2nd october 2014 by Newtelegraphonline

NIGERIA’S MOST AUTHORITATIVE NEWSPAPER IN POLITICS AND BUSINESS

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Vol. 1 No. 226

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Agbakoba, Fani-Kayode, Ozekhome, Sani, join New Telegraph Biodun Durojaiye

head of the historic partnership between The New York Times and New Telegraph, which begins October 6, four prominent Nigerians, who are also renowned activists and

writers, Mr. Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN) and Comrade Shehu Sani, have joined the league of New Telegraph’s celebrated columnists. They will individually CONTINUED ON PAGE 8

Agbakoba

Fani-Kayode

Ozekhome

Sani

We’re winning war

lJonathan on Boko Haram lIndependence anniversary holds in Aso Villa }2

Quick Read L-R: Vice-President Namadi Sambo; former Head of Interim National Government, Chief Ernest Shonenkan; former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon; President Goodluck Jonathan; his wife, Patience and Senate President David Mark cutting a cake to mark Nigeria’s 54th Independence Anniversary in Abuja...yesterday PHOTO: TIMOTHY IKUOMENISAN

Editorial

To curb the menace of flooding in Lagos

}19

Eni’s oil deal: $533m paid to Nigerian officials as bribe }8 Investigation: How military’s spending undermines insurgency war }4

Nigeria sets aside $1bn take-off grant for new national airline lHolds talks with BA for technical partnership Wole Shadare and Johnchuks Onuanyim

he dream of having a national airline that

could compete with other mega carriers will soon materialise as the Federal Government has concluded plans to set up a global airline.

Although, the name of the new company is not yet known, the carrier will start operations with an initial take-off grant of $1 billion while another

$1 billion is expected to be spent over four years on rebuilding old airport terminals and constructing new ones. Also, the government

is in talks with one of the biggest carriers, British Airways, to recommend strategic partners for the proposed national carrier. CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

News

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Jonathan: We’re winning war against terror Our Reporters

resident Goodluck Jonathan was upbeat yesterday that Nigeria would soon defeat Boko Haram, which according to him, has killed about 13,000 people in the last five years of its insurgency. The president, in an early morning broadcast to mark the nation’s 54th Independence Anniversary celebration, anchored his optimism on the string of successes which the military has recorded in their onslaught against the terrorists. Later in the day, the president was joined by some of his predecessors, the leadership of the National Assembly, senior judicial officials and other dignitaries to hold a quiet celebration in Aso Villa. The president’s Independence Day broadcast dwelt on how far Nigeria has come in its journey to nationhood, the insurgency unleashed on the country by Boko Haram, the National Conference and Nigeria’s victory over the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). He said: “On an occasion like this, it is important that we remember

all the precious souls that have been lost in the unprecedented war of terror unleashed on some parts of our country by these individuals who want to compel us to live our lives their way. They will not succeed! “In their mission, they have maimed and raped. They have killed men, women and children, rendering many children orphans and several women widows. “Night after night, day after day, our security forces continue to engage the terrorists in battle. My gratitude goes out to our armed forces whose will has been greatly challenged by this insurgency more than any other time, since the civil war. “As Commander-inChief, I will continue to do all it takes to enable them to keep on inflicting devastating blows at the heart of terror. Fellow Nigerians, it is our collective duty as patriots to avail our men and women in uniform of all the support they need to fight and win this war. “This Administration is committed to making Nigeria safe for all Nigerians, irrespective of our places of birth, how we worship God and our political persua-

sion. To all those waging war against our country, I ask that you lay down your arms and embrace peace. “To those who have genuine grievances, I affirm that Nigeria will listen to you, if you bring your grievances to the table of dialogue. To the good people of Nigeria, let me restate that our task of building a better and greater country must not waver.” Jonathan reiterated his commitment to implement the report of the National Conference, saying that it was in ensuring that that he set up the Ministerial Committee headed by the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Adoke (SAN), to work out the modalities for implementing the report. He described the National Conference as the nation’s greatest centenary gift that must be cherished. Jonathan also pledged that his administration would continue to build a democratic structure anchored on free and fair elections. He, however, warned against political violence, stressing that the contest for power must not trans-

lated into destruction of the polity. However, for the fourth time in a row, the Independence Day celebration was held at the State House, instead of at the Eagle Square, Abuja. During yesterday’s ceremony, Jonathan presided over the change of guard and parade of ceremonial military colours by the Guards Brigade. The Guards Brigade is a special unit of the military specifically charged with the responsibility of the security of the president, his family members and the seat of government, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The president, who was accompanied by the service chiefs after the parade, signed the anniversary register at the event. He was also led to cut an anniversary cake after releasing white pigeons to signify peace. Speaking to State House correspondents after the ceremony, former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, said there was the need for Nigerians to team up in making the country attain the level of success it desires. He said: “I believe in Ni-

geria. I love Nigeria. And we all must work for Nigeria; that is everybody - the government and the opposition - in order to make Nigeria great. That is my wish.” The Independence Day Anniversary was also marked in some states of the federation with different tempo. While some held parades to mark the occasion, the celebration was devoid of pomp and ceremony in other states. In Port Harcourt, Rivers State Governor, Mr. Chibuike Amaechi, used the occasion to highlight the achievements of his administration in the past seven years. The governor, in his Independence Day broadcast, said the state had achieved commendable feats in security, education, health, investment, infrastructure, roads and bridges. According to him, Rivers has remained a testimony that the dreaded Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) can be defeated and expressed gratitude to God for making his administration to accomplish these and many more. He urged the people to shun violence in the forth-

coming general election. “If we maim and kill the people we aspire to lead, whom would we then govern? Let’s run our campaigns in the best manner pursue our electioneering with respect one for another,” he added. Amaechi’s counterpart in Lagos, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN), however, expressed concern that the excitement that characterised past National Day celebrations has waned, as the occasion has become a mere ritual. He urged Nigerians to change their attitudes to restore the good old days. The governor, while addressing a large gathering of citizens, who trooped out to celebrate the nation’s Independence Day, in Ikeja, said the various challenges confronting the nation would be easily surmounted if citizens resolved to assiduously work for the country’s progress. He said: “In the past, national days were celebrated with great excitement. It was the day political batons from one hand to the other. Everybody looked forward to such celebrations. “But in recent years, the celebration has waned to a CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

News

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Investigation: How military’s spending undermines insurgency war

l89% of defence budget spent on salaries, 11% on weapons Onwuka Nzeshi ABUJA

he state of insecurity in the NorthEast, occasioned by the activities of Boko Haram, has exposed the apparent misapplication of funds by the Ministry of Defence and the various security forces in the country. Investigation by New Telegraph showed that over the years, there has been a lopsided allocation of resources in favour of recurrent expenditure, salaries and administrative costs, leaving little for capital expenditure in the defence sector. An audit of the 2014 national budget showed that out of a total of N966 billion allocated to defence and security, N843.5 billion, representing 89 per cent of the budget went to recurrent expenditure while a paltry N94.27 billion, representing 11 per cent, was for capital expenditure items such as the purchase of

weapons and other military hardware meant to equip the troops and keep them battle ready at all times. This trend was also reflected in the allocation of funds at the various arms and departments in the sector. According to documents sourced from the Budget Office of the Federation, the Nigeria Army allocated 96 per cent of its resources to recurrent expenditure while leaving only four per cent to capital expenditure. Also, the Nigeria Navy allocated 89 per cent of its own share of the budget to recurrent expenditure and 11 per cent to capital expenditure while the Nigeria Air Force gave 90

per cent to recurrent and 10 per cent to capital expenditures. The story is not different at the Department of State Security (DSS) and Office of the National Security Adviser(NSA) which allotted 75 per cent and 88 per cent of their budgets respectively to recurrent expenditure with capital expenditure getting little attention. Although there has been a steady rise in the budgetary allocations to security sector in the last four years, there appears to have been no deliberate policy to deploy the resources to the critical areas that would put the various security services in a good stead to respond to the growing challenges of terrorism in

the country. In addition to the poor attention given to capital expenditure in the sector, New Telegraph also learnt that much of the weapons in the arsenal of the security forces were outdated and long overdue for change. Besides, majority of the personnel in the various arms of the Armed Forces needed to be retrained in the use of sophisticated weaponry and in modern warfare. In the current year’s budget, the Nigeria Army budgeted N697.7 million for the procurement of ammunition; the Office of the National Security Adviser budgeted N837.3million for the procurement of security equipment; the

Department of State Security earmarked N350 million for the procurement of firearms and ammunition while the Nigeria Air Force has allotted N286.46 million for the purchase of an MI-34/35 helicopter. A security professional who spoke with New Telegraph in confidence said the piecemeal approach to the acquisition of basic security equipment and hardware had been the bane of the security and defence sector. The source justified the recent request to the National Assembly by President Goodluck Jonathan for a $1billion loan to procure military hardware and equip the military to combat the insurgency in CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

28oC

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ABUJA

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PORT HARCOURT

24o C 17oC Storms

KANO

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ENUGU

18o C 9oC Very Cloudy

IBADAN

26o C 22oC Storms

CALABAR

29o C 22oC Storms

MAIDUGURI

ONITSHA

33oC 24oC Thunder Storms

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FIRST NATION AIRWAYS LAGOS-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 06.50; 09:30; 11:45; 16:00 (SAT) 06:50; 11:45 (SUN) 11:45; 16:00 ABUJA-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 09:00; 11:30; 13:40;18:30 (SAT) 09:00; 13:40 (SUN) 13:40; 18:30 LAGOS-PORT-HARCOURT (MON-FRI) 14:45 (SAT) 16:15 (SUN) 14:45 PORT-HARCOURT-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 16:50 (SAT) 18:20 (SUN) 16:50 AEROCONTRACTORS LAGOS-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 06:50; 13:30; 16:30; 19:45 (SAT/SUN) 12:30; 16:45 ABUJA-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 07:30; 13:00; 19:00 (SAT) 12:30 (SUN) 15:30 MEDVIEW AIRLINES LAGOS-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 07:00; 08:50; 12:00; 15:30 (SAT) 10:00; 15:00 (SUN) 17:30; 18:30 ABUJA-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 09:00; 14:00, 15:00; 18:30 OVERLAND AIRWAYS LAGOS-ILORIN (MON-FRI) 07:15 LAGOS-IBADAN (MON-FRI) 7:00 IBADAN-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 08:00 IBADAN-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 16:30 ILORIN –ABUJA (MON-FRI) 08:30 ILORIN –LAGOS (MON-FRI) 17:00 ABUJA-ASABA (MON-FRI) 10:00 ASABA-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 14:15 ASABA-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 11:30 LAGOS-ASABA (MON-FRI) 13:00 ABUJA-ILORIN 16:00 ABUJA-IBADAN 15:00

TODAY’S WEATHER FORECAST LAGOS

FLIGHT SCHEDULE

Group Chief Executive Officer, UBA Capital Plc, Mrs. Toyin Sanni; Executive Director, Business Development, Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Mr. Haruna Jalo-Waziri and Managing Director, UBA Capital Securities, Mr. Jude Chiemeka, during the official launch of InvestNow.ng, a UBA Capital’s online-realtime trading platform in Lagos...on Tuesday

FG holds talks with BA for technical partnership CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

New Telegraph learnt that some other airlines decline to be strategic partners following the manner the immediate past Minister of Aviation, Ms. Stella Oduah, went about the establishment of the botched Nigerian Eagle airline. Many Nigerians, especially industry stakeholders, were pessimistic when the Federal Government through Oduah announced that Nigeria would float a new national carrier. A source close to British Airways who sought not to be identified confirmed the plans for a new national airline for the country. The source stated that

the proposed airline “will be commercially run unlike what we had in the past when government through the Ministry of Aviation had no idea of how to run an airline or set up one.” Oduah’s successor, Mr. Osita Chidoka, yesterday in New York confirmed that Nigeria was holding talks with private investors on setting up a new flag-carrier as it set to expand airport infrastructure. Chidoka, in an interview with Bloomberg TV Africa to be aired on Friday, said Nigeria would spend about $2 billion over four years on rebuilding

old airport terminals and constructing new ones to meeting the rising demand for travel. “The government wants to start a national carrier within the same period to tap growth. It will be commercially run. Conversations are on across many possible private sector organisations, both local airlines in Nigeria and then some international airlines. “We are totally changing the face of four key airports. Nigeria is studying the possibility of attracting private capital to do that,” he added. He explained that the government is also build-

ing 13 cargo airports nationwide for the export of perishable agricultural produce such as pineapples, mangoes and tomatoes. Nigeria has been having problems sustaining a national carrier since it liquidated Nigeria Airways in 2003 and replaced it with Virgin Nigeria, a joint venture in which Richard Branson’s Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited originally held a 49 per cent stake. The airline changed its name to Air Nigeria in 2010 after Branson pulled out and it ceased flying two years ago. CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

ARIK AIR LAGOS-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 07:00; 08:00; 09:00; 11:00 13:00; 15:00; 17:00; 19:00 (SAT) 07:00; 09:00; 11:00; 13:00; 15:00; 17:00; 19:00 (SUN) 11:00; 13:00; 15:00; 17:00; 19:00 ABUJA-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 07:00; 09:00; 11:00; 13:00; 15:00; 17:00; 19:00; 20:00 (SAT) 07:00; 09:00; 11:00; 13:00; 15:00; 17:00; 19:00 (SUN) 09:00; 13:00; 15:00; 17:00; 19:00 LAGOS-PORT-HARCOURT (MON-FRI) 07:00; 09:30; 11:00; 13:30; 15:00; 17:30 (SAT) 07:00; 11:00; 15:00 (SUN) 09:30; 11:00; 13:30; 15:00; 17:30 PORT-HARCOURT-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 07:30; 09:00; 11:30; 13:00; 15:30; 17:00 (SAT) 07:30; 11:30; 09:00; 13:00; 17:00 (SUN) 11:30; 13:00; 15:30; 17:00 ABUJA-PORT-HARCOURT (MON-FRI) 06:45; 10:10; 13:30; 16:50 (SAT/SUN) 06:45; 10:10; 13:30 PORT-HARCOURT-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 08:30; 11:50; 15:10; 18:30 (SAT/SUN) 08:30; 11:50; 15:10

News

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

INEC serves parties notice of elections Onyekachi Eze ABUJA

he Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday

served political parties a notice to conduct elections in 2015. According to the commission, the notice, which is part of the electoral guidelines for the 2015

polls, is in compliance with the Electoral Act, which stipulates that parties must get notice of elections, at least 90 days before the first election is held.

Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Mr. Kayode Idowu, told New Telegraph in a telephone interview that the guidelines were released yesterday in compliance

with the Electoral Act, adding that serving the parties with a notice of elections was a mere legal formality. “This is what the Electoral Act says. The guide-

L-R: Ekiti State Deputy Governor, Prof. Modupe Adelabu; former Head of State, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari; Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; his wife, Bisi and Speaker, Ekiti State House of Assembly, Dr. Adewale Omiran, at the inauguration of Ekiti Parapo Square in Ado-Ekiti...yesterday.

lines were released to the political parties this (yesterday) morning. This was the same guidelines we released in January this year.” He, however, dispelled insinuations that the release of the guidelines amount to giving parties a go-ahead to begin campaign. He said campaigns would not begin until midNovember. INEC said it was lifting the ban on political activities in line with section 30 (1) of the Electoral Act (as amended), which allows campaign 90 days to the election. INEC had early this year released the timetable for the elections, with the conduct of the presidential and National Assembly elections fixed for February 14, 2015. It also fixed the governorship and House of Assembly elections for February 28. According to the timetable, political parties have between October 2 and end of December 2014 to conduct primaries to choose their candidates for the general election.

Independence anniversary holds in Aso Villa 89% of defence budget spent on salaries... CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2

mere ritual. Just another work-free or school-free day with little celebration or importance attached to it. This should not be so. “In some countries, national days are celebrated with fanfare. Independence pageants are held and there are so many celebrations. “We should begin to celebrate the nation`s independence with the passion of the past. We should revive the old patriotic zeal.” Also in Akwa Ibom State, Governor Godswill Akpabio blamed sustained military incursion in politics for the nation’s stunted growth. He, however, said the return of democratic governance 15 years ago had brought meaningful gains in all areas of development. Akpabio, in a speech to mark the Independence

Day in Uyo, lauded the pace of transformation of the nation under Jonathan. He said the Jonathan administration had given Nigerians hope of realising the dream and vision of the nation’s founding fathers. He asked Nigerians to defend the country’s unique identity and reenact the culture of peace and unity that earned them self-governance. In his own speech to mark the occasion, Ebonyi State Governor, Chief Martin Elechi, sued for tolerance and accommodation so as to engender growth and development in the country. Addressing people who had thronged the Abakaliki Township Stadium, Abakaliki to mark the anniversary, he said the country was at the threshold of another transition which is coming the midst

of diverse social, economic and security challenges. “It is in consideration of these realities and in appreciation of the need to continually water the tree of our unity that I frequently hammer on the imperative of tolerance and accommodation for our growth and development,” he added. Nasarawa State Governor, Alhaji Tanko AlMakura, also spoke in a similar vein as Elechi. He urged Nigerians to imbibe the virtues of mutual love, respect, selfdiscipline, hard work and patriotism so that Nigeria can develop. According to him, as citizens of this great country, “we have the right to demand for purposeful leadership that is anchored on the sacred principles of honesty, transparency, accountability and above all, the fear of God.”

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4

the North-East, saying it is necessary to bridge the gap in the yearly budgetary allocation to the defence sector. “It is the right and reasonable thing to do in the present circumstances. Everybody seems to acknowledge that our troops are not adequately kitted to fight the raging insurgency and you know that a desperate problem requires a desperate solution. This is why I do not know the rationale behind some legislators in the National Assembly who have been kicking against this loan. Do they want the insurgents to continue to torment the North-East? Unless they have links with the insurgents, I do not see the sense in any lawmaker from whatever party kicking against the loan to fight insurgency,” the source said.

Another security professional said even the Nigeria Police Force required urgent attention because the spate of insecurity would not have escalated to its present level if the police was well equipped to carry out their statutory responsibilities. According to the security official, the controversial $9.3 million arms deal in South Africa was only a demonstration of the desperation of the security force to acquire arms to combat the insecurity in the country. He dismissed the critics who have termed the botched arms deal as a failed attempt by some persons in government to launder the funds in South Africa. “I am a security personnel and I know that what happened in South Africa was not money laundering. It was a case of a country at war and in

Nigeria holds talks with BA for technical partnership CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4

Lagos-based Arik Air Ltd., a closely held company, is now Nigeria’s largest carrier with 26 aircraft, according to its website. Competitors include Aero Contractors Ltd., Dana Air, Med-View Airline Ltd. and Overland

Airways Ltd. Nigeria, Africa’s biggest economy, signed a $500 million loan agreement last year with the ExportImport Bank of China to fund new terminals in four cities, Abuja, Lagos, Port Harcourt and Kano. The contract was won by

China Civil Engineering Construction Corp. Chidoka, at another occasion yesterday stated that the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan has built local and international investors’ confidence in the aviation sector.

The minister, who just returned from the United States where he went to collect certificate for Category One country in air safety, stated this in his independence message. According to a statement from the ministry’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr.

James Odaudu the minister assured Nigerians and the international community of a continuously improving security and safety of air travellers as the nation celebrates the 54th anniversary of its existence as a sovereign independent state.

dire need of arms and ammunition to checkmate the situation at home.” In his letter of request to the National Assembly, Jonathan had explained that the $1 billion will also be used to procure weapons as well as train the military and other security officers. He said that given the ongoing and serious security threats posed by the Boko Haram terrorist group, the country needed to act fast to decisively crush the insurgency. The Senate had on Thursday approved the request amidst protests from some opposition lawmakers who said the loan might not be directed to equipping the troops but might end up as slush funds for PDP to prosecute the 2015 polls. Chairman of the Senate Joint Committees on Finance, and Local and Foreign Debts and Chairman of the Committee on Finance, Senator Ahmad Makarfi (PDP-Kaduna), has however explained that the loan facility was not going to be in cash but would entail the supply of military hardware to be paid for over seven years. According to him, the loan would enable Nigeria to acquire helicopters, ships and other military hardware to boost the fight against insurgency.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

News

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Eni’s oil deal: $533m paid to Nigerian officials as bribe Adeola Yusuf

talian prosecutors investigating statebacked firm, Eni SpA, over the purchase of a Nigerian oil field three years ago yesterday alleged that at least half of the $1.1 billion paid was used to bribe local politicians, intermediaries and others. Reuters, which quoted official documents and a person close to the investigation, maintained that

Italian prosecutors said in a letter to the United Kingdom Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) that at least $533 million was paid to Nigerian officials and intermediaries who helped secure the sale. The Milan prosecutors have placed the Italian oil company, its former chief executive Paolo Scaroni and current CEO Claudio Descalzi under investigation for alleged international corruption surrounding the deal for the

OPL 245 offshore oil field concession. Neither Eni nor its managers have been charged, but they have denied any wrongdoing. The prosecutors, however, called on their UK counterpart to assist in freezing suspect assets. Eni and Royal Dutch Shell, which is not under investigation, bought the rights to the OPL 245 offshore oil license block from the Nigerian government in 2011.

Production from the deepwater oil field is expected to begin in 2016 with the field estimated to hold up to 9.23 billion barrels of crude, equivalent to nearly a quarter of the country’s total proven reserves, according to industry figures. As part of their investigation, the Italian prosecutors had in May asked the UK’s CPS to freeze $85 million in assets related to a Nigerian company, Malabu Oil and Gas, that

prosecutors said was involved in the sale. In the letter, the Italian prosecutors alleged that Scaroni and Descalzi oversaw the payments to parties who helped secure the sale. In a second letter, they alleged that some of the ultimate recipients of alleged bribes used the money to buy aircraft and armoured cars. “We are investigating many money transfers to many people in various countries who received sums that vary from millions of dollars to thousands of dollars,” the prosecutors said in the follow-up letter, seen by Reuters. In response to the requests, London’s Southwark Crown Court last month granted an order to seize the $85 million in assets related to Malabu, according to a judicial source.

London’s Metropolitan Police has also been investigating aspects of the Nigerian deal since last year. A police spokesman said the inquiry into allegations of money laundering is continuing. Descalzi and Scaroni, in statements and through their lawyers, denied that they were involved in any illegal behaviour. Descalzi also told Eni employees that he had not engaged in any wrongdoing. The OPL 245 block license has long the military regime of Gen. Sani Abacha to Malabu for a publicly-stated $20 million. Shell, which is not under investigation in any case, released a statement saying: “Shell companies have acted at all times in accordance with both Nigerian law and the terms of the OPL 245 resolution agreement with.”

Military operations to retake Gwoza, Michika, others begin Emmanuel Onani

T Akwa Ibom Governor, Chief Godswill Akpabio (left), inspecting a parade, during the 54th Independence Day celebration in Uyo …yesterday

Agbakoba, Fani-Kayode, Ozekhome, Sani, join New Telegraph CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

maintain weekly columns on diverse political, economic, social issues of national and international significance. Agbakoba, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), was President of the Nigerian Bar Association from 2006 to 2008, and one of the notable pioneers of human rights activism in Nigeria. He was one of the visionary founders of Nigeria’s foremost human rights organisation, the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO); founder of United Action for Democracy and the Zambian panAfrican human rights organisation AfroNet. He was also a defence counsel for the civil rights activist, Ken Saro-Wiwa, who was executed by the Sani Abacha junta. Agbakoba was arrested several times because of his prodemocracy activities. In 1990, he was honoured with Roger Baldwin Medal for Civil Liberties. Also in 1993, he was honoured with the Human Rights Award of the German Association of Judges

and in 1996 he was given the Aachen Peace Award. He holds the national honour of the Officer of the Order of Niger (OON). He was a respected voice in the National Conference recently held in Abuja. On his part, Fani-Kayode is a former member of the cabinet under former President Olusegun Obasanjo. He was first appointed as Minister of Culture and Tourism in the Obasanjo administration before he was redeployed as Minister of Aviation. A politician, essayist, poet and lawyer, FaniKayode was a Special Assistant on Public Affairs to Obasanjo from July 2003 until June 2006, when he became a minister. Fani-Kayode, member of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), had a stint with the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) until June 2014 when he returned to the ruling party. Ozekhome, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and human rights activist, passed through the chambers of the human rights

activist lawyer and social crusader, the late Chief Gani Fawehinmi, where he rose to the post of Deputy Head of Chambers. He held the position until 1985 when he left to found his own law firm, Mike Ozekhome Chambers, in 1986 Ozekhome was a victim of kidnappers on the Benin-Auchi motorway on August 23, 2013 who held him on ransom. Four policemen, responding in an effort to thwart the kidnapping, were killed in the incident. The kidnapping garnered considerable media attention. He was held along with approximately a dozen others in what he described as a well-organised camp, before his release after several weeks when ransom was negotiated with the kidnappers. He returned home on September 12, 2013, and was a member of the recently concluded National Conference. Sani is a foremost human rights activist, playwright and a prolific author. He is President, Civil Rights Congress, and was

a leading figure in the struggle for the restoration of democracy in Nigeria. He was arrested and jailed by past successive military regimes in Nigeria and was released from life imprisonment when democracy was restored in Nigeria in 1999. He is the Chairman of Hand in Hand Africa; member of African Union Peer Review Mechanism and member, United Nations Reform Committee. Sani was appointed by the Federal Government as a member of the Presidential Committee on Prison Reforms, Presidential Committee on the Control of Violent Crimes and Illegal Weapons, Presidential Committee on Petroleum Products Prices and Presidential Committee on Conflict Resolution. He was also member, Niger State Judicial Commission of Inquiry; member, National Political Reform Conference; member, Charles Taylor Investigation Committee and a board member of Nigerian Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI).

he Nigerian military has begun final push to retake some towns in the North-East that have been under the control of the Boko Haram terrorists of late. At the height of the ongoing terror campaign in the region, Boko Haram insurgents had overran Gwoza Local Government in Borno State, Michika and Madagali councils in Adamawa State as well as some villages in the fringes of Nigeria’s border with Cameroon, wherein flags were hoisted in some instances. However, New Telegraph gathered that simultaneous discreet military operations aimed at reasserting authorities over the seized areas, have begun. A senior military source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the details of the operations, are to be shielded from the public, until results emerge. He noted that the military high command, which expressed satisfaction with the troops’ assertion of might over insurgents in Konduga, a town about 35 kilometres away from Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, has reorganised operations, in a bid to retake all seized territories, especially Gwoza, whose Emir, Alhaji Muhammed Idrissa Timta, has remained in forced exile. To firm up the renewed onslaught, the highlyplaced source hinted that

more helicopter gunships and fighter jets will be involved. He explained that intensive aerial bombardment, especially in Gwoza, will be needed. According to him, it has taken this long to displace the fighters from Gwoza, which has since been declared an “Islamic Caliphate” by the late impostorleader, Mohammed Bashir, because of the mountainous nature of the town. His words: “Honestly, for now, we are keeping our operations close to our chest. “But, one thing I can assure you now is that the final push to retake Gwoza, Michika and Madagali, have begun, and in a few days from now, I’m sure the military will have good news for the members of the public, who have shown renewed confidence and belief in us.” Asked what renewed strategies are in place to turn the tide against the fighters, he noted: “Our operations are getting better by the day, and this is because of new equipment we are receiving. “I think more attack helicopter gunships and fighter jets will be deployed, and this will be complemented by gallant troops, who will be expected to do a mop-up operation.” When New Telegraph contacted the Director of Defence Information (DDI), Maj. Gen. Chris Olukolade, to corroborate the report, he simply said: “I have no comment on that.”

News

NEW TELEGRAPH Thursday, OCTOBER 2, 2014

Kick out PDP next year, Buhari urges Nigerians Adesina Wahab Ado-Ekiti

ormer Head of State, and presidential aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, has urged Nigerians to use the opportunity of the 2015 general elections to kick out the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from governing the country. According to him, the tyranny of the PDP in the country must be stopped for the country to move forward. He stated this in AdoEkiti while commissioning the Ekiti Parapo Square built by Governor Kayode Fayemi to mark the 18th anniversary of the creation of Ekiti State. Buhari lamented that Nigerians had been traumatized by PDP’s leadership of the country, saying it was time for Nigerians to take their destinies in their hands and rescue themselves from bad governance and oppression.

“There is no doubt that Nigerians have been traumatised under the PDP leadership and Nigeria will be in trouble if we carry on the way the PDP has been doing in Nigeria. “That is why it is important for we, elite, to talk to the less-privileged to collect their permanent voter cards in preparation for the 2015 elections. This is the only missile against the PDP tyranny. “We must take this seriously because the APC is seriously determined to offer a better alternative platform for Nigerians.

So, we have to be prepared for next year’s elections,” Buhari posited. He described the elections as a watershed in the history of Nigeria. Buhari, who, was the Special Guest of Honour at the event, challenged the elite across the country to use their networks to educate the masses on the need to exercise their civic responsibility by trooping out to vote for the right candidates during the elections. He praised Fayemi for his outstanding success in the last four years, express-

ing joy to be part of the governor’s success stories. “I am indeed very happy to be part of this success story. Fayemi has been able to prove that what is expected of any leader is selfless service. And I want to believe that all these legacy projects will remain in his name forever even after leaving office”, he said. On the outcome of the June 21 governorship election in the state, he said, “We were traumatised by what happened here on June 21 but happy with the outcome in Osun State.”

In his speech, Fayemi said some gains had been made in the last 18 years that Ekiti State was created, but that more still needed to be done. “We are however not there yet. I therefore charge the good people of Ekiti State, to push the bounds of possibilities for our future, by uniting more than ever before to protect our heritage of honour as well as the modest developmental gains we have made in recent years. “We must celebrate today by joining our hearts and minds in one accord,

and decide to outgrow the teething challenges of statehood such as the arbitrariness we have witnessed in recent times,” he noted. On the state of the nation, the governor said strenuous efforts must be made by all to rescue it. “Our great country is at crossroads now. We have reached a point whereby something has to give. Either we collectively decide to rescue Nigeria from the precipice, or we all live with the consequences of the riotous tendencies of a few.”

Lagos 2015: Ashafa drops governorship ambition Muritala Ayinla

ne of the leading aspirants of the Lagos governorship race, Senator Gbenga Ashafa yesterday cleared the air over the controversies trailing his gubernatorial ambition, saying he would return to the Senate for a second term in the 2015 general elections. Although, Ashafa had not publicly declared his intention to run for the governorship race in 2015, political pundits are of the view that the lawmaker would emerge Fashola’s successor, given his close relationship with the national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and the decision of the party to zone the next governor to the Lagos East Senatorial District. Ashafa, who represents the Lagos East Senatorial District at the National Assembly, said his declaration to vie for the Senatorial ticket for a second term under the All Progressives Congress was to correct the impression, which had been the subject of debates and analysis bordering on the forthcoming gubernatorial elections in Lagos State.

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola SAN, acknowledging cheers, in company of the parade commander, Akpanke B. Akpanke (SP), during the National Day Parade to commemorate Nigeria’s 54th Independence anniversary at the Police College, Ikeja, Lagos …yesterday

Enugu East PDP adopts Ugwuanyi Uwakwe Abugu Enugu

he caucus of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Enugu East senatorial has also unanimously endorsed Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, a member House of Representatives , as the consensus governorship candidate of the party for the 2015 general elections. This follows a similar act by the party’s Enugu North senatorial zone last Friday. Contrary to what transpired on Friday when about four governorship aspirants, including Senator Ayogu Eze objected to the decision of the overwhelming majority of the North caucus of the PDP, the Enugu East caucus of the party unanimously endorsed Ugwuanyi, praising him as an exemplary lawmaker dear to their heart. The Enugu State PDP

had zoned the governorship position of the party, come 2015 to the North senatorial zone, which has not had a shot at it since 1992, after the regime of former Governor, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo. With the development yesterday during a special meeting of the caucus of the Enugu East zone of PDP, the PDP consensus governorship candidate has one more hurdle within the senatorial zonal caucuses of the party, when he would be presented to the West senatorial zone, home base of Governor Sullivan Chime and Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu. A source at the meeting, which started about 4pm yesterday in Enugu, told New Telegraph that Chime, who was in company of the state chairman of the party, Chief Vita Abba, who had on Friday, along with nine other aspirants stepped down for Ugwuanyi.

...Thugs rented to protest against Eze, says campaign group Chukwu David Abuja

he Sen. Ayogu Eze Governorship Campaign Organisation has alleged a desperate attempt to hire thugs to demonstrate against the legislator’s insistence on open primaries by some elements in Enugu State. The organisation in a statement it circulated to journalists in Abuja yesterday, also claimed

that the forces against Eze were bent on intimidating and stopping him from presenting himself for the PDP primaries in the state on November 29, 2014. Insisting that nobody could cow its candidate from presenting himself to the members of the party, the organisation said that these hirelings had been paid some money to demonstrate against Eze’s rejection of the purported endorsement of a

consensus candidate. The statement, which was signed by the organisation’s Legal Adviser, Barrister Kingsley Onyeke, alleged that local council chairmen in Enugu North Senatorial District, which its candidate currently represents in the Senate, were under instruction to mobilise three bus loads of these rented demonstrators to gather at Nsukka to insist on installing an anointed candidate.

Pilgrims depart Medinah for Mecca

illions of pilgrims yesterday departed Medinah for Mecca, Saudi Arabia, to perform the main Hajj rites in accordance with Islamic injunctions. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the faithful moved to Mecca to observe the Arafat Day, slated for

Friday. They will also move from Muna on Friday to mount Arafat where they would stay from sunrise to sunset, as ordained by Allah. From there, all the pilgrims will move to Musdalifa, where they are expected to spend the night up to sunrise.

NAN further reports that the faithful are also expected to return to Muna for the stoning of Jamratul-Aqaba (Stoning of the Devil) on the 10th day of Zhulhija (the Sallah Day). They would thereafter return to Mecca in continuation with Hajj rites.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Metro

APC anointed me for House of Reps, says vandal LAWBREAKER A man, who claims he has been anointed by his party to represent his people in the House of Representatives, is now in police custody for trying to steal fuel Juliana Francis

59-year-old suspected vandal, Wahab Junaid, has told the police in Lagos that he embarked on the illegal act to raise money to fund his electioneering. Junaid, who claimed to be a staunch member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), said that he decided to embark on pipeline vandalism because he was nominated to represent Ibeju-Lekki in the House of Representatives. The suspect, a veterinary doctor, said he had to seek a

Junaid and the equipment for vandalism

means of making fast money when he was nominated by his party to contest in the 2015 general elections. Junaid said that he stopped being a veterinary doctor because people were not patronising him. He said: “I am an active member of APC and the slot

42-year-old neighbour defiles 10-year-old girl Camillus Nnaji

42-year-old man, identified simply as Egi, is being detained at Mowe Divisional Police Station in Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun for allegedly defiling a 10-year-old JSS 3 girl, Ayomide (surname withheld). Ayomide, who lives with her parents at Pakuro community, Mowe, told our correspondent that she was cleaning her father’s house when the paedophile rushed in, pushed her on the bed and raped her. She said: “Last Friday, between 10 and 11am, I was alone in our house cleaning the rooms when the man came in and pushed me on the bed. He used his hands to close my mouth and raped me.” According to Ayomide, the man resides close to their

house. But the girl said she did not have anything to do with him before the incident. Ayomide’s father, who said he did not want to speak on the issue apparently because of the girl’s future, told our correspondent that he had asked the police to release Egi. “Maybe he is still in detention because of his inability to pay for his bail,” he said. The girl’s father added that the case was attempted rape because doctors at the Oni Hospital, Mowe, where they took his daughter to, said there was no actual penetration. A police source at the police station confirmed the arrest and detention of Egi on charges of rape. According to the source, the police have agreed to release the suspect on bail since the girl’s father had withdrawn the case.

for the House of Representatives was zoned to my area, Ibeju-Lekki constituency. I’m one of those who have best opportunities to contest and win the election. I was told to go and look for money to sponsor my campaigns. “I called my friend, Oloje, a vandal, who informed me

that the area is calm that I can come and lift fuel. I was waiting with the tanks to lift the product when policemen arrested me. I guess it is the handwork of my enemies who are bitter that I was anointed to fly the APC flag for IbejuLekki constituency at the House of Representatives in

Suspected kidnapper held in Enugu Uwakwe Abugu Enugu

olice in Enugu State have arrested a suspected armed robber and kidnapper, Chukwudebelu Onyebuchi, whose gang had been terrorising parts of Enugu and Anambra states The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Ebere Amaraizu, who described Onyebuchi as notorious armed robbery and kidnap kingpin, said he was apprehended by men of the Anti-Robbery Squad. He said: “He has involved himself in a series of kidnapping and armed robbery activities within Anambra and Enugu axis but resides in Owerri in Imo State. “Our men trailed and arrested him in Owerri recently after a gun battle which left him injured.” The police, according to

Onyebuchi

him, recovered an AK47 rifle with bullets stocked under the back seat of a Toyota Corrolla car with registration number US 45 KJA and a telephone handset from the suspect. “The suspect is now helping the police in their investigations as he has revealed how his gang had terrorised their victims both here in Nigeria and other parts of the world. “He revealed that he used to live in Johannesburg, South Africa before he joined the

2012 flood: 70% of Ogbaru people still homeless Okegwo Kenechukwu ABIODUN BELLO FEATURES Editor

abiodun.bello@newtelegraphonline.com

Onitsha

s Nigerians are still celebrating the country’s 54th Independence anniversary, some people have expressed disenchantment with the Fed-

2015. “As I speak to you, no one knows that I have been arrested. Please forgive me and give me another chance to represent my people in the House of Representatives.’’ Junaid was arrested by officials of the Inspector-General of Police Task Force, AntiPipeline Vandalism Squad. The police said Junaid had once been arrested for the same offence a few years back. He was arrested at Ogere, Ogun State. The suspect was alleged to have been arrested and arraigned three times but discharged and acquitted. He was alleged to have moved several trucks of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) pipelines within Lagos and Ogun states. The officer in-charge of the Task Force, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, Mr Friday Ibadin, explained that on September 15, detectives trailed Junaid based on a tip-off.

eral Government over alleged neglect. The Chairman of Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State, Hon Victor Ugolu, said the people of the area were not part of this year’s Independence anniversary celebration.

The chairman, who spoke with our correspondent in Atani, the local government headquarters, said over 70 per cent of the Ogbaru people were still homeless and living in refugee camps since the flood disaster which ravaged the country

gang,” the PPRO added. And in another development, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has seized goods worth over N3 million at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu. The Deputy Director incharge of the airport, John Okwori, warned fakers of products who have shifted to the Enugu Airport as a supposed safe haven to have a rethink. in 2012. Ugolu said that apart from the food items donated by the Federal Government, the victims had been living from hand to mouth as there was nothing to fall back on after the flood disaster. He said: “You know our people are all farmers and all their farm crops were washed away.”

Metro 11

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

‘We hid N119m drugs in perfumes for N1m reward’ Juliana Francis

uspected drug traffickers, Daniel Marvin and Akubuo Favour Victor, said they hid cocaine valued at over N119 million inside perfumes and capacitors because the drug barons promised them N500,000 reward each. Marvin, 29, told officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) that he was introduced to drug trafficking by his childhood friend. He said: “I was searching for business breakthrough when my friend told me that I could earn half a million naira by just going to Brazil. He told me they would buy my return ticket and all I needed to do was to bring in cocaine. “He assured me that the drugs would not be detected because of the way it was packed. But it was detected by NDLEA officers during search at the Abuja Airport.” Like Marvin, Victor, 26, said that he too smuggled drugs because of the money involved. He said: “I needed some money to invest in my ailing

business. That was how my friend convinced me to smuggle drugs for the sum of half a million naira. The drug was hidden inside new perfume containers and I never knew it would be uncovered by the NDLEA officers.” The suspects were apprehended at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, for allegedly concealing 13.33kg of substances found to be cocaine inside capacitors and perfumes. The NDLEA said the estimated street value of the drug imported from Brazil was N119 million. The NDLEA Commander at the airport, Mr Hamisu Lawan, said Marvin with Nigerian Passport number A05545613 was arrested during the inward screening of passengers on an Emirate Airline flight from Dubai. He said: “Marvin was found in possession of 7.580kg of cocaine hidden inside capacitors. The second suspect, Victor, was found in possession of 5.750kg of cocaine hidden inside perfumes. “Both suspects were coming from Brazil when they were arrested.”

Victor (left) and Marvin with the drugs

Provost, others face probe over alleged stealing Charles Onyekwere ABAKALIKI

nother round of scandal has hit the Federal College of Agriculture, Ishiagu, Ebonyi State, as the police are now investigating the Acting Provost, Dr Felix Anuebunwa, and three others for stealing one Mercedes Benz truck. The police investigation followed a petition written by Agama Agama of B. N. Ugwu and Company, counsel to Mr Phillip Orji, the supplier of the said vehicle with chassis number 341439 to the college. The acting provost has, however, denied any wrong doing in the transaction, saying that Orji wanted to dupe the institution of several millions of naira through his dubious business proposal. In the petition, Orji’s counsel complained to

the police that his client supplied the truck to one Theophilus Ndubuaku in January at N6.5 million. He said that instead of paying him, Ndubuaku, in connivance with Ikeije and one Ogbomo Nosa, paid the money into the account of Global Growth Construction Company Limited for which Nosa fronted as a director. The petitioner alleged that after a search was conducted by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), it became evident that Ogbomo Nosa T. was not a director of the three-man company as at the time and that the company had never changed its members since incorporation. Alleging that the said Global Growth Construction Company Limited was a conduit through which the money for the vehicle was diverted, the petitioner disclosed that

information available to him from the Accounts Department of the College showed that the acting provost and others paid N7.5 million to Global Growth Construction Company Limited instead of N6.5 million in September 2013, two months before Orji imported the vehicle into Nigeria. While expressing dismay that three weeks after letter of invitation was served on the acting provost and his accomplices by the Zone 6 Police Command, the four men have remained elusive, the petitioner urged the police to do all within their powers to ensure that the suspects were arrested to explain how a vehicle imported in November 2013 as evidenced by the custom paper was sold in September 2013 by a company that neither imported or bought the vehicle.

Why we protested against Wike, by community Tai Anyanwu

he paramount ruler of Ekporo community in Eleme Local Government Area of River State, Chief Samuel Obe and the spiritual father of the community, Bishop Moses Kattey, have explained why they led a protest against the Minister of State for Education, Nyesom Wike. “We are protesting to let the state and Federal Governments know what the people of Ekporo are going through. To acquaint the government about the inhuman and ungodly treatment which Wike has done to the people. “He drove the people of Ekporo community out of their land and placed another community there because of his gubernatorial ambition,” Kattey told our correspondent. The bishop explained that this happened over a year ago.

Two suspects die during shoot-out with police Cajetan Mmuta BENIN

wo robbery suspects have been killed during encounters with the police in Benin, Edo State. One of the suspects was shot dead on Uromi-Agbor Road when they tried to rob a Delta Line bus. One of the hoodlums had opened fire on sighting the

police patrol vehicle but they were overwhelmed by the superior fire power of the police who raced to the scene following a distress call. Another robbery suspect was shot dead on Tuesday night on Okhoro Road, after 10 of them had shot sporadically into the air when they stormed a street around and robbed the residents from house-to-house. The police later came to the rescue of the distressed

residents. The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Noble Uwoh, said the robbers accosted the commercial bus on the Uromi-Agbor Road and during the exchange of fire; one of the robbers was shot dead. He said: “One pump action rifle with NO.TS 810-131627 and seven live cartridges were recovered from him while other members of the gang fled into the nearby bush with bullet wounds.

Some of the protesters

According to him, the minister forcibly chased the people from their native homes, destroyed houses, valuable and threw the people out in the open without any roof over their heads. Some of the people lost their lives owing to the unexpected dislocation from their homes and means of livelihood, Bassey said. He said: “We sent petitions to the former Inspector General of Police, Abubakar Mohammed and President Goodluck Jonathan over this issue, but our letters were not acknowledged. I then invited the people of Eleme to prayers, to avert any inter-communal war; everyone, including the traditional rulers, attended.” On his part, Obe said the Ogu people chased his subjects away over a year ago. He said: “My people are suffering. We are scattered everywhere and our properties have been looted.”

News

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

30 dons, others petition government over ecology Tony Okafor Awka

o fewer than 30 professors and 20 doctors mostly of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Anambra State, have petitioned the state government over ecological degradation at their quarters at the Esther Obiakor Estate. The estate is currently submerged by flood occasioned by silted drainage and bad roads in the estate. Briefing the newsmen, Prof. Gabriel Unachukwu, flanked by an array of professors and other residents of the area, regretted that many months after their petition, the state government had remained insensitive to their plight.

They said since the estate was built by the government of the first executive governor of the state, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife in 1991, residents had been providing for themselves all the essential facilities such electricity and water in the estate. The professors wondered why government should neglect an area made up of a cluster of heavy tax payers as professors and other top public servants and the business class. They said: “We are only happy here during the dry season. Each rainy season, we lose human and material resources. Today we struggle to go to church, because the road linking this estate and the Aquinas Church, where most of us worship, had been cut off by flood.

Osun tribunal: PDP alleges plan by APC to impersonate Adeolu Adeyemo Osogbo

sun State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday said it has uncovered plans by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state to impersonate PDP members in a bid to fabricate evidences that would be presented before the Election Petition Tribunal hearing matters arising from the last governorship poll in the state. PDP Director of Publicity, Prince Diran Odeyemi, who raised the alarm in a statement in Osogbo, also said it has uncovered APC plans to stage-manage attack on PDP members ‘using men, who disguised as members of the party, in a bid to fabricate evidence against it at the tribunal.’ “There was a political

drama in Oke-Ila in what we have discovered to be desperate means by the APC to fabricate evidences that it would present before the tribunal. Our members, who witnessed the scene, told us that five APC thugs, who put on PDP vests and were carrying sticks and guns, suddenly appeared and pushed an elderly man and a member of the party, Hon. Fakayode, who had been pre-informed, inside a waiting vehicle, while the men cried for help. “A woman, called Iya Nuru and another man called Williams, stationed near the scene by those behind the whole show, started shouting, calling people around for help. When all these were going on, a camera man they brought was seen recording the scenes with a video camera.”

Chibok girls’ campaigners task FG on seized $9.3m Lateef Ibrahim Abuja

he ‘Bring Back Our Girls’ (BBOG) campaigners yesterday dismissed claims that it has concluded plans to institute legal actions against the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Orishejafor, over the seizure of $9.3 million public resources allegedly exported to South Africa for activities related to procurement of arms. The BBOG has, however, demanded that the Federal Government should investigate and publish details of its findings on the extremely

embarrassing seizure of $9.3 million public resources. The group, in a statement yesterday by its media spokesperson, Mr. Rotimi Olawale, said the Federal Government owes the Nigerian public accountability for the very disconcerting occurrence in the light of the seriousness of financing our counter-insurgency war. According to the group; “Recently, our attention was drawn to news reports purporting that our movement will be proceeding to court for an action against the President of CAN. We wish to state unequivocally that we do not have any such plan.

Ndigbo may reconsider support for Jonathan Felix Nwaneri

here are indications that the people of the South-East may reconsider their endorsement of the second term bid of President Goodluck Jonathan over alleged non-fulfillment of several promises of his administration to the zone. A source within the Igbo apex socio-cultural body, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, who revealed this in a chat with New Telegraph in Lagos, said a plot is going on at the moment among some Igbo political leaders on the next move should the president fail to address the issue before the 2015 elections. The source who pleaded anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the issue, however told the newspaper that a peace parley between the Presidency and some Igbo political leaders is billed

for Lagos next week. The president, he said would be represented at the meeting by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator Anyim Pius Anyim. Ohanaeze was expected to formally adopt President Jonathan as the South-East sole presidential candidate for the 2015 elections during last Monday’s Igbo Day celebration in Awka, Anambra State, but the issue was technically avoided by the leadership of the group. In his speech on the occasion, the President General of Ohanaeze, Chief Gary Igariwey said the final decision on the matter would be made available shortly after due consultations. “We will continue to build bridges with other ethnic nationalities towards this cause. After consultations, our people will be called upon to speak with one voice on the issue. We did it before and we can do it again,” he said.

But the source who said Ndigbo are not happy with the way they are being treated by the Jonathan administration, especially in the area of projects execution, said: “Jonathan’s presidency was made possible by Ndigbo in 2011, but we are likely to reconsider our position on his re-election bid because he is yet to fulfill his campaign promises to us, which include the construction of the Second Niger Bridge; construction of the Onitsha-Enugu Expressway and Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway.” He added: “As we speak, nothing shows that Second Niger Bridge is going to done, it is all about politics. We supported the President in 2011 to prove to Northern political leaders that their campaign that Ndigbo always want to dominate their SouthSouth brothers is nothing but a divisive tendency. If we have done all these for him, the question then is; what is our own? Apart

from the bridge and road projects, we want Jonathan to declare his stand on the agitation by our people to produce his successor, because ours’ is the only geopolitical zone that is yet to produce a president.” He further said: “I will confirm to you that an underground meeting is going on at the moment among Igbo political leaders. Those behind the plot are even following the president around. They are not happy with what is going on and are likely to dump his campaign train any time from now.” He wondered why Ndigbo will just rush to endorse the president for a second term without any form of negotiation, citing the case of Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido, who he claimed dropped his presidential ambition after reaching a deal with Jonathan on reimbursement of funds expended by his government on some federal projects in the state.

L-R: Cross River State Governor, Liyel Imoke; his wife, Obioma; Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Mr. Larry Odey and his wife, Eneyi, at the celebration of Nigeria’s 54th anniversary in Calabar...yesterday

First Ebola case identified in United States

he United States yesterday recorded its first case of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in the country as health officials from the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed the diagnosis of the disease. The patient, a man who became infected while in Liberia, later flew to Texas, where he is now being treated in hospital, a CDC spokesman said. “He is not a healthcare worker,” the spokesman added. The discovery came even as some United States health officials said on Tuesday that the outbreak of the disease in Nigeria is almost over.

The Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital, Dallas, said earlier that it had placed a person in strict isolation based on their ‘symptoms and recent travel history.’ CDC Director, Doctor Thomas Frieden, told a press conference that US hospitals are well prepared to handle patients with Ebola, adding the virus should not pose the same threat in the United States as it does in Africa. “I have no doubt that we will control the importation of this case of Ebola, so that it does not spread widely in this country,” he said. Frieden said he did not believe there is a threat

to passengers on the same flight to the US as the patient, who did not display any symptoms when he left Liberia, or upon entering the US. He arrived in Texas on September 20, on a family visit. The man sought treatment six days later and has been in hospital since the weekend. The CDC director also said that the patient has potentially exposed a ‘handful’ of family members and others to the virus. They are being closely monitored for symptoms, which include fever, vomiting, diaorrhoea and bleeding. Twelve other people in the US have been tested

for Ebola since July, with all the results negative. Meanwhile, the CDC has credited Nigerian authorities with taking quick actions to isolate patients and set up an incident management centre for a coordinated response. “Although Nigeria isn’t completely out of the woods, their extensive response to a single case of Ebola shows that control is possible with rapid, focused interventions,” said CDC Director, Tom Frieden. The Nigerian government has previously said the last confirmed case was discovered September 8, suggesting the end would come later in October than foreseen by the CDC.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

Ladigbolu: There’s hope for Nigeria

Sani: We need leaders who can rewire Nigeria

Agbakoba: Nigeria lacks operating system

My fears for Nigeria, by Tinubu

Politics Chief Garry EnwoIgariwey is the President-General of Ohanaeze. To him, Nigeria has lost the steam after 54 years of independence. He blames the country’s challenges on the early intervention of military in governance. He speaks with AYODELE OJO. Excerpts:

Igariwey: Nigeria must return to the golden era

How is Nigeria at 54? Nigeria has done well to have survived and still standing at 54. It’s very commendable. Can you share your experience at independent in 1960? In 1960, Nigerians were full of hope, expecting that with the coming of independence, we would have been free to develop at our own pace and to realise our dream of being a nation of our own. But over time, that dream has been shattered. You are aware of the civil war, which took up to three years, and which almost tore the country apart. And you are also aware of the various factions from the religious groups and how they went a long way to do things that shattered most of those hopes. Over time, Nigeria has not been able to realise the dreams and hopes. Specifically, what were some of those hopes and dreams at independence? As a country, we had expected to run our country by ourselves to achieve the hope of building a strong and united nation where people would have employment.

AYODELE OJO

DEPUTY EDITOR, PoLITICS ayodele.ojo@newtelegraphonline.com

Igariwey

This is because most of the good jobs then were occupied by the foreigners and expatriates. We had hoped that we would build this country to provide employment and develop in the areas of our interest like agriculture which was already coming up. But till this moment, those hopes have not been fully realised. There is massive unemployment now and our infrastructural development which we thought would have been ongoing have been like that. What are the factors responsible for this underdevelopment or why do you think these hopes have not been realised? I think that military intervention too early in our development dislocated a lot of things because the military are not trained for democratic settings and they took over leadership for a very long time. That period witnessed a lot of dislo-

cation and I think that affected the rapid economic growth the country would have witnessed. For instance, you will agree with me that it was during the military era that there was discontinuation in agriculture which by now would have been a major source of employment for youths and a whole lot of other people. So, I strongly feel that the military intervention contributed in dislocating most of those hopes. But the civilians have also been part of the military government and they have been in power since 1999 consecutively? You can see there is a gradual growth now. People are becoming used to dialogue and engaging the government on some national issues. When you engage the government, they will be on their toes. It is not easy to recover from such dislocation; it’s a gradual build up. We are

only hoping that as we go on, democratic settings will become stronger and from there they will be good, I hope.

If all the finances are well directed and projects are properly executed, Nigeria will grow. We are only hoping that the government will continue to fight corruption

Can you compare Nigerian leadership, at Independence, after and today? Like I said earlier, we were not completely in charge before independence because we were under colonial administration. I will agree that they had disciplined setting with distinct administrative system and at independence; we had come up with high hopes to get our best. We were actually developing a system before this dislocation, remember it was just six years and this was not enough to have done solid administrative system. That dislocation that came early caused a new set of problem, redirected our line of thought and created mistrust among our people. It also created a division and realignment in our people and you know that these factors are not good for development. Some of those factors had not gone away even now. Today, the new administration like I said is a growing democracy and holds some promises. It is like we are starting afresh, but we have not grown over those settings I said had developed from the intervention of the military. Now people have become more tribalistic and we are yet to grow over them. Do you believe that there is much hope and future for Nigeria? That is the only way to think, because to think otherwise is dangerous. Nobody should start looking for the country to collapse. So, I am positive about Nigeria and I am wishing that Nigeria should grow out of its challenges. We have had a national conference where Nigerians have been able to sit together and discuss and took the side that irrespective of all challenges we can still come together and be a one united Nigeria. How about the issue of corruption in those days and today? The issue of corruption has long been coming. We only need an effective system that CONTINUED ON PAGE 16

Politics | Interview

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Ladigbolu: There’s hope for Nigeria Emeritus Archbishop Ayo Ladigbolu, who retired from the Methodist Church, is a community leader in Oyo State. He speaks on the challenges of nationhood in this interview with SOLA ADEYEMO. Excerpts: How would you compare the Nigeria of today with that of independence in 1960? I happen to be above 70 years old at the moment and so I can claim to know Nigeria a little bit better than the younger people. I was around when we got our independence. I have watched with keen interest the affairs and progress of Nigeria. The Nigeria I knew before independence was the Nigeria in which one was proud to be a Nigerian. A Nigeria where you felt secured wherever you were and the Nigeria where you could move about freely without any fear of molestation or terrorism. It was a country that was full of abundance of all the good things of life, where you don’t have problems feeding your family if you are hard working. It was a country where you could make a living in whatever profession you chose. It was the time when citizens were dedicated to their responsibilities; when civil servants were really servants of the people rather than servants of government and servants of themselves. It was a place where you could travel to anywhere both in the day or night and you had nothing to fear. That was the Nigeria I knew growing up. It was a Nigeria that offered equal opportunity to every citizen, and you didn’t have to fear being discriminated against either when you were seeking for a job or a school to attend. That was the Nigeria I grew up to know but unfortunately, that country is no longer the same today. Why? I think part of the problem could be the impact of urbanisation and, of course, greed. In essence, you are saying that the dreams of our forefathers appear to have been eroded? Yes, they seem to have been eroded to the point that we seem now to be a people without principle. Does the independence anniversary deserve celebrating? Well, I will say yes. What has independence meant for average Nigerian? Independence from bondage and poverty and tyranny and oppression, or is it independence from the harmful grip of greed? Is it independent

enough to think freely? Is it independent enough to leave room for others to have their space? We should use our celebration not only to jubilate, but to reflect and find where things have gone wrong with our nation and seek ways for necessary changes. We would have lost the essence of celebration if we just dance and drink alone without reflection and making necessary changes. Nigeria is still very much underdeveloped. Could you identify reasons for this? It is very unfortunate that most of our leaders travel to other countries of the world and they see development. They see human capacity development; they see infrastructural development; they see economic models that can be copied or adapted to our situation, but they only look at those things and admire them. We remain under-developed because leadership has not performed its functions effectively. And we may say that the followership also has some blame because if we don’t challenge our leaders and ask them the right things, then we are to blame. And of course, we are majoring on minors. Basically, in civilized climes, you sit with the people and ask what they need. Indeed, before you assume leadership of any group or society, you should know their needs. Something inside you should make you agonise with the people, to empathise with the people and ask yourself that if I get to this position of leadership, what am I to offer? Do the people know what they want and need? And are the leaders ready to give them what they really need? We are underdeveloped because either the leaders are not focused or the followership is confused, misled and uncertain. Security is threatening the nation’s existence, particularly the Boko Haram insurgency. What is the way out? It is a global trend that we have to deal with. And in most civilized places, people say you don’t negotiate with terrorists, but to me you just have to find a way to stop them. And if negotiation is one way to checkmate their activities, why not do it, at least to save the lives of the peace-loving citizens and to rescue those who have been captured, especially the Chibok girls for now. The whole world is looking at Nigeria and waiting for those girls to be released to their families. So, whatever it takes, I believe the government must be willing to do it. Though one cannot teach the government what to do, but it is our government. It is our country; it is our nation; it is our people. So, whatever it takes to rescue those who may have been captured, and to protect those whose lives are under threat, government should please go

ahead and do it. Then, look at the root causes of Boko Haram; poverty, ignorance are part of it. Unless our government is willing to attack ignorance with education, and attack poverty with even development of the different parts of the country, if we conquer one Boko Haram, we may be breeding ground for another. So, attention should be paid to what the people need. Whether they are in the North East, South East or North West or wherever. What they need should be given. But, is everybody getting basic education? It is always very difficult to convince an educated mind to do something wrong. If people are left uneducated, and they cannot be sure of one meal per day, anybody can buy them with a pot of mesh and they will do anything they are asked to do.

Our concern should be to ask God to give us such men and women of honour whose conscience cannot be bought; who will do the right, and do the right without being goaded and not minding whose horse is gored

Ladigbolu

How do you see the growth of the economy as agriculture has been relegated because of oil? We are now in an era which one may call oil doom. It was oil boom in the past. But then, that is still reversible. God has given us the minerals which we have been exploiting and exploring to our benefit. But we can benefit more if the government will decide that in the next 10 years, it will use the resources from oil to develop other sectors of the economy. They can acquire vast acres of land to plant oil palm trees, cocoa, iroko trees, mahogany trees, tick and all those that can take many years before you begin to get things to harvest from them. This is to develop all kinds of agricultural product, because in the end, food security is the best security all over the world. So, I think government can wisely start adapting, re-assess and transform our economy from dependence on oil to agriculture,

and to other mineral resources that we have in abundance. In this nation, we can use oil money to develop other sectors of the economy to the point that later on, oil will be relegated to the background. After all, oil is a diminishing resource. Oil can even be diversified such that its by-products can also be developed, so that we don’t just remain a mono-economy. Gas and its by-products, bitumen and all such can be developed so that we can have many points of entry instead of just one. In about 10 to 15 years, Nigeria can become the largest economy in Africa or even one of the leading economies in the world if our leaders will listen and heed this kind of warning. Some people are agitating for autonomy and probably secession as solution to the lopsidedness being witnessed in the country. What is your take on this? Secession has never been solution to national cohesion. We should all learn to co-exist peacefully and learn to accommodate one another. That is the only way we can live together and not set the world on fire. And of course, if we set the world on fire, we are the ones who will bear the heat and be consumed by that fire. There is a whole lot of strength in unity. Our level of cohesion is frightening to many. The size of this nation is a wonder to many, and the fact people of such diverse cultures and languages can still co-exist as we are is a miracle of God’s grace. We should work harder to keep it so. The more the merrier, and the more we learn to live with each other, the better for us. We should all stand as a force against any evil force of the world that may want to destroy this entity called Nigeria. There is bright hope for us if we can take to this.

Politics | Interview

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, OCTOBER 2014

Sani: We need leaders who can rewire Nigeria Mr. Anthony Sani, former National Publicity Secretary of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) and spokesman of the Northern Delegates’ Forum (NDF) at the justconcluded National Conference, speaks on 54 years of Nigeria’s nationhood. AYODELE OJO reports

Sani

What were you doing at independence? I was still in primary school at that time. But I can recall Nigerians were happy with the new born baby with promise of glorious days ahead. One could feel the joy. How would you assess the strides of Nigeria at 54? At 54, there are areas the country has tried and there are areas requiring great improvement. Consider the number of universities and secondary schools then and compare with what we have now. Also Nigeria has relocated its state capital from Lagos to Abuja with the attendant benefits, we have 36 states with capitals as centres of activities. Most of all, we are practicing democracy, that comes with freedom. But there are other areas that require great improvement. Corruption is the major problem because it has distorted our societal values that affect our judgement. There have been collapse in national ideals and moral values to the extent that our sense of what is right and wrong as well as our sacred inviolability of the individuals and social contract have been affected adversely. Today, corruption has outsourced employment. It has stolen empowerment, stolen our opportunity and our future leading to security challenges across the country. As a result, mistrust and suspicion have come in among groups and individuals with dire consequences on our sense of community. The upshot is that those who feel cheated and hopeless are taking it out on the society by way of violence, be it insurgence, armed robbery, kidnapping and piracy. But I believe Nigerians should not allow current challenges to overwhelm them because they are temporary and not beyond redemption, given purposeful leadership that can provide order and direction either by lodestar or bell whether. Nigerians should note that order, peace and prosperity are not natural order of things, these things are attained by ceaseless hard work by honest and committed leadership and the best in everyone.

The starting point should be judicious use of democratic rights to ensure votes count so that the emerging leaders would be accountable to the people. Also, such practice would make Nigerians hold themselves accountable for the decisions they make on election days. Rigging and apathy cannot produce leaders that are accountable. Have we made progress as a nation? Yes we have made progress, however slow. Consider the movement of the nation’s capital from Lagos to Abuja. That has created space in Lagos for commerce and there is enough land in Abuja.

I believe Nigerians should not allow current challenges to overwhelm them because they are temporary and not beyond redemption, given purposeful leadership that can provide order and direction

At 54, is there any cause for celebration? We have not met the aspirations of our founding fathers, but we should celebrate our togetherness and freedom that comes with democracy and the little progress made in infrastructure. We should count our blessings and resolve to make Nigeria young again with the promise of glorious days ahead. It would be defeatist to allow our challenges overwhelm us. This is because the situation is not beyond redemption. Nigeria is going through hard times, yes, but difficult times should bring about national grandeur, bring about purposeful leadership and the best in everyone, instead of lamentations and blame games that come from generalisation that is not helpful. Is there much difference in the country’s leadership today with what we had at independence? The difference is clear. Nigeria’s leadership before independence had vision and struggled with patriotic courage and in hope, while leaders after independence do not have similar vision of what the country should be. The founding fathers knew that order, peace and prosperity were not natural order of things but are attained by ceaseless hard work. They also believed in democracy premised on triple foundation of liberty, justice and common decency compared to the current leaders who have more faith in kleptocracy and plutocracy that are not government of the people by the people and for the people.

Are these responsible for Nigeria’s underdevelopment? Failure of leadership has been the bane of the nation’s development. Nigeria needs leaders at all levels who can rewire the politics, reengineer our sense of justice, make hope more strategic for the youth and dare the rest of us to follow. This is because no nation can thrive through victory of its faction but through ultimate reconciliation. How about the security challenges? This country did not have security challenges before and immediately after independence. Armed robbers came after the war. Kidnapping and insurgence are recent. The sad thing is that instead of Nigerians to come together and confront the common enemies, they engage in blame game that comes with generalisation that make it possible for criminals to hide under groups and escape arrest like the Ombatse cult did in Nasarawa State. We must recognise crimes and treat criminals as such. I do not like the way the youth are playing into the gallery by swallowing the bait by insurgent who use religion to confer legitimacy on their mindless killing of innocent people. Those who pander to Boko Haram should note that there is insurgence in Iraq, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Somalia, which are already Islamic countries. So, let Nigerians come together and helped by the leadership to unleash their synergistic potential against our common challenges. We should stick to what we know and not criminalise religions or ethnic extractions. Criminals should not be ascribed to religion or ethnicity. Oil has replaced agriculture which used to be the mainstay of the economy. How do you see the development? Oil wealth is not a result of hard work. Hence Nigeria is a Trust Fund State. Most countries that have oil wealth tend to ignore the development of the real sector, an effect of Gresham’s law which says money of law utility tends to chase away money with high utility. Consider how agriculture just died. Groundnut pyramid collapsed in the North. Malaysia collected seedling from an industrious group of this country and has surpassed the group in production and export of palm oil. You see, as long as there are low hanging fruits, it would be hard to develop without committed leaders. But since the discovery of oil wealth, Nigerians do not work hard again because there are still low hanging fruits which have brought with them corruption that obeys Gresham’s law. Why should people work hard when it is possible for them to steal and get away with it? Do you see Nigeria remaining one united country even with the quest for autonomy by the various components? I have hope that we shall remain united because certain benefits of remaining united are more than uncertain gains of splits. We are not the only ones with agitations for autonomy. We have Catalonia in Spain, Quebec in Canada, Alaska in USA, Xianjang in China. There is no way everybody can be happy in a country. All that is needed is to work hard so that majority would be happy and leave the rest to God. In any case, what would be the lines of dividing a country of more than 250 ethnic extractions? Where would you put the products of interethnic extractions? And if you want to go by religion, how will those who talk of Middle Belt be handled, given there are different faiths in same families. I think the best way is for us to make the most of our God given diversity by working hard to overcome what divides our people.

16 Politics | Interview

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Ezeife: We’re still lagging behind and to restore them and move forward.

Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife is a former governor of Anambra State. In this interview with CHINEDU EKEJA, he shares his experience on Nigeria’s independence.

What was your experience like on October 1, 1960? At independence, we celebrated and enjoyed and thought the sky was the limit. In fact, we were very happy. I remember then that I met an orchestra group and we all went through a town called Osumenyi where I was a teacher, celebrating and dancing all the way. We also heard that the country had a lot of so many good things coming her way following her independence and we believed it. We were so excited and happy. God gave us everything; we have fertile soil and a promising future. That was why when the military came in, Ezeife it took all of us by surprise, because there was a lot of high hopes, but eventually, all those things did not work out as expected. Now we can see a new Nigeria coming, great work of the national conference. We only have to press on the president to do what he can do to make the draft constitution a working constitution. What is your assessment of the country at 54; do you think we have made any progress? We have this ritual every year, but the truth is that we are not there yet even though that should not be a reason for not celebrating. Of course, we are lagging behind. Those who started with us have overtaken

So, is there any reason to celebrate Nigeria at 54? That is what we have been saying, we are mourning. Everything is disastrous, but I believe it is temporal as it won’t last too long especially if the foundation that has been laid is given a concrete strength to stand.

us. That is clear and no one can argue that. But we can still make a new Nigeria as it has been laid down in the just-concluded national conference. So, the future is bright as far as I am concerned. The fact remains that those we started the race with have overtaken us by far, and that is one of the implications of our overreliance on one thing as the single source of national economy. Those who even started after us are miles ahead of us. We are just like toddlers when others are running. Our colleagues have overtaken us by miles. We should thank God that President Goodluck Jonathan has summoned the courage to convoke a national conference where we have been able to take a look at where some things went bad

How about the leadership issue? Oh yes, there is a difference. That time, we were three regions and we were growing with the regions as the foundation of Nigeria, and somehow along the line, there was a civil war and in order to fight the war, they were creating states and kept creating it as well as introducing structures. Though that has gone but the most important thing is that we love ourselves now. After independence, there were hopes. We had a parliamentary system of government and things were working. Nnamdi Azikwe gave up being president so that things could work better. People made sacrifices to make sure that Nigeria is working, but since then things have changed. Our people no longer have that kind of spirit that men of those days had.

We have this ritual every year, but the truth is that we are not there yet even though that should not be a reason for not celebrating

What do you think is responsible for the country’s underdevelopment? The military takeover of government changed the game for Nigeria and made it very difficult indeed, and I believe that was where some of our problems started. What is your message and advice to Nigerians at 54? My message to Nigerians is that things will be better. We have laid a foundation of a country that can work through a national conference. Before the conference, I was telling Nigerians that a new Nigeria was in Calabar, but now, that new Nigerian has been created in this national conference.

Nigeria’s structure has been faulty –Igariwey C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 1 3

can control them. It was a gradual build up. It’s only by strengthening the institution that check accountability that we can overcome them. It’s a major issue and that is why this country has not developed over time. We think that if all the finances are well directed and projects are properly executed, Nigeria will grow. We are only hoping that the government will continue to fight corruption. At independence, the economy was built around agriculture, like palm oil in the South East, cocoa in the West, groundnut in the North, but today those things are gone. And in their place, we have oil as the mainstay of our economy. How do see the development sir? That was the golden age and that was when Nigeria lost it because by now we would have been far gone, remember that Nigeria was a leading producer of palm

oil, but today we are nowhere near Malaysia who even came here to collect palm seedlings. That was when we lost it all, and that was why I said that the military came too early in our development and you see that because of the advent of oil and the easy money mentality, people abandoned the old ways of making money and concentrated on oil and we are paying for it today because if agriculture had been sustained and other areas like mining properly supervised, Nigeria would have been a very prosperous country today. The issue of massive unemployment would not have been there. So, that is the point, but it is not late to go back; the land has not gone yet, there is even more modernised method of agriculture now. The only thing that is missing is the zeal and determination to drive the ideas. Nigeria should go back to agriculture because that is the only way a nation can

have more hands employed and there will be a better income. A nation with only one source of earning is waiting for the accident to happen. Like now that the nations of the world are thinking about alternative to energy source, if that should happen tomorrow, we will be caught napping and as oil is being discovered in other places, the demand is falling on our side and that is a dangerous trend. So, we need to quickly look at that area we had already established successfully. That was when there was competition, the East with palm oil, the West with cocoa, and the North with groundnut, each had a reasonable degree of export to other nations but that has all disappeared. So it is a build-up, we should all go back there. What about the issue of security? All over the world, you can see that there are issues. I think that these should be

nipped in the bud. There should be surveillance to check them when they are rearing their heads. There should be a better system to watch these developments when they are coming than we have now. It is more of extreme belief by some individuals. Generating employment, for instance, if we place emphasis on agriculture, it will be a very good measure as people will be engaged, because most of these people are idle hands which are easily recruited for such purposes. And then religious extremist who go outside the realms of standard religion practice to make their own type of extreme believe should be checked and then again to strengthen our security system so that they will be equipped with modern gadgets. What is your take on the future of Nigeria vis a vis the leadership and the political structure of the country?

The structure has been faulty. For instance, Nigeria started with president and right now it has gone round to many sections of the country. Of course, we need to review the foundation, the moment a Nigerian feels he is not free in his country or that his section is marginalised, he will not be committed any longer, and we need the commitment of everybody to move this country forward. If you remember the argument in the just-concluded National Conference, certain sections of the country felt shortchanged, complaining that they have smaller number of states, smaller number of local governments and all that, and these are the units for allocating funds and when there are complaints like this and they are not addressed, those people will not be committed to pursuing the national goals, so I think efforts must be made to incorporate every Nigeria into the national scheme of things by addressing the structure.

Politics | Interview 17

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, OCTOBER 2014

Olisa Agbakoba is a human rights activist and a former president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA). In this interview with ETAGHENE EDIRIN, he shares his thoughts and hopes for Nigeria at 54 How would you assess Nigeria’s strides at 54 We’re certainly not doing well, because I know that although I was too young to know where I was in 1960, I know that I had a nice and ideal life in Jos, Plateau State. But today, Jos is not peaceful, so I cannot do what I did in 1960 in Jos. I was born in the North, and we used to wander around the entire North. Today, I cannot do that. My father was a lawyer, and I would follow him around to different places; Wamba, in present day Benue, up to Adamawa, Kano and others. Occasionally, we travelled by road to Onitsha for Christmas, but I don’t see myself driving from Jos to Onitsha today. Even though the roads are tarred today, when I was travelling on the roads untarred back then, I felt safer. So, it gives you the level of degradation that we’ve gone through. And the biggest blame goes to the military governments that completely decapitated Nigeria’s sociopolitical system, which is now taking time to rebuild. It’s like a crashed computer that we are trying to reprogramme and rebuild. Nigeria does not have any operating system today, so it’s going to take a very long time. Corruption is so rife, everyday you open the papers, it’s bad news; either somebody has stolen money or there’s fighting. In Ekiti, judiciary is closed because the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) are fighting. In Rivers State, it’s chaos. The Inspector General of Police (IGP) just retired, and this new IGP, I don’t know whether he wants to recover all the money that the police lost when they were removed from the checkpoints. Policemen came out with such vengeance that you just have to ask ‘what’s going on’. So, I don’t think any Nigerian is happy about what is happening. And so the so-called independence anniversary of Nigeria, it’s doom and gloom. That’s the prognosis. So, the way out is to have a strong multi-party culture, the APC has missed the road, because it is not an opposition party; it’s a party waiting to get power, and that is not how to build a political process. If you don’t have that strong fundamentals of political parties, then how will people make choices? PDP is clapping with one hand, they have no opposition. If elections were held today, the results are obvious; President Goodluck Jonathan will have a massive landslide. When the president has such a landslide, it’s not good for our democracy. We need to see that the parties are able to compete effectively. The PDP is having it far too easy, and it’s not helping our democracy. The APC have this opportunity to redirect its energies. (Muhammadu) Buhari and (Bola) Tinubu should retire, and allow the APC to grow. The Tony Anenihs, it’s time to go. When that happens, the process will improve; we’ll like to see two strong presidential contenders giving us clearly defined agenda on what they intend to do for Nigerians, then there’s hope. But as I speak I don’t see that happening. But between 1960 and now, would you say

Agbakoba: Nigeria lacks operating system slowly. So, the development coming in 1960 with independence was moving on. By 1966, the intervention of the soldiers completely obliterated development, because they had a different idea, then that led to the civil war, and then a short return of democracy, but quickly the soldiers came back. The first major decline was caused by IBB (Ibrahim Babangida) in 1984. So, development stopped. It is only now with the civilians that we are trying to reboot our development agenda, and that will take a long time. Given the quest for autonomy by some component units of the federation, do you see Nigeria remaining one in the near future? That question is really pertinent to answer. There is nothing sacrosanct about Nigeria being one or not being one. You can’t force me to be in a marriage I don’t want, so the marriage is the first thing, if both partners love each other. If the partners don’t love each other, there’s no way they will be happy. Right now, the partners in the Nigerian marriage are not happy with each other, so, they’re not sitting down to have a conversation. That’s why I was disappointed by the National Conference of which I was a member. We refused to converse in an honest frank way about our problems, and whether actually we are no longer able to live together. It’s an option, let’s be honest about it. The option of not living together is on the table, you can’t force Nigerians to live together. Personally, I feel that Nigeria as it is constituted will be strong because of her size and population, but if that is going to make us an elephant without developing, the next option is to move apart. So, what I feel is that I’ll like Nigeria to be one happy, united and strong country where fair play and justice prevail, so that if you ask people to press an electronic button on their tables, or phones whether they want to be in Nigeria, everybody will say yes. And if you press that button, and people say no, is it by force? What is happening now is that it seems as if we are being coerced to live together, and we don’t want to be coerced.

Agbakoba

Nigeria has not made any progress? Well, this is a country of about 170 million people, so the fact that we are here, we are bound to make progress. For instance, if you ask me, Nigeria is one of the fastest growing economies in the world, not because of any particular economic development programme, it’s simply because you can consume; we are a country that can consume. A place where MTN has made more money than all the banks put together, tells you that it’s a country where everybody will like to be. Nigeria is a consumer market of such size and proportion that it is attractive to investors. But don’t confuse that with growth. As I speak to you today, my office is in Apapa, I was able to get to the office from my house in Ikoyi much easier in 1980 than it is today. One day, it took me six hours to get to the office. So, are we making progress? Tell me. I don’t think we are making progress in the sense of developing our infrastructure, health care and educational systems. All the educational systems are on the ground. The schools I went to in my time, my kids cannot go there today. Progress must be measured in a very scientific way. The fact that we are growing large does not mean progress. I don’t see us having made qualitative progress. Would you say any of the dreams of our founding fathers have been achieved? That’s exactly what I’m saying. I don’t see those dreams having been realised, because if Zik (Nnamdi Azikiwe), (Obafemi) Awolowo and Sadauna (Ahmadu Bello) were to look at Nigeria today, they’ll say ‘no this is not what we wanted Nigeria to be’. So, no, it has not been realised at all. Where did we go wrong? Military intervention in 1966 was the problem, because it destroyed and stunted Nigeria’s slow climb. Development is like cooking rice, you don’t do it by force, it’s

Progress must be measured in a very scientific way. The fact that we are growing large does not mean progress. I don’t see us having made qualitative progress

What do you think we need to do to get Nigeria back on track? Leadership: that’s why we need political parties to be strong. In the United Kingdom, they came from Labour to Conservative Party. Take the fact that Winston Churchill won the war for Britain during wartime, but he lost the election during peacetime because the British felt he was not the right man for peace, and Clement Attlee came in and developed the massive institution on national health that stands today. Whenever the British are tired of the party in power they throw it out and bring in the other one. For instance, right now, David Cameron is going to lose the elections, and Ed Miliband will become Prime Minister, because the British are tired of the incompetent rule of the current Prime Minister who thinks that starving people of money is the way to go. We need to have selfless political leaders who think Nigeria is such a huge country that it should be one of the capitals of the world, but nobody is thinking so. It’s all about their personal lifestyle, so Nigeria is suffering even though it is a huge country with all the potential.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Opinion

Cut off your nose, mother’s son…

Chuks Iloegbunam

“H

ave you heard the news? News! News!! News!!!” So sang Jimmy Cliff, the Jamaican Reggae superstar in a 1975 hit single entitled The News. In that song he detailed his humiliation in Nigeria, a country he had visited for some arranged performances, only to be seized by police and bundled in detention on trumped up charges of dishonouring a contractual agreement with some Nigerian business mogul. It will be good to know what eventually became of that case, those who contrived to void the musician’s tour of Nigeria and the benefit they ultimately reaped from their action. But that is not the news in this piece. Today’s news has to do with the importation of materiel. A newspaper reported that Nigeria tried to buy some Chinook helicopters from Israel but was blocked by the United States, the manufacturers of the transport chopper. In days, another newspaper countered the original story, claiming that America had not blocked any Nigerian attempt to import any military hardware from anywhere. The argument has gone viral on the Internet. As is to be expected, experts, with whom this nation is over-blessed, are jumping over each other with disquisitions on the truth or otherwise of the story. This, to put it baldly, is utterly shameful for the simple reason that it exposes the crass inability of Nigerians to keep their eye on the ball. Nigeria, if it hadn’t taken the wrong turn to progress and development, will not care a jot who offered to sell it arms or who pretended to possess the ability to prevent it from acquiring arms. Nigeria should, by now, have a surfeit of self-designed and home-made arms and weapons systems essential for the prosecution of wars, participation in peacekeeping operations and degradation and defeat of terrorist activities, without game-changing contribution from the outside world. But, what is the state of play? Just as Nigeria has refused to refine its own oil, a pa-

triotic and economically sound move that would have removed at least three-quarters from the pump price of petroleum products, so has it also thwarted all efforts to make itself a force to be reckoned with in armaments. The result is that those with whom we started hunting rodents have since graduated to ensnaring reptiles, while our educated folks are busy hairsplitting on whether or not we are able or unable to trade in the international arms market. It happened in front of my eyes when India was mocked even here in Nigeria as a country of MSc and PhD holders with nothing to show for it. Well, India now has the Bomb. And India routinely deploys space probes to investigate outer space. India is today the first place of choice for wealthy and not-so-wealthy Nigerians whose loved ones must receive expert medical attention for conditions ranging from headache through the dislocated waist to the diseased heart. South Africa, if confronted with military emergency today will not desperately go shopping around the world for Chinnok or other helicopters. They have their own Rooivalk, a latest generation attack helicopter designed and manufactured by Denel Aviation of South Africa. The beast comes fitted with Mokopa ZT-6 anti-tank missiles! Indeed, South Africa is accomplished in all aspects of ballistics, so that, to all intents and purposes, it can adequately defend itself and also embark on offensive action without having to go cap-inhand, shopping around for the lethal ingenuity of other nations. What does Nigeria produce? This one no be say na ‘go come’. The Kaduna-based Defence Industries Corporation (DICON) was established by an Act of Parliament in 1964, “primarily to produce small Arms and Ammunition for the use of the Nigerian Army and other Security agencies. The Corporation also uses its excess capacity to produce machinery spare parts for industries and other products for civilian use.” Fifty years later, DICON has hardly progressed beyond producing the Aftomat Kalashnikova 1947 or AK47, a Rus-

sian-designed assault rifle whose vintage forms part of its name, and which weapon Awka blacksmiths were churning out with effortless ease during the civil war! Nigeria’s problem, if truth be told, is that it has never occurred to anyone that “Okeke, as a woman’s name, tingles the ear!” During Biafra, it was amply demonstrated that the manufacture and deployment of sophisticated weaponry was not beyond the ken of Nigerians, and the Black race in general. This was General Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu in 1986: “In the three years of the war necessity gave birth to invention. During those three years of heroic bound, we leapt across the great chasm that separates knowledge from know-how. We built rockets, and we designed and built our own delivery systems. We guided our rockets. We guided them far; we guided them accurately. For three years, blockaded without hope of import, we maintained all our vehicles. The state extracted and refined petrol, individuals refined petrol in their back gardens. We built and maintained our airports, maintained them under heavy bombardment. Despite the heavy bombardment, we recovered so quickly after each raid that we were able to maintain the record for the busiest airport on the continent of Africa. We spoke to the world through telecommunication system engineered by local ingenuity; the world heard us and spoke back to us! We built armored cars and tanks. We modified aircraft from trainer to fighters, from passenger aircraft to bombers. In the three years of freedom we had broken the technological barrier. In the three years we became the most civilized, the most technologically advanced black people on earth. We spurn nylon yarn; we developed new seeds for food and medicines…” We cut off our nose. That is tragic enough. But the greater tragedy lies in our inability to understand that our nose-less visage does nothing other than spite our face. • Iloegbunam (iloegbunam@hotmail.com) is a commentator on national issues.

Where did we go wrong? (2) Olaboludele Simoyan Continued from yesterday

e must realize that communities, societies and nations fall into a state of decadence not as a result of the strength of evil but as a direct result of the weakness of good. I believe the weakness of good in Nigeria got us here. I believe the silence of good men (and women) put us in this murky mess we are in as a nation. I believe that the Nigerian men (and women) of goodwill who are sitting on the fence got us into this quagmire we find ourselves in! Martin Luther King, Jr. said “He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it.” In addition he asserts “Man inhumanity to man is not only perpetuated by the vitriolic actions of those who are bad. It is also perpetuated by vitiating inaction of those who are good.” If this is true, then we nation-builders, change agents and patriots have been found wanting! We are guilty as charged! We dropped the ball somewhere in the 54 years of the history of our nation. So what do we do now as Nigerian

Nation-builders? What do we do now as Change Agents? Is it too late for us to change things for good in Nigeria? How can we create positive social change? The future of Nigeria is dependent on us as Nigerian Nation-builders. Since we hold the destiny of over 160 million Nigerians in our hands, what can we do to create positive social change? What must we do to better the lives of all Nigerians? What must we do to build the NEW NIGERIA of our dreams? If we want change as Nigerian Nation-builders we must work for it! We must plan for it! We must be strategic in creating the change we so much desire! We must also deliberately change what we Nigerians are hearing daily about our nation! RESPONSIBILITY must become our catch phrase and watch word. As Nation-builders and Change Agents we must step up to the plate and take up responsibility for where our nation is going. We can create a new vision for Nigerians to buy into. We can no longer be passive. The stakes are too high! We must actively create the change we desire to see. We must deliberately create the NEW NIGERIA! Now is the time for us Nation-builders, Change Agents and Patriots to arise out of our slumber! Now is the time for us Nation-builders,

Change Agents and patriots to come out of our stupor! Now is the time for us Nation-builders, Change Agents and Patriots to rise to the occasion! Now is the time for us Nation-builders, Change Agents and Patriots to step up to the plate of RESPONSIBILITY! Adolf Hitler once said “It is not the neutrals or the lukewarm who make history.” We have had too many neutral Nigerians (especially we that have called ourselves Nation-builders, Change Agents and Patriots) for too long! We have had too many lukewarm Nigerians for too many years! We have had too many of us sitting on the fence of indecision. And that’s why we are where we are after over 54 years of independence! Joseph Ephraim Casely – Hayford states “Reforms never comes to a class or a people unless and until those concerned have worked out their own salvation.” Now is the time for us Nationbuilders, Change Agentsand Patriots to work out our salvation! Now is the time for us Nation-builders, Change Agents and Patriots to work out Nigeria’s salvation! Now is the time for us Nationbuilders, Change Agents and Patriots to save Nigeria and give HOPE, FAITH and LOVE! Our nation needs HOPE – a heavy injection of HOPE! Our nation needs FAITH – a heavy dose of FAITH! Our na-

tion needs LOVE – heavy portions and layers of LOVE! We Nation-builders, Change Agents, and Patriots are in the position to provide HOPE, FAITH and LOVE for Nigeria at a time such as this! We Nation-builders, Change Agents and Patriots are the only ones that can give Nigerians HOPE, FAITH and LOVE! We must become the messengers of HOPE, FAITH and LOVE! We must become the ANSWER and SOLUTION to Nigeria’s many problems. In fact we are already THE ANSWER and THE SOLUTION! So if we are THE ANSWER, then what are we waiting for? God’s counting on us to deliver our nation from her present predicament of confusion, chaos and catastrophe! Now is the time for us to take back our country! Now is the time for change in Nigeria! Now is the time for us Nationbuilders, Change Agents and Patriots to make history by building Nigeria (and Nigerians) into a WONDER TO BEHOLD! Now is the time! God bless YOU! God bless NATION BUILDERS and CHANGE AGENTS!! And God bless NIGERIA!!! And Have a SOBER and INSIGHTFUL IndependenceDay Anniversary!!! Concluded

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

EDITORIAL

OUR VISION To build a newspaper organisation anchored on the sanctity of truth.

Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon and the truth – Buddha

Sanctity of Truth

OUR MISSION To publish a newspaper of superior value, upholding the fundamental ethics of journalism: balanced reporting, fairness, accuracy and objectivity.

Nigeria’s most authoritative newspaper in politics and business

To curb the menace of flooding in Lagos

he painful floods which Lagos is known for are steadily showing up again. From Ikeja to Oshodi, Mushin to Bariga, Ikoyi to Victoria Island, Apapa to Surulere, among others, residents are gripped by anxiety as the rains pound the island state. Despite the fact that canals have been cleared, new roads constructed, old ones repaired, the floods remain largely unrelenting, causing heavy traffic hold ups, washing buildings away and sacking people from their homes. Floods are caused by many factors, including heavy rainfall, highly accelerated downpours lasting several days, severe winds over water, unusual high tides, tsunamis, or failure of dams, levees, retention ponds, or other structures that are built to retain water. Flooding can be exacerbated by increased amounts of impervious surface or by other natural hazards such as wildfires, which reduce the supply of vegetation that can absorb rainfall. Furthermore, periodic floods occur on many rivers, forming a surrounding region known as the flood plain. During times of rain, some of the water is retained in ponds or soil, some is absorbed by grass and vegetation, some evaporates, and the rest travels over the land as surface runoff. Floods occur when ponds, lakes, riverbeds, soil, and vegetation cannot absorb all the water. Water

then runs off the land in quantities that cannot be carried within stream channels or retained in natural ponds, lakes, and man-made reservoirs. Flooding damages property and endangers the lives of humans and other species. Rapid water runoff causes soil erosion and concomitant sediment deposition elsewhere (such as further downstream or down a coast). The spawning grounds for fish and other wildlife habitats can become polluted or completely destroyed. Some prolonged high floods can delay traffic in areas which lack elevated roadways. Floods can interfere with drainage and deter economic use of lands. Structural damage can occur in bridge abutments, bank lines, sewer lines, and other structures within floodways. Waterway navigation and hydroelectric power are often impaired. Financial losses due to floods are typically millions of tax-payers’ funds each year. For residents of Lagos, the wet season is not always the best time of the year. It is a period that comes with the intimidating problems of flooding. Many homes are swamped, property worth fortune are destroyed and sometimes human lives are involved as the floods tide sweep away everything in their path, leaving residents to recount tales of woes. The flood woes in Lagos State began with the massive reclamation

of land and construction of buildings and estates in the wake of the oil boom of the early 70s. A lot of the land mass in Lagos is below the sea level, which makes excess water flow steadily into canals, drainages, roads and land in Lagos. Hence, most parts of the state are flooded, even during dry season. Some drainages spew out water uncontrollably. Also, many canals in the state have been blocked by refuse heaps dumped into them. Others have been blocked by buildings usually erected by the influential in the society and some by governments at different levels. Also, collections of mud, leaves, cellophane and other debris have blocked several drainages in the state where people have not imbibed the culture of not littering their surroundings with dirt and other hazardous materials. Although the Lagos State Government is doing its best, it has to do more. For one, all the buildings and structures on drainages or even those constructed on canals should be pulled down. Government cannot for political or personal reasons allow such structures to be standing, especially in Victoria Island and Ikoyi as well as other areas, while the illegal dumping of refuse must be earnestly addressed and all other environmental laws properly and efficaciously applied. The war against flooding in Lagos must be total and impartial. There must be no half-measures or administering different set of rules to

different areas. It will not just work. The time has come when government must be definitive and deal decisively with flooding problems. Also, several new drainages should be constructed throughout the length and breadth of Lagos, while existing ones should be regularly maintained throughout the year. Equally, there must be dredging of canals and opening up of secondary drainage channels to keep the flood at bay. In fact, no excuse whatsoever can justify the reluctance by the Federal Government to assist the Lagos State Government to make Lagos, the nation’s commercial capital as free as possible from the recurring devastation of flood as well as maintain all its facilities, including roads and drainages in the state. The problem of flooding is enormous as it causes traffic gridlock, leading to several man-hour losses, unnecessary stress, which results in serious health complications, provides room for armed marauders to operate with relative ease and places undue pressure on infrastructural facilities such as bridges. However, we urge the Lagos State Government to direct the agencies responsible for flood control to be alive to their responsibilities, workround-the-clock and throughout the year to clear the drainages and not wait until the rains set in before doing something. Thus, all hands must be on deck to stop the menace of flooding in Lagos.

Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief n Eric Osagie Deputy Managing Directors n Gabriel Akinadewo

Felix Oguejiofor Abugu

Managing Editor n Suleiman Uba Gaya

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Deputy Editors, Daily n Emeka Obasi, Ayodele Ojo

Bureau Chief, Brussels n Leo Cendrowicz

Bureau Chief, Washington DC n Marshall Comins

Editorial Coordinator, Europe n Sam Amsterdam

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Head, Graphics n Timothy Akinleye

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20 Politics | Interview

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

My fears for Nigeria, by Tinubu W e commemorate this Independence Day because the nation has survived despite its many challenges. We dare not celebrate because the nation has not flourished as it should. Fifty-four years our national trek began with hope and promise, peace and unity. Today, the nation staggers beneath the weight of trouble stacked upon problem multiplied by hardship. Peace and unity seem to have yielded the moment to violence and discord. We exist as a political unit on a map but we do not prosper as brothers and sisters in one nation, under one flag and pursuant to one accord. We have lost our road and now seem to be on the road of the lost. I am proud to be a Nigerian and would not attach my life to any other nation but genuine patriotism should not induce blindness. We are burdened by too many resolvable challenges that remain unresolved.

Former governor of Lagos State and a leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, in a statement titled “A return to decency,” says Nigeria must be rescued from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to make any meaningful progress.

Tinubu

Moment of sober reflection This is not a time for fake cheers and elation at the present state of things just because the calendar has touch this day. We need to use this hour soberly by taking stock of the obstacles mounting before us and of the hard direction in which we seem to be heading. I fear this direction, if further taken, will lead us not home but to an appointment with failure and national destitution. At their inception, every nation is a dynamic interplay of assets and liabilities, promises and threats, capabilities and contradictions. As time passes, the nation is supposed to move forward in mature progress so its assets, promise and capabilities increasingly outweigh their negative counterparts. In recent years, Nigeria has become victim to an opposite dynamic. Reprobate leadership Nigeria currently is saddled with the reprobate leadership Awo, Zik, Sardauna and Tafawa Belewa feared. We have entered unchartered territory not so much because we are expanding the outer bounds of national progress. We traverse such ground because this government leads us into places where angels fear to tread and where sensible man should not go. Never has an elected government in Nigeria employed religion as a tool to divide the people, setting Nigerian brother against brother in a manner that allows this administration to function at the basest level of governance while seeking to establish a political domination that seeks no greater purpose than its self-perpetuation. Our nation was supposed to advance, year by year, toward greater democracy. Instead, we rush into the pit of arbitrary, imperious rule that smacks of

is a unique strength we can use to erase hunger, banish poverty, limit civil strife, build tolerance and enrich our civic education and awareness by learning so much from each other.

despotism. If we whitewash the reality of our existence by lying that all is well just because this is Independence Day, then we ignore the troubling signals at our collective peril. Democracy at gun-point The incessant attempts to stigmatise and physically intimidate a peaceful political opposition and the militarisation of elections are features of a perverse democracy, a democracy run at gun-point and with a swift and eager trigger, Brazen assaults on the judiciary, the flippant and frequent violation of the constitution and the rule of law, and the elevation of corruption to making it a new and perhaps the strongest arm of government are the instruments that now shape our nation. These things are not the fare of celebration. They are the impetus for political reform and change.

They do not have a national blueprint or vision. They do have a blueprint and vision for excessive selfenrichment. Their equation is simple. You work, they feast. You toil, they grow fat. You seek a decent wage; they pilfer the collective treasury to enjoy a king’s ransom

Lack of national vision Fifty-four years is enough to have built upon a solid foundation. If we had embraced a few lessons from India and other countries in similar situations like ours, we would be far advanced from where we presently are. It is sad enough that we have not built well upon the foundation set by our nation’s founders. Sadder still is that those who currently lead us have even weakened and corrupted that once-sound, hopeful foundation. Under the Jonathan government, the vaunted Transformation Agenda is but an elaborate name for old-fashion pocket stuffing. They do not have a national blueprint or vision. They do have a blueprint and vision for excessive self-enrichment. Their equation is simple. You work, they feast. You toil, they grow fat. You seek a decent wage;

they pilfer the collective treasury to enjoy a king’s ransom. Promotion of intolerance Meanwhile, national planning has been haphazard and people unfriendly. For most of our 54 years and for all of the past 15, honest men have been given scant opportunity to lead Nigeria. We have wandered from the path of economic empowerment for our youths and the mass of our people. Nigeria has become adept at creating economic refugees, braindrain migrants, decimated institutions and the building of a venal “Wallet Economy” benefiting only a handful. As if this cynically induced poverty is not sufficient hardship, this government compounds the public burden by sowing discord with the alacrity that a wise government would plant charity and accord. Rather than promote religious tolerance and harmonious living, this government believes its electoral chances are enhanced by promoting ethnicism, internal divisions, religious suspicion and scapegoating. We emerged from painful civil war with the singular objective of establishing an equitable, tolerant society. We sought to unite all into one people with a sense of one nation. We would turn our diversity into one of greatest assets. Decades later, it seems the memory of that period has faded. Political figures of dubious quality dabble with forces they may not truly comprehend and have no chance of ultimately controlling. This supposedly democratic government struts the stage, using our diversity to further divide us. An asset is turned into a wedge separating friend from friend, neighbour from neighbour. But I know that our diversity

What we need as a nation While Nigeria’s current leaders failed to build upon the foundation provided them, there are some rays of hope. On this day, I commend the people of Lagos and other progressive states in the South-West and throughout Nigeria. You have tried your best to keep faith with the best practices and policies of those who founded this nation. Against strong odds and the strong arm of a reactionary Federal Government, you have improved the foundation then built upon it. If only what you have done could be replicated by the Federal Government. On the contrary, 16 years of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rule has been a period of diminishing return. The longer they rule, the less benefit the people derive. Nigeria now needs a ‘common sense revolution’, a revolution that calls forth a return to decency, probity, transparency of process and fairness in outcome. This is done not by subterfuge, divide and rule and turning Nigeria into a field of discord or a street of broken institutions. It is accomplished by honouring the principles of democratic good governance and economic justice. It is done by persuading the people they are better off as one instead of better off tearing at each other’s throats. Art of governance Governance is about trust. And this government is not even trusted by itself. That is why it does nothing except feed itself. This is not the road for a better Nigeria. We must proceed from this 54th anniversary to embark on a common sense revolution that brings about progressive change for the benefit of most of our country men and women, our youth and the vulnerable among us. I speak here of a Common Sense revolution that promotes the well-being and improve the lot of the average person, regardless of his or her ethnic, religious or regional affiliation. In this way, Nigeria will not only be unified in national purpose it will have recovered its better path. That will be an Independence Day we can and should celebrate. Until then, we strive to keep from falling further. We dare not remain lost forever. I am positive that help is on the way. Nigerians should be prepared for change. We must rescue Nigeria from those set to cause it irreparable harm. The change I talk about is the only route to our deliverance from 16 years of the PDP locusts. Nigeria is ours to keep and its democracy is ours to save.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

Raji: Why lawmakers don’t deserve SAN title

How to rid judiciary of corruption, by Kehinde

How I became SAN, by Ogwemoh

If you go back to England, there is no precedent whereby a member, House of Lords has been made a QC

The burden now is for us all to resolve and consciously strive to tackle the problem

He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, United Kingdom

Law

Nigeria @ 54

Lawyers extol Judiciary Even though Nigeria attained independence on October 1, 1960, the Judiciary was not let go by the colonial masters. Reason: its decisions were not final without the judicial endorsement by the Privy Council of the House of Lords in England until 1963 when Nigeria became a republic. Fifty-one years on, it was time yesterday for lawyers to assess the third arm of government as the country clocked 54. FOLUSO OGUNMODEDE, TUNDE OYESINA, AKEEM NAFIU AND APPOLOS CHRISTIAN report

lthough the third arm of government has its internal wranglings, the judiciary has remained the best of all as it has not only lived to its constitutional role in the last fifty-one years but distinguished itself especially throughout the fifteen of the nation’s 54 years. To the lawyers, all Senior Advocates of Nigeria, judiciary is simply the bedrock of the nation’s 54 years of corporate existence. Nigeria clocked 54 years yesterday as an independent and sovereign nation, but the independence of the country’s judiciary was formally attained in 1963 when Nigeria became a republic. For three years after independence, the independence of the judiciary was still tied to the jurisdictional powers of the Privy Council of the House of Lords in the United Kingdom as decisions arising from Nigeria’s Supreme Court were not final without the judicial endorsement of the United Kingdom’s House of Lords. But this ceased in 1963 when the judicial views by the Privy Council were at variance with the decision reached by the Nigeria’s Supreme Court in a case involving Akintola andAdegbenro. With the decision ar-

rived by Nigeria’s judges, being described as outstanding by the British, the nation’s judiciary got its unfettered independence from the British House of Lords. Also, judicial officers, including the Chief Justices and Judges, who were reflective of the colonial masters ceased with the appointment of the late Justice

Adetokunbo Ademola as the nation’s first indigenous Chief Justice. However, since the nation’s judiciary succeeded in distinguishing and extricating itself from the British Lords, it ceased to be bind by decisions made in English courts or any foreign court. At best, decisions

Nwobike, SAN

Ahamba, SAN

Judiciary is simply the bedrock of the nation’s 54 years of corporate existence

FOLUSO OGUNMODEDE JUDICIARY Editor

foluso.ogunmodede@ newtelegraphonline.com

Adekoya, SAN

Ali, SAN

made in English or other foreign courts could only be cited in Nigerian courts for persuasive effect. They are not binding on Nigerian courts. Judiciary has also distinguished itself in jurisprudence and the espousal of legal principles as it had taken advantage of opportunities offered by some Nigerian cases to propound legal theories to suit Nigerian environment. For instance, the issue of ‘locus standi’ now finds its way to cases such as Fawehinmi v. Akilu, Abraham Adesanya v. President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Fawehinmi v. President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, etc; decided on the applicability of the doctrine in Nigeria contrary to its former norms of relying on British cases and foreign jurists’ opinion on such matters. This, lawyers however emphasized the need for complete independence, adequate funding and quicker justice delivery system, insisting that unless the judiciary was freed from the clutches of the executive arm of government, the crisis of confidence would continue to dog it as the nation yesterday, clocked 54. Although they agreed that there are still some glints of bribery and corruption in the judiciary, the lawyers pushed for an improved welfare package for judicial officers. Firing the first shot on the judiciary in the last 54 years, a Senior Advocate, Dr Joseph Nwobike said: “The judiciary has done relatively well considering the peculiarities and circumstances surrounded it, particularly at the federal level. It has indeed done well despite some ugly instances that has occurred, which is human in nature because wherever you find human interaction or institutions made up by people, there will definitely be some low ends. “But if you put everything together, I will say that the judiciary has done extremely well. And I also believe that Nigerians have benefited from the work of dynamic nature of the judiciary. But that is not to say that there are CONTINUED ON PAGE 22

Law | News

WEDNESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Legal icons bag national honours Joseph Onyekwere

resident Goodluck Jonathan on Monday crowned various distinguished Nigerians and foreigners with a National Award in different categories. Among those conferred with the honours of Officer of the Federal Republic (OFR) are six distinguished legal practitioners, who had carved a niche for themselves in legal advocacy, scholarship and incontrovertibly, enriched Nigeria’s jurisprudence. Leading the lot is Chief Mobolaji Olukayode Ayorinde OFR, SAN, FCIArb. He was born into the Ayorinde family of Ajimajasan Compound, Agbokojo Ibadan. His father, the lateJustice Timothy Adebayo Ayorinde, was a former Chief Judge of Oyo State and Chancellor Diocese Ibadan, Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, while his mother is Chief Mrs. Christiana Adetokunbo Ayorinde. Ayorinde attended the Sacred Heart Private School, Ring-

Ayorinde, SAN

Gadzama, SAN

Road, Ibadan, for his Primary School Education from where he then proceeded to the famous Government College, Ibadan in 1974 and obtained his W. A. S. C. E. Ordinary Level Certificate. He also attended the International School, University of Ibadan, Oyo State in 1979 and obtained his G. C. E. Advanced Level Certificate, International Baccalaureate, A Levels Certificate in 1981. At International

School he was made the Head Boy, that is, the Senior Project of the School in 1980-1981. In September 1981, he proceeded to the University College Buckland, Oxfordshire England, United Kingdom for his University education where he obtained the University of Oxford, G. C. E Certificate (Law) Intermediate LLB) in 1983. He thereafter, in 1983 attended the prestigious Holborn Law Tu-

tors, Roupell Street, London for his University of London, Bachelor of Laws LLB Hons Degree Certificate and graduated in 1985. He proceeded to the Nigerian Law School, Victoria Island, Lagos, in 1985, where he obtained the Council of Legal Education Certificate of Call to Bar in 1986. For his National Youth Service Programme in 1986, he was posted to Lagos State and attached to the Private Law Firm of Messrs Akin-Delano, Legal Practitioners at No. 6, Ijora Causeway – Lagos. During this period, he was a Junior Counsel in the Firm of Akin-Delano, Legal Practitioners with offices in Ibadan and Lagos. He worked directly under the Principal, Chief Akin – Delano SAN and in 1989 he was seconded to take charge of the Lagos Office. The firm is renowned for its commercial practice spanning for a period of over 40 years. He worked in the firm of Akin – Delano until 1990 when he set up the Law Firm of B. AYORCONTINUED ON PAGE26

National honour bestowed on them is well deserved as the awardees had carved a niche for themselves in legal advocacy

Judiciary still bedrock, say lawyers CONTINUED FROM PAGE 21

no rooms for improvement, in fact a lot has to be done. More indeed has to be done in the area of funding and capacity building of judicial and non-judicial workers, in the area of enforcement of judgments of courts, and also in the area of democratization of the appointment process of the judicial officers. “So, I think if we do some amount of considerable works in these areas, our judiciary will perform better, which will be good for us all. And in this wise, I congratulate the outgoing Chief Justice of Nigeria for a job well done because her judicial career has been a blessing to the judiciary in particular and to Nigeria, within the short period she has been at the head of the judiciary and as the Chief Justice of Nigeria, she has made profound and meaningful contribution in the development of law and in the management of various disputes that has been referred to the Supreme court, and I pray God to protect and guide her in her future endeavors”. Another silk wig, Chief Mike Ahamba , rated the judiciary high but canvassed for improvement as the third arm of government was yet to arrive at the ‘permanent destination’ as the environment in which the judiciary operated

from was not very conducive even though the judiciary had been able to record an appreciable performance in adjudicating and settling disputes. He said: “By my own assessment, our judiciary has done well considering the environment our judges are working, but we have not gotten to where we should be”. He was echoed by another Senior Advocate, Mallam Yusuf Ali, who simply said that the judiciary had done far above average considering the environment it had operated from. Citing some landmark cases which had distinguished the judiciaryLadoja’s case, Oil Revenue Dichotomy, Lagos State .v. FG, Obasanjo on the creation of Local Government in Lagos state and other landmark judgements, Ali said its achievement had not foreclosed its peculiarity. Instead, he believed the achievement was an indication that the third arm of government was not stagnant just as it was bedevilling with dearth of infrastructure, inadequate personnel, training and re-training for judges, funding, among others. To Chief Mike Ozekhome: “No doubt, the Nigerian Judiciary has had to contend with powerful variegated forces that are at once centripetal as they are centrifugal.

Mukhtar, CJN

Lawyers explain that the nation called Nigeria could have disintegrated if not for judiciary

It has been buffeted from all sides; assailed by inglorious politicians who lost their electoral legal battles in court, bled internally by some irredeemably corrupt Judicial elements; mocked by a non-cooperating executive that denies it of much needed funds, and ridiculed by a legislature that makes laws for everything, except for the peace, order and good governance of Nigeria. “The Nigerian Judiciary sided with the common man and wom-

an, delivering scathing, and at times decisive judgments, against repressive Heads of state and self-styled military presidents. “In Ojukwu vs Governor of Lagos State (1986) 1 NWLR (part 18), for example, both the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court described the action of the Lagos State Government in forcibly ejecting Ojukwu from his “Vilaska lodge” residence in Ikoyi, Lagos, whilst his suit against the State Government

was still pending, live and extant, as amounting to “executive lawlessness”. “In Nasiru Bello vs. Attorney General of Oyo State (1986) 2 NSCC 1257, the apex Court of Nigeria condemned the Oyo State Government for executing a convicted armed robber whose appeal was still pending before the Court. The revered late Justice Aniagolu bemoaned this dastardly act, thus: ‘This is the first case in this country, of which I am aware, in which a legitimate government of this country – past or present, colonial, or indigenous – hastily and illegally snuffed off the life of an appellant whose appeal had vested and was in being, with no order of court upon the appeal, and with a reckless disregard for the life and liberty of the subject and the principles of the rule of law. The brutal incident has bespattered the face of the Oyo State Government with the paint brush of shame’. “In Nemi vs. A-G, Lagos State (1996) 6 NWLR, 42, at 55, the Court of Appeal innovatively held that notwithstanding that a convict was on death row, he was still entitled to challenge his torture, inhuman or degrading treatment, arising from the prolonged CONTINUED ON PAGE 24

Law | Jurist

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2014

He is an alumnus of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State. Ahmed Adeniyi Raji, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, reviewed the nation’s political development ahead of 2015 elections and concluded that there is need to embark on a political education if there must be a smooth transition come May 29, 2015. Besides, he told TUNDE OYESINA why lawyers who are members of the National Assembly cannot benefit from the coveted award of Senior Advocate of Nigeria

Raji: Why lawmakers don’t deserve SAN title

hmed Adeniyi Raji, a holder of an LL.M degree from the University of London, was elevated into the Inner Bar in 2012, about 24 years after he was called to the Nigerian Bar. The Senior Advocate, who was miffed by the way electoral laws were being flouted by some major political parties in the country ahead of the 2015 elections, is canvassing political education that would sensitise the electorate and the media on the dangers inherent on the illegal activities of party faithful, who had embarked on political campaigns contrary to the Electoral Act. This, he said would guarantee a level playground for all parties angling for one political office or another if the rules were strictly adhered to. According to Raji, it was time for the National Orientation Agency (NOA) stepped up its campaign by collaborating with the Media and the electoral umpire with a view to sensitizing the electorate before things turned awry. He told New Telegraph this way: “There is the need to educate politicians and voters on political advertisement and this is where the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) and the INEC should collaborate to sensitize the people before the real activities will start. On arguments by a section of Nigeria that the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN), had flouted Section 221 of the 1999 Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria (CFRN), which provides that no organization apart from a political party should ask for votes, Raji insisted that TAN had done nothing wrong in its activities especially as it had not in any way, canvassed votes for President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan. Raji said: “TAN is not asking for votes. What TAN is saying is that you should come out to contest. As a pressure group or whatever their name is, it is within their right to say that. You have some youth vanguards of some prominent political parties who say we want Mr. A to come out and contest because Mr. A is this and that. So long as they are not asking for votes yet because the campaign is not on yet. All they are saying is that Mr. A should come out to contest. “No, if you get it right, what they are saying is that this person should come out to contest. That may be endorsing him. I can go on pages of Newspapers and say that I like Mr. B to be president of Nigeria. I can say that any moment and any time. That does not mean that I am saying “come and vote for him. So, what they are doing cannot be regarded as campaigning and no provision of the law forbids them from doing such. On the difference between ‘asking to be voted for’ and ‘come out to contest’, the Senior Advocate insisted that the two were not the same. He said ‘campaigning for votes for some-

Raji, SAN

one is not the same as saying we are urging on Mr. A to come out to contest. They are two different things. If I now go out from town to town and say vote for Mr. A or Mr. B, then that is campaign but saying that Mr. A should please come out is a different thing. What they are doing is like an appetizer before the main meal. They have not crossed the line. The main meal is the campaign, what we see now is like an appetizer”. On the penalty should there be an infraction of the law especially political advertisement when a ban had not been lifted, Raji said only the body saddled with such responsibility could be called upon to assess the limitations of those involved. His words: “There is a body charged with monitoring political activities and dishing out appropriate sanctions and that is the INEC. “It is INEC that should be called upon to look into the enabling laws and ascertain whether what these people are doing amount to a violation of the extant rules and regulation but I do not think that President Goodluck Jonathan has done anything wrong because I have not seen him in any of those rallies. I have not seen any political party sponsoring it to the best of my knowledge. For people asking Mr. A or Mr. B to come out, I don’t think Mr. A or Mr. B is to be blamed. You only need to be wondering how idle or unoccupied are those individuals, but back to the question the appropriate authority is INEC who should be asked to look into the extant regulations if they are weak, or perhaps INEC has not contemplated what is happening now may be they need to give further guidelines and streamline it properly to take care of possible abuses of political advertisement if it is not in tandem with the law. Besides, Raji spoke on the clamour by lawyers in the National Assembly that the

coveted title of the Senior Advocate of Nigeria be extended to them, saying the award was for excellence in the practice of law as there was no precedent that parliamentarians benefited from it in the United Kingdom where the award originated from. He said: “Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) as an award has its origin in what is known as Queens Counsel (QC) in England. A few commonwealth countries also adopted it and a good number of them no longer have it. If you go back to England there is no precedent whereby either a member of the House of Lords or member of the House of Commons, simply because of his delivery or output in parliament has been made a QC. The Legal Practitioners Act clearly delimits and brings out the essence of SAN. It has to do with highest distinction in the practice of law. If you say lawyers in the National Assembly should be awarded the title of SAN, perhaps Accountants too in the National Assembly will ask to be given ICAN or one of the professional certificates and it will go on. We may find other ways of rewarding those of them who have performed well such as by re-electing them or by getting them appointed or elected to other bigger offices. As far as professional career is concerned, I think it will be a little bit confusing. It will bring some disharmony into the system and once that one goes in, nobody can really know when it will stop. On his assessment of the anti-graft agency- the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Raji simply said the anti-graft agency was now living up to its duty. Besides, he saluted the agency’s modus operandi as reason for its ‘alive to duty’. CONTINUED ON PAGE 24

If you say lawyers in the National Assembly should be awarded the title of SAN, perhaps Accountants too in the National Assembly will ask to be given ICAN or one of the professional certificates and it will go on

Law

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

‘Judiciary key to Nigeria’s stability’ CO NT INU E D FRO M PAGE 2 2

PAST CHIEF JUSTICES OF NIGERIA Justice (Sir) Ademola Adetokunbo, KBE, CON (1958-1972) Justice Taslim Olawale Elias, CFR, GCON (1972-1975) Justice (Sir) Darnley Arthur Alexander, CBE, KCMG, CFR (1975-1979) Justice Atanda Fatai Williams, CON (1979-1983) Justice George Sodeinde Sowemimo, CON, GCON (1983-1985) Justice Ayo Gabriel Irikefe,OFR, CON, GCON (1985-1987) Justice Mohammed Bello, CON, GCON (1987-1995) Justice Muhammed Lawal Uwais, CON, GCON (1995-2006) Justice Salihu Modibbo Alfa Belgore, CON, GCON (2006-2007) Justice Idris Legbo Kutugi, CON (2007-2009) Justice Aloysius Iyorgyer KatsinaAlu (2009-2011) Justice Dahiru Musdapher (20112012) Justice Aloma Mariam Mukhtar (2012-Present)

delay in executing him”. Abubakar Malami SAN said “Nigeria as a nation has been undergoing progressive development with an in-built capacity to overcome challenges. Judiciary is not an exception, it is responding to challenges and making progress in overcoming them with prospects for addressing future challenges as they unfold”. Mrs. Funke Adekoya, SAN said: ‘’I think we are trying, the judiciary is better than the other arms of government, whether executive or legislative, I will score the judiciary higher than them’’. Although Mr. Osaro Eghobamien SAN said the nation’s judiciary has done well in some aspect, it has not developed in the same proportion when compared with the growth of the society. He said: ‘’However, if the judiciary is to provide the service in terms of settling dispute, those concern will tell you that the service is not providing the solution whether in civil or criminal cases and if we don’t move with time, if there is no technological changes and there is no change in the orientation, then, we should not expect anything better than what we have at the moment”. To a former president of

Akeredolu, SAN

the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN) standards in the nation’s judiciary appeared to have been falling when compared with what was obtainable in the early years of the independence particularly when it comes to the issue of topical cases. He listed those cases to include those that had to do with the interpretation of the

Agbaje

Constitution and election matters saying he could not see anyone that would be proud of the judiciary considering the way and manner those matters were being entertained by the court. However, Akeredolu advocated for a stakeholders’ meeting where issues in the judiciary would be discussed in order to chart a new course that would put things in proper perspectives.

‘Lawyers in National Assembly don’t deserve SAN title’ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 23

Raji said: “The EFCC is not dead, it is working, and perhaps showmanship has reduced because that is not the way to do an investigation. May be they are doing it in the correct way now and they are being silent in the manner they go about their work because we are not reading about them daily does not mean they are not working. So, I disagree that the agency with you. On terror war, Raji proffered suggestions on how to win the war against insurgents, law as an instrument for social engineering could be employed to launch an offensive attack on terrorism. He said: “There are several ways the law may be used to stem the tide of terrorism. The law may be used as an instrument to discourage act of

terrorism. The law may be used in a way that it would give us a justice sector that is able to quickly and promptly attend to any terrorism issue. The law may be used if we know the root cause of terrorism, to address the root cause. If it is due to poverty, the law may be used to redistribute wealth. A few suggestions and one of it, is to clearly ascertain what is the root cause of terrorism in Nigeria? Is it because of disconnect between the rulers and the ruled or because we have porous borders or the fall of Gadhafi and mercenaries are now let loose? Is it because of what is happening in North African countries or the prediction that Nigeria is going to terminate in 2015? When we sit down frankly and look at it or is it a political gimmick to unseat the president

Raji

Law can be used to stun the tide of terrorism

and for some other people to come in? These are several areas to be looked into and then come in with legislation. However, Raji allayed fears on the safety of law students in Kano and Yola campuses, urging stakeholders and parents to be cautious in their quest to prevail on the authorities to shut down the campuses on

Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) as an award has its origin in what is known as Queens Counsel (QC) in England

Mr. Fred Agbaje, equally noted that so far, so good; it has been a success story. He said: “You cannot talk of 54 years of Nigeria’s existence without talking about the judiciary which has remained vital and unchangeable. The parliament has been changed several times, the President of the country has changed many times but the judiciary has remained unchanged”. the fear that what befell the Chibok schoolgirls may be recorded there. He said: “I would not dismiss the call for the closure of the two campuses but one has to be cautious. After all we have northerners from Kano, Jigawa, Kaduna, Yobe and Bauchi who may be more interested in Kano and Yola campuses than to come to Abuja or Lagos campuses. We should not rush to shut down the two campuses otherwise we will be offending the sensibilities of some sections of the country. Even if it means shifting the campuses temporarily to another place pending when all these problems will settle down but I do not support closing down the campuses completely. What about other Universities in the North and other tertiary institutions, are we going to close them down? What about other secondary schools? I think that is like conceding defeat that we have failed and that there is no solution to the problem; that will be too catastrophic for us. We should endeavor to overcome the present challenge and pray not to have a repeat of what happened in Chibok.

Law | Interview

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2014

How to rid judiciary of corruption, by Kehinde is, the extant military laws clearly make provision for the offences charged, principally mutiny under Section 52 of the Armed Forces Act 1993, and the procedure for constituting the court martial. Except for those who participated in the trial process or have read the records of proceedings, on the face of facts read in the media, I have not seen anything strange that happened with regards to the soldiers.

He is the editor of the Nigerian Weekly Law Report (NWLR) and associate of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (United Kingdom). Oluwole Kehinde, in this interview with AKEEM NAFIU, speaks on corruption in the judiciary, the 12 soldiers sentenced to death by military court, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor and the $9.3million arms deal

A whopping $9.3million arms was linked to Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, what is your view of the man of GOD and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) he leads amidst this scandal? The facts so far is that Pastor Oritsejafor has interest in the company that owns the aircraft. But the aircraft is on lease to another company from which it was now chartered and taken to South Africa. I do not see how the Pastor becomes culpable. Whether a high profile Pastor like him should be involved in ownership of commercial aircraft or at all is a different moral question. As for those involved in the deal, I think the law should deal with them as far as the circumstance allows. There have been arguments that, that kind of arrangement is permitted legitimate arms transactions, I do not have any informed opinion on that. The parties should sort themselves out, and I wish them well. But Pastor Oritsejafor should not now be treated as an accomplice from his distant point of relationship with the actors. It does make sense however to ask him to resign as CAN president on account of the heat the matter is generating and the accompanying mischief. Terror group in Nigeria has assumed a frightening dimension, what are your thoughts on the Senate President advice, urging the Federal Government to declare war on the insurgents? The Boko Haram terrorist had not only become frightening but also damaging and destructive. Many lives have been wasted and still being wasted. Heavy socio- economic loss. So, the declaration of the Senete President was even belated. It was long overdue. There is no doubt Nigeria can and will win the war. The only thing is that, as Yoruba people say: “Kiku to pa osika, nkan rere a ti baje”. Nigeria is too big for seperatist group to overrun. The challenges all along have been the complex political and religious interests and the seeming incohesion in the armed forces. You can see the commendable progress the armed forces has made in the past one week, which has put the Boko Haram insurgents on a retreat.

Kehinde

How would the judiciary free itself from corruption if the alarm raised by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Maryam Aloma Mukhtar that corruption is widespread among judiciary employees including secretaries, court registrars, process clerks and bailiffs nationwide is anything to go by? You cannot detach the Judiciary from the body of Nigerian society. Corruption thrives in the land. So, the Judges and staff of the courts can’t be expected to be saints. Moreover, it is the same members of the society that are involved in compromising the personnel of the courts. I am not justifying the unwholesome scenario, but rather underscoring the point that the CJN is merely reminding us of what we already know, or ought to know. The burden now is for us all to resolve and consciously strive to tackle the problem for the benefit and image of our society and us the citizens.

What would you say can be done to save the lives of 12 soldiers sentenced to death by military court on a six-count charge of criminal conspiracy to commit mutiny, attempted murder, disobedience to a particular order, insubordinate behaviour to constituted authority and false accusation? I mean, what options do you think are left for the convicted soldiers? I would prefer we plead for pardon for the affected soldiers or canvass for amendment to the extant military laws of the land or both, than engage in condemning the military, particularly the court martial for applying the extant laws to the affected soldiers. This is aside whatever complaints they may have regarding the substance of the trial leading to their conviction, like breach of fair hearing or breach of rules of substantive law or procedure.But as it

Corruption thrives in the land. So, the Judges and staff of the courts can’t be expected to be saints

Sir, what is your take on the succession crisis in Taraba State that was occasioned by the injuries sustained by Governor Danbaba Suntai in a plane crash? I think it is a simple issue that has been made complex by the conflicting and competing political interests in the State. But I think for the sake of certainty and stability in the system, the ailing governor’s team should allow the acting Governor to take over fully. They have the opportunity of vote out the Acting Governor when election comes up again. The Governor certainly does not seem to be in good state of mind to continue to rule. However, that does not mean the acting governor should be actively instigating his aids to be inflicting mental and psychological assault on the Governor.

Law

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Privileges of elevation to the silk: Matters arising continued FROM LAST WE E K

Michael A. Agbamuche

n the Nigerian context, the provision is one that is imposed on the court by the statute vis- the Legal Practitioners Act. In practical terms, it is a matter of significance only to the observing public who as a consequence of the social paradigms of the Nigerian society may take this to mean that the Senior Advocate employed by their opponent has been placed in a superior position to influence the course of the day’s proceedings. In real terms, particularly in Lagos State and other states where more advanced civil procedure rules are in operation, the judge in the full exercise of his power to manage proceedings in his court, is unlikely to be swayed in his decision making over a case he is presiding merely because one of the lawyers is sitting in the front row. Before the creation of the rank of Senior Advocate, the fact of lawyers sitting in the front seat or row could be seen as a standard if not convenient means of recognizing that a barrister was a senior member of the profession. Nigerian critics of the rank of Senior Advocates have sought to identity this privilege of sitting in front as evidence of what they called “the discriminatory and unfair advantage enjoyed by Senior Advocates”. That point of

view would seem not be well founded. It is important to remember that the Inner Bar refers to the select members of the profession who have distinguished themselves through advocacy in the superior courts. It is lawyers themselves who constitute the Inner Bar and not merely the physical existence of a row or some part in a court. The privilege of wearing silk gowns in addition goes a long way to add to a distinction not dependent on where they sit in the court. The statute merely recognizes what amounts to one of the founding ethics of the profession, i.e. the respect for seniority and distinction at the Bar. There is therefore no basis upon which any critic can pin any accusation on the rank of Senior Advocate that by reason of sitting in the front row, there is discrimination or unfair practice against other members of the Bar.

Ogwemoh

How I became SAN, by Ogwemoh

Right to call a case out of turn It has always been the common law tradition that the Judge presiding over any proceeding had the discretion to call any senior lawyer who had a case before him out of turn. That practice has always existed within the Nigerian legal system so much so that it seemed only natural that the Legal Practitioners Act since 1975 enshrined this practice by making it a matter of statutory duty to accord a Senior Advocate the “right to mention any motion in which he is appearing or any other cause or matter which is on the list for mention and not otherwise listed for hearing out of turn on the cause list”. Given that the rank of Senior Advocate is an award for excellence in advocacy, it must be the case therefore that such an award is usually given to experienced advocates with number of years of practice at the Bar which already afforded them a good measure of preference in the here before mentioned practice of allowing seniors mention their cases out of turn. l This piece is an extract from Agbamuche’s work first published in the Anatomy of the Legal Profession edited by Prof. Epiphany Azinge, SAN

Agbamuche

to be continued

Legal icons bag national honours CO NTINUED FROM PAG E 22

INDE & CO with offices in Lagos and Ibadan and now Abuja in the Federal Capital Territory and Port-Harcourt. He was appointed Notary Public for Nigeria on the 25th of November, 1994 under the Notaries Public Act Cap 331 by Honourable Justice Mohammed Bello GCON, former Chief Justice of Nigeria. In 2005 he was elevated to the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) on 26th September, 2005. In 2007 he was appointed Pro-Chancellor, Chairman Governing Council Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Oyo State of Nigeria where he served for the statutory 4 years until 2011. He was also the Chairman of the Oyo State Committee on the Decongestion of Prisons. His areas of law practice include: General Civil Litigation, Commercial litigation, Company Law, Family Law, Property and Land Law, Banking, Insurance & Liquidation law, Arbitration, Maritime and Shipping Law, Public Advocacy and Parliamentary Counseling

Services. He is the author of various publications amongst which include “Securing and Enforcing Maritime Claims: Juriscope 1st Edition-2001 Series” and “Wills and Testamentary Disposition”. He is a Member of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), International Bar Association [IBA], Nigeria-British Chamber of Commerce, NigerianBelgian Commercial Information and Documentation Centre and Commonwealth Lawyers Association. He has been a Council Member, Section on Public and Development Law, (SPIDEL) of the NBA, Chairman Finance Committee, Nigerian Bar Association, Ikeja Branch and he is an active member of the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria. He is a member of various socio-cultural organizations, philanthropist and recipient of various local and international awards. On his part, Chief Mike Abu Ozekhome (SAN) hails from Iviukwe town in Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State, Nigeria.

The firm is renowned for its commercial practice in Nigeria

ylva Ogwemoh, Principal Partner and Head of the Law Firm of Marine Partners, located in the prime and serene business district of Victoria Island, Lagos, was sworn in as one of the 2014 Senior Advocates of Nigeria on September 22 in Abuja. Ogwemoh had his pupilage in the law firm of Olisa Agbakoba & Associates and Mike A. A. Ozekhome & Co. before setting up the law firm of Sylva Ogwemoh & Associates in 1992. Six years after, Sylva Ogwemoh & Associates transformed into Marine Partners. Specifically, Sylva Ogwemoh &Associates changed its name to Marine Partners in 1998. Ogwemoh was admitted as a Solicitor and Advocate of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in 1988. He attended St. Peter’s Grammar School, Agenebode, Edo State, where he obtained the West African School Certificate with a Grade One distinction in 1980. Thereafter, he proceeded to the famous St. Patrick’s College, Asaba for his High School Advanced Level education and did his Lower Sixth Form before proceeding to the then Bendel State University (now Ambrose Alli University), Ekpoma, where he obtained his LL.B in 1987. He obtained his LL.M with specialization in Corporate Management and Finance Law from the Lagos State University. Ogwemoh is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, United Kingdom, member of the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA African Users’ Council), a Panel Member of the Kigali International Arbitration Centre (KIAC), Rwanda. He is also a member of the Lagos Court of Arbitration, Maritime

Arbitrators Association of Nigeria and the Negotiation and Conflict Management Group. The new silk wig, an Associate Editor, Journal of Human Rights Law & Practice between 1991 and 1992, was admitted as Notary Public of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 1998. Ogwemoh is a member of the Nigerian Bar Association, International Bar Association, LAWASIA, Nigerian Institute of Management, Capital Market Solicitors Association of Nigeria and a Registered Capital Market Practitioner with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Nigeria. Ogwemoh has been involved in legal practice within Nigeria, the West African sub-region and internationally since he was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1988. He has also been involved in several commercial arbitration proceedings in banking and finance, real estate, shipping, oil and gas, both as advocate and arbitrator. With 26 years post call, Ogwemoh had handled several complex and sensitive cases; thereby contributing significantly to the development of law in Nigeria. His areas of practice include; company and commercial law, banking and finance, shipping and admiralty and international business transactions.

His pupilage in the law firm of Olisa Agbakoba & Associates and Mike A.A. Ozekhome & Co. fired his excellence in law practice

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

Interview

Healthy Living

Health News

Tomori: Healthcare professionals in the 60s guided by ethics

Kidney stones: Risk factor for diseases Airtel mobile health services champion women’s wellbeing

PPF support group raises hope for cancer survivors

Health

1960-2014: Nigeria’s health system on the plunge

Several deep-rooted challenges ranging from underfunding, brain drain, quackery, lack of political will by successive governments resulting in their paying lip service to provision of reliable, efficient and affordable healthcare services for the people, have contributed immeasurably to the worsening health system in the past decades, writes APPOLONIA ADEYEMI

ormer Gen. military dictator, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, is said to be seriously sick and is being cared for in a German hospital for chronic back ailment. Similarly, in May before she finally succumbed to the cold hands of death, former Minister of Information and Communications, Prof. Dora Akunyili was flown to India for cancer treatment. Also, Governor DanbabaSuntai of Taraba arrived Abuja at 10 p.m on Saturday, September 14, after months of medical treatment in the United Kingdom (UK). It will be recalled that he was involved in an air crash the injuries of which were believed could not be handled in any Nigerian hospital. Going abroad for medical treatment as highlighted by these recent high profile medical cases is now the norm in the country. Seeking medical treatment in mostly Asian countries and western nations is not only limited to the wealthy and people in governance, both middle class and low income Nigerians now source fund privately to undertake medical tourism in their quest for quality healthcare which many believe is lacking in local hospitals. Although, seeking medicare abroad has been with us since late 20th Century, it is indeed a puzzle that 54 years after Independence,

Orhii

Drugs

rather than abate, medical tourism has taken centre stage leading to further loss of confidence in the health system and a huge drain in the nation’s foreign exchange reserve. To confirm these, a former President of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Dr. Osahon Enabulele, in 2013, said Nigerians spend over N120 billion annually on medical tourism while about 5,000 patients travel to India monthly for treatment, describing the trend as ugly and unacceptable. While this data reflects tourism to India alone, the figure can be much higher as many Nigerians similarly travel to the United States (U.S), Europe including the United Kingdom (UK) and other parts of the world for treatment. Lamenting over this, Enabulele said, “In fact, things have gone so bad in the country that some Nigerians travel abroad in order to conduct medical check-up on simple things like blood pressure and called on the government to improve the health sector which is widely believed to be in shambles. For instance, part of the aim of the health system in the independence era was to make qualitative care service delivery accessible, affordable and achievable. These

NAFDAC now deploys Truscan to detect counterfeit medicines

For the population, seeking healthcare in those days, hospitals were better equipped; health was not limited to patient care, but included good and reliable disease prevention and control processes.

objectives therefore dictated that the best facility, equipment and skilled personnel were put in place to ensure better treatment outcome. Highlighting the nature of Nigeria’s health system in those days, a foremost virologist and President of the Nigerian Academy of Science (NAS), Prof. Oyewale Tomori said the situation of Nigeria’s health system was better in those days in several aspects: “for the population, seeking healthcare in those days, hospitals were better equipped; health was not limited to patient care, but included good and reliable disease prevention and control processes. I remember that our laboratory facilities were up to date and provided quality services.” However, the advent of military rule and years of underfunding the sector as well as paying lip service to the issues by successive governments resulted in a setback for the health sector. Not only did the sector experience stagnation in terms of funding, brain drain, dilapidated and obsolete equipment, misdiagnosis and mistreatment, poor treatment outcome, inadequate skilled personnel, to men-

tion just few of these ills, the little that had been achieved in the post-independent era began to decline. These contributed largely to the worsening health indices Nigeria has been recording in the last two to three decades. According to the 2013 National Demographic Health Survey (NDHS 2013), today, maternal mortality ratio is 576 per 100,000 live birth (lb) and approximately10,000 Nigerian women single and married die annually from unsafe, clandestine abortion, many in the prime of their lives. The Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS4) report also, indicates that under-five mortality in Nigeria increased from 138 per 1,000 lb in 2007 to 158 per 1,000 lb in 2011. This is just to list a few. The impact of underfunding and obsolete working tools has been most devastating on the morale of health workers most of whom have been at daggers drawn with their employers over welfare package and non-conducive working environment. This has resulted in incessant strike which is now typical of the sector in the last two decades, further worsening the already bad state of the nation’s health system. It is not only during strikes that Nigerians who need care services are denied treatment, health coverage under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in the last 54 years after independence is still less than seven percent. Dr. Enabulele observed that 100 years has not seen much positive change in the nation’s health sector, but rather “the ruling and political class only pay lip service to the desire to ensure Nigeria meets its health care need.” To change this trend, Dr. Tope Ojo, chairman, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Lagos State, has demanded that health coverage be improved to cover Nigerians 100 percent. Another major issue worthy of mention is emerging new CONTINUED ON PAGE 30

Health

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Tomori: Healthcare professionals in the 60s were guided by ethics Looking at the Nigeria’s health system in terms of health care facilities on ground in the 1960s compared with what is obtainable in recent time. Could you relate your experience?

Prof. Oyewale Tomori is a foremost virologist and President of the Nigerian Academy of Science (NAS). In this interview with APPOLONIA ADEYEMI, he discusses state of Nigerian hospitals in the postindependent era and the current situation, factors responsible for poor quality healthcare provision in the current dispensation.

I think the situation was better in those days in several aspects: for the population seeking healthcare in those days, the hospitals were better equipped; health was not limited to patient care, but included good and reliable disease prevention and control processes. I remember that our laboratory facilities were up to date and providing quality services. In those days, cleaning your house was not limited to the current twohour monthly environmental activities. Cleaning of the environment, disposal of refuse was a daily affair. Each person cleaned his or her house daily and the entire village or town was clean. The current unhealthy rivalry between different groups of healthcare professionals did not exist then. There was harmony, mutual respect and appreciation of each other. Also there is quackery now (in every sector – fake doctors, hospitals run by nurses, drug peddlers running pharmacies, “fine medicine” sellers establishing mobile pharmacies, charlatans running laboratory services and all and general purpose traders importing drugs, etc ). In Tomori those days there were checks and balances and the strong arm of the law have to import all of the technology, often caught up with delinquents and the supplies and support systems criminals. Perhaps the development for your refined equipment, you are of health and healthcare facilities rendered impotent when government and resources could not match the allocation is not disbursed or used for uncontrolled population explosion in illegal or unintended purposes. More Nigeria in the last two decades. There often, treatment still relies on clinical is no forgiving the retinue of govern- diagnosis by the physicians ments- military and civilians – who paid and continue to pay lip service What is your experience about hospital to provision of reliable, efficient and waiting time then and now? What key affordable healthcare services for the factors drive what is happened in early people. Today, procurement of drugs years and in recent time? and hospital equipment is more to The number of hospitals we have the benefit of contractors, who cannot differentiate between a pharmacy now cannot cope with the volume of tablet and a computer tablet. Rarely people seeking hospital services and in those days will you see a govern- health care. This has resulted from ment official receiving treatment lack of forward planning by succesoutside the local healthcare system? sive governments that have ruled our country. Therefore, waiting time Was there more quality care service in hospitals continues to lengthen provision then than now? What was the and people are then forced to seek experience? alternative sources for healthcare. This drives people to the embrace Yes, indeed, service provision of unregulated ‘roadside’ clinics was much better at that time than and nursing homes. The majority of now. More important than available our people who live in rural areas do facilities and services was the com- not even have the luxury of seeking mendable work ethics, unique dedi- health care services from the poor cation and unwavering commitment system we have as they are served of health professionals to providing by far worse a system good health care to the people. Has the issue of loss of confidence in Are hospitals better equipped now the health system been with us from than in the 60s and 70s and what is its the 60s? What is its genesis and what is driving it? impact on treatment outcomes? There is no doubt that facilities and equipment have become more refined and automated, but as I mentioned earlier, you can have the best equipment, but if the basic support system is not available, your automated equipment cannot even be used manually. Yes, we have better equipped hospitals nowadays, but such equipment does not run on power failure or lack of electricity. In addition, when you

I do not think so. Although, people sought alternatives to ‘western’ hospitals, confidence in the system was much higher than now. A few reasons can be adduced to the higher level of loss of confidence. First there are not enough hospitals to take care of the people. The few are overwhelmed and their staff overworked. Our poor attitude to work and disdain for excellence in the performance of our duties have permeated

every aspect of our national life. This has translated to poor services, not only in our medical and healthcare delivery services, but in virtually every aspect of our national life. It is as if mediocrity has become the symbol and emblem on our national flag. Unless and until we make discipline, integrity, dignity of labour and excellence the pillars of our national life, so long will there be no confidence in our ability as a nation Infectious diseases used to be on front burner but now coupled with Non communicable diseases (NCDs), the burden is higher. What is the way forward?

Waiting time in hospitals drives people to the embrace of unregulated ‘roadside’ clinics and nursing homes

At no time in the post-independence history of Nigeria have infectious diseases, not to mention health in general, ever been on the front burner. We have never considered health important enough to make it a national priority. It is not as if we have had any significant achievement even with those issues like electricity supply, water supply, education etc , which are placed high on our national priority list. We need a health system that caters for the totality of our wellbeing. The World Health Organisation (WHO) says health is not just the mere absence of disease or infirmity, but a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being. Health as defined by WHO has never been on any burner in Nigeria. Our country is still the verdant pasture for all types and manners of diseases from the communicable to the non-communicable and new ones are coming or arriving to establish themselves on the weak health foundation and fragile health system. What do we need to do? We must begin to care for our health, as individuals and as a nation. Ensuring the health and wellbeing of Nigerians must be our national priority. We must seek accountability from our governments, not only on what resources they provide and allocate for healthcare services, but also on how the allocated funds are used. Nigeria must improve upon her disease surveillance system to enable us respond promptly and effectively to threats from emerging diseases - both communicable and non-communicable. We must demand good work ethics and high quality service from our health professionals, after we must have established an enabling environment for them to function. Finally, we must demand that all our health professionals must work together in mutual respect for the health of the citizens of Nigeria, and hold them accountable, as we hold

our government for the success of healthcare delivery in Nigeria. Nigeria cannot enjoy good health services if health professionals engage in mortal conflict that render each group of professionals impotent, ineffective, irresponsible and irrelevant as catalysts for improved healthcare delivery in Nigeria. Impact of new diseases such as haemorrhagic fevers including Ebola, Lassa fever, dengue, etc, is reducing life expectancy and overwhelming the health system. What is contributing to emergence of new diseases and how can this be addressed? The foundation for effective control of and response to outbreaks of emerging and reemerging diseases, such as such as haemorrhagic fevers including Ebola, Lassa fever, dengue, etc is an effective, reliable and sustainable disease control system. Nigeria disease control system has been abandoned by our government. We have yielded and surrendered disease control in Nigeria to international agencies. Polio is a good example. Disease data management - collection, collation, analysis and using data for action - was abandoned many years ago. There was a time when annually, disease control officers in all the states of the country met annual to review activities in one year, and plan for the coming year. Today, the disease surveillance unit of the Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) exits on paper only. They work on ad-hoc basis, running helplessly, like a decapitated chicken, after disease outbreaks, instead of preventing and controlling diseases. Unless such agencies as the WHO, UNICEF and the U.S Centre for Disease Control (CDC) ‘spoon feed’ us with data collected by their surveillance system, Nigeria cannot make a categorical statement about what outbreak we have, what disease is ravaging our citizens and what pathogen is decimating our people. Remember when the United Nations (UN) building was attacked, we postponed many meetings until the UN agencies relocated to new offices and began collecting data for us to use for our meetings. It is no wonder that we celebrate annually outbreaks of Lassa fever, after we must have lost nurses and doctors to the disease. Until we take ‘ownership’ of our disease surveillance system, so long shall we continue to celebrate the killing of our citizens including the best of our human resources – doctors, nurses and laboratory professionals - in annual rituals of disease outbreaks CONTINUED ON PAGE 29

Health 29

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

Healthy Living

Tomori: Nigeria must tackle emerging diseases CONTINUED FROM PAG E 28

and epidemics that could be prevented or controlled before they assume epidemic proportions. What are the policies that can ensure better and sustainable health system for the 21st Century? First, the President should sign the National Health Bill (NHB). No bill is perfect on day one. Let us work with the bill as it is, and move on from there, amending as required. Anyone looking for a perfect bill should check the Nigerian constitution. We are still working with it and complaining, but the country is not brought to a standstill because we disagree with one section or the other of the Constitution. Remember when we almost had a national calamity over the whereabouts of one of our Presidents; we introduced ‘DON’ into our law that is Doctrine of Necessity. So, to all health professionals, my appeal is, “let the Doctrine of Necessity for Nigeria’: improved health lead us to bring the nation above self.” One positive outcome of the way we handled the Ebola incursion into Nigeria, is that we can sort our problems when we put our mind to it. It takes commitment, patriotism, discipline, and a strive for excellence. Granted fortuitous circumstances played together, allowing us to identify the index case and trace the contacts, it must be recognised that after the initial state of unpreparedness, we rallied our resources, got our acts together and handled the control of the epidemic, professionally and efficiently. If we did it with Ebola, we can do it with the Nigerian health system and other issues that plague Nigeria. What are the projections that can make the system better in the next three to five years ? According to the WHO, health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. This definition which is known as the WHO definition of health has not been amended since 1948. Therefore, to make our health system better, we must start from this basic definition. What that definition is saying is that you may have no disease or

Tomori

infirmity and still not be healthy; that in the absence of a disease or infirmity, you may be physically well and still be sick. In our environment we say life starts at 40, but most forget that our life expectancy was a little above 40 some years ago, so you begin to understand why Nigerians like to “enjoy” life by any and all means and at the expense of others. There are some daily and obvious signs and symptoms of lack of health that we see in our homes, in the offices, on the road, in our communities, among the high and the low, and also among the leaders of our religious organisations? I think what WHO is saying by their definition is that you are not healthy, when you: ldrive your car like a madman against the run of traffic, entering a one way road and from the wrong end, lbuy a jet to land you on the grassless football field of the primary school you attended 30 to 40 years earlier because there is no motorable road to your village; and lget cured of malaria only to return to your home where malaria pathogen infested mosquitoes are waiting to give you malaria again and again and forever. I wish I could make positive projections for Nigeria’s health in the next three to five years. I cannot because we do not care about our health. Somewhere in our Constitution, there is a section that says “the national ethics shall be Discipline, Integrity, Dignity of Labour, Social Justice, Self-reliance and Patriotism.” Unless we apply these attributes to dealing with healthcare delivery in Nigeria, the prognosis for health will be very poor indeed.

Dr. Ihuoma Uko-Ndukwe ada.ndukwe@yahoo.com

Kidney stones: Risk factor for diseases A

kidney stone is a solid piece of material that forms in the kidney from substances in the urine. It may be as small as a grain of sand or as large as a pearl. Most kidney stones pass out of the body without help from a doctor, but sometimes a stone will not go away. It may be stuck in the urinary tract, blocking the flow of urine and causing great pain. Kidney stones are a risk factor for long term kidney disease and may progress to end stage kidney failure requiring dialysis. Persons with kidney stones are more likely to have traditional risk factors like (high blood pressure, diabetes, high protein in urine), among others. It occurs two times in men than in women, at the peak age of 20 to 50 years,

Could you suggest other factors that can make the system work better? One issue we need to address urgently is how the rebasing of our GDP is likely to affect healthcare, especially immunisation activities in the next five to 10 years. According to the World Bank, our GDP rose to $521.8 billion in 2013, while our GNI was $2,700. GAVI (International Finance Facility for Immunisation), the vaccine alliance eligibility is for countries with Gross National Income (GNI) per capita below or equal to US$ 1,570. With Nigeria no longer GAVI eligible, we will need from 2015, to provide annually up to N50 billion for routine immunisation. In 2013, the government allocated less than N15 billion. While we rejoice over the rebasing of our GDP, we must ensure that we do not debase the health of our children by not providing adequate funds for immunisation.

With Nigeria no longer GAVI eligible, we will need from 2015, to provide annually up to N50 billion for routine immunisation

and once one has had kidney stone, there is 50 percent chance of reoccurrence if not properly managed. Pregnant women are two times more likely than non pregnant women to have kidney stones. They suffer (from a specific) type of stone, that is more retained in pregnancy due to hemodynamic changes in the body during pregnancy and is more common during the second and third trimesters. Types of kidney stones Stone formation is slowed by a high level of citrate in the body. Women have a higher level of citrate than men, hence lower occurrence. i. Calcuim oxalate. Calcuim phospate. This type approaches 75 percent in pregnant women and children. ii. Struvite This occurs more in people that eat high protein diet (more alkaline ). iii. Some medications cause drug-induced

A view of kidney stones

PHOTO: fpnotenotebook

kidney stones. iv. Uric acid stones. Symptoms of kidney stones Severe one sided (sudden onset) upper back pain and extreme back pain that will not go away. It makes the victim twist and turn in bed trying to find a more comfortable position. Similarly, it comes with nausea, vomiting, fever and chills, blood in the urine and urine that smells bad or look cloudy. Initially, it might be confused with bladder infection and wrongly treated. Causes In male gender, kidney stones may be caused by low fluid intake leading to low urine volume, excessive intake of protein, calcuim, food high in purines (animal protein is major dietary source of purines causing uric acid stones), alcohol, salt, oxalate, medications, heat and sun exposure. Similarly, it is caused by too much athletic activity and some occupations that limit access to bathroom facility or water drinking which are highly modifiable factors as well as family history/ previous history of stomach surgeries. Calcium restriction is not useful and may induce osteoporosis. Disease that increases calcium level in the body can sometimes cause kidney stones. First initial diagnostics is by straining urine and ruling out urinary tract infection. A renal ultrasound can reliably identify stones > 5mm and a KUB which is an X-ray showing kidneys/ureters/bladder gives a much better diagnosis and can be used for follow up too. Prevention The most important aspect of stone prevention is increased urine volume, which research has found dilutes urinary constituents. The goal requires ingestion of 2000ml to 2500ml of water, which is, drinking eight to 12 ounces of water/citrus juice on waking up in the morning and at bedtime. Water intake should be increased when perspiration is increased (e.g exercise and heat, dietary modifications (diet with moderate amount of fruits and vegetables. Do not restrict calcuim; rather, encourage the consumption of moderate amount of vitamin C and limit animal protein to eight ounces per day. In addition, limit soduim intake and high sugar or fat content). Reduce or eliminate alcohol intake, nutritional supplements and medications, depending on the specific type of kidney stone. For those with diabetes, they shouldincrease intake of regular decaffeinated coffee and tea as well as engage in daily exercise to encourage weight loss. Treatment Surgery is required when there is failure to pass a stone. Pain management is the most effective treatment whch is in the form of crushing the bigger stones with lithotripsy or open surgical procedure in severe cases.

Health

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Airtel mobile health services PPF support group raises champion women’s wellbeing hope for cancer survivors Stories by Appolonia Adeyemi

corporate vision of becoming the most loved brand in the daily lives of Nigerians. Mobile Midwife is a tailored mobile service designed to provide vital healthcare and nutrition information. The Dial-ADoctor service, on the other hand, provides real-time help to pregnant women, nursing mothers and mothers with children under five years of age. The Airtel Mobile Midwife and Dial-A-Doctor services also offer unhindered access to adequate health-

care services and medical advisories to the target group. The Mobile Midwife service comes in two variants - Pre-natal services and new born/mother services. Both services are aimed at improving antenatal seeking behaviour of pregnant women and access to validated health and nutrition information. On the other hand, the Dial-a-Doctor service offers subscribers first-hand opportunity to speak to a doctor by dialling 67777. Users are billed N30 per minute when connected to a doctor.

s part of the global campaign against breast cancer, Pink Pearl Foundation (PPF), a public service charity championing women empowerment will hold its maiden one-day programme titled: ‘Pink Hope PPF’ on the October 25 in Lagos. Hope Session is a breast cancer support group designed to provide psychological help to breast cancer patients and survivors. The support group

s the target 2015 date for Saving One Million Lives approach, it has been disclosed that up to 465,000 lives have been saved between 2011 and 2013. Seyi Ibidapo, Programme coordinator of Saving One Million Lives, said the number of lives saved in 2013 has not been calculated. Ibidapo disclosed this at the launch of two innovative mobile health services dubbed Mobile Midwife and Dial-a-Doctor. Airtel Nigeria partnered with Grameen Foundation and VAS2nets Technologies Ltd to unveil the two health services recently. Also speaking at the launch, the Chief Commercial Officer, Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Maurice Newa, said Airtel is intensely interested in the health and general wellbeing of pregnant women and infants as L-R: Managing Director, Vas2nets Technologies Ltd, Ayo Stuffman; Newa; Ibidapo and David Hutchful of Grameen this is consistent with its Foundation at the launch of Mobile Midwife and Dial a Doctor Services in Lagos recently.

consists of informative and interactive seminars which include psychology, well-being, therapy, body aesthetics & recreation programs anchored by the foundation’s ambassadors – Maje Ayida, Banke Meshida-Lawal, Leila Fowler amongst others. According to the CEO, Pink Pearl Foundation, Orode Ryan Okpu, “The most significant progress we have made to reduce death rate from cancer is through early detection; this yields better long term outcomes and lower morbidity rates. Pink Pearl Foundation contributes to the reduction of suffering, permanent physical damage/ disfigurement and death caused by breast cancer as we believe that if you can save a woman, then you have saved a generation. “We would focus more on preventive measures; increasing awareness on behavioural patterns to

help reduce the risk of breast cancer like healthy eating, low alcohol consumption. In addition, the support group will run programs that promote Physical activity, Nutrition classes, Self value sessions and personal growth strategies.” The main objective of the support group essentially is to monitor the progress of these women from the time they start the support group to about six months and the impact our different strategies will have on them. We would be running a detailed surveillance on them through the period. They would be divided into groups that’ll meet monthly or weekly based on the convenience of instructors and heads of teams. We want to see progress in their mental and physical well being which will help us measure a reduction in reoccurrence, hospital visits, emergencies, etc.

54 years after: ‘Traditional herbal medicine not reckoned with’ CO NTINUED FRO M PAG E 27

diseases. The most recent years have witnessed the outbreak of haemorrhagic fevers - lassa fever, dengue and the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) which is the deadliest of them all. In the latest update, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said 3,091 people had died of confirmed, suspected or probable cases of Ebola out of a total of 6,574 cases reported. Ebola remains concentrated in three countries—Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone—which accounted for 3,083 of the deaths. In Nigeria, Ebola outbreak occurred in July 2014 and by mid-September,19 people had been confirmed to be infected. While 12 survived, seven died. Nigeria is currently at high alert with its – air, sea and land borders being monitored to checkmate the access and exit of infected persons. Rather than rely on international agencies, Tomori said that Nigeria should take ‘ownership’ of the nation’s disease surveillance system so as to effectively address threats from emerging new diseases. On available drugs and medication which used to be relatively safer in the pre and post independence era, it is no longer so. However, the incidence of drug counterfeiting has increased tremendously, helped along by the advent of sophisticated and printing technologies which makes visual detection of fake drugs with the naked eye almost impossible. The WHO estimates that in emerging economies, counterfeits drugs in circulation are estimated at 10 percent while in some parts of the developing world including Nigeria counterfeits are put at about 30 percent. Similarly, the pharmaceutical Security Institute data estimates that drug counterfeiting is worth $75 billion dollars annually while the World Custom Service puts it as a $200 billion business. Explaining other factors driving drug counterfeiting nowadays, which contrib-

utes to reversal of gains in the health sector, Dr. Paul Orhii, the director general, National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) said, “global offensive against the illicit narcotic trade led by the United States (U.S) and Mexico has resulted in drug barons increasingly directing their resources into the less risky and more lucrative drug counterfeiting business creating international syndicates and making drug counterfeiting more global, sophisticated and militarised.” Furthermore, Orhii said, “Nigeria is a developing country with a large population of about 167 million with good market size and low local production capacity coupled with good purchasing power as an oil producer. All these ingredients coupled with vast and porous borders, the country is a ready market for fake drugs, he added. On the public health implications of this phenomenon, the NAFDAC boss said they include treatment failure and death, increased hospital admissions, prolonged hospital admissions and the development of drug resistance. In the case of traditional herbal medicine, the worldwide annual market of which is worth US$ 60 billion dollars, it should contribute positively to the health system in Nigeria, the reverse may be the case. Commenting on the state of traditional herbal medicine shortly after independence, Olajuwon Okubena, an independent researcher into traditional herbal medicine and Chief Executive Officer of Health Forever Products, producers of Jobelyn, an effective herbal preparation that is effective in the management of diabetes, arthritis, stroke, and sickle cell anaemia, said in those days, colonialists tried to destroy traditional herbal medicine completely by tagging it ‘fetish’. Alternatively, “orthodox medicine was imposed on Nigerians while the prac-

The practice of traditional herbal medicine in recent time is an ‘underground’ business

Okubena

tice of traditional herbal medicine was dubbed illegal to the extent of labeling it as a crime,” said Okubena, adding that this was very frustrating for practitioners. According to him, even 54 years after, things have not changed. “The practice of traditional herbal medicine in recent time is an ‘underground’ business because, although activities are being carried out, it is not done in the open. You cannot advertise traditional herbal products.” This without doubt is affecting the fortunes, expected financial gains and health benefits that should accrue from traditional herbal medicine. Although, new approach by NAFDAC in listing traditional herbal products has upgraded the products making them more widely acceptable, the regulatory body’s insistence that practitioners’ production must be GMP (good manufacturing practice)-compliant is a setback for many on the field. “How can a poor herbalist have money to establish a GMP-compliant laboratory?,” posed Okubena, adding practitioners are just being tolerated. He also noted that to date, the Traditional Medicine Bill, the law under which traditional herbal medicine will operate has not been passed in the two legislative houses. Similarly, the National Spokesperson for Complementary & Alternative Medicine, Dr. Bade Adewale has criticised the none- inclusion of herbal and alternative medicine into mainstream health system while demanding that the federal government should budget separately for herbal and alternative medicine to enable it grow side by side with orthodox medicine. Nigerians are presently in high spirit celebrating the nation at 54. The euphoria is elating but the unfortunate aspect of the nation’s life should not be lost. Hence, the plans to improve the general health system should be all embracing, and the inclusion of herbal and traditional medicine should be firmly incorporated in the system. Only in this can a fully upgraded health system be achieved.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

Industry

ICT

Industry

ICT

Scourge of multiple taxes, levies

Developing Africa’s tech start-ups

Chinese consortium to build power plant in Nigeria

Zinox Group invests N18bn in TD Mobile

Business What's news

Global e-commerce sales to hit $1.5tr in Nigeria, others A research firm, eMarketer, has estimated that global consumer ecommerce sales alone in Nigeria and over 200 countries are expected to reach nearly $1.5 trillion before the end of the year.

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SON begins imported vehicles’ verification The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has commenced a pre-shipment verification programme on vehicles.

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The Business Desk

Ayodele Aminu l Deputy Editor (Business)

Simeon Ogoegbulem l Dep. Business Editor

Bayo Akomolafe l Asst. Editor (Maritime)

Sunday Ojeme l Asst. Editor (Insurance)

Godson Ikoro l Asst. Editor (Money Market) Adeola Yusuf l Energy Editor

Wole Shadare l Aviation Editor

HAZARD

Respiratory diseases looms in Nigeria over heaps of electronic wastes Bayo Akomolafe

nscrupulous Australian merchants are flooding Nigeria, Ghana and other countries in West Africa with container loads of e-waste. China and some poor countries in Asia are, however, left out in the trade. It was learnt that some containers destined for ports in the region are laden with old electronics such as televisions, computers, printers and mobile phones. It is estimated that only about four per cent of Australia’s hazardous waste is recycled, with most e-waste dumped in landfill and an unknown quantity shipped overseas. The illegal shipment of containers filled with electronic junk started five years ago from Australia to Nigeria. A resent United Nations’ report revealed that between 650,000 and 1,000,000 tons of domestic e-waste were imported each year to Benin, Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Liberia It was also leant that 500 containers of second-hand electronics are imported to Nigeria every month from Europe, with each container holding at least 500 used computers. The report said: “An analysis of 176 containers of two categories of used Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) imported into Nigeria conduct-

L-R: Corporate Communications Officer, P&G Nigeria, Mr Ridwan Sorunke; Manager, External Relations, Mr Olanlege Abdul-Fatah; Dean, Faculty of Technology, University of Ibadan, Prof. Emmanuel Atoo Ajav and Manufacturing Director, Mr Tomasz Szpyt, P&G Nigeria, at the donation of baby care manufacturing equipment to the Faculty of Technology, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Oyo State.

ed in 2010, revealed that over 75 per cent of all containers came from Europe, approximately 15 per cent from Asia, five per cent from African ports (mainly Morocco) and five per cent from North America. A similar distribution could be

observed in Ghana, where 85 per cent of used EEE imports originated in Europe, four per cent in Asia, eight per cent in North America, and three per cent from other destinations. “West Africa and Asia have already been singled out by Eu-

ropean traders as hot spots for e-waste, which contains toxic chemicals including lead, mercury and cadmium that leach into the soil and contaminate the air.” CONTINUED ON PAGE 32

Property: Experts want Governor’s Consent abolished Dayo Ayeyemi

state surveyors and valuers have canvassed the eradication of Governor’s Consent in order to fast-track property registration processes. Two Lagos-based estate

surveyors and valuers, Mr Stephen Jagun and Mr Lekan Akinwumi, said the process of seeking Governor’s Consent has rubbished the purpose of safeguarding and ensuring security of title. Just last Monday, a report released by the World Bank cat-

egorised Nigeria as one of the most difficult and expensive places to register property in the whole world. Although the World Bank acknowledged the country’s tremendous progress in imCONTINUED ON PAGE 32

Dayo Adeyemi l Property Editor

Australia floods Nigeria, Ghana with hazardous e-waste

Chris Ugwu l Capital Market Editor Abdulwahab Isa l Finance Editor Kunle Azeez l Senior Correspondent Chuks Onuanyin l Energy Nnamdi Amadi l Reporter Johnson Adebayo l AsstProduction Editor

Rates Dashboard INFLATION RATE August 2014............................8.5% July 2014.................................8.3% May 2014.................................8.2%

LENDING RATE InterBank Rate . . . . . . . . . . . 11.57% Prime Lending Rate. . . . . . 16.93% Maximum Lending Rate. .25.83%

EXCHANGE RATE

(Parellel As at Sept 26)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N156.75 Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N254.68 Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N198.08

l Foreign Reserves – $39.59bn as at 18/09/2014

Source: CBN

EXCHANGE RATE (Official As at Sept 26)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N169 Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N280 Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N222

Business | News

ONLINE ADS

Online advertisement spending will top $140 billion

Bayo Akomolafe

research firm, eMarketer, has estimated that global consumer ecommerce sales alone in Nigeria and over 200 countries are expected to reach nearly $1.5 trillion before the end of the year. It added that online advertisement spending will top $140 billion. A recent Citi report forecast app store revenue will top $23 billion globally in 2014, up 43 per cent from a year ago. SimilarWeb gathers big pools of anonymised user data from a mix of sources to statistically analyse millions of sites, and more recently, mobile app activity. It turns this into rankings by country and sector category relative to peers. SimilarWeb tracks Internet and mobile use in more than 200 countries, offering standardised rankings for site traffic in

Global e-commerce sales to hit $1.5tr in Nigeria, others the top 55 Web countries, including lesser-known markets such as Colombia, India, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Ukraine. It targets search and social media marketing and mobile strategy. The firm’s Co-founder and Chief Executive, Or Offer said: “We measure how users engage with websites and mobile apps, and which destinations they use more than others.” Already, the company has received about $25 million in backing from investors led by Naspers Limited, the South African electronic media company, which holds a 26 percent stake. The company said it was weighing its financing options and aims for an initial public offering in 2016, Offer said. It was learnt that the mobile Internet economy remains mostly uncharted territory for app publishers, their competitors, the advertisers who support them, and investors deciding where to place their bets. It was also revealed

DANGER

Many vehicles that have exceeded their permissible lifespan continue to dominate motor vehicle imports Amadi Nnamdi Abuja

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

he Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has commenced a pre-shipment verification programme on vehicles. This initiative, according to the Director General of SON, Dr. Joseph Odumodu, is part of measures to aggressively monitor the importation of vehicles to Nigeria, so as to ensure that they conform to the applicable Nigerian standard. Odumodu spoke in Abuja during the agreement signing ceremony with some selected companies that will implement the Standard Organisation of Nigeria Conformity Assessment Programme (SONCAP) on vehicle importation. Odumodu stated : “The effect of import of poor quality motor vehicles is self-evident in the deterioration in road safety statistics, air pollution, degradation of environment and huge economic losses to the economy. “Consequently, part of the expectation of the automotive policy of Nigeria requires that we begin to aggressively monitor the importation of new vehicles into the country and create a re-

that Israeli start-up SimilarWeb Limited is expanding its service for measuring computer usage into the mobile Internet realm and the apps where users spend the overwhelming bulk of their time on smartphones. Apps are the dedicated ap-

plications users have come to rely on rather than surfing the web for information. Apps are handier and store data locally, allowing people to use them whether or not they have a solid data connection. In a report by Reuters, Tel Aviv-based SimilarWeb has

also introduced new services that give industry players and researchers a unified view of desktop computer, mobile Internet and mobile app activity among users, first in the United States and Britain, and then worldwide in coming months.

L-R: Human Resources Director, FrieslandCampinaWamco Nigeria Plc, Mr Tominiyi Oni; Marketing Director, Mr Tarang Gupta; Managing Director, Mr Peter Eshikena and Sales Director, Mr Adewale Arikawe, at the launch of Peak Milk 850g value pack in Lagos. HOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

SON begins imported vehicles’ verification gime, which would ensure that they conform to the applicable Nigerian standard,” he said. The SON CEO bemoaned the fact that while some measures of progress have been recorded in the fight against the scourge of low quality imports to Nigeria over the years, there is a general consensus that the absence of a regime to determine the quality of used motor vehicles imported in Nigeria has not achieved the desired effect. He observed: “Many vehicles that have exceeded their permissible and useful life span continue to dominate the motor vehicle imports in the country, almost making Nigeria to become a dumping ground for substandard vehicles because the focus of SONCAP since inception has been on products other than motor vehicles and other heavy duty equipment.” The representatives of the three companies namely; Quality Assurance Projects Limited, Medtech Scientific Limited and Cotecna Destination Inspection Limited accredited by SON for the implementation of the programme signed the agreement and assured of their readiness to effectively implement the programme. In his speech at the event, the Director General of National Automotive Council, Aminu Jalal, pointed out that the conformity assessment programme is a welcome development in Nigeria, as it will go a long way in

ensuring safety on Nigerian roads. While applauding the management of SON for the programme, he advised Nigerians to endeavor to buy vehicles only from authorised ve-

hicle dealers and distributors so as to make vehicle recall by manufacturers easier. The agreement states that the accredited companies are to “ensure that vehicles that have reached their end of life,

seriously damaged and have outstanding data recall and remedial action as well as vehicles from areas that have suffered radiological contamination, are not certified as fit for Nigeria.”

Experts want Governor’s Consent abolished CO N TI N U ED F RO M PAGE 31

proving business environment in the last few years, it however, noted that an entrepreneur will need to go through 11 processes over 78 days, and pay 15.8 percent of the value of the property to transfer a property on the average. The World Bank pointed out that the time to conclude the process largely depends on a single requirement – the Governor’s Consent, which accounts for 65 percent of the total time. The report covers four in-

dicators: starting a business, dealing with construction permits, registering property, and enforcing contracts. While blaming the governors for the problem created by the administration of the consent clause, Jagun noted that the concerned authorities have turned the process into money-generating venture, adding that the longer the process, the more money that can be generated. Akinwumi noted that experts at the World Bank did their works very well before releasing the report, saying

that they sent out questionnaires to gather information,” adding that he was on their list of contributors. Jagun, who is the Chairman of Lagos Chapter of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers, explained that easy access to land and easy of obtaining title would go a long way to encourage investment. He advised the authorities, saying: “We can benchmark with the best practice in other countries to make our nation a destination for investors.”

Australia floods Nigeria with hazardous e-waste CO N TI N U ED F RO M PAGE 31

Nigeria is the most dominant African importing country for new and used EEE, followed by Ghana, the report said. In 2008, Australians discarded almost 17 million electronic devices. The Australian Customs and Border Protection Ser-

vice has also admitted it does not keep records of cases referred to the Environment Department for investigation. Former Federal Government Adviser, Mariann Lloyd-Smith, from the National Toxics Network, said the seizures were the “tip of the tip of the iceberg.”

“E-waste is one of the tsunamis of waste that we are facing and Australia has a phenomenal contribution, “ he said. The United Nations Environment Programme has warned that without a global effort to boost e-waste recycling, many developing countries face the prospect of “hazardous e-waste mountains”.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

Industry

SON seeks to elaborate standards to drive HQCF production p.34

How businesses can create new value, by Institute p.35

Scourge of multiple taxes, levies ALBATROSS Multiple taxes and levies inhibit the growth of businesses in Nigeria

Dele Alao

he World Bank reported last week that Nigeria recorded significant improvement in its Doing Business Index within the last four years. The year’s report is the third in a series of reports analysing business regulations in Nigeria. The study, which benchmarked four regulatory areas such as starting a business; dealing with construction permits; registering property and enforcing contracts, also measured the progress made by the respective states since January 2010 when the last benchmarking exercise was conducted. According to the report, from 2010 till date, the country recorded 34 improvements in its Ease of Doing Business Index, of which 13 focused on starting a business, eight on dealing with construction permits, 10 on registering property and three on enforcing contracts. Specifically, the report stated: “For the first time, Doing Business in Nigeria 2014 recorded reforms that make it easier to start a business. In nine states, it is now faster to register a new business with the Corporate Affairs Commission.” Also in recent years, the country, no doubt, has attracted huge Foreign Direct Investments (FDI). In June this year, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), reported that Nigeria remained one of the top three destinations for FDI, in Africa. According to the UNCTAD report released, FDI inflows into Africa rose by four per cent to $57 billion, with Nigeria’s inflow standing at N5.6 billion in 2013. The report said that only seven countries in Africa went above the $3 billion FDI inflow point. They are Nigeria, South Africa, Mozambique, Egypt, Morocco, Ghana and Sudan. Challenges However, business environment in the country is still plagued with many challenges, especially, the vexed issue of multiple taxes and levies. Manufacturers and other business owners are lamenting the un-coordinated nature of Nigeria’s tax administration, which has resulted to multiple taxation, taking a toll on businesses and reducing the global

A manufacturing plant

competitiveness of the industrial sector. Lamenting the challenge, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said: “Multiple taxation is a major problem and we are looking to see how we can get rid of minor multiple taxes and focus on the main taxes.” Also worried by the bane, the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) said it may resort to court action if necessary steps were not taken by the Bayelsa State Government to stop multiple taxation on businesses in the state. Multiple taxes The state Chairman of CLO, Nengi James, said that it was unfortunate that small-scale businesses were subjected to multiple taxes from several groups and government establishment. “It is becoming a worrisome trend, there are so many taxes levied on businesses,” James said. Similarly, members of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) in Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi states decried multiple taxation and levies imposed on them by local, state and the Federal Government. They said that it has impeded their progress. Chairman of MAN in the three states, Chief Azu-buike Okafor, went further and urged government at all levels to actualise the earlier plan to ban tax contractors or consultants. In the same vein, MAN,

Ogun State chapter, expressed concern over the imposition of multiple taxes and levies on businesses, companies and workers operating in the state, decrying the negative impact which the “arbitrary introduction of new taxes and levies” by the state and local governments has on investment and productivity. The manufacturing group urged government to speedily take actions aimed at boosting production and subsequent generation of employment, saying that a large number of businesses and companies are groaning under the difficult and uncertain economic environment, especially as regards the imposition of taxes and levies, as being experienced in Ogun state among other states.

Doing Business in Nigeria 2014, recorded reforms that make it easier to start a business. In nine states, it is now faster to register a new business with the Corporate Affairs Commission

MAN’s perspective MAN expressed dissatisfaction over the issue of multiple taxes and levies on businesses and companies in the state, explaining that the economy does not grow under harsh and unfavourable government policies. “Since a well-positioned economy in any nation requires a strong synergy between the Public and Private Sector, government should put more effort in providing the enabling environment that is conducive to the growth and development of the manufacturing sector,” it said. It added: “There are unchecked and arbitrary introduction of new taxes and levies by the State and Local Government Councils, thus creating a situation of uncertainty and ambiguity. These taxes and levies are

contrary to the Constitution of Nigeria. Our businesses are constantly being disrupted and we are constantly under threat of factory closure for nonpayment of illegal taxes and levies.” Also, Chairman, Ikeja branch of MAN, Prince Oba Okojie, at a forum in Lagos, lamented that the incidence of multiple taxation and astronomical increase in taxes and levies has led to disruption of businesses in the state. For instance, according to him, in addition to the taxes paid/payable to state government under Act CAP.T2 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, a total of 10 other taxes/levies, are being collected by the Lagos State Government. Okojie listed some of the taxes that have been giving industrialists sleepless nights to include environmental development levy/charge, environment impact assessment levy/charge, and land use charge. Others are Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA) levy (laboratory analysis), Ministry of Transport (MOT) road worthiness charge, LASEPA petroleum storage charge for tanks above 10,000 litres, solid waste charge, chemical storage permit, Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) levy for waste disposal, and Lagos State fire service charge. Okojie said multiple taxation has added to the growing list of challenges facing industrialists such as insecurity, high lending and exchange rates, high handedness of some regulatory agencies, and multiple inspections/visitations from Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), amongst others.

INDUSTRY | BUSINESS

REVIEW SON plans to find better ways of improving cassava flour

Stories by Dele Alao

etermined to further drive the implementation of High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF) production and the value-chain process, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), has begun the review of existing standards for the commodity. The quality regulatory agency, through a technical committee involving regulators and stakeholders within the cassava value chain, said that the initiative would further drive the adoption of cassava and cassava products in the production of other products. Director-General, SON, Dr. Joseph Odumodu, said that

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

SON seeks to elaborate standards to drive HQCF production the move was in line with the implementation of government policies of cassava flour inclusion for baking and other confectioneries. He said: “The need to develop standards for cassava products became necessary in order to ensure the safety and quality of cassava products, promote fair trade practice among stakeholders and also key into the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA)’s vision for the cassava bread project. The elaboration of these standards, and in particular, standards for cassava bread has become necessary as a result of request from stakeholders and in line with Presidential directive of the commercialisation of cassava

bread with the objective of 50 per cent penetration of the national bread market by 2015. The move will support SMEs’ production of HQCF.” Represented by the agency’s Director, Laboratory Services, Louis Njoku, the SON boss stated that different areas of cassava are being examined and the elaborated standards would cover the range of value-chain. Also, Chairman, Technical Committee for Cassava and Cassava products, Professor Lateef Sanni, noted that the adoption and implementation of standards would drive the quality framework and fair trade practice in the country, adding that the buy-in of the various stakeholders in imper-

ative for the implementation to be successful. While the Head of Food and Codex department, SON, Margareth Eshiet, said that SON was working with the Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi (FIIRO) on the national recipe that businesses would use in the production of cassava bread. She added that a code of practice would be issued to small businesses and other stakeholders to ensure proper implementation of the project. Findings however revealed that the reviewed standards are expected to address issues bordering on quality requirements, safety practices, ingredients, packaging and labeling, sampling, among others.

NACCIMA, others seek more attention on agric COLLABORATION Stakeholders want agric sector to attract more attention for research funding, among others

P L-R: Manager, Retail, Peace Tiding Venture (PTV), Mr Segun Bakare, Logistics Manager, Mr Wunmi Raji, CEO, Mr Banji Adesanmi and Sales Manager, Bolaji Ajiboye, at the award presentation as the best mobile phone dealer in Lagos.

Plans to restore Aba as economic hub underway

he Abia Think Tank (ATT) said it has begun moves to restore and establish Aba as the economic hub of Nigeria’s South East region with the planned second Aba Economic Summit organised by the group. The summit with the theme “Aba as the Centrepiece of Abia Economic Renaissance, is to consolidate, maintain momentum and deepen the gains of the first edition of the summit held last year. This year’s summit holds on October 23 and 24. While unveiling the group’s plans, President, Abia Think Tank, Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, said that for the nation’s economy to reach its full potential, there was the need to evolve a strategic roadmap for a regional economic powerhouse of the past like Aba, which had crumbled due to years of inadequate infrastructural inputs and insecurity. Ohuabunwa, who noted that Aba used to stand at par with

mega industrial cities like Lagos and Kano before it got hit by a major withdrawal and downscaling of most of the major industries in the city due to infrastructural neglect after the civil war, said that the city as at today has become one of the safest cities in the country. Ohuabunwa said: “The issue of rebuilding Aba though herculean is ongoing and cannot be left to the state government alone, because it was initially built through federal, state and private sector funding and inputs.” On the first summit, Ohuabunwa, said that the initiative was a national call to sustain the initial gains and help to create a ripple effect on other parts of the country. He said: “It is expected that the fallout of the Aba Summit 2 will ignite tremendous economic activities in Aba with positive ripple effects in the economy of Abia state, Nigeria and the West African sub-region.”

eeved by its low contribution to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) despite its huge potential, the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) and other relevant stakeholders have called for adequate research fund and development activities in agriculture beyond the present level. NACCIMA, including the Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi (FIIRO) and Bank of Agriculture (BoA), stated this at a recent forum in Lagos. They noted that the nation’s agricultural sector would require stakeholders addressing several factors like the operating environment, support services, value-chain partner cooperation, changing consumers’ needs and information system upgrade. The stakeholders sought for increased government’s intervention in the agric value chain in a bid to drive the growth of the sector. The stakeholders noted that despite the country’s rich agricultural resource endowment, the sector has been growing at a very low rate and less than 50 per cent of the country’s cultivable agricultural land is under cultivation. They argued that the efforts of the government on infrastructure development including research had been inadequate with 23.7 per cent

of year 2014 budget of the Federal Government appropriated for capital expenditure. The National President, NACCIMA, Alhaji Mohammed Abubakar, who noted that over the years, agriculture had proven to be one viable sector more than capable of contributing 75 per cent to the Gross Domestic Product of the country as against the current 24 per cent, said that there were innumerable amount of value chain in the stream of agriculture, from cultivation to the final consumer. “Agricultural value chain is an important option for agricultural development because higher financial returns can be realised through value-enhancing inputs. It also contributes to the improvement in the effectiveness and efficiency of agricultural values,” he said. He added: “It is a known fact that the value chain concept creates opportunities for farmers, agribusiness and entrepreneurs along agricultural value chain to transform commodities into higher value products- a process that can play an important role in poverty reduction; creation of employment, provision of raw materials for industrial growth and generation of income.” Also, the Director-General of the Federal FIIRO, Mrs. Gloria Elemo, said low investment in agricultural infrastructure had resulted in weak competitiveness and productivity of enterprises in the country while the primary products were exported without value-addition as a result of inadequate financing of infrastructure. The FIIRO boss said that the infrastructural facilities available were too obsolete to churn out meaningful research and development results that will be globally competitive.

INDUSTRY | BUSINESS 35

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

ROADMAP Institute of Business Development (IBD) plans to chart a new course for African businesses Stories by Dele Alao

ne of the leading global professional bodies for business development professionals, the Institute of Business Development (IBD), has said that new opportunities await African businesses if they can align with global business development ideals. To his end, the Institute in its efforts at helping African businesses position themselves to create new opportunities, has chosen the theme; ‘Business Development in Africa: Emerging Issues for Strategic Actions’ for its ‘2014 Business Development Week slated to hold in Lagos from November 12 to 14.

Heritage Bank supports SMEs

How businesses can create new value, by Institute The Registrar/Chief Executive Officer (CEO), IBD, Paul Ikele, said: “The summit will demonstrate in real terms how companies can align their core business with the global business development initiative to bring about poverty alleviation at the Base of the Pyramid. By utilising their resource capabilities, companies can improve the lives of people in our continent through increasing investment, creating jobs, increasing skills, and developing and providing goods, technologies and innovations.” Ikele said as companies do so, they will be able to penetrate the marketplace. “Above and beyond marketplace expansion, aligning your business with the initiative will contribute positively to your company in several ways such as improved supply chain, improved corporate culture, staff retention and morale, increased license to

operate, improved investor attractiveness, global corporate reputation, as well as make you become an employer of choice, among others,” he said. The registrar noted that a commitment to do business with low-income communities provides the greatest contribution to regional prosperity and to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). He said the Institute chose to engage in the summit becausethe overwhelming characteristic of emerging markets is that they exist in a large majority of low income communities that have come to be defined as the Base of the Pyramid (BoP), which is those living on less than $1500 annually. “Four billion people make up the BoP and hold $5 trillion in purchasing power. Asia is home to the biggest BoP market with 2.86 billion people on an income of $3.47 trillion. That reflects 82 per cent of the

region’s population and 42 per cent of the region’s purchasing power,” he said. He added: “The BoP concept champions new thinking and new ways of doing business in the world’s poor markets. While this high-level aspiration is not necessarily new, the current concept, also known as B24B (business-to-4-billion), was coined by influential business academics. Africa is and conducts most of its international trade with emerging markets; this means that African companies should be well placed to broaden operations, supply and procurement to involve the Base of the Pyramid. To successfully engage with the BoP market place, new and innovative strategies will be required in order to respond to the unique obstacles and infrastructural development to position African business group to take a chunk from the global market considering our population.”

eritage Bank Limited has indicated interest in the growth of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the country. To this end, the bank plans to hold its maiden Business Fair. The two-day Business exhibition is one of the key activities marking the bank’s 2014 Customer Service Week scheduled for October. Explaining the rationale behind the maiden Business Fair, Group Head, SME, Heritage Banking Company Limited, Mr Bayo Ogunnusi, said: “In line with Heritage Bank’s cherished vision of promoting economic development through supports for SME’s, we will be hosting our esteemed customers to a twoday Business Fair aimed at showcasing their businesses to new customers and members of the public.” He added that the business exhibition would be value driven, as the lender had concluded plans with Google, Microsoft and different departments with innovative products at Heritage Bank stable to offer on-the-spot advisory services on strategies of optimising businesses using modern business tools and plugging into unexploited business opportunities arising from the nation’s rebased economic profile. “There will be a lot of valueadded offerings by Heritage Bank to the participating organizations. There will be business clinic, funfair, networking, MasterCard utilisation and opportunity for non-card holders to open their accounts. Google and Microsoft will be on hand to guide business owners on how to take their businesses to the next level,”, he said.

L-R: Deputy Managing Director, Synthesis Communications Limited, Agbo Agbo, Co- host of the show, Segun Ogundipe (Laff up) Senior Brand Manager Maltina, Wole Adedeji and the Marketing Director, Nigerian Breweries Plc, Walter Drenth, at the Maltina Dance All 8 (MDA8) grand finale in Lagos.

Chinese consortium to build 1,000MW power plant in Nigeria INVESTMENT Nigeria records another Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in coal power plant

hinese consortium, HTG-Pacific Energy, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Nigerian government for the exploitation and mining of the Ezinmo Coal Bricks in the country’s coal-rich eastern state of Enugu. A Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) that would authorise the investors to build

a 1000 megawatts coal power generating plant will follow the MoU. The country which is richly endowed with vast natural resources, is exploring diverse means of power generation to solve country’s gross power supply deficits. Nigeria last year privatised its state-owned hydropower and gas-fired power plants, to leverage on the business expertise of private investors to boost the productiveness of the plants. The country has also opened its arms to investors interested in exploring other forms of energy generation, with recent deals for a 50-megawatt solar

station struck. The coal deal with HTGPacific is seen as a means of utilizing the abundant coal reserves, which the Nigerian government says is capable of generating up to 30 percent of the country’s energy needs environmental-friendly clean technology. Vice President, Namadi Sambo, who represented President Goodluck Jonathan at the signing of the MoU with the Chinese consortium, said that the plant would complement other public and private driven electricity projects as well as improve the power supply of the host state and the eastern region as a whole.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

ICT

FG plans national cyber security strategy p.37

Backup Networks to tackle e-waste in Nigeria p.39

Developing Africa’s tech start-ups The 2014 Demo Africa hosted by Nigeria has provided a platform for tech start-ups in the country and across Africa to showcase their technology ideas into successful businesses, writes KUNLE AZEEZ

his year’s edition of Demo Africa has presented a veritable platform for young tech entrepreneurs within and outside the country to talk about their various software applications before a global investment community with a view to securing the necessary investment needed to make their solutions successful businesses. The event, first of its kind in Nigeria, drew the attention of top investors, IT buyers, IT consumers, government officials and IT enthusiasts from across Africa and, indeed, saw new flames fanned around the unveiled innovations. It is instructive that 20 of the 40 finalists who presented their business ideas to the investment community were Nigerians who had emerged through various incubation schemes being floated by government and some private concerns. Demo Africa’s potential According to the Executive Producer of DEMO Africa, Mr Harry Hare, the time has come for African countries to begin to use their local young and innovative minds to develop the much-needed software applications so solve African problems, stressing that Demo Africa presented such potential. “It is inspiring to see that now more attention is being accorded the pursuit of solutions to problems that are uniquely African. The continent has one of the most diverse and talented pool of young people and finally we are seeing a real intent by authorities to utilise the massive power within these brains to bring positive change, especially through technology.” Hare stated that the Demo Africa forum, which entered its third edition this year, had seen serious minds put together through various organised fora including the LIONS@frica Summit and the Pan African Angel Investors forum. In his views, VC4Africa’s Chief Executive Officer and

A cross section of start-ups, who participated at the 2014 Demo Africa forum in Lagos

securing the hosting rights of the event this year is, indeed, a validation of Federal Government’s renewed focus on the ICT industry in general and the software development industry in particular

Founder, Ben White, said: “Going into the third year of Demo Africa, we are excited to introduce a new exclusive investoronly event as part of the Demo Africa 2014 event.” White said this “is the next step in making sure the leading innovators from across the continent are going to get the backing they need to achieve scale. At the same time, we see angel networks emerging across the continent. Now is the time to bring them together in a shared conversation about how best to move forward.” MainOne’s Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, Mr ‘Folu Aderibigbe, noted that Demo Africa provided an impetus for community entrepreneurship development and enabled young talented Nigerians to showcase their products, learn how to harness and create wealth from their skills, as well as prepare for the journey that ensures personal development and global relevance. Securing hosting right In her welcome address, the Minister of Communication Technology, Dr Omobola Johnson, said that Nigeria is particularly delighted to host the third edition of Demo Africa, arguably the most exciting place for African start-ups to be. According to her, “securing the hosting rights of the event this year is, indeed, a validation of Federal Government’s

renewed focus on the ICT industry in general and the software development industry in particular.” Other initiatives It is instructive that Nigerian government has continued to do its bit to support the software development industry. For instance, the minister said that government is contributing to the development of a robust pipeline of startups with its industry-focused Techlaunchpad software competitions and its IDEA incubators and accelerators. Already, Johnson said that government has, through Techlaunchpad, added 70 startups to the country’s fledgling but vibrant ecosystem while four Information Technology Developers Entrepreneurship Accelerator (IDEA) incubates have emerged finalists for Demo Africa 2014. She also announced that, in the next few days, government will be conducting the first close of the government-seeded IT Innovation Fund. Johnson said: “Government has committed $9 million as seed capital to this fund to be managed by EchoVC and we are literally a month or so away from making our first investment in a number of Nigerian/ African tech start-ups.” However, the minister believes that there is still a lot to be done by African governments to support tech start-ups.

According to her, infrastructure needed to be built to connect more and more Africans to the internet, more ideas needed to be birthed, more companies needed to be nurtured and more investments had to be made in these companies. ‘Star’ start-ups Meanwhile, the event, which saw the 40 Demo Africa finalists launch their IT-generated solutions with the hope of attracting the right eye to take their innovation to the next level, eventually produced winners: Saisai, one of the start-ups from Zimbabwe scooped the SWELL Innovation Award with Irofit and Voto, other start-ups taking the first and second runners up positions respectively. Way forward Meanwhile, stakeholders have stated that a platform such as Demo Africa is key to developing tech start-ups that can become top-rated IT companies such as Microsoft, Google and others which now control the global ICT space. Chairman, Local Organising Committee (LOC), Demo Africa, Mr Yele Okeremi, tasked Nigerians and other African governments on the relevance of investing in ICT, saying that “ICT is the investment of the future, which Africa must take seriously so as not to be left behind in the global economy being driven by ICT.”

ICT | BUSINESS 37

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

FG plans national cyber security strategy PARTNERSHIP Success of the scheme will rely on a coordinated and integrated approach

Stories by Kunle Azeez

he Federal Government said it plans to develop a national cybersecruity strategy aimed at taming increasing wave of cybercriminal activities in the country. Increased access to the Internet in unhindered manners is also fuelling the use of Internet for some nefarious activities, which make the cyber ecosystem unsafe for people using Internet for legitimate purposes.

In achieving this, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and the Office of National Security Adviser (ONSA) are to collaborate to ensure the development of the cyber security strategy. Already, a communiqué issued at end of third meeting of the National Council on Communication Technology (NCCT) held in Yenogoa, Bayelsa State recently, had passed a resolution that the two institutions collaborate towards developing the strategy. “In order to put a sustainable mechanism for addressing the problem of cyber security in the country, NITDA to actively work towards the development of National Cyber security Strategy without prejudice to on-going efforts of the Office of the National Security Adviser,”

the communicate said. However, reacting to the resolution in a chat with New Telegraph in Lagos, DirectorGeneral of NITDA, Mr Peter Jack, noted that cyber insecurity s one of the major issue in the nation’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) industry and at large, in the whole economy. “We don’t need to re-invent the wheel and that is why collaboration is needed. Situations where more than one or multiple government agencies are pursuing the same thing at parallel lines will not augur well for us as a nation. Apart from not moving fast, it will also not make for prudent use of taxpayers money,” he said. According to him, “this is why NITDA’s collaboration with the ONSA is very critical.

The ONSA has started some work in the area of having all-encompassing and robust national cyber security legislation in place and what other agency and stakeholders in the industry should just do is to collaborate with the ONSA. Early this year, we collaborated with the ONSA in holding a national cybersecurity forum.” At the First National Cybersecurity Forum in Lagos this year, the ONSA had raised concerns about the alarming widespread growth of cybercrime, which is adversely affecting nations across the globe. Speaking at the forum, National Security Adviser, Mohammed Sambo Dasuki advocated proactive approach to tackle the increasing cybercrime due to the advanced

technologies being used by criminals. “Realising the importance of cyber space, the Federal Government of Nigeria has designated cyber security as a national security priority with the ONSA stepping up efforts towards meeting the challenge by working in close collaboration with all stake holders to ensure a safer and more secure cyberspace.” He added that experiences from other jurisdictions have shown that success of national cybersecurity initiatives can best be achieved by adopting a coordinated and integrated approach encompassing law; technology; institutional capacity building; private sector Partnership (PPP) and international law enforcement cooperation.

ICT adds 19% to services sector, says FG

he Federal Government has disclosed that Information and Communication Technology (ICT) currently contributes 19 per cent to the nation’s services sector, which constitute over half (56 per cent) of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This was disclosed by the Minister of Communication Technology, Dr Omobola Johnson, at the 2014 award ceremony organised in Lagos by the Centre for Value in Leadership (CVL) to celebrate milestone in the nation’s ICT industry. According to the minister, other sectors that constitute the services sector include finance and insurance (41 per cent); real estate (15 per cent); professional, scientific and technical services (seven per cent); public administration (four per cent) while education constitute 5 per cent. She said ICT has become an enabler for Nigeria’s economy, stressing that ICT industry has significant enabling effect on other sectors of the economy, contributing a combined 2.56 per cent of added value apart from direct contribution of 10.44 per cent to 2013 GDP. Assessing the industry further, Johnson said ICT sector is the third fastest-growing sector in the economy, dominated by the telecommunications industry and multinational corporations. She, however, noted that “IT sub-sector is fragmented and consists of small domestic players with approximately 350 companies, domestic value added in key areas; high level of importation of inputs and finished products; tariff regime and challenging operating environment for manufacturing.”

L-R: Executive Director, Nigerian Deposit Insurance Company (NDIC), Mrs Lola Abiola-Edewor; General Manager, Sales and Distribution, Mr. Kenneth Esenwah; and Senior Manager, Products and Services, Mr. Steven Bamuturaki, both of Smile Communications Nigeria Limited at the presentation of ICT Investment of the Year 2014 Award to Smile at the Nigerian Telecoms Awards in Lagos.

CWG Academy trains 500 ICT professionals

omputer Warehouse Group Plc, through its training arm CWG Academy, said it has successfully trained and placed over 500 Information and Communication Technology professionals into various fields of industry. Of the over 500 graduates from the academy, about 85 per cent have been employed in leading companies such as IBM, CWG, MTN, Standard Chartered Bank, StanbicIBTC, Chevron, Cadbury, Etisalat, Ericsson and Unilever among others, while about 10 per cent have opted to become technology entrepreneurs. Group Chief Executive Officer, CWG Plc., Mr Austin Okere, who made these disclosures in a statement, said the goal of the CWG Academy is to bridge the workforce knowledge gap in Africa by equipping fresh graduates with the required skills that will make them employable and successful entrepreneurs. Also, Okere said the acad-

emy has extended the frontiers of the academy to the other operational bases of its including Accra, Kampala, Port Harcourt and Abuja, with plans to incorporate Cameroon by the first half of 2015. According to him, with the extension into new frontiers, it is expected that beneficiaries of the academy will quadruple over the next two years. Explaining further on the academy, Okere, who is also Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Columbia Business School (CBS), said the project, which started modestly as a means of maintaining the steady supply of high-skilled engineers to the CWG enterprise, has grown in leaps and bounds to become a succour for ambitious trainable youth, who would otherwise be locked out of reaching their full potential. “Since industry has come to be dependent on our highly trained and qualified graduates, we shall be formalising

their placement through an online site currently under construction. We believe that this initiative shall contribute to the key aspiration of Africa, being inclusive growth and job creation,” he said. According to the CWG boss, “the benefits of training at the CWG Academy are multifold; firstly, it enables the graduates to be employable in any world class organization. Secondly, the academy offers participants the privilege to become experts using a combination of intensive classroom work, practical training and live project attachments.” Also, Chief Operating Officer of CWG Plc., Mr Philip Obioha, said “the CWG Academy plays a major role in preparing African youths for the new digital economy, and is, indeed, a commendable effort worthy of emulation.” Meanwhile, in the statement, some of the alumni of the CWG Academy have also shared their experiences.

ICT | BUSINESS

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Zinox Group invests N18bn in TD Mobile GAP Over 60 per cent of Nigerians have no access to the Internet and many cannot afford a laptop

Stories by Kunle Azeez

ne of Nigeria’s Information and Communication Technology conglomerates, Zinox Group said it is investing N18 billion into its mobile devices distribution subsidiary, TD Mobile. The Group disclosed this at the official launch of TD Mobile in Lagos during the week, saying the new investment will make it

different itself as a brand from other phone distributors. TD-Mobile, the digital lifestyle and highly mobile products distribution arm of Technology Distributions (TD) Limited, the number one ICT value-added distributor in Sub-Saharan Africa, is transiting from legacy to smart devices. Chairman of Zinox Group, the holding company of TD Mobil, Mr Leo-Stan Ekeh the group has perfected plans to inject N18 billion into its operations, launching the biggest support centre in Africa and a showroom of about 1000sqm. “Although it is not easy to operate in this environment, but we are not chasing after money rather the passion to get it right. TD has bright Nigerians that will keep taking the brand and bring out the best in it.

In other words, TD is a brand in a making and it will still in the offing,” he added. Ekeh said that TD Mobile will, in this month, launch a power bank that will back up devices on-the-go and guarantees to be one of its kind. According to him, products from TD Mobile also come with one-of-its-kind guarantee, online serial number confirmations which authenticate users of all mobile devices. Speaking earlier, Managing Director of TD Mobile, Mrs Gozy Ijogun, said the excitement in TD Mobile goes beyond history as it touches on economics and both the science and art of business. Ijogun said: “Our industry has a lot of things going for it. The worldwide smartphone market reached a milestone this year with a billion units sold and an aggressive 40 per cet growth from 2012 numbers and a healthy projection next year. With dwindling growth rates

across most sectors worldwide, those of us in the ICT sector should charge our glasses in readiness to celebrate. “The sheer volume of strong growth demonstrates strong end-user demand of smart devices as a tool that brings a solid computing experience to the hands of many. “Over 60 per cent of Nigerians do not have access to the Internet and a good number of the 170 million population cannot yet afford a laptop. With affordable smart devices with quality screen, software and user experience, TD Mobile is that window to the world for many Nigerians.” She added that TD Mobile seeks to bridge the gap; the divide between the rich and the poor; between the young and old, between the North and South, between ethnic communities and religious divides, saying this can only be done through the power of information presented through smart devices.

Smile pledges fast Internet speed

L-R: Two sponsored subscribers-Mohammed Bello (Lagos) and Abubakar Damgogo (Kano); Customer Knowledge Analyst, Marketing and Strategy Department, MTN, Mr Ismail Salami; another sponsored subscriber, Usman Mohammed (Niger), during the departure of 20 MTN-sponsored subscribers to Mecca for this year’s Hajj in Lagos.

Oracle moves to close IT skills gap CAPACITY BUILDING Emerging economic order requires basic computer literacy and ability to use software to run business operations

global Information Technology company, Oracle Corporation, has launched an initiative designed to enrich and increase the skills capacity of IT practitioners in Africa. The company, in a statement, said the four-pronged programme was devised as a response to the rapid adoption of new technologies by governments and businesses in Africa, exacerbating the shortage of suitably skilled practitioners to use the systems to best advantage. According to Oracle, the dramatic advancement of technology over the past five years has resulted in a gap in IT compe-

tencies and skills availability, stressing that organisations in Africa are adopting new technologies at a rate which is outstripping the availability of appropriately qualified staff. According to Senior Vice President, Oracle East Central Europe, Middle East and Africa, Mr Alfonso Di Ianni, IT holds the promise to promote social inclusion, combat corruption, expand the digital economy and enable stronger links between citizens and governments, businesses and customers, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the communities they serve. “They can do this and at the same time dramatically reduce costs and improve efficiency. However for technology to support such transformation, organizations must have ready access to people capable of setting up and maintaining these systems,” Di Ianni. Consisting of four elements including employee readiness, ecosystem readiness, workforce readiness and youth readiness, Oracle said, through the pro-

gramme, it is reaching out to governments, the private sector and non-profit organisations to implement a long term skills strategy that will help fulfill demand for relevant IT skills. “Using the materials and manpower from Oracle University, Oracle Academy, Oracle Partner Enablement, Oracle Sales Consulting and the Public Sector Center of Excellence, Oracle will, in partnership with the organization or community, create programs addressing their skills need,” said Senior Director, Business Development at Oracle, Orfhlaith Ni Chorcora. Chorcora said two of such partnerships are already underway with the Lagos State government in Nigeria and Equity Group Foundation in Kenya to jointly drive successful initiatives tailored to the local needs. Also, Lagos State Governor, Babtunde Fashola is quoted in the statement as saying, “Building a competitive pool of IT-skilled youth in the state is a priority for Lagos State.”

broadband service provider, Smile Communications, has restated its commitment towards providing reliable and fast-speed Internet services to Nigerians on its network. The company stated this on the sideline of the Information and Communications Technology Investment Operator of the Year award, which it won at the 2014 Nigerian Telecoms Award. The award was given to the broadband company in recognition of its massive investments in 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology, which offers fast internet access to Nigerians. Grateful to Nigerians for the award, the company promised Internet users in the country of further expansion to other cities where its services were yet to cover while ensuring that it continuously address the difficulties most Nigerians were facing in the area of slow

internet speed. Smile promised to rollout in Abuja and Port Harcourt before the end of this year, with the same high speed 4G LTE technology that is currently being enjoyed by internet users in Lagos and Ibadan, where it has wide area coverage. Early this year, the company was awarded the Best 4G LTE Internet Service Provider of the Year, at the Cyber Innovation Awards, which also held in Lagos. Receiving the ‘ICT Investment of the Year’ award on behalf of the company, its General Manager, Sales and Distribution, Mr Kenneth Esenwah, explained that the company’s vision to offer fast internet service to Nigerians was beginning to yield results as more Nigerians were benefiting from the affordable and fast internet service that is being offered by Smile.

Nucleus Software support banks

ndian banking and financial services software powerhouse, Nucleus Software Exports, has rolled out a new credit and loan system that will enable banks in Africa to improve their lending capabilities and implement robust and effective processes and procedures. The company is working with Johannesburg-based Ubank, the worker and community banking and loan provider to implement FinnOne, a market-ready lending technology solution product. Speaking on the banking solution, Nucleus Software’s Chief Executive Officer, Vishnu Dusad, said FinnOne is agile technology platform. “It will increase Ubank’s lending efficiencies exponentially, and grow its

current portfolio to 1.5 million accounts by 2017.” According to him, the FinnOne lending solution will enhance and improve any credit process, including portfolio management and collections that will ensure achievement of operational efficiencies and a reduction of operational losses. Dusad noted that in 2008 and 2009, the Nigerian financial sector was saddled with a huge sum of non-performing loans culminating in the capital erosion of nine out of the 24 banks. “This led to the emergence of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) in 2011 for the purpose of efficiently resolving the non-performing loans assets of banks.”

ICT | BUSINESS 39

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

RECYCLING Almost all electronic waste contains some form of recyclable material Stories by Kunle Azeez

honeDoctorService. com, a concern of Backup Networks Limited, has said it is seeking partners to participate in e-waste recycling in Nigeria. The company, in a statement said, the moves was part of its plan to make the planet a greener and sustainable place for present and future healthy living for all. To be a partner in the scheme, the company said one is required to donate old or discarded mobile device for recycling for a greener and sustainable planet while also earning coupons as credit on repairs for smaller quantities or earn sustainable revenue for larger quantities. Chief Executive Officer,

Backup Networks to tackle e-waste in Nigeria Backup Networks Limited, Mr Monday Ogbe, said e-waste is a term for electronic products that have become unwanted, non-working or obsolete, and have essentially reached the end of their useful life. According to him, “because technology advances at such a high rate, many electronic devices become “trash” after a few short years of use.” “In fact, whole categories of old electronic items contribute to e-waste such as Video Cassette Recordings (VCRs) being replaced by Digital Video Display (DVD) players and DVD players are replaced by Bluray players. “E-waste is created from anything electronic: computers, TVs, monitors, cell phones, personal digital assistant (PDAs), VCRs, compact

disc players, fax machines, printers, among others,” he said. Obsolete electronic devices are rapidly filling the landscape of the globe. In the United States alone, studies show that more than 100 million computers are thrown away with less than 20 per cent being recycled properly. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates as much as 60 million metric tons enter landfills every year. According to EPA, most electronics that are improperly thrown away contain some form of harmful materials

such as beryllium, cadmium, mercury and lead. These materials might be trace elements, but when added up in volume, the threat to the environment is significant. Thus, besides adding harmful elements to the environment, Monday said improper disposal of e-waste is a recycling opportunity lost, saying almost all-electronic waste contains some form of recyclable material, including plastic, glass and metals. He said: “Solving the ewaste problem starts with education and habit change, as a result of knowledge.

Most people are trained to recycle a newspaper, bottles, and cans. Almost anything electronic in nature can be recycled properly with effort. “It is important that any e-waste processor is fully certified in safe destruction and follows certified documented procedures to safely dispose of electronic waste.” According to him, “At PhoneDoctorService.com, obsolete mobile devices are collected as waste for proper recycling. The company has partnered with certified recyclers and is committed to proper recycling process.”

Why we offer insurance cover on phones – Mansard N igeria’s insurance company, Mansard Insurance Plc., has explained why it is partnering with a technology firm, Microsoft Corporation, to provide insurance cover on the latter’s Nokia Lumia 930 mobile phone. Speaking on the insurance company’s foray into the world of mobility, Mansard’s Director of Retail Business, Mr Yomi Onifade, stated that the partnership was aimed at delivering an experience that is the first of its kind to Nigerian mobile market. Nokia Lumia 930 was introduced to the Nigerian market at a media launch recently in Lagos. Speaking further on what the partnership entails, Onifade said every new Lumia 930 comes with free insurance, which covers two screen damages and liquid damage. The insurance is in place for a period of one year and everyone one that purchases the Nokia Lumia 930 from any of the authorized outlets in Nigeria is automatically covered. He further said buyers should be on the lookout for the Mansard Insurance sticker on their Nokia Lumia 930. Answering questions from journalists in the event of a claim, Onifade stated that the consumer only need to report at any Nokia Care outlet or authorised point. “The phone will be examined to know if it is under warranty; if it is, the Nokia team will send the customers’ information to Mansard. The phone will be repaired and Mansard will pay Nokia Care for the repair.” Concurring with Onifade, Managing Director, Microsoft Mobile Devices and Services, West & Central Africa, Nick Imudia said, “This is another first coming with Lumia 930, as consumers get insurance cover

on the phone as soon as they purchase it.” He said the insurance, which is underwritten by Mansard Insurance covers accidental damage to the screen and accidental liquid damage to the phone. “This unique benefit commences immediately at the point of purchase and runs with the warranty on every Lumia 930 bought from authorized Nokia Retail partners. This makes it a wonderful device coming with an awesome package,” Imudia added.

L-R (Seated): Administrative Manager, Computer Warehouse Group (CWG) Academy Coordinator, Abuja Region, Mrs Mary Eledan; Head, Human Resources and Administration, CWG Plc., Mrs Olapeju Ayo-Fisher and Regional Manager, North, CWG Plc, Mr. Nasiru Izegwire, with group of students (all standing) during the maiden graduation ceremony of CWG Academy in Abuja.

Micro Station improves customer services

icro Station Limited, one of Nigeria’s leading Information Technology devices retailing company, has restructured its customer services with the creation of a full-fledged department, devoted to the provision of effective after-sales services to its customers. The initiative is part of the company’s resolve to continuously delight its teeming customers and enhance their personality, irrespective of their background, vocation and interests. Speaking on the new exercise within the company, the Managing Director, Micro Station, Mrs. Tinuola Coutroupis, said as a major brand in the mobile devices retailing in the country, the company put great premium on customer satisfaction. “At Micro-Station, everything we do is built around our customers and that is why we have recently undertaken total restructuring of our customer service division to ensure that

we have little or zero level of complaints in all our branches,” she said. Coutroupis said the company now has a full-fledged department in-charge of customer service issues at the Head office, with representation in all its branches. According to her, “Customers now can simply walk to our customer service desk in any outlet and get prompt and effective solutions to their issues. We are also in partnership with several other organisations and agencies and have put in place, programs to engage our customers and give them value even beyond after sales and our customers are already enjoying some of these benefits. “We have also established a feedback mechanism where the Management of the company can also directly feel the pulse and opinions of our customers, including their peculiar requests and how to service them better. We have also revived our social media interactions through google+, twitter handle

and Facebook pages for customers to be able to interact with us and with other customers.” Over the years, Micro Station has established itself in the mobile handsets, tablets, laptops, cameras and accessories business market with deep understanding of the dynamics of the market, both in the wholesale and retail arm of the market. Also speaking, the Business Development Manager, Micro Station, Mr. Tobi Adewunmi, said, “We have fully established ourselves with a unique retail business model that is targeted at our customers’ needs in their respective locations. We have realised that our brands have target markets and have targeted such audiences in our established locations. “At present, we have retail outlets in Victoria Island, Ikorodu, Mushin, Oshogbo, Awolowo Way in Ikeja as well as our flagship Retail Store in our UltraModern Head Office Complex in the heart of the Computer Village in Otigba, Ikeja.”

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Features

Asaba new yam festival: Celebration of tradition This year’s celebration of Iwa-ji (the new yam festival) brings to the fore social bond between indigenes and sojourners in Asaba, the Delta State capital, writes DOMINIC ADEWOLE

he palace of the Asagba of Asaba, His Royal Majesty, Obi Chike Edozien, wore coat of many colours during this year’s Iwa-ji – the new yam festival. The calibre of people, including captains of industry, top government officials, traditional rulers, comprising the Anioma ethnic nationality, officials of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Zenith Bank, who witnessed the symbolic cutting of the new yam, shows that the people of Asaba prayed, tilled the ground and it yielded its fruits in abundance for them this year. The arrival of the Ebos, led by the Diokpas (eldest men) in company with Ndi-Obi and Olinzeles, the greetings of the Okpala-Ukwu Umuezei on behalf of the Okpala-Ukwus, the homage paid to the Asagba by the oldest Obi on behalf of the Ndi-Obi and that of the Iyase of Asaba on behalf of the Olinzeles, signalled the prevailing tranquillity among the Council-of-Chiefs in the town. Shortly after the breaking and sharing of traditional kola nut, the breaking in of the Aguba Dance Group, members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and the Yoruba community in Asaba, in their boogieing steps, provided ample opportunity for new comers to the festival to endlessly gaze in awe. The highly elated Asagba, who spoke from the throne of grace, said the festival was a platform to appreciate Almighty God who is the creator, ultimate provider, protector and man’s final arbiter, for letting the ground to yield its fruits. He said: “Secondly, it is to enjoy the fruits of our labour and take stock of the progress made so far in the year under review, in the areas of peace and security, human-capital and infrastructural development.” Edozien listed the budding Asaba International Airport, one of the star projects of Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan’s administration, the prevailing peace and security enforced by the state former Commissioner of Police, Ayo Ikechukwu Aduba, and the employment opportunities provided by the chairperson of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSIFT), established by Decree 73 of 1993, Dr Ngozi Olejeme, among the good things of the year.

ABIODUN BELLO FEATURES EDITOR

abiodun. bello@newtelegraphonline.com

Traditional chiefs dancing at the event

Obi Edozien (left)

The Asagba, a medical doctor, who ranked among the first in 1962 at the Faculty of Science, the University of Ibadan, the current Chancellor of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB) and the 19th Asagba of Asaba, expressed profound gratitude to God for making this year’s new yam festival a resounding success. He listed Uduaghan, who he said “made Asaba to be accessible to the global world with his ideas and vision for Delta Beyond Oil”, Aduba, the crime-buster, Olejeme, who he described as “a politician with humane touch by showing compassion to the poor”, the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Peter Onwusanya, who he said “happens to be the first son of Asaba to rise to the highest political position in the state”, and two others, among those to be conferred with chieftaincy titles in the town. One of the much talked about contenders in the race to succeed Uduaghan next year on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Sir Tony Obuh, a retired Permanent Secretary at the Government House, Asaba, who recently turned the contest into a theatre of battle for other gladiators especially in Ika axis of the oil rich state, added colour to the ceremony with his teeming

Some of the dignitaries

It is to enjoy the fruits of our labour and take stock of the progress made so far in the year under review, in the areas of peace and security, humancapital and infrastructural development

supporters. The monarch lauded Uduaghan for “openly agreeing to the creation of Anioma State” when, according to him, “he included it in the Delta State proposal to the just-concluded National Conference”. “Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan deserves to be honoured again for giving the signal that the next governor of the state will come from Delta North,” the Asagba added. Members of the Yoruba community, which accompanied their tribute with dancing, lauded the Asagba for providing enabling environment for strangers to thrive in the capital city. According to the, Edozien is not tyrannical to strangers and does not enthrone nepotism. Addressing the Asagba as “our inlaw” because his wife, Her Royal Majesty, Agunwanyi (Lioness) Modupe Clara Edozien, hails from Egbaland in Ogun State, the Yoruba thanked him for taking good care of their daughter. The highpoint of the ceremony was the symbolic slaughtering of cow, led by Egwu-Ota Dance, and the seven cannon shots to announce the withdrawal of the Asagba from the Arena until the next Iwa-ji (new yam festival) celebration.

Business | Money Line

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

Nigerian banks’ll meet Basel III deadline –FBN Capital LARGE LENDER

A total of 227 banks participated in the current study, comprising 102 large internationally active banks

Godson Ikoro

igerian banks will assiduously strive to meet the challenge of adopting Basel lll’s liquidity coverage ratio (LCR) by January 1 2015, Deputy Managing Director, FBN Capital, Mr.Taiwo Okeowo, has said. He gave this assurance while fielding questions from the New Telegraph at the 2014 Euromoney conference on The Nigeria Banking and Capital Markets, held in Lagos. Okeowo said that the banks have been working on this directive for over two years. He noted that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has given lenders advance notice of what was going to happen, adding that banks are

assiduously striving to make sure that they meet the international banking standards inherent in Basel lll. However, he said that it is when the CBN starts going through the books of banks that those who have complied can be ascertained. He averred: “Just like every other challenges that the banks have had to meet in the past; this one is not new, so I am optimistic they will be ready to meet the January Deadline”. A new Basel III’s Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) will come into effect on 1 January 2015 for Nigerian banks. The minimum requirement will be set initially at 60 percent and then rise in equal annual steps to reach 100 percent in 2019. The Basel Committee published the results of its latest Basel III monitoring exercise, a study based on the rigorous reporting process set up by the Committee to periodically review the implications of the Basel III standards for banks. The results of previous exercises in this series were published in 2014, September 2013, March 2013, September 2012 and April 2012.

A total of 227 banks participated in the current study, comprising 102 large internationally active banks (“Group 1 banks”, defined as internationally active banks that have Tier 1 capital of more than €3 billion) and 125 Group 2 banks (i.e. representative of all other banks).

eystone Bank Limited has inaugurated an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) gallery that was specifically built to accommodate the physically challenged persons in the society. Speaking at the event in Lagos, Executive Director, Operations and Technology, Keystone Bank, Mrs. Yvonne Isichei, said the bank decided to locate the ATM gallery at its Maryland branch because it is a very busy metropolitan area. She explained that the bank introduced the ATM gallery as part of its corporate social responsibility, which according to her, “is all about touching the lives of people to demonstrate Keystone Bank’s commitment to financial inclusion as a developmental goal; as well to align with goal of sustainable banking, which is all about being conscious of the needs of those

As at N14,737,618.7m N16,509,472.5m 8 0.0000 12 10.899 7.96 17.01 US$109.9 US$42,604,781,796.6

Description

TTM

4.00% 23-Apr-2015 13.05% 16-Aug-2016 15.10% 27-Apr-2017 16.00% 29-Jun-2019 16.39% 27-Jan-2022 10.00% 23-Jul-2030

1.21 2.53 3.22 5.39 7.98 16.47

Tenor (Days) Call 7 30 60 90 180 365

Rate (%) 11.9167 12.3333 12.6667 12.9167 13.2167 13.5000 13.7500

NIBOR

Dec, 2013 Dec, 2013 Dec, 2013 2/5/2014 1/20/2014 11/6/2013 Dec, 2013 Dec, 2013 1/20/2014 2/5/2014 Source:CBN

FGN Bonds Bid Price 90.20 99.25 104.10 109.35 114.15 76.60

Offer Yield 13.01 13.40 13.47 13.49 13.44 13.59

Price 90.35 99.40 104.40 109.65 114.45 76.90

Tenor (Months) 1 2 3 6 9 12

Rate (%) 12.1827 12.2737 12.3744 12.8521 12.8535 13.8443

Treasury Bills Maturity Date 08-May-14 07-Aug-14 22-Jan-15

Bid 12.10 12.10 12.05

Bid Spot ($/N) 163.28 THE FIXINGS –NIBOR,NITTY and NIFEX of February 6,2014

NITTY

Yield 12.86 13.33 13.35 13.42 13.38 13.53

Offer 163.38

Open-Buy-Back (OBB) Overnight (O/N)

Rate (%) 11.33 11.63

NIFEX Spot ($/N)

Bid 163.4000

around its environment.” She noted that some bank customers experience some difficulties using ATMs especially the physically challenged. “We want to make financial services accessible. Financial inclusion is about encouraging everybody, taking it near the people as much as possible. It is about our channels and their workability. It is supposed to make life easier,” the Keystone Bank Executive Director explained. She noted that the level of

Offer 163.5000 Source: FMDQ

financial inclusion has continued to grow, expressing optimism that the 2020 target of achieving significant improvement in the level of financial inclusion would be met with structures such as the bank’s ATM gallery for the physically challenged. Isichei explained: “We are happy to know that there has been an appreciable progress, but we still have a long way from achieving a 70 per cent financial inclusion, which is the objective of vision 2020.

Branch connectivity: SkyVision partners Unity Bank

meon Ogoegbulem, Abuja SkyVision, one of the leading global communications providers, has announced partnership with Unity Bank to ensure seamless connectivity between branches of the lender. Unity Bank emerged from the largest merger and consolidation in Nigeria’s banking industry, with 236 business offices spread across the country and continuously increasing in number. With the partnership, SkyVision will provide its satellite-based Virtual Private Network (VPN) services via its local Nigerian hub to support Unity Bank’s LAN network, connecting the bank’s

headquarters to its numerous branch offices nationwide. The SkyVision VPN solution connects Unity Bank’s core applications - including peripheral applications - to its headquarters, enabling continuous, seamless business operations in its rural area branches. Fully deployed and managed by SkyVision, SkyVision VPN will enable Unity Bank to connect their LAN sites with no investment in additional infrastructure. Zubairu Atiku, Head IT of Unity Bank noted : “As one of the nation’s leading banks and a contributor to Nigeria’s GDP, we needed a viable communications solution we could depend on.”

Fidelity Bank Instant Airtime Recharge debuts Godson Ikoro

Money Market Offer 11.85 11.85 11.80

deductions from regulatory capital, no assumptions were made about bank profitability or behavioural responses, such as changes in bank capital or balance sheet composition. The results of the study are not comparable to industry estimates.

Keystone Bank unveils ATM for physically challenged customers

Economic Indicators M2* CPS* INF IBR MPR 91-day NTB DPR PLR Bonny Light Ext Res**

The results of the monitoring exercise assumed that the final Basel III package was fully in force, based on data as of 31 December 2013. Although they did not take account of the transitional arrangements set out in the Basel III framework, such as the gradual phase-in of

idelity Bank Plc has redefined convenience with the introduction of Instant Airtime Recharge, which enables customers to use the Internet to top up their airtime. Mr. Adédèjì Olówè, Divisional Head, and Electronic Banking, who made this known in a statement, said customers of the bank are excited by the service. A customer using this service can top up airtime anywhere, anytime on the phone number registered with the bank simply by dialing *322*070*<Amount>#. “The top up amount is debited directly from the customer’s account and is instant,

available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and compatible with all mobile networks in the country, “he said. Also commenting on the product, the bank’s Managing Director and Chief Executive, Nnamdi Okonkwo, said : “We aim to provide convenient financial services and will continue to achieve these through ground-breaking channels without compromising our customers’ security”. Adédèjì Olówè, corroborated Okonkwo’s statement, saying that Fidelity’s vision for electronic banking was to continue to deploy innovation that delivers convenience. “We will take our bank to our customers wherever they may be, nothing else matters”, he enthused.

Business | Financiel Market News

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

FMDQ Daily Quotations List

29-Sep-14

Bonds

Price

FGN Bonds Issuer

Rating/Agency

Description 4.00 23-APR-2015 13.05 16-AUG-2016 15.10 27-APR-2017 9.85 27-JUL-2017 9.35 31-AUG-2017 10.70 30-MAY-2018 16.00 29-JUN-2019 7.00 23-OCT-2019 16.39 27-JAN-2022 14.20 14-MAR-2024 15.00 28-NOV-2028 12.49 22-MAY-2029 8.50 20-NOV-2029 10.00 23-JUL-2030 12.1493 18-JUL-2034

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

23-Apr-10 16-Aug-13 27-Apr-12 27-Jul-07 31-Aug-07 30-May-08 29-Jun-12 23-Oct-09 27-Jan-12 14-Mar-14 28-Nov-08 22-May-09 20-Nov-09 23-Jul-10 18-Jul-14

4.00 13.05 15.10 9.85 9.35 10.70 16.00 7.00 16.39 14.20 15.00 12.49 8.50 10.00 12.1493

535.00 545.27 452.80 20.00 100.00 300.00 351.30 233.90 600.00 331.35 75.00 150.00 200.00 591.57 105.00

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

4,591.19

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

4,621.82

Rating/Agency

Issuer

Agency Bonds AMCON FMBN

***LCRM

Description

0.00 AMCON 31-OCT-2014 (SR.5 TR.1) 0.00 FMB 24-MAY-2015 17.25 FMB II 03-APR-2017 0.00/16.00 LCRM 09-DEC-2016 0.00/16.50 LCRM II 20-APR-2017 0.00/16.50 LCRM III 06-JUL-2017

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

Maturity Date

TTM (Yrs)

23-Apr-15 16-Aug-16 27-Apr-17 27-Jul-17 31-Aug-17 30-May-18 29-Jun-19 23-Oct-19 27-Jan-22 14-Mar-24 28-Nov-28 22-May-29 20-Nov-29 23-Jul-30 18-Jul-34

0.56 1.88 2.58 2.83 2.92 3.67 4.75 5.07 7.33 9.46 14.16 14.64 15.14 15.81 19.80

Bid Yield (%)

Offer Yield (%)

Bid Price

Offer Price

10.96 11.93 11.92 11.96 11.96 11.94 11.91 12.00 12.31 12.42 12.48 12.46 12.45 12.37 12.32

10.67 11.84 11.85 11.89 11.89 11.84 11.83 11.90 12.26 12.37 12.44 12.42 12.39 12.32 12.28

96.27 101.80 106.85 95.04 93.72 96.35 114.45 81.42 119.25 109.75 116.54 100.14 73.35 83.70 98.70

96.42 101.95 107.00 95.19 93.87 96.65 114.75 81.72 119.55 110.05 116.84 100.44 73.65 84.00 99.00

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

# Risk Premium (%)

Valuation Yield (%)

Indicative Price

28-Dec-11 24-May-10 03-Apr-12 09-Dec-11 20-Apr-12 06-Jul-12

0.00 0.00 17.25 0.00/16.00 0.00/16.50 0.00/16.50

978.35 24.56 3.30 112.22 116.70 66.49

31-Oct-14 24-May-15 03-Apr-17 09-Dec-16 20-Apr-17 06-Jul-17

0.09 0.65 1.26 2.20 2.56 2.77

1.00 2.63 2.27 2.00 1.00 1.00

11.79 13.63 13.69 13.98 12.96 12.96

98.99 91.76 104.32 100.75 98.89 96.31

15-Oct-14 31-Aug-15 30-Sep-15 30-Jun-16 30-Jun-16 19-Apr-17 30-Jun-17 31-Dec-17 30-Sep-18 04-Oct-18 09-Dec-18 12-Dec-18 14-Feb-19 02-Oct-19 22-Nov-19 12-Dec-19 30-Sep-20 27-Nov-20 31-Dec-20 31-Dec-20 06-Jan-21

0.04 0.92 0.52 1.04 1.05 2.55 1.60 3.26 2.23 4.01 2.43 2.43 2.81 2.88 5.15 3.03 3.56 6.16 6.26 3.74 3.77

3.29 4.44 3.23 4.46 3.48 5.59 1.00 1.79 1.80 1.00 1.00 4.78 1.00 1.00 1.00 2.74 1.00 1.00 1.94 1.44 1.95

13.92 15.59 14.17 15.69 14.71 17.55 12.71 13.74 13.78 12.94 12.97 16.75 12.96 12.96 13.01 14.69 12.95 13.23 14.19 13.38 13.89

99.96 97.42 99.21 98.81 101.33 84.95 101.82 100.61 100.44 103.23 103.33 94.91 103.49 106.06 105.41 100.16 104.87 101.08 103.23 103.26 103.23

1,301.62

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

1,286.91

Sub-National Bonds A-/GCR A+/Agusto A/Agusto A-/Agusto A+/Agusto A+/Agusto; A+/GCR A-/Agusto A/Agusto A+/Agusto; A+/GCR A-/Agusto; A-/GCR A/Agusto; A-/GCR† A-/Agusto A/Agusto; A-/GCR A/Agusto; A-/GCR Aa-/Agusto; AA-/GCR A/Agusto; A-/GCR A/Agusto Aa-/Agusto; AA-/GCR A-/Agusto; BBB+/DataPro A/Agusto A-/GCR

NIGER KADUNA *EBONYI *BENUE *IMO LAGOS *BAYELSA EDO *DELTA NIGER *EKITI *NIGER *ONDO *GOMBE LAGOS *OSUN *OSUN LAGOS KOGI *EKITI *NASARAWA

15-Oct-09 31-Aug-10 30-Sep-10 30-Jun-11 30-Jun-09 19-Apr-10 30-Jun-10 30-Dec-10 30-Sep-11 04-Oct-11 09-Dec-11 12-Dec-13 14-Feb-12 02-Oct-12 22-Nov-12 12-Dec-12 30-Sep-13 27-Nov-13 31-Dec-13 31-Dec-13 06-Jan-14

14.00 NIGER 15-OCT-2014 12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015 13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015 14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016 15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016 10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017 13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017 14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017 14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018 14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018 14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018 14.00 NIGER III 12-DEC-2018 15.50 ONDO 14-FEB-2019 15.50 GOMBE 02-OCT-2019 14.50 LAGOS 22-NOV-2019 14.75 OSUN 12-DEC-2019 14.75 OSUN II 30-SEP-2020 13.50 LAGOS IV 27-NOV-2020 15.00 KOGI 31-DEC-2020 14.50 EKITI II 31-DEC-2020 15.00 NASARAWA 06-JAN-2021

14.00 12.50 13.00 14.00 15.50 10.00 13.75 14.00 14.00 14.00 14.50 14.00 15.50 15.50 14.50 14.75 14.75 13.50 15.00 14.50 15.00

6.00 8.50 6.08 6.27 7.37 57.00 29.92 25.00 37.25 9.00 14.96 11.13 27.00 17.28 80.00 27.51 11.40 87.00 5.00 4.78 4.79

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION Corporate Bonds

483.24 483.82

A+/Agusto; AA/GCR

LAFARGE WAPCO

11.50 LAFARGE WAPCO 7-OCT 2014

Aa/Agusto

GTB µ NGC

17.00 NGC 31-DEC-2014

Nil

10.00 UPDC 17-AUG-2015

Bbb-/Agusto A-/Agusto

*UPDC

BB+/GCR

*CHELLARAMS

*FLOURMILLS

A+/Agusto; A-/GCR A-/Agusto

NAHCO

BBB-/GCR BBB+/DataPro†; BB+/GCR A-/DataPro†; BB-/GCR AAA/DataPro†; A+/GCR A/Agusto; A/GCR Bbb+/Agusto; BBB+/GCR BBB-/DataPro†; BB+/GCR BBB/GCR A+/Agusto; A-/GCR

12.00 FLOURMILLS 9-DEC-2015 14.00 CHELLARAMS 06-JAN-2016 13.00 NAHCO 29-SEP-2016 14.25 FSDH 25-OCT-2016

FSDH

A/GCR

13.50 GUARANTY TRUST 18-DEC-2014

UBA

13.00 UBA 30-SEP-2017

*C & I LEASING *DANA#

18.00 C&I LEASING 30-NOV-2017 MPR+7.00 DANA 9-APR-2018

*TOWER#

MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-2018

*TOWER#

MPR+7.00 TOWER 9-SEP-2018

UBA

14.00 UBA II 22-SEP-2018

*LA CASERA *CHELLARAMS#

MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-2019

*DANA NAHCO

15.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018 16.00 DANA II 1-APR-2019 15.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020

07-Oct-11

11.50

11.80

07-Oct-14

0.02

1.00

11.55

99.98

18-Dec-09

13.50

13.17

18-Dec-14

0.22

5.21

16.45

99.25

01-Apr-10

17.00

2.00

31-Dec-14

0.25

8.71

20.05

99.06

17-Aug-10

10.00

3.61

17-Aug-15

0.64

4.88

15.88

96.91

09-Dec-10

12.00

13.62

09-Dec-15

0.71

1.00

12.04

100.55

06-Jan-11

14.00

0.60

06-Jan-16

0.79

2.63

13.71

100.90

29-Sep-11

13.00

15.00

29-Sep-16

2.00

1.00

12.98

100.03

25-Oct-13

14.25

5.53

25-Oct-16

2.07

1.34

13.32

101.61

30-Sep-10

13.00

20.00

30-Sep-17

3.00

1.00

12.95

100.11

30-Nov-12

18.00

0.73

30-Nov-17

1.82

1.88

13.74

108.01

09-Apr-11

16.00

7.20

09-Apr-18

1.78

3.48

15.31

101.19

09-Sep-11

18.00

2.90

09-Sep-18

2.19

5.20

17.18

101.55

09-Sep-11

16.00

0.80

09-Sep-18

2.19

5.06

17.04

101.71

22-Sep-11

14.00

35.00

22-Sep-18

3.98

1.35

13.29

102.13

18-Oct-13

15.75

2.70

18-Oct-18

2.05

2.29

14.27

102.80

17-Feb-12

17.00

0.41

17-Feb-19

2.38

6.11

18.08

98.27

01-Apr-14

16.00

4.50

01-Apr-19

3.26

2.16

14.11

104.75

14-Nov-13

15.25

2.05

14-Nov-20

6.13

2.76

14.98

101.01

11-Feb-18

3.37

1.00

12.95

92.66

Bid Price

Offer Price

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

141.62

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

142.84

Supranational Bond AAA/S&P

10.20 IFC 11-FEB-2018

IFC

11-Feb-13

10.20

12.00

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION Rating/Agency

Issuer

12.00 11.12 Description

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value ($mm)

Maturity Date

Bid Yield (%)

Offer Yield (%)

6.75 JAN 28, 2021

07-Oct-11

6.75

500.00

28-Jan-21

5.12

4.95

108.72

109.67

5.13 JUL 12, 2018

12-Jul-13

5.13

500.00

12-Jul-18

4.32

4.11

102.76

103.52

6.38 JUL 12, 2023

12-Jul-13

6.38

500.00

12-Jul-23

5.38

5.25

106.85

107.79

FGN Eurobonds

Prices & Yields

BB-/Fitch; B+/S&P BB-/Fitch; BB-/S&P

FGN

BB-/Fitch; BB-/S&P

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

1,500.00

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

1,591.61

Corporate Eurobonds B/Fitch; B-/S&P

AFREN PLC I

11.50 FEB 01, 2016

01-Feb-11

11.50

450.00

01-Feb-16

6.89

105.75

B+/Fitch; B+/S&P

GTBANK PLC I

7.50 MAY 19, 2016

19-May-11

7.50

500.00

19-May-16

4.26

105.04

B+/S&P

ACCESS BANK PLC

7.25 JUL 25, 2017

25-Jul-12

7.25

350.00

25-Jul-17

6.57

101.72

B/Fitch; B/S&P

FIDELITY BANK PLC

6.88 MAY 09, 2018

09-May-13

6.88

300.00

02-May-18

8.63

8.08

94.66

96.30

B+/Fitch; B+/S&P

GTBANK PLC

6.00 NOV 08, 2018

08-Nov-13

6.00

400.00

08-Nov-18

5.91

5.61

100.31

101.39

B/Fitch

AFREN PLC II

10.25 APR 08, 2019

08-Apr-12

10.25

300.00

08-Apr-19

8.68

105.75

B+/Fitch; BB-/S&P

ZENITH BANK PLC

6.25 APR 22, 2019

22-Apr-14

6.25

500.00

22-Apr-19

6.07

100.70

B/Fitch; B/S&P

DIAMOND BANK PLC

8.75 May 21, 2019

21-May-14

8.75

200.00

21-May-19

8.88

8.62

99.51

100.46

B-/Fitch; B/S&P

FIRST BANK PLC

8.25 AUG 07, 2020

07-Aug-13

8.25

300.00

07-Aug-20

7.44

103.01

B-/Fitch; B/S&P

AFREN PLC III

6.63 DEC 09, 2020

09-Dec-13

6.63

360.00

09-Dec-20

7.49

95.75

B-/Fitch; B/S&P

ACCESS BANK PLC II

9.25/6M USD LIBOR+7.677 JUN 24, 2021

24-Jun-14

9.25

400.00

24-Jun-21

8.66

8.49

103.38

104.25

B-/Fitch; B/S&P

FIRST BANK LTD

8.00/2Y USD SWAP+6.488 JUL 23 2021

23-Jul-14

8.00

450.00

23-Jul-21

7.52

101.63

B-/S&P

ECOBANK NIG. LTD

8.75 AUG 14, 2021

14-Aug-14

8.75

250.00

14-Aug-21

8.39

8.19

100.93

101.99

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

4,760.00 4,838.92

**Treasury Bills DTM 10 17 24 31 38 45 52 59 66

FIXINGS Maturity 9-Oct-14 16-Oct-14 23-Oct-14 30-Oct-14 6-Nov-14 13-Nov-14 20-Nov-14 27-Nov-14 4-Dec-14

Bid Discount (%) 10.60 10.50 10.55 10.45 10.40 10.30 10.40 10.80 10.25

Offer Discount (%) 10.35 10.25 10.30 10.20 10.15 10.05 10.15 10.55 10.00

Bid Yield (%) 10.63 10.55 10.62 10.54 10.51 10.43 10.56 10.99 10.44

Money Market

NIBOR Tenor O/N 1M 3M 6M

Rate (%) 10.6917 12.2857 13.0989 14.1347

Foreign Exchange (Spot & Forwards)

Tenor

Rate (%)

OBB

10.33

Tenor

Bid ($/N)

Offer ($/N)

O/N

10.54

Spot 7D 14D 1M 2M 3M 6M

163.70 164.09 164.35 164.95 166.15 167.25 170.97

163.80 164.32 164.65 165.54 167.22 168.85 174.36

Tenor Call 1M 3M

REPO

Rate (%) 10.25 11.51 12.16

NA ***LCRM

0.00/16.00 LCRM 09-DEC-2016 0.00/16.50 LCRM II 20-APR-2017 0.00/16.50 LCRM III 06-JUL-2017

09-Dec-11 20-Apr-12 06-Jul-12

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

0.00/16.00 0.00/16.50 0.00/16.50

112.22 116.70 66.49

09-Dec-16 20-Apr-17 06-Jul-17

2.20 2.56 2.77

2.00 1.00 1.00

13.98 12.96 12.96

100.75 98.89 96.31

0.04 0.92 0.52 1.04 1.05 2.55 1.60 3.26 2.23 4.01 2.43 2.43 2.81 2.88 5.15 3.03 3.56 6.16 6.26 3.74 3.77

3.29 4.44 3.23 4.46 3.48 5.59 1.00 1.79 1.80 1.00 1.00 4.78 1.00 1.00 1.00 2.74 1.00 1.00 1.94 1.44 1.95

13.92 15.59 14.17 15.69 14.71 17.55 12.71 13.74 13.78 12.94 12.97 16.75 12.96 12.96 13.01 14.69 12.95 13.23 14.19 13.38 13.89

99.96 97.42 99.21 98.81 101.33 84.95 101.82 100.61 100.44 103.23 103.33 94.91 103.49 106.06 105.41 100.16 104.87 101.08 103.23 103.26 103.23

1,301.62

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

1,286.91

Sub-National Bonds A-/GCR NIGER A+/Agusto KADUNA *EBONYI NEWA/Agusto TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 A-/Agusto *BENUE A+/Agusto *IMO A+/Agusto; A+/GCR LAGOS A-/Agusto *BAYELSA A/Agusto EDO A+/Agusto; A+/GCR *DELTA A-/Agusto; A-/GCR NIGER A/Agusto; A-/GCR† *EKITI A-/Agusto *NIGER A/Agusto; A-/GCR *ONDO A/Agusto; A-/GCR *GOMBE Aa-/Agusto; AA-/GCR LAGOS A/Agusto; A-/GCR *OSUN A/Agusto *OSUN Aa-/Agusto; AA-/GCR LAGOS A-/Agusto; BBB+/DataPro KOGI A/Agusto *EKITI A-/GCR *NASARAWA

14.00 12.50 13.00 14.00 15.50 10.00 13.75 14.00 14.00 14.00 14.50 14.00 15.50 15.50 14.50 14.75 14.75 13.50 15.00 14.50 15.00

6.00 8.50 6.08 6.27 7.37 57.00 29.92 25.00 37.25 9.00 14.96 11.13 27.00 17.28 80.00 27.51 11.40 87.00 5.00 4.78 4.79

Business | Financiel Market News

Dubai deals may run into billions of dollars –Dangote Dangote said yesterday in an interview at a conferDangote’s cement ence in Dubai. According to Bloomand commodities berg news, ICD is exbusinesses built ploring opportunities to work with the Nigerian him a $23.1 billion TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE billionaire after taking fortune TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION an unspecified holding in Dangote Cement Plc Corporate Bonds 11.50 LAFARGE WAPCO 7-OCT 2014 (DANGCEM) last month, A+/Agusto; AA/GCR LAFARGE WAPCO 13.50 GUARANTY TRUST 18-DEC-2014 Aa/Agusto GTB its first major Africa inµ 17.00 NGC 31-DEC-2014 NGC Nil resident, Danvestment, ICD Chief Ex10.00 UPDC 17-AUG-2015 Bbb-/Agusto *UPDC gote Group, Alhecutive Officer Moham12.00 FLOURMILLS 9-DEC-2015 A-/Agusto *FLOURMILLS 14.00 CHELLARAMS BB+/GCR aji Aliko Dangote med Al Shaibani also said06-JAN-2016 *CHELLARAMS NAHCO 29-SEP-2016 A+/Agusto; NAHCO hasA-/GCR disclosed that yesterday in13.00 Dubai. 14.25 FSDH 25-OCT-2016 A-/Agusto FSDH The company is diverfurther deals with the 13.00 UBA 30-SEP-2017 A/GCR UBA Investment Corporation sifying its investments, 18.00 C&I LEASING 30-NOV-2017 BBB-/GCR *C & I LEASING MPR+7.00 DANA 9-APR-2018 of Dubai (ICD) may run which include EmirBBB+/DataPro†; BB+/GCR *DANA# TOWER 9-SEP-2018 intoA-/DataPro†; billionsBB-/GCR of dollars*TOWER af- # ates airlineMPR+7.00 and Emaar 9-SEP-2018 AAA/DataPro†; A+/GCR *TOWER# Properties MPR+5.25 PJSC.TOWER Danter the Emirati holding 14.00 UBA II 22-SEP-2018 A/Agusto; A/GCR UBA company invested $300 gote, whose cement and 15.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018 Bbb+/Agusto; BBB+/GCR *LA CASERA # million in his cement commodities businesses MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-2019 BBB-/DataPro†; BB+/GCR *CHELLARAMS DANA II 1-APR-2019 BBB/GCR last month. *DANA business built him a 16.00 $23.1 billion 15.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020 A+/Agusto; A-/GCR NAHCO “We have also agreed fortune, according to the TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE to invest in other venBloomberg billionaires TOTAL MARKET index, partnered with tures in oil and CAPITALISATION agriculthe private-equity firms ture.Supranational They already Bond have Blackstone10.20 Group LP a seat on our board. This IFC 11-FEB-2018 AAA/S&P IFC (BX) and Carlyle Group could runOUTSTANDING into billions of TOTAL VALUE TOTALThere MARKETare CAPITALISATION LP (CG) in August for dollars. a lot Africa investments. He of opportunities that we Rating/Agency Issuer plans to spend about $3Description are looking at with ICD,”

PROSPERITY

rica’s top oil producer, it relies on fuel imports to meet more than 70 percent of its needs. Four state refineries with a combined capacity of 445,000 barrels a day are 483.24 operating at a fraction

billion to boost production of sugar and rice at his companies. Dangote’s cement business, the biggest producer in Africa, has the capacity to produce 29 million tons in Nigeria and plans to expand in 13 other countries on the continent. 07-Oct-11 The billionaire is11.50 bid13.50 ding 18-Dec-09 for gas assets in 01-Apr-10 17.00 Nigeria, Africa’s largest 17-Aug-10 10.00 economy , to help stem 09-Dec-10 12.00 06-Jan-11 disruptions 14.00 continuing 13.00in to his29-Sep-11 cement plants 25-Oct-13 14.25 the West African nation. 30-Sep-10 13.00 He’s 30-Nov-12 also building 18.00 a $9 billion oil refinery16.00 and 09-Apr-11 09-Sep-11 18.00 petrochemical complex 09-Sep-11 16.00 in Nigeria’s southwest 22-Sep-11 14.00 that is scheduled to be 18-Oct-13 15.75 completed 17-Feb-12in 2016. 17.00 01-Apr-14 “We are looking16.00 forward 14-Nov-13 to doing more 15.25 with Mr. Dangote, and we have some things that we are exploring at the moment. Having the right partner, 11-Feb-13 10.20 especially in Africa, is the key thing,” ICD’s Al Shaibani said. Issue DateNigeriaCoupon (%) “While is Af-

483.82

UBA Capital unveils online trading platform

First Bank tasks SMEs on financial integrity

BB-/Fitch; BB-/S&P

FGN

6.75 JAN 28, 2021

07-Oct-11

6.75

5.13 JUL 12, 2018

12-Jul-13

5.13

irst Bank of Nigeria Plc rity are processes that every velopment. 6.38 JULpass 12, 2023to 12-Jul-13 6.38 has challenged operators SMEs owners should Ogbechie decried the situaof Small and VALUE Medium guarantee growth and sus- tion where SME’s businesses TOTAL OUTSTANDING die with their founders, addEnterprises (SMEs) on the im- tainability in businesses. TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION perative of financial integrity Ogbechie noted that First ing that there was the need Corporate Eurobonds for business sustainability. Bank sponsored the workshop for SMEs to grow beyond 11.50 FEB 01, 2016 01-Feb-11 11.50 B/Fitch; B-/S&P LBS/First AFREN PLC I generation Director, Bank to promote empowerment, en- first and second 7.50 MAY 19, 2016 19-May-11 7.50 B+/Fitch; B+/S&P GTBANK PLC Sustainability Center, Dr.I trepreneurship and financial of founders. 7.25 JUL 25, 2017 25-Jul-12 B+/S&P ACCESSthis BANK PLCinclusion amongst Chris Ogbechie, made women. He listed challenges 7.25 fac6.88 MAY 09, 2018 09-May-13 6.88 B/S&P FIDELITY BANK PLC callB/Fitch; at the SME Workshop According to him, sustaining operators of the sector 6.00 NOV 08, 2018 08-Nov-13 6.00 B+/Fitch; B+/S&P GTBANK PLC to include08-Apr-12 succession, 10.25 poor for B/Fitch Women owners of SMEs ability is a business 10.25approach APR 08, 2019 AFREN PLC II financial 22-Apr-14 management 6.25 and in Nigeria held at the First share6.25 APR 22, 2019 B+/Fitch; BB-/S&P ZENITH BANK PLC that creates long-term May 21, 2019 21-May-14 capital rais8.75 book keeping, holders’ value by8.75 embracing Bank Sustainability Centre, B/Fitch; B/S&P DIAMOND BANK PLC 8.25managing AUG 07, 2020 07-Aug-13 resource8.25 B-/Fitch; B/S&P FIRST BANK PLC opportunities and Lagos Business School, Lekki ing, inefficient use, 6.63 DEC 09, 2020 6.63 B-/Fitch; B/S&P AFREN PLC III risks derived from economic, absence of09-Dec-13 Lagos. planning, among 9.25/6M USD LIBOR+7.677 JUN 24, 2021 24-Jun-14 9.25 B-/Fitch; B/S&P ACCESS BANK PLC II and social de- others. 23-Jul-14 He said business integ- environmental 8.00/2Y USD SWAP+6.488 JUL 23 2021 8.00 FIRST BANK LTD

B-/S&P

ECOBANK NIG. LTD

8.75 AUG 14, 2021

14-Aug-14

8.75

0.02

1.00

11.55

99.98

18-Dec-14

0.22

5.21

16.45

99.25

2.00

31-Dec-14

0.25

8.71

20.05

99.06

7.52

101.63

8.19

100.93

101.99

13.62

09-Dec-15

250.00

FMDQ Daily Quotations List

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

07-Oct-14

13.17

06-Jan-16 n 0.60 a bid to help pro15.00 29-Sep-16 mote and facilitate 5.53 25-Oct-16 investment in the 20.00 30-Sep-17 country , UBA Capital 0.73 30-Nov-17Plc has unveiled an09-Apr-18 online 7.20 2.90 platform. 09-Sep-18 trading 0.80 The platform09-Sep-18 tagged 35.00 22-Sep-18 INVESTNOW .NG, is an 2.70 18-Oct-18 online 0.41 trading platform 17-Feb-19 with4.50real time01-Apr-19 investment2.05account 14-Nov-20 funding 141.62 functionality that will 142.84 investors fund enable their investment accounts and in12.00 directly11-Feb-18 stantly , without the need 12.00 to go11.12 through an account officer in the option of Value Maturity Date aOutstanding client-company funds ($mm) lodgment. INVESTNOW.NG also 500.00 a live price 28-Jan-21 provides feed (intra-day) for listed 500.00 12-Jul-18 stocks, enabling inves12-Jul-23 tors500.00 to make informed decisions 1,500.00 based on the latest data. 1,591.61 Speaking at the launch of the new platform at 01-Feb-16Exthe 450.00 Nigerian Stock 500.00 (NSE),19-May-16 change Group 350.00 Chief Executive25-Jul-17 Officer, 300.00 02-May-18 UBA400.00 Capital, Mrs. Olu08-Nov-18 watoyin Sanni said that 300.00 08-Apr-19 since UBA Capital was 500.00 22-Apr-19 200.00 its mission 21-May-19 founded, has been300.00 to develop 07-Aug-20 the capi360.00 09-Dec-20 tal markets in Nigeria in 400.00 24-Jun-21 order to give the invest450.00 23-Jul-21

BB-/Fitch; BB-/S&P

B-/Fitch; B/S&P

11.80

Stories Ugwu 3.61 by Chris 17-Aug-15

FGN Eurobonds

BB-/Fitch; B+/S&P

of that because of poor maintenance and aging equipment. Dangote’s businesses offer huge growth potential and we saw this as the right moment to come in,” Al Shaibani said

14-Aug-21

0.64 0.71 0.79 2.00 2.07 3.00 1.82 1.78 2.19 2.19 3.98 2.05 2.38 3.26 6.13

3.37

Bid Yield (%)

5.12 4.32 5.38

6.89 4.26 6.57 8.63 5.91 8.68 6.07 8.88 7.44 7.49 8.66 7.52 8.39

ing public the confidence 4.88 15.88 96.91 actively. 100.55 1.00 to invest 12.04 2.63 100.90cent “We 13.71 have 53 per 1.00 of foreign 12.98 investors’ 100.03par1.34 13.32 101.61 ticipation against 47 per 1.00 12.95 100.11 cent by retail and there 1.88 13.74 108.01 to improve 3.48 was need 15.31 101.19that 5.20 segment 17.18 101.55 of the market. 5.06 101.71 Nigeria17.04 has the lowest in 1.35 13.29 102.13 terms of domestic par2.29 14.27 102.80 6.11 ticipation 18.08and we are 98.27 still 2.16 far less14.11 104.75 than Zimbabwe, 2.76 Kenya,14.98 Ghana 101.01 among others. “To increase domestic participation and guard foreign investors 1.00 against12.95 92.66 pulling of fund during crises situation, we created this easy and affordOffer Yield (%) Bid Price Offer Price able platform. “The INVESTNOW.NG Prices & Yields platform combines world 4.95 class technology 108.72 109.67 with a robust client data protec4.11 102.76 103.52 tion and security frame106.85 5.25 work in 107.79 our order to give clients a seamless experience when processing transactions. Our clients will have access to re6.89 search 105.75 105.75 materials to make 4.26 informed 105.04investment 105.04 de6.57 cisions,” 101.72 101.72 she explained. 8.08 UBA94.66 Capital 96.30 clients 5.61 100.31 101.39 she further explained, 8.68 105.75 105.75 be able 100.70 to man6.07 will now 100.70 8.62 age their 99.51 portfolios 100.46 on7.44 line on 103.01 103.01 mobile devices, 7.49 tablets,95.75 95.75 laptops and desk8.49 103.38 104.25 top computers.

4,760.00 4,838.92

29-Sep-14

The FMDQ Daily Quotations List (DQL) comprises market and model prices/rates of foreign exchange ($/N) products, fixed income securities and instruments in the OTC market. The use of this report is subject to the **Treasury Bills Terms of Use and Disclaimer Statement on www.fmdqotc.com. FIXINGS Money Market FMDQ OTC PLC Foreign Exchange (Spot & Forwards) DTM Maturity Bid Discount (%) 10 9-Oct-14 10.60 17 16-Oct-14 10.50 FGN Bonds 24 23-Oct-14 10.55 31 30-Oct-14 10.45 38 6-Nov-14 10.40 Issuer Description Rating/Agency 45 13-Nov-14 10.30 52 20-Nov-14 10.40 4.00 23-APR-2015 59 27-Nov-14 10.80 13.05 16-AUG-2016 66 4-Dec-14 10.25 15.10 27-APR-2017 73 11-Dec-14 10.90 9.85 27-JUL-2017 87 25-Dec-14 10.70 94 1-Jan-15 10.90 9.35 31-AUG-2017 101 8-Jan-15 10.60 10.70 30-MAY-2018 108 15-Jan-15 10.85 16.00 29-JUN-2019 22-Jan-15 10.45 NA115 NA 7.00 23-OCT-2019 122 29-Jan-15 10.90 16.39 27-JAN-2022 129 5-Feb-15 10.40 14.20 14-MAR-2024 136 12-Feb-15 10.85 15.00 28-NOV-2028 143 19-Feb-15 10.40 12.49 22-MAY-2029 150 26-Feb-15 10.95 8.50 20-NOV-2029 157 5-Mar-15 10.45 192 9-Apr-15 10.30 10.00 23-JUL-2030 206 23-Apr-15 10.40 12.1493 18-JUL-2034 220 7-May-15 10.30 TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE 311 6-Aug-15 10.40 339 3-Sep-15 10.30 TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION *from the Amortising bonds, the average life is calculated and not the duration

Offer Discount (%) 10.35 10.25 10.30 10.20 10.15 Issue Date 10.05 10.15 23-Apr-10 10.55 16-Aug-13 10.00 27-Apr-12 10.65 27-Jul-07 10.45 10.65 31-Aug-07 10.35 30-May-08 10.60 29-Jun-12 10.20 23-Oct-09 10.65 27-Jan-12 10.15 14-Mar-14 10.60 28-Nov-08 10.15 22-May-09 10.70 20-Nov-09 10.20 10.05 23-Jul-10 10.15 18-Jul-14 10.05 10.15 10.05

Bid Yield (%) 10.63 10.55 10.62 10.54 10.51(%) Coupon 10.43 10.56 4.00 10.99 13.05 10.44 15.10 11.14 9.85 10.98 11.21 9.35 10.92 10.70 11.21 16.00 10.81 7.00 11.31 16.39 10.80 14.20 11.31 15.00 10.84 12.49 11.47 8.50 10.94 10.89 10.00 11.05 12.1493 10.98 11.41 11.39

NIBOR

Bonds

Tenor O/N 1M Outstanding 3M Value 6M (N'bn)

Rate (%) 10.6917 12.2857 13.0989 Maturity Date 14.1347

535.00 23-Apr-15 545.27 16-Aug-16 NITTY 452.80 27-Apr-17 20.00 27-Jul-17 Tenor Rate (%) 1M 10.5284 100.00 31-Aug-17 2M 10.9259 300.00 30-May-18 3M 11.0002 351.30 29-Jun-19 6M 11.0019 233.90 23-Oct-19 9M 11.1878 600.00 27-Jan-22 12M 11.5053 331.35 14-Mar-24 75.00 28-Nov-28 150.00 22-May-29 NIFEX 200.00 20-Nov-29 Current Price ($/N) 591.57 23-Jul-30 BID($/N)105.00 164.0000 18-Jul-34 OFFER ($/N)

4,591.19

164.1000

Tenor

Rate (%)

OBB

10.33

O/N

10.54

TTM (Yrs)REPO Bid Yield (%) Tenor Call 0.56 1M 1.88 3M 2.58 6M

Rate (%) 10.25 10.96 11.51 11.93 12.16 11.92 12.71

Rating/Agency

Agency Bonds

Issuer

Description

Issue Date

0.00 AMCON 31-OCT-2014 (SR.5 TR.1) 0.00 FMB 24-MAY-2015 17.25 FMB II 03-APR-2017 0.00/16.00 LCRM 09-DEC-2016 Total Outstanding Porfolio Market Modified Duration Buckets Volume(Bn) ***LCRM 0.00/16.50Value(Bn) LCRM II 20-APR-2017 0.00/16.50 LCRM III 06-JUL-2017 <3 1,038.90 998.07 AMCON

FMBN

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

3<5

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION >5

Market

Sub-National Bonds A-/GCR A+/Agusto A/Agusto A-/Agusto A+/Agusto A+/Agusto; A+/GCR A-/Agusto A/Agusto A+/Agusto; A+/GCR A-/Agusto; A-/GCR A/Agusto; A-/GCR†

NIGER KADUNA *EBONYI *BENUE *IMO LAGOS *BAYELSA EDO *DELTA NIGER *EKITI

1,117.56 858.80 3,015.27 14.00 NIGER 15-OCT-2014 12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015 13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015 14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016 15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016 10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017 13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017 14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017 14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018 14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018 14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018

951.30 922.92 2,872.29

2.83 11.96 11.89 2.92 11.96 11.89 3.67 11.94 11.84 :Benchmarks 4.75 11.91 11.83 * :Amortising 5.07 Bond 12.00 11.90 µ :Convertible Bond 7.33 12.31 12.26 AMCON: Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria 9.46Government of Nigeria 12.42 12.37 FGN: Federal 14.16 Mortgage Bank12.48 12.44 FMBN: Federal of Nigeria 14.64 Finance Corporation 12.46 12.42 IFC: International 15.14Contractors Receivables 12.45 12.39 LCRM: Local Management NAHCO: Nigerian 15.81 Aviation Handling 12.37 Company 12.32 O/N: Overnight 19.80 12.32 12.28 UPDC: UAC Property Development Company WAPCO:West Africa Portland Cement Company

15-Oct-09 31-Aug-10 30-Sep-10 30-Jun-11 30-Jun-09 19-Apr-10 30-Jun-10 30-Dec-10 30-Sep-11 04-Oct-11 09-Dec-11

Bid ($/N) 163.70 164.09 164.35 Bid Price 164.95 166.15 96.27 167.25 101.80 170.97 106.85 178.38

Offer ($/N)

Price 163.80 164.32

164.65Price Offer 165.54 167.22 96.42 168.85 101.95 174.36 107.00 186.31

95.04 95.19 93.72 93.87 96.35 96.65 NA :Not114.45 Applicable 114.75 # :Floating Rate Bond 81.42 81.72 ***: Deferred coupon bonds 119.25 119.55 109.75 110.05 †: Bond rating expired 116.54 116.84 100.14 100.44 73.35 73.65 NGC: Nigeria-German Company 83.70 84.00 UBA: United Bank for Africa 98.70 99.00

4,621.82 Coupon (%)

28-Dec-11 FMDQ FGN 0.00BOND 24-May-10 0.00 03-Apr-12 17.25 Weighting Weighting by Mkt 09-Dec-11by 0.00/16.00 Outstanding Value 20-Apr-12 Vol 0.00/16.50 06-Jul-12 0.00/16.50 34.75 34.45

33.12 32.13 100.00

Spot 7D Offer 14DYield 1M (%) 2M 10.67 3M 11.84 6M 11.85 1Y

NOTE:

Risk Premium is a combination of credit risk and liquidity risk premiums **Exclusive of non-trading t.bills

Tenor

37.06 28.48 100.00 14.00 12.50 13.00 14.00 15.50 10.00 13.75 14.00 14.00 14.00 14.50

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

INDEX978.35

24.56 3.30 Bucket112.22 Weighting 116.70 66.49 0.35

1,301.620.33

1,286.910.32 1.00 6.00 8.50 6.08 6.27 7.37 57.00 29.92 25.00 37.25 9.00 14.96

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

31-Oct-14 24-May-15 03-Apr-17 % Exposure_ 09-Dec-16 Mod_Duration 20-Apr-17 06-Jul-17 15.70

0.09 0.65 1.26 2.20 Implied Yield 2.56 2.77 11.93

33.34 50.96 100.00

12.20 12.38 12.25

15-Oct-14 31-Aug-15 30-Sep-15 30-Jun-16 30-Jun-16 19-Apr-17 30-Jun-17 31-Dec-17 30-Sep-18 04-Oct-18 09-Dec-18

0.04 0.92 0.52 1.04 1.05 2.55 1.60 3.26 2.23 4.01 2.43

# Risk Premium (%)

1.00 2.63 2.27 Implied 2.00 Portfolio Price 1.00 1.00 118.7240

134.4634 103.6388 119.0897 3.29 4.44 3.23 4.46 3.48 5.59 1.00 1.79 1.80 1.00 1.00

Valuation Yield (%)

Indicative Price

11.79 13.63 13.69 13.98 INDEX 12.96 12.96 1,127.64

98.99 91.76 104.32 YTD 100.75 Return (%) 98.89 96.31 12.7636

1,138.58 1,209.03 1,131.23

13.8585 20.9030 13.1225

13.92 15.59 14.17 15.69 14.71 17.55 12.71 13.74 13.78 12.94 12.97

99.96 97.42 99.21 98.81 101.33 84.95 101.82 100.61 100.44 103.23 103.33

Daily Summary as of 30/09/2014

Printed 30/09/2014 15:12:50.050

Business | Capital Market

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Daily Summary as of 30/09/2014 Printed 30/09/2014 15:12:50.050

Daily Summary (Bonds)

No Debt Trading Activity

The Nigerian Stock Market Exchange as at September 30, 2014 Daily Summary (Equities)

Daily Summary (Equities)

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

AGRICULTURE Crop Production FTN COCOA PROCESSORS PLC OKOMU OIL PALM PLC. PRESCO PLC Crop Production Totals Livestock/Animal Specialties LIVESTOCK FEEDS PLC. Livestock/Animal Specialties Totals

Symbol FTNCOCOA OKOMUOIL PRESCO

No. of Deals 15 28 17 60

Current Price 0.50 34.00 37.50

Quantity Traded 2,934,300 441,435 120,125 3,495,860

Value Traded 1,471,116.00 15,041,034.30 4,292,669.50 20,804,819.80

Symbol LIVESTOCK

No. of Deals 19 19

Current Price 2.90

Quantity Traded 365,000 365,000

Value Traded 1,054,211.05 1,054,211.05

3,860,860

21,859,030.85

AGRICULTURE Totals CONGLOMERATES Daily Summary as of 30/09/2014 Diversified Industries Printed 30/09/2014 15:12:50.050 A.G. LEVENTIS NIGERIA PLC. TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATION OF NIGERIA PLC U A C N PLC. Diversified Industries Totals

79 Symbol AGLEVENT TRANSCORP UACN

No. of Deals 6 299 61 Daily Summary (Equities) 366

CONGLOMERATES Totals

Current Price 1.54 5.80 57.75

366

Activity Summary on Board EQTY CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE

Structure/Completion/Other Published Building by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © COSTAIN (W A) PLC. Building Structure/Completion/Other Totals

Quantity Traded 159,186 46,324,386 6,910,153 53,393,725

Value Traded 237,975.28 268,516,658.89 399,085,941.47 667,840,575.64

53,393,725

667,840,575.64

HEALTHCARE Pharmaceuticals GLAXO SMITHKLINE CONSUMER NIG. PLC. MAY & BAKER NIGERIA PLC. NEIMETH INTERNATIONAL PHARMACEUTICALS PLC PHARMA-DEKO PLC. Pharmaceuticals Totals

ICT Computer Based Systems COURTEVILLE BUSINESS SOLUTIONS PLC Computer Based Systems Totals

No. of Deals 25 25

Current Price 0.91

Quantity Traded Page 2,982,523 2,982,523

Value Traded 1 of 12 2,716,995.93 2,716,995.93

Infrastructure/Heavy Construction JULIUS BERGER NIG. PLC. Infrastructure/Heavy Construction Totals

Symbol JBERGER

No. of Deals 6 6

Current Price 67.20

Quantity Traded 2,974 2,974

Value Traded 194,588.36 194,588.36

Real Estate Development UACN PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT CO. LIMITED Real Estate Development Totals

Symbol UAC-PROP

No. of Deals 18 18

Current Price 15.85

Quantity Traded 210,812 210,812

Value Traded 3,222,999.05 3,222,999.05

Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) UPDC REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) Totals

Symbol UPDCREIT

No. of Deals 2 2

Current Price 8.68

Quantity Traded 10,000 10,000

Value Traded 82,500.00 82,500.00

3,206,309

6,217,083.34

Current Price 10.18 214.98 30.00 176.00 4.40

Quantity Traded 1,366 688,553 8,081,528 1,387,169 13,600 10,172,216

Value Traded 14,053.88 143,557,089.86 242,471,513.41 245,442,922.92 56,188.00 631,541,768.07

CONSUMER GOODS Daily Summary as of 30/09/2014 Beverages--Brewers/Distillers Printed 30/09/2014 15:12:50.050 CHAMPION BREW. PLC.

GUINNESS NIG PLC INTERNATIONAL BREWERIES PLC. NIGERIAN BREW. PLC. PREMIER BREWERIES PLC Beverages--Brewers/Distillers Totals

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

51 Symbol No. of Deals CHAMPION 3 GUINNESS 129 INTBREW 37 NB 167 Daily Summary (Equities) PREMBREW 3 339

CONSUMER GOODS Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © Beverages--Non-Alcoholic 7-UP BOTTLING COMP. PLC. Beverages--Non-Alcoholic Totals Food Products DANGOTE FLOUR MILLS PLC DANGOTE SUGAR REFINERY PLC FLOUR MILLS NIG. PLC. HONEYWELL FLOUR MILL PLC MULTI-TREX INTEGRATED FOODS PLC NATIONAL SALT CO. NIG. PLC N NIG. FLOUR MILLS PLC. Food Products Totals Food Products--Diversified CADBURY NIGERIA PLC. NESTLE NIGERIA PLC. Food Products--Diversified Totals Daily Summary as of 30/09/2014

Printed 30/09/2014 15:12:50.050

Household Durables VITAFOAM NIG PLC. VONO PRODUCTS PLC. Household Durables Totals Personal/Household Products P Z CUSSONS NIGERIA PLC.

Personal/Household Products UNILEVER NIGERIA PLC. Personal/Household Products Totals

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking WEMA BANK PLC. ZENITH INTERNATIONAL BANK PLC Banking Totals Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services AIICO INSURANCE PLC. CONTINENTAL REINSURANCE PLC CORNERSTONE INSURANCE COMPANY PLC. GREAT NIGERIAN INSURANCE PLC INTERNATIONAL ENERGY INSURANCE COMPANY PLC LAW UNION AND ROCK INS. PLC. LINKAGE ASSURANCE PLC MANSARD INSURANCE PLC MUTUAL BENEFITS ASSURANCE PLC. N.E.M INSURANCE CO (NIG) PLC. Daily Summary as of 30/09/2014 NIGER INSURANCE CO. PLC. Printed 30/09/2014 15:12:50.050 PRESTIGE ASSURANCE CO. PLC. WAPIC INSURANCE PLC Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services Totals Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange ©

Micro-Finance Banks NPF MICROFINANCE BANK PLC Micro-Finance Banks Totals

Activity Summary on Board EQTY FINANCIAL SERVICES PublishedMortgage by The Nigerian Stock Exchange Carriers, Brokers©and Services ABBEY MORTGAGE BANK PLC RESORT SAVINGS & LOANS PLC UNION HOMES SAVINGS AND LOANS PLC. Mortgage Carriers, Brokers and Services Totals Other Financial Institutions AFRICA PRUDENTIAL REGISTRARS PLC CUSTODIAN AND ALLIED PLC FBN HOLDINGS PLC FCMB GROUP PLC. ROYAL EXCHANGE PLC. STANBIC IBTC HOLDINGS PLC UBA CAPITAL PLC Other Financial Institutions Totals

Current Price 147.73

Quantity Traded 18,558 18,558

Symbol DANGFLOUR DANGSUGAR FLOURMILL HONYFLOUR MULTITREX NASCON NNFM

No. of Deals 36 40 52 26 1 20 6 181

Current Price 6.55 8.30 61.98 3.91 0.50 9.70 21.99

Quantity Traded 137,217 583,515 163,079 567,414 1,731,174 630,796 5,650 3,818,845

Value Traded 898,423.02 4,829,700.82 10,057,805.52 2,234,077.54 865,587.00 5,846,386.26 119,953.00 24,851,933.16

Symbol CADBURY NESTLE

No. of Deals 41 60 101

Current Price 52.50 1,090.00

Quantity Traded 2,143,644 499,231 2,642,875

Value Traded 112,669,352.06 543,594,275.80 656,263,627.86

Symbol VITAFOAM VONO

No. of Deals 24 6 30

Current Price 4.29 1.49

Quantity Traded 604,490 13,798,998 14,403,488

Value Traded 2,525,615.88 20,560,507.02 23,086,122.90

No. of Deals 24

Current Price 35.00

Quantity Traded 2,546,170

Value Traded 89,010,144.19

Daily Summary (Equities) Symbol PZ

Symbol UNILEVER

No. of Deals 58 82

Current Price 46.85

754 Symbol ACCESS DIAMONDBNK ETI FIDELITYBK GUARANTY SKYEBANK STERLNBANK UBA Daily Summary UBN UNITYBNK

Value Traded 2,878,531.38 2,878,531.38

Page

Quantity Traded 250,716 2,796,886

8,062,073

16,640,568.77

73 No. of Deals 10 10

Current Price 0.52

Quantity Traded 8,643,596 8,643,596

Value Traded 4,503,544.90 4,503,544.90

IT Services TRIPPLE GEE AND COMPANY PLC. IT Services Totals

Symbol TRIPPLEG

No. of Deals 1 1

Current Price 1.86

Quantity Traded 5,670 5,670

Value Traded 10,035.90 10,035.90

Processing Systems CHAMS PLC Processing Systems Totals

Symbol CHAMS

No. of Deals 76 76

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 50,890,100 50,890,100

Value Traded 25,447,340.00 25,447,340.00

59,539,366

29,960,920.80

Quantity Traded 688,698

Value Traded 21,942,015.52

Daily Summary as of 30/09/2014 Printed ICT30/09/2014 Totals 15:12:50.050

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials BERGER PAINTS PLC CAP PLC CEMENT CO. OF NORTH.NIG. PLC

87 Symbol No. of Deals Daily Summary (Equities) ASHAKACEM 53

Current Price 31.56

Page

Value Traded 641,290.02 5,635,395.15 7,097,476.50

Symbol DANGCEM DNMEYER PAINTCOM PORTPAINT WAPCO

No. of Deals 69 1 2 1 51 222

Current Price 222.00 1.05 1.60 5.50 126.76

Quantity Traded 2,036,642 1,065,140 4,624 810 1,505,804 5,998,805

Value Traded 446,473,871.43 1,118,397.00 7,028.48 4,455.00 191,938,640.13 674,858,569.23

Electronic and Electrical Products CUTIX PLC. Electronic and Electrical Products Totals

Symbol CUTIX

No. of Deals 12 12

Current Price 1.90

Quantity Traded 672,612 672,612

Value Traded 1,217,525.87 1,217,525.87

Packaging/Containers BETA GLASS CO PLC. Packaging/Containers Totals

Symbol BETAGLAS

No. of Deals 1 1

Current Price 18.85

Quantity Traded 4,670 4,670

Value Traded 88,730.00 88,730.00

6,676,087

676,164,825.10

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Totals

OIL AND GAS Energy Equipment and Services JAPAUL OIL & MARITIME SERVICES PLC Energy Equipment and Services Totals

Printed 30/09/2014 15:12:50.050

Integrated Oil and Gas Services OANDO PLC Integrated Oil and Gas Services Totals

Quantity Traded 9,980,027 11,255,492 6,387,622 3,188,859 32,832,259 614,889,442 23,797,489 6,437,665 1,377,881 1,077,000

Value Traded 89,740,988.41 70,608,032.88 116,251,713.89 6,346,114.83 976,399,098.91 1,479,807,164.89 52,440,772.45 43,329,549.69 11,968,589.61 538,500.00

Symbol WEMABANK ZENITHBANK

No. of Deals 25 305 1,502

Current Price 0.91 24.50

Quantity Traded 1,506,671 51,613,665 764,344,072

Value Traded 1,368,290.79 1,267,933,562.74 4,116,732,379.09

Symbol AIICO CONTINSURE CORNERST GNI INTENEGINS LAWUNION LINKASSURE MANSARD MBENEFIT NEM NIGERINS PRESTIGE WAPIC

No. of Deals 20 1 7 1 10 1 1 19 7 12 2 1 59 141

Current Price 0.81 0.95 0.50 0.50 0.53 0.50 0.50 3.00 0.54 0.79 0.50 0.50 0.74

Quantity Traded Page 4,579,604 5,000 1,097,400 4,092,525 8,189,829 10,000 57,700 8,733,461 1,636,700 977,832 9,163,396 10,000 3,665,205 42,218,652

Value Traded of 12 3,714,380.91 4,950.00 548,940.00 2,046,262.50 4,360,609.37 5,000.00 28,850.00 26,200,863.00 883,858.00 768,858.96 4,581,698.00 5,000.00 2,712,194.26 45,861,465.00 Value Traded 2,163,917.74 2,163,917.74

Symbol ABBEYBDS RESORTSAL UNHOMES

No. of Deals 1 1 1 3

5 of 12 Current PricePageQuantity Traded 1.30 30 0.50 10,000 0.50 312,500 322,530

Symbol AFRIPRUD CUSTODYINS FBNH FCMB ROYALEX STANBIC UBCAP

No. of Deals 65 15 526 79 9 42 93 829

Current Price 3.16 4.30 13.41 4.30 0.59 33.60 2.12

Quantity Traded 3,282,867 844,986 22,575,095 9,220,593 1,029,192 4,848,959 5,842,376 47,644,068 856,858,308

No. of Deals 1 1

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 3,908,315 3,908,315

Symbol EVANSMED FIDSON

No. of Deals 7 15

Current Price 2.10 3.33

Quantity Traded 114,248 593,100

Page

Symbol JAPAULOIL

Page

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 3,658,204 3,658,204

Value Traded 1,829,102.00 1,829,102.00

Daily Summary (Equities) Symbol No. of Deals

Current Price 26.28

Quantity Traded 14,829,865 14,829,865

Value Traded 386,188,218.78 386,188,218.78

OANDO

388 388

Page

Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors CONOIL PLC ETERNA PLC. FORTE OIL PLC. MOBIL OIL NIG PLC. TOTAL NIGERIA PLC. Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors Totals

Symbol CONOIL ETERNA FO MOBIL TOTAL

No. of Deals Current Price 23 47.01 47 3.84 94 225.00 20 173.01 9 180.00 193

Quantity Traded 51,637 2,110,194 192,981 29,969 13,799 2,398,580

Exploration and Production SEPLAT PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LTD Exploration and Production Totals

Symbol SEPLAT

No. of Deals Current Price 10 645.00 10

Quantity Traded 34,460 34,460

Value Traded 22,286,965.00 22,286,965.00

20,921,109

471,059,229.45

SERVICES Automobile/Auto Part Retailers R T BRISCOE PLC. Automobile/Auto Part Retailers Totals Courier/Freight/Delivery Daily Summary as of 30/09/2014 RED15:12:50.050 STAR EXPRESS PLC Printed 30/09/2014 Courier/Freight/Delivery Totals Employment Solutions C & I LEASING PLC. Employment Solutions Totals

621

Value Traded 2,460,933.65 7,801,201.57 42,870,053.52 5,189,382.59 2,433,372.34 60,754,943.67

Symbol RTBRISCOE

No. of Deals Current Price 16 0.89 16

Quantity Traded 450,912 450,912

Value Traded 401,706.12 401,706.12

Symbol REDSTAREX

No. of Deals Current Price 8 4.59 8

Quantity Traded 80,400 80,400

Value Traded 353,810.00 353,810.00

Symbol

No. of Deals Current Price 1 0.50 1

Quantity Traded 800,000 800,000

Value Traded 400,000.00 400,000.00

DailyCILEASING Summary (Equities)

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

Page

Symbol IKEJAHOTEL

No. of Deals Current Price 52 1.66 52

Quantity Traded 29,063,665 29,063,665

Value Traded 48,238,333.90 48,238,333.90

Printing/Publishing ACADEMY PRESS PLC. LEARN AFRICA PLC UNIVERSITY PRESS PLC. Printing/Publishing Totals

Symbol ACADEMY LEARNAFRCA UPL

No. of Deals Current Price 1 1.32 16 1.35 3 4.13 20

Quantity Traded 2,860 2,085,156 4,390 2,092,406

Value Traded 3,718.00 2,820,222.67 17,252.70 2,841,193.37

Road Transportation ASSOCIATED BUS COMPANY PLC Road Transportation Totals

Symbol ABCTRANS

No. of Deals Current Price 4 0.65 4

Quantity Traded 28,958 28,958

Value Traded 19,566.03 19,566.03

Symbol AIRSERVICE NAHCO

No. of Deals Current Price 4 2.01 17 5.02 21

Quantity Traded 14,810 412,786 427,596

Value Traded 31,249.10 2,071,445.58 2,102,694.68

Symbol CAVERTON

No. of Deals Current Price 19 5.10 19

Quantity Traded 372,900 372,900

Value Traded 1,889,038.00 1,889,038.00

141

33,316,837

56,246,342.10

4,894

1,079,687,542

8,084,705,772.57

Transport-Related Services AIRLINE SERVICES AND LOGISTICS PLC NIGERIAN AVIATION HANDLING COMPANY PLC Value Traded Transport-Related Services Totals 39.00 5,000.00 Support and Logistics 156,250.00 CAVERTON OFFSHORE SUPPORT GRP PLC 161,289.00 Support and Logistics Totals

Value Traded SERVICES Totals 10,429,009.05 Daily Summary as of 30/09/2014 3,629,760.60 PrintedEQTY 30/09/2014 15:12:50.050 Board Totals 306,118,021.61 38,490,920.60 607,127.52 Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © 162,867,250.26 Equity Activity Totals 12,257,552.43 534,399,642.07 4,699,318,692.90 Exchange Traded Fund

Name NEWGOLD EXCHANGE TRADED FUND (ETF) VETIVA Value Traded GRIFFIN 30 ETF Exchange Traded Fund Totals

1,954,157.50 1,954,157.50 ETF Board Totals

Value Traded ETP Activity Totals 231,641.12 1,977,352.45 6

No. of Deals 30 30

OIL AND GAS Totals

Symbol UNIONDAC

235

Quantity Traded 75,718 144,819 476,550

Value Traded 11,766,376.06 100,776,520.25

Current Price 8.60 39.00 14.99

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials DANGOTE CEMENT PLC DN MEYER PLC. PAINTS AND COATINGS MANUFACTURES PLC PORTLAND PAINTS & PRODUCTS NIGERIA PLC LAFARGE AFRICA PLC. Building Materials Totals

Symbol Daily Summary BERGER CAP CCNN

No. of Deals (Equities) 14 16 15

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

1,439,398,503.62

2,487

Value Traded 8,849,480.46 265,376.94 3,338,860.30 23,700.00 14,686,411.27

33,852,868

Quantity Traded 2,328,986 2,328,986

Quantity Traded 139,660 149,422 3,147,328 10,000 4,153,758

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

Current Price 8.99 6.28 18.70 1.99 29.75 2.64 2.25 6.62 8.69 0.50

Symbol No. of(Equities) Deals Current Price Daily Summary NPFMCRFBK 12 0.98 12

Current Price 62.61 1.77 1.06 2.49

Symbol COURTVILLE

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials Daily Summary as of 30/09/2014 ASHAKA CEM PLC Printed 30/09/2014 15:12:50.050

No. of Deals 133 90 101 52 368 167 45 160 (Equities) 52 4

FINANCIAL SERVICES Totals HEALTHCARE Healthcare Providers UNION DIAGNOSTIC & CLINICAL SERVICES PLC Healthcare Providers Totals

No. of Deals 21 21

CONSUMER GOODS Totals FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ACCESS BANK PLC. DIAMOND BANK PLC ECOBANK TRANSNATIONAL INCORPORATED Daily Summary as of 30/09/2014 FIDELITY BANK PLC Printed 30/09/2014 15:12:50.050 GUARANTY TRUST BANK PLC. SKYE BANK PLC STERLING BANK PLC. UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA PLC UNION BANK NIG.PLC. UNITY BANK PLC

Page

Symbol 7UP

No. of Deals 17 14 18 1 72

HEALTHCARE Totals

Symbol COSTAIN

CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Totals

Symbol GLAXOSMITH MAYBAKER NEIMETH PHARMDEKO

Page 4,894

1,079,687,542

8,084,705,772.57

Daily Summary (ETP) Symbol NEWGOLD VETGRIF30

No. of Deals 1 1 2

Current Price 1,912.00 18.76

Quantity Traded 8 10 18

Value Traded 15,296.00 187.60 15,483.60

15,483.60

News 45

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY OCTOBER 2, 2014

Nigerian heroin boss jailed 20 years in US Ndubuisi Ugah

with agency reports

o serve as a strong signal to others in the drug business that it will continue to wage war against drug trafficking, a Federal Court in Houston, United States yesterday sentenced a former drug dealer, Koyode ‘Papa’ Lawrence, for 20 years. He was jailed alongside a former cell mate, who described himself as a Nigerian criminal celebrity, who tried to persuade a judge

to lock Lawrence away for as long as possible. It was gathered that the U.S. government had waited for more than 10 years before finally arraigning and sentencing Lawrence, who led a Lagos Islandbased trafficking organisation. The group allegedly used high-school and college-aged Americans, who ingested dozens of rubberised capsules full of heroin in order to sneak them into the U.S, while aboard commercial plane flights. An online news portal,

Houston Chronicle, reported that the verdict was a homecoming of sorts for the court given the fact that Lawrence’s sentencing had ended a herointrafficking conspiracy. Lawrence, it was also gathered, had personally evaluated ‘swallowers’ to see whether they had the stomachs for the business, according to court papers and testimony. And as he fought his extradition to face justice in Houston, Lawrence spent at least some time in a special Nigerian prison

wing known as the White House for its amenities - including computer access, meals brought in from restaurants, and nights out on the town with girlfriends, said his former cell mate, who is also serving time in this country. In her ruling, U.S. District Judge, Nancy Atlas, ruled that Lawrence’s criminal enterprise did a “massive”, amount of business, and he was clearly in charge of several people. According to her, “the method they used to trans-

port heroin through body carriers is not only disgusting, and not only horrid and abusive of individuals, it was dangerous. Every one of those carriers were in jeopardy.” At least, 14 people arrested transporting heroin in the early 2000s were linked to Lawrence, according to authorities. Atlas declined to give Lawrence the maximum requested by prosecutors but also veered far from the leniency sought by his attorney. The Houston Chronicle

reported that as a stooped and shackled Lawrence stood before the judge to hear his fate, he looked a far cry from the charismatic crime boss, who made millions of dollars. He needed a court interpreter to understand the proceedings, and he wore jeans that were now so baggy they were nearly dropping off him. He apologised for his drug dealing days and said the two men who took the witness stand to talk about him were exaggerating and lying.

Nigeria not an accident, says Fasehun Wale Abiodun

he Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) has congratulated Nigerians on the 54th Independence Anniversary of the country. In a statement released yesterday in Lagos by the National Chairman, Dr. Frederick Fasehun, the party predicted that the Nigeria would prove wrong, the prediction that the country would disintegrate by 2015. “Nigeria is not an accident,” Fasehun said; “God divinely put together this country, and any scheme or weapon designed to cause its break-up shall not prosper. This is because apart from the divine sketch bestowed upon the nation, the people themselves have come to appreciate the strength in belonging to a big and strong nation.” According to Fasehun, the country had defied all odds these past six decades, because its people

were not only resilient, but they also believed in its ordained destiny. However, the UPN leader berated politicians for failing to provide the enabling environment for the country to develop and play its leadership role as the most populous Black nation on earth. “Nigeria remains vastly blessed in all its geographical and natural resources. And its only curse is the bane of leadership. If we can settle the matter of our leadership equation, then we shall lead the rest of Africa and the developing nations in terms of technology, economy and politics,” Fasehun said. He encouraged Nigerians to see beyond the current challenges facing the country saying; “Every cloud has its silver lining. No matter the length of the night, the sun usually shines again. In the very nearest future, Nigerians will enjoy this country. ”

PDP chieftain backs Jonathan’s adoption Gabriel Choba Ughelli

ollowing the recent adoption of President Goodluck Jonathan as the sole presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2015 elections, a chieftain of the party in Delta State, Chief Patrick Egone, yesterday commended the national leadership of the party, saying that their action was the best thing to have happened to the country. Egone, who spoke in Ughelli, said the adoption of President by the National Working Committee, the NEC, the Board of Trustees and the PDP Governors Forum, is a clear indication that the party was ready to win next year’s presidential election. He also noted that the adoption of Jonathan will

further strengthen the party and prepare it for the general elections of 2015, adding that; “President Jonathan should be given a second opportunity to consolidate on his achievements and ensure the actualisation of the ongoing transformation agenda.” The former president of Ughelli Descendants Union (UDU), also called on the people of Ughelli North Local Government to cast their votes for Hon. Kenneth Ibru, chairmanship candidate of the PDP in the October 25 council election. He urged all members of the party in Ughelli North to collectively mobilise for the victory of PDP and Ibru in the election for continued distribution of dividends of democracy to the people.

A cross-section of Boys Scout during the 54th independence celebration at the National Theatre, Lagos…yesterday.

Nigeria @ 54: ‘Health sector still in crisis’ Cajetan Mmuta Benin

ormer President of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Dr. Osahon Enabulele, yesterday rated the country’s health sector low, describing it as having a serious battle to contend with most of the basic problems identified during the pre-colonial and immediate post-colonial periods. He said apart from the recent successes in the containment of the Ebola Virus Disease as well as the publicised improvements in some

health indices like infant and maternal mortality rates, Nigeria’s health care system is still largely deficient with government at all levels yet to decisively address most of the basic challenges confronting the sector. Enabulele listed the major constraints in the sector to include poor and decadent state of health infrastructure and equipment; the Federal Government’s promise in 2013 to institute a Health and Hospital Development Intervention Fund (HHDIF) as well as establish six regional world class hospitals, which has remained mere rhetoric.

According to a statement yesterday in Benin, meant to x-ray the progress so far made in the sector, the former NMA President said at 54, Nigeria’s health care system is still being undermined by poor political commitment to health and the health care needs of the people, by top political and public office holders.” He said the sector is also still blighted by poor budgeting for health at federal, state and local government levels, pointing out that this has not been helped by the absence of constitutional justiciable health rights for Nige-

rians and the frequent recourse to foreign medical care by Nigeria’ top political and public office holders, a situation that has led to the burgeoning phenomenon of outbound medical tourism with the attendant huge capital flight of over $800 million to other countries. Also, he said Nigeria is yet to enact a National Health Act while Universal Health Coverage in Nigeria is still hovering around a miserable seven percent coverage, far lower than rates seen in other less endowed countries like Rwanda, Tanzania and Ghana.

Adamawa community raises concern over Boko Haram Musa Pam Jos

he Bwatiye community in Adamawa State yesterday expressed concern over the activities of the Boko Haram sect, calling on the Federal Government to re-double its efforts in addressing the unrest in the region. A communique issued at the end of its meeting in Jos, Plateau State, and signed by its Chair-

man, Hon. Garba Yedimakudon and Secretary, Ranti Taduggoronno, said the Federal Government should do all that is needful to bring the crisis in the North-East to an end. The meeting, which had all chapters of the body from the six geo-political zones of the country in attendance, “Urged the Federal Government to continue to do all within its power to restore normalcy in all troubled communities in the region.

“The meeting expressed serious concern over the security challenges in the North-East zone of the country, especially the plight of the abducted Chibok schoolgirls. “It urged the Federal Government to re-double its efforts at addressing the security challenges and the release of the abducted girls. The meeting viewed with concern, the lack of unity leading to social, economic and political under-

development of the Bwatiye nation of Adamawa. They called for genuine reconciliation in Bwatiye land, in view of which a committee was set up. It further called on the people to engage in value re-orientation of the community. “Bwatiye people should embark on specific programmes and projects aimed at empowering men, women and youths in Bwatiye land,” it stressed.

News

Thursday, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

PDP accuses Ekiti Chief Judge of bias UPDATE

After a free and fair governorship election, fourth columnists may seat work in Ado-Ekiti Adesina Wahab Ado-Ekiti

kiti State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has accused the state’s Chief Judge (CJ), Justice Ayodeji Daramola of taking sides with the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the attempt by the APC to prevent the Governor-Elect, Ayodele Fayose from being sworn into office on October 16, 2014. As a result, the party has advised the CJ to help in the protection of the sanctity of the judiciary instead of conniving in an attempt to scuttle the will of the people. The party, in a release issued by the State Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kola Oluwawole, in Ado-Ekiti yesterday, accused the CJ of deliberately amplifying what happened in the State High Court, Ado-Ekiti last Monday and Thursday, blaming it on Fayose and shutting down courts in the state to achieve pre-determined political agenda. Oluwawole, who said fracas during court pro-

ceedings was not new in Nigeria, especially in political cases, cited instances of the Election Tribunal sitting in Ondo State that was disrupted on March 18, 2013, when supporters of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and Labour Party (LP) clashed during which four persons were severely injured. He also said on January 23, 2012, supporters of PDP and ACN clashed at the premises of the governorship election petition

Ado-Ekiti

he National Judicial Council will today (Thursday) meet in Abuja to look into the disturbances that took place at the High Court Complex in Ado-Ekiti on Monday and Thursday last week. A source told our correspondent on yesterday night that the council is expected to investigate the allegations levelled against the Ekiti State Chief Judge, Justice Ayodeji Daramola and the Governor-Elect, Mr Ayo Fayose. It was learnt that Fayose had petitioned the NJC to investigate the activities of Daramola and some judicial officers in recent times. Also, Daramola had also petitioned against Fayose, accusing the governor-elect of being the mastermind of assault on Justice John Adeyeye of High Court Three in Ado-Ekiti. Adeyeye was report-

came out of his chamber to ‘warn’ the party supporters. “Now on the alleged assault on Justice John Adeyeye last Thursday, it was reported that the judge told Fayose (who came to attend the tribunal sitting) to warn his thugs. That reportedly took place at the court premises, not inside Justice Adeyeye’s chamber or court. “Firstly, Justice Adeyeye reportedly addressed law-abiding Nigerians,

who came to the court to observe proceedings as thugs. Isn’t that wrong? “Secondly, Fayose was in the court premises, not inside any courtroom, meaning that Justice Adeyeye came out of his chamber or court to address people who were possibly being unruly at the court. “Now we wish to ask, is it the duty of a judge to check unruly crowd in the court premises? Definitely no! “Thirdly, if indeed

Justice Adeyeye was assaulted by the ‘unruly crowd,’ was he assaulted because they knew he was a judge? Was Justice Adeyeye carrying identification as a judge on his head? Definitely no! “Most importantly, who says the APC government of Dr. Kayode Fayemi could not have planted some hoodlums in the crowd and the hoodlums sent by the state government were the ones who assaulted the judge?

L-R: Exco Director of Strategy, Lagos for the People Association (LPA), Ronke Kosoko; Convener/Leader, Adoga Charles and Publicity Secretary, Salako Azeez, during a Press Conference on the need for change in the fortune of Lagos State held in Lagos…yesterday. PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

...As NJC meets today Adesina Wahab

tribunal in Lokoja, Kogi State, with one person shot and three others injured. “The same also happened on January 6, 2012, when some persons were injured in a commotion between the supporters of Gov. Tanko Almakura of Nasarawa State and his predecessor Alhaji Akwe Doma at the Court of Appeal in Makurdi. “In all the three instances mentioned above, courts in the states were not shut while no judge

edly manhandled and beaten by some people and Daramola said in his petition that the attackers of Adeyeye acted on the orders of Fayose. Also, the proceedings of another high court presided over by Justice Olusegun Ogunyemi was disrupted last week Monday. The court was hearing two pre-election cases involving Fayose as one of the defendants. The NJC is chaired by the Chief Justice of the Nigeria, Justice Alooma Mukthar. There has been fear in some quarters that the frosty relationship between Daramola and Fayose could lead to the former not administering the necessary oaths on the latter during his inauguration on October 16. But some legal minds say since there is no court ruling or judgment nullifying Fayose’s electoral victory, the Ekiti CJ has no choice other than to perform his statutory duties.

2015: Avoid treasonable utterances — Mark Onwuka Nzeshi ABUJA

head of the 2015 general election, President of the Senate, Senator David Mark, has cautioned politicians against making inflammatory statements that could have treasonable implications and capa-

ble of jeopardising the smooth political transition in the country. Mark, who spoke yesterday at a special church service to mark the 54th Independence anniversary at St. Mulumba’s Catholic Chaplaincy, Apo, Abuja stated that such negative statements could overheat the polity and create avoidable tension. He reminded politicians

that their individual ambitions should be subordinated to the national interest, adding that Nigeria must exist as a nation first before anyone could pursue individual ambitions. Mark pleaded with those beating the drums of war and fanning the embers of disunity to have a rethink because Nigerians have more to gain by staying together as a people of

one country. He said politics was a call for service and not a platform to cause disaffection among citizenry. “Election is not a do-ordie. We should know that only one seat exist at a time. I advise mischief-makers not to test the will of government because government has all it takes to deal with troublemakers. Let’s give peace a chance.

Jonathan’s adoption will strengthen democracy, says Presidency Lateef Ibrahim Abuja

he Presidency has explained that the adoption of President Goodluck Jonathan as the sole candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the February14, 2015 will strengthen democracy. The Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Prof. Ahmed Rufa’i Alkali, who stated this in Abuja yesterday,

pointed out that President Jonathan is even disposed to having a keen contest with candidates presented by opposition political parties. The President, Alkali stated, has been preparing well ahead of the contest. The former National Publicity Secretary of the PDP further explained that the consensus arrangement by the PDP, leading to the adoption of Jonathan for the 2015 presidential election was

meant to strengthen democracy, contrary to the impression by the opposition. According to him, “The President’s adoption as the PDP candidate has not closed the contest for the 2015 presidential election.” Alkali spoke against the barrage of criticisms trailing the president’s adoption by the PDP National Executive Committee (NEC). He said: “What the PDP did was to affirm its ma-

turity in political game based on its rich experience of being in power for the past 16 years and had thus succeeded in obviating internal wrangling that usually trail internal electioneering among members. “The option of consensus has not been strange in the politics of Nigeria. All political parties, at critical times, deploy the option, most especially when the need arises for them to stay afloat.

News 47

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY OCTOBER 2, 2014

Nigerian students in Philippines hail Jonathan Gabriel Choba Ughelli

or his laudable achievements and continuous efforts at transforming the country, Nigerian students in Philippines yesterday extended their gratitude to President Goodluck Jonathan. The students also said that as pragmatic and visionary Nigerians, they have seen through the veil of distraction in the country and boldly applauded Jonathan for his developmental strides across the country. The students, who spoke under the umbrella of ‘People of Intellectual Visions (PIV),’ in an online statement, also commended the Minister of Transport, Alhaji Idris A. Umar, the Director General of NIMASA, Dr. Ziakede Patrick Akpobolokemi, Coordinator, NSDP, Hon. Mrs. Irene MacFoy, Nigeria to the Philippines, Ambassador Akinyemi Farounbi, for their respective contributions to development of the country.

L-R: Director-General, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mr Mike Omeri; Senator Ayogu Eze; Senate President, David Mark; Minister of State for FCT, Ms. Olajumoke Akinjide; Senator Atai Ali and Senator Emmanuel Aguariavwodo, at a church service to mark Nigeria’s 54th Independence Anniversary celebration at the Saint Mulumba Chaplaincy, Abuja …yesterday

“Jonathan’s transformation agenda will continue to help in developing the country’s human capital and other sectors of the economy, particularly education, which is the panacea to higher productivity in a country.” Signed by Porbeni Jackson Ebitimi and Arerebo Salaco Yerinmene Peters Jr, the students noted that the group was established by persons who believe in the collective ideas that continues to build and educate people on purposeful leadership.

2015: Akweda assures Ethiope East of good representation Gabriel Choba Ughelli

s the nation moves towards the 2015 general elections, an aspirant warming up for the Delta State House of Assembly under the platform of Labour Party (LP) to represent Ethiope East constituency, Mr. Ransome Akweda, yesterday assured the people of the area of his preparedness to give the local government good representation. Akweda, who gave this assurance while speaking to newsmen, said he decided to run for the Delta State House of Assembly to bring government closer to his people and to ensure that his people at the grass root enjoy dividends of democracy. On his choice of Labour Party, Akweda said he was a member of Democratic Peoples Party (DPP) before they moved to Labour Party

and that he has no intention of contesting on another platform other than the party his leader, Chief Great Ovedje Ogboru, belongs to. Speaking further, he said he has been with Ogboru from his time in the Alliance for Democracy (AD) to the time he joined the DPP and now Labour Party, saying that he has never deviated, expressing confidence that he will contest and win his election under the Labour Party, where Chief Ogboru is running. While calling on the people of Ethiope East to support his aspiration for the Delta State House of Assembly, Akweda added that he is a grassroot politician, who had worked for the party since 1999 till date, assuring his party members of delivering to the party if given the ticket to represent the people in the Delta State House of Assembly.

Owunna dumps Okorocha for APGA, resigns as IMSU pro-chancellor Steve Uzoechi Owerri

marting from the recent exodus of some stalwarts of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to other parties, Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, has taken another knock, as billionaire businessman, Mazi Clement Owunna, who had been one of the governor’s biggest allies in Okigwe zone, left the party for the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). While resigning his

membership of the APC, New Telegraph gathered that Owunna also tendered his resignation as the Pro-Chancellor of Imo State University, Owerri. The business mogul, who is running for the Okigwe North senatorial seat is considered a rallying point for Okigwe people, who have never occupied the seat since the advent of democratic rule in 1999. Contacted, Director General of the Clement Owunna Campaign Organisation, Chief Emeka Ozuomba, confirmed the exit of Owunna from the APC, saying the decision

Okorocha frees 94-year old convict, 15 others Steve Uzoechi OWERRI

n exercise of his statutory power on prerogative of mercy, Governor Rochas Okorocha has granted pardon to 16 convicts serving terms in Owerri prisons. Acting on the recommendations of the Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy, which he had earlier set up with the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in the state, Chief Chukwuma – Machukwu Umeh (SAN) as chairman, the governor freed the convicts during the independent anniversary ceremony in Owerri. While 11of the pardoned convicts were imprisoned for non-capital offences and had less than six months to serve out their terms, Mr. Canice Egbunanne, 94 and Mr. Chidi

Nwosu, 70 were pardoned on the ground of age. Before pronouncing them free, the Governor had also asked the crowd at the independent anniversary ceremony whether they would support the freeing of the16 convicts recommended for pardon by the Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy and the response was in the affirmative. Earlier in his address, the governor stated that at 54, it was time for the country to address the vexed issues of insecurity, youth unemployment, corruption among others as well as the decentralization of power. His words: “As a nation, there is no better time to act and achieve the desired goals than now. We must admit that things are not working out the way they should in Nigeria. Democracy cannot be said to be functional in the country.”

was reached as the best option under the circumstance to better further Owunna’s desire to represent Okigwe North in the Senate by 2015. He said: “Considering our peculiar environment, we are convinced beyond doubt that APC is not a vehicle that can safely convey us to the National Assembly. Moreover, Mazi Owunna desires to join forces with other Igbo patriots in APGA to galvanise support for President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015.” A dependable Government House source de-

scribed Owunna’s exit as shocking, recalling that only a week ago, Governor Okorocha commissioned a N150 million recreation park built by the industrialist in Imo State University, Owerri, amid back-slapping and pleasantries. Meanwhile, indications are rife that Governor Willy Obiano of Anambra State will lead a cream of Igbo leaders in APGA to welcome Mazi Clement Owunna into the party in an elaborate reception ceremony scheduled to hold within the week.

Tension mounts over cancelled Onitsha market election Okegwo Kenechukwu Onitsha

ension is mounting at the Onitsha Drug Market in Anambra State over the cancellation of the market elections that was slated for Monday, September 29, as many traders have vowed to do everything possible to see the return of elected executives in the market. New Telegraph gathered that the traders are clamouring for elected executives rather than a caretaker government that has ruled the market for almost sixteen months, following the state government’s cancellation of the polls. Reports said the government decided to postpone the election following a petition written by some aggrieved traders concerning the conduct and the candidature of

some of the contestants. Chairman of the market’s Evangelism Group, Chinonye Offor; the Secretary, Collins Umahi Titus Uwah and Rowland Nwafor, both former leaders, who have been championing the campaign, said they could not believe that the petition, which they said has been resolved, could compel the state government to wage a sledge hammer over an election that had long been awaited for accusing the incumbent chairman of sabotaging the election. They expressed disappointment with the market leadership led by Ugochukwu Nwosu, and vowed that despite the antics of the chairman and his cohorts, they would not be deterred to continue fighting for equity and justice to prevail in the market.

News

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

N107m fraud trial: Ogbulafor, Ebila know fate today Tunde Oyesina Abuja

n Abuja High Court will this morning deliver judgment in a criminal suit filed by the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) against a former national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Vincent Ogbulafor and a former Secretary of the National Economic Intelligence Committee, Emeka Ebila. The ICPC had filed the suit on behalf of the Federal Government against the duo over alleged N107 million fraud. The trial judge, Justice Ishaq Bello had on Tuesday issued a bench warrant and revoked the bail granted to Ebila for his absence in court for three consecutive times. The ICPC arraigned

them on May 10, 2010, alleging that Ogbulafor, while serving as Minister of State for Special Duties in 2001, conspired with others to float three fictitious companies with which they perpetrated the fraud. The accused were alleged to have used Henrichiko Nigeria Limited, DHL Consultants and Chekwas Industries to fraudulently obtain N82.6 million, N11.5 million and N6.2 million in 2001. Ogbulafor was also accused of using his position as the head of the National Economic Intelligence Committee, set up to verify debts owed local contractors, to okay as genuine, several forged documents. He was alleged to have relied on the forged documents to certify that the three fake companies successfully executed jobs worth N104 million.

The former PDP chairman was also alleged to have collected N2 million and N28 million kickbacks from Ebilah. The offences contravene Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Act, 2000. Ogbulafor’s counsel, John Egwuonwu, while adopting his final written address on June 24, urged the court to discharge and acquit his client on all the counts. He argued that the prosecution failed to link his client to the crime. Egwuonwu urged the court to jettison the allegation in Ebila’s “confessional statement” that the sum of N28 million was paid to Ogbulafor with two bank drafts. The absence of Ebila had however for three times prevented the court from delivering judgment, having listened to the submissions

of all parties in the trial. However, the first accused person, Ogbulafor has always been in court since the commencement of the trial. The court had initially fixed September 22 for judgment, but the absence of the second accused person on that day made the court to adjourn till September 24. The second accused person was also not present, a situation that made the court to adjourn till Tuesday. When the matter came up on Tuesday, the second accused person was still not in court. His counsel, Mrs. E.S Osagie prayed the court for another adjournment stating that Ebila is sick and presently on admission at the National Hospital, Abuja. Prosecution Counsel, Yemi Akanmode did not oppose the application.

Reps halt NYSC online registration Yusuf Shuaib Abuja

he proposed online registration fee imposed on students who are called-up for the mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has been halted by the House of Representatives. The House, which has already instituted a probe into the online registration, also urged NYSC to suspend forthwith the policy requiring each prospective corps member to pay N4, 000 before accessing their call-up letters. They described as “insensitive and exploitative” any such policy that would force fresh graduates to pay any amount of money before serving their fatherland. New Telegraph went round town and saw some fresh graduates praising, Hon. Hassan Saleh (PDP, Benue), who moved the motion that led to the House resolu-

tion, just as they showered him with prayers. Saleh had expressed concern on recent public announcements “that with effect from 2015, corps members will be required to register online with a fee of N4, 000 to be able to access their call-up letters as an alternative to their having to go to their various schools to collect the letters”, a situation that did not go down well with 90 percent of Nigerians. He said: “as laudable as the idea of sending call-up letters through the internet may be, the decision requiring fresh graduates to cough out N4, 000 to access letters appears insensitive and exploitative”. He prayed the House to mandate the committees on youth development and justice to investigate the appropriateness or otherwise of the “money-for-call-up letter policy” and report back within one month.

Federal, state judiciaries to submit 2015 budget to legislators Tunde Oyesina Abuja

Imo state Governor, Rochas Okorocha (left), inspecting a guard of honour, during the Independence Day in Owerri …yesterday

Jani: I’m in politics as a sacrifice Obiano, Uduaghan pardon prisoners

eoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirant in Kwara State, Alhaji Ibrahim Jani has described his foray into politics as a personal sacrifice in a bid to uplift the state. “I consider it a sacrifice to leave my comfort zone to dabble in the murky waters of politics”, he said yesterday when he met members of Jani Ibrahim Campaign Organization, JICO, from all the 16 Local Government Areas in the State. Jani, who is the chairman of LUBON Ltd, said as a successful industrialist he was persuaded by the need to add his voice and energy to the transformation efforts of the PDP and the Jonathan administration. “Borrowing the teachings of Plato, it is unacceptable for men of conscience to sit idle and

allow evil men to rule,” Alhaji Jani said. While he agreed that the private sector contributes largely to economic development, he said governance requires competent and committed leaders to make and implement good policies. “Poverty stalks the land, but that is unacceptable in a country so blessed with abundant resources”, Jani said while explaining his aspiration for the 2015 governorship election. Alhaji Saliu Mohammed, the Director General of JICO, said Jani is becoming popular among PDP members and the generality of Kwarans owing to his antecedents as a successful entrepreneur and a community leader living and working at home. He also described him as the aspirant whom the cap fits.

Tony Okafor and Dominic Adewole

overnor Willie Obiano of Anambra yesterday granted amnesty to 25 prison inmates in various prisons across the state. Obiano disclosed this in his address entitled “A Message of Hope” during the march past at the Alex Ekwueme Square to mark the 54thIndependence anniversary of the country. Similarly, Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State also yesterday freed three prisoners on the death row. Also, nine other prisoners had their death sentences trimmed down to various grades of imprisonment, ranging from ten years to 15 and even life imprisonment. The Governor who spoke in Asaba during the independence cel-

ebration said “the pardon became necessary following the recommendations by the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy.” He said: “I have granted pardon to three prisoners that were sentenced to death. I have granted them total pardon, following the recommendation of the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy.” On the nation’s 54th independent anniversary, the governor appealed to those behind the present insurgency in parts of the country to cease fire, saying that “enough is enough” of the wanton destruction of human lives and property. He appealed to Nigerians to give President Goodluck Jonathan their support in his transformation agenda even as he urged Nigerians to pray against terrorism.

he Association of Court Registrars and Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) on has directed both the federal and states judiciaries to submit their budget proposals to either the National Assembly or states’ Houses of Assembly for appropriation with effect from 2015 budget. At the meeting of the two judiciary bodies at the Supreme Court in Abuja which was chaired by the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court, Mr. Sunday Olorundahunsi, and the JUSUN president, Marwan Adamu, it was resolved that it would amount to contempt of court to submit budget proposals to the federal and states budget and planning office or commission. They held also that all the federal and state judiciaries should not obey or condone budgetary ceilings likely to be placed by the federal government and some state governors to subvert financial autonomy. The meeting which was attended by the Chief Registrar of the Federal High Court, Mrs. Rosemary Onnome Dugbo-Oghoghorie, Registrars of the various divisions of the Court of Appeal Court, Federal and states High Courts, Sharia and the Customary Courts of Appeal, resolved that “it shall be tantamount to contempt of court on the side of the executive at both

levels to place a ceiling on the amounts judiciary can budget for”. In a motion raised by the Customary Court of Appeal Chief Registrar of Abia state, Benson Anya, he insisted that the federal and state judiciaries must be mandated not to forward their budget proposals to the federal and states budget and planning office or commission but take them straight to the National and States House of Assembly for appropriation. The second motion was moved by Dugbo-Oghoghorie and she said: “All federal and state judiciaries shall not be ready for budgetary ceiling, which shall be tantamount to contempt of court by whoever does that”. According to the JUSUN President, Marwan, the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Aloma Mariam Mukhtar, had written a cover letter attached to the judgment of a Federal High Court to all the 36 state governors, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and the Attorney General of the Federation intimating them on the need to comply with the court order. JUSUN, he said, had held series of meeting with the Minister of State for Finance who had agreed to comply with the court order since it is subsisting. JUSUN is expected to present copies of the budgets for the judiciary in 12 states at the next meeting with the minister.

News 49

NEW TELEGRAPH Thursday, OCTOBER 2, 2014

Anyanya promises better Rivers

PDP Rivers State governorship aspirant, Major Lancelot Anyanya (rtd) (kneeling down), receiving blessings from royal fathers and Andoni Council of Chiefs, during the endorsement of Anyanya by the Andoni Royal Fathers and Council of Chiefs, in Port Harcourt...yesterday

Chibok: Group protests government’s silence, inaction l Says there is nothing to celebrate on Independence Day

Onwuka Nzeshi ABUJA

he Citizen Arise Movement of Nigeria (CAMON) yesterday staged a peaceful rally at the Eagles Square amidst tight security. The protest, the group said, was over President Goodluck Jonathan’s alleged silence on the plight of the over 200 Chibok school girls in his nationwide broad-

cast to commemorate Nigeria’s 54th independence anniversary. Unlike in the past when such rallies were met with brute force, policemen and other security personnel keeping vigil around the venue of the protest kept a safe distance from the protesters. Convener of the rally, Otunba Dino Melaye led about 200 members of CAMON on the protest

Lamido charges Nigerians on patrotism Dahiru Suleiman Dutse

igerians have been urged to imbibe the spirit of patriotism in upholding the spirit of corporate unity of the nation as well eschew violence that will jeopardize the corporate ex-

istence of the country. Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa state made the remarks through his Deputy, Ahmad Mahmud Gumel on the occasion of this year’s 54 independence speech. He said the corporate existence of the country is supreme, and non-negotiable.

I wasn’t suspended, says Dabin Musa Pam Jos

he former Chairman of the Plateau State Chapter of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Haruna Dabin who was purportedly sus-

pended by the state working Committee of the Party, said nobody has ever suspended him from the PDP in the state, but he formerly resigned as the state chairman of the party on the 15th of September, 2014.

Suswam lauds fight against Boko Haram Cephas Iorhemen Makurdi

s Nigerians celebrate 54 years of nationhood, Governor Gabriel Suswam of Benue

State has called on the leadership at all levels to remain steadfast and purpose-driven in their collective will to make life meaningful to the people.

match through major streets of Abuja and terminating at the Eagles Square. The protesters brandished large banners and posters with various inscriptions demanding immediate action on the rescue of the Chibok school girls, end of insurgency and several other national issues. In his address, Melaye accused the Federal Government of failing in its

duties to safeguard the lives and property of the citizenry. He dismissed recent commendations received by the Federal Government from a cross section of Nigerians on the renewed fight against insurgency, insisting that those hailing the government were sycophants and not those who feel the real impact of the crisis. He charged the government to be accountable to the people

DPR sanctions Petroleum marketers in Abuja Johnchuks Onuanyim Abuja

or hoarding petroleum products and engaging in other sharp practises, the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), has sanctioned more than 20 petroleum marketers in Abuja in the last one week. Head of Public Relation Unit of DPR, Abuja Zone, Mr Seidu Mohammed, made this revelation to the media at a centenary and Independence Day party organ-

ised by the department in Abuja. According to him, the marketers were sanctioned for offences ranging from under dispensing, selling above pump price, hoarding and diversion of petroleum products after the suspension of strike by oil workers He posited that during the strike which lasted for five days, things went bad and marketers capitalized on the situation to exploit the commuters by manipulating their pumps.

Niger prepares to arrest Ebola in Schools Dan Atori MINNA

n a bid to forestall the spread of the deadly Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in both public and private schools, ahead of the October 10 resumption date in the state, the Niger State Government on Wednesday said it has purchased equipment

worth N100 million. Governor Muazu Babangida Aliyu said at the Nigeria 54th independence anniversary children party in Minna that though there has not been any reported case of the Ebola disease in the state, the state government thought it wise to embark on a proactive measure in order to effectively protect children.

and show capacity to contain the insurgency and restore normalcy to the affected region. According to him, the Nigerian military has been unable to respond adequately to the kidnap of the Chibok school girls and the general state of insecurity in the North East because they were ill-equipped and security budgets had been siphoned through corruption.

governorship aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State, Maj. Lancelot Anyanya, has said that his aspiration is to forge a new sense of greatness among the people of the state, irrespective of their situation in life by creating opportunities for all. “The new Rivers State we want to create is an environment where everybody, whether you choose to live in the fishing port, in farming community, wherever you choose to be or wherever you find yourself, you can be great and that is the message we have brought and it is into that calling of greatness that God has given every human being that we have come to appeal to the creative energy of Rivers person.” He spoke in Port Harcourt yesterday while responding to comments by kings and chiefs of his Andoni ethnic group, who came together to formally endorsed him for the position of governor in the state. Lancelot told the assembly of the traditional rulers that having contemplated over the race for awhile, it was time for him to inform them about his governorship ambition and solicited their support.

Guber aspirant tasks Nigerians on A’Ibom optimism constituency Temitope Ogunbanke rejects zoning

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial aspirant in Zamafara State, Alhaji Hamidu Sagir, has charged Nigerians not to lose hope in the country. Sagir in his independence message signed by his media adviser, Alhaji Yakubu Abubakar, noted that Nigeria will overcome the myriads of challenges currently confronting it and therefore urged Nigerians to exercise patience with their leaders in the country’s transfor mation efforts. Sagir while congratulating President Goodluck Jonathan and Nigerians on the 54 independence celebration said the country is rising to take its position as giant of Africa.

Tony Anichebe

Uyo

he people of Ikono/ Ini Federal Constituency under the aegis of Ikono/Ini Peace Ambassadors (IIPA) have declared that there will be no zoning for the federal seat of the area in 2015 election. In a press release signed by the Publicity Secretary of the group, Mr. Kufre Peters and made available to newsmen in Uyo yesterday, the group opined that in 2015, the contest should not be limited to aspirants from only one Local Government of the Federal Constituency, rather it should be opened as usual to aspirants from the two LGAs, making the Federal Constituency.

WORLD | News

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

ISIS beheads seven men, three women in Syria

he Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has beheaded seven men and three women in a northern Kurdish area of Syria, a human rights monitoring group said yesterday, part of what it described as a campaign to frighten residents

resisting the militant group’s advance. The head of the Syrian Observatory for Human, Rights Rami Abdulrahman, said five anti-Islamic State Kurdish fighters, including three women, and four Syrian Arab rebels were detained and be-

headed yesterday, 14 km (8 miles) west of Kobani, a Kurdish town besieged by Islamic State near the Turkish border. He said a Kurdish male civilian was also beheaded. “I don’t know why they were arrested or beheaded. Only the Islamic State knows why. They want to

scare people,” he said. Reuters could not independently verify the information. Islamic State fighters have carried out several beheadings of enemy fighters and civilians in Syria and Iraq. The beheadings are often carried out in public and with a message that any violent or non-violent

dissent with not be tolerated. When fighting Sunni Mulsim tribes in eastern Syria, Islamic State have used beheadings to scare local leaders to withdraw from the battlefield. Islamic State has also beheaded foreign journalists and an aid worker.

Defiant protesters gather in Hong Kong on China’s national day

Hong Kong holds a flag-raising ceremony to mark the 65th anniversary of the founding of China with a heavy police presence

Desmond Tutu backs Hong Kong protesters

outh African Nobel peace laureate Desmond Tutu yesterday backed prodemocracy protests in Hong Kong, criticising police for trying to suppress them and calling on Bejing not to “fear the will of its people”. “I salute the courage of the hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong citizens who have participated in mass demonstrations in the territory,” said Tutu, who rose to worldwide fame as an opponent of apartheid in the 1980s. “The firing of teargas at

demonstrators, as happened Sunday, was a bitter blow to what many still hope will be a peaceful, inclusive and dignified transformation process,” he said in a statement. Tens of thousands of protesters have assembled in three major commercial and retail areas of Hong Kong for the past three days, campaigning for free elections in 2017. The most intense civil unrest Hong Kong has experienced since its 1997 handover from British rule was sparked by Beijing’s deci-

sion in August to restrict who can stand for the city’s top post. “I pray that the voices of the people of Hong Kong will never be stifled,” said Tutu, the Anglican archbishop emeritus. “And I pray for a compassionate and just government in Beijing that does not fear the will of its people.” Crowds on the streets of Hong Kong are expected to swell on Wednesday before a national holiday marking the 65th anniversary of the founding of Communist China.

US health experts in Dallas review potential Ebola exposure

S health experts in Dallas were taking stock yesterday of how many people may have been exposed to Ebola, just a day after the first case of the deadly virus was diagnosed in the United States, the nation’s top public health official said. The review comes even as health officials in Texas said healthcare workers tested negative for the virus and there were no other suspected cases in the state. Health officials confirmed the first case of the virus in the United States Tuesday, when a man who flew from Liberia to Texas tested positive for Ebola, which has killed more than 3,000 people in West Africa. “We have a seven-person team in Dallas today helping to review that with the family and make sure we identify everyone that could have had contact with him,” Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), told NBC

in an interview. Frieden said experts were monitoring “a handful” of people who were potentially exposed through physical contact with the patient. Officials were looking at family members the patient visited, as well as healthcare providers who helped treat him. Dallas city officials on Wednesday said the three ambulance crew members who transported the man tested negative for the virus, although they were quarantined and would be closely monitored for the next 21 days, the amount of time it can take for symptoms to appear. Texas state health officials, in a post on Twitter, said there were no other suspected cases of Ebola at this time. “The team on the ground will review that very intensively to see whether there’s any other groups who, out of an abundance of caution, we would want to monitor carefully,” Frieden told NBC’s “Today” show from CDC headquarters

in Atlanta. Ebola spreads through contact with bodily fluids like blood or saliva, which health experts say limits its potential to infect others, unlike airborne diseases. Still, the long window of time before patients exhibit signs of infection, such as fever, vomiting and diarrhea, means an infected person can travel without detection. The virus can be fatal. While past outbreaks killed as many as 90 percent of victims, the current world outbreak has a fatality rate of about 50 percent. The patient in the U.S., who was not identified for privacy reasons, arrived in Texas on Sept. 20, and sought treatment six days later at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas, according to the CDC. He was initially evaluated and sent home with antibiotics, but returned two days later. He was then admitted and isolated, a delay that has been questioned by other health experts.

uge crowds of prodemocracy protesters from all walks of life gathered in Hong Kong yesterday in defiant mood on China’s National Day as support for the movement spread around the world. Hong Kong leader Leung Chun-ying has faced mounting calls to resign and accusations of failing to engage with protesters after their “Umbrella Revolution” campaign for unfettered universal suffrage sparked the biggest civil unrest in the city for decades. Demonstrators packed a 500-metre stretch of road between downtown neighbourhoods Wanchai and Admiralty yesterday afternoon after Hong Kong and Beijing politicians gathered to mark Communist China’s 65th anniversary. With offices closed throughout the semi-autonomous Chinese city for a two-day public holiday, there were much larger daytime crowds than on the previous three days of protest, when numbers increased after dark. International support has also been growing a Facebook group calling itself “United for Democracy: Global Solidarity with Hong Kong” said it was planning events from Australia to the United States. Around 300 people gathered in New Zealand’s capital Auckland, one of the first protests, while organisers in Taiwan said they were expecting thousands to attend a rally yesterday evening. After an early-morning flag-raising ceremony to mark National Day, Leung chinked glasses of champagne with Chinese officials including Zhang Xiaoming, Beijing’s top man in Hong Kong. “Hong Kong and the mainland are closely linked in their development. We must work hand in hand to make the

Chinese dream come true,” he told dignitaries at the city’s convention centre, urging the community to work together. Protesters outside booed as two helicopters flew overhead, one bearing a large Chinese flag and the other a smaller Hong Kong banner, while those on the streets later criticised Leung. “This civil disobedience movement will continue unless CY Leung comes out and has a really serious dialogue with Hong Kong people,” said hedge fund manager Edward Chin of pro-democracy group Occupy Central’s finance and banking section. “Of course the Hong Kong people need to work with Beijing, but they can’t force a fake democracy on Hong Kong. This is not Tibet. This is not Xinjiang.” Close to tears, Occupy co-founder Chan Kin-man apologised to residents for the disruption the sit-ins have caused and asked for tolerance. “With this short-term inconvenience, we hope to bring about a system that is fairer,” he said. The protests have paralyses much of the city’s central financial district and two other areas, disrupting surface transport and shutting down businesses. Beijing has been left grappling with one of the biggest challenges to its rule over the city at a time when the Communist Party is cracking down hard on dissent on the mainland. The most intense civil unrest Hong Kong has experienced since its 1997 handover from British rule was sparked by Beijing’s decision in August to restrict who can stand for the city’s top post. Hong Kongers will be able to vote for their next chief executive in 2017 but only two or three candidates vetted by a pro-Beijing committee will be allowed to stand.

Political activists arrested in Sudan

udanese activists say police have arrested scores of activists, lawyers and journalists over the past two weeks around the anniversary of massive protests against the lifting of fuel subsidies. Abdel-Qayom Badour, the Secretary-General of the opposition Sudanese Congress Party, told The Associated Press that nearly 100 people from civil society organizations and opposition political parties have been arrested.

The U.S. State Department expressed “deep concern” regarding reports that “dozens of political activists and civil society leaders” have been arrested ahead of planned demonstrations on Sept. 25, the anniversary of the protests. Nearly 200 people were killed during the mass demonstrations a year ago, according to rights groups. It was the worst violence in the capital since President Omar al-Bashir came to power in 1989.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

EURO Football

Sports INTERVIEW

Turning Point

Keshi can drop me, Emenike fires back

Costa on collision course with Mourinho

Hamilton turned me into a left full-back – Iroha

Sport Disu

Did you know? Nigeria international Dickson Etuhu didn’t play football until he was 15, but instead represented Great Britain at youth athletics events in the triple jump and long jump

Don’t sack Keshi, Disu urges new NFF board

l Says Eagles need local technical support lTips Amodu, Laloko, others for role Emmanuel Tobi

ormer Flying Eagles coach, Tunde Disu, has urged the new board of the Nigeria Football Federation not to sack Coach Stephen Keshi despite the dismal performance of the Super Eagles in the 2015 AFCON qualifiers. Keshi was temporarily re-engaged by the Sports Minister, Tammy Danagogo, to oversee Nigeria’s AFCON double-header against Congo and South Africa, while discussions on a permanent renewal of his contract continues with the NFF. Disu opined that the coaching crew led by Keshi should be fortified with experienced local coaches while maintaining that Nigeria can still qualify for the Morocco 2015 AFCON. “What should be done in this crucial time is to have a consortium of experienced coaches like Amodu Shuiabu, Kashimawo Laloko and

Keshi

another coach to help with technical input to salvage the current situation. I can also offer my services if required but the sacking of Keshi is not the solution because it will take a new coach more than a year to build a new team.” He added that the new NFF board should as a matter of urgency constitute a functional technical department with experienced indigenous coaches to help develop Nigerian football. “This was the foundation that helped Clemence Westerhof and Bonfere Jo to achieve success when they were here. I was the head of the technical department as well as the head coach when Westerhof was here. We

had great coaches such as Willy Bazuaye, Musa Abdullahi and other local coaches working behind the scene for Bonfere and that made them successful,” he stressed. Keshi’s situation as the interim coach of the Super Eagles became precarious after Nigeria suffered a 3-2 home loss to the Red Devils of Congo in Calabar and managed a goalless draw with the Bafana Bafana in South Africa to put Nig eria’s qualification for the defence of the Nations Cup title at great risk. The results meant that the Eagles would have to win all their remaining matches, including the two legs against Sudan on October 11 and 15 respectively, to raise hopes of qualification for the 2015 fiesta in Morocco.

What should be done in this crucial time is to have a consortium of experienced coaches

Moses

Rumble in Nigerian cricket over team’s failure in South Africa Ajibade Olusesan

The Sport Team

Adekunle Salami l Deputy Editor, Sports Emmanuel Tobi l Asstistant Editor, Sports

Ifeanyi Ibeh l Sports Correspondent

Ajibade Olusesan l Sports Correspondent

Charles Ogundiya l Sports Correspondent

he poor showing of Nigerian cricket team at the T20 Division Two tournament in South Africa is threatening the fragile peace in the Nigeria Cricket Federation. The Nigerian team failed to qualify to the Division One after a dismal outing in South Africa and some members of the NCF board are blaming the president of the federation, Enema Onyeama, for the poor

showing. A member of the board who sought anonymity told our correspondent that Onyema has been running a oneman show and has refused to carry other members along hence the poor showing of the national team in international tournaments in recent times. The board member said that the embattled president was responsible for the poor selection of players for the South Africa tournament as many experienced players were excluded from the squad ‘for reasons

that were not genuine enough.’ “We are not surprised that the team did not do well because things are not going the way they should. Our president has been running a one-man show, we have not been having board meetings so we are not part of decision-making. A lot of us are not happy about this,” he said. The cold war in cricket took a new dimension last month when Endurance Ofem resigned as the General Manager of NCF citing operation defects as reason for his decision.

SPORT

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Keshi can drop me, Emenike fires back

enerbahce star Emmanuel Emenike has maintained that he is prepared to stay out of the Super Eagles if coach Stephen Keshi believed he is the problem of the team. Keshi has been quoted as saying he is unhappy with the AFCON 2013 top scorer, who he sensationally benched in last month’s AFCON qualifier against Congo in Calabar. However, Emenike has quickly reacted to the comments of the coach, saying he has utmost respect for Keshi and will always do, but he has never been a problem to the Eagles and will never be. “I have always treated Keshi like a father, and he has always lived in my heart as be a good father. Before now, we have been enjoying a smooth relationship and I see no reason he should be holding grudges against me,” the star striker told AfricanFootball. com in a most revealing interview. “Keshi is a good coach, a coach with high pedigree. I give him all the respect I can give my father whenever I come for a national assignment. “Before the 2013 Nations Cup, I could remember he called me to have a chat and I was ready to give him my best. “My performance at the competition was inspired by Keshi. He showed me love, he put me through and I always respected his decisions. I never thought that I am bigger than any coaches.” He told AfricanFootball.com he was therefore surprised to read a comment that Keshi and some players in the team are not happy with him. “Everything changed after the Nations Cup, everything about him towards me changed and I decided to stay on my own,”

he further revealed. “But I am very surprised by what he said that he and some players in the Eagles are not happy with me. Over what? “I don’t want Nigerians to see me as being proud or arrogant, but if the coach think inviting me to his team will not bring result or peace to the team, he can let me be. “I have maintained a solid relationship to avoid quarreling with him, but if my invitation to play for Nigeria does not stand for peace, I will like to stay focused on my club.” He added: “I have always loved to give my best for Nigeria and I always make it known that I can always fight to score goals for my country and I will not like coach Keshi to let Nigerians see me as an undisciplined player who is not ready to give them my best any more. “My Super Eagles career is as important as my club career. Coming to play for Nigeria was the biggest decision I have ever made in my life. And I appreciate the way the fans have been striving hard to cheer me up whenever I push for

Emenike

goal.” Emenike further said he would appreciate if his unhappy team mates could go public with his “sins”. “I have never seen the Super Eagles camp as my father’s house, it’s a temporary place for everybody, and why should we be creating problems for ourselves? he asked. “As a matter of fact, I have no grudges against anybody in the team. I see everybody as my friend, I tried not to distinguish Emenike myself from any other player, as far as we have for Nigeria since October last year, come to serve our country, and that has raised questions over we are equal. his commitment to the national “If Keshi think inviting team, but he has insisted he has me is a problem to his sebeen firing blanks because the lection or the team, I will chances are not being created for prefer to stay back and him any more. maintain my big respect “At the World Cup, I played evfor him. ery role, of course my role is to “The bottom line is that stay in front and score goals, but I don’t have problems with in a situation where chances are Keshi and I don’t have not coming, it will be difficult for problems with him putany striker to score,” he explained. ting me on the bench. I am “I am not a magician, I just laugh not bothered if he chooses at some people who talk about my not to play me in a match commitment in terms of goals. The and the fact remains that right issue has not been addressed. he made me in the Eagles At the Nations Cup, I scored goals and I will always give him because the chances were created his deserved respect anyand I also fought to score goals. I will time.” score goals when the ball comes out Emenike has not scored from the right channels.

At the World Cup, I played every role, of course my role is to stay in front and score goals

Ogba,Basseydrum Sudan clash to determine Keshi’s future -Amaju upsupportforPinnick AjibadeOlusesan Adekunle Salami

Pinnick is now the president and we all have to support him to succeed with this huge assignment

he vice president of the Nigeria Olympic Committee, Chief Solomon Ogba, and a Confederation of Africa Football committee member, Paul Bassey, on Tuesday called on football stakeholders to give total support to the newly elected President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Amaju Pinnick. Pinnick on Tuesday emerged the President of the NFF after two rounds of voting at an Elective Congress of the federation held at the Golden Tulip Hotel in Warri, Delta State. Ogba said it was important for the football family to move forward after months of leadership crisis. He said; “Nobody is happy with what is happening in the football family. It’s good that the election has come and gone. What is important is to unite to achieve results for Nigeria. “Pinnick is now the president and we all have to support him to succeed with this huge assignment.” Bassey also stressed that there was need to put the past crisis behind and embrace peace. “Nigeria is the African champions and other countries look up to us as example in all things. For us to be engulfed in crisis over the months is a shame. Now with a new president we have to do everything to move forward. Pinnick needs the support of all of us to move our football forward,” Bassey said.

ewly elected President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Amaju Pinnick, has said that Stephen Keshi’s future will be decided after the next Africa Nations Cup qualifying matches against Sudan. Keshi has been handling Super Eagles on interim basis after his initial contract expired at the end of World Cup. He opened negotiations with the immediate past board but the two parties were yet to agree on salary until recent political development in football house trun-

cated that process. But the new NFF helmsman has said his board would not open new channel of negotiation with the coach until after Eagles’ next two matches against the Sudanese. Pinick said that the immediate challenge before his new board is to ensure that Eagles get good results against the Northern Africans. “I think the focus now should really be on the games against Sudan because we haven’t started well. “Of course we will look at the situation (Keshi’s deal) afterwards but at the moment those games should come first. We have to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations next year,” he said.

Falcons camp bubbles as foreign-based pros arrive Charles Ogundiya

uper Falcons camp came alive late on Tuesday following the arrival of all the invited foreign-based professionals ahead of the African Women Championship in Namibia. S t r i k e r, Desire Oparanoze, led the other five stars that include veteran striker Perpetua Nkwocha, Onome Ebi, Esther Sunday, Francesca Ordega and Ohale Osinachi, to camp as the team intensified preparation for the championship. The six foreign-based players have been at the centre of a tug of war between the Nigeria Football Federation and their vari-

ous clubs that failed to release them for the Falcons camp which began two weeks ago. Coach Edwin Okon will finally heave a sigh of relieve at the arrival of the players. One of the most feared strikers in the women’s game, Oparanoze, revealed her delight at joining the national team via her twitter handle; “Finally arrived after being released to join my folks in the national team. Thank God for His grace, and thanks to my club Guingamp. AWC here I come.” The team is expected to arrive Namibia, the venue of the competition next week, few days to the opening game. Super Falcons will be

playing in group A alongside Namibia, Cote d’Ivoire and Zambia with their opening match against Cote d’Ivoire scheduled for Saturday, October 11.

Oparanozie (left) and Ordega

Costa on collision course with Mourinho l Over Spain call-up

Costa

Mourinho happy with Lisbon win

Mourinho (right)

helsea manager Jose Mourinho was pleased with his side’s performance in their away 1-0 win over Sporting Lisbon in the UEFA Champions League Group G, despite a host of

missed scoring chances. The Premier League leaders dominated proceedings in Portugal but spurned a number of clear-cut opportunities to kill the game after Nemanja Matic headed them into the lead. The win helped Mourinho’s side move top of the group with four points after they only managed a draw in their opening at Stamford Bridge against Schalke. Despite Chelsea’s profligacy in front of goal, the Portuguese boss praised the team’s overall performance and was delighted with the team’s shape and defending.

iego Costa is on a collision course with Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho after declaring his availability for Spain. The £32m summer signing has been struggling with a hamstring injury in recent weeks, which has restricted his ability to train fully with the rest of the Chelsea squad. However Mourinho has continued to play Costa in key matches, despite the risk of the forward aggravating the injury, which dates back to the final few months of his time with Atletico Madrid. Prior to Tuesday night’s 1-0 Champions League victory over Sporting Lisbon, the Blues boss made it clear that he would like Spain coach Vicente del Bosque to leave Costa out of his squad for the forthcoming Euro 2016 qualifiers against Luxembourg and Slovakia. But Costa insists that he is fit and ready for international action, something which is unlikely to please Mourinho. “I hope I am okay to go with Spain.

We paid dearly for our mistakes – Iniesta

ndres Iniesta believes Barcelona were made to pay for their mistakes in a 3-2 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday. Barca travelled to the Parc des Princes for their UEFA Champions League Group F clash having won six of their seven competitive outings without conceding a goal this season. However, strikes from David Luiz, Marco Verratti and Blaise Matuidi condemned the Spanish giants to a first loss under new coach Luis Enrique. And, speaking after the game, Iniesta rued lapses made by Barca, but also remained upbeat about their prospects of recovering from the setback. “In some phases, they were the better side,” explained the 30-year-old. “You pay dearly for mistakes in the Champions League, when your opponents take their goal chances. We reacted quickly after they scored, but we found it hard to equalise or turn the game around.

Luiz in dreamland after win over Barca

Luiz (right)

avid Luiz believes “the real Paris Saint-Germain” revealed themselves during Tuesday’s historic Champions League victory over Barcelona.

SPORT | EURO FOOTBALL

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

The capital club shrugged off the absence of star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic to win 3-2 at the Parc des Princes as goals from Luiz, Marco Verratti and Blaise Matuidi sent the Catalans packing. Lionel Messi and Neymar did respond for Barca, but Luis Enrique’s men could not do enough to stop PSG replacing them at the top of Group F. Brazilian defender Luiz told PSG’s official website: “It was a great night with a great atmosphere, worthy of the Champions League. The team was excellent. “We hadn’t been playing our best recently, but (on Tuesday) we saw the real Paris St Germain. It was a fantastic night.”

Beating CSKA was easy – Robben

ayer n Munich winger Arjen Robben has stated that CSKA were easy to beat, despite the low score line. The German club inflicted a 1-0 defeat on CSKA Moscow in Russia on Tuesday evening thanks to Thomas Muller’s first-half penalty. “We can be very happy – it was easy,” he said. “One team only tried to defend and the other team wanted to attack. “One goal was decisive and we are very happy with the win and the three points.” CSKA were forced to play the game in an empty Khimki Arena after being punished by UEFA for fans displaying “racist and right-wing symbols” in a Champions League tie last season. And the Russian club could be ordered to play a

oma captain Francesco Totti has thanked Manchester City for giving him extra motivation to score on Tuesday. The 38-year-old forward was reminded through City’s official twitter account hours before his team’s Champions League encounter at the Etihad Stadium that he had never scored in England. So Totti made sure to put things right when he cancelled out Sergio Aguero’s opener to earn Roma a 1-1 draw. “City’s tweet? It really

further three fixtures behind closed doors due to supporter violence during a 5-1 defeat to Roma in September. This would mean the Blues being met with an eerie atmosphere when they make the trip to face Leonid Slutsky’s men something Robben admitted was difficult. “It was not nice. Football should be for the fans,” he continued. “But you have to be professional and you have to play the game.”

Barca confident of keeping Messi

arcelona are ignoring ongoing speculation regarding Lionel Messi’s future and expect him to remain at the club. Despite being an iconic figure at the Nou Camp, and having spent his entire career to date with the Catalan giants, regular rounds of rumours continue to suggest that Messi could soon be on the move. Only an elite, and very wealthy, group of clubs could contemplate trying to lure the Argentine forward away from his current home. Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City and Chelsea possess the financial firepower, though, and would jump at the chance

to land the four-time World Player of the Year. Barcelona are aware of the reported interest, but insist they are reading little into it. They maintain that the 27-year-old, who has passed 400 career goals, is going nowhere and that there is every chance he will see out his playing days with the La Liga heavyweights. Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu said: “The window is now closed and nobody is talking about new signings any more. The possibility of Messi moving keeps coming up, but we haven’t considered it. He’s very happy here and we’ll have Messi for many years. I hope he’ll retire at our club.”

Man United legend, Scholes, slams City fans

f Messi (right)

Record breaker, Totti, inspired by City tweet

Robben

brought me luck,” Totti told the Gazzetta dello Sport. “It was a beautiful goal and a good performance. I really wanted to score as soon as possible as I had not found the back of the net this season. “But above all, I am thrilled for my team because we have shown a lot of strength, which was not easy.” The goal saw the former Italy international surpass Ryan Giggs to become the oldest player to score in the Champions League.

ormer Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes has criticised the atmosphere at Manchester City’s Champions League tie against Roma. Scholes claims City’s Champions League matchdays do not generate the same excitement as he experienced at United or other English clubs can create. “I was lucky enough to play at Old Trafford and we always talked about the atmosphere on a Tuesday night, the special atmosphere you create, and the crowd is rocking when you go out for a warm-up.

Scholes (left)

SPORT

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Hamilton turned me into a left full-back – Iroha Ifeanyi Ibeh

“I

was just playing football for fun and had no idea that I would someday make a living from it until I went to Flash Flamingos in 1985. That was when everything changed for the better for me. “Before joining Flash Flamingos I played for Falcons FC of Aba. It was a small club consisting of young boys based in Aba, and I was the captain of the club. The club actually metamorphosed from another Aba-based club called Greater Tomorrow FC and me and some of my teammates, such as Okechukwu Uche, Ogechukwu Ajah and Phillip Osondu remained after the club was renamed Falcons. “Our coach at Falcons was Imo N. Imo and he made sure we played a brand of football that was pleas-

Stoke boss plays down Moses’ permanent stay

ing to the eyes. The big teams from Aba and Owerri, including Iwuanyanwu Nationale, now known as Heartland, were scared of playing against us because we always gave them a run for their money. “We took part in the Imo State FA Cup and it was in one of the matches of the competition that I was scouted by Flash Flamingos. “A few months later, I was invited to Benin for contract talks and after deliberations I decided to leave Aba for Benin. “It was not an easy decision to reach especially as I had spent all of my life in Aba. All my friends and family were there and here I was, a teenager just fresh out of school, moving to Benin to play for a team playing in the Nigerian League.

“But after meeting with the Flash Flamingos coach, Willy Bazuaye, I was encouraged to move to Benin. Coach Willy Bazuaye played a fatherly role all through my time with him at Flash Flamingos. He was very nice and helpful to me and it didn’t take me long to settle in Benin. “In fact I owe my football development to him and Coach Paul Hamilton, who called me up to the Flying Eagles during the qualifiers for the 1985 FIFA World Youth Championship. He (Hamilton) first took an interest in me during my time at Falcons and it was he who made me realise that I can be as effective in the defence as

TURNING POINT

espite an impressive start to his loan stint at Stoke City, the club’s chairman Peter Coates, has stated that it’s too early to consider a permanent move for Super Eagles striker, Victor Moses. Moses is on a season-long loan at Stoke City and his performance has been hailed by club faithful including manager Mark Hughes and striker, Peter Crouch, but Coates believes it’s too early to start talking about making a permanent move for the Chelsea loanee. Coates in an interview with Birmingham Mail acknowledged that Moses is a quality addition to the team but feels it’s still early days to decide on his future with the club. “Although we are delighted with the start he (Moses) has made for us, it is still very early days and so where that one goes I have no idea, “said Coates “We haven’t even discussed it yet because we are so early into the season and a lot can happen, so there is no sense of urgency. I’m just pleased with what he has produced so far and pleased that we have him for the whole season. “He’s hard-working, quick, clever and looks a very good player. He’s not played a lot of games, so who knows, he could improve. But it’s certainly nice for him as well to have got off to such a good start with us.”

Iroha

I was in midfield. “I was a midfielder during my time at Falcons but when I was in the Flying Eagles camp, Coach Hamilton used me as a left fullback and by the time I joined Flash Flamingos, where I played alongside household names such as Mathew Onyeama, Monday Eguavoen, Mike Obiku, David Ngodigha and Bright Omokaro, I was ready for any challenge that awaited me. “Being away from my family and friends turned me from a boy to a man. And with Coach Bazuaye in charge, as well as Ufere Nwankwo, who took over from him after he left and considerably improved my fitness level, I became a much better player too. I even got to play in the finals of the 1987 FA Cup, which we lost to Iwuanyanwu Nationale , and the 1988 CAF Cup Winners’ Cup, which we lost to El Merreikh of Sudan. “But after spending five years in Benin, I decided to return home to join Iwuanyanwu Nationale and it was not long afterwards that Clemens Westerhof invited me to the Super Eagles where I made my debut against Cote d’Ivoire in Kaduna. “It was one of the matches of the 1990 ECOWAS Cup and other guys who made their Super Eagles debut in that game included Daniel Amokachi, Herbert Anijekwu, Ishaya Jatau and Okechukwu Uche. We won 2-0 with Okechukwu Uche and Tajudeen Oyekanmi scoring both goals.”

NFF Election: Giwa calls for calm

actional leader of the Nigeria Football Federation, Chris Giwa, has urged Nigerians to be calm as Nigerian football continues to navigate its way out of the crisis that has held it in vice grip in recent time. Giwa, who continues to hold onto the presidential mandate that he got after the disputed election of August 26 in Abuja, posited that football in the country is undergoing a transition. He said: ‘‘I see light at the end of the tun-

nel and a very bright future for the game in Nigeria at the end of all these challenges. “I see the action (the Warri election) as sheer disregard for rule of law and laid down procedures. An election was held (on August 26) and a new executive committee was elected, those who felt aggrieved should appeal to NFF’s Appeals Committee, and if they are not satisfied with the ruling of the committee they have the right to go the Court of Arbitration for Sports,’’ Giwa said.

Blatter congratulates NFF President, Pinnick

Maigari

o rl d fo o t b a l l gover ning body, FIFA, on Wednesday sent a cong ratulatory message to the newly elected President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Amaju Pinnick. In a letter signed by FIFA President, Sepp Blatter, the football body commended the NFF for the successful conduct of the elections after series of crises that have trailed Nigerian football.

“I would like to extend my sincere congratulations and best wishes of success on the occasion of your election as the new President of the Nigeria Football Federation. “Your knowledge and experience will certainly have an important impact on the stable development of our beautiful game in your country. You can rely on my personal support and FIFA’s assistance in order to reach this goal:

the doors of the home of FIFA are open whenever you wish to discuss any relevant issues concerning the game and its governance. “I wish you good luck, strength and very success for your new role and look forward to meeting you soon. It would be recalled that Amaju Pinnick, who is the chair man of the Delta Football Association on Tuesday in Warri, emerged as the president of the NFF after fending off challenges from five other candidates.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014

Sanctity of Truth

On Marble With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts. – Eleanor Roosevelt

World Record

1854: First oil wells in Europe are drilled 30- 50-meters deep at Bóbrka, Poland by Ignacy Lukasiewicz.

NIGERIA’S MOST AUTHORITATIVE NEWSPAPER IN POLITICS AND BUSINESS

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014.

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Nigeria at 54: And so? Talking Tough GABRIEL AKINADEWO gabyfola@hotmail.com 08023010222 (sms only)

esterday, Nigeria, a country described by the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, as “a mere geographical expression”, celebrated its 54th anniversary as a sovereign nation. Logically, a 54-year-old should have reasons to celebrate and roll out the drums but this is Nigeria which, decades after Awolowo made the description, remains a geographical expression. This is Nigeria where, pitiably, little works. A country where law is observed in its breach. With so much optimism when the Union Jack was lowered on October 1, 1960 and the Green-White-Green hoisted, that expectation of a promising country has now given way, largely, to dejection and desperation. This is Nigeria, a country of anything goes, from the sublime to the ridiculous. The 2015 election is less than five months and this is the time some funny groups with ridiculous demands are likely to dominate the political space. At least, many Nigerians remember what happened in August 2010, when members of a group, African Women in the Diaspora, threatened to embark on a seven-day sex strike if President Goodluck Jonathan did not contest the 2011 election. A statement signed by the group’s Leader and Communications Officer respectively, Lady Igoniwari Halliday and Mrs. Patricia Oreremi Badejo, read: “We unequivocally support the presidential bid of Dr. Jonathan and call on him to declare his interest to contest the election on or before Friday 20th August, 2010 failure of which we will compel

women to embark on a seven-day sex starvation and we will appeal to every well-meaning Nigerian woman all over the world to join us in this journey of sex starvation. We will call on all wives, girlfriends, sex workers and girls with the age of consent to boycott sex for the specified number of days”. This is Nigeria where a plane was suddenly found at a gas station in June, 2013 along Iba Road, Igando, Lagos ‘trying to refuel’. It was later found out that the light plane, with registration number - N972TF – abandoned at Dapsey Filling Station along the Lagos State University (LASU) – Iba Road, close to Igando, Lagos, was being towed to a dump site in the night when it had a burst tyre and it was left there. This is Nigeria, a country of see no evil, hear no evil but continuously do evil to survive and remain relevant. A country in which less than five months to the election, thousands of thugs are already being recruited by those who want to retain their offices and those who want to wrest power from them. This is a country that after decades of nationhood, the blame game has not stopped. Nigerians blamed colonial masters for their misfortune. Then the military blamed politicians for the tragedy of the First Republic. After 13 years in government, civilians also blamed the military for ruining the economy and when the military struck again in 1983, civilians were blamed for turning hospitals to mere consulting clinics but when the military stepped aside and Fourth Republic came into being in 1999, the military was accused by civilians of turning the consulting clinics to mortuaries. Since 1999, the blame game, rather than stop, has become ferocious. The Yoruba are blaming the Hausa for the ruination of the polity while the Hausa are pointing accusing fingers at the Igbo. Since 1960, nobody has owned up to the misfortune in the land. Everybody is blaming everybody

and up till now, everybody sees himself as blameless. Even if a local government road in Igbo Elerin, Oyo State is not motorable, everybody will start blaming Jonathan This is Nigeria where instead of federal roads linking a state to another, you have many federal roads within states and nobody sees the foolishness in that. This is a country where Federal Ministries of Education, Agriculture, Water and others exist and what they really do is not clear to even the federal officers because in a true federalism, the federal government should only be concerned with defence, foreign affairs, currency and a few other responsibilities. Last month’s referendum in Scotland is a pointer in this direction. Last Monday, Nigerians watched on Cable News Network (CNN) and other international news channels how the Hong Kong police used tear gas to disperse pro-democracy protests. The last time tear gas was used in Hong Kong was 2005 to break up World Trade Organisation protests against South Korean farmers. But in this country, it is news if security agents don’t use tear gas in a week. This is a country where things are turned upside down, where we import

Fashola’s successor

was in the house of a prominent politician in Lagos at the weekend. While leaving, I met this set of street urchins called Area Boys at the gate. As usual, they hailed me and in their characteristic patronising manner, they referred to me as ‘Up Chair, Up Chair’. I told them I am not a local government chairman. One of them, looking at the green T-shirt I wore on a blue jeans trousers, said: ‘Governorship aspirant to smart’ (a smart-looking governorship aspirant). I replied: ‘I am a journalist’, think- Fashola ing that they will go their way. This did not deter them. Smiling, they started hailing me: UN). Imule (confidant of) Oba of La‘Journalist to moye (a knowledgeable gos, Imule Fashola, Imule Tinubu, journalist), Journalist ti gbogbo aye Imule Bode George, Imule Jonathan, mo ni ECOWAS, OAU, UN (a journal- Imule APC, Imule PDP, eni ti gbogbo ist well known in ECOWAS, OAU and aye ngba tie (everybody loves you).

Eni to ba ni ke ma kowe, ebola lo ma pa (whoever says you should not write, ebola will kill him or her). The frown on my face gave way to laughter. They continued, raising their hands. ‘Olorun, eyin ni Fashola ma gbe joba fun ni 2015 (To God, Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State will hand over to you in 2015). I couldn’t help but laugh again. By then, I had opened the door to my car. When I entered my car, I gave them N2,000 and all hell broke loose. ‘201555555555555!!!. The governor, Lagos governor, governor jooo, eni to ba ni ki Fashola ma gbejoba fun yin, ebola lo ma pa won (whoever says Fashola should not hand over to you, ebola will kill him or her). I zoomed off.

what we produce (crude oil and fuel) and export what we lack (preaching democracy and good governance all over the world). This is Nigeria where a deputy governor was impeached for eating chicken and another impeached for travelling to Saudi Arabia without due process, a country where job seekers are told to pay thousands of naira to sit for aptitude test and some of them died in the process. This is Nigeria where lawmakers are bribed to investigate who was guilty in a bribery and money laundering scam. Where, in a sting operation, a lawmaker was seen stashing dollars in a his cap because the pockets were already full. In Genesis 1: 3, God said: ‘Let there be light, and there was light’. But this is a country where, in the 21st Century, evil spirits are being blamed for the incessant power outage in the land by a man mandated to give Nigerians uninterrupted power supply. As reported by Daily Trust last Monday, this is a country where a former governor in a South-South state got a perpetual injunction against prosecution for more than six years (March 2008) and people are still counting, a country where there are churches and mosques in every street and crime rate is rising geometrically, a country where some people are bad while alive but the moment they die, everybody will start praising them “for leaving when the country needs them most”. This is a country where healthcare has failed, where every individual is a local government chairman because you provide your own water, security, road, electricity etc. This is Nigeria where the ticket for reelection is failure because when you fail in an examination, you repeat the same class. This is a country of about 170 million people in which Nigeria Airways was once a darling in all the major global airports but today, we celebrate other airlines. Turkish Airlines, owned by Turkey, with 74 million population, is flying to almost all the international airports in Nigeria. This is a country where for every crime committed, the usual reply from security agents is “we are on top of the situation. We will soon arrest the culprits”, a country where a police boss in charge of a state will openly tell all criminal elements to leave or he will declare war on them. Where are they running to if not a neighbouring state? This is Nigeria where, I stand to be corrected, the only issue that has united everybody, leaders and the led, rulers and the ruled, oppressors and the oppressed, since 1960, the only issue government has been serious with, is the fight against the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). Why? Ebola has no respect for colour, ethnicity, political party, status in the society or whatever. If you like, have 1,000 soldiers as guards. By the time it gets you, all your security aides will disappear. This is Nigeria at 54.

Printed and Published by Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Ltd: Head Office: No. 1A, Ajumobi Street, Off ACME Road, Agidingbi, Ikeja-Lagos. Tel: +234 1-2219496, 2219498. Abuja Office: Orji Kalu House, Plot 322, by Banex Junction, Mabushi, Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Advert Hotline: 01-8541248, Email: info@newtelegraphonline.com Website: www.newtelegraphonline.com ISSN 2354-4317 Editor: YEMI AJAYI.