situation of events on ground that were well known to the public at that time, the soldiers are covered and have a case, for they acted on self defence. They were protesting a situation in which they were deliberately rendered ill-equipped in the midst of wellequipped enemy. This is what one of protesting soldiers, under anonymity, told the Daily Trust newspaper reporter: “Whenever we voice our grievances within the precinct of the barracks, our superiors accuse us of disobedience… Sometimes they even say we would face mutiny charges and that is why we forced our drivers to stop at Bulabulin”. Similar statement was also made by another soldier, “We were only given guns and some ammunitions, even the armoured tank that we are supposed to go with was withdrawn, and that is why we said we would not move an inch”. Master Sun, author of the book, The Art of War: Complete Texts and Commentaries, graphically illustrated the consequences of a weak army in a battle: “So an army perishes if it has no equipment, it perishes if it has no food, and it perishes if it has no money”. Further elaboration on this by Mei Yaochen concludes: “These three things are necessary–you cannot fight to win with an unequipped army”. By implication, the commanding officer who gave the order to an unequipped army to fight well equipped insurgents, knowing fully the uneven degree of strength of both parties, should be tried for being an accomplice to cold blood murder. Similarly, he should be tried for subverting the country’s effort to win a war, for obviously by design the ill-equipped Nigerian soldiers were meant to be defeated. By implication they were led to the slaughter slab with their hands tied, while their superiors moved about in armorplated vehicles. The fact that the Senate Committee on Defence has endorsed the judgment did not make it hold water. –Usman sent in this piece from Abuja
Reforming The Civil Service By Dr. Tunji Olaopa
“To be or not to be?” is the essential question that the Nigerian Civil Service (NCS) should answer if it must, indeed, earn the epithet of a functional democratic state that is committed to an efficient and effective service delivery. In the first part, we saw how that since its inauguration, the evolution of the NCS constitutes the sum total of outstanding starts; evolving, immature and weak structures; ambivalent decisions; bold steps; compromised reforms and fortuitous breakthroughs. This evolution simply implies that the organisational growth of the NCS has failed to reach a point of maturity from which it could commence a reformulation of its original objectives. Thus, most of the reform efforts since its inauguration have been mere attempts at damage control. Hence, when Prof. Adamolekun categorised Nigeria as a hesitant reformer, it was not difficult to see the analogy with Shakespeare’s Hamlet. When the wave of democratisation began in the early 90s, Nigeria had to decide whether it still wanted to be a hesitant reformer or make the urgent push for advancement in reform management. From 1985 to date, we have had five specific reform attempts aimed at refurbishing the professional status of the Nigerian civil servant—the 1985/1988 Phillips Commission, the Ayida Reform of 1995, the Obasanjo Renewal Programme, Yar’Adua Civil Service Reform Programme and the present Jonathan Transformation Agenda. Put together, all these reforms had a simple objective: Reconstructing the persona of the Nigerian civil servant through professionalising the NCS and its HRM architecture. Some of the essential steps taken in this direction include: (a) To re-professionalise as a means of creating a new generation of officers and technocrats with sufficient skills, knowledge and motivation for institutional innovation; (b) the conduct of vigorous and systematic evaluation and reporting of professional performance to make policy-makers accountable for resources used and for results; (c) modernising core operations and systems of the NCS using ICT; (d) creation of a number of more specialised cadres; (e) putting in place a system of capacity utilization wherein core skills are better matched with jobs; (f) injection of high skills and competencies available in other sectors of the economy into the public service, using a range of incentives; and (g) strengthening policy and research synergies through enhanced collaborative projects, including public-private partnerships. Yet, reconstructing the modus operandi of the NCS requires more
than just token attention to the imperative of reform. It requires, essentially, a paradigm shift. The simple reason is that we can never hope to continue at this hesitant rate and hope to achieve a world class status with the same indecisive level of administrative functionality. Transforming into a ‘new public service involves answering two simple but basic questions: How do we want to be seen as an administrative institution? What must we do to achieve this new perception? The National Strategy for Public Service Reform (NSPSR) provides a straightforward answer to the first question: The Nigerian civil service ought to be perceived and to function as ‘A world-class public service delivering government policies and programmes with professionalism, excellence and passion.’ And its mission statement is also simple: To efficiently and effectively implement the policies and programmes of government, operating collaboratively and transparently with other stakeholders to ensure quality delivery of public services. The answer to the second question follows automatically: To achieve this large vision of a world class and democratic public service, we need to urgently get the basics of reform execution and management right. Getting the basics right implies the need to build the fundamental strengths of our public service institution before deploying best practices to ignite the changes we desire. Consequently, reform must create the government context for agency-level systemic changes to take root. In a 2008 essay titled ‘The Public Service of 2025,’ Jocelyne Bourgon outlines five fundamental trends around which the vision of the NSPSR can coalesce if its mission statement is to become a reality for Nigerians. These paradigmatic trends include: Trend One - Hybridisation of Public Human Resource Models. This would involve a civil service system exploring the possibility of a mixed regime that combined the career-based and positionbased models of recruitment into the civil service. Trend Two - A Reduction of Protection, Immunity and Privilege. In this regard, there has been a serious encroachment on the traditional permanent tenure of the civil servants in favour of flexible and fixed-term contract appointments. Trend Three - Emphasis on Individual Performance. Such a future civil service would also be concerned with how its HRM framework can been capacitated enough with pay, compensation and incentives to build individual and unit performance that would result in organisational progress. –Olaopa wrote in from Abuja
Consequently, reform must create the government context for agencylevel systemic changes to take root
35
Thursday, October 9, 2014
FOR GOD AND COUNTRY
MISSING VEHICLE This is to notify the general public that a white-coloured Hyundai Sonata saloon car with registration number BWR 642 AH and chassis number KMHEB41BABA097759 belonging to LEADERSHIP Newspapers Group Ltd is missing. The vehicle was last seen with Hajiya Mariya Ibrahim Baba. Any person with useful information regarding the missing vehicle should please contact the nearest police station or LEADERSHIP Newspapers Group Ltd through this phone number: 07035782552 Signed: Management
36 THE NATION’S CAPITAL
Thursday, October 9 2014
Jikwoyi Building Collapse: FEMA Announces 1 Casualty By Nkechi Isaac
The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Emergency Management Department (FEMD), yesterday, announced the death of one of the victims, which sustained serious injuries, from the one storey building collapse in Jikwoyi, last weekend. This was contained in a statement by the director of the agency, Alh. Abbas Idriss, and made
available to LEADERSHIP. Recall that a one storey building on plot 290, Jikwoyi, housing Mimshack Relaxation Spot collapsed at the weekend, trapping five people, who were later rescued during a search and rescue operation by FEMA alongside other emergency management agencies. Speaking during the rescue mission, the FEMD boss said that the building situated within the
indigenous setting, which had no building plan approval, collapsed because the owners were trying to add additional structures on the existing one. The statement read in part, “the owners of the building were illegally trying to add another structure on the existing one without reinforcing the building, an action that put much pressure on the foundation, leading to the eventual collapse
of the structure. We rescued five people who sustained various degrees of injuries but one of them who were in a critical condition has died.” It further said that the remains of the deceased have been deposited at the Asokoro hospital. Abbas described the incident as unfortunate and urged residents to abide with building controls obtainable within the FCT to forestall future occurrence.
Driver Arraigned For Killing 2 Pedestrians By Igho Oyoyo
Police in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), yesterday, arraigned a 35-year-old truck driver, Zaradeen Idris, in a Kuje area council magistrates’ court for allegedly knocking down two pedestrians through dangerous driving and high speed. The prosecutor, Cpl. Ocheche Samuel, told the court that the accused committed the offence in August, 2014 Samuel said the matter was reported by parents of the deceased, all of Gosa Airport Road, at Kuje Police Station on September 29, 2014. The prosecutor said the accused drove dangerously on the high way and caused the death of Bello Habib and Olumakinde Kazeem. He said accused also caused damage to a Peugeot 406, with the registration number, Lagos AAA 437 BZ, adding that the offence contravenes the Provisions of Sections 27 cap 548 of Road Traffic Violation (RTV). Idris pleaded not guilty to all the charges. The case was adjourned till October, 21 for hearing by senior magistrate, Mr. Azubike Okeagwu.
LAPO Disburses N2m Scholarship To FCT Students By Millie Ibe
A leading microfinance bank, LAPO Microfinance Bank Limited has disbursed over N2 million as scholarship to selected students from various schools in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and its environs. Presenting the cheque of N80, 000, N35,000 and N25,000 to the benefiting students, the regional manager of the bank, Princess Enehizena Itohan, said that the organisation was celebrating its “world’s day”, a day set aside to give out scholarship to students. According to her, the beneficiaries range from Secondary to University students that passed the LAPO screening test. She said, “Today has been set aside to present scholarship to students who passed our tests at the various categories. Students can access this scholarship as they graduate from one class to another, we also sponsored them throughout their secondary school to university.” In a chat with LEADERSHIP, some of the beneficiaries, Diana Osilamah, from Government Secondary School, Kwali, FCT, Elageche Ehoda, Foundation International School, Nasarawa, Chukwu Chigozie, Government Secondary School, Karshi, FCT and Emmanuel Sunday, St. Paul’s College, Nasarawa State all expressed their happiness with LAPO for giving them hope in life, adding that their gesture showed that there is a future for the young ones.
A motorcyclist conveying vegetable to Gosa Market along Airport Road, yesterday. PHOTO BY OGOH JOSEPH.
Yuletide: NSCDC urges Residents To Be Vigilant By Patience Ivie Ihejirika
Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), FCT Command, Aminu Kofar Soro, has urged residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to be vigilant and report all suspicious movement or people to the appropriate authority. Soro gave the charge while
fielding questions from journalists in his office, yesterday, in Abuja The commandant urged Nigerians to be pro-active at all times to ensure that different strategies being employed by hoodlums do not escape their attention. He enjoined Nigerians, especially public servants, to maintain peace and orderliness in their work
places and desist from heating up the polity for selfish reasons. Speaking on recruitment, Soro warned job seekers never to patronise fraudsters, noting that both the giver and receiver of money, in respect of recruitment, is committing the same offence and are liable to 21 years imprisonment. “The corps is not carrying out any recruitment or
replacement. All NSCDC recruitments are done by the Federal Ministry of Interior and not through online,” he added. The commandant maintained that peace and orderliness are veritable tools for development, urging Nigerians not to jeopardize the unity of the nation for any reason, even as he wished the nation peace.
Monarch Inaugurates Poverty Alleviation Committee By Igho Oyoyo
The Ona of Abaji and chairman of the Council of Traditional Rulers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Alhaji Adamu Yunusa, have inaugurated a sixman committee on poverty alleviation in the council. The committee has the Sarkin Gabas of Abaji, Alh. Kamal Adamu Shuaibu, as the chairman; Dan Maje of Abaji, Alh. Salihu Abdullahi, secretary and Etsu Gupa of
Abaji, Alh. Ali Sokodabo; Shaban Nupe of Abaji, Alhaji Ibrahim Yahaya Suleiman; Alhaji Ysuf Adamu Baba and Barr. M.I Kakamba as members of the committee. Speaking during the inauguration, Yunusa said he set up the committee because of his desire to help in tackling the high rate of poverty bedeviling residents of the council. He further said that the poverty alleviation committee would create an opportunity
for the idle minds, especially youths to be engaged in all kinds of petty business or hands/ skill programme. According to him, the committee would intensify efforts in reaching out to the federal government, donor agencies as well as some international donor agencies to identify with them in order to support them loan. “At least, if some of these youths will have something doing, it would no doubt divert their attention from
engaging in form of social vices in our society. Because, a situation whereby there is high level of poverty in a society, the next thing for such youth to do is either engage in political thuggery or other forms of crime,” he said. The monarch charged members of the committee to devote their time to ensure that the scheme become a success and urged residents to continue to live in peace with one another.
politics today Thursday, October 9 , 2014
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REPORTS ANALYSES REVIEWS INTERVIEWS
Obuh
Uduaghan
Okowa
After Uduaghan, Who Takes Delta Beyond 2015? By 2015, the governorship position of Delta State, an oil producing state in Nigeria will be vacant and Deltans will go to the polls to elect a new governor. In this report, GEORGE OKOGIE writes that if political indices in the state are anything to go by, the next governor to take Delta beyond 2015 is almost known.
Regardless, a name has been ringing bell within political circles in the state as the man to beat. He is Anthony Chuks Obuh, a cynosure of all eyes, who had worked under Governor Uduaghan in various capacities, has indeed, altered political direction and individual ambitions in Delta
E
verywhere one goes in Nigeria these days, there are political billboards, posters and banners with candidates’ faces smiling back at every passerby. The situation in Delta State is particularly amusing where many high- flying Deltans are enthusiastically showing intense interest to contest the governorship election. As the aspirants jostle for the tickets of the political parties, opinions are divided among the citizens as many have taken sides with one of the major aspirants. This is so perhaps, over the years Delta politics has been directly controlled by highly placed cabals in the state without any form of political pressure. Lessons in history have shown that in contesting governorship position in Delta State, intending contestants must have the required political structure in place; a workable and realistic strategy and methods for weakening the opponent and
realizing their aspirations. In the new political rapprochement, the race to Government House, Asaba shows every sign that it will be a close race between political parties going by the number of aspirants who have so far indicated interest. In the race is Mr. Festus Keyamo, a brilliant Lawyer who is from Uvwie Local Government Area of the state. He had signified interest in the bye-election for the Delta Central Senatorial seat, but lost the primary to his opponent in the All Progressive Congress (APC). Otive Igbuzor is another aspirant from Delta Central on the platform of APC. He is from Emonu Orogun and Ugono Orogun respectively in the present Ughelli North Local Government Area. Other formidable aspirants are: Godswill Obielum, Ngozi Olejeme, Ifeanyi Okowa, Gabriel Oyibode, Sam Obi, Victor Ochei, Sylvester Monye, Ndudi Elumelu, Pat Utomi, Festus Okunbor, Clement
Ofuani, Godsday Orubebe, Godson Echiejile, , among others. Of the lots Okowa is a current Senator of the Federal Republic. A grassroots mobiliser and a bridge builder, he is articulate and a master of the game. He was a councillor and one-time chairman of Ika North-East Local Government area of Delta State. He had served as secretary to the state government under Governor Uduaghan before going to the senate. Obielum from Ndokwa West local government is a former police officer. He had contested the governorship seat in 2007 with Uduaghan, but lost. One aspirant in the race who cannot be undermined for gender sake, whether she eventually emerges or not, is Dr. Ngozi Olejeme who is the chairman of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF). Olejeme in 2007, contested for the governorship position of Delta State with Uduaghan. She is determined to create record in the
state and country by becoming the first female governor in Nigeria. Obi, former Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, former Acting Governor of the state and a current member of the Assembly, hails from Ika North-East. Victor Ochei is the immediatepast speaker of the State House of Assembly. Ochei, an engineer, has made some marks within few years in politics. He has a great followership among other lawmakers, particularly those from his Aniocha North local government Sylvester Monye hails from Idumu Ogbele Quarters in Onicha-Ugbo in Aniocha North Local Government Area of the state. From the day he declared his interest publicly to run for the governorship seat in 2015, he has shown strong commitment to realize his dream. Regardless, a name has been ringing bell within political circles in the state as the man to beat. He is Anthony Chuks Obuh, a cynosure of all eyes, who had worked under Governor Uduaghan in various capacities, has indeed, altered political direction and individual ambitions ➔ CONTINUES ON PAGE 38 Donald Ojogo, Group Politics Editor
38 POLITICS TODAY
Thursday, October 9, 2014
After Uduaghan, Who Takes Delta Beyond 2015? ➔ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 37
Expectedly, his opponents have posited that he is neither a politician nor a known figure in political circles to merit the governorship of the state. They see him as an imposition by Governor Uduaghan to commence what one of them called a third term
in Delta. The aspirant, said to have been anointed by the power that be in the state was born 27th of January 1957 to the family of Mr. George Obuh. He holds a Masters Degree in Industrial and Labour Relations from the University of Ibadan. He has been Director, Loans and Investment, Ministry of Finance and Economic planning . Director , Planning Research and Statistics , Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning before retiring as Permanent Secretary in the Delta civil service. Expectedly, his opponents have posited that he is neither a politician nor a known figure in political circles to merit the governorship of the state. They see him as an imposition by Governor Uduaghan to commence what one of them called a third term. But Obuh has contended that he is not a neophyte in Delta politics, saying he was among those who formed the Project Uduaghan International(PUI), through which they were able to work behind the scene for the present governor to emerge. In an interactive session with newsmen in Laogs recently, Obuh said; “Again I was part of the transition committee that prepared his eventual takeover of office. Along the line you begin to see certain things that will add values to the lives of the people may be hindered not because the policies are not good or because the leadership does not completely understand what to do. “But then, at every point in time it is necessary that you have to harness the effort of a good number of people within the system to ensure that you achieve success. If you do not understand the system or what that problems are the tendency for you is to begin to do blame game. “I know how to harness the potentials because I have been in the system and addressing them will not be a problem and looking at the number of persons who are around, from my personal assessment, I know they do not have the kind of understanding and exposure that I have and that places my at an advantage . “If you look at the fact that by 2015, the position of the governor will become vacant and all of us are looking at a situation where somebody can take over and continue to run the development of our state, continue to utilize all the opportunities that are available and continue to build what we consider to be the advantages that are already on ground, it is only somebody who understands the system thoroughly that can do that.
Orubebe
Ochei
Olejeme
With a gusto that suggests imminent takeover of the mantle of leadership in the state, Obuh said, “this is my plan for the new Delta or what I think I have to offer to the people of Delta State. “First is to let you know that our policy is to ensure we push
the economy of Delta beyond oil. That is to say we know that what we have now as our greater advantage and resource may one day no longer be the.” He said the youth restiveness that hitherto characterized the state and region was better tackled
by the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC) which was set up by an Act of the Delta State Government in 2007, to execute a clear mandate. Obuh who vowed to continue to fund the programme when eventually elected said, “As stated in Section 13 (1) of its enabling law, the Commission shall “receive and administer exclusively the fifty percent (50%) of the thirteen percent (13%) Oil Derivation fund accruing to the Delta State Government for (a) the rehabilitation and development of Oil Producing Areas in the State, and (b) Other development Projects as may be determined from time to time by the Commission. “DESOPADEC, since the government started funding it, youth restiveness has been reduced; if elected by the grace of God, I will continue in this path and ensure that projects aimed at addressing specific problems within these oil producing communities are given maximum attention. On insinuation of his political anointments from the power that be in the state, he said; “First the issue of anointment if they say I have been anointed by some political interests, supports groups, youths, communities and all of that is OK and I think that is what politicians seeking public offices look up to. Those saying so I think have attempted to get such anointment without success. “They have also mentioned some names to say such names have anointed me. But let me tell you, there is nobody that has the constitutional right to give or deny support for any individual. They even said the governor has anointed me but I have never discussed anointment with the governor he has never declared that he has anointed me. “The chairman of PDP in Delta State has issued a statement neither the governor, the chairman or party has anointed anybody. At 57 years where I am going to is closer than where coming from. I have worked for 32 years nobody has told out of the 32 years I have been inclined to doing wrong things or bad things. “Now is the time for me to look for name, name that can never fade that can make me to be a consultant to people who will come to seek public office. I am determined to leave a lasting legacy of a leader that be remembered in history. That is my determination.” Whether this Ika-born technocrat will succeed Governor Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan or not depends very much on political events that would unfold in the next few months.
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politics Corruption: ExEFCC Boss, Waziri Gives Uduaghan Clean Bill A former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mrs. Farida Waziri has commended Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan for running a transparent administration. Speaking at the maiden edition of The Sun Women Leadership Summit in Asaba, Waziri gave the Dr. Uduaghan administration a pat on the back for following due process in its financial transactions. The Former EFCC boss said: “The governor never crossed my part and I never crossed his while I was in EFCC that is why I have the confidence to come into Delta State. “He is a performing governor, following due process and he has done very well for his people. When I was coming, I thought I will have to land in Benin, but was told there was an airport here, the Asaba International Airport that I saw is one of the best in the country, your Governor has performed well in infrastructural development” She stated that the Sun Women Summit was timely and urged women to always put in their best in whatever they do, asserting, “I want to ask women not to lose their femininity, respect themselves, dress responsibly and at the end, they will earn respect.” Governor Uduaghan who declared the occasion open urged women to always cooperate among themselves so as to harness their potentials to the fullest in their fields of endeavour stressing that “women must come together to win in a man’s world, they should refuse to be used to pull down or limit their fellow women in whatever fields of endeavour” Dr. Uduaghan noted that women have the capacity to aspire to any position if they were united and observed that they, most often do not succeed for positions they aspire for because their fellow women were used to thwart their efforts. “The women must agree to work together, they will win in elections by refusing to be manipulated by men to be used against their fellow women,” Dr Uduaghan stated, adding, “the men can manoeuvre their ways in politics but, it is difficult for women to do so.” The Governor who stated that his administration has surpassed the 35% affirmative action for women disclosed that his administration has identified the abilities of women in producing results honestly and was harnessing such abilities to the fullest.
Jonathan Does Not Deserve Re-election
Former national publicity secretary of the defunct New Peoples Democratic Party (nPDP), Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze has described the six years of President Goodluck Jonathan as the most disastrous in the history of Nigeria. Eze, who is also a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress
(APC), in a statement issued in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital yesterday, said Nigerians are being subjected to wicked rule through the Jonathanled Federal Government. He said, “We should have been celebrating in recognition of Nigeria’s 54 years of nationhood but what we are rather seeing is a pervasive atmosphere of gloom as Nigerians are groaning day and night
under the wicked rule they are being subjected to through the government of Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, which has abdicated its responsibility to the people, and in every way possible shows the wickedness of its reign. “To worsen the nation’s situation, President Jonathan has proven himself as incapable of running this country as his six years of administration have
been most disastrous to the country’s history. Eze said, “After spending six years in office by 2015, he is still offering himself to contest the 2015 presidential election, which if he wins, will make him to rule the country for ten years; against the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that stipulates that nobody should rule the country exceeding eight years.”
Jonathan
Ahmed
Saraki
Yero
BY ANAYO ONUKWUGHA, Port Harcourt
…..You Are Wrong, He Must Contest – Group Eze’s position notwithstanding, one of the president’s pseudo-campaign bodies, Goodluck Will Win Organization, (GWW) disagreed with the APC chieftain, saying President Jonathan has performed creditably well to merit a second term in 2015. In a statement issued in Abuja yesterday, national coordinator of the group, Dr Titus Obiorah averred that there was not viable alternative to the incumbent.
The statement said in part, “Looking at the appearance of the opposition, we do not see a credible alternative to the clear benefits of the continuity, policy stability and forward thinking solutions embodied in Jonathan presidency. Even at this early stage, the opposition has been unable to articulate its own remedies for the hot button issues of this election. “The opposition is yet to tell Nigerians what it will do dif-
ferently. It is not enough to make a blanket statement that you will fight corruption if elected. Nigerians need to know how the opposition will fight corruption. “We applaud PDP governors for showing wisdom and rising in unity to adopt President Jonathan as the PDP presidential candidate in 2015 election, we therefore call on the President to appreciate this endorsement as well as stand on the over-
whelming support of Nigerians across the country to declare for second term without further delay. “GWW is hereby drafting President Jonathan to run for second term in the interest of Nigeria. GWW and its members along with other President Jonathan support groups will work for Jonathan re-election as well as project how he will govern in the second term to effectively address voter concerns”, it said.
2015: Yero Asks Ambitious Commissioners To Resign By Midat Joseph, Kaduna
Governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero of Kaduna State has asked commissioner nursing any political ambition to resign. LEADERSHIP authoritatively gathered that the governor gave the commissioners up to 10th of this month to leave the stage. A source in government house who confirmed this
to our correspondent said the governor’s decision followed the embarrassment he received in Sanga local government during his visit to commiserate with the people over the recent killings in the area. According to the source, “the governor’s was very sad with what happened to him in Sanga local government, because the Commissioners deceived him
into going to Sanga.” “The governor told the commissioners at an executive council after his visit to Sanga how disappointed he was with his commissioners, whom he accused of only pursuing personal interest rather. “And I tell you the truth, some of the commissioners will go because they have been pursuing their personal agenda and mak-
ing people to hate the governor. They have not been talking to the people about what government is doing. So, there is much hatred for the governor especially in Southern Kaduna,” the source added. The source added that some of the commissioners will soon tender their resignation letters to pursue their personal political interests.
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DEFENCE FOCUS 41
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Media, Security Chiefs Dialogue On Security
here was a bloodless battle between the media practioners and the military chiefs in Abuja when the two chiefs began a dialogue over the security challenges facing the country in the Northeastern part. The meeting with a theme ``Security/Media Relations in Crisis Management’’ was organized by the Office of National Security Adviser in conjunction with Trim Communications Nig. Ltd. At the morning session held yesterday, five papers were presented that set the tone for the programme which is being attended by media chiefs from every state of the Federation who work for both the government-owned and the private owned media. They were Security Expectations of the Media by Major General Chris Olukolade, the Chief of Defence Information, Media Expectations of Security by Dr Tonnie Iredia, former DG, NTA, Impact of News Reportage on National Economy & International Image by Professor Pat Utomi of Lagos Business School, Conflict News Reporting & National Interest by International Correspondent from BBC and Strategic Communications in Emergencies by
Dr Tom Adaba, Chairman, Trim Communications Nig Ltd. The Chief Defence Staff, Air Marshal Alex Badeh, used the occasion to clear Olukolade over the statement credited to him that the Chibok girls had regained freedom as he raised alarm that there were too many ``fifth columnists’’ in the armed forces as the National Security Adviser, Col Sambo Dasuki said terrorism is tearing the country apart. ``If your people are misleading you, what do you do? There are too many fifth columnists, too many fifth columnists. There was a report which says oh, we have seen some of the Chibok girls, only eight are missing, it was a very senior officer that gave that information from Chibok area. `` We are dealing with that situation. That was when people started saying watch what Chris Olukolade says. But he was misled by one of us’’, Badeh said. He compared the counter insurgency war in the country with the war going on in Iraq and Syria but lamented that when helps are going to both countries from the international community, none is coming to Nigeria. “If you look at what is happening, what is happening in
defence focus By BAYO OLADEJI
Maku
Nigeria with Boko Haram is not different from ISIS in Iraq and in Syria, in fact our own people are more vicious but everybody has gone to Syria, to go and assist but who have come to assist us? We are just being left alone to do it”. He then warned the media practitioners and the political class against making the prediction of doom made against the country sometime in 2004 to
Badeh
come to pass. “There was a prediction in 2004 that by 2015 there would not be one country and all of us are sitting done here putting blames and try to ensure that what those people say in 2004 come to pass I don’t know what you are thinking”. He reminded the media practitioners that “We are in a war, whether you want to believe it or
not. And when a nation goes to war, all elements of national powers, including the press, is usually channel to fighting the war”. In his contribution to the discourse the NSA, Dasuki has called for collaboration with the media in the fight against terrorism, stressing that insurgent activities was undermining the unity of the country. He urged the media to join hands in fighting the insurgents by publishing stories that would not celebrate the activities of the criminals. “Insurgency is tearing what holds our country apart. Their activities are new not only to Nigeria, but to the whole world. Media and the security should work together to fight this problem. The media should stop celebrating their activities and ensure professionalism takes priority in their reports, as a mean to fighting this insurgent. “What this insurgents struggle to achieve is to ensure that they get the media to do their bids by manipulating and obstructing the truth about what is going on. They manipulate pictures, videos and other medium to create fear in the hearts of the masses. The media has a great role to play in this regards by ensuring that the truth is told and the right video and pictures are shown to members of the public”, Dasuki said.
CAS Bags National Honour Award Of CFR The Chief of Air Staff, (CAS) Air Marshal Adesola Amosu has dedicated the National Honour awarded him by President Goodluck Jonathan to the officers and men of the Nigerian Air Forces who were fighting the insurgency in the Northeast noting that their gallantry efforts and sacrifices deserved greater honour. The historic and glamorous event took place in the evening of 29 September 2014 at the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Conference Centre and Suite, Kado in Abuja. Speaking at the reception held in honour, the CAS thanked President Goodluck Jonathan for finding him worthy to bag the prestigious National award of CFR. The CAS was of great optimism that the NAF would bring to conclusion the abhorring situation in the region as soon as possible for peace and stability to reign. Air Marshal Amosu further reiterated the determination of NAF leadership to ensure that the Service was better positioned for greater perfor-
mance and set a new focus toward national security. He revealed that the main focus of his administration was to ensure that the flight were quickly reactivated, acquisition of new platforms and upgrading of the existing ones to meet the demand of contemporary security challenges and other statuary roles. The CAS disclosed that some new and reactivated platforms would soon arrive the country to join the aircraft in the NAF inventory just as he maintained that there was need to effect some changes in the current NAF Mission Statement to encompass the acquisition of the new platforms. Air Marshal Amosu was conferred with the CFR by the President and Commander-inChief of the Armed Forces with other 312 recipients of medals in the various National Honour categories during the 2014 Investiture Ceremony that took place at the International Conference Centre Abuja. The Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal AS Badeh,
Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General KTJ Minimah, Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral UO Jubirin and Acting Inspector General Police, Suleiman Abba were also conferred with the awards of CFR in recognition of their contributions to national development. It would be recalled that the National Honours Award was established by the National Honours Act No. 5 of 1964 during the first Republic. The Act empowers the President by warrant to use the Nigerian Order of Dignity to honour deserving citizens and friends of the nation who have rendered service to the benefit of the nation and global development in their various field of endeavours. In his address during the investiture ceremony, President Goodluck Jonathan expressed the hope that the recognition given to the recipients would inspire other Nigerians to rededicate themselves to render quality services to humanity. He spoke further that the recipients were carefully selected
Amosu and wife, Omolara at the National Award ceremony.
after thorough screening by the National Award Committee adding that “no great nation will toy with Honours that constitute her trans-generational character code.” The President then congratulated all the awardees and enjoined them to continue to tow the path of honour and pursuit of merit, hardwork and intellectualism adding that the honour bestowed on them was an additional responsibility to
demonstrate the strength of character that brought them to the hall of fame. The reception for the CAS was attended by many serving and retired officers including all the Branch Heads, Air Vice Marshals Zannah, Odunlade, Chukwu, A.L Shehu, F.B Nyoyoko, U. C Oche and Major General Buzube, the Chief of Training and Operations at the Army Headquarters.
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news south-west 43
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Ogun Schools Resume, Conduct Ebola Check On Students, Teachers
Ogun State primary and secondary schools resumed yesterday with teachers seen at both public and private schools. At Idi-Aba, Abeokuta, students of Abeokuta Grammar School, Lisabi Grammar School and Baptist Girls College were seen as early as 7:00am running to school with enthusiasm. LEADERSHIP checks revealed that precautions were put in place in both private and public schools to check for ebola virus. According to a teacher handling the ebola detecting device who did not want her name in print, the state government through the Ministry of Education trained two teachers from each school during the holiday.
Fayose: Heavy Security Around Ekiti High Court By Alo Abiola, Ado Ekiti
There was palpable tension yesterday in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital as soldiers, armed policemen and men of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps(NSCDC) were seen manning the premises of Ado Ekiti High Court. The development gave the impression that there was an alleged grand plan
by the federal government to stall the trial of the governor-elect, Mr Ayodele Fayose, over his eligibility to contest the June 21 governorship election. The soldiers and other security agencies manned two gates of the court and barricaded the Ado-Iyin Ekiti Highway and diverted all vehicles to Adebayo-Iworoko road, which caused traffic jam along the axis. Judicial of-
ficers were prevented from entering the court premises as the entire courtrooms and other offices were under lock and key due to the strike embarked upon by the state workers. Earlier in the day, there were unconfirmed report in town that some workers in the state were planning a protest over unpaid August and September salaries, which was said to be
responsible for the massive security. It would be recalled that some hoodlums had on September 21, 2014 invaded the court when the trial began , where the trial judge, Justice Segun Ogunyemi was chased out and molested by suspected party thugs. Another judge of the state high court, Ado Ekiti, Justice John Adeyeye was allegedly beaten by people.
By Gbenga Adeboye, Abeokuta
Ondo APC Commences Registration Of New
Members
The All Progressives Congress, (APC) in Ondo State has concluded plans to commence a continuous membership registration exercise in all the 18 local government areas of the state in order to accommodate new members. A statement issued yesterday by the APC state publicity secretary, Omo’ba Abayomi Adesanya, said government officials and top politicians in the state would officially defect to the party in a matter of weeks. The statement noted that there had been an influx of people into the fold from the Labour Party (LP) the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and other political parties in the state. By Tope Fayehun,Akure
Ekiti PDP Frowns At YDP’s Case Against Fayose Ekiti State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has frowned at the case filed by the Young Democratic Party(YDP) against the election of Mr Ayodele Fayose, describing it as a plan to stop his October 16 inauguration. In a statement in Ado-Ekiti by the state publicity secretary, Pastor Kola Oluwawole, the party said that the outgoing government of the All Progressives Congress (APC) is bent on causing mayhem in the state by yesterday’s filing of a suit by one of its cronnies at an Abuja High Court. The party was referring to the suit no FHC/Abuja/ CS 709/14 between Young Democratic Party and INEC, Fayose, others. By Alo Abiola, Ado-Ekiti
L-R: Former Osun State governor, Sen. Isiaka Adeleke, secretary to the state government, Alhaji Moshood Adeoti, assistant chief of staff to the governor, Hon Mudathir Toogun and director, Bureau of Communications and Strategy, Office of the Governor, Mr Semiu Okanlawon, during the thanksgiving and victory party over Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s electoral victory at Iwo, Osun State. PHOTO BY GOVERNMENT HOUSE.
Ondo Assembly Members Announce Defection To PDP By Tope Fayehun, Akure
Barely a week after the defection of the state governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, members of the Ondo State House of Assembly yesterday announced their defection to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The defection which took place during the plenary session has 24 members of the Assembly signing the letter of intent which indicated their interest to dump the ruling Labour Party (LP ) for the PDP. With this development, the House
which hitherto was made up of 25 members of LP and one PDP member is now comprising of 26 PDP members thereby turning the Assembly to one-party House. However, one member, Hon. Gbenga Edema representing Ilaje Constituency II has not indicated his intention to go along with his colleagues to the PDP as he has not signed the letter of intent. The lawmaker, who refused to speak with journalists on his intention, moved out of the Assembly while the sitting was going on and
referred journalists to the chairman House Committee on Information for proper briefing . But it was learnt that the lawmaker has not done proper consultation with his people on the matter and he did not want to take any step without the consent of the people he represents. Speaking on the development, the speaker of the State House of Assembly, Hon Jumoke Akindele said that she and her colleagues in the Assembly decided to leave the LP following the series of litigations within the LP.
short news Ebola: Osun Teachers Shun Resumption Osun State chapter of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) yesterday defied the order directing private and public schools to reopen for the 2014/2015 academic session by the state government. Though, some students and teachers resumed as directed by government, officials of NUT who were armed with a circular issued by the leadership of NUT in the state went round the schools to send them back home. However, private schools complied with government directive by resuming for the academic session without any hindrance either from government or the NUT. Osun State chapter of Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT, in a circular issued in Osogbo and circulated to public schools, claimed that it had already reached agreement with government to return to class on Monday, October 13.When contacted, Osun NUT chairman, Comrade Saka Adesiyan said the teachers shunned the resumption order because government has not fully met its demands. By Joshua Dada, Osogbo
Osun Assists Poultry Farmers To Make N260m Profit From Broiler Production By Joshua Dada, Osogbo
Osun State government in collaboration with Tuns Farms Nigeria Limited have assisted poultry farmers in the state to make profit of N260 million from the Osun Broiler Outgrower Production Scheme. According to Alhaji Kahmis Olatunde Badmus while speaking with
journalists in Osogbo no agriculture project in the country has ever recorded such feat. According to the chairman, Tuns Farm, the state government invested N300million in the project to provide feeds for Day Old Chicks (DOC) supplied by Tuns Farms to the poultry farmers who participated in the scheme while the participating poultry farmers raised
the birds in their facilities after which Tuns Farms buys the broilers from the poultry farmers. Badmus said the benefiting farmers have so far repaid over N170 million to the state government out of the N300 million the state government invested in the project. “No agric project in the country can match this Osun Broiler Outgrower production scheme. The
farmers that partook have made profit of over N260 million. Individual farmers in the scheme made profit in the range of N15 million. The state government has not lost anything. “The government even gained because the farmers are paying N1million every month which is going into the state Internally Generated Revenue”.
44 news Lagos Group Petitions EFCC Over N123bn Fraud In HOS’ Office A group, the Civil Society Network Against Corruption (CSNAC) has petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), alleging corrupt practices in the office of the Head of Service of the Federation. Specifically, the group, in the petition made available to LEADERSHIP in Lagos yesterday, urged the EFCC to beam its searchlight on the activities of former head of service of the federation, Mr Stephen Orosanye. The chairman of the group, Mr Olanrewaju Suraju, said the period between 2009 and 2010 when Orosanye held sway as the nation’s number one civil servant was characterised by sleaze, adding that the commission should act on a 169page report prepared by the office of the Auditor-General. Suraju in the petition stated that a N123billion fraud occurred during the tenure of the former head of service, just as he catalogued the various infractions committed during the period against both the country and the teeming civil servants. He listed the infractions to include unremitted N52billion being monthly pension payments; collection of N1.03billion kickbacks from pensions union, cornering of N15.6billion meant for settlement of death benefits of pensioners as well as transfer of N54billion from 58 untraceable illegal accounts.
Thursday, October 9 2014
World Food Day: Lagos Restates Commitment To Food Security By George Okojie, Lagos
The Lagos State government yesterday restated its commitment to food security in the state, saying it is determined to produce 25 per cent of the needed food production in the state. Briefing journalists on the activities slated for this year’s World Food Day, the commissioner for agriculture and cooperatives, Prince
Gbolahan Lawal assured that measures are being put in place to ensure that residents would not experience food scarcity in spite of the growing population. Lawal said the state now produces 159,000 metric tonnes of fish annually, calling for private sector collaboration in order to boost food production in the state. He added that apart from the acquisition of land mass from Osun, Oyo and Ogun
states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, the state is also embarking on several programmes and projects that are expected to boost food production. The commissioner added, “For fish production, in 2010, we were able to produce 109,000 metric tonnes. At the end of December 2013, we were at 159,000 metric tonnes. The demand for fish in Lagos is 220,000 metric tonnes. Nationally, the production is
800,000 metric tonnes, but the demand is 2.4million metric tonnes for fish nationally”. He noted that the demand for rice is huge, adding that Nigeria would benefit a lot if only the players in the private sector could partner with the Lagos State government to boost rice production. “When you consider the capacity for the demand, Lagos consumes 50 per cent of what is being brought into Nigeria.
short news
NDLEA Seizes 5.1Kg Of Cocaine At Airport
By Olaolu Oladipo, Lagos
Court Jails Man 2 Years For Dealing In Hard Drugs Justice Ibrahim Buba of the Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday sentenced a 26-year-old man, John Daniel, to a two-year imprisonment for illegal possession of 14.3 kilogrammes of cannabis. Justice Buba convicted Daniel after he pleaded guilty to a one count charge of possession of narcotics without lawful authority brought against him by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA). The convict, who was arrested with the contraband on September 23, 2013 at the Ghetto Area of Jass 38, Lekki, Lagos State, committed the offence contrary to Section 11(c) of the NDLEA Act, Cap N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004. While presenting his case, the prosecuting counsel, F. O. Dinneys told the court that the substance recovered from Daniel was later confirmed to be cannabis sativa or marijuana, a substance similar to cocaine. The prosecution also called a deputy superintendent at the Narcotics Section of the NDLEA, Taupyen Sunday who tendered exhibits to support the agency’s case against the convict. By Olugbenga Soyele, Lagos
An old pensioner under the Ikeja Bridge in Lagos. PHOTO BY PATRICK EBI AMANAMA
Navy To Establish Base In Ikorodu To Curb Pipeline Vandalism By Olaolu Oladipo, Lagos
The Nigerian Navy is set to establish a base in Ikorodu area of Lagos State with a view to curbing the rising wave of pipeline vandalism and put an end to the activities of oil thieves in the area. Making the disclosure in Lagos during a chat with newsmen was the flag officer, Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Ilesanmi Alade when he took
newsmen round a riverine community, Majidun where large consignments of petroleum products allegedly siphoned by oil thieves were seized by his men. “With what we have seen here today, we will establish a base here in Ikorodu to nip this problem of vandalism in the bud,” he said, adding that going by the topography of the area, it is very expedient for the base to be sited there “as a means of effectively securing the area”.
In all, over 5,000 jerrycans loaded with siphoned products were shown to newsmen with Alade disclosing that several wooden boats, commonly known as Cotonou, were destroyed in the adjoining creeks. He explained that the operation, codenamed Awase, meaning scatter in Hausa, was carried out with the support of the Nigerian Army, following a directive from the Naval High Command.
‘Lagos Set To Construct Ultra-modern Metropolitan Park’
By GEORGE OKOJIE, Lagos
In furtherance of its objective to turn the state into a tourist destination, Lagos State government yesterday said it has concluded plans to construct a Metropolitan Park in Ajetutun in Ibeju-Lekki Council area of the state. The managing director of the Lagos State Parks and Gardens, Dr Titi Anibaba revealed this at an interactive session with newsmen at Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre, Alausa as part of activities marking the 2014 Press Week of the Lagos State Gov-
ernor’s Office Correspondents, (LAGOCO). Anibaba said, “This is going to be a park of international standard, where you can go with your families for the whole day and enjoy yourself. There is a play area for the children, mini zoo, swimming pool and all the facilities you can think of and we are going to have a zonal office there. “As at today, we have about seven parks in the different local governments of the state. We have asked the local government chairmen to give us land, thus we have been able get land at Ipakodo, Ikorodu, Badagry and we have in Allimosho,
Surulere. The thinking of Governor Babatunde Fashola is to have it in all the 57 local governments and local council development areas in the state and I am sure LASPAK is going to achieve that.” Anibaba assured that the project is under a five-year plan and will contain all facilities that will meet the global standard of a conventional park. She said, “We also going to have a strategic master plan blueprint, that will see the agency running in the next five year , it is going to be a rolling plans, that be running for the next five years.”
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have foiled an attempt by two suspected drug traffickers to smuggle 5.1kg of white powdery substances that tested positive for cocaine into the country. The drugs were intercepted at Akanu Ibiam International Airport (AIIA), Enugu during the inward screening of passengers on an Ethiopian Airline flight. The drugs were concealed inside handbags and document folders. Two arrests have been made in connection with the seizure. The NDLEA commander at the Enugu Airport, Nsikak-Abasi Udoh gave the names of the suspects as Okoye Ikechukwu Matthew with passport number A04483481 and Dominic Junior Igwe with passport number A02375991. Okoye, 34, works as a security guard in South Africa while Dominic, 29, is a trader. By Nkem Osuagwu, Lagos
Thursday, October 9, 2014
2015: Why Obuh Should Succeed Uduaghan – GBM A pro-democracy group under the aegis of Goodluck Believers Movement (GBM) has said that in the spirit of fairness and justice, Chief Anthony Chuks Obuh, who hails from Anioma area of Delta North senatorial district, should be supported to succeed Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan as Delta State governor in 2015. Addressing journalists in Abuja yesterday, the national president of GBM, Hon Engema Jumbo, said since the creation of Delta State in 1991, Delta North is yet to produce a state governor, noting that Delta South produced a governor (James Ibori) that ruled for eight years and former governor Felix Olorogun, while Delta Central produced the incumbent governor Emmanuel Uduaghan. By Ekele Peter Agbo, Abuja
news south-South south-East 45
Fuel Scarcity Bites Harder In Rivers As NUPENG vows to sustain strike over East-West road By Anayo Onukwugha, Port Harcourt
Commercial and private vehicle owners in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, are groaning over the scarcity of petroleum products in the state, following an indefinite strike action embarked upon by the Port Harcourt zone of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG).
Members of NUPENG went on strike last Friday in protest against the failure of the federal government to repair parts of the East-West Road, especially in Eleme, where the Port Harcourt Refinery is located. Speaking to newsmen in Port Harcourt, vice president of NUPENG, Comrade Timothy Okpu, said the union will sustain its ongoing strike in Port Harcourt until government fixes the bad portion of the Eleme axis of the East-West
Road. Okpu said members of the union would not return to lift products from Port Harcourt Refinery until palliative measures are carried out on the road. LEADERSHIP observed that many filling stations in Port Harcourt have been without petroleum products since the beginning of the week after exhausting their last supply, while vehicle owners have resorted to buying the products from the black mar-
ket. A black market seller of petrol, who identified himself as Ebi, said they now sell more than before due to the scarcity of petroleum products at the filling stations in the state capital. He said, “As you can see, we sell at N150 per litre but people still rush to buy from us because they know that the fuel we sell here are good ones. Also, apart from us, there is no other place you can buy petrol in this town.”
Community Leaders Warned Against Collecting Land Fees From Non-natives
Village and clan heads in Akwa Ibom State have been warned to desist from collecting land development fees from non-indigenes who purchase land to build houses in their domains or face prosecution. The state commissioner for local government and chieftaincy affairs, Prince Uwem Ita-Etuk, who gave the warning yesterday in Uyo while addressing the assembly of village and clan heads, described as illegal the demand for such monies from non-indigenes who desire to build houses and reside in the state. Ita-Etuk who described the practice as uncivilised and discriminatory said it is against the Nigerian constitution, warning that such practice should stop forthwith as it amounts to extortion. By Bernard Tolani Dada, Uyo
Monarchs Charge Christians On Peace, Development Anambra Central Traditional Rulers’ Council in Anambra State yesterday urged Christians to be part and parcel of development and peace building in every community they find themselves in the state. The chairman of the council, Igwe Chukwuemeka Ilouno, made the call while receiving the remains of the Emeritus Bishop of Catholic Diocese of Awka, Most Rev. Simon Okafor, at his hometown in Ifitedunu community near Onitsha in Anambra. Ilouno said it was rather unfortunate that people who lost the battle to get political and community positions connived with the church to cause trouble in some communities in Anambra. By Okechukwu Obeta, Awka
Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba, on a motorcade acknowledging cheers from his supporters during his visit to the state PDP secretariat to announce his intention to seek re-election for Cross River Central Senatorial District, in Calabar, yesterday.
East-West Road: Calabar/A’Ibom Section To Be Completed First – Ndoma-Egba By Lanre Arotimi, Calabar
The Senate leader, Victor NdomaEgba, has assured that the Akwa Ibom/Calabar section of the ongoing East-West road project in the Niger Delta region will be completed before others. He disclosed this yesterday in Calabar shortly after his visit to the State Secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to inform the chairman of his desire to return to the Senate in 2015. Ndoma-Egba, who noted that
the road project ought to have ended in Akwa Ibom State, also confirmed that its extension to Calabar has been approved. “I even believe that the Akwa Ibom/Calabar end of it will probably be finished before the rest of the road”. “The initial plan was for it to terminate in Akwa Ibom, but its extension to Calabar has since been approved”, he said. While expressing confidence about his chances of returning to the Senate in 2015, the senator
representing Cross River Central said his people’s support for him is unwavering at all times. “Each time I am in the Central senatorial district, my people are with me. I am on ground. I am a home boy”. “I was born in the Central, grew up in the North, settled in the South, and practised law all through in Cross River, not outside Cross River. I am grounded in Cross River”, he told party officials. Ndoma-Egba assured his supporters that the National Assem-
bly will not relent in making laws that have positive impact on the populace. “The budget, the PIB would be passed on time. We would definitely take on those ones that heavily impact on the society and economy and get them out”, he added. Ndoma-Egba, who was received at the party’s secretariat by its chairman, Ntufam John Okon, top party officials, as well as massive supporters, stressed the need for consistent representation at the National Assembly.
3,500 Unemployed Youths Trained In Skills In Akwa Ibom By Bernard Tolani Dada, Uyo
In its resolve to stop youth restiveness and other social vices in the Niger Delta region, a sociopolitical group, Union of Niger Delta Youth Council (UNDYC), has trained over 3,500 unemployed youths in various skills including welding and fabrication in the last three years.
Speaking yesterday while inaugurating its Eket Senatorial District chapter at Usung Inyang Eket, the Akwa Ibom state chairman of the group, Comrade Ufokiko Henry said that the group is working tirelessly to collaborate with some private corporations and multinational oil companies in the region to empower its members
through intensive skills acquisition in the area of decoration, catering, production of soaps, insecticides, fashion designing among others. Comrade Ufokiko, who explained that the group has just finished training over 320 of its members from Mkpat Enin and intends to commence that of Essien Udim local government
area of the state soon, stated that the group will always support good government policies that are intended to better the lot of the youths in the state. Ufokiko noted that since its inauguration in 1998, the Niger Delta Youth Council has been in the forefront of seeking peace and harmonious coexistence in the region and among Nigerians.
46 news NATIONAL Jonathan, Elumelu, Ovia, Drogba, Others Get Africa Prize In Uyo President Goodluck Jonathan is among distinguished African leaders that will be honoured tomorrow in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the development of the continent. The event, organised by an international organisation, Millennium Excellence Foundation, is holding on Friday, 10th October, 2014, at the Le Meridien Ibom Hotel and Golf Resort, Uyo. In a joint statement signed by the Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mr. Aniekan Umanah and the founder of the Millennium Excellence Foundation, Ambassador Ashim Morton, it was revealed that President Jonathan will bag a prize for Leadership, National Cohesion and Stability, while a Rwandan economist and president of African Development Bank, Mr. Donald Kabueruka will receive a prize for National Leadership. The prize for Democratic Governance and Development will be bestowed on Mr. Jay Naidoo, the chairman, Partnership for Council of Global Alliance for Improvement Nutrition, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. Other recipients are a Nigerian economist and banker, Mr Tony Elumelu, who will receive a prize for Sustainable Development in Africa, while a business mogul, Mrs Folorunsho Alakija will go home with a prize for Action for Africa, alongside the chief executive officer of a London-based international finance service group, Tidjani Thiam. Also at the event, a former Malian prime minister, Seihck Modibo Diaraa is to receive a prize for Scientific Research in Africa. By Bernard Tolani Dada Uyo
Members of Advocate for Collective Transformation (ACT) during a rally for credible 2015 polls in Lagos, yesterday. PHOTO BY BENEDICT UWALAKA.
Forgive Our Sins, Mu’azu, Mark, Beg Obasanjo Intercede for Jonathan, As PDP Receives Daniel By Chibuzo Ukaibe, Abuja
In a bid to thaw the ice between President Goodluck Jonathan and his estranged godfather, former president Olusegun Obasanjo, the national chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr Adamu Mu’azu, yesterday led the Senate president, David Mark and former governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, to apologise to the former president for all sins committed against him. The team also appealed to Obasanjo to return to active participation in the party. Obasanjo, had in the heat of his face off with President Jonathan and the leadership of the PDP under Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, resigned from active participation in the party’s activities. Mu’azu made the plea while receiving former governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, who was accompanied by Ondo State governor, Olusegun Mimiko, back to PDP at the party’s national headquarters yesSpecial adviser to President Good- terday. luck Jonathan, Dr Reuben Abati, yesterday led a presidential delegation on a condolence visit to the Abuja residence of the former managing director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Mrs Remi Oyo, to condole with her family. Abati and the delegation, who were received by the deceased’s By Chibuzo Ukaibe, Abuja husband, Mr Vincent Oyo, and her son, Otome, described her death as a The seething friction in the Akwa great loss, not only to her family but Ibom State chapter of the Peoples also to the country’s women folk. Democratic Party (PDP) took a Condoling the family of the late new twist yesterday as the govRemi Oyo who died of cancer related ernor of the state, Godswill Akailment on October 1 in the United pabio and his predecessor, Obong Kingdom at the age of 62, the presVictor Attah, differed over alidential spokesman said President leged moves to block returnees Goodluck Jonathan had excellent to the party and the constitution recollections of Mrs Oyo’s commitof delegates for party congresses. ment and devotion to duty while in Attah, at the PDP South-South public service. reconciliation committee meetBy George Agba, Abuja
Remi Oyo’s Death, Great Loss To Womenfolk – Abati
Thursday, October 9 2014
Daniel, who led other members of Labour Party back to PDP, started the apology session as he begged for Obasanjo’s forgiveness for any wrong done to him by the party. Mu’azu then joined, saying, “I want to join OGD, I want to join my dear senior brother and indeed all the teeming members here to very sincerely apologise to our leader, to our baba, my baba, General, President Olusegun Obasanjo to forgive us. “We cannot continue. I know he has been very prayerful. In the Villa, I know he used to pray every morning. Very early, 5:30 to 6am, he is praying. “And I know he keeps on praying all the time. As we say in our Lord’s Prayer: ‘Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who trespass against us’. “Baba, you have to forgive us. I beg you in the name of the almighty God, so that you too are forgiven. We are your children. We are making mistakes, we have made mistakes, we have apologised, we will not agree even if you want to throw the baby with the bath water, the baby will not go with you. So, please Baba, we
apologise. “Come and lead us. Even the president is waiting for you. Come and lead us. You are our leader, we appreciate you, we thank you for your leadership. We thank you for your courage. And we assure you that by the grace of God, we are all good boys and girls.” Daniel, on his part said, “Let me seize this opportunity to publicly apologise to the former president, Olusegun Obasanjo. Whenever there is a quarrel between a son and a father, the son can never be right even if it is a battle of principle. “We therefore plead that President Obasanjo should be called upon that he cannot abandon his house. All we the children are standing by to apologise and apologise and apologise again,” he said. While he noted, “we have learnt our lesson,” he however added he has returned to “my party and all the challenges we have in PDP have been settled.” According to him, “What we are talking about is automatic waiver and this issue of automatic waiver has been guaranteed. I, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, former gover-
nor of Ogun State for eight years, is now back to the PDP.” The Senate president, Senator David Mark, who is also chairman of the PDP South-West Integration Committee said, “if Baba is annoyed, we offer our apology. This is in line with the Yoruba tradition because it is proper for the young ones to offer apologies to the elderly.” He added “Ogun State gave us a former president and therefore, there should not be any reason why the whole of Ogun State should not be entirely PDP.” Mark however noted that there is a new wind sweeping all the six states of the zone back to the PDP as all the former members who are returning back to the party were on self exile. He guaranteed all returning members of a level playing ground, adding, “when the level playing ground doesn’t favour you, please don’t go away. Don’t go away, remain within and fight to get the level playing. “There must be proper integration. Not one group swallowing another. The integration must be genuine. If we are united, we win, but divided we lose.”
2015: Akpabio, Attah Differ Over Akwa Ibom PDP’ Membership Register ing in Abuja, accused the governor of taking the party’s registers to the Government House, thereby frustrating returnee members from being registered. He further alleged that the governor and his team exclusively drafted the list of delegates to go for congresses. But in a swift reaction, Akpabio described the allegation as baseless, saying that wards, chapters and state party chairman have custody of registers.
Akpabio said, “that is falsehood, nothing like that. All the wards and chapters have their registration register and of course, the state party chairman also has custody of the ones we should have custody of. “I focus on good governance in my state and the PDP is out to ensure electoral independence. I have a lot of respect for elders and the founding fathers of the party and the president found it expedient to make me a member
of the party`s inner caucus. “I am a strong party man and I identify with the working committee in my state and the people and all the funding and founding fathers”. But speaking with newsmen after the meeting, the SouthSouth reconciliation committee, chaired by Sen. Iya Abubakar Attah said, “they know that we had a terrible disaster in 2011 and we don’t want that to happen in 2015.”
OPINION 47
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Inside Out
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Did The Learned Judge Goof? Bala James Ngilari, like Rotimi Amaechi, became Governor yesterday without going through the soap box. He got into office by judicial proclamation. It is a classic case of “democracy at work” and without the people. He simply went to and prayed the court to declare his resignation letter dated July 14, 2014, and addressed to the Speaker, Adamawa House of Assembly, as “illegal, null and void.” His argument was not that the letter was forged or pre-emptive to stave off a definite course of impeachment with his former Principal, Murtala Nyako. He had contended that the letter was addressed to the Speaker instead of the governor, as stipulated by law, and illegally acted upon by the House of Assembly. Haa! This, he said, was in breach of the provisions of Sections 306(1), (2) and (5) of the 1999 Constitution. Reading through Section 306 (5) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), in particular, I saw written: “The notice of resignation of the Governor and of the Deputy Governor of a State shall respectively be addressed to the Speaker of the House of Assembly and the Governor of the State.” So where did the House err? Not being a learned lawyer, I do not understand what is so confusing about the fact that Bala Ngilari, sent communication to resign as Deputy Governor to Umaru Fintiri as Speaker of the Adamawa House of Assembly. The intention was for him not to be disgraced out of office. But this is Nigeria. And again, the tide has moved against Fintiri for the vaulting ambition to govern the State with full executive powers. I am yet to hear the argument that like Chris Ngige in 2003, his signature was forged or that the letter was written for him by proxy. His argument, tendentious, as I will call it, was that he was hoodwinked to send same by members of the House of Assembly. Again, not being a psycho-analyst, I do not know what mental frame of mind the new Adamawa Governor was when he was “coerced” into signing away his political career on the altar of expediency. What is clear is that the man could have written to either his erstwhile boss, Admiral Muratla Nyako or Fintiri. Nyako, at that time, was on the run, shuttling for his own political
Ngilari
survival. I also cannot understand the idea inherent in the 306 (5) that tend to impute that a Governor about to leave his job should address a letter to himself. I had thought the President would allow the law to run its course by allowing Fintiri to test the provisions of the laws at the Court of Appeal and probably the Supreme Court. The notice of stay of execution was not even allowed to be served before the Attorney General confirmed that Fintiri is unworthy to be in Government House, Yola. If I were Fintiri, rather than grandstanding that I will not leave the Govt House, I will queue behind the winner, who clearly has the ears of the powers-that-be. Fintiri has demonstrated a proclivity to disobey the party structure. To me, that is why he stands alone now. The expectations were different. With less than 72 hours to the byelection to elect a new governor, the firework that stopped INEC and him are like the voice of Jacob and the hand of Esau. Everything happened so rapidly. The acting governor was not only ordered to vacate his seat, Justice Adeniyi Ademola also ordered the state chief judge or president of the Customary Court of Appeal to “swear-in Ngilari immediately”. What’s more? As the court pleases!
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Thursday, October 9 2014
world
news ➌
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➐ ➏
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➎ IS, Syria Kurds In Fierce Gun Battles
Kurdish fighters are engaged in fierce gun battles with Islamic State (IS) in the Syrian border town of Kobane, as US-led coalition air strikes continue. In its latest report, the US Central Command said six
air strikes had destroyed IS weaponry around Kobane. The UN envoy for Syria has urged the international community to act now to prevent IS from seizing the key town.
Stargazers in the Americas and Asia were treated to a lunar eclipse on Wednesday, a cosmic show that bathed the moon in a reddish tint to create a “blood moon”.
During the total lunar eclipse, the moon turned orange or red. The colour shade results from sunlight scattering off Earth’s atmosphere.
Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta became the first sitting president to appear before the International Criminal Court in The Hague where he faces charges of crimes against
humanity. The court had ordered Kenyatta to attend the status hearing on Wednesday, denying his request that he participate by video.
➊ Deaths In Kurdish ➋ 5 Afghan Men
Protests In Turkey
Hanged For Rape
At least 12 people were killed in demonstrations across Turkey, local media reported, as Kurds demanded the government do more to protect the Syrian-Kurdish town of Kobane from Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) fighters. Police fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse protesters who burnt cars as they took to the streets mainly in Turkey’s eastern and southeastern provinces.
Five Afghan men convicted of gang-raping four women have been executed in a case that sparked national outrage. Officials say the men were hanged at Pul-e-Charkhi prison east of Kabul. A sixth man convicted of unrelated crimes was also hanged. The authorities ignored lastminute appeals for clemency from rights groups who said the convictions were unsafe.
➏ ‘Blood Moon’
Awes Sky Watchers
A 40,000 year old cave painting recently discovered in the rural area on the Indonesian Island of Sulawesi.
➌ Clashes Erupt At
➍ Tens Of Thousands
Palestinian demonstrators have clashed with Israeli police at the al-Aqsa mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem, leaving three officers lightly injured. Reports from West Jerusalem, said that Palestinian worshippers were not allowed into the mosque by Israeli police, who then escorted members of a Jewish group into the mosque to observe a Jewish holiday.
Indian and Pakistani troops have fired bullets and mortar shells across the border between India- and Pakistan-administered Kashmir for the second day, forcing tens of thousands of villagers from their homes, officials have said. Military officials in both countries said troops exchanged fire for several hours overnight on Tuesday.
Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque Flee Kashmir Clashes
➐ Kenyatta
Appears Before ICC Court
Bussiness/WORLD NEWS 49
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Air France Puts Cost Of Pilots’ Strike At €500m
Air France has estimated that last month’s strike will cost it about €500m (£393m) in lost revenue. The struggling French flag carrier was in dispute with pilots over plans to expand its budget subsidiary Transavia.
Finance director Pierre-Francois Riolacci said there would be an immediate impact of about 320350m euros, plus loss of future business. Shares in Europe’s secondbiggest airline fell 2%, at one point
touching the lowest level in a year. The company has already cut its profit target for 2014. Air France said that total passenger traffic fell 15.9% in September, adding that bookings for the next three months were also down. The airline put the expansion of its Transavia budget carrier on hold after the two sides agreed to talks. Pilots objected that the move of staff to Transavia would erode existing contracts. Air France wanted to expand its budget division to compete with the likes of Ryanair and easyjet. Prime Minister Manuel Valls warned last month that the twoweek strike was creating “real danger” for the airline and the image of France. —BBC
Growth Worries Grip Stocks, Oil Markets
An index of global equities hit a six-month low and oil prices slumped again on Wednesday, as investors reduced positions in riskier assets amid concerns about global economic growth. US markets were little changed in choppy trading after a sharp selloff Tuesday, as market participants awaited the release of the minutes of the most recent Federal Reserve meeting. DJc1 SPc1 Data and forecasts from China, Spain and Germany supported a picture painted by the International Monetary Fund on Tuesday of a world economy struggling to end a cycle of below-trend growth since the 2008 financial crisis. MSCI’s all-country world index .MIWD00000PUS of shares in 45 different countries fell 0.42 percent to its lowest in six
months, while the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index ended down 0.8 percent, its lowest in nearly two months. The price of oil hit a two-year low, with Brent crude oil LCOc1 at $91.50 after dipping below $91 a barrel earlier in the session, its lowest since June 2012. U.S. November crude CLc1 was down at $87.44 a barrel, the lowest since April 2013. “Many people are seeing the decline in commodities to be a sign of slower world growth,” said Marc Chandler, chief global currency strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. “After a big run up in equities earlier, this is a bout of profit taking.” The fall in the price of oil could boost consumer spending as it reduces fuel costs heading into winter, but also serves as an indication of weaker demand. The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI rose 26.84 points, or 0.16 percent, to 16,746.23, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 0.61 points, or 0.03 percent, to 1,935.71 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added 0.03 points, or 0 percent, to 4,385.23. US Treasuries yields edged lower on lingering concern about global economic growth but traders hesitated to place major bets ahead of the release of the Fed’s minutes. Benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury notes US10YT=RR were last down 2/32 in price to yield 2.3570 percent. —Reuters
INITIATIVE FOR GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT Appoints 5 African CEOs As Directors BY Ejike Ejike, Abuja
Five top business leaders in Africa will steer strategic direction of non-profit organisation, Initiative for Global Development (IGD), dedicated to driving poverty reduction by catalyzing business growth and investment in Africa The five new Board Members ; Andrew Alli, Mathews Chikaonda, Morgan Nzwere, Miriem Bensalah-Chaqroun, and Jean-Louis Ekra are CEOs of some of the most influential businesses and organizations in Africa. “IGD’s Board is thrilled to welcome these five extraordinary business leaders who are African pioneers, with extensive experience growing businesses and leading impactful investments throughout the continent,” said Dr. Mima. Nedelcovych, IGD President in a statement sent to LEADERSHIP. The statement further noted that “Andrew Alli is the President and CEO of the Africa Finance Corporation, a pan-African company focused on financing the development of African
infrastructural assets through well-organized project structuring and application of risk capital; Mathews Chikaonda is the Group CEO of Press Corporation Ltd., the largest holding company in Malawi, with interests in power, ICT and agroindustry, among others. “Miriem Bensalah-Chaqroun is the President of the Confederation Generale des Entreprises du Maroc (CGEM), a business association that represents the interests of enterprises from all sectors of the Moroccan economy; Morgan Nzwere is the Group CEO of Seed Co Ltd., a leading producer and marketer of certified crop seeds in Southern Africa and throughout COMESA; and Jean-Louis Ekra is the President and Chairman of Afrexim Bank, which works to stimulate the development and diversification of African trade,” the statement concluded. The new IGD Directors, which came from diverse backgrounds and a range of sectors, encompassing agro-industry, power, infrastructure, ICT, financial services, are expected to represent the voices of the new dynamic Africa.
Members of burial teams who handle Sierra Leone bodies protesting delays in their payment
Ebola: Corpses Abandoned In Sierra Leone As Burial Teams Strike A strike by burial teams in Sierra Leone has left corpses of Ebola victims abandoned in the capital, as health officials in Spain look into whether an assisting nurse may have picked the virus by touching her face with contaminated protective gloves. The Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation reported on Wednesday that bodies of Ebola victims were left at homes and on the streets of Freetown because members of burial teams staged a lockout for not being paid. The dead bodies of Ebola victims are highly contagious. Deputy health minister Madina Rahman said on a radio show that the strike had been “resolved,” though organisers could not immediately be reached to confirm it was over. Rahman said a one-week backlog for hazard pay, that was deposited in the bank but never reached the burial teams, was behind the dispute. He said the health ministry will investigate the delay in payments. The burial teams make up a total of 600 workers organised in groups of 12, health ministry spokesman Sidie Yahya Tunis said. In neighbouring Liberia, health workers said they will go on strike if their demands of $700 as monthly salaries and safety equipment are not met by the end of the week. The World Health Organisation says Ebola is believed to have killed more than 600 people in Sierra Leone, where there have been more than 2,100 confirmed cases. More than 3,400 people have been killed by the outbreak in West Africa, which has hit Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia hardest. US Ebola Patient Thomas Duncan Dies The first person to be diagnosed with Ebola within the US has died, Texas hospital officials have said. Thomas Duncan, who caught the virus in his native Liberia, was being kept in isolation in a Dallas hospital and receiving experimental drugs. Earlier the US announced new security procedures at en-
try points to check travellers for symptoms of the virus. More than 3,000 people have died in West Africa in the worst Ebola outbreak yet. While Mr Duncan was the first person to be diagnosed within the US, three American aid workers and a photojournalist contracted the virus in Liberia. Earlier on Wednesday, US officials announced travellers from Ebola-affected countries will face increased security scrutiny at American airports. The Department of Homeland Security has ordered agents at airports and other ports to “observe” arrivals for potential signs of Ebola infection. The new security measures, rolled out by the Transportation Security Administration, will reportedly take effect this weekend or early next week. ‘Spanish Nurse May Have ‘Touched Her Face’ Meanwhile in Spain, a nurse who was the first person known to have contracted the deadly virus outside of Africa, said she recalled touching her face with gloves she wore while treating Ebola victims who were repatriated to Madrid. Spanish authorities are investigating how 40-year-old Teresa Romero, who was tested positive for the disease on Monday, has contracted the virus as fear of a breakout in Spain and Europe grows. Romero is now quarantined along with three other Spaniards while 22 others are being monitored closely for symptoms that include fever, diarrhoea and vomiting. Dr. German Ramirez of the Carlos III hospital said Romero believes she touched her face with the glove after her first entry. Spanish animal rights activists scuffled with police as they blocked the way to Romero’s apartment where medics sought to take away her dog. The pet, mixed breed dog named Excalibur, will be killed after a court order was issued saying “available scientific” information can’t rule out “risk of contagion.” —Al Jazeera
50 Analysis
Thursday, October 9 2014
O
According to the Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture, the losses sustained by the agricultural sector reached roughly $500m, including $350m in direct losses
nly days after a ceasefire was declared in Gaza, ending a 51day bombardment by Israel, hundreds of farmers showed up at a distribution center in al-Zawayda outside Deir al-Balah in central Gaza to receive sacks of fodder. “We are distributing fodder and barley for all the sheep and goats in Gaza,” said Ciro Fiorillo, local head of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), to the crowd of assembled farmers. “For every herding family, we will be able to give the fodder needed to feed each animal for a month and a half.” Funded by the Canadian government, the fodder distribution was aimed at sustaining the remaining livestock in the area. Two major Israeli military operations within the past three years have drastically reduced Gaza’s number of sheep and goats: A census in 2010 registered 73,500 animals, while only 58,000 were enlisted for fodder distribution this summer. “This means that more than 15,000 animals are missing. We don’t know if these have died because there is no fodder or water. We just know that they are no longer there, which means that something like 20 percent of the animal population has been lost. This is a huge value,” Fiorillo told Al Jazeera. In August, as Israeli bombs were still falling over Gaza, the FAO estimated that half of Gaza’s population of poultry had died either due to direct hits on their shelters or a lack of care because of access restrictions during the fighting. The animals form the livelihood of Gaza’s 3,600 herding families, among the poorest segments of the population. “Essentially a lot of people have simply lost the means to survive,” Fiorillo noted. Piling white sacks of fodder onto a donkey-led cart, Talal Jamil Munther said he lost the equivalent of $7,000 during the war. “We had sheep and cows and pigeons - most of them lost,” Munther told Al Jazeera. “We manage due to humanitarian aid and hard work, but we live from day to day and whatever path lies before us we will follow. What else can we do?” Although most food on dinner tables in Gaza is imported, local produce is an important source of nutritious and affordable food. But according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the Palestinian Consumer Price Index increased six percent in August compared to the year before due largely to spikes in the prices of fresh vegetables, fruits and dairy. As the price of tomatoes almost tripled and the price of eggs and potatoes increased 40 percent during the war, only the richest in
Farmers in war-torn Gaza.
Gaza Farmers Struggle In War Aftermath Gaza have been able to buy fresh and locally produced goods. Seven weeks of shelling throughout the summer destroyed large areas of Gaza’s 17,000 hectares of cropland, as well its agricultural infrastructure such as greenhouses, pumping facilities, irrigation systems and animal shelters. And as farmers had to flee their lands, almost all crops that had not been harvested before July were lost. Even before the summer’s surge in violence, around 1.1 million or two thirds of the population of Gaza were regularly receiving food assistance. But according to the FAO, this number rose by 700,000 over the summer. “The Israeli attacks deliberately and systematically targeted the trees, stones, people, and even animals and birds,” said Haifa Al Agha, the Minister of Women’s Affairs, who was in Deir Balah to meet with Gazan farmers on behalf of the Palestinian Authority’s new unity government: “The barbaric Israeli attack targeted the whole social and economic life of the Gaza Strip. This attack resulted in huge losses in several sectors which will take many years to be recovered.” According to the Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture, the losses sustained by the agricultural sector reached roughly $500m, including $350m in direct losses. In addition, the Palestinian Authority has estimated the cost of reconstruction in Gaza at $7.8bn, including $250m to the agriculture sector. A recent report by the World
Bank found the Palestinian economy had entered into recession even before the summer, with 70 percent living on less than $2 a day. The conflict only added to an already dire economic situation, Steen Lau Jorgensen, the World Bank country director for the West Bank and Gaza, told Al Jazeera. “The recent conflict has had a severe impact on Gaza’s economy in all sectors, in addition to the tragic humanitarian losses,” Jorgensen said. “Within this fragile sociopolitical context, economic recovery becomes a priority.” The report says the blame falls on political uncertainty and Israeli restrictions on movement and access for people and goods, and emphasises the need for the Palestinian Authority to unify and strengthen its governance across the West Bank and Gaza. It concludes by noting the reconstruction of Gaza must not be limited to getting back to the situation that existed before the summer onslaught, but rather focus on rebuilding the whole economy. “The lack of a comprehensive peace agreement leads to a vicious cycle of economic decline and conflict,” Jorgensen said. At the fodder distribution center in Deir Al-Balah, Fiorillo explained that the FAO seeks to ensure maximum profit for the Palestinian economy by buying the fodder from local suppliers instead of importing it. Still, for some farmers it takes much more to make up for the damage caused
by the war. East of Deir Balah, close to the Israeli wall that encapsulates the small coastal strip, Eyad Zidan Abu Ghuleiba looks at his burned and destroyed olive fields and demolished home. “I had five dunams [0.5 hectares] of olive trees. They were dug up by the bulldozers of the [Israeli] occupation,” Abu Ghuleiba said. “The trees were around 50 years old – now they are all gone.” He explains that around 50 families, constituting hundreds of people from the same tribe, live in the area. They are all farmers, but have slowly seen their lands destroyed during years of continuous military operations. “This area has seen several invasions. In every war, [Israel] invades the land but we plant it again,” said Abu Ghuleiba. He pointed to his two cousins: “This man had a well and fertile land with olive and palm trees. It was worth $40,000, but now he has no income to feed his 12 children. And this guy has 15 children. They used to make a living from the olives and were waiting for the harvest but now they have nothing.” According to the 42-year-old farmer, his ancestors have owned the land for over 200 years, and despite the crops being repeatedly destroyed, they have no other option but to replant. “What else can we do? Give us an alternative and we will leave. But if all farmers left their lands, the Gaza Strip will be empty of people.” —Al Jazeera
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Thursday, October 9, 2014
In Yemen, ‘No One Is In Charge’
F
Because of the “situation”; men who would normally go unarmed carry semi-automatic rifles in the street
or the past two weeks, talk in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, has been of the “situation”. People have left the city, traders in markets complain, because of the “situation”; men who would normally go unarmed carry semiautomatic rifles in the street because of the “situation”; taxi drivers try to push prices up because of the “situation”. Yet nobody can fully vocalise what the “situation” is - perhaps because it is as much an expression of what is missing as it is of what is present. On Tuesday, these tensions seemed to have been eased when Yemeni President Abd Rabbu Hadi Mansour declared his choice of a new prime minister. But instead, the move led to even greater uncertainty as the Houthis quickly snubbed the new candidate, Ahmed Awad Bin Mubarak, on the basis that he was not selected through a consensus decision and that he was an “agent of the US”. “The selection makes a mockery of Yemen’s independence and sovereignty as well as the will of the people,” the group said in a statement issued shortly after the appointment was made. They promised further ‘escalation’ of the kind that led to heavy fighting in the capital in September. The Houthis rejection of Bin Mubarak - who was appointed by presidential decree - raises questions about the fate of the peace deal which ended days of fighting and was supposed to lead to a Houthi withdrawal once a new, neutral prime minister and cabinet were named. On September 21, Hadi signed the deal with the Houthis, who had just taken control of a major military installation on the western edge of the city. As the agreement, which was aimed at getting the Houthis to leave the capital, was being signed, checkpoints manned by Houthi fighters blossomed across Sanaa. Two days after the deal was signed, Houthi leader Abdelmalek al-Houthi said the “People’s Committees” securing the city would not leave until the military, in disarray after the takeover of Sanaa, was able to fight the local alQaeda franchise. Since then, it has been clear who controls the capital. Not everyone is complaining though. Although the military is largely vacant, security has been remarkably good, and the electricity supply - down to a handful of hours a day earlier in the year - has been relatively plentiful. As part of the peace deal, the government brought down fuel prices, which had been raised earlier in the year. “[The Houthis] have brought fuel prices down, there is electricity and they want to fight al-Qaeda,” said
An armed civilian.
Fouad, a 49-year-old bus driver who shuttles between the Bab al Yemen district of Sanaa and upmarket Hadda. “If that’s all they want then they are OK by me.” But others are not so happy. “When the Houthis came, everyone left,” said Mohammed Amin, a 20-year-old resident of Sanaa’s historic Old City who sells scarves at a small stall in a market inside the walls of the medina. “There are no tourists, everyone has left. Everyone has his own problem but the Houthis are the biggest reason. There are no more people.” In the run-up to Eid al-Adha, a major holiday in the Islamic calendar, the market in the Old City is normally packed. “Before it was so crowded in the shop we didn’t know how to deal with the demand,” Amin, who has worked at the stall for seven years, explained. But only a few shoppers came to his stall in the days before the holiday, he says. Yet he cannot say why, exactly, people are so nervous. “The situation is this,” a Yemeni political analyst who lives in Sanaa said bluntly. “No one is in charge.” As the terms of the peace deal were being negotiated on September 21, Yemen’s Prime Minister Mohammed Basindwah resigned in the knowledge that he would be replaced as part of the agreement while the interior ministry publicly ordered security forces in the capital to “cooperate” with the Houthis. Several people with knowledge of the inner workings of the defence ministry say it is now unclear to what extent Yemen still has a functioning army, while the relative ease with which the Houthis took the capital may encourage al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) to attempt to seize its own territory in the south or take the Houthis on in
the capital. Although Basindwah and the rest of the cabinet were told by Hadi to remain in their posts until a new government was appointed, few turned up to work. When Al Jazeera called several key officials including ministers both before and after Eid, the response was the same: During a major political crisis, the most important men in government were either at residences outside of the capital or abroad. A political vacuum which began with the Houthi siege of Sanaa has now had two weeks to expand. “Yemen’s government is largely running on momentum, but that momentum is slowing and soon people will recognise that there is no one at the wheel,” said the political observer. Part of the problem, he says, is that the while the peace deal set out a clear timeline for the formation of a new government - within nine days of the appointment of a prime minister - it did not set a similar strict deadline for the appointment of the new premier. Initially, officials had said that a prime minister would be appointed within a week of the deal being endorsed; then, that a candidate would be approved before Eid, which fell on October 4. The Houthis, who snubbed the president’s choice of a prime minister, had twice approached Mohammed Awad Bin Hammam, the Central Bank governor, to take the post; on both occasions, he declined the offer. On Eid itself, Mohammed alBasha, the Yemeni government’s spokesman in Washington, took to Twitter: “A number of individuals who were nominated through consensus by the political factions declined the offer,” he wrote. “Yemen Prime Minister Wanted!”
Following the Houthis’ rejection of the president’s candidate, Yemenis are now beginning to discuss what will happen if a consensus is not reached over the new prime minister. “I think arguably the perceived effect of the inability to appoint a PM is greater than the actual effect,” said Adam Baron, a London-based Yemen analyst who lived in Sanaa between 2011 and 2014, of the growing vacuum in the capital. “That being said, the inability to [do so] will play a huge role in shaping perceptions of the government, particularly after the end of Eid, raising anxieties over intractable differences and general dysfunction [between the Houthis and Yemen’s political class].” Yemenis are also anxious that the Houthis’ move would present President Hadi, the figurehead of their political transition, with a greater challenge than the issues he faces. Hadi, who in reality had a far bigger say in the way the country was run than Basindwah, has become impotent in the face of the Houthis’ rise. “Hadi needs to prove that he’s still in charge, that he’s running the country, that he’s president more than in name only,” Baron said. As the vacuum grows, Baron says, the Houthis, a onetime religious revivalist movement for the Zaydi Shia Islam largely unique to north Yemen, now in control of the country’s largest militia, need to be sure not to overplay their hand, having been given their first shot at forming and participating in government. “The Houthis’ key challenge is managing to further their own interests while inflaming other factions to as small a degree as possible,” he said. “Something that, of course, is far easier said than done.” —Al Jazeera
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Thursday, October 9 2014
Eagles Will Cope With Sudan Heat – Echiejile Elderson Echiejile has said Nigeria will cope with the heat and playing on an artificial pitch in Sudan on Saturday. Nigeria visit Sudan on Saturday and then welcome the same team four days later. Congo top Group A with six points after two rounds of matches, South Africa are second with four points, while Nigeria are third on a point. Sudan are yet to record any points. “Personally, I prefer playing on a natural grass pitch, but we just have to adjust, be smarter and work on our
timing when we play on astro turf and we will be okay,” said Elderson, who will be visiting Sudan for the first time. And as for the weather, we are first and foremost Nigerians and born in Africa and so we should also be able to cope on the day.” And the Monaco defender has said the Super Eagles are targeting wins in both games against Sudan particularly as the last two qualifying matches, away to group leaders Congo and at home to South Africa, next month would be a lot tougher.
“We are going for the maximum points against Sudan so as to be better placed in the table especially as the last two qualifying games, against Congo and South Africa, will not be easy,” he told his website www.elderson3.com “We are equally aware that Sudan will not just surrender to us because we are Nigeria. They will want a famous win, but we are training hard, team spirit is very high and with the support of other Nigerians, we will be victorious.”
AFCON 2015: Illnesses Hit Eagles Camp
By Salifu Usman, Abuja
Super Eagles’ hope of qualifying for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco has suffered temporary setback as all invited players for the crucial game against Sudan in Khartoum on Saturday are having one form of illness or the other. The players could not even attend the scheduled ritual media parley planned for yesterday to interface with members of the sporting press. Out of the 24 invited players in the camp, only eight managed to attend the
traditional parlay with the media and out of the eight, only four players spoke to the press with other complaining of one pain or the other. All the big players including skipper of the team, Vincent Enyeama, Mikel Obi, Emmanuel Emenike, Ogeyi Onazi, Austin Ejide, Juwon Oshaniwa and several others could not attend the parley because of pains. However, CSK Moscow forward, Ahmed Musa who spoke to the media, assured that Super Eagles will beat Sudan in Khartoum, insisting
he and his teammates are fully aware of the immediate importance of the Sudan clash. “The games against Sudan are very important and we the players know it. We will be going out for victories both at away and home. We know how much we need to win these games because we want to go to the Nations Cup and defend our title,” he stated. The coach Stephen Keshi led side are expected to depart their Abuja training camp today for Kharthoum ahead of Super Eagles the match on Saturday.
Why I Dropped Uche From Qualifiers– Keshi Before the game against Congo, I did the list. Ike Uche’s name was on the list. He didn’t even know about it. Uche called me like four days later, and we spoke like brothers and that was it,” revealed Keshi
Super Eagles Coach Stephen Keshi
Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi has revealed that he was forced to drop Ike Uche from last month’s AFCON qualifiers because of the attitude of the Villarreal striker. He said at a media briefing in Abuja on Wednesday that Uche was originally on his list of callups for matches against Congo and South Africa but was later forced to drop him after the player questioned why he would need a visa to South Africa. Before the game against Congo, I did the list. Ike Uche’s name was on the list. He didn’t even know about it. Uche called me like four days later, and we spoke
like brothers and that was it,” revealed Keshi. “The next time my secretary Dayo Enebi called the players asking them if they had South African visa. He called Uche and asked him and Uche said ‘why are you asking me, what do you need that for?’ “Uche said he needs somebody to talk to him about something, they said he was a bad kid, he did something wrong if not..... I said take his name out. “I am not going to beg Uche and I will not ask (assistant coach) Daniel (Amokachi) to beg Uche for what? We all played for this country for 20-something years. Nobody begged us to play
We Don’t Have To Panic – Onazi
Onazi
Lazio midfielder Ogenyi Onazi has urged Nigerians not to press the panic button, insisting Nigeria will qualify for AFCON 2015. Nigeria find themselves in a very precarious position after they failed to win in their opening two qualifiers last month and they must now beat Sudan in Sudan to get their qualifying campaign back on track. They are third in Group A with a point, while Congo lead the standings with six points and South Africa are second on four points. Two years ago, Nigeria failed to quali-
fy for the Nations Cup only to return to the tournament in style the following year to win a third AFCON title in South Africa. But Onazi, who recently signed an improved deal with his Rome club, has insisted there is no cause for so much concern. “We don’t need any panic,” he said. “We just know that we don’t want to see that the points are three or one. We just know what is at stake and we know what is expected of us. That is why we are training hard to make sure we come out victorious in the games ahead.”
we were begging to play. “Why is it only Ike Uche? Obafemi Martins is also there, he is not saying anything.” The controversy stirred by the non-inclusion of Uche appears to have got to Keshi, who was warned he should not be asked on this subject again. “So, why do you guys (reporters) want to tear this team apart? Please let it be the end today. Don’t ask me about Uche. Please nobody should ask me about Uche again,” said a very furious Keshi. “This is the last time I will speak about Ike Uche. And I do not want anybody to ask me about Ike Uche again.”
Keshi
Abiso To Support Borno Indigene In NFF Former chairman of El-Kanemi Warriors Club of Maiduguri, Bashir Abiso has expressed appreciation to Governor Kassim Shettima for his support in ensuring an indigene of the state to become a board member of the Nigeria Football Association (NFF). Abiso who was speaking in an interview with journalists, described the untiring moral and financial support as the secret behind actualizing the dream which the soccer loving people of the state have been yearning for years. According to him, despite the fact that he narrowly lost to 21, 19 votes to his Borno state counter-
part, Babagana Kalli, the victory was not only for the state, but also to the entire northeast particularly. He stressed the need for supporting the NFF in order to achieving the desired objectives. He then called on the new board member to work harder in ensuring that skillful and talented players were discovered for national teams so as to see them contribute their quota for the progress and development of football in the country. ‘’Honestly speaking, the elections was free and fair and as a first time attempt, I can say it is okay,” Abiso explained.
Follow these reports on leadership.ng/sports
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Thursday, October 9, 2014
‘Handball Coaching Course Will Benefit Nigeria’ ‘By Salifu Usman, Abuja
Action from the Match Day 29 fixture between Kaduna United vs Gombe United which ended 3-0 in favour of Kaduna
The on-going International handball Federation (IHF) Level II Coaching Course taking place at the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps academy, Abuja, has been described as a springboard for the improvement of handball in the country. For lovers and followers of the game, it is a welcome development that Mega Veteran Handball Association (MVHA) in collaboration with Commonwealth Handball Secretariat (CHS), are bringing such needed develop-
ment to the sport, despite the paucity of funds, which for some time has been the bane of several federations, as a result of National Sports Commission’s non-funding of their activities. Speaking to participants, vice chairman Mega veteran, Jibrin sheidu assured them of Mega veteran’s commitment toward developing the game in the country. “The responsibility of developing the game of handball lay on us Mega veterans. If we say we will wait for the handball federation, nothing will happen because government does not have the funds
to run sports like it used to. “During our time, we don’t buy kits to play handball but today you have to kit yourself and also take care of the younger ones. So, the only way we can assist the younger ones who are coming up is to first and foremost train the coaches who are the basis and pioneers of the game. If you don’t develop the basis, there is no how you will develop the head. That is why we bring the IHF instructor from Germany in the person of Hans-Peter Thumm to teach our own coaches the basics and modern techniques of handball,” he stated.
NFF Election: Court Adjourns Case Against Maigari, Others To Oct 23 BY ACHOR ABIMAJE, Jos
Justice Ambrose Allagoa of the Federal High Court sitting in Jos, the Plateau State capital yesterday adjourned the case that restrained the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) for conducting another elections into the body against immediate past NFF president Aminu Maigari and three others to the 23rd of October, 2014. Yahaya Adama and three others on the 19th September, approached the court to restrain Aminu Magari (First defend-
ant, NFF (second defendant) and Football Associations (third defendant) after the Chris Giwa led faction were purportedly elected. The presiding judge said that the adjournment was meant for the plaintiffs counsel to personally serve the defendants with the contempt of court orders. According to him, the court could not grant the prayer of the plaintiffs’ counsel to commit the defendants to prison for failure to appear in court in their absence. LEADERSHIP Sport recalled that Adama and three oth-
ers approached the court on 19th September, 2014 and obtained an interim injunction to refrain the NFF from conducting another election. The injunction according to the plaintiffs’ counsel Mr Habila Ardzard, was because the NFF had held a general congress on the 29th of August 2014 and elected Chris Giwa and other officials into the body. But the Aminu Magari faction of the body disobeyed the order, went ahead and held a general congress on the 20 of September and an election which produced Amaju Pinnick as
Eagles New Call-up Nursing Injury’ New Super Eagles call-up Hope Akpan has said he is nursing “a small injury” but he hopes to be fit in time for Saturday’s AFCON qualifier against Sudan. “I am nursing a small injury but I hope to be fit for Saturday,“ disclosed the Reading of England midfielder. The injury though has not stopped Akpan from being part of the Eagles training in Abuja. Akpan, who is one four fresh call-ups for the matches against Sudan, said he has been most impressed with the spirit in the squad. Nigeria have already lost Stoke City winger Victor Moses and Ukraine-based Babatunde Michael to injuries. But coach Stephen Keshi has insisted the team will cope with these late withdrawals. “We pray that everybody would be in good health because that is very important. We have already lost two players now, I hope that would be the last,” he said.
Super Eagles celebrating
NFF President. According to Ardzard, the court then issued an order of contempt of court on the defendants for going ahead with elections after the restraining order.The plaintiff counsel prayed the court to commit the defendant to prison for disobeying the court.``My Lord, their failure to appear before court is a sign of belligerence, they elevated themselves above the order of this honorable court.” He further stressed ``I urge my Lord run an order of the court to commit the defendants
to prison or in the alternative, issue a warrant of arrest but we are more inclined to their committal to prison,’’ he argued. He claimed the orders were submitted by substituted means by pasting at the gate of the NFF headquarters in Abuja in the case of the first and second defendants. In the case of third defendant, Ardzard said that he personally submitted to the Secretary Plateau Football Association (PFA), Yakubu Dalyop for the PFA and the other 36 Football Associations.
Police Arrest Protesting Bash Ali In Abuja
By Ejike Ejike, Abuja
The Federal Capital Territory police yesterday, arrested renowned boxing champion, Bash Ali when he took his protest to the NEXIM Bank for the release of funds approved by the federal government for his world championship. The boxer, who has been seeking the government funding for the guiness record of becoming the oldest man to fight a competitive bout, staged the protest at the premises of NEXIM bank early yesterday to demand for the release of the funds as instructed by the presidency. According to Ali, President Goodluck Jonathan had instructed NEXIM bank to facilitate the release of the funding for the bout, but up until now, the Managing Director of NEXIM bank, Roberts Orya has refused to release any fund. “It is a pity how the country has turn into. Imagine the fact that I met with the president and after our deliberations at the committee level, he delegated NEXIM to handle the funding of my fight. However, up until this moment, I am yet to get anything from NEXIM bank. Instead, the Managing director, Roberts Orya asked for a personal meeting before anything could be done on the instruction given by the president. Even when I managed to see
one of the public relations persons in the bank, Chinedu Mgboholu, he requested for his own share of the money before he could do anything for me. “This is how people working for the president, contribute to the problems of this great country. If someone of the calibre of President Goodluck Jonathan gives an directive, why would Mr Orya not honour the directive. This is corruption and negligence at the highest level and it is time we as a people, stood up against such impetus in this country. This country belongs to us and I will fight to protect it,” the boxer lamented. The boxer, also alleged that when he first came to the bank on September, 1; the security team, led by one Mr Besong led his team to beat him up; however that will not deter him, as he would continue to protest up until the bank fulfils Jonathan’s directives.
Bashi Ali
54 sports
Thursday, October 9 2014
Nadal For Appendicitis Surgery World number two Rafael Nadal has conceded he will have to undergo surgery at the “end of the year” after being diagnosed with appendicitis. After taking antibiotics, he was beaten 6-3 7-6 (8-6) by fellow Spaniard Feliciano Lopez in Wednesday’s Shanghai Masters second-round match. The 28-year-old had initially complained of stomach pains on Sunday. “When you lose a match, it is not the moment to talk about obvious things. Feli played better than me,” he said. “It’s the same way that I felt before. A little bit more dizzy now. But that’s it. Nothing that I have to worry about. “That’s it. I talked about that yesterday, so I don’t need to talk again about my health. Now there remains three more tournaments for me. My thoughts is to continue with Basel, Paris and London.” Rafael Nadal has competed
in just one tournament since he lost to Nick Kyrgios at Wimbledon Nadal has struggled with injuries since the summer and missed the US Open with a wrist problem. Before Shanghai, he had competed just once since he was beaten by Australian teenager Nick Kyrgios in the fourth round at Wimbledon, at the China Open last week. I didn’t have the best of luck since Wimbledon. I was playing a good year, a very positive year. After that I was unlucky with the wrist, what’s going on now. Obviously the last couple of months have been a little bit hard for me.” Although he plans to hang on until the end of 2014, should Nadal choose to have the surgery earlier, then it would benefit Andy Murray’s chances of playing at the World Tour Finals next month.
Goals Rush Across Venues As Enyimba Fight Back To Drown Sharks 5-2
Nadal
Ozil, Arsenal Midfielder Out For 12 Weeks
Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil has been ruled out for up to 12 weeks with a knee injury. The 25-year-old midfielder, who is on international duty with Germany, played 90 minutes in Arsenal’s 2-0 defeat at Chelsea on Sunday. But he arrived at the German camp with a problem in his left knee and an MRI scan in Munich on Wednesday showed damage to the joint. The Gunners are already without injured midfielders Aaron Ramsey and Mikel Arteta. A statement on the German Football Association website read: “The MRI examination revealed a partial rupture of the outer band of the left knee joint. “The treatment is six weeks of immobilisation of the knee joint. Mesut Ozil is likely to be [out for] 10 to 12 weeks.” Ozil complained of a sore knee after the defeat at Chelsea
on Sunday and Arsenal say they advised the German FA of the situation. The former Real Madrid player has now returned to the Gunners for further assessment. “It is too early to say how long Ozil may be out of action,” said Arsenal in a statement on the club website. If the diagnosis is correct, it means Ozil may not be available to Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger until after Christmas. The playmaker signed from Real Madrid for a club record £42.4m in September 2013 and has scored eight goals in 46 starts. He has been criticised for some of his performances, but helped the Gunners win the FA Cup last season - the club’s first trophy in nine years. The injury gives Arsene Wenger further selection problems in midfield, following injuries to Ramsey and Arteta earlier in the season.
Glo Premier League players may have responded to the Wonder Goal Awards stimuli as they went rampant on Match Day 31 with a total of 29 goals in nine matches with one fixture between Nembe City and Gombe United held up by heavy rains forcing a shift to next day. Two own goals also marked the day that started with ElKanemi Warriors in an early kick-off throwing spanners in the works for continental ticket chasing Nasarawa United in a four goals thriller that saw the home side netting three and conceding one. Nasarawa were equally undone by a Seun Sogbeso own goal, the first of the two own goals recorded in the day’s fixtures with Enyimba captain Chinedu Udoji providing the second in Aba when he gifted Sharks the lead. It is the results from the top of the table teams that provided the talking points of the day with Enyimba storming back from a two goals deficit to pound Sharks 5-2 on a day their player, Rasheed Olabiyi was presented his Wonder Goal Award prize at half time. Businessman, Ide Ifeanyi Okechukwu had handed the award to the player at half time with scores at 2-1. Mfon Udoh restored parity on 50th minute from the penalty spot and would add another on 78 minute after Old War Horse, Emeka Nwanna
had increased Enyimba’s lead on 62nd minute and completed his own brace on 88 to dust the Blue Angels. Relegation haunted Crown FC were going to endanger champions, Kano Pillars dominance on the log when they responded twice to reduce tallies and looking to even scores. Pillars opened scoring Isaac Loute on 14th minute and Adamu Hassan increased the lead 30 minutes after leaving scores at interval at 2-0. But a more determined Crown returned to reduce the deficit through Onyekachi Okafor who connected beautifully with a header to score from Ike Chukwujekwu’s cross on three minutes after restart. Azeez Shobowale will scramble in off a goalmouth melee to restore the two goals lead but Nnedum Francis responded frantically to mount pressure on the hosts who eventually preserved scores at 3-2 to extend their lead on the log. In Akure, Sunshine Stars dismissed Lobi Stars 3-0 starting with a first minute goal by Dele Olorundare. Tunde Adeniji doubled the lead on 34th minute while Prince Aggrey wrapped it up two minutes into the second half. Victor Alegbe joined the gang of brace scorers on the day with his clinical finishes against Kaduna United in Port Harcourt. Alegbe scored 8 minutes into the game and
completed the brace on 59 minutes. In Enugu, Samuel Agba also netted a brace in the clash with Bayelsa United which ended 2-1. Agba scored on off an assist by Wonder Goal award winner, Emeka Eze after 18 minutes and completed his brace in added time of the first half. Mutiu Adegoke pulled one back for Bayelsa executing a tricky curl from a freekick. In Umuahia, Abia Warriors put a foot through the top four team’s door with a 2-0 defeat of FC Taraba and it was home boy, the famous Kolanut Boy, Chisom Chikatara who started it all on 23 minutes of play while new found free kick maestro, Ndifreke Effiong hit another on 82 minute to finish off the visitors. In Warri, Akwa United goalkeeper gifted Freedom Omofoman the first of their two goals on 23rd minute and Joseph Osadiaye completed the performance two minutes from interval. Giwa FC scored through Usman Nura to defeat Heartland 1-0 in the only low scoring fixture.
Results Emyimba El-Kanemi Pillars Sunshine Rangers Warri Wolves Abia Warriors Dolphins Giwa
5-2 3-1 3- 2 3-0 2-1 2-0 2-0 2-0 1-0
Sharks Nasarawa Crown Lobi Stars Bayelsa United Akwa United FC Taraba Kaduna United Heartland
sports 55
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Murray Beats Janowicz At Shanghai Masters Sudanese National Team
Sudan Strategises Against Eagles Sudan has stepped up her preparation for the crucial game against Nigeria as the team went through it’s paces at the rescheduled venue in Khartoum on Monday. The squad led by coach Abdallah Mazda has a herculean task of beating the reigning African champions and getting points on the dock in the quest to qualify for the next Afcon in Morrocoin 2015. Beaten 3-0 at the Al Merriekh Stadium in Omdurman by South Africa, the Falcons also lost their away game against the Red Devils of Congo to leave them with no points after two matches. The team will continue training on Tuesday at the match venue and will hope to get it right against Nigeria on October 11. The last time both teams met, Nigeria beat Sudan by 2-0 in an internation-
al friendly courtesy of goals from Ikechukwu Uche and Manasseh Ishaku in January 2008. Sudan’s full squad for Nigeria Goalkeepers Moez Mahjoub (Al Hilal), A. Al Dayea (Ahly Shandy), Akram Hadi Saleem (Ahli Khartoum) Defenders: Amir Kamal, M. Abdallah, A. Gaafar, Khamis (Al Merriekh) Salah Nimr (Khartoum) Faris Abdullah, Jalal (Al Ahly Shandy, Al Rayah Ali (Ahli Khartoum) Tahir El Hadj (Rabta Kosti) Midfielders: Nazar Hamid, Muhand, Besha, Shigail (Al Hilal) Ramadan Agab (Al Merriekh) Mojahid Faroug, Amr (Ahly Shandy) Badr Aldin (Khartoum) Attackers: Mudahir Kareka, Bakri Madena, Salah Jizoli (Al Hilal) Hossam Naseldin (Rabta Kosti) Mohsen Hassan (Ahly Shandy).
Andy Murray produced a convincing display to beat Jerzy Janowicz 7-5 6-2 in the second round of the Shanghai Masters in China. The Scot impressed from the start and lost just four points on his serve during the opening set. Murray saved two break points with aces at the start of the second set and broke Janowicz in the fourth and eighth games on his way to victory. The 27-year-old will now play Spaniard David Ferrer in the third round. Fifth seed Ferrer
earned a 4-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 win over Martin Klizan, who served for the match at 6-5 up in the second set before failing to hold and losing the tie-break. Top seed Novak Djokovic won his second-round match in straight sets, overcoming Austria’s Dominic Thiem 6-3 6-4. The Serb will meet Ferrer or Murray in the quarter-finals if he beats the unseeded Mikhail Kukushkin of Kazakhstan in round three. World number three Roger Federer survived a couple of scares, beating Argentina’s Leonardo Mayer 7-5 3-6
7-6 (9-7). The Swiss had trailed 4-2 and 5-3 in the first set before battling back to win, and took the third on a tie-break after saving five match points. However, in the other half of the draw, world number two Rafael Nadal - playing despite being diagnosed with appendicitis - bowed out 6-3 7-6 (8-6) to fellow Spaniard Feliciano Lopez. Murray is currently ninth in the standings and Ferrer 10th as both bid to try to get into the top eight and secure a spot at the ATP Finals in London during November.
Murray
Eduok, Ubido, Obioma Are Wonder Goal 5 Nominees
Watson
Watson Beaten In Japan Women’s Open British number one Heather Watson lost in straight sets to world number 122 Yulia Putintseva in the second round of the Japan Women’s Open. Watson, ranked 46, was beaten 6-4 7-5 in one hour and 51 minutes by the 19-year-old from Kazakhstan. The Briton had halted a run of first round defeats at her last
four tournaments by beating Serbia’s Jovana Jaksic in the opening round. Watson won her only WTA title at the Osaka tournament in 2012. Meanwhile, at the Linz Open in Austria, world number eight Ana Ivanovic withdrew with a hip injury, handing Madison Brengle a walkover into the quarter-finals.
Super Eagles late call-up, Emem Eduok of Dolphins is one of three nominees for the 5th Glo Premier League Wonder Goal Award announced Monday by the League Management Company. The others are Arinze Obioma of El-Kanemi Warriors and Julius Ubido of Heartland of Owerri. With four winners so far, the Wonder Goal is becoming a more exciting challenge both for the players who seek to win and the fans whose votes elect the winner. So far, we have had Osaguona Ighodaro and Emeka Eze, both of Rangers as Wonder Goal winners 1 & 2 while Oghogho Oduokpe (Bayelsa United) and lastly, Rasheed Olabiyi (Enyimba) as the winners thanks to the the votes from passionate Glo Premier League fans across the
country. “This week, we continue with the Wonder Goal series and invite you, the Fans to exercise your power to choose the most exciting goal of the three nominated. It is one of the ways we seek to enhance club-community engagement and bring our star players closer to the people. The Wonder Goal also projects quality marksmanship that abounds in the Glo Premier League and recognizes the collective effort that made the goals possible” remarked Chief Operating Officer of the LMC in a statement on their website, www.lmc-ng.org. Eduok of Dolphins was nominated for his goal in the 2-0 defeat of Crown FC in Port Harcourt on August 13 in a Match Day 23 fixture while Ubido earned his nomination
for his goal in Heartland’s 1-1 draw in Port Harcourt with Sharks on Match Day 23 and Arinze for his goal in El-Kanemi’s 2-0 defeat of Lobi Stars on Match Day 6 on April 13. The Wonder Goal Award is won by the player whose goal polls the highest votes from fans voting online and the winner is usually rewarded with N100, 000 from which 50% is donated to a charity organization the player will nominate within the location of his club. Voting is open to all and is done through the LMC Twitter handle, @LMCNPFL or Facebook Page, League Management Company, or the website, www.lmc-ng.org, where video recording of the three goals are on display. Voting closes at 11.59pm on Saturday, October 11, 2014
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— Dolly Parton
09.10.14 www.leadership.ng
The Thursday Column
FOR GOD AND COUNTRY
No. 2,271
S
So he was not new to governance, yet he could not achieve anything in the eight years he was there
N150
The Sindigawo Consensus 08052407030 (SMS only) abba@leadership.ng
Abba Mahmood
indigawo is a village in Mayo Belwa local government area of Adamawa State. It is a simple community of farmers, cattle rearers, fishermen and traders. They have local scholars and almost all the youth in the community have been or are attending schools and universities. They are a very proud people who are well informed about current local and global trends of events. This is because they listen to radio and a few of them who have TV also view the news. Being stakeholders of the coming elections, they decided to have a sort of village roundtable under a Baobab tree. The Baobab tree (Bokki) became famous because that is where Baba Garba, an old soldier who saw action in Burma during the Second World War, sits every day on a reclining wooden chair wrapped with local handmade cloth. All the young and not so young trooped there that day. They wanted to talk about the political development around them and how this affects them. They were angry that all their expectations have not been met by the politicians even though they have been loyally and dutifully electing the ruling party since 1999. Baba Garba is well respected; in fact, he is an institution that even the village head defers to. After listening to all the debates, Baba Garba drew smoke from his pipe cigar (lopal) and then raised his hand for silence. Soon, everyone was attentive. He then began to speak: “I understand all your frustrations, anger and anxieties. We voted for that young man from Michika, Boni Haruna. He was governor for eight years, there was virtually no progress. We voted for Sarkin Yamma Nyako and he had been there as governor for almost seven years. When I went to Yola the state capital last week, even the streets are still those constructed by the late Governor Barde 34 years ago. “One of those two is a Christian
THURSDAY
w
and the other is a Muslim. So this issue has nothing to do with religion. One is a non-Fulani while the other is a Fulani, so the issue is beyond tribe as they were all tested and they failed. But all of them belong to the same umbrella party, the PDP. So it means that party has failed us. In any case, anytime you see someone looking for bowler hat or umbrella, it means there is discomfort: either rain or excessive sunlight; so, believe me, we have given this party a chance for 16 years and all the people from that party, regardless of tribe or religion, have failed to bring us peace or progress.” Baba Garba paused. “Boni Haruna has greater capacity than what he exhibited as governor. He was virtually running our neighbouring Taraba State during the SDP days as an aide to that state’s governor. So he was not new to governance, yet he could not achieve anything in the eight years he was there. Nyako was governor over 30 years ago in Minna but when he came in here he could do nothing because that party that produced them can do no good to anyone. Those of you who are in Maiduguri and Moubi universities, you know how bad it is. Even this current pretender to the throne from Madagali, you can see he has fallen into the evil. When he came he paid salaries, now he is not doing that. He awarded more contracts in one week than what either Boni or Nyako gave in months,” Baba Garba continued. Everyone was paying attention. “Poverty rate is high. Crime rate is high. Unemployment rate is high. Even divorce rate is high now, as all of you know. This is because we have entrusted our destiny to one party for one and a half decades now and that party has consistently and continuously failed us. We in Sindigawo are well-informed, we are not fools and we know our rights. We have never voted for a party that did not eventually win. But we cannot continue to vote for
a party that is neglecting us, that is indifferent to our suffering, that is insensitive to our feelings,” Baba Garba emphasized. “My dear children, my life is over. Yours has just begun. We have fought battles in foreign lands when fighting with guns was fashionable. Now you don’t have to fight to be a man. The most effective weapon is knowledge. And the biggest missile at our disposal now is our ballot, so we have to use it wisely. If you promise me that you will vote out the umbrella and vote for change, then that is our consensus. The Sindigawo consensus will soon be the Adamawa consensus and, God willin,g it will be the Nigerian consensus next year. Then I will be happy even in my grave,” Baba Garba said. “Yes we promise,” they all chorused. “Our ancestors whom I am joining soon have bequeathed to us a great legacy. Sindigawo has never been defeated, in battle or in peace. We are known for standing up for what is right, just and proper. That is why we live in peace and harmony regardless of our differences. These people that we want to change have taken so much money from the common treasury that belongs to all of us. They have resources to bribe everyone. But whoever comes to you and gives you money, collect it as your share but make sure you do what is right and stand up for your rights!” Baba Garba admonished. “Here in Adamawa, there is no single local government area that is of one tribe or one religion. From our forefathers we have learnt to live as one people. There is no single established Fulani family that has not intermarried with other tribes and vice-versa. So do not allow yourselves to be deceived by being divided along ethnic or religious lines because we are one people who cannot be divided because we do not even know how to or where to start any artificial division. I am a living example as I
am related to more than ten tribes by blood, marriages or other social networks even though we all speak Fulfulde and Hausa in addition to other dialects. So don’t follow any desperate politician who has nothing to offer except division and who has no programme except billboards and posters,” Baba Garba continued. “My dear children, go and make sure you vote out poverty, you vote out disunity, vote out failure, vote out disappointment, vote out corruption and vote out insecurity and injustice by voting out the oppressive umbrella party and voting in the broom that will sweep all these negative tendencies and bring about peace, progress and prosperity. Be firm, be steadfast and be united. God bless you all!” Baba Garba concluded. Immediately, the youth put on Bob Marley’s music, “Get up! Stand up! Stand up for your rights!” It was a full carnival as they went round mobilizing and spreading the message of the Sindigawo consensus. Everyone was eager to show the oppressors that they cannot continue to oppress, After all, history is on the side of the oppressed.
GHANA MUST GO FG’ll rescue Nigerians in Boko Haram captivity — NOA DG
Stop clowning!
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