Binder1234567890, thursday, decembwer 11, 2014 by Newtelegraphonline

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SATURDAY

Sanctity Of Truth

NIGERIA’S MOST AUTHORITATIVE NEWSPAPER IN POLITICS AND BUSINESS /newtelegraph

Vol. 1 No. 296

Thursday, December 12, 2014

@newtelegraph1 www.newtelegraphonline.com

N150

2015 poll: PPA set to sweep Abia, endorses Kalu as sole senatorial candidate }9

Nigeria's oil demand to hit 12-year low, says OPEC Ayodele Aminu and Adeola Yusuf

he demand for Nigeria's oil will touch its 12-year lowest in 2015, according to forecast

by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The anticipated weak

demand came on a day Nigeria registered its intention to lower its economic CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

NEW TELE

Jurist

GRAPH

THURSDAY , DECEMBER

11, 2014

Shittu: Why transform early elevation to Benc justice syst h will em

22&25

Law Moham

Interview

Nwankw o: Boko Hara FG behind m

23&24

med: My agenda for the

He becam on Novem e the 14th Chief Justice of Nigeria female ber 20. He too k ove Chi (CJN) Aloma Mu ef Justice of Nig r from the firs t eria, Jus statutory khtar, who reti tice Ma red afte riam age of 70. r attainin in, Justice Shortly g the OYESIN Mahmud Moham after his swearin A his age g med told nda for the judicia TUNDE ry.

judiciar y

port of tional good minds in the Judi Naas he was cial Cou ncil (NJC left behi build on the structur ) predeces nd by his imm e awyers objective sor in achievin ediate s. g his set as a gentdescribed him The that cellence; leman par workingCJN recalled ex- ‘effe his vision his past man with an intellige rela was ctive form to standing nt ciary leav ’ and er cour tionship with a clear ‘efficien e an t of App unde . dent, Just applies of the law t’ judi eal’s pres a ice Uma often time which rSpecifica who iemotion he ru he s without lly, he assu Abdullah stakehol s. tor, whodescribed as any i, Justice deviate ders that he red major guided se tutelage his menwould med, the Mahmud from Just no his not judi doubt career ice Muk cial erudite of Nige 14th Chie Mohampath htar’s disciplinreforms espe f unquestjurist remains as the Novembria (CJN),wa Justice cers and e among judicially the s was all ionable inte a man of Jalingo er 10, 1946 in born on grity, who the judic the independcial officonscienthrough guid Taraba Local Gov Jalingo, iary ence of ed by his ce. ernment, State, Mohamm. man Mai He said to Mal ed who that am Mam : “Th years Jalingo tako Bakin adm - imm his experien together roughout our ce had itted ense during , part of Gar and Aishatu Kasuwa been dom and ly enriched rkin Mamman inspiratithe military, icularly by Local Gov Dogo Villa he all time astuteness exhithe wisge, Lau ernment. from himon to me. I lear was an s by the bited at He read CJN . nt He imm a lot , vow is a pers integrity edia Bello Univ Law at the on who pendence ed to pursue te past During cannot be ques se 1967 and ersity, Zari Ahmadu the at the stateof the judic the indea the cour military era, tioned. LL.B degr1970. Shortly between including and the fedeiary both after his ee, Moh of pres ts were subjectedwhen all ceeded sure; som amm officers. the dignity ral levels to Umaru of judic called to the law scho ed proetimes, to a lot ol and was ial the He said an offic Abdullahi wou Justice He bega Bar in 1971 : “The tional n his care . ‘look youial in the face ld look at Judicial refore: the lic serv Naunder er in pubour judi cannot inter and say: my chai Council (NJC of Just ice with the Ministri com rma ice That is cial works, fere with State and of the old es pres mitted to an nship will be) the keep Nort entr kind Gon erve off.’ heast ench gola state of pers ry. In 1991 “Tha ry; a Judi d independent ed and be upri t is how I lear on he is. was appo , Justice Moh’s judiciaght in nt to the ruleciary that is Judicia- Justice Moha my resp the disc to also com mmed Acting inted the Tara ammed autonom of Law; a finanmitted Chief Judg ba officer. onsibilities as harge of ter the ous Judi e and State tive cially I have stay a judic state’s ciary and in the syste substant thereafJudge. ed a long ial has Judi vibrant Judi ; a pro-acHe is ive Chie time structur m. I will build ciary that cial f Unlike a life benc A mem Officers. to ensu e left by my pred on the were train his predeces her. ber re tants are proven Nigerian smooth runn ecessor integrity of Staff with Justice ed outside thesors who reduce. naturally anxi characte Judiciary ing of the Moh and impe first Chie ammed rem country, ”. ccable may be On the other hand ous to a Justice Moh manned r; a dynamic f ains Just ammed man for be train Judiciary by offic ice of Nige the back sums, claims involvin , there and is inde the ed ers which classmatejob if his colle ed, Howeverin the country ria to ence grounds, disci with various may not g small the cost ague . pline , the CJN and thin ’s to cont have led of litigation be worth the g to go by. view was anyis ry that competence; , experiinue . All thes His forms initi with som expected is alternati to the developm ogy driv Information a Judiciae e Fabi apex court, colleague at predeces ated by his of the reTechnolJustice yi expr ent of ing disp ve methods Room en with immedia esse John his of with a sor, Justice te ings s fitted withModern Cou use in utes. The met resolv- to leadership d confidence view to Mukhtar court proc rt many part reco in and the diciary deliver reshapin hod in is calle eedCase Man rding equipme on his ability s of the The Nat ing d, lenge of especially for g the juagement nt Resolutio ‘Alternative World espehe would not promises, sayional Jud the the “Permit System. and At a foru 2015 elections chal- ter icial me Council encourag n’, which I Dispute elect cially as the be abandone that has to speak on m, the . intend d (NJC e in the nati ioneerin CJN decl a matbeen States mind – Federal to g year on enters Judi my Chairm ) under ared the need agitating Justice and my Dispute This, ciaries”. Fabiyi . for Alte known said: “I rnative will be com anship again reiteJustice Moh the proc Resolution. have Ahmaduhim since 1967 ess of litig Overtime in his honorated at a dinnammed a come mor Bello Univ at the , ation to an ent mitted very hum er held ur by a ersit dent suming, e and more has bey. He is ble pers renc retir of goin Justice the Court of ed Presi- firm g. He is very on and easy cumberscomplex, expe time conand pres hed erved he said Umar AbdullahAppeal, supp in his deci articulate and ber of ome. Rise in nsive and indepen sions. He he cases in the independ would ensu i, when the ort of all dent Jud led to our cour numcong the Just has the FOLUSO iciary diciary ent and efficre that an appeSupreme Cou their reso estion and ts have ices at OGUNMO rt. Nex leaves was in place ient Ju- by ars a little DEDE JUDICIARY are sens lution. Som delay in offic before frightenint year e EDITOR he overthe grace of nature itive and conf disputes foluso.ogun Accordi e in 2016. idential and disp God, we g, but come.” newtelegrap modede@ been part ng to him fer settl in shall honline.com ements utants may preAlso Just © Daily cial syste of the nati , having “Tho in publ Telegraph ice Abd on’s judi ic glare in private to Publishing m for a se ullah of ders one us, of - well decade, i Company “The tand cour Limited , know who know him said: he unchalleng s its workings gation complexity of t. very also goin that he is capa tend and its ing to es, and wou increase s often time court litible and CJN, becag to be a very ensu ld be wills towards in cost successfu judiciary re that a use he s whic the func h dispuneeds wasthat meet the tional thanNigerian Judihas been part l of people’s ciary a deca Justice in place. ous stag de. He know for more Mohamm had no es of judic s the We ed fear ial func varicould alwa to step on said he a have no fear tions. that he success ys bank toes as he on the same timeof his office, will make supbut , he at prayers still the from us”. needs a lot of

Page 21

five pages of Law

Convention fireworks

lAPC: Buhari, Atiku in hot contest lPDP: It's Jonathan's show lAPC game changers: Governors, Kano and Lagos delegates }2

Major General Muhammadu Buhari

Telegraph

Travel Advisory

Your guide to local and international flights 4

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar

President Goodluck Jonathan

Court orders seizure of Obasanjo's autobiography

Quick Read

Editorial

Nations Cup without Super }19 Eagles

lEx-president found guilty of contempt over book launch New Telegraph

Tunde Oyesina ABUJA

n Abuja High Court yesterday found former President

Olusegun Obasanjo guilty of contempt and ordered the Inspector General of Police (IG), the Director General of the Department of State Services

(DSS) and the Comptroller of Customs to recover 'My Watch', a trilogy published by him, from all book stands, sales agents, vendors, the sea and airports.

Justice Valentine Ashi ordered them to deposit the book, which was launched in Lagos on Tuesday despite a subsisting order CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

editor wins Soyinka Prize for Investigative Reporting }9

News

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Fireworks as PDP, APC set to pick presidential candidates Our Correspondents

igeria's two leading political parties, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC), yesterday began their national conventions that will lead to the emergence of their presidential candidates in the 2015 general election. The PDP's convention, holding in Abuja, will lead to the ratification of the candidature of President Goodluck Jonathan as the party's presidential standard bearer, by about 3,073 delegates. The president is the sole contestant for the ticket, having been endorsed by virtually all organs of the party and other critical stakeholders. However, it is a different ball game for the APC, whose convention is holding in Lagos as five aspirants are in the race for the party's ticket. About 8,000 delegates of the party, who had been accredited as at press time, would decide among former Head of State, Major General Muhammadu Buhari; former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar; Kano State Governor, Dr.

Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso; his Imo State counterpart, Chief Rochas Okorocha and Leadership Newspapers Publisher, Mr. Sam Nda-Isaiah, on who will fly the party's ticket in the presidential election, holding in February, 2015. But in reality, the APC's presidential contest is a two-horse race between Buhari and Atiku and either of them will emerge today as the presidential primaries will run into the wee hours of the day. Due to the two-day PDP national convention, the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting was cancelled yesterday by the president. The cancellation of the meeting was to allow the president and cabinet members attend the national convention. On the first day of the convention, the PDP ratified the appointment of three national officers of the party: Alhaji Adamu Mu'azu as national chairman, Prof. Wale Oladipo, national secretary and Adewale Adeyanju, national treasurer. As at the time of going to press, delegates were about to vote for the amendment to the PDP Constitution while Jona-

thanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s candidature will be ratified today. Just as it was during the November 11 declaration of Jonathan, government, private, businesses and other economic activities within and around the nation's capital, were paralysed. Offices of all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the Federal Secretariat Complex were under lock and key. The National Assembly, Supreme Court, Federal Court of Appeal as well as the High Court complex within the Three Arm Zones were also shut down. Civil servants who work in those offices were told on Tuesday to stay at home for two days (Wednesday and Thursday) because of the convention. There was a heavy presence of security personnel across the city while as a police helicopter hovered above Abuja. Men of the Nigerian Army and those of the police were sighted at various spots on those entry points conducting stop and search. All the roads that lead to Eagle Square, the venue of the convention, were closed to motorists, a devel-

opment that caused diversions and serious traffic jam across the city. Motorists and commuters coming from Mararaba/Nnyaya axis, who were supposed to follow the Eagle Square route into the city, were diverted to the Ministry of Finance axis en route Wuse and Berger bus terminals. From Bwari, Zuba and Mararaba as well as Airport roads, which are the major entry points to the city, commuters and motorists heading for the city spent hours on the traffic before they could get to their destinations. About 3,037 delegates from the 36 states of the country and Abuja are attending the convention the PDP convention. Jonathan, who is one of the delegates to the convention, arrived at the Eagle Square at 3.45p.m. Apart from Jonathan, Vice-President Namadi Sambo, Senate President David Mark, his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu; the Chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT), Chief Tony Anenih and Mu'azu were among the delegates attending the convention. The Chairman of the National Convention Committee, Dr. Bello Haliru

Mohammed, in his welcome address, urged the delegates to be orderly, disclosing that the nomination of the presidential candidate will begin immediately after the ratification of the vacancies in the National Working Committee (NWC). Deputy Chairman of the Convention Committee, Senator Ken Nnamani, said three vacancies would be filed in the NWC while only one aspirant sought nomination as the party's presidential candidate. "Two people bought presidential nomination forms but they realised the need to give the president a chance, and also so as not to divide the party. They willingly, voluntarily decided to support a single candidate," Nnamani added. He told them that a space have been provided in the ballot papers to vote either yes or no for the candidates. In Lagos, over 2,000 security agents including police, Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), private security agents were deployed in the venue of the APC presidential primary election at Teslim Balogun

Stadium. As a result of the APC primaries, vehicular traffic in Lagos metropolis yesterday moved at snail speed as most roads were cordoned off for the APC convention. All roads leading to the venue of the event were barricaded by the Lagos State Transport Management Authority (LASTMA) for the presidential primaries which began at 1:30p.m. Heavily armed policemen and NSCDC men were also seen all over the area providing security and assisting in traffic control. New Telegraph also gathered that five bomb detectors, two armoured personnel carriers and 15 security trained dogs were strategically positioned within and outside the stadium. The development caused gridlock on Western Avenue and other major roads in the environs leading to vehicles being diverted to alternative routes. At the stadium, supporters of the five aspirants were seen with their banners chanting praises of their candidates. CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Travel Advisory

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

International Flight Schedule

Local FLIGHT SCHEDULE 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 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 AZMAN FLIGHT SCHEDULE WEEKLY SCHEDULE Kano-Lagos 8:00am Lagos-Abuja 10:30am Abuja-Lagos 12:40pm Lagos-Abuja/Kano 4:00pm Abuja-Kano 5:45pm Kaduna-Lagos 8:00am Lagos-Kan 10:10am Kano-Abuja/Lagos 12:40pm Abuja-Lagos 1:00pm Abuja-Lagos 2:40pm Lagos-Kaduna 5:00pm WEEKEND SCHEDULE SATURDAY Kano-Lagos 8:00am Lagos-Abuja 10:30am Abuja-Lagos 1:00pm Lagos-Kano 4:00pm Kaduna-Lagos 8:00am Lagos-Kano 4:00pm Sunday Kano-Lagos 8:00am Lagos-Kano 10:30am Kano-Abuja/Lagos 1:20pm Abuja-Lagos 2:40pm Lagos-Kaduna 5:00pm

Air France Destination

Flight No.

Departure

Arrival

Abuja- Paris

AF 513

23.55hrs

6:05hrs

Paris-Lagos

AF 3822

10.55hrs

17:15hrs

Paris-PHC

AF514

11:hrs

19:15hrs

PHC-Paris

AF513

21:20hrs

6:05hrs

Paris –Abuja

AF514

11:00hrs

17:00hrs

Lagos –Paris

AF3849

23:55hrs

6:20hrs

Amsterdam-Lagos

KL587

13:15hrs

20:00hrs

Lagos-Amsterdam

KL588

23:05hrs

05:50hrs

Lagos-New York

W3 107

23:35hrs

05:30hrs

New York-Lagos

W3 108

12:00hrs

16:00hrs

Lagos-Abuja-Dubai

W3 105

9:40pm

5.40:hrs

Dubai-Abuja-Lagos

W3 106

12:10pm

17:10pm

London-Lagos

BA075

17:55hrs

11:55hrs

Lagos-London

BA074

00:00hrs

5:50hrs

Abuja-London

BA 082

09:00hrs

14:35hrs

Abuja-London

BA 083

22:40hrs

06:00hrs

KLM ARIK AIRLINES

ARIK AIRLINES

Middle East Airlines (Two flights weekly (Tues and Friday) to Lagos) Lebanon-Lagos

MEA 571

3:00hrs

8:00hrs

Lagos-Lebanon

MEA 572

14:00hrs

19:00hrs

EMIRATES AIRLINES Lagos-Dubai (Sun-Sat)

EK 7821

21:30hrs

07:40hrs

Lagos-Dubai

EK 7822

14:40hrs

01:05hrs

Dubai-Lagos

EK 7831

07:35hrs

12:50hrs

Dubai-Lagos

EK 7811

14:20hrs

19:45hrs

Abuja-Dubai

EK 761

23:55hrs

10:30hrs

Lagos-Doha Flight (daily flight)

QR 1414

14:55hrs

23:45hrs

Doha-Lagos Flight

QR 1415

07:20hrs

13:35hrs

QATAR AIRWAYS

DELTA AIRLINES Lagos-Atlanta

DL053

22:15hrs

05:32hrs

Atlanta-Lagos

DL 054

5:15hrs

16:15hrs

Lagos-Houston

UA 143

10:10hrs

6:05hrs

Houston-Lagos

UA 142

19:10hrs

15.15hrs

Lagos-Nairobi

KQ 533

12:30hrs

19:35hrs

Nairobi-Lagos

KQ 534

18:00hrs

23:45hrs

UNITED AIRLINES KENYA AIRWAYS

Ethiopian Airways international travel tips The price of a ticket includes the transportation of a certain amount of baggage in the cargo hold of the aircraft. This allowance differs depending on the booking class and the destination. Free baggage allowance on all other international routes and within Ethiopia On Ethiopian free baggage allowance is set by the weight or piece concept whichever is applicable to the sector.

Local restrictions on baggage weight Please note that the maximum weight limit per single baggage is 32 kg for business class and 23 kg for economy class on all flights across the Atlantic (outbound and return, as well as transfers). Baggage exceeding this weight limit will not be accepted for check- in. This regulation does not change the maximum weight limit for the free baggage allowance.

Baggage Allowance & Fees for flight to/from the USA For Ethiopian-ticketed passengers on Ethiopian-operated flights (ET) the first and second checked bag in Cloud Nine and Economy is free. For ShebaMiles Gold, ShebaMiles Silver and Star Gold passengers, the first checked bag above the complimentary (free) checked bag allowance shown above is also free of charge. (23 kg (50 lbs)/158 cm (62 inches) max. each in Economy; 32 kg (70 lbs)/158 cm (62 inches) max. each in Cloud Nine). In Cloud Nine and Economy, including ShebaMiles Gold, ShebaMiles Silver and Star Gold passengers, the fee for any additional checked bags beyond the complementary specified above is $150/bag each way between the USA and Addis Ababa, Bujumbura, Dar es salaam, Entebbe, Djibouti, Kilimanjaro, Juba, Harare, Kigali, Khartoum, MIDDLE EAST, ASIA, and EUROPE, and for other African points that are not mentioned here the fee is USD200.00/bag each way. Please review Ethiopian Carry-On for Carry-on bag size and weight information clicking the link below:

Cabin Carry-On Luggage Additional baggage fees may apply in the event of a stopover on an international itinerary.

Codeshare/International flights exceptions For travel to/from, with US, on an interline itinerary, additional airline fees for baggage may apply. Please refer to the website of the airline operating the first flight segment of your interline itinerary in your electronic ticket confirmation. If the first number in the itinerary starts with UA (United): Baggage service charges US (USAirways): Baggage policies - Checked baggage AA (American Airlines): Optional Service Charges AC (Air Canada): Baggage Guide

News

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Time magazine names Ebola fighters 2014 Person of the Year Appolonia Adeyemi

ime Magazine has named those who staked their lives in bringing needed health care for Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) patients as its 2014 Person of the Year. The honour, which the magazine said is based on their sacrifice and risk to their lives, came eight days after 250-health care Nigerian contingent departed for Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea under the African Union Support to Ebola outbreak in West Africa mission. The Nigerian Ebola team comprises medical doctors, nurses, hygienists and survivors of the EVD. Speaking on the Time 2014 Person of the Year honour, Time magazine editor-in-chief, Nancy Gibbs wrote in an editor's note: "Anyone willing to treat Ebola victims ran the risk of becoming one. "For tireless acts of courage and mercy, for buying the world time to boost its defenses, for risking, for persisting, for sacrificing and saving, the Ebola fighters are Timeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 2014 Person of the Year.â&#x20AC;? The current Time Magazine issue carries five covers, each featuring

an Ebola fighter who has worked in West Africa. Ebola, previously known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever, is a rare and deadly disease caused by infection with one of the Ebola virus strains. Ebola can cause disease

in humans and non-human primates (monkeys, gorillas, and chimpanzees). Ebola is caused by infection with a virus of the family Filoviridae, genus Ebolavirus. In Nigeria, 19 people, mostly health workers,

contracted the virus. Seven people died. Some health workers who were at the forefront of Ebola containment during the outbreak include late Dr. Ameyor Adadevor, consultant endocrinologist, Dr. Amos Abaniwo,

chief consultant anaesthesiologist, the late Justina Ejelonu-all of the First Consultant Medical Centre (FCMC), Obalende, Lagos. They had contracted Ebola virus from the index case, Mr. Patrick Sawyer, who brought the virus

into Nigeria. The haemorrhagic fever, which has killed more than 5,000 in West Africa so far this year, was not initially diagnosed for three days and in that time, Sawyer infected 11 staff members.

L-R: National Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Adamu Mu'azu; President Goodluck Jonathan and Vice-President Namadi Sambo on arrival at the PDP national convention in Abuja...yesterday. PHOTO:TIMOTHY IKUOMENISAN

Obasanjo found guilty of contempt over book launch CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

stopping its publication, with the court registrar pending the determination of a substantive suit before the judge. The court also held that Obasanjo was in contempt of the court by flouting its orders and gave him 21 days to show cause why he should not be punished for a flagrant disobedience to the court's ruling. Justice Ashi had last Friday issued an interim suspending the publication of the book pending the determination of a libel suit before the court. Chairman of Mobilisation and Organisation Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in South-West, Mr. Buruji Kashamu, had in the suit asked the court to stop the publication of the book, which is Obasanjo's autobiography, pending the determination of the libel case he instituted against the former president. However, despite the court's interim orders, Obasanjo had launched

the book, arguing that the book had been published before the court was misled into making the orders. At the resumed hearing in the suit yesterday, the judge took arguments from counsel to Kashamu, Alex Iziyon (SAN) and Obasanjo, Realwon Okpanachi, on the plaintiff's motion for interlocutory injunctions, the defendant's counter affidavit and motion for order to vacate the earlier granted interim orders. Ruling, Justice Ashi held that it was wrong for Obasanjo to have proceeded to publish the book despite the fact that a libel suit, whose subject matter formed part of the content of the book, was still pending before the court and that the orders he made on December 5 were still pending. He further held that it was immaterial that the book was published before the interim orders were made. He said Obasanjo ought not to have published the book because he was aware of the partly heard

libel suit relating to the letter he wrote to President Goodluck Jonathan, accusing Kashamu of being a fugitive, wanted in the United States. "The fact that the book was published in November is irrelevant. As long as the substantive suit is not yet determined, no party is entitled to publish or comment on material facts that are yet to be decided on by the court. "I hold the defendant, not only in contempt of the court, but to show cause why he should not be punished for contempt and ordered to undo what he has wrongly done. "The defendant, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, shall be given 21 days, from the day this order is served on him, to show cause, via affidavit, why he should not be punished for contempt committed by publishing and distributing for sale to the public, the book, My Watch, in plain disregard of the pendency of the substantive suit and the order of this court made on December 5, 2014 restraining

him from doing so. "The defendants, whether by himself, agents, servants, privies or whatever name called, is hereby restrained from further publication or offering for sale or distribution, in any way or manner, the book called My Watch or the like of the visual or written materials which contains a re-publication or statement extracted from the letter referred to by the plaintiff," the judge held. He ordered that the enrolled orders of the court be served on all media organisations in the country and on the defendant by publication in two national dailies. The judge, however, rejected an argument by the defendants that the interim orders were wrongly made as the plaintiff failed to produce the book to show that it actually contained the alleged libelous materials. Justice Ashi held that since the plaintiff said he came to court on the fear that Obasanjo was to publish a book that touches on

the issue already before the court, it was the duty of the defendant, in whose custody the material was, to show the court that the plaintiff's fear was misplaced. "What I find difficult to understand is why the defendants went through the pains to depose to the ISBN number and other details about the book, which they said was published since November, before the interim order was obtained on December 5, without supplying the court with copies of the book. "This would have served to disprove the claim by the applicant/plaintiff that the book contains a reproduction of the letter, which formed the subject of the libel case before the court. "The fact that the book was published in November, while the substantive case was still pending is contemptuous enough," the judge said. He also held that the failure of Obasanjo's to supply the court the book to convince it that nothing

relating to the subject of the pending libel case was contained in it suggested that he was hiding something. The court later fixed January 13 for hearing on the substantive suit. But reacting to the ruling, Obasanjo said he would appeal the order for the seizure of his autobiography. Obasanjo, through Okpanachi, said the orders, which his client allegedly flouted, were made in error because the plaintiff failed to show through material facts, that the letter formed the content of the book. He said: "The orders made cannot be enforced. They want the court to stop an act that had been concluded. That is impossible. We had published the book in November; they came before the court in December and asked that the publishing shroud be stopped. Is that possible? "We shall file our appeal within the stipulated time of 14 days in the case of CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

News

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

PDP ratifies Mu'azu, others as national officers CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2

Chairman, Convention Committee, Dr. Fayemi Kayode, said the event was delayed to monitor the PDP convention. Fayemi said: "We can't be sharing space with Abuja people. We want Nigerians to watch them and see what they want to do, so when they finish their coronation, we will start our election. "APC national convention is very important to our democracy and to the development of our country. I have always said that there is a difference between coronation and election. This is not a coronation. What we are witnessing right now in Abuja is a coronation. "We have taken the step to give everyone the opportunity to present themselves to the party. Five people have presented themselves. They have been screened and found qualified to run the country if given the opportunity by the delegates and Nigerians. For us, the process is as important as the eventual product. "We are interested in producing a democratically elected president that will not be open to any doubt because it is going to be in the full glare of all Ni-

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my strength, commitment, sweat and toil in the service of the people. What I can give you is my all. I do not intend to rule Nigeria. I want to demo-

cratically govern it with your help. "I seek a Nigeria where Christians and Muslims may practise their faith in peace and security; a

Nigeria that is just and where corruption no longer trespasses into our institutions and national behaviour and a Nigeria where our diversity could

be used for our national prosperity. Nigeria is our home. Let us now turn it into the great nation we know it can and should be."

Winner, Wole Soyinka Award for Investigative Reporting, Ms. Juliana Francis of New Telegraph, receiving her award from the Board Chairman, Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCJ), Prof. Ropo Sekoni, at the ceremony in Lagos...on Tuesday.

PHOTO: GODWIN IREKHE

Nigeria's oil demand to hit 12-year low, says OPEC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Thunder Storms

ABUJA

gerians." Before the voting proper, Buhari urged the party's delegates not to be motivated by money in the choice of the party's presidential candidate, noting that the fate of Nigeria is not for sale. The APC presidential aspirant said he sought to be the next president because he believed he has something to offer. “I seek to be the next president of our beloved nation because I believe I have something to offer Nigeria at this time of multiple crises. Insecurity, corruption, and economic collapse have brought the nation low. Time is past due that we work together to lift Nigeria up. I am ready to lead Nigeria to its rightful future. "I have always served Nigeria to the best of my ability. I have always tried to give more to the nation than it has given me. This is the principle of service that has guided my public life. Thus, I am not a rich person. I can’t give you a pocketful of dollars or naira to purchase your support. Even if I could, I would not do so. The fate of this nation is not up for sale. "What I will give you, and this nation, is all of

growth forecast for 2015, as tumbling oil prices erode government revenue. OPEC, which swiftly cut the forecast for how much crude oil it will need to provide in 2015 to the lowest in 12 years, said the same fate ahead of Nigeria would befall 11 other memberstates. The forecast came amid surging US shale supplies and reduced estimates for global consumption. The cartel lowered its projection for 2015 by about 300,000 barrels a day, to 28.9 million a day. That’s about 1.15 million a day less than the group’s 12 members pumped last month and the 30-million barrel target they reaffirmed at a meeting in Vienna on November 27. Nigeria, Africa's biggest crude exporter, depends largely on proceeds from crude to service over 70 per cent of its budget. In a monthly report, the OPEC forecast demand for the group’s oil will drop to 28.92 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2015, down 280,000 bpd from its previous expectation. “There is a growing realisation that the first half of next year is going to look very weak,” said Gareth Lewis-Davies, strategist at BNP Paribas. “You

start to price that in now.” OPEC members are divided on how to respond to the global surplus and falling prices. The cartel may still hold an emergency meeting before its June gathering, Algeria’s energy minister had said last Tuesday. Italian oil and energy group Eni said OPEC might cut output in the spring and that oil prices would remain between $66 and $75 per barrel next year. The impact of this year’s 40 per cent price collapse on supply and demand remains unclear, Bloomberg reported OPEC to have said. The price of oil has touched the new lowest point in five years. The commodity sold for $65.05 per barrel before the end of transaction at the global market yesterday. Brent crude oil fell to a new five-year low below $65 a barrel yesterday on mounting signs of oversupply and lacklustre demand as global economic growth falters. And that is bad news for the Nigerian economy as the Federal Government may be forced, again, to cut the oil benchmark for the 2015 budget from its extant $65 per barrel. The government had

earlier fixed $73 per barrel as oil benchmark for the 2015 budget before it reviewed it as the oil price plunged further. Meanwhile, the government, which had initially projected 6.35 percent growth for next year, may lower that estimate by about one percentage point next week, Mr. Paul Nwabuikwu, media aide to Coordinating Minister for the

Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi OkonjoIweala, said yesterday. Global oil prices have plunged more than a third since June, roiling Nigeria’s markets, eroding foreign-currency reserves, which fell to $35.95 billion by December 8, down 19.3 per cent from a year earlier. The falling reserves had prompted policy makers to devalue the naira for the

first time in three years. Nigeria’s reserves fell from $44.53 billion on December 8 last year. It stood at $37.98 billion a month ago, according to the CBN yesterday. The naira had also fallen 12.1 per cent against the dollar this year, including a one-off, 8 per cent devaluation by the central bank last month, as global oil prices plunged.

Obasanjo found guilty of contempt CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5

interlocutory orders." Earlier yesterday, lawyers had called for Obasanjo's conviction for the launch of the book despite the ex-parte injunction suspending the publication of the trilogy. A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Godwin Obla stated that there was an uncontestable obligation for everyone, no matter how highly placed, to obey a subsisting court order. "Even if the order was wrongly granted or obtained, it is the duty of all Nigerian citizen to obey the order first and then contest it, if need be. But to go ahead and disobey the order is an affront to the judiciary. "It does not do the rep-

utation of anybody any good, if an order is deliberately disobeyed. It is very unfortunate. "When Obasanjo first came to power in 2007, he stated that his government would abide by the rule of law, but his action now, contradicts his earlier statement. "Law does not respect anybody; Obasanjo should have gone to court to vacate order or wait till the expiry of seven days when the order will lapse," Obla stated. Also reacting, Chief Mike Ahamba (SAN) also condemned the act, stating that the law does not respect any one. He added that the lawyer who obtained the injunction should take it

up and go back to court to challenge the disobedience. "Obasanjo is not above the law and no one should be above the law. I do not support anybody disobeying court order, no matter under any guise", he added. Another lawyer and rights activist, Chief Akpan Nkereuwem said Obasanjo should be charged with contempt and be sent to prison for disobeying the court order. However, another lawyer, Olusoji Toki, stated that the ex-parte granted was a misuse order. He added that the applicant was aware of the content but waited till the last minute before approaching the court.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Female suicide bombers kill four in Kano Muhammad Kabir and Emmanuel Onani

wo female suicide bombers yesterday blew themselves up at the Kantin Kwari Textile Market, Kano, killing four others. Seven persons injured in the attack were rushed to the Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital, Kano for treatment. It was learnt that the female suicide bombers who went to the market on the

pretence that they wanted to buy textile materials engaged in an altercation with a trader before blowing themselves up. "I heard a huge sound coming from the back of my shop along Unity Road. I just closed the shop and tried to leave because it's not safe," one of the traders, Nura Sadiq, told the AFP. The Kano State Police Commissioner, Mr. Aderele Shinaba, told reporters at the scene of the attack the traders were

suspicious of the mission of the suicide bombers and were monitoring them. He added that when the suicide bombers asked for water on the excuse that they were going to the toilet and would need it to wash up, the traders declined their request and this led to a disagreement that attracted a crowd of people. According to him, when the suicide bombers realised that they might be arrested, they detonated their bomb-laden vests one

after the other. "When one of the suicide bombers realised that people were gathering and it could result in something else, she quickly detonated her explosive vest and the other one also followed suit and four persons were instantly killed along with them," he stated. Shinaba said seven others who were running away from the scene were hit by bomb fragments that critically injured them. He added that policemen had secured the area

to prevent looting of shops. Last month, over 100 people died in gun and bomb attacks during prayers at the Central Mosque, Kano. Meanwhile, the Nigerian Army has deployed 20 trained dogs in the NorthEast as part of measures to detect explosive devices. The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt-Gen. Kenneth Minimah, made the disclosure in Abuja yesterday, during the inauguration of a building for war dogs, at the Army

Executive Director, Victim Support Fund, General Theophilus Danjuma (right), presenting relief materials to Internally Displaced Persons, during the inauguration of support fund to victims of terrorism in Abuja …yesterday

Obanikoro disagrees with Alao-Akala is Oyo LP’s guber candidate Sola Adeyemo George on call for truce IBADAN

Wale Elegbede

ormer Minister of State for Defence and Lagos Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial aspirant, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, has described calls for truce among party members by Chief Bode George as a fairy tale. He said that the former deputy national chairman of the party was a man without capacity for peace, honour and integrity. In response to George's call for peace in Lagos PDP in the aftermath of the gubernatorial primaries, Obanikoro, in a signed statement yesterday, noted that the violence that tainted and tarnished the outcome of Monday's gubernatorial primaries was orchestrated by George. "Chief Bode George has no capacity for peace and unity in Lagos PDP when he is the major architect of violence and confusion in the first place. His call for peace is a desperate attempt to get the attention

of President Jonathan to take him seriously as a responsible leader of Lagos PDP. Unfortunately, Bode George is a man far from anything responsible, peaceful or honourable. "His introduction of religious bias and sentiment into Lagos PDP by asking delegates to vote for a Christian, instead of a Muslim candidate, is dangerous for the peaceful cohesion of Lagos PDP and totally condemnable. "I warned Chief Bode George to steer clear of the electoral process and stand as an unbiased umpire but he opted for the path of dishonour and threw himself into the ring. The result is the sham of gubernatorial primaries that has subjected our party in Lagos State to an unprecedented public ridicule." "Where is Chief Bode George's honour if after manipulating an election where 806 delegates produced 863 votes, he is calling for peace and unity?", Senator Obanikoro queried.

he insinuation that former governor Adebayo Alao-Akala of Oyo State may dump the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for Labour Party (LP) if he was not satisfied with the party's gubernatorial congress was yesterday made good as the LP officially adopted him as the governorship candidate of the party for the 2015 election. Alao-Akala's decision to dump the PDP where he had been a deputy governor and also a governor followed his loss of the PDP ticket to the former Senate Leader, Senator Teslim Folarin on Monday at the Obafemi Awolowo Stadium. The adoption at the Olubadan Stadium, Iyaganku, Ibadan, was sequel to the earlier decision of the party governorship aspirants, Chief Sarafadeen Alli, Nurudeen Akinyo and Comrade Olu Abiala, who had announced

their withdrawal from the primaries. A former Commissioner for Environment, Lowo Obisesan, a lawyer, moved the motion for the adoption of Alao-Akala and was seconded by Alhaji Musibau Popoola. The party also adopted Nurudeen Akinyo for the Oyo State South Senatorial district, Comrade Olu Abiala for Oyo Central; Tajudeen Kareem for Oyo North, and Sarafadeen Alli (lawyer) deputy governor. The aspirants, while addressing party faithful, said their decision was in line with the directive from leadership of the party to ensure sound victory for the party at the 2015 general elections in the state. While disclosing that they and the party leadership had agreed to ensure a rancour-free polls, the party Chairman, Comrade Lasisi Apapa, noted that Labour Party was a disciplined political party and that the adoption of the former governor

would not generate rancour among members. Addressing party members, Akala said that the events of the recent weeks spurred him into taking the bold step, explaining that "this is a step that has put stop to rumours, gist and speculation within the political circuit in Oyo State and Nigeria at large". Going down memory lane of the political archive of the state in the last 35 years, AlaoAkala said no politician or group of people had ever been a monopoly of winning formula for all elections till date. According to him, the indices keep on changing every season, even when the generalisimo, Late Chief Lamidi Ariyibi Adedibu was alive. "This year, against all expectations, something unique and historical happened. That has always been the peculiarity of political algebra in Oyo state and this has continually gone beyond any human ability or permutation.

Headquarters (AHQ) Provost Dog Platoon. The dogs, according to Minimah, have been trained on detection of explosives, search and rescue operations, among other missions. He said the aim of the Dog Section, which was established in 2012, was to boost the counter-terrorism efforts of the Federal Government. “In the past 11 months of my leadership of the Nigerian Army, efforts have been made to equip, retrain and task-organise the Nigerian Army to effectively tackle contemporary national security challenges, particularly in the north eastern part of the country. “One of such efforts is the K9 component of the Nigerian Army, which was established in 2002, and which has contributed tremendously to support ongoing Nigerian Army operations nationwide. “Presently, there are over 20 military working dogs deployed in the North-East theatre. The injection of these dogs into OP Zaman Lafiya has yielded dividends in several respects. “The present security challenges bedeviling our country and sub region call for concerted efforts by all officers and soldiers to enhance the capacity of the Nigerian Army in whatever little way they can," he said.

Sen. Shagaya, Mrs. Sambo pick APC Senate tickets Buhari Bello JOS

enator John Shagaya and Mrs. Eunice Sambo have clinched their tickets to vie for the Plateau South and North Senatorial districts on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Shagaya, a retired General of the Nigerian Army, and also a one-time ECOMOG Commander , was affirmed by the APC delegates, after his challenger, Hajiya Fati Kyari withdrew her aspiration, out of the contest. Shagaya will in the 2015 general elections slug it out with retired Lt. General Jeremiah Tunbut Useni, who has also clinched his ticket on the platform, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), having defeated four of his opponents, in the party primaries. In Plateau North, Sambo clinched her ticket after winning in a keenly contested election with her opponent Hon. Lumumba Da Adeh.

News

NATIONAL

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Court throws out TB Joshua’s bid to stay inquest GREEN LIGHT Coroner's inquest into collapsed guest house at the SCOAN must hold, says court

Akeem Nafiu and Badmos Adedoyin

rophet Temitope Joshua, who oversees the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN), yesterday lost his bid to stop the inquest into the collapse of a guest house in the church’s premises about three months ago. No fewer than 116 worshippers mostly from

South Africa lost their lives on September 12 when a guest house collapsed on the church’s premises. Apparently determined to unravel the cause of the disaster, the Lagos State Government inaugurated an inquest to probe the circumstance under which the guest house collapsed. But Joshua made spirited efforts to halt further proceedings into the matter as he sought a Lagos High Court’s nod to stop the coroner. Although his request is pending before Justice Lateefat Okunnu, the Corner, Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe, yesterday dismissed his application to

halt further proceedings pending the final determination of his suit before Okunnu. The Registered Trustees of the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCAON), alongside its founder, Joshua, had sought a stay of proceedings at the inquest pending the determination of the application filed before Justice Lateefat Okunnu of an Ikeja High Court. However, Magistrate Komolafe held that the proceedings before the coroner’s court was a judicial inquiry into the cause of the collapsed guest house belonging to SCOAN which claimed

the lives of 116 victims. While stating that there was no party before the court, the Coroner declared that all the authorities cited by lawyers while adopting their written addresses had nothing to do with the inquest proceedings. According to him: "This court cannot adjudicate on this motion on notice as doing so would amount to operate outside the scope of a Coroners court." While describing the application as an abuse of court process, the court declared that there was no automatic appeal against the findings and conclusions of a Coroners court.

Besides, Magistrate Komolafe said Justice Lateefa Okunnu, who adjudicated on a motion ex-parte brought by the applicants was yet to grant a restraining order against further proceeding of the inquest. "This application is incompetent and lacking in merit. Same is hereby dismissed accordingly," the Coroner said. Further proceeding on the matter has been adjourned till tomorrow. SCOAN and Joshua had urged the Coroner court to issue an order of stay on issues relating to calling of witnesses in respect of the building approval or material tests of the collapsed building.

Also, they urged the court to issue an order to suspend further action on the invitation issued to Joshua to appear before the inquest to give evidence. They said: "It is our view that the strict scope of the coroner's inquest is to ascertain the cause and manner of death and it will be in the best interest of all of us to get a judicial interpretation from a superior court. "The best and reasonable cause of action for this court is to stay proceedings of the issues in contention, pending the time the high court will deliver its pronouncement one way or the other."

FG‘ll stop insurgency before general election, says Adesiyan Wale Elegbede

L-R: Principal, Delano Architects, Roti Delano; Principal Partner, Interstate Architects, Olusegun Ladega and Principal Partner, ATO Architects Limited, Ayoola Onojide, at the ATO annual lecture in Lagos…yesterday PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

Ekiti: Court empowers sacked speaker to put Fayose, lawmakers on notice Akeem Nafiu

ustice Saliu Saidu of a Federal High Court in Lagos has granted leave to the impeached Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Hon. Adewale Omirin and 18 other APC members of the house to serve copies of the originating summons and other court processes

filed in a suit seeking to nullify his impeachment on the State Governor, Peter Ayodele Fayose and 12 other defendants. The suit was filed by the impeached Speaker, his Deputy, Adetunji Orisalade and 17 All Progressives Congress(APC) members of the House. The defendants included: Hon. Dele Olugbemi (1st defendant),

Hon. Samuel Ajibola(2nd defendant), Hon. Adeojo Alexander(3rd defendant), Hon. Adeloye Adeyinka(4th defendant), Hon. Isreal Olowo Ajiboye(5th defendant), Hon. Fatunbi Olajide(6th defendant) and Hon. Olayinka Abeni(7th defendant). Others are; the Inspector General of Police(10th defendant), Commis-

Mbadinuju: Jonathan’ll do better, if re-elected Chukwu David ABUJA

ormer Governor of Anambra State, Dr. Chinwoke Mbadinuju, has called on the people of the South East geo-political zone to support President Goodluck Jonathan in his 2015 re-election bid to enable him consolidate the gains of his administra-

tion in the last four years. Mbadinuju, who made this call in an interview with our correspondent in Abuja, also enjoined Nigerians to work towards a rancour-free general elections, so as to disappoint those who have been plotting to cause confusion during the 2015 general elections and subsequent downfall of the country. "I love all my political

supporters and admirers who made it possible for me to win the election in 1998 to be governor of Anambra State in a landslide victory. Since I will not go into another election in 2015, I still urge all my supporters and indeed all Anambra people to rise in your millions and vote for our friend and brother, President Goodluck Jonathan."

sioner of Police, Ekiti State(11th defendant), Mr. Owoseni Ajayi(12th defendant), Mr. Kayode Oso(13th defendant) and Chief Toyin Ojo(14th defendant). The court also gave Omirin and other applicants the leave to serve the defendants outside jurisdiction by substituted means through an advertisement in some news-

papers circulating within Nigeria. In the meantime, the impeached Speaker and 18 other members of the house has filed an ex-parte motion seeking to stop legislative functions in the State House of Assembly pending the final determination of the suit he filed against his removal from office.

NCC clamps down on fours telecoms firms Kunle Azeez

he Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, has clamped down on four telecoms companies for engaging in illegal operations. The four operators are Steam Communications, Netcom, SwiftTalk and Multi-dimesnion Technologies, all located in Lagos. The illegal operators were discovered during a

four-day enforcement exercise started on Tuesday in Lagos by the Compliance and Enforcement team of NCC led by an Assistant Director, Mr Salisu Abdu. Three more illegal operators are being hunted by the NCC team with expectation that their identity would have been discovered by Friday (tomorrow) when the NCC enforcement team would round off the exercise.

inister of Police Affairs, Alhaji Abdul Jelili Adesiyan, has said that with the successes recorded by the Federal Government in the fight against Boko Haram insurgents, the group's activities would be totally curtailed before the next general elections. In a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Wale Akinola and made available to newsmen yesterday, Adesiyan, said contrary to people's belief that the insurgency would hamper the conduct of the next general elections, especially in the North eastern part of the country, the elections would be held peacefully in the areas and other parts of the country. He said: "Since the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has assured Nigerians that elections will be held across the country, including Yobe, Borno and Adamawa, I want to reaffirm that the Federal Government is making concerted efforts to ensure that the spate of killings and bombings in the Northern part of the country becomes a thing of the past before the conduct of the general election slated to hold next year February." He, however, berated the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) for alleging that the Federal Government was conniving with the insurgents to destabilise the North East ahead of the 2015 general election, describing the statement as irresponsible, uncouth and reckless.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

News

NATIONAL

New Telegraph Editor wins Soyinka award for investigative reporting THUMBS UP

New Telegraph editor becomes first female to win Wole Soyinka Prize Sobowale Temitope

ew Telegraph’s Crime Editor, Juliana Francis, on Tuesday clinched the Wole Soyinka Award for Investi-

gative Reporting of the Year, 2014 which was held in Lagos. Francis’s story, a three-part expose on how the Special Anti- Robbery Squad, SARs kill suspected robbers in custody was adjudged the best investigative piece of the year by the organisers. It not only won the Print Investigative Journalist of the Year, but also adjudged the overall winner by the judges. Professor Ropo Sekoni, the Chairman, Board

of the organiser, said that different entries had been checked in this year's award, but the best were selected. Sekoni highlighted the important role the media plays in holding to account government, stressing that the media should not stop acting as watchdog. The Dean, school of Journalism, Lagos State University, Professor Lai Oso, highlighted the failings of many entries received and called on the

journalists to put efforts in investigative reporting. He further charged all the awardees to keep up their good work. Mr. Simon Shercliff of the British Deputy High Commission to Nigeria, stated that investigative reporters had been doing a great work in unveiling the truth. He said: "In the 1950s, the media helped in unveiling the truth about a British Minister; he had to resign because a

journalist uncovered the story that he was sleeping with a prostitute. Journalists should also uncover corruption, everything, including in the media.” Francis became the first female to win the overall Wole Soyinka Nigeria Investigative Journalist of the year, 2014. Kelechi Emekalam of TVC, won the award for broadcast category. She also got the Ilo grant of N500,000.

L-R: Head, Trade Marketing, Rechett Benchiser, Nigeria, Mr. Emmanuel Ugwanyi; Brand Manager, Mortein, Reckitt Benckiser, Nigeria, Mrs. Iku Ejiro and Managing Director, Tee one Ventures, Mr. Tayo Ojuri and Regional Sales Manager, Reckitt Benckiser, Mr. Abayomi Shittu at the Mortein Automatic Trade Launch, in Lagos…yesterday. PHOTO: TONY EGUAYE

PPA set to reclaim Abia

lParty endorses Kalu as sole candidate for Abia North

ouse of Representatives aspirant on the platform of the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), Mascot Kalu, has called on Nigerian youths to use their votes in electing leaders, who have the country's interest at heart. Kalu ,who is contesting for Aba North and Aba South Federal Constituency, made the remarks while briefing stakeholders on Monday after submitting his nomination forms at the party's headquarters in Abuja. Kalu stated that PPA has repositioned itself in winning elective positions in

the forthcoming elections. He added: " As you can see, Abians are hungry for robust development. PPA will bring about the desired change and we are rest assured of the people's support.” According to the aspirant, PPA will support the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan, noting that the current security challenge facing the nation was the handwork of selfish leaders. Meanwhile, the party has endorsed former Abia State Governor, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu as its sole candidate for Abia North Senatorial District.

Ugwuanyi remains our candidate, says Enugu PDP insists Uwakwe Abugu ENUGU

he Enugu State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday, dismissed the claim by Senator Ayogu Eze that he was the person elected as the governorship candidate of the party in the

state on Monday. The party said rather, it was Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, who was elected at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu, the approved venue of the primary election conducted by the five- man panel from the party's headquarters, Abuja. In a similar reaction, a member of the Board

of Trustees(BOT) of the party, Ambassador Justina Eze, who was a delegate to the election, also yesterday lambasted Eze, accusing him of making uncultured comments on the integrity of the primary election, which was attended by all respected party leaders and delegates in line with the constitution of the PDP.

Tanker explodes in Port Harcourt Emmanuel Masha PORT HARCOURT

petrol tanker yesterday upturned and exploded along the Trans-Kalabari Road around Iwofe, Rumuolumeni, Port Harcourt. The incident occurred on the road to Nigerian Navy's NNS Pathfinder. Eyewitnesses said that

no life was lost to the explosion, just as no other vehicle or building was affected. "As far as I know, no single life was lost to the explosion. God did it in such a way that there was no vehicle that was very close to the tanker," an eye witness said. They, however, said that there was pandemonium as motorists rushed out of

the road when the explosion occurred. The Police spokesman, Ahmad Mohammed, said he was driving when called to comment on the incident. But the commissioner for Special Duties, Dickson Umunnakwe, who confirmed it, said that men of the state's fire service had rushed to the scene to put out the burning tanker.

Tension in Ebonyi over plot to impeach Elechi Onwuka Nzeshi

he political atmosphere was tense in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital yesterday, following the decision of a court restoring the hitherto impeached Speaker of the state Assembly, Hon. Chukwuma Nwazunku on the premise that his removal was a violation of the provision of the 1999 Constitution. The court ruling triggered fears that the embattled former Speaker may, on return to the saddle, mobilize his colleagues to remove Governor Martins Elechi in retaliation because of the belief that the governor was the brain behind his travails. A splinter group of legislators had impeached Nwazunku last month was impeached by a splinter group of the House last month, paving the way for the Deputy Speaker, Hon. Blaise Oji to be installed speaker of the Ebony State House of Assembly. Since then, the House had not returned to its normal business of law making due to fears that some lawmakers loyal to Nwazunku might upturn the table. At the sitting of the court, the presiding judge, Justice Anselem Nwaigwe, held that the impeachment of the speaker was irregular and ran contrary to the provisions of the constitution. The court held that the action was flawed, inconsistent and therefore null and void. Prior to the ruling yesterday, a crowd made up mainly of supporters of the state governor, Chief Martin Elechi had gathered at the court premises protesting against the sitting in what they had envisaged was like an endorsement of a plot to return Nwazunku and pave the way for the House to impeach Elechi. The crowd was forcefully dispersed by armed policemen, an intervention that nearly resulted in a breakdown of law and order at the court premises. One of the protesters, who gave his name as Ignatius Onele said that they were against the court decision because they foresaw a situation where the governor would be impeached by few legislators loyal to the opposition group and Nwazunku, who had already picked the PDP House of Representatives ticket for next year’s election.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Metro

Police killed 300 level student in detention, family alleges

The late Bello

Juliana Francis

300 level student of Economics at the Kaduna State University, Femi Bello, has been reportedly killed by the Police in Nassarawa State while in detention. The deceased had just finished his second semester examinations, hoping to move to final year, before he was killed. He reportedly told friends that he wanted to graduate and take care of his mother who became a widow four months ago. A lawyer, Mr Nanpon

Wuyep of Sterling Law Centre, who is battling to get justice for the family of the deceased, said Bello was arrested when he went to visit a friend. According to him, he did not know the reason for his arrest. He was taken to the police station. By the time his mother and younger brother got information of his arrest and rushed down to the police station, the divisional police officer in charge of the station told them, “Him don die” (he has died). Wuyep said that the DPO told him and the family that Bello allegedly confessed to owning a

Adeolu Adeyemo Osogbo

T ABIODUN BELLO FEATURES Editor

abiodun.bello@newtelegraphonline.com

he headless body of a girl has been discovered in an uncompleted building at Magaji area of Iwo community in Osun State. Witnesses said that the girl’s pubic hair had been shaved by the killers. Her armpits were also shaved while there was wound on her body.

gun kept somewhere in Bwari and that while they were taking him in the police van in handcuffs, somewhere around Sharp Corner in Mararaba, he jumped out of the moving van. According to the lawyer, the police said they rushed Bello to the Medical Centre in Mararaba but medical personnel were on strike. They added that they took him to a private hospital, where he was confirmed dead. According to Wuyep, Bello went to UTC shopping complex to deliver T-Shirts and decided to visit a friend at Mararaba. He

was sitting outside the friend’s house around 4 pm when a Golf Volkswagen car suddenly parked in front of him. “About eight men stepped out of the car and arrested Bello, his host and other friends numbering about seven. They were handcuffed and taken to the Mararaba Police Station,” Wuyep said. The lawyer added that after waiting for Bello the whole day, his mother and siblings started making efforts to reach him. His phone, however, remained switched off. On December, 7, the mother got wind of his arrest and detention. “His younger brother, Biodun, went to the police station. The police officers confirmed his arrest, but advised him to come back the next morning before 10 am. They told him that Femi’s case was being transferred to the State CID at Lafia, Nasarawa State. Biodun wanted to see his brother, but this request was turned down. Biodun saw shoes and other personal effects he knew belonged to Femi,” the lawyer said. Wuyep said he was contacted and the next morning, he went with Biodun to the station. He wanted to find out Bello’s offence and secure his bail. He said: “I asked to see Femi. I was told that he was not in the cell. I was referred to the Divisional Crime Office (DCO), where I met one Adamu. The man directed me to see the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), SP John Omege. The DPO told me in vernacular, ‘him don die.’ Biodun, unable to bear the news broke down in tears.” A text message was sent to the Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Mr Emmanuel Ojukwu, on the case, but at press time, he was yet to reply.

Suswam donates vehicles to police, others

Suswam

Cephas Iorhemen Makurdi

overnor Gabriel Suswam of Benue State yesterday presented 12 new Hilux pick-up security vans and an ambulance to the police, the Nigerian Prisons Service and Nigerian Immigration Service to boost security surveillance. Presenting the vehicles, Suswam expressed worry over the crime wave in the state and charged them to use the vehicles to tackle the challenges. The governor said that the ambulance should be used by the prison authorities to facilitate the movement of sick inmates to the hospital. Speaking on behalf of other security agents, the Commissioner of Police, Mr Hyacinth Dagala, thanked Suswam for the gesture. He assured the governor that the vehicles would be used for the purpose they were meant. The Tiv/Fulani Civilian JTF also benefitted from the vehicles.

Girl beheaded in Osun Sources said that it was the owner of the house that reported the case to the landlords of the area when he discovered the body. “He immediately alerted the police and since then, we have not heard much on the matter from the police,” a wit-

ness said. The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Mrs Folasade Odoro, could not be reached for comment. But a top officer, who preferred anonymity, confir med the story, adding that the police had com-

menced investigation into the incident. Also, a resident of the town, who identified himself as Adeyeye Adepoju, called on the people to always be at alert and be security conscious to be able to avert criminal acts in the town.

Metro 11

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

500 rape cases reported in Lagos, says Commissioner Muritala Ayinla

t least 500 rape cases were reported in Lagos State in 2013 while 140 rapists were con-

victed. The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Ade Ipaye, disclosed this yesterday in an interview with our correspondent during the 2014 World Human Right Day Celebration held the Lagos State Secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja. Ipaye said that the government had intensified the prosecution of additional 113 cases in various courts, adding that the cases were at different stages. But the commissioner said that the major challenge confronting the government in the prosecution of rape cases was inadequate witness in court. He, however, urged the victims, parents and their neighbours to be courageous in reporting rape cases with evidence. Ipaye disclosed that adequate

provision had been made to protect the identity of the victims and their relatives against stigmatisation. The commissioner also urged them to go for a laboratory test and get the sample with which the government could prove the case in court. He said: “We rely on parents, neighbours and welfare officers to make report of such cases so that we can make enquiries. We are trying to reduce all these problems by urging people to report as early as possible. Go for test. Do the medical test. Let them collect the sample that we need. There is Mirabel Centre at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja. “Reporting to the police or Office of the Public Defender also can get people responsible to make sure that they gather all the information needed.” Ipaye re-affirmed government’s readiness to continue to uphold the rights of every Lagosian, adding that “no individual is able or disabled by choice”.

He described the theme of this year’s Human Rights Day: “The Right of the Child,” as apt due to the increasing rate of cases of child defilement in the state. He added: “Our choice in Lagos State is to ensure that our children are given the opportunity to express themselves in a conducive environment without being exposed to any form of violence or abuse. “We have no doubt that this year’s theme was carefully picked in the light of the fact that in the last one year, more than 500 cases of defilement and rape cases have been reported in Lagos. “For a fact, we know that children contend with several challenges on a daily basis. However, the onus is on parents/guardians to ensure that each child is given necessary care and attention.” The commissioner said that the government in collaboration with other Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) have embarked on several enlight-

Muritala Ayinla

Ipaye

enment programmes to ensure cases of defilement or other forms of abuse were reported as early as possible.

Check queue or face sanctions, LASTMA warns filling stations

File picture of a fuel queue

Muritala Ayinla

agos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) yesterday threatened to sanction any station whose customers obstruct

the flow of traffic. The LASTMA General Manager, Babatunde Edu, who gave the warning, expressed worry over the way motorists form long queues at filling stations and obstruct

free flow of traffic. Edu charged owners of filling stations to ensure orderliness. According to him, any station owner who fails to respect the right of way of other road users will face the full wrath of the law. There have been long queues at various filling stations owing to scarcity of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise called petrol in some areas. But the traffic management agency said that road blockade by queuing motorists owing to panic buying was causing gridlock and bringing untold hardship to other road users. Edu, who spoke after the appraisal of reasons for gridlock being experienced on some roads lately, urged filling station owners/operators to en-

‘We’ll soon free ApapaOshodi Expressway’

sure that customers’ vehicles were properly parked in a way that would not disrupt free flow of vehicles. He said consideration should be given, at all times, to other road users going about their normal businesses. The GM urged vehicle owners on queue at filling stations to always put public interest above their individual interest. Edu, therefore, appealed to management of petrol stations and vehicle owners to cooperate with the officials of the agency who had been briefed and strategically positioned to curb the excesses of recalcitrant motorists. The LASTMA boss advised petrol station owners to discipline fuel attendants for motorists to spend less time on queue.

etrol tanker drivers have appealed to motorists plying the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway to bear with them over the gridlock on the road. The drivers blamed the traffic jam on the influx of petroleum tankers from every part of the country into Lagos as a result of the scarcity of petroleum products in many depots across the country. The National Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers Union (NUPENG), Comrade Adebayo Atanda, said the situation leading to the gridlock was being worked on by the union. This, he said, was being done in conjunction with officials of the Lagos State Transport Management Authority (LASTMA) and other traffic agencies. He said the tankers had resorted to coming to Lagos because of the shortage of the products in many parts of the country, adding that the scarcity of the products was further compounded by the festive period. Atanda said the National Chairman of PTD, Comrade Sulaimon Akanni Oladiti, had directed all the zonal officers headed by Comrade Razaq Akanbi to be on ground to mitigate the effect of the influx of the tankers on Lagos roads.

FIRS seals Ikere College of Education, arrests provost Adesina Wahab Ado-Ekiti

fficials of the Federal Inland Revenue Service yesterday sealed the College of Education, Ikere-Ekiti over non-remittance of N6.7 million tax arrears. They also arrested the Provost, Prof Francesca Aladejana, the Registrar, Mr Gbenga Ojo and the Bursar, Mr Kayode Ige. The FIRS enforcement team, led by Mr Olugbenga Adepesoye, stormed the institution and sealed

it in a joint operation with the Ekiti State Police Command. Speaking with journalists after the operation, the Ekiti State Monitor, Mr Olugbenga Adegoke, said: “We came here because of the arrears of Value Added Tax (VAT) and Withholding Tax that the institution is owing us. “The assessment period is between 2002 and 200. The reconciliation was done around May 2008. It was about N12 million; since then, the institution only paid over N5

million. The outstanding is N6.7 million. “We made a lot of entreaties and persuasions and we monitored them. On several occasions we saw the provost, the bursar and the registrar. All our entreaties fell on deaf ears. That is why we are here.” On what would happen to the arrested officials, Adegoke said the service had no immediate plans to prosecute them. He said: “Until when they make the commitment and the commitment is not fulfilled, we

may be tempted to refer it to the legal and prosecution unit of the FIRS. They may likely face prosecution if they failed to pay the outstanding.” The atmosphere became charged on arrival of the provost, as she engaged Adegoke in a hot argument. But Adegoke insisted that she must go with the enforcement team to AdoEkiti. Aladejana said the institution was making efforts to pay the arrears, while begging for understanding.

But Adegoke said that the FIRS wanted a commitment. “We are not here to intimidate anybody; we want a full commitment on when you will pay the outstanding N6.7 million. “We know this is a state-owned institution but what we need is that the provost, the bursar and the registrar need to go with us to make commitment,” he said. The three officials, in company with their lawyer, were later released around 1pm after extracting commitment

Aladejana

from them at the FIRS state office. Adegoke, who spoke with our correspondent later, confirmed their release.

News

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

NATION'S CAPITAL

Kalu, Onaiyekan make case for religious broadcasting TV, RADIO LICENCE

Ex-governor calls for lifting of restrictions on braodcast licences to religious groups Amadi Nnamdi ABUJA

ormer Governor of Abia State and Chairman, Slok Group, Dr. Orji

19.7m

Uzor Kalu and the Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan have joined their voice in the call for the lifting of the restriction on religious broadcasting in Nigeria. They made this call during a fund raising dinner organised for Catholic Television (CTV) by the cardinal in Abuja. According to Kalu, “I don't see any reason why we should have restrictions on religious broad-

The total population of Oceania region in 1970. Source: Un.org

casting, because this is a secular state and in a secular state, we should be able to preach everything that is supposed to be preached and I am sure there is no religious department that will not be responsible to broadcast what is real and what will help to educate the people.” Kalu, who chaired the event, argued that Catholic and Anglican churches have, since time immemorial, contributed

N16.8m

The total capital importation value of the Transport sector in 2008. Source: National Bureau of Statistics

immensely to the furtherance of education in Nigeria; therefore it won’t be a bad idea to give them operational licence. He added that CTV with its Catholic background will bring into the already saturated broadcasting industry, a lot of morality and sense as it will also help in promoting the values the society is lacking today both for Catholics and non-Catholics. Onaiyekan while

300m

The estimated number of acute illness caused by malaria annually. Source: Unesco.org

condemning the law restricting the issuance of broadcasting licence to religious bodies in the country said: “It is a law that is really uncalled for and it seems that in the whole of Africa, Nigeria is the only place with that kind of law. “The original idea was the fear that if you allow religious bodies to go on air, they will start insulting one another and create a lot of rancour. Okay, we are not on air, what

$28m

The total amount of endorsements of Cristiano Ronaldo (Soccer) for 2014. Source: Forbes.com

have we got now, has that stopped rancor,?” he queried. The cardinal also said that if the religious bodies were on air, perhaps they would have been in a better position to bring out messages of peace, reconciliation and truth. He hinted that in other countries; including neighbouring Benin Republic, there are church radio and television stations. “I think this is one of the remnants of the military era, when every issue was considered a security issue. I am hoping that somehow, someone in the National Assembly will raise a bill to remove it from our statutes,” he said. Cecilia Ibru while lauding the initiators of CTV said it is one of the greatest initiatives of the Catholic Church. Adding that by the advent of CTV, the church will be better appreciated. While commending the Nigeria broadcasting industry, she observed that ‘the industry is making good strives as a lot of effort is been put into it.’

Court remands girl for assaulting boyfriend Caleb Onwe ABUJA

L-R: News Chief Operations Officer, TVC, Mr. Lemi Olalemi; Director General, Nigeria Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), Mr. Emeka Mba and Vice-Chairman, Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON), Mr. Osa Sonny Adun, at the opening of the 62nd General Assembly/13th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of BON, in Lagos…yesterday. PHOTO: TONY EGUAYE

FCT teachers protest poor treatment by Area Councils Yekeen Nurudeen ABUJA

embers of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) yesterday took to the streets to protest what they described as the poor treatment meted out to teachers in the six area councils in the FCT. The teachers, who were led by their Chairman, Comrade Hassan Jibril, to the Area 11 office of the FCT Minister, Bala Mohammed, said they are not comfortable with the arrangement that places primary schools under the supervision of the area councils. They lamented that the supervision of primary schools by the councils has done more harm than good to the growth

of education in the FCT, especially secondary education, where many children that were not prepared are sent to continue their education. Jibril said: “We are afraid of the future with our schools under the supervision of the local governments, because we are sure that they have no capacity to manage the schools.” While delivering a letter containing their grievances to the FCT Permanent Secretary, Obinna Chukwu, Jibril alleged that even as the constitution had indicated that local authorities be part of maintenance and management of schools, the chairmen of the local governments have hijacked both the employment and welfare of teachers, using it to compensate their friends, families and other people for political gains.

Onolememen hands over tow trucks, power bikes to FRSC Yusuf Shuaib ABUJA

n line with the federal roads development objective to reduce fatalities on Nigerian roads by 50 per cent along selective road corridors, the Minister of Works, Mike Onolememen, has handed over three tow trucks and 21 power bikes to the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Abuja. The distribution of

the trucks and the power bikes, equipped with required communication equipment, will substantially improve safety enforcement strategies and enhance adequate and prompt accident recovery responses along the road network, the minister said. “Our determination in this regards will not be compromised because lives of our citizens using these roads is vital for our socio-economic renewal

and indeed, national transformation.” Onolememen, however, noted that the collaboration between the World Bank and the Federal Government in financing the project on a ratio of 9 to 1 respectively is imperative and represents the way forward for all critical infrastructures in line with Federal Government’s policy of promoting partnership with multi-lateral and private sector financiers.

Traders want dilapidated roads in Zuba fixed Yekeen Nurudeen ABUJA

ome traders in Zuba, Gwagwalada Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have appealed to the FCT Minister, Bala Mohammed, to repair many of the dilapidated access roads in the area to allevi-

ate the plight of residents and motorists plying the roads. They also called on the minister to provide potable water for the residents, to relieve them of sufferings they are faced with, especially during the dry season. According to the Chairman, Second-hand goods sellers’ association

in Zuba, Mr. Jibrin Shuaibu, who made this appeal, the inhabitants have been neglected by the government of the day, especially in terms of provision of basic amenities. He urged the minister to speed up the development of Zuba, so as to enable the residents feel the impact of the government.

Senior Magistrate’s Court sitting in Karu, the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, has remanded a 27-year- old hair stylist; Yemisi Garba, for pouring hot water on her boyfriend, Bankole Olalekan. The prosecutor, Inedu Elijah, through first information report with reference number CR/107/2014; told the court that the accused is guilty of causing grievous bodily hurt without provocation, a violation of section 247 of the Penal Code Laws. The complainant, Bankole Olalekan, alleged that on November 14, 2014, while he was deeply asleep and without any feelings of the impending disaster; he was all of a sudden woken up by intense pains of hot water being poured on him by Yemisi. He continued: “I don't know what came over Yemisi to think of such wicked act; even as I cannot remember any evil I have done against her.” The victim could not speak much due to the pains of the burns.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Lagos

Primaries

Defection

2015

14, 15

Agbaje’s victory and the battle ahead

How Obuh lost Delta PDP ticket to Okowa

Ogiemwonyi: Why I dumped PDP for APC

Jonathan, PDP and the noalternatives narrative

Politics The national convention of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is a mere formality. ONYEKACHI EZE reports that this is the first time, since the formation of the party, that its presidential candidate was known before the delegates converge to cast their votes

Done deal for Jonathan

he load has been lifted from the shoulders of President Goodluck Jonathan. By this time in 2011, the president was not sure of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential ticket. Even though Jonathan was sworn in as president in May 2010 following the demise of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, the challenge was still overwhelming for him. The agitation against his candidature was vociferous in the north, which was not ready to forgo the presidency. The argument was that the presidency should remain in the region for at least, eight years before it could go to the south. Before the contest was later narrowed down to President Jonathan, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Mrs. Sarah Jubrin, the president had the then Kwara State governor Bukola Saraki, General Ibrahim Babangida and Lt. Gen. Mohammed Gusau to beat before he could think of the PDP ticket. And these men have rich political credentials. For instance, Saraki, in 2011 was about to serve out his second tenure as governor. He was also Chairman of Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF), a powerful political group then in Nigeria that determines the political direction in the country. Before he became governor, Saraki had served as a special

AYODELE OJO

DEPUTY EDITOR, PoLITICS ayodele.ojo@newtelegraphonline.com

President Jonathan at his declaration in November.

adviser to former President Olusegun Obasanjo. On his part, Babangida has a rich political and military pedigree. He was Nigeria’s military president for eight years (1985 to 1993). Since he left office, Babangida has built many political bridges across the nation. Gusau, a spy chief, has served as National Security Adviser (NSA) twice, both to former President Olusegun Obasanjo and later, President Jonathan before he resigned to seek the PDP ticket for the 2011 presidential election. He had contested the PDP presidential primary in 2007. But in a bid to brighten the chances of an aspirant from the region to clinch the presidential ticket, the Northern Political Leadership Forum (NPLF) led by former Minister of Finance, Mallam Adamu Ciroma conducted a shadow election and settled for Atiku as the consensus candidate for the north. Under normal circumstance, Jonathan was not a match, politically, to Atiku. He was still in Rivers State civil service when Atiku ran for the Social Democratic Party (SDP) presidential primaries in 1992. When Jonathan was nominated

We preach continuity, we preach it and believe in it. We have unanimously agreed to adopt President Jonathan as the sole presidential candidate

as a running mate for the PDP Bayelsa State governorship candidate in 1998, Atiku contested the governorship of Adamawa State and won. He has also been at national politics long before Jonathan came to that level. Put all these things into perceptive, what Jonathan had going for him in 2011 PDP presidential primaries were the party’s structure which was firmly in his hands, as well as goodwill of Nigerians, and not necessarily his political acumen. Also, the president’s ratings among the people were still very high for two main reasons. First was his humility, which many interpreted to mean that he was not an ambitious person. His ascendancy to higher political positions was due to circumstance, and not because he set out on his own to seek these positions. The second reason was due to the fact that the north sees the presidency as its birth right. There seemed to be a unanimity among Nigerians that the ‘minority’ (which Jonathan represents) should be allowed to produce the president of the country in 2011. But some three and half years after, Jonathan appears to be no longer the toast of many Nigerians. And with the successful merger of three major opposition

parties - the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the All Nigeria People’s Party (ANPP) and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) to form the All Progressives Congress (APC), PDP knows that Nigerians now have an alternative political party. This was therefore, seen as a threat to PDP’s dominance of national politics since 1999. The party therefore sees the need to try as much as possible, to minimise the ripple effect that usually characterise the selection of its presidential candidate. And the best way to do it is to go for a consensus arrangement. With the tactical weakening of the all-powerful NGF and the empowerment of PDP Governors’ Forum led by a reliable ally, Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State, the party leadership was able to get some northern governors who had expressed interest on Jonathan’s job in 2015 to jettison their ambitions. That was why like a torrential rain, all the organs of the party adopted President Jonathan as the sole PDP presidential candidate during the September 18 National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting. The National Caucus, the Board of Trustees (BoT), the PDP Caucus in the National Assembly CONTINUED ON PAGE 16

Politics | Interview

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Lagos: Agbaje’s victory and the battle Last Monday’s governorship primaries of the Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) may have come and gone, but the sweet and bitter memories that came with it for both the winner and losers still reverberates, writes WALE ELEGBEDE

t was perhaps a race for a governorship ticket that appeared too close to call. The two frontline aspirants, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro and Mr Jimi Agbaje were evenly marched; so much that pundits withheld their predictions against the risk of goofing when the outcome of the primary election came out. Outside the proper election turf, the behind-the-scenes tussle for the ticket had pitched Obanikoro, the erstwhile Minister of State for Defence, against the duo of former Deputy National Chairman (South) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George and a former Minister of Works, Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe as they both queued stoutly behind the aspiration of Agbaje, who recently joined the party. Leading the pack of those on the side of Obanikoro in the twohorse race battle were a member of the PDP Board of Trustee (BOT), Mrs. Aduke Maina; Dr. Adetokunbo Pearse and Babatunde Gbadamosi, among others. On the D-day, several plots and cards were placed on the table for the aspirants and their supporters. One was by the aspirants prevailing on their fellow contestants to step down for them ahead of the election. One of the aspirants, Dr. Dominic Adegbola had on the eve of the primary election withdrawn from the race at the behest of George to support Agbaje. With initial hiccups of violence and untidy administrative process on the part of the PDP, delegates and journalists eventually gained access into the Yard 158 venue of the primaries on Oregun road, Ikeja at about 3:30p.m. amid tight security checks. When they got clear from security barricades, accreditations commenced for delegates from the 20 local government areas of the state at about 4p.m. At the end of accreditation, the chairman of the governorship primary committee, Senator Umar Kumo, told the gathering that 806 delegates were accredited for the election. After Kumo’s speech to the aspirants before the commencement of voting, the only female aspirant in the race, Dr. Modupe Chukwuneke withdrew from the

L-R: Obanikoro, Agbaje and Doherty at the PDP primary election.

George

race amid thunderous ovation from the delegates. With the stepping down of Chukwuneke, those left in the race were: Agbaje, Obanikoro, Gbadamosi, Adedeji Doherty and Tokunbo Kamson. The election process commenced without any hitches, as delegates filed out in an orderly manner on local government basis to cast their votes. An agent of one of the aspirants told New Telegraph that his principal mandated him to monitor voting patterns of the delegates, adding that, “I was observant of the first letter aspirants were writing and it was from there I knew my candidate won’t emerge even before the sorting and counting of votes began.” With voting done, sorting of ballot papers commenced at about 9p.m. and in the process, it was discovered that votes had increased to 863 as against the 806 accredited delegates. This development created a moment of up-

Ogunlewe

The people have spoken loud and clear. There is no ambiguity in their vision, there is no hesitation in their collective truth. They have chosen Olujimi Agbaje as their choice in the PDP governorship primaries

roar within the hall as voices of supporters of the aspirants rent the air. At that point, the likes of Doherty and Kamson walked out of the hall, with Obanikoro following suit midway into counting of the votes. Interestingly, one of the aspirants, Gbadamosi, who came to the venue of the primaries wearing a bullet proof vest, led the vanguard of those opposing the counting of the votes, saying that the whole election process had been fraudulently manipulated by George and Agbaje. At a point, security agencies had to apprehend a supporter of one of the aspirants who made for the ballot box before counting. After the drama, the votes were counted and Kumo declared Agbaje as the winner of the election with 432 votes to beat his closest rival, Obanikoro who had 348 votes. Agbaje also beat Kamson, who scored 46 votes, and the duo of Gbadamosi and Doherty, who both polled 21 votes each.

Reacting to the result immediately after the primaries, Obanikoro said: “The entire primary election was a sham. I still cannot comprehend how accredited delegates of 806 will turn out to be 868. To be honest with you, with the benefit of hindsight, you can tell that the outcome was predetermined. “The path of fraudulent electoral success is condemnable and we intend to fight this. There is an opportunity to appeal and I hope the party will do the right thing. Bode George has been the major problem as far as this party is concerned and there is no doubt in my mind that he supervised this electoral malpractice,” he said. Describing his victory as flawless, Agbaje challenged his fellow aspirant, Obanikoro, to speak the truth about the so-called excess votes reportedly recorded during the primaries, explaining that in the course of the primaries, the six aspirants agreed that there was a clerical omission in the originally announced tally of 806, as it had left out some ad hoc and statutory delegates from a few local governments, and those should be reckoned and allowed to vote. While describing the Lagos PDP primary election as free, fair and spotless, Agbaje through his Director of Media and Publicity, Felix Oboagwina said “Obanikoro and the other aspirants, together with their agents, were party to this agreement. In fact, Obanikoro left his seat, along with the others, when the Chairman of the Electoral Committee, Senator Kumo, called attention to the clerical omission. There and then, they mandated the committee to add these omitted delegates to the total tally. The Chairman of the Committee felt no need to announce this new figure publicly, since all the contestants willingly endorsed the arrangement. “Let us even assume (for the

Politics | Interview

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

ahead sake of argument, that you subtract the alleged 60 excess votes from the total tally, Agbaje would still win the primaries,” the statement pointed out. “But for all intents and purposes, the excess votes could even have gone to make up the 342 scored by Obanikoro or the total for the other aspirants,” Oboagwina stated. Lending his voice to the growing support for his protégé, George at a press conference described Agbaje’s emergence as the party’s standard bearer as a breath of fresh air in Lagos State, saying that the party will win the 2015 election with Agbaje as its candidate. “The people have spoken loud and clear. There is no ambiguity in their vision, there is no hesitation in their collective truth. They have chosen Olujimi Agbaje as their choice in the PDP governorship primaries in Lagos State. “This victory which is a passage of next year’s general election is a testimony of the choice that the good people of Lagos State are clamouring for. Lagosians need a breath of fresh air. Lagosians have rejected the past with its twin venom of thuggery and hooliganism, with its virulent emblem of intolerance and calumny.” Already, analysts have described the cultured nature, humility, popularity and proven managerial skills of Agbaje as some of the traits that have drawn him to both the delegates and electorate at large. In fact, some of them have classified him as ‘the other Fashola to come’ in terms of intellectual prowess. As it stands, it is expected that Agbaje, who is the Managing Director of Jaykay Pharmaceutical & Chemical Company Ltd, will start to reach out to aggrieved aspirants and supporters for the big fight against the opposition for the Lagos governorship seat. But whether the aggrieved would embrace the olive branch, is a different kettle of fish. The message is however clear, just like in 2007, the Agbaje rhythm is resonating again, and it is obvious that the governorship battle in Lagos will first be about personality rating between Agbaje and the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Akinwunmi Ambode. Speaking on efforts to keep the PDP house in order, George said: “All those who lost the elections are our boys. We will as one big family go and fight the enemy. Let us deliver Lagos and tell the people that there is a better alternative for them. “We will come together to forge a formidable front against the opposition party. We must unite to frustrate their strong-hold on our state. We must work hard to thwart their return to Alausa. We must all put behind us the dark hindrances of personal ambition. We must all look far beyond the pretty provincial advantages. We must embrace a wider platform. We are heading to Abuja for the national convention and when we come back, we will massage the egos of those who lost. I can assure you that we will unite all those that lost,” he said.

Obuh

Dominic Adewole Asaba

ow the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primary election was contested, won and lost in Delta State on Monday, December 8, showed clearly that Sir Tony Chuks Obuh, a frontline aspirant in the race to succeed Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan in 2015 dabbled into unfamiliar terrain. No doubt, Obuh’s stylish entrance into the race on the platform of the ruling party unsettled a lot of key players in the state. It was, however, obvious about 24 hours to the contest that, outside being an ‘anointed’ candidate, Obuh lacks the political experience, know-how strength and even financial muscle to do the battle. Facts emerged shortly after he lost the party’s flag to Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, representing Delta North Senatorial District, that the way in which he turned the contest into a battle royale for other gladiators in the race, especially those from his Delta North Senatorial District, within the four months he expressed interest, ruffled weathers. It is no gainsaying that the Ika nation and the entire Ibo speaking axis of the state suddenly turned into a theatre of war after reports indicated that Obuh had Uduaghan’s backing, following the way the likes of Okowa, the former Speaker of the state’s House of Assembly, Hon. Victor Ochei, former presidential aide on Project Monitoring and Evaluation, Prof. Sylvester Monye, a member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu, former Chief of Staff to Governor Uduaghan, Dr. Festus Okubor and the former Acting Governor of the state, Hon. Sam Obi, who hails from Obuh’s senatorial district engaged him in campaigns of calumny after an enlarged meeting of aspirants in Chief Edwin Clark’s house in Abuja. Despite all odds, Obuh was un-

Okowa

How Obuh lost Delta PDP ticket to Okowa

Okowa overran Obuh because the delegates were tired of politics of godfatherism

apologetically optimistic about coasting to victory both at the party’s primary and general election. He soon crashed out of the race. The assurance given by the powers that be in the state and other professional kite-flyers that he was the “Right Man at the Right Time” for the job soon failed him. The reality came when Okowa, popularly referred to as the Ekwueme of Delta North politics, in a fascinating manner, after he felt betrayed by Uduaghan whom he stepped down for in 2007, walked over Obuh and other aspirants at the keenly contested primary election to emerge as the flag bearer of his party. Okowa’s victory left no one in doubt that he (Obuh) banked on the political strength of Uduaghan. No wonder, the force with which he went about his consultations weakened after Uduaghan allegedly withdrew his political machinery from his campaign organisation. The action threw up David Edevie, an Urhoboborn former Commissioner for Finance, barely 48 hours to the contest. The delegates soon caught up with him and exploited the loophole by taking their destiny in their hands proving to him that “power belongs to God through them”. That was how the intricacy associated with partisan politics in the state played against him. His pedigree as a civil servant for 32 years could not save him from the claws of the hi-tech political plot of deft politicians in the state, who are mainly of former Governor James Onanefe Ibori’s camp.

The party’s South-South zone chairman, Dr. Cairo Ojougboh, who would have been a threat to Okowa’s political strength because of his face-off with Okowa over who is the political leader of Ika nation, and an added advantage to Obuh’s aspiration, has since been compensated with a national office. Obuh, who relied on the agelong structure of Ibori, which was supposed to be in the hands of the incumbent governor, his supposed godfather, whom he worked with as Permanent Secretary for over 10 years until he retired four months ago, could not read the hand-writing on the wall. It dawned on him with his poor outing at exactly 10:10p.m. on the night of the primaries when Hon. Steve Karimi declared Okowa winner of the contest having scored 406, against Obuh’s 05. Besides, Okowa overran Obuh because the delegates were tired of politics of godfatherism. The delegates were also disappointed by the contradictory way the governor was dancing round the aspirants, especially the weight he eventually threw behind Edevie from Delta Central. “We know why we voted Okowa. We cannot imagine the governorship seat returning to Delta Central after James Ibori from the district was the governor for eight years. So, within us, we rejected the directive to give support to an Urhobo man becoming governor again for another eight years. So, in protest we cast our votes for a man (Okowa) who has been part and parcel of the successes recorded in the party in the state since 1999,” a delegate told the New Telegraph. Uduaghan has since congratulated Okowa, urging him to work with his co-contestants.

16 Politics | Interview C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 1 3

and the PDP Governors’ Forum, unanimously adopted Jonathan as the party’s consensus candidate for next year’s presidential election. Niger State governor, Dr. Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, who presented the position of PDP governors at NEC meeting said there was no dissenting voice among the governors when the issue to adopt Jonathan as sole candidate was raised at the forum’s meeting. Incidentally, Aliyu was one of the governors from the north who wanted to replace Jonathan as the PDP presidential candidate. The other governor was Sule Lamido of Jigawa State. Also former Deputy National Chairman of PDP, Alhaji Shaibu Oyedokun, who spoke on behalf of the BoT members, said the body based its decision on the fact that Jonathan has stabilised the party and has performed creditably by taken Nigeria to the next level. Senate President David Mark, who spoke for the PDP National Assembly Caucus, said: “We in the National Assembly believe in continuity, we preach continuity, we preach it and believe in it. We have unanimously agreed to adopt President Jonathan as the sole presidential candidate. The House of Representatives had done this earlier before the Senate, but what is happening now is good news.” Jonathan, who described his adoption by the various organs of the party as an ‘atomic bomb’, said he was humbled and overwhelmed. “Let me commend our party elders, BoT members and PDP governors for adopting me as the sole candidate of the party for the 2015 election. “I am totally overwhelmed that I lack words to express myself; let me quickly thank our governors who initiated that action. I also thank members of NEC, for without them, no matter what anybody does, you are on your own. For NEC also to endorse that decision, I am really most grateful. “I will only promise members of NEC and all members of the party, and like the saying goes: to whom much is given, much is expected. “For you to have that kind of confidence in me is a big challenge. That means that God willing, we will go through and whatever we have achieved, we will get it three-fold”, the president told the members. With the adoption, the coast was cleared for Jonathan to pick the PDP ticket even before he declared his inten-

Wale Elegbede

frontline political group in Lagos, Visioners for New Lagos (VNL) has identified two leaders in the Lagos Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Bode George and Senator Adesegun Ogunlewe, as the only problem of the party in the state. Speaking against the backdrop of the reportedly flawed governorship primary of the party on Monday, the result of which it insisted was a nullity; the group said the duo of George and Ogunlewe created the confusion in the party by making obvious, their preference for a certain aspirant ahead of the election when they were supposed to stay neutral. In a press statement by the leader of the group, Mr. Bambo Akin-Johnson, VNL noted that while expectations were that the PDP would move away from the orchestrated manipulations that characterised the governor-

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

The coronation of Jonathan

President Jonathan with PDP big wigs at the party’s National Convention yesterday.

tion to seek re-election. At his November 11 declaration, President Jonathan hinged his re-election bid on the fact that “history has shown that the part of honour of a true leader is not to walk away from his people in the face of challenges. We must stand together in adversity and overcome the threat to our development. We must defend our future.” The president said he was overwhelmed by “the trust, confidence and support of the various organs of our party, the Board of Trustees, the National Caucus, the National Executive Committee, the National Working Committee, the PDP Governors’ Forum, members of PDP caucuses in the National Assembly, and others” for adopting him as sole presidential candidate of the party. Jonathan said: “I am convinced that I have kept my pact with Nigerians, and it is now time to look to the future. With your tremendous support, we have collectively done so much in the last three and half years, but to take our country to the next level, there is still more to be done. “History has shown that the path of honour for any true leader is not to

walk away from his people in moments of challenges. We must stand together in adversity and overcome all threats to our development. We must defend our future, for the sake of our children. “Therefore, after seeking the face of God, in quiet reflection with my family and having listened to the call of our people nationwide to run, I, Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan, have accepted to re-present myself, on the platform of the PDP, for re-election as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, in the 2015 general election. “Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, leadership is about staying focused to achieve goals despite challenges. I have been faced with many challenges since coming to office as President. With your support and encouragement, we have stayed the course. “My people, Nigeria is destined for greatness. Today, here at Eagle Square, I say to Nigeria, that working together in love, in strength and in faith, we will build a nation of one people, united in purpose and in action.” Even when two other aspirants, Dr. Abdul Jhaili Abubakar Tafawa Belewa and

Prof. Akasoba Duke-Abiola attempted to present a feeble contest by paying for the PDP presidential nomination forms, this was quickly nipped in the bud. While Belewa, son of the First Republic Prime Minister, Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Belewa paid, obtained the presidential nomination forms and appeared before the PDP presidential screening committee, he later withdrew from the race, Duke-Abiola, wife of the late Chief Moshood Abiola, was not yet known to have actually obtained the forms she had paid for. Also, she has never appeared before the screening committee. But only a day to the national convention, Duke-Abiola embarked on aggressive campaign. As the 3,037 delegates file out today at the Eagle Square to nominate the PDP presidential candidate of PDP for the 2015 election, the obvious choice is President Jonathan. He will effortlessly emerge as the choice of the delegates, even if the likes of Belewa and DukeAbiola present themselves to be considered. For President Jonathan, today’s convention is just a mere coronation.

‘George, Ogunlewe manipulated Agbaje’s victory’ ship primary of the All Progressives Congress (APC) through a free and fair contest and give the state a breath of fresh air after 15 years, it ended up even more disappointing. The statement read in part: “The question many people have been asking which we also found very curious is: what sin has Senator Musiliu Obanikoro committed against these people? For a man who has committed more into the party than anyone of them and benefitted even less than these people, shows the character of those that make up the party leadership. “Apart from the time that Ogunlewe was minister, he should come out with a record of his contribution to the development of the party since he joined outside killing and maiming Lagosians through FERMA. He barely could even deliver his place to the party during elections. And his min-

isterial stint was dogged by the fight between him and George over alleged money matter. So, what is his pride? “Chief George, on his part, as the greatest beneficiary in the party has never delivered to the party. He never won his ward at each election, and yet, has benefitted in terms of position than any member of the party. His wife is presently the head at the NDLEA, so, what more does he want? He has particularly shown too much hatred and disdain for a fellow man while Ogunlewe has been going about running Obanikoro down for doing nothing to them. “Unfortunately for them, it is only Obanikoro, who has funded his son twice to run for elections, one of which has put the PDP in good stead in the state. The last local government election which

his son, Babajide, was denied was an eye-opener for the party and the people of the state. “The result of the election through its clinical instrumentation by Obanikoro showed that the ruling party was vulnerable after all. In all of these, he invested his personal resources because it was at a time he held no position in the party. Yet, all that these people had done was run him down. “To show how much they hated him, they could not even fight for what was obviously theirs because it was Obanikoro’s. While George addressed many news conferences over the council election in the state, he deliberately brushed aside the fact that Babajide won a critical local government that houses the residences of some of the APC leaders including Bola Tinubu himself.” The group’s leader, therefore, called on the national leadership of the PDP and President

Goodluck Jonathan not to allow the illegality and injustice tarry because it is not in the party’s interest. According to him, there has never been any time in history that Lagos is takeable than now. “But not with a tainted governorship primary with 806 accredited delegates that posted ballot to the region of 863. That is a mystery that must be unravelled,” he said. He recalled that the same thing happened in 2007 before the leadership of the national PDP saw reason and displayed impartiality as against the position of George, praying the PDP under Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu and the president to intervene, “not by siding with anyone but ensuring that justice, equity and fair play prevail.” He added: “That these two men now come together all in the name of fighting a common enemy in the person of Obanikoro is sad, worrisome and curious.”

Politics | Interview 17

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Time has passed when one man will decide who becomes what in Edo State. Edo people are not fools. We are all giving support to Oshiomhole because of what he is doing in the state; our people can see the difference. Look at our roads with six lanes. Look at the Benin Water Storm project. Today, flood no longer sack our people. If not for the bad state in which Oshiomhole met this state, we would have been comparing Edo to Lagos. Edo people will vote APC come 2015 and 2016; there is no doubt about that. What I can see is that Nigerians are no longer people you go and give rice to deceive at the eve of an election, giving them fake promises; we have since passed that stage. What Nigerians need now is effective leadership, a leader they can trust, one that will make a promise and deliver; a leader that will stop oil theft, corruption, improve our power sector and solve our insecurity problem. We need a Federal Government that can guarantee us security, take roads seriously, a government that will respect the rule of law, knowing that the legislature is independent. And if you see what the APC is saying, that is the direction. The current PDP-led Federal Government is incompetent and they must come to an end.

Mr. Chris Ogiemwonyi was the Group Executive Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and a former Minister of State for Works in the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan. He recently dumped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo State. In this interview, he speaks on why he defected to the opposition party. CAJETAN MMUTA reports

Why did you decide to dump PDP for APC? My decision to have a transition from the PDP to APC is informed based on some other factors, notably the leadership style of Governor Adams Oshiomhole. I always believe that once the head is good, there is high probability that the body will be good. But once the head is not too straight, there is high probability that the body will not perform well. I am pleased with the type of leadership that I see among the APC people. I see very refined people. I see Oshiomhole doing what he speaks, no double standard; hard working, focused, smart. Look at the national chairman of APC today, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, a fantastic super secretary. I see APC as people I can work with, I see people who are sincerely working towards a change due to the decadence we have observed today in Nigeria caused by the PDP government. I give you one example; before I left NNPC, I was driving this project gas to power. By 2009, I was promising the late Dr. Rilwanu Lukman that we will deliver 6,000 megawatts by 2009. This was the beginning of 2009, I was saying by December 2009 we will deliver 6,000 megawatts. That time I was pushing the International Oil Companies (IOCs), pushing the NNPC, pushing Pan Ocean to deliver. That time we were on about 3,400 megawatts. Where are we today after almost six years? I hear we are now making about 3,200 megawatts; it is like we have lost almost five, six years. So, if you look at the APC governors you will know they mean the change. Look at Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State; there was a day I took that Lekki new bridge to Osborne. When I got to the Osborne end I took my phone and called him, and I told him my brother I am proud of you. There was one day I was going to the airport in Lagos, I asked my driver where

Ogiemwonyi

Ogiemwonyi: Why I dumped PDP for APC is this Oshodi traffic, he said â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;no sir no traffic againâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; and I saw all greens. They changed that place to a park. This is an APC governor. Go to Edo North and the entire Edo State and see what Oshiomhole is doing. Roads they said before were going nowhere; today they are going somewhere. Today, we have red roof schools. The first thing you give to a people is education because once you are educated they can diversify. If you see what APC governors are doing, you will say these people are focused, they know what they are driving at. And if you give them the opportunity to lead Nigeria, you will see growth. And that is some of the reasons why I am glad to say I want to be a progressive. There are speculations that you will be in the race for 2015 governorship contest in the state. How true is that? People will always speculate. Edo guber race is 2016. From 2015 there is still a whole 365 days. That you go to bed and you wake up is by the grace of God. Let us wait and see. If God says I will, He will give me the enablement; He will give me good health and the people of Edo State will decide who will be their governor. And if it is the will of God that I will be, one day it will surely

Governance is not for children; you must have the capacity, you must have the experience, you must have done something similar. It is not where you go and learn, it is for people who are focused

come to pass. I believe in destiny, I believe in what God has ordained. I am declaring for APC now to go and work for the party. So, if the people believe that I have the capacity, if they believe they can trust me then I will go for it. Governance is not for children; you must have the capacity, you must have the experience, you must have done something similar. It is not where you go and learn, it is for people who are focused. But when we get to the bridge we will cross it, it is still too early to talk about 2016 because that will be distractive to the laudable government headed by Governor Oshiomhole, who has done Edo people proud. The PDP has boasted of winning Edo State in 2015. What is your take on that? Our people are not stupid. People like to do comparative analysis; PDP was in Edo for 10 years and APC is here now for six years, the boy in University of Benin or Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma will compare when PDP was here and what they are seeing today. We are no more fools, nobody can come here and talk about using federal might to rig, the people of Edo State will decide. You are not coming to force anything down our throats.

While you were in PDP, the thought was that you were going to run for the gubernatorial seat of Edo State in 2012. What happened? When I was Minister of State for Works, I was thinking of running for the governorship seat of Edo State but when I noticed the leadership style of those driving the PDP in Edo State I pulled back to re-strategise. Where I come from; in my profession, we always believe that one plus one is two but I realised that what I was seeing here was quite different. I came from a system where you use your best 11, where competence is key. But I realised that in PDP in Edo State, their preference is loyalty and I pulled out. I did a lot for PDP during the 2011 general election because I remember the president asking us ministers to go back home and work. He asked ministers, who are from PDPcontrolled states to go and work under their governors, but states where you have none PDP governors, the minister from that state is supposed to take leadership of that state. As the minister from Edo State then I was supposed to take charge but Edo State is quite peculiar, because you have very strong leaders who are very domineering. They are not prepared to allow you as a minister play your role. I noticed all these things; I was not prepared to be confrontational with these people. I just felt the best thing was to allow them do what they know best which is politics and I went back to my business. But from all indication, their politics has led them nowhere. They are gnashing their teeth for all they have done to Edo people. Our people have embraced change; PDP is not used to change. They are clueless. Jonathan, PDP and the noalternatives narrative on page 20

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Opinion

2015: Kalu’s wish for PDP

Rubby Obinna

rom one generation to the other, history has recorded where men and women bamboozled themselves, while twisting the facts in order to make their points. This still persists in the present days. Those in this line of habit have equated the withdrawal of Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, the former Governor of Abia State, from his intent to contest for Abia North Senatorial seat, as a sign of irritation he has experienced from Governor Theodore Orji’s authoritarian scraps. But after a thorough look at the reason why Kalu had to withdraw from the contest, it is palpable that the dude has the interest of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, he had rejoined some two years back, at heart. It could be recalled that in a celebrated feast, Kalu was re-admitted in his Igbere Ward A after due process and was issued with membership card number 9787945. The card was issued to him on January 16, 2013. As an enduring fellow, even when some members of the PDP were jittery in December 2013, over the defection of five governors and 37 Representatives from People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to All Progressive Party (APC), Kalu who has always been optimistic that good would always prevail against evil, said on December 22 2013, that he was not afraid of any consequence of defection. On that day at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, before travelling to Dubai, Kalu said that his return to the PDP was to help rebrand the party from the clusters of woes it was experiencing before Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu was elected the national chairman of the party. Kalu believed that the party would come out stronger and he was out to make this a reality. His take was that Nigerians of goodwill like him needed Nigeria more than the country needed them, because the unity of the country could not be compromised. He said that he was going to be one of the trustees of the country, something he has always shown in different ways. It was Kalu’s wish in seeing a stronger PDP that on January 28 2014, he bowed to pressure from the Apex Igbo Socio-cultural Group, the Ohane-

ze Ndigbo, to shelve his Presidential ambition for the 2015 general elections, since the incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan from the PDP stockpile had an interest. Kalu did not betray his commitment of being a trustee for the progress of his party and the country; he announced his total withdrawal from the 2015 presidential race in his Abuja home, following an extensive meeting with the leadership of Ohaneze Ndigbo led by the president general worldwide, of the association, Gary Nnachi Enwo-Igariwey, after six months. When this was done, the President of Ohaneze said of Kalu: “Ohanaeze deals with interest of the Igbo man. Chief Orji Uzor Kalu is a great Igbo man we so much have regards for. It was not by force that he agreed to hold on over his ambition. I know his interests. It is only fair for us to ask him to hold on. We have our strategic people. He is one of our interests. We are not saying any other Igbo person who wants to run should not run; we don’t have that kind of control. We have our people and we know those we want to strategize with.” It was for the same peace Kalu had wished to reign in the country and in the PDP that compelled him on November 24, 2014, to issue out a letter unconstrained, “Withdrawal from Abia North Senatorial District Race”, and addressed to the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Adamu Mu’azu. In Kalu’s words: “Rather than be an intractable issue in Abia chapter of our great party, I would rather subordinate personal ambition for party cohesion…I hereby formally withdraw from the bid to represent the good people of Abia North in the Senate next year. “I wish to state unequivocally, however, that I remain a member of the PDP, and a loyal one at that. I will assiduously work for the victory of the party at all levels, and carry out any assignment as prescribed by the leadership of the party. The PDP will continue to enjoy my goodwill and best wishes.” Kalu had wished that in the PDP he was a foundation member, there would not be traits of tyranny as he buckled up in his second missionary journey in the party, but this is not the mindset of some of the members of the party, especially in his home state of Abia. If he had no good wish for the party, he would have started

making trouble, after he found out that Governor Orji was in to handpick his choice-candidates during the party’s primaries for the different elective positions in the state, ahead of the 2015 general elections. The perceived harsh dispositions by Governor Orji in the Abia State chapter of the party, made Kalu to contain the following in the letter that he addressed to Mu’azu: “In a democracy, this is downright outrageous, if not scandalous. And all the aspirants into these positions, not favoured by the governor, have collectively protested to the party national headquarters. “The congresses to elect delegates did not hold in Abia State. The names were just written by the governor and his collaborators. This has forced many good people out of our party, and they have since defected into other political parties to pursue their ambitions… Mr. Chairman, it is needless to say that this holds very grave consequences, not only for our party in Abia State, but also for the electoral fortunes of President Goodluck Jonathan, who is running for a second term in office.” Kalu has been working tirelessly for the emergence of peace in the party he is also a great financier. This perhaps necessitated the National Working Committee, NWC, of the PDP, to grant him what was described in the media as a special waiver, one of its kind. After the waiver in November, Kalu had to say to journalists in a telephone conversation: “I believe our party, PDP, has been fair to all. The decision to grant me a waiver is a laudable effort of the leadership and members of the party. I am indeed, happy. Let me use this opportunity to inform our followers, supporters and party stalwarts that political differences in the state have been put to rest…We should all ignore the past and move forward in the interest of the party and Nigeria. We will ensure victory for Mr. President and all PDP aspirants, running for positions in Abia State.” While Kalu has an open mind for the party, this may not be the mindset of Governor Orji, who had in different desperate moves against Kalu’s return to the PDP, stormed the national secretariat of the party with his co-travellers, to stop Kalu. • Obinna writes from Ohaji, Imo State.

Tambuwal’s travail Mike Arayuwa Wilkie

n Tuesday, October 28, 2014, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, Speaker, House of Representatives, affirmed and declared inter alia “I am now a member of the All Progressives’ Congress (APC)” The speaker who presided over the plenary session for the day had waited for Hon. Mulikat Adeola-Akande to move a motion for adjournment and seconded by another member before he made his proclamation for defection from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC. This was the Genesis of Tambuwal’s travail and the very unpleasant and unparliamentary behaviour which led to the avoidable commotion in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, November 20, 2014. The Inspector General of Police had already withdrawn the security details or police escort from Tambuwal because he cannot decamp to a minority party and take along with him the office of the Speaker. In 2011, officers of the House of Representatives were elected on the basis of the PDP which formed the majority political party and the other political parties. It was the House election of June 11, 2011 which threw-up Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, a PDP member, as

the Speaker. Obviously, the Speaker’s position remains the privileged slot of the PDP being the majority party in the House. The other executive offices for the PDP include the deputy Speaker, majority leader, Chief whip and others. Other parties too, had their own minority officers. Due to the alignment and re-alignment of political forces amongst members of the political parties, some other parties fizzled-out completely. It is also sacrosanct to stress that the APC which was formed by other smaller political parties had its officers to co-operate with the PDP elected executive members to run the affairs of the House. The defection of the Speaker to the APC does not constitute any problem at all. He was free to do so in accordance with the dictates of his guiding principles and conscience. However, he cannot decamp and take along with him the office of Speakership which belongs to the PDP. As a lawyer by profession, Tambuwal was expected to appreciate the fact that he stands to resign his position as Speaker the moment he defected to his new political party. Tambuwal too, ought to have realized that he has no reason to wait for his impeachment before stepping aside from the office of Speaker. As an experienced politician, he knows exactly what to do rather than

pretend that he can cunningly or forcefully kidnap the office of speaker along with him to wherever may be his political destination. Tambuwal’s deft refusal to do what was right amounts to political rascality with the intent to unnecessarily create commotion and heat-up the polity. Afterall, the young man is politically blessed with the legacy of defections from one party to another inorder to actualize his ambition within the context of political horse-trading. His profile has clearly revealed that in 2003, he was a member of the defunct ANPP. He won a seat into the House of Representatives from his Kebbi/ Tambuwal’s constituency. In 2007, he defected from the ANPP to DPP and somersaulted back to the ANPP when he was denied the ticket to run for the same federal constituency seat. As a result, Tambuwal crossed the carpet along with the incumbent Governor of Sokoto State to the PDP. Aliyu Wamakko had long defected to the APC before Tambuwal decamped to the same political party. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal’s zigzag defections should not therefore be surprising to scholars of contemporary Nigerian politics. He sees himself as a politician who should never play the second fiddle. That was and is still the reason why he has consistently become

an acrobatic politician in pursuance of his in-depth ambition. His deliberate refusal to resign from his position as the Speaker of the House of Representatives gave birth to the rowdy and shameless situation in the House on that Thursday November 20, 2014. Although the agenda to be discussed by House members was the extension of a state of emergency in three states (Borno, Adamawa and Yobe) of the North Eastern part of the country. From feelers, the PDP thought that it could take advantage of the emergency meeting of the House to impeach Tambuwal as Speaker. Unfortunately, the PDP’s plot leaked to the young man and his APC the previous day. Hence, Tambuwal and his APC minority mobilized to thwart the impeachment plan of the PDP. The top hierarchy of the Police Force, who had a wind of what will happen, quickly drafted security apparatus to seal-off the House of Representatives. From my reasoning, the police took this action in order to avoid the possible rampage, confrontation and perhaps bloodshed in the House. The police should be given kudos in this regard rather than condemn its noble action to stop the envisaged fracas. • Wilkie can be reached at pmikky1950@yahoo.com (08023097251)

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

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Nations Cup without Super Eagles

n December 3, many soccerloving Nigerians were in pains as draw for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations was in progress in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea. The Super Eagles disgracefully failed to qualify for the football fiesta even though they are the defending champions. It was agonising to see how 16 teams were drawn in four groups with Nigeria missing. Where did the country get it wrong? The Stephen Keshi-led coaching crew failed to consolidate on the success recorded at the South Africa 2013 Nations Cup. Keshi particularly put on airs. He was no longer listening to advice from his colleagues who are also former internationals. Rather than make the squad more solid as champions of Africa, Big boss wrecked the team with sentiments. At a time Keshi was expected to strengthen the team on merits, he was busy ‘dining’ with the politicians and also fighting some of the key players including those who helped the country to win the last edition of the Nations Cup. The Super Eagles also did not help matters as they failed to raise their game when it mattered most in the last encounter against the Bafana Bafana. This is also a big blow because the competition could serve as a

The leadership crisis in the NFF has also not helped matters. When the Eagles were playing the first match against Congo in Calabar, there were two factional presidents of the NFF. One of them was stopped from entering the pitch to meet the players before the match while the other stayed off relief to cushion the effect of tension associated with elections as the nation goes to the poll next year. It is on record that each time Nigeria won the Nations Cup, there will be one form of crisis or the other before the next edition. After winning in 1980, the country struggled to qualify for the 1982 edition only to crash out in the preliminaries. After victory in 1994, Nigeria did not defend the trophy because of the sour relationship with 1996 hosts South Africa. In 2011, Samson

Siasia failed to qualify the Eagles for the 2012 edition and he was sacked. Two months ago, when the new board of the NFF asked Keshi to go because of Nigeria’s failure, the decision was reversed by President Goodluck Jonathan. This is not good for the development of the game and such decision is a bad precedent. For now, Keshi feels he is bigger than his employers even in failure. Yes, failure because a coach is as good as his last match. In the 2-2 draw recorded in Uyo, Keshi paraded unfit players including Kenneth Omeruo and that was why Nigeria failed to win the match and lost the ticket. That was very unprofessional. The leadership crisis in the NFF has also not helped matters. When the Eagles were playing the first match against Congo in Calabar, there were two factional presidents of the NFF. One of them was stopped from entering the pitch to meet the players before the match while the other stayed off. The same NFF has failed over the years to replicate the successes recorded in the age group to the senior team. A former international, Sunday Oliseh, noted that the domestic league produced the ‘golden generation’ Super Eagles and wondered why the coaches and the federation

chose to abandon the league. Jonathan Akpoborie urged the NFF to look for another coach and start the process of raising a new team in earnest. We believe Nigeria is bigger than the few who are trying to destroy football, the unifying factor in the country. There is need to start on a clean slate and this means Keshi has to go together with most of the players. Cameroun and Ghana raised a new team and Nigeria can do the same. We need patriotic players who will be ready to give their best in the new look Eagles. The task of bringing back the Super Eagles should begin now and the process should be on merit. We are aware that the NFF is afraid of giving coach Keshi the sack. If he is to stay, he has to work with other technical people and should be compelled to look inward for talents. It will not also be proper to increase the salaries of a coach who failed to qualify Nigeria for the Nations Cup. He should have a pay cut instead. All efforts must be made to return the Eagles to the top at continental and global levels. We make bold to state that the Africa Nations Cup without Nigeria is not only a national embarassment, it is a continental regret as CAF President Issa Hayatou rightly confessed.

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20 Politics | Interview

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Jonathan, PDP and the no-alternatives narrative Johnson Momodu

n Nigerian politics, it is a waste of campaign efforts to try to canvass for the votes of some categories of the electorate. The first category comprises voters who have firmly made up their minds concerning whom to vote for. Given the nature of their support, nothing can possibly change their choice. For instance, Major General Muhammadu Buhari commands a chunk of fanatical young supporters in the Northern parts of

the country. It is almost impossible to change the minds and orientations of these Buharians. The second category of voters are those usually referred to as “floating voters” made up of members of the electorate who have decided on whom to support but remain malleable and, therefore, subject to change. This category also includes those yet to decide on where to pitch their camp. Electioneering is mainly targeted at this group of voters who are persuadable, convertible

or simply buyable in the Nigerian way. Between now and February 2015 when the general election will hold, the major political parties, especially the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) will be in a fierce competition to win votes. The questions to ask are: What have the parties got to offer Nigerians? What will they do to improve the quality of life of Nigerians, protect life and property? What

are their credentials and records of achievement? Of the political parties, only the PDP can boast of previous performances at the federal and state levels. And, among the presidential contestants, only President Jonathan has had the experience of having served as president in a civilian administration. Until the merger that gave birth to the APC, which is the main opposition party, the parties that came together were fragmented, poorly organised and lacking in vision and

focus. Their experience in governance was limited to a few states. Today, all that the APC promising Nigerians is “change” in some nebulous terms, without any clear definition of what it means or how it is to be effected. The APC spends much of its time on destructive criticisms of virtually every policy and action of President Jonathan and his administration. In developed democracies of the world such as the United States and the United Kingdom, the main opposition parties

have their own shadow cabinets with appropriate policies and programmes, prepared to step in as alternative governments should the needs arise. Hand over power to the APC today and the party would be in total darkness as what to do! The main reason some of our opposition parties are seeking power is because they perceive government as an opportunity, not for service but for self-aggrandisement If the leadership of the APC were truly ready to take over government and serve the people of this country, it would spell out detailed alternative plans of how it intends to tackle the nation’s economic challenges; what the party would do to diversify our sources of income and solve the problems of our dependence on oil; how it intends to improve on the nation’s infrastructure challenges, power supply, road construction, or deal with healthcare, education, unemployment, etc. The APC ought to roll out details of its plans and strategies on how it intends to put an end to the challenges of insurgency in the North East. This is the only way the party can inject content into its message of change to the Nigerian electorate and be taken seriously. It is not enough to “sweep out the PDP” as the APC National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, sings everyday; he must go beyond the call of “Bring–Back–Our Girls” and tell Nigerians how his party would have resolved the problem, were it given the opportunity. The good luck which the PDP enjoys today is, first, that no opposition party is ready to offer itself to Nigerians as a viable alternative. Secondly, the party, at all levels of governance, has a history of 15 years of uninterrupted service to Nigeria. In spite of the daunting challenges, the PDP government has an enviable record of service in all areas. When all is said and done, the only serious candidate, among those to contest the 2015 presidential election, is President Goodluck Jonathan, who has been tested after years of service through the PDP. Indeed, the credit for the bulk of achievements by the PDP government goes to President Jonathan as well as his predecessors in office. He towers over and above all the other contestants. •Momodu is a public affairs commentator based in Benin City

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Jurist

Interview

Shittu: Why early elevation to Bench will transform justice system

Nwankwo: FG behind Boko Haram

22&25

23&24

Law Mohammed: My agenda for the judiciary He became the 14th Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) on November 20. He took over from the first female Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mariam Aloma Mukhtar, who retired after attaining the statutory age of 70. Shortly after his swearing in, Justice Mahmud Mohammed told TUNDE OYESINA his agenda for the judiciary.

awyers described him as a gentleman par excellence; an intelligent man with a clear understanding of the law which he applies often times without any emotions. Justice Mahmud Mohammed, the 14th Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN),was born on November 10, 1946 in Jalingo, Jalingo Local Government, Taraba State, to Malam Mamman Maitako Bakin Kasuwa Jalingo and Aishatu Mamman of Garrkin Dogo Village, Lau Local Government. He read Law at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria between 1967 and 1970. Shortly after his LL.B degree, Mohammed proceeded to the law school and was called to the Bar in 1971. He began his career in public service with the Ministries of Justice of the old Northeast State and Gongola state’s judiciary. In 1991, Justice Mohammed was appointed the Taraba State Acting Chief Judge and thereafter the state’s substantive Chief Judge. He is a life bencher. Unlike his predecessors who were trained outside the country, Justice Mohammed remains the first Chief Justice of Nigeria to be trained in the country. However, the CJN is expected to continue with some of the reforms initiated by his immediate predecessor, Justice Mukhtar with a view to reshaping the judiciary especially for the challenge of the 2015 elections. At a forum, the CJN declared

FOLUSO OGUNMODEDE JUDICIARY EDITOR

foluso.ogunmodede@ newtelegraphonline.com

that his vision was to leave an ‘effective’ and ‘efficient’ judiciary. Specifically, he assured major stakeholders that he would not deviate from Justice Mukhtar’s judicial reforms especially the discipline among judicial officers and the independence of the judiciary. Mohammed who admitted that his experience had been immensely enriched by the wisdom and astuteness exhibited at all times by the immediate past CJN, vowed to pursue the independence of the judiciary both at the state and the federal levels including the dignity of judicial officers. He said: “Therefore: the National Judicial Council (NJC) under my chairmanship will be committed to an entrenched and preserved independent Judiciary; a Judiciary that is committed to the rule of Law; a financially autonomous Judiciary; a pro-active and vibrant Judiciary that has Judicial Officers. A member of Staff with proven integrity and impeccable character; a dynamic Judiciary manned by officers with various backgrounds, discipline, experience and competence; a Judiciary that is Information Technology driven with Modern Court Rooms fitted with court proceedings recording equipment and Case Management System. “Permit me to speak on a matter that has been agitating my mind – the need for Alternative Dispute Resolution. Overtime, the process of litigation has become more and more time consuming, complex, expensive and cumbersome. Rise in the number of cases in our courts have led to congestion and delay in their resolution. Some disputes are sensitive and confidential in nature and disputants may prefer settlements in private to one in public glare of court. “The complexity of court litigation tends often times towards increase in costs which dispu-

Justice Mohammed

The National Judicial Council (NJC) under my Chairmanship will be committed to an entrenched and preserved independent Judiciary

tants are naturally anxious to reduce. On the other hand, there may be claims involving small sums, which may not be worth the cost of litigation. All these have led to the development of alternative methods of resolving disputes. The method in use in many parts of the World is called, ‘Alternative Dispute Resolution’, which I intend to encourage in the Federal and States Judiciaries”. This, Justice Mohammed again reiterated at a dinner held in his honour by a retired President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Umar Abdullahi, when he said he would ensure that an independent and efficient Judiciary was in place before he leaves office in 2016. According to him, having been part of the nation’s judicial system for a decade, he understands its workings and its challenges, and would be willing to ensure that a functional judiciary that meet the people’s needs was in place. Justice Mohammed said he had no fear to step on toes as he could always bank on the sup-

port of good minds in the National Judicial Council (NJC) as he was build on the structure left behind by his immediate predecessor in achieving his set objectives. The CJN recalled his past working relationship with a former court of Appeal’s president, Justice Umaru Abdullahi, who he described as his mentor, whose tutelage no doubt guided his career path as the erudite jurist remains a man of unquestionable integrity, who was all through guided by his conscience. He said: “Throughout our years together, particularly during the military, he was an inspiration to me. I learnt a lot from him. He is a person whose integrity cannot be questioned. During the military era, when all the courts were subjected to a lot of pressure; sometimes, Justice Umaru Abdullahi would look at an official in the face and say: ‘look you cannot interfere with our judicial works, keep off.’ That is the kind of person he is. “That is how I learnt to also be upright in the discharge of my responsibilities as a judicial officer. I have stayed a long time in the system. I will build on the structure left by my predecessor to ensure smooth running of the Nigerian Judiciary”. Justice Mohammed is indeed, a man for the job if his colleague and classmate’s view was anything to go by. His colleague at the apex court, Justice John Fabiyi expressed confidence in his leadership and the ability to deliver on his promises, saying he would not be abandoned especially as the nation enters electioneering year. Justice Fabiyi said: “I have known him since 1967 at the Ahmadu Bello University. He is a very humble person and easy going. He is very articulate and firm in his decisions. He has the support of all the Justices at the Supreme Court. Next year appears a little frightening, but by the grace of God, we shall overcome.” Also Justice Abdullahi said: “Those of us, who know him very well, know that he is capable and also going to be a very successful CJN, because he has been part of the Nigerian Judiciary for more than a decade. He knows the various stages of judicial functions. We have no fear that he will make a success of his office, but at the same time, he still needs a lot of prayers from us”.

Law | Jurist

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Shittu: Why early elevation to Bench will transform justice system

ahab Kunle Shittu, a PhD student at the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS), is an expert in International Law and Jurisprudence. Shittu, who doubles as the co-ordinator, Centre for Human Rights at the prestigious University of Lagos(UNILAG), believes only a tested hand must be allowed to occupy the exalted office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria. Shittu said: “The CJN office is one of high responsibility requiring competence, character and capacity as well as experience and exposure in addition to the knowledge of the law. I agree with you that the occupants of such an office who has both legal, administrative, as well as disciplinary functions to perform ought to be given enough time to be able to stabilise in the interest of administration of justice. You cannot rise to the position of a Justice of the Supreme Court in Nigeria and by extension, the position of the Chief Justice of the Federation if you have not been tested and trusted over the years and if you have not paid your dues. This is because it is a responsibility that demonstrates clearly excellence in learning and character. Having said that, there are a lot of people who have expressed a lot of concern that some individuals with fine attributes and who have made a lot of contributions to the country’s jurisprudence did not have the opportunity of assuming the role of the CJN. People like Idigbe JSC, Oputa JSC, Kayode Eso JSC, etc. These are gentlemen whose outstanding qualities are a source of emulation to the rest of the legal community and the society at large. They never had the opportunity of becoming the Chief Justice of the Federation, not because they lacked the necessary attributes but because they were caught by the requirements of age. “Before they could assume the office, they were caught off by the compulsory requirement age of 65, now 70. Many people believed that before they left the Bench, they still had a lot of knowledge in their reservoir that would have impacted positively on the quality of administration of justice. You could see that years after some of them retired, they still continue to render qualitative services to the society. They were very visible in the public space in terms of quality and revolutionary contribution to the society, even after retirement. “I agree with you that perhaps if our system is structured in such a way that our bright minds in the legal profession will be encouraged to be elevated early in their youthful years, it will assist the quality

Wahab Kunle Shittu is the Co-ordinator, Centre for Human Rights, University of Lagos where he teaches Law and Jurisprudence. In this interview with AKEEM NAFIU, Shittu speaks on moves by a section of the National Assembly to sack President Goodluck Jonathan, emergency rule in the troubled northeast and sundry issues.

Shittu

in the administration of justice. This is because by the time they assume the position of CJN, they will have enough years to be able to make qualitative contributions and reforms that will impact positively on the administration of justice. I also agree with you that two years is too short to be able to make far reaching reforms that will be enduring. I agree with you that Dahiru Musdapha, for instance, spent a very little time and when he was succeeded by Aloma Muktar, the latter also spent very little time. The very little time that these eminent justices spent impacted qualitatively in terms of reforms and you will wonder if they have a little more time, say a period of 5,6 or 7 years more, the kind of contribution they will be able to make in the interest of administration of justice. Much of it can be achieved by legislation that can make it possible to come into the Supreme Court at the age of 40 years. “There are talents across the geo-political zones of the country, who, can be identified and encouraged to come to the Bench at an early stage. I think

Terrorism, the kind of what we are facing today is not a local, Jonathan, PDP or APC problem but an international problem of international character which is capable of consuming all of us

some of them who are eligible and qualified are not elevated early enough and so some of them spent too many years at the lower courts when they ought to have been elevated. Even at the Court of Appeal, they even spent too much time. So, I agree with you that the period is too short but most of this can be addressed through effective legislation and effective monitoring of performances by the National Judicial Council (NJC). He however took a swipe at the critics of the bizarre Ekiti political development, cautioning them not to be carried away by the latest event where ‘7’ is greater than ‘18’, insisting that the Ekiti political ‘armagedon’ remains a product of a collective blame to be shared by the political elite. Shittu said: “When we are making comments generally about incident in a particular state, including Ekiti, one has to be very careful in the sense that, one should not allow himself to be swayed by the shenanigans of the political elite. When I am saying this, I don’t have any political party

in mind because it cuts across. “What is happening in Ekiti is probably a product of a collective blame to be shared by the political elite and it will be very difficult except you witness what has happened to be able to place blame at the doorstep of any political party because all of them are in the contest and contestation of power. I think the best way to be able to appraise the situation is to stay focus on the fundamentals of the democratic tradition and analyse what has happened against the respect or lack of respect for the fundamentals. What are these fundamentals? In a democracy, there must be respect for the constitution which is the bedrock of democratic tradition. There are clear cut provisions of the constitution about how to deal with specific issues and when those provisions are subverted, no matter who is involved, we should apply the law as was spelt out in the constitution. “Again, respect for the rule of law and due process is very key while transparency and accountability in government and free, fair and credible electoral process are also desirable. Zero tolerance for corruption, respect for fundamental rights of the people, separation of powers and good governance are also very key. In a democracy, there are two clear choices to make. That is, either we want to be guided by the rule of law or the culture of impunity. So, if you look at those fundamentals, then you can now use them to interrogate what is going on in Ekiti and then make your analysis on the extent to which what is going on in the state conforms to the constitution, the rule of law, due process and other parameters. Conclusions will then be made on the strength of the democratic traditions and not on partisanship or sentiments. Yes, the constitution allows the Speaker to be removed but there are clear cut procedures that must be complied with before such impeachment can be effective. The clear constitutional provision is that it has to be done by two-third of the members. The question however is whether the present scenario wherein seven members carried out the exercise can be said to be constitutional. So, clearly, what has been happening in Ekiti is unconstitutional considering my analysis without wanting to place blame on any of the actors. I think the political elite should make their choice as to whether they want democracy or not and if they want democracy, they should be prepared to be democrats because if they subverts the rule of law, democracy and constitutionalism under whatever guise, then, they CONTINUED ON PAGE 25

Law | Interview

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Clement Nwankwo is the Executive Director, Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre. In this interview with TUNDE OYESINA, he speaks on displaced Nigerians’ rights to vote, security challenge, 2015 elections and varied issues.

Nwankwo: FG behind Boko Haram

Insurgency war rages on while hundreds of innocent Nigerians are been displaced by the day, any hope for the internally displaced persons in coming elections? The Internally Displaced Persons (IDP), are people who have been forced out of their abode or area of operation as a result of several factors , some could be natural disasters , insurgency and war as it is going on in the north-east of the country. There is a concern that we have that first of all, a lot of these internally displaced persons have been relocated to camps, some even away from their states, majority have relocated to homes of family members and friends who are catering for them. The consequence is that a lot of them are forced out of their living environment. They are homeless, even if they occupy people’s houses, they are unemployed. With respect to their elections in 2015, they have been displaced from where they registered to vote. It is a question whether they will be able to vote during the 2015 elections. And for us in civil society, particularly working towards election, this is important issue. Nobody is quite sure of the number but the official. Umber is indicating more than 1.5 million, but of course when you put together the number that have been forced out of their environment to other areas , it represent a significant population and we feel that significant population should not be disenfranchised from voting during the 2015 election. So, what is the civil society is doing about that? We have been raising concern about this, we are drawing attention of the African Union Charter that requires state to ensure that IDPs are given the opportunity to participate in government, to vote, we have drawn the attention of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and the National Assembly as well on the need to ensure that provisions are made so that IDPs can vote wherever they may be. INEC needs to put in place logistics and mercenaries to capture people who have been displaced and who are unable to vote in the areas they originally registered in. What of those in Diaspora? How would you capture them? Well, a lot of them are across the border, we have seen reasons to push to countries that are less endowed than us; that have better security than Nigeria. Though it is a major concern, we don’t know how possible it is to have

Nwankwo

Are you suggesting that elections should be conducted in all the troubled zones including the ones being controlled by the insurgents? Certainly, if INEC cannot go into an area to conduct elections, there is no way you can have INEC to conduct elections in such areas. But the point that is important is that why is the Nigerian government allowing this to go on? Is it being done for political reasons? If it is being done for political reason, I think the government needs to be brought to account for its failure and that I think is the most important thing. Nigerians need to begin to ask, why are the insurgents seizing Nigeria’s territory?

diplomatic arrangement that will make possible for them to vote, this might be a bit challenge but for those that are within the country but dispersed to homes of family members and friends, and those dispersed to camps, we feel provision should be made for them to vote. How do you think elections can hold in the troubled north-east in view of the extension of the emergency rule in the zones? State of emergency does not say election cannot hold. We think that government should make and provide adequate security and create a proper environment that will make people to vote. But the impression we get now is that this government is intentionally allowing the crisis in the north-east to go on. Some even suggest that this government is part of the reasons the crisis is continuing for political reasons. We think the government should take steps to provide security to enable people to vote. This country is enormously rich, budgets are passed, the monies are reported to be spent, yet we do not see the consequence of that in terms of the great efficiency that military should possess in terms of sophisticated equipment. So, for a lot of Nigerians, the question is where is the money going to? Who is spending the money and for what purpose? Certainly it is not going on the expenditure of the military, which is why soldiers wearing bathroom slippers to war, soldiers receiving bullets on their palms, counted to fight insurgents. These insurgents are actually tagged army whose weapons are captured from the Nigerian military itself. So, a lot of us are concerned that this state of affairs is continuing. We feel that this government is culpable and should be held responsible for the failure of the military and need to reverse the current strategy of not funding or equipping the military to fight decisively this war against insurgency.

This government is intentionally allowing the crisis in the north-east to go on. Some even suggest that this government is part of the reasons the crisis is continuing for political reasons

Should the emergency rule be extended in such a situation? The National Assembly has made the points that there are some official powers in the constitution allowing the president to deploy the armed forces across the country. State of emergency or no state of emergency, the President has the power to use the armed forces to curtail insurgency. He should use those powers. You don’t need a state of emergency to exercise your powers. President should exercise it. We don’t see anything extra ordinary about a state of emergency apart from protection of human life and properties. The National Assembly was invaded by the police last week, what does this portend for Nigeria’s democracy? I think that the action of the police to invade an independent arm of government is a grave constitutional violation; it is certainly not acceptable; the action demands that somebody be punished for it. The President has the full knowledge of this action, he should be brought to account for violating the Constitution in a grave way; the constitution of Nigeria. If the Inspector General of Police has acted without the authority of the President, the President needs to take action to dismiss him from his position.

But certainly, what has happened is grave, unconstitutional and unacceptable. This really shows that people in power can violate the constitution in such a way that has happened. This is Nigeria, our country. Some individuals whether in government or not, have no right to violate our constitution the way the police have done. The President has authorized this if he is failing to act to bring anybody to account, then he himself should be held accountable and be brought to account for violating the constitution. I think it is important to commend the legislators for action they took in challenging the police, the legislators should be commended, this is the way we fought in the human rights community against the military dictatorship, we cannot allow a civilian dictatorship to come into place, so we commend the speaker and members of the House of Representatives who scaled the fence to enter into the National Assembly and sat to bring this gross violation to a halt. It is courageous and brave action on the part of the National Assembly and we must commend these legislators for defending democracy in Nigeria. How would you look at the brewing lawlessness in the Ekiti House of Assembly where seven of the 26 member house sacked their speaker? Well, this is again some of the violations going, threatening our democracy. Certainly those members of the Ekiti state House of Assembly, who attempted it, know that they are acting unconstitutionally. The authority at the federal level knows that what is going on in Ekiti is very unconstitutional and the PDP and the President need to bring their members into proper understanding of what the constitution says. We condemn what has happened in Ekiti and we said it should not be allowed to be sustained. If what you are saying is condemnable, what would be the role of the civil society in this scenario? Would your members troop to the street in protest as it was done in the past? Going out means that people are being sensitized to go out and take back their government, this government is desecrating governance the way it is going. It is going to be up to Nigerians to say enough is enough. I think we have gotten to a point where Nigerians will begin to preoccupy themselves with how they would retrieve the governance from people who have taken it at this time and desecrating the nascent democracy. What is your view on the councils’ autonomy? I think the teachers need to make their points in a better way, I think that their concern is on the security of their employment and the responsibility of local government to deliver. The autonomy of Local Government is important but when you have autonomy, you must also have sufficient guarantee where those government violates fiscal law and abuse resources, they should be CONTINUED ON PAGE 24

Law | News

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Gains of 2014 IBA Confab to Nigeria CONTINUED FROM LAST WEEK

Gbolahan Gbadamosi

s we know, football, the Olympic Games, motor racing, cricket and sumo wrestling have been all grappled with corruption scandals. The session which also had in attendance, President, Nigerian Table-Tennis Association(NTTA) Mr. Waheed Oshodi who is also Lagos State Commissioner for Youths, Sports and Social Development, Director General Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies(NIALS), Prof. Deji Adekunle, Mr.Babajide Ogundipe and Mr. Fubara Anga in attendance was kicked off with the presentation of two journalists of the London’s Sunday Times Insight crew, Jonathan Calvert and Heidi Blake. The two journalists had done extensive investigating reports on the allegation that the hosting rights given to Qatar of the Middle East in 2022 was marred with corruption. They had reported that the alleged arrow head of the scam was Mohamed Bin Hamman, the former President of the Asian Football Federation and a former FIFA executive committee member. After the report hit the world’s headline, Deputy Editor of the Sunday Times, Sarah Baxter in an interview with the CNN said that, “ Bit by bit, we have been unraveling and finally we hit the mother lode. We have seen millions of documents that prove without a shadow of doubt that corruption was involved. There is a clear evidence linking payments to people who have influence. What Hamman was doing was buying up who could have influence......”. Qatar 2022 Bid Committee, however distanced itself from the allegation and it strenuously denied any wrong doing or knowledge of any payments made on its behalf. To the committee, “ Mohamad bin Hamman played no official or unofficial role in Qatar’s 2022 Bid Committee. The right to host the tournament was won because it has the best bid and because it is time for Middle East to host its first World Cup”. During the voting pattern, FIFA President Sepp Blatter was reportedly voted for the United States which came second where a potential rival for presidency UEFA Chief, Michel Platini voted for Qatar. Sunday Times claimed to have seen millions of e-mails detailing payments and gifts of wrist watches to officials in the Carribean, African and the Pacific designed to secure support for the Qatar .Blatter in one of his strongest denial of the bribe scandal,Blatter accused the Sunday Times as racist. The speakers included Chairman, of the International Association of Athletics Federation(IAAF)Ethics Commission and member of Court of Arbitration for Sport,in London, Hon. Micheal Bellof QC, Board Member, Japan Sports Law Association,, Takuya Yamazaki and former member, FIFA Independence Governance Committee, James M. Klotz. At the end of the sessions, most of the speakers agreed that corruption was not only feasible in the game of football but other sports as some also agreed that FIFA ‘s Statute is more or less a club’s association

Alegeh

in Swiss constitution which ought not to be placed above nation state. The question that will continue to agitate the minds of football loving citizens is- Did the investigations conducted by the London’s Sunday Times was a revenge for the loss of bidding rights by the European countries? To me rightly or wrongly, corruption is an endemic malaise in not only in football but in all sports as a result of mega money involved. Rule of Law Symposium This is one of the most important segments of the conference . It usually come at the last day of the gathering since 2006 presented by the Rule of Law Group Action Group. In Prague 2005, the IBA Council passed a Rule of Law Resolution. It was followed by a rule of law initiative in 2006, The Rule of Law Action Group has been given the responsibility to provoke, urge and assist the IBA membership in supporting and promoting the rule of law. Following successful rule of law symposia in Chicago, Singapore, Buenos Aires, Madrid, Vancouver, Dubai and Boston this year’s was not different. The theme for this year is Freedom of Expression and Independence of the judiciary. Award of the IBA Human Rights Award kicks off the symposium. Two Nigerians, late Chief Gani Fawehinmi(SAN) and Femi Falana(SAN) were among the previous winner. A Bangladeshi lawyer Adilur Rahman Khan won it this year. Khan is an advocate of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh and founder and Secretary of Bangladeshi human rights organisation Odikhar. Conferred with the title for his outstanding contribution to human rights, the award was presented to Mr Khan by Reynolds. Throughout his legal career, Mr Khan has campaigned tirelessly against torture, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, and violence against women and minority communities. On 10 October 1994, he founded the human rights organisation Odhikar, which has undertaken extensive fact-finding and reporting of human rights violations in Bangladesh. As a result of this work, Mr Khan and his family have endured harassment and persecution by the authorities. TO BE CONTINUED

‘INEC must accommodate displaced people for 2015 elections’ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 23

brought to account for it and I think that is what the teachers should look into. How do they get the local government to respond to the needs of the citizens? We do have a present situation where even states are not paying teachers’ salary. If they say that local government will not pay teachers salary, then it is a question of who has the responsibility to pay teachers salary. The way teachers are going is not good enough. We want to see an autonomous system that makes local government independent. But I agree with the teachers that the local government should be made accountable. This should be the basis of what the teachers should be talking about. What are your expec-

Nwankwo

tations from the new Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mahmud Mohammed? The CJN needs to enforce a code of conduct among the judges. Some judges are very partisan and politically motivated in the way they handle cases. Some judges have gained the reputation of being an instrument in the hands of politi-

cians and government in power. The CJN has to work out a mechanism of ensuring that judges who have gained those reputations are kept out of our democracy. They should be kept in areas where they will really be insulated for taking partisan political decision in cases they should consider dispassionately.

Lawyer canvasses ADR at LCA

Participants at the event.

eading lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mr. Charles CandideJohnson has urged lawyers to develop appropriate alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms to cater for investors and their businesses. Speaking on a topic entitled “Contracts are forever” at the maiden Lagos Court of Arbitration (LCA) Day held in Lagos, the Senior Advocate tasked investors to always prepare for disputes that may arise in the course of their business activities as such business environment required competent individuals and institutions such as the LCA, with requisite knowledge and facilities to ensure fast and efficient resolution of disputes while preserving business relation-

ships. This, according to Candide-Johnson would create value for ‘players’ in the nation’s economic development. Also LCA pioneer president, Babajide Ogundipe who stood in for the incumbent president, Mr. Olasupo Shasore (SAN) gave an overview of LCA’s activities for 2012 and 2013 period, urging members to commit afresh to LCA’s vision of becoming the preferred arbitral/ADR centre in Africa. This was followed by a presentation of the audited accounts for the two years. Speaking earlier, Ms. Megha Joshi, LCA Executive Secretary/ CEO, said the Annual General Meeting was in fulfillment of the LCA Law 2009, adding that the “LCA Day” was however designed

to “provide an interactive platform where the LCA and ADR can be discussed effectively.” Besides, the event which witnessed the launch of the inaugural LCA Dispute Resolution Journal (DRJ) devoted to promoting effective ADR practice, was sponsored by Ajumogobia & Okeke, KIA Motors and Epe Resorts & Spa. Although it was established as a public sector initiative through the Lagos Court of Arbitration Law 2009, the LCA is in practice as a private sector driven independent institution. The LCA currently has 150 members comprising lawyers, arbitrators, mediators, experts, academics, entrepreneurs, law firms, commercial and trading organizations.

Law

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

LEGAL FIREWORKS Lawyers lock horns over power to prosecute Coca-Cola on alleged criminal breach of statutes Tunde Oyesina ABUJA

former Justice Minister and Attorney-General of the federation, Chief Bayo Ojo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, will on December 18 know whether he has the fiat of the AttorneyGeneral of the federation to prosecute giant Beverages company, Coca-Cola Nigeria and its directors over an alleged violation of the Consumers Protection Council ACT(CPC). A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja which

Court to determine ex-AGF’s fiat in Coca-Cola, others’ suit December 18 fixed December 18 to determine Ojo’s claimed fiat in the suit, has ordered the appearance of top officers of the giant Beverages company to appear before the court. Justice Evoh Chukwu specifically ordered CocaCola’s managing director, Mr. Adeola Adetunji and the Nigerian Bottling Company’s (NBC) chief executive, Ben Langat to appear before him as a prima facie case has been established against them especially since they had been put on notice with relevant processes served on them. The Attorney-General’s office had instituted

two separate criminal suits against Coca-Cola, its Chief Executive and the NBC alongside its Chief Executives over alleged violation of CPC Act. The accused persons are however, challenging the fiat given to Ojo by the Attorney-General of the Federation to prosecute them for alleged violation of the Consumers Protection Council Act. They are also challenging the competence of the charge and the jurisdiction of the court to entertain the charge. At the resumed hearing, lawyers’ to the accused persons , G. Elias,

SAN and O. Opesanya SAN were about to move their application objecting to the suit when the prosecution counsel, informed the court that the accused persons were not present in court. The trial judge however insisted that the accused persons must appear in court before he would hear any objections. Justice Chukwu said that since his order to serve court process on the accused persons by pasting the charges in front of their offices had been carried out, the accused persons must appear. The judge said that the

accused persons would not enter the dock when they appear, he nevertheless said that since the order was served on them the only way to show respect to the court was to appear. Lawyers to the accused persons contended that the accused persons needed not to be in court since they were challenging the fiat to prosecute the case and the competence of the charge. But the prosecution counsel, Ojo told the court that criminal trial could not commence without the presence of the accused persons. He also reminded the

‘Col. Umar’s nine-point proposal panacea for insurgency’ CO NTINUED FROM PAG E 22

are endangering the democratic traditions and that should worry all of us. On President Goodluck Jonathan’s request for an extension of the emergency rule in the troubled northeast, the university teacher said “I will like to proceed by saying that the crisis that we are faced with today in our country is one of survival”. He went on: “It is a very serious issue and we are dealing with not just conflict, crisis or war but we are dealing with terrorism. Terrorism, the kind of what we are facing today is not a local, Jonathan, PDP or APC problem but an international problem of international character which is capable of consuming all of us if we are not pro-active and careful. I said this in order to let you know the magnitude of the problem confronting us. In dealing with a problem of such an international character, we need to put all options on the table because the crisis itself is multi-dimensional. There is a little bit of politics, religion, deceit, sabotage, ideology and fundamentalism involved. Any solution that you want to proffer must be multi-dimensional in approach. You must be ready to dialogue where necessary, you must be ready to embrace ceasefire where necessary and you must be ready to apply force where necessary. You must also be ready to impose a state of emergency where necessary. So, all of these options that have been taking in the past by government can be said to be actions in the right direction. But, when you deploy a particular strategy in solving the problem, you need to also take

a feedback on how effective the strategy has been by examining both the success and failure factors of the strategy. In doing that, you must have an open mind. So, if I am to use this analysis to answer your question, I would say we have had emergency rule in these states for two terms, has it put an end to the insurgency? There are people who had claimed with sufficient justifications that terrorism has been on a high despite the emergency rule in those states because during emergency rule, people’s rights are suspended, the rule of law is kept in abeyance, democratic institutions have limited role to play, movements are restricted. But, you cannot also restrict the movements of the insurgents because they are not bound by any proclamation. “So, people have painted a scenario where the insurgents move freely at night and odd hours while civilians’ movement is restricted. In the process, a lot of lives have been lost, properties destroyed and a lot of people displaced from their homes and they are now saying what has happened that if we are to grant an extension, we need to know what has happened in the previous ones we have granted. Is it because our security forces are overwhelmed? We need to know. Is it a problem that can be placed at the doorstep of lack of funding? We need to know. We also need to know whether emergency rule has been successful or what we need is a total declaration of war. I am aware that the President of Nigeria has enormous powers, which includes deployment of troops to any part of the country or a declaration of war where the sovereignty of the country is

Shittu

Extension of emergency rule ought not to be automatic. It has to be exercised in the national interest having regards to the indices of performance during the last extension

threatened. All these do not depend on the proclamation of the emergency rule. May be, we have also come to terms with the option of a ceasefire. You saw how the Nigerian government was deceived and how insurgency has been on the rise despite the ceasefire. We have also toyed with the option of declaration of emergency and we saw the kind of successes and failures that we have recorded. May be, it is a time to explore the option of a total declaration of war while those who are staying in those areas are relocated in a massive programme of relocation to some other areas of the country. Yes. That area is in crisis. You need to go to the northeast and see the extent of destruction and magnitude of dislocation of fellow Nigerians that are taking place there. The place is under siege and we need to protect the civilian population and those who are carrying on with their businesses lawfully there so that we can minimise the casualties of war. Perhaps, it is now the time for an intervention fund from the government. We all recollect when some banks were in crisis, Federal Government pumped in some money to resuscitate those banks. So, we also need to resuscitate those areas through

court that the order to paste the charges on the front wall of the accused offices had been complied with and that the accused ought to be in court. Moving his application on behalf of NBC and its chief executive, Opesanya prayed the court to disqualify Ojo from prosecuting the matter on the grounds that he remains the lead lawyer to CPC in a matter pending before a Lagos High Court where NBC is seeking a judicial review of CPC’s decision on the subject matter. However, Justice Chukwu adjourned the matter to December 18 for ruling.

an intervention fund. But, such funds should be adequately monitored because we are in a society where what was requested for is not what was approved, what is approved may not be what was released and what was released may not be what was expended. So, we need to ensure that funds that are appropriated for security purposes are monitored. Again, we need to also go back to the 9-point suggestions of former Kaduna State Governor, Col. Umar. This suggestion includes the need for us to recall our serving military officers who are on the reserve list and the need to be united in fighting this war. The 9-point suggestions should be looked into very seriously. His suggestion also included suspension of national celebrations and the recall of military and security personnel on nonessential duties. So, extension of emergency rule ought not to be automatic. It has to be exercised in the national interest having regards to the indices of performance during the last extension. I am not in support of an extension until we have a breakdown of what has happened in the past. I am perhaps more comfortable with the deployment of troops by the President and declare a full state war on these terrorists before we were all exterminated. However, Shittu is heaping blames on the political class especially on the impeachment plot against President Jonathan, insisting that the survival of the nation’s fledgling democracy depended on them. He said: “Well, I have said before that the success or failures of this political dispensation will also be dependent on the actions or omissions of the political elite. At all times when they act, expectations are that their acts will reflect the overall national interests and not personal interests. I also want to add that the current political actors whether at the Executive or Legislative levels are engrossed in politics of survival and vested interest. Whether or not these interests are in the national interest is debatable.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY DECEMBER 11, 2014

Health News

Healthy Living

Health Interview

Nature Power

Research: Trials on brain function may yield cure for degenerative diseases

Fungal infections spread through contact with infected persons (1)

‘We need support to treat children with hole in the heart’

Health benefits of bitter leaf (1)

Health

Walking improves heart’s health Appolonia Adeyemi

or lovers of exercise and those who had never ventured into it, stories that exercise improves general health are not new. Most people hear it all the time but when it comes to putting the idea into practice, many are more interested to justify why they cannot create time to exercise. While it may be true that structured exercise could task those who do it and that sometimes, doing routine exercise could run into huge ventures especially when it involves buying fancy equipment or joining an expensive health club, medical experts said regular walk can give the heart the workout it needs. According to the American Heart Foundation, regular walking can help reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. Similarly, it can also reduce risk of stroke, diabetes, obesity and osteoporosis (thinning of the bones). Alternatively, physical inactivity is a major health risk and is one of the main causes of death and disability, especially in developed countries. Over one in every five cases of coronary heart disease in developed counties is due to physical inactivity. To achieve a healthy heart living, a Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Bode Falase advocated that Nigerians should do regular exercise to control their weight. Explaining why individuals must help themselves with regular walk or brisk walk, the surgeon said, “There is an epidemic of heart disease in Nigeria. Before, our major problems were ailments like malaria, tuberculosis (TB), typhoid, all of which

Appolonia Adeyemi appolonia.adeyemi@newtelegraphonline.com

are called communicable diseases but now, more and more a lot of heart diseases are acquired from lifestyle and diet. “Our lifestyle and diet have changed in the last 10 to 20- years. So, we are now more at risk of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). “Two to three problems that drive heart diseases are diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol and overweight. More and more, we see these conditions increase in our population and as these conditions increase, heart disease, too increase.” However, with regular exercise which includes walking, one can easily control excess weight which is a risk factor to heart health. According to medical experts, walking can increase the heart rate, strengthens the heart and increases blood circulation through the body, bringing more oxygen and nutrients to other organs of the body.

Our lifestyle and diet have changed in the last 10 to 20years. So, we are now more at risk of noncommunicable diseases

Other benefits of walking

•Feel better and look good •increase energy levels •Sleep well •Save money •Enjoy the environment •Increase confidence and self esteem •Reduce stress levels •Manage weight A couple on a walk. INSET: A healthy heart

Walk action plan • Moderate intensity physical activity means working hard enough to make you breathe more heavily than normal and become slightly warmer but not so hard that you are unable to talk and exercise and the same time, or that you become exhausted. • Brisk walking is a good example of moderate-intensity activity that gives the heart the workout it needs. • Getting a 30-minute may not be easy but with the commitment to achieve that healthy living, it can be created. • Also, if the 30 minutes a day sounds a lot, it can be split into two bouts of 15 minutes or three bouts of 10 minutes. Those who are not used to walking can start slowly and build up gradually. Source WebMD

PHOTO: www.epa.gov

‘Nigeria accounts for 40% of world’s fistula’ Obinna Odoh Abuja

he Federal Government has revealed that Nigeria accounts for 40 percent of the global fistula prevalence, saying as part of measures in curtailing the scourge will renew commitment in fighting the scourge of Vesico Vaginal Fistulae disease (VVF) in Nigeria through a series of preventive and treatment initiatives. The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Millennium Development Goals, MDGs. Dr. Precious Gbeneol disclosed this during the private premiere and partners screening of the movie “Dry” produced by popular actress, Stephanie Okereke

Linus, which took place at the Aberystwyth Arts Centre, in Wales, UK over the weekend. The film was produced as part of efforts to increase awareness about VVF. In a statement issued in Abuja on Friday, Head, Information and Communications, OSSAP-MDGs, Dr. Christopher Otabor, quoted Gbeneol as saying that the renewed effort was aimed at reversing the number of cases of VVF in the country in line with the directive of President Goodluck Jonathan and that a new vista of prevention and control be embarked upon to complement current efforts by government to tackle the disease. “Although efforts have always been made by government

over time, the scourge has however continued to rise thereby necessitating the renewed effort, which also takes into consideration concerted sensitization and advocacy at the grassroots using powerful mainstream media such as Nollywood watched across millions of homes in Nigeria,” stated Gbeneol. Dr. Gbeneol further added that OSSAP-MDGS had previously, in conjunction with the federal and state ministries of health, faith based organisations, International Development partners and other stakeholders provided funding mainly aimed at funding VVF repairs. She said the effort resulted CONTINUED ON PAGE 28

Health News

THURSDAY DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Research: Trials on brain function may yield cure for degenerative diseases Steve Uzoechi OWERRI

igerian scientist and researcher, Dr. Philip Njemanze has stated that the Phase - 1 Trials on the Light Theory as postulated by him in 2010 may reveal a more effective way of combating degenerative diseases. Njemanze, who is the Chairman, International Institute of Advanced Research and Training, Owerri, would be leading six other German scientists in the Phase 1 trials of the Light Theory, as funded by the German Government. Njemanze who spoke exclusively to NT HEALTH before leaving for Germany for the one month trial noted that the success of the

ongoing Phase - 1 Trials which is funded by the German Government, will help researchers determine which group of patients can best benefit from the breakthrough and would, to a large extent change the course of medical science in the near future. He regretted that Nigeria still has no real structural organisation to sponsor independent research in the country. He called for the establishment of Nigerian National Science Foundation and the Nigerian National Institute of Health, as well as the sponsorship of research in physical, biological sciences and health. The Light Theory on brain function further indicates that a woman’s brain is actually

designed to complement a man’s brain by design and functions. According to Njemanze, in men the right brain is dominant for human intelligence, colour processing, facial processing and other higher cognitive functions while in women; the left brain is dominant for the same type of functions. He said: “Brain function is determined by the way light acts on the brain in men and in women. This is very important as it shows men and women are not the same in brain function. They are totally different but complementary. This does not suggest in any way that men are more intelligent than women or that women are more intelligent than men.”

L-R: Actress Stephanie Okereke Linus; Vice Chancellor, Aberystwyth University, Prof. April McMahon; Senior Special Adviser to the President on Millennium Development Goals (MDG), Dr. Precious Gbeneol; and Ghanaian High Commissioner to the UK, Victor Emmanuel Smith, during the premiere of the movie, ‘Dry’ in Wales, UK...recently

Nigeria and high fistula burden CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27

in increase in the number of VVF repair centres from 10 to 13 while also deliberately focussing at bridging the human resources gaps that exists. “We have thus ensured that new VVF surgeons and other allied health workers are trained to address the dearth of qualified personnel in this field. One such intervention is the direct investment of about a million dollars in the training of 41 doctors and 44 nurses with the simultaneous repairs of 308 fistulae in a center in Katsina in the North West and another 172 VVFs in Abakaliki, South East Nigeria. “These and other interventions from many stakeholders appear to merely address a small portion of the problem necessitating the need for a paradigm shift in tackling the VVF problem in Nigeria. We have thus developed

the National Strategic Framework for the Elimination of Obstetric Fistulae in Nigeria with focus on prevention as a basic tenet of this approach. You can find a copy of this document online. As the common aphorism goes, prevention is better and indeed cheaper than cure,” Otabor quoted Gbeneol as saying. It is estimated that Nigeria accounts for 40 percent of the worldwide fistula prevalence. A recent prevalence study of obstetric fistula was estimated as 150,000. Other previous estimates put the prevalence between 400,000 and 800,000. The prevalence of fistulae is higher in the North and continues to be fuelled by the stigma attached to the condition in this region. There have been no large scale prospective studies done in Nigeria to provide reliable estimates of the incidence of obstet-

ric fistula, but one projection puts the incidence at approximately 20,000 new cases a year although some recent small scale studies state lower estimates of approximately 12,000 new cases per year. The occurrence of VVF in Nigeria continues to be perpetuated by a combination of interrelated factors prominent among which is early childbirth, resulting from early marriages. The typical obstetric fistula patient in Nigeria is best described as young, married at an early age, illiterate, poor, rural, and lacking access to ante-natal care. The 2013 National Demographic Health Survey revealed that half of women aged 25-49 were married by age 18 and 61 per cent were married by age 20. The median age at first marriage is 18.1 years. Women in urban areas marry four years later than rural women.

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

Ring Worm on the beards

Head ring worm

Athlete’s foot

Jock itch PHOTOS: Academy of Family Physicians

Fungal infections spread through contact with infected persons (1)

inea also known as fungal infections, is the name of a group of diseases caused by fungus. They are superficial fungal infections which are among the most common skin diseases. They can occur in both healthy and unhealthy persons. Types of tinea include ringworm foot and jock itch. They are classified according to the body site tinea capitis (scalp), tinea barbea (beard area) tinea corporis (body areas) tinea unguim (nails), and tinea cruris (groin area). Fungal infections occur through direct contact with infected persons, animals, soil or formites depending on their habitat. The general classification of tinea infection known as ‘Ringworm’, is a lesion with central clearing surrounded by red scaly areas, and they can be from mild scaly and red to severe inflammation with bacterial super-infection. Different presentations Tinea capitis (Head ringworm): This more common in children ages

four to 14 years and in lower class. It is spread by person to person contact. Sometimes, it is called ringworm of the scalp and may appear as black dots which are actually hair shafts broken off at the scalp. Some of the symptoms of head ringworm are severe itching. If it is not adequately treated, it can cause scarring and permanent hair loss. It should be treated with oral antifungal for at least 14 days. Similarly, topical creams are not very effective in its complete eradication. Tinea Barbae (beards) affects mostly men with beards that work with animals and it is sometimes accompanied by bacterial super-infection and ingrown hairs. It can also affect the mustache, eyelashes and eyebrows. It does not respond well to topical creams, but will need oral medications. Treatment can last for four to six weeks, but can in severe cases, take longer to treat. Tinea coporis (body/ skin ringworm) which is also called ringworm of

the body, affects mostly children and adults in hot humid climates, infected by exposure to contaminated soil, infected animals and people, in warn and moist environment (showers and pools) shared towels or clothing and presents as a circular plaque with a well differentiated border. Skin ring worm can be asymptomatic and can spread easily among children in day care and close settings. After treatment, the goal is to prevent reinfection and requires more than six weeks oral antifungal medication for complete eradication and it is the most difficult to treat.

It can be asymptomatic and can spread easily among children in day care and close settings.

Health Interview 29

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY DECEMBER 11, 2014

‘We need support to treat children with hole in the heart’ Dr. Bisi Adenle is Minnesota, USA-trained cardiologist and the Medical Director of Biket Medical Centre, Oshogbo, Osun State. In this interview with CHIJIOKE IREMEKA he discusses the challenges of surgical operation on children born with hole in the heart. Excerpts: Hole-in-heart has become a household name in Nigeria among young people. What has gone wrong? Hole in the heart is common in any population of the world. It is a structural defeat as a result of mal-development of walls that separate the chambers of the heart. We have it among American population as well in people in Europe, Asia and in African population. Unfortunately, it is now that we have the state-of-the-art equipment to detect these problems and that is why it appears as if it is becoming a household name. When we discover this problem, the only suggestion for the mothers and relatives of the patient is for them to close it up. Otherwise, the muscles of the heart will be overloaded. When the muscles are overloaded, it stretches beyond its elasticity and will malfunction. When one of the hearts is overloaded, especially the right, it pumps more blood in the lungs. The lungs will then, be flooded with water or fluid and the resultant effect is that air cannot move freely. The blood, which should have gone to the body properly, sometimes, from the left to the heart and to the body is denied that passage. As a result, the whole body becomes short of nutrients. We have two parts of the heart, the right and the left sides. The right carries all the blood that has gone through tissues of the body. In most cases, good things like oxygen have been taken away from them and it returns to the heart for purification. Carbon-dioxide is taken from the body in an exchange for oxygen and it passes through the left side of the heart to the body. However, when there is a hole in the heart, and the left hand is stronger, the blood is shunted from the left to the right and each shunted blood now over-floods the lungs. At this point, an unfortunate child is presented with cough and inability to breathe, among others. Initially, they might be misconstrued to be an ordinary cough but when it is frequent, parents of the affected child tries to see a doctor, and through a process of echo-cardiography, it will be detected. Without treatment, the child cannot survive adulthood. Sometimes, affected children will not even survive the first year or even their fifth birthday. Lack of centres Unfortunately, we don’t have enough centres in Nigeria where this condition could be treated. Most times, we send children with this condition to India. One must actually praise

some of these institutions that champion the surgical management of these problems. We have come on board because we do much investigation and management of the heart. Sometimes, when we see this problem, we feel impotent and not being able to offer solution. This is why we have invested in the surgical management of this problem. We invested money in this because to open the heart and close the hole is not an easy task. For you to do that the heart must not be beating and you must use a heart-lung machine. The exchange of gasses in the body will be taken over by the machine. It is like you killed the patient because you stop the heart and lungs. Their functions are taken over by a machine and now you are able to close the hole and once that is done, you recharge the heart with blood again, and it begins to pump. All these are simple ways of treating it but it is a very complex procedure, needing other equipment to support the work of a surgeon. It looks daunting, but with the cooperation of some of our colleagues at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ife-Ife, Osun State and the University of Ibadan, Oyo State. We are able to start. Do you have any form of financial assistance except the technical support you got from India and Israel for the mission? Now, what we have done was to borrow money from the bank at ridiculous interest rates to do these. We are still grappling with the interest on such loans. Apart from that, the hospital has invested money to support the mission and this is the reason we have recorded certain degree of success. But as you know, the consumables used in open heart surgery are extremely expensive, but if we are able to remove the cost of transportation for both the child and parent, it would go a long way in reducing the cost of treatment. Similarly we are trying to reduce the cost of treatment so that the surgery becomes possible within the environment of the patients. If you have to go to America, for instance, you will secure visa, transportation and all that. Though I am not saying that some cases will not be referred to India but it has to be more complex cases. We have to start somewhere to do the less complex cases so that we would have all the experiences to do more complex ones. We have also partnered with Kims Hospital in India. Apart from the technical help, we are still hoping to get some funds, which have to do with

Adenle

We are trying to reduce the cost of treatment so that the surgery becomes possible within the environment of the patients

buying of equipment or paying for the consumables. In the last two missions, there were quite a number of patients that were unable to pay. We have committed ourselves and patients admitted. Some said they were coming with the money but when they got to the hospital, we discovered that they were not able to pay. There was a case of a boy, who had only N20, 000, and you know that such is nothing in open heart surgery. Before we knew this, we had taken him to the theatre. We tried to take him back again but the surgeon said he was going to operate on him. Then we have donations from people around and still could not offset his bill. There are other cases that have not paid a dime but we operated upon them because they were already within the hospital. But certainly, we need help from philanthropists, governments, well-swishers, corporate organisations, religious groups, associations, social clubs and politicians among others because this project should mature to a stage where it would create jobs for doctors, paramedical like perfusionists,

nurses and lives will be saved. What kind of help do you intend to get? Well-wishers could come whenever this mission is on, identifying with and donating for the surgery of some of the patients that could not pay their bills. The governor of Osun State has done a number of that in some cases. He had paid for three patients out of cases in our records. And we are grateful to him. We have a number of patients that the government cannot continue to pay for. So, we need religious organisations, banks to help. In India, in one of the surgical homes, I was told that banks actually donated money to their organisation to ensure that unfortunate patients are treated. Banks, churches, politicians can do same here. This will give them their lives back. We have Biket Medical Heart Foundation, wired along this organisation but run on a different account in Oshogbo. We are on internet and websites. One can come to Oshogbo to see what we are doing. You cannot donate your heart as in the case of kidney, but you can donate your heart by paying to relieve an individual that is afflicted.

Coca Cola advocates zero stigma against PLWHA Shola Adefuwa

n order to contain HIV/ AIDS, Coca-cola Nigeria has announced plans to achieve zero HIV infection in the country. Also, the company is promoting a widespread campaign to tackle stigmatisation against People Living with HIV AIDS (PLWHA). The Director of Public Affair, Coco-Cola Nigeria, Mr. Clem Ugorji disclosed this during 2014 World AIDS Day programme organised by Coco-Cola Nigeria and Friends

Africa. In his remark, Ugorji said that HIV AIDS is not only an illness, it also imposes an economic challenge because the amount of money spent by government and individuals can be invested in other things. He further said that the public health advocacy campaign which debut two years ago is designed as build up activities to commemorate the annual world Aids day celebrated all over the world on December 1. “The company is commitment to contribute to sustainable health and wellbeing of communities through aware-

ness creation and prevention of dreaded diseases. According to PMTCT Local Person in Lagos, Dr. Lateefat Adeleye said that people need to take action to support the fight against HIV and Aids stigma and discrimination. Adeleye said that everyone understands that one can’t contract the disease by touching someone, so, there are a lot of awareness being created for people now to understand how they can take positive precaution without necessarily discriminating or stigmatising against those living with the disease.

Health News

THURSDAY DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Pharmacists seek labour’s intervention in workers’ strike Appolonia Adeyemi

L-R Dr. Esther Somefun of Action Health; Mr. Sidhartha Samal of Ranona Limited; Mrs. Ibironke Alabi of Human Resources (HR), Olam Nigeria; and a nurse from Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idiaraba, Lagos, Miss. Bridget Famakin at the Olam World AIDS Day campaign that took place at Ranona Limited, Isolo, Lagos State...recently

Over 2,000 benefit from HIV testing scheme I n order to check the incidence of HIV/AIDS in the country, staff members of Ranona Limited and Caraway Foods International & OK Foods Limited as well as the distributors and retailers of both companies are among the 2,000 people who received health education with special focus on HIV counseling and testing. The activities which held in two states - Lagos and Cross River States on December 1, were organised to mark the 2014 World AIDS Day with the theme, “Close the Gap’’ between people who have access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support ser-

vices and those who do not and in so doing end the AIDS epidemic by 2030. With over three million people estimated to be living with HIV in Nigeria, the goal of the activities was to increase awareness about HIV and AIDS among young people and adults, as well as promote a reduction in new infections in the country. In Lagos State, health education as well as HIV counseling and testing was held for distributors and retailers of Olam Packaged Food Business products; Ranona Limited, Caraway Foods International & OK Foods Limited in

Ojuwoye Market Mushin and residents of its surrounding communities. Staff were provided adequate information on the importance of knowing their status and practicing the ABC (Abstinence, Be faithful, Condom use) formula to a healthy sexual life. Information was also provided about ART (Antiretroviral Therapy) and confidential voluntary HIV Counseling and Testing by trained testers was made available. The AIDs awareness events in Lagos saw participation from more than 2200 people out of which about 400 were tested and counseled.

fter its review of the on-going nationwide strike of health workers under the auspices of the Joint Health Sector (JOHESU), pharmacists are calling for the intervention of the Organised Labour (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) with a view to compel government to address the demands of JOHESU. The pharmacists under the auspices of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) which made the call similarly condemned the lukewarm attitude of government which has manifested in its extremely slow response time to the strike. In a statement issued on Monday, President of PSN, Olumide Akintayo also urged government to show seriousness in releasing appropriate circulars in respect of the key elements in the negotiation process as a basic minimum to bring stakeholders in JOHESU back to the negotiation table in both the professional and public interest. While sympathising with consumers of

health who are groaning especially in scenarios where they cannot afford the option of accessing services in the private sector, Akintayo noted that, “Nigerian doctors who have always informed the public of their know all propensities since they have been trained in all aspects of the “health professions” have failed woefully to sustain services, adding that in all instances, new patients are not attended to and all in-patients including those critically ill (like spinal cord injury patients) were discharged. He listed priority areas of JOHESU’s demand to include authorising consultancy status for all health professionals; the immediate payment of arrears of specialist allowances to qualified hospital based health professionals with effect from January 1, 2010; the release of a circular on residency programmes for all health professionals in Nigeria; and the immediate and full payment of arrears of the skipping of CONHESS 10 which remains outstanding since the year 2010, among others.

Health benefits of bitter leaf (1)

verybody seems to know it. It grows everywhere. Bitter-leaf, vernoniaamydalina, is a very homely plant. Wherever it grows, it flourishes. Evergreen. The Igbos call it ‘Onugbu’. The Yorubas call it ‘Ewuro’. The Hausas call it ‘Shiwaka’. Perhaps the most distinctive part of the bitter-leaf plant is its bitterness. Every part of the plant is bitter: the leaves, stems, root and bark. The Igbos of Eastern Nigeria use the bitter-leaf mostly as a vegetable, while the Yorubas use it more as a medicine. Bitter-leaf is popular among the old people for its bitterness. But the young people of today do not like the bitterness of the bitter-leaf. They would rather prefer biscuits, ice cream, chocolate and other sugary products. Their philosophy is ‘Life is sweet, therefore, food must be sweet’. The fact is that bitter herbs are good for the body. On the existential level, they remind us that life is not always sweet; that life is not ‘a bed of roses’; that both sweetness and bitterness are essential parts of life and so are not opposed. Bitter herbs help to tone the vital organs of the body, especially the liver and kidneys. The liver is the largest organ of the body. It weights between one to

Nature Power Fr. Anselm Adodo, OSB

naturepower@paxherbals.net; twitter: @anselmadodo three kilogrammes in adult. Its major functions are (a) secretion of bile and (b) formation of glycogen. The liver is essential in the metabolism of fats and protein; it must therefore be well taken care of. Once the liver has any defect, it is hard to correct. Every effort must be made therefore to keep the liver in good condition. Alcohol, sugar and processed or refined foods can weaken the liver and make it susceptible to infections. The kidney is another important organ in the body. The kidney is the organ that helps to expel waste materials from the body. It secretes urine that flows into the urethras. If the kidney breaks down, there will be a general disorder in the body. Bitter leaf is very useful in the care of the kidney and the liver. It is for this reason that we refer to bitter leaf as a cure-all. If the kidney and liver are healthy, the whole system will function well. The bitter-leaf plant contains Vernodalin, Venomygdin and Saponin. Bitter leaves should always be taken fresh. Boiling

or cooking reduces the potency of most herbs. The Igbo people of Eastern Nigerian eat a lot of bitter leaf. But they often squeeze out the bitterness from the leaves before eating it. What is left then, is mere chaff, with little or no medicinal value. Always remember that raw vegetables are better than cooked ones. And half-cooked vegetables are better than over- cooked ones. Bitter-leaf, like other plants, is a sacred plant. Therefore, respect it and pray over the plant before you cut it. We need to cultivate an attitude of reverence for God’s creatures so that we can be in harmony with them. I have heard from some unconfirmed sources that drinking bitter-leaf water is not safe. Such rumours are what they are: rumours and nothing more, with no scientific basis. For centuries, bitter-leaf has been a source of health and vitality to our ancestors, and its medicinal values are well-documented. In our chemical and fertilizer age, it is indeed difficult to find fruits and herbs in their natural state

Bitter leaves

as majority of them have been polluted with fertilizer chemicals. In that case, the emphasis should be in the promotion of organic farming, and gardening, not on spurious rumour claims that bitter-leaf is unsafe. The following are some of the many uses of bitter leaf. 1. Stomach-ache Chew the tender stem of the plant like a chewing stick and swallow the bitterness. This is a well-known remedy for stomachaches. In some cases the ache stops within a few minutes. An alternative is to pound the fresh leaves in a mortar and press out the juice. Add a pinch of salt to three tablespoons of the undiluted juice and drink. This brings immediate relief.

PHOTO www.nigerianfoodtv.com

Bitter leaf is very useful in the care of the kidney and the liver. It is for this reason that we refer to bitter leaf as a cure-all, for if the kidney and liver are healthy, the whole system will function well.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

ICT

Industry

Brands

How not to brand a nation – Expert

‘NITEL/M-TEL sale will deepen competition’

Korea imports $2bn goods from Nigeria

Business What's news

Nigeria spends N567.7bn on wheat Plans by government to end importation of wheat by 2016 may hit the rocks as the demand for the commodity is on the increase.

Telcos need N1.4trn to combat towers deficit –Investigation OUTSOURCING Cost of capital expenditure can be reduced through infrastructure-sharing business model

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Global adspend to reach $545bn in 2015 Global advert spending is expected to grow by 4.9 per cent to reach $545 billion in 2015, down from 5.3 per cent in September and by six per cent in 2016, according to ZenithOptimedia.

p.32

The Business Desk Ayodele Aminu

Deputy Editor (Business)

Bayo Akomolafe

Asst. Editor (Maritime)

Sunday Ojeme

Asst. Editor (Insurance)

Godson Ikoro

Asst. Editor (Money Market)

Dele Alao

Industry & Agric Editor

Dayo Ayeyemi Property Editor

Adeola Yusuf Energy Editor

Wole Shadare Aviation Editor

Chris Ugwu

Capital Market Editor

would need about N1.4 trillion investment. “The average cost of building a base station in Nigeria is around $250,000 (about N42.5 million),” said Chief executive Officer, Etisalat Nigeria, Mr Mathew Willsher. This translates into an es-

timated investment of N1.4 trillion to build 33,000 towers required by the operators, according to findings. With the cost of capital expenditure (CAPEX) growing, telecoms operators have recently chosen to outsource their existing infrastructure,

particularly, telecoms towers, to specialist organisation to manage for them, while collocating on other existing infrastructure built and owned by the infrastructure management such as IHS, Helios TowCONTINUED ON PAGE 32

Kunle Azeez

elecoms operators in Nigeria will need an estimated N1.4 trillion investment to address the infrastructure deficit currently plaguing service delivery in the country, investigations have revealed. Findings by New Telegraph show that operators still have a deficit of 33,000 telecoms towers to be able to address service delivery issue. Over 350,000 towers are required by Nigeria and other African countries to be able to meet increasing service demand by their growing consumers. “Nigeria’s telecoms operators, put together, need over 60,000 functional towers to be able to deliver top-notched services to their growing subscribers,” Chief Executive Officer, Internet Solutions Limited, Mr Olusola Teniola, told New Telegraph in an interview. Information gathered from the Ministry of Communication Technology also shows that operators currently have combined towers of about 27,000, thereby creating a deficit of 33,000 units to be invested in by the networks. It was, however, gathered that to build robust telecoms networks that can effectively provide seamless services to the over 134.5 million subscribers in the country, operators

L-R: Assistant Manager, National Lottery Regulatory Commission, Mr Seun Atte; Opeoluwa Olubola of the Retail Banking Department, Sterling Bank Plc, her counterpart, Mr Gbenga Adegoke and Planning Research and Statisitics Officer, Consumer Protection Council, Mrs Nwosu Esther, at the Sterling Bank GUNNERS PROMO Draw, in Lagos.

Sunday Ojeme

espite fluctuations in the fortunes of some other sectors of the economy, the growing pension assets under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) has risen by about N160 billion between June and October, this year. FBN Capital, in a report made available to New Telegraph, noted that the pension assets has remained stable in

Pension assets rise by N160bn in four months the last 10 years since the Pension Reform Acts commenced. Specifically, total assets under the scheme being managed by the Pension Fund Administrators, rose by N160 billion ($876.4 million) from end of

June to October, 2014. The report noted: “The pension funds, which stood at N4.41 trillion in June, rose to N4.45 trillion in July. AccordCONTINUED ON PAGE 32

Abdulwahab Isa Finance Editor

Kunle Azeez

Senior Correspondent

Chuks Onuanyin Energy

Nnamdi Amadi Reporter

Johnson Adebayo

Asst Production Editor

Rates Dashboard INFLATION RATE October 2014............................8.1% September 2014.....................8.3% August 2014............................8.5%

LENDING RATE InterBank Rate....................12.57% Prime Lending Rate...........17.93% Maximum Lending Rate...26.83%

EXCHANGE RATE

(Parellel As at Dec. 5)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N188 Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N291 Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N229.50

l Foreign Reserves – $36.44bn as at 5/12/2014

Source: CBN

EXCHANGE RATE (Official As at Dec. 5)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N169 Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N264.50 Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N208.49

Business | News

DEPLETION

Nigeria is still the largest wheat importer in subSaharan Africa

Bayo Akomolafe

lans by government to end importation of wheat by 2016 may hit the rocks as the

Nigeria spends N567.7bn on wheat in three years demand for the commodity is on the increase. Within the last three years (2011 to 2014), Nigeria imported 13,440,000 metric tons. Given that the current price of the commodity is $264 per metric ton, Nigeria im-

Pension assets rise by N160bn CO NTINUED FROM PAG E 3 1

ing to PenCom’s records, workers contributing to the Retirement Savings Account rose from 5.9 million at the end of 2013.” The funds have mainly been invested in shares and government bonds. However, the new law has given a leeway to explore new areas where the growing contributions, which are likely to triple from next year with the accommodation of employers with three workers, can be invested. Since the new scheme came on board, one of the biggest fears haboured by contributors and observers has been the issue of safety, considering the high level of corruption that marred the noncontribution scheme. However, the regulator, the National Pension Commission (Pen), has been equal to the task in assuring Nigerians that the law setting up the scheme provided enough guidelines to ensure the safety of the funds. To ensure the preservation of pension fund assets, the scheme is managed by licensed Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) whose functions are clearly

delineated from the custody of the pension fund assets provided by licensed Pension Fund Custodians (PFCs). In one of its earlier reports, the commission said it was instructive to note that the issue of threat to pension assets should not arise under the Contributory Pension Scheme because separate licensed operators, the PFAs and PFCs, under the strict supervision of the Commission, respectively undertook the management and custody of pension assets. In the same vein, the Managing Director of Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers Limited, Demola Sogunle, said that the nation’s pension industry now stood on a stronger foundation, providing safety for the over N4.4 trillion pension assets under management. Sogunle described as erroneous the impression that pension funds were left to PFAs, employers, individuals or operators to handle as they wished. He pointed out that pension fund assets were held by PFCs who execute benefit payments and investment instructions from the PFAs and were duly licensed by PenCom.

Telcos need N1.4trn to combat towers deficit CONTINUED FROM PAG E 3 1

ers, among others. In recent past, operators such as MTN, Airtel and Etisalat have sold some of their towers to IHS, in particular and leased them back as part of measures to reduce CAPEX. “Operators are also making CAPEX investments in solar energy and hybrid solutions, which have brought in a 25 per cent reduction on diesel consumption along with reduced carbon emission, thereby making their operations eco-friendly,” said Minister of Communication Technology, Dr. Omobola Johnson. IHS, which operates

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

in Nigeria, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Rwanda and Zambia, currently manages over 21,000 towers with 14,500 of them in Nigeria. The recent 9,151 mobile towers deal with MTN in Nigeria positions IHS as one of the top 10 telecoms infrastructure managers in the world. This year, IHS successfully raised $2.6 billion in debt and equity, bringing the total capital raised by IHS since 2012 to $4.5 billion. “IHS anticipates adding 2,000 towers yearly to further Nigerian National Broadband Plan 2013 – 2018 targets of the Federal Government,” said the minister.

ported N567.7 billion ($3.55 billion) worth of wheat within the period. In 2012, the country imported 4,140,000 metric tons; 2013, 4,550,000 metric tons, an increase of 9.90 per cent from the previous year. In 2014, 4,750,000 metric tons was imported between January and November. This week, the Apapa Bulk Terminal Limited at the Lagos Port Com-

plex will take delivery of 136,534 metric tons of the commodity from four vessels. Already, MT Desert Victory has been moored to discharge 44,000 metric tons. Also positioned to berth this week are MT Desert Eagle with 26,000 metric tons; MT Desert Unity, 35,034 metric tons and MT Desert Calm, 31,500. Also, a vessel, MT Desert Spring, is be-

ing expected before the end of the months with 36,400 metric tons of the commodity. It was learnt that Nigeria imports around $2 million wheat every day despite the measures introduced by government to encourage local production and deter importation. These measures are increased in wheat imports duty from five per cent to 20 per cent, 65

per cent levy on wheat flour imports, and increase in duty from 35 per cent to 100 per cent. A recent study by the Agrictrade revealed that Nigeria is still the largest wheat importer in sub-Saharan Africa. Annual consumption rate in the country has jumped from one million metric tons in the 1980s to over four million metric tons per year in 2014. Likewise, the Lake Chad Research Institute has noted that Nigeria’s annual production of wheat was 50,000 tons, contrasting with the soaring imports of about N635 billion annually.

L-R: Director, Livestock Feeds (LSF) Plc, Mr Godwin Samuel; Managing Director, Mrs Modupe Asanmo; Director, Mr Joe Dada; Director, Mrs Omolara Elemide and Special Projects Manager, UAC Plc, Mr Mukhtar Yakasai, at the launch of LSF Aquamax Fish Feed, in Lagos. PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

MOBILE AD

Mobile ad spend is forecast to account for 51 per cent of all new advertising dollars between 2014 and 2017 Dele Alao

lobal advert spending is expected to grow by 4.9 per cent to reach $545 billion in 2015, down from 5.3 per cent in September and by six per cent in 2016, according to ZenithOptimedia. The ZenithOptimedia Advertising Expenditure Forecasts also predicts this growth will be fuelled by the rise in mobile advertising, social media and digital display moving towards programmatic buying. The report said its downward revision for 2015 “indicates a minor but widespread decline in advertiser confidence, related to conflict in Ukraine and weak economic

Global adspend to reach $545bn in 2015 growth at the heart of the Eurozone.” ZenithOptimedia forecasts UK adspend will grow by six per cent in 2015. Even though the global economy is expected to improve next year, the forecast growth is slightly below 2014’s 5.1 per cent. This is partly due to the absence of big events such as this year’s Winter Olympics, the World Cup and US mid-term elections. Global events in 2016, including the Summer Olympics, the US presidential elections and the UEFA European Football Championship, are expected to propel adspend to 5.6 per cent growth that year. Again, it will slip back to 5.2 per cent in 2017 in their absence. The report said that mobile is the main driver of

global adspend growth. It is forecast to account for 51 per cent of all new advertising dollars between 2014 and 2017 and will grow by an average of 38 per cent each year. This is driven by the spread of devices and innovations in ad technology. But mobile’s share of adspend remains behind its share of media consumption. It will only account for 6.2 per cent of all adspend in the US this year, while eMarketer estimates it will occupy 23.3 per cent of media consumption time. Facebook and Twitter, however, have restructured their operations for mobile consumption and advertising, and both are on track to capture 33 per cent of all mobile adspend in 2014. This is well above their 10 per cent share of all digital adspend.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Automobile supplier parks coming p.34

Industry

Germany seeks defined roles for NAFDAC, SON DEFINITE Agencies must be identified by their distinct functions Stories by Dele Alao

he German Development Corporation (GIZ) has called on the Federal Government to state clearly the roles of its agencies such as the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), among others. Head, Trade Policy and Facilitation of the corporation, Mr Alexander Werth, said that the corporation had been supporting the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, with a view to coming up with a modern trade policy and strategy for the country. Werth stated that the policy must define the roles and responsibilities of the agencies, including the Nigeria Customs Service. He explained that GIZ had a programme called “Sustainable Economic Development in Nigeria (SEDIN)” through

which it supports the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) in the country. Werth noted that the programme would run till 2017 in the bid to strengthen the capacity of the MSMEs for competitiveness. “We are also getting money from the European Union (EU) under the Strengthening Nigerian Trade Support Institutions (SNTSI) programme. “That programme is mostly funded by EU and implemented by GIZ-SEDIN based on similar objectives,” he said. He said “what the GIZ is trying to do in the ministry of trade is to build their capacity to be able to do better.” This requires training of staff and also helping the ministry’s trade department to become more efficient in the coordination of stakeholders’ meetings. “If you are a registered Nigerian company, with your products, you would be allowed to trade them within ECOWAS region without having to pay customs duties. “So, what we are trying to do is to increase the number of ECOWAS Trade Liberation Scheme (ETLS) registered companies in Nigeria,” he said.

Korea imports $2bn goods from Nigeria

orea’s Commercial Attache in Nigeria, Mr Bohyun Pyun, has said that the country imported goods worth over $2 billion dollars from Nigeria in the first nine months of this year. Pyun, who stated this during a courtesy visit to the Ibadan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), also said that his country exported goods worth over $800 million to the country during the same period. He said that many Korean companies were eager to explore and find trading and joint venture partners in various business lines in Nigeria. He said that despite the fact that the trade balance was in favour of Nigeria, Korea Business Center (KBC) will continue to play pivotal role in expanding trade relationship between the two countries. Pyun said the country has been in Nigeria since 1966, long before diplomatic relationship was established in 1980. He said that the chamber

was better positioned as a business partner and that it can do this by collaborating with Korean investors in the mining and agricultural produce because of the huge solid mineral deposits in the state. He said: “Our major export items to Nigeria are oil and gas plant and equipment; petrochemical products; automobile; electronics; machinery and medical or pharmaceuticals and textiles; and our major import products are natural gas and solid mineral.” President of the chamber, Prince Abimbola Makanjuola, said that business opportunities abound in Ibadan and with the on-going rehabilitation of Lagos-Ibadan expressway, many factories will begin to relocate to the city. He stated that the visit by the Korean officials will bring mutual benefits to both countries, saying that the forum is an opportunity for business partnership, links and contacts and business synergies that will promote direct foreign investment in the country.

Werth was optimistic that Nigeria would overcome dependency on oil to earn foreign exchange as it diversifies into industry and agribusiness. According to him, the new trade policy is trying to ensure that Nigeria moves away from oil to non-oil sectors.

“This dependency on oil revenue can be reduced by diversifying the Nigerian economy and I think this is what the trade policy is trying to do. To move away from oil to the non-oil sectors, to value added sectors, industry and agribusiness sector. You should not put

your eggs in one basket,” he said. He added: “If there are some negative impacts in one sector, you might be able to compensate this in another sector which might benefit now from a lower (devalued) naira.”

L-R: Consumer Lead for East and West Africa, Mr Olabanji Womiloju and Marketing and Public Relations Manager, West Africa. Mr. Adim Isiakpona, both of Intel Corporation, at a media parley to unveil “First Time Buyer Campaign” promo in Lagos.

‘Global manufacturing growth drops’ DISMAL The world records consistence falling in 2014

report by the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) said that world manufacturing has slowed down. It said that the overall growth of the manufacturing output of industrialised economies has fallen from 1.5 to 1.2 per cent in the second quarter of 2014. The manufacturing output of developing and emerging industrial economies increased by 6.9 per cent, lower than the 7.3 per cent increase seen during the second quarter. Overall, in 2014, the rate of growth of world manufacturing output has been consistently falling. The growth rates were 4.1 and 3.4 per cent for the first and the second quarters respectively. The major contribution to the global growth in the third quarter was made by China, the United States and ASEAN countries.

The manufacturing output of China rose by 9.1 per cent, Indonesia by 6.2 per cent, Malaysia by 5.3 per cent, the United States by 4.4 per cent and Vietnam by 7.6 per cent. However, manufacturing output dropped in key East Asian economies, namely Japan and the Republic of Korea. In India, manufacturing growth in the third quarter was also low, at less than 1.0 per cent, but the new inflation controls and the return of capital investment are creating better prospects. European economies registered a low growth of manufacturing output of 1.3 per cent. The manufacturing output of Italy fell by 1.1 per cent, whereas a nominal growth of 0.1 per cent and 1.0 per cent was observed in France and Germany respectively. Relatively low growth was observed in Belgium, the Netherlands and Spain. The manufacturing output of the Russian Federation rose by 1.8 per cent. “Falling oil prices and the spread of deflation across Europe indicate a

weak demand for manufacturing input as well as products, while on-going geopolitical tensions and reciprocal economic sanctions have adversely affected the business environment and consumer confidence across the continent,” the report said. It added: “The low growth of industrialised countries has had a negative knock-on effect on manufacturing production in emerging industrial economies. Their manufacturing output grew at a marginal rate of 0.1 per cent in the third quarter of 2014.” As for sector-wide perspectives, low growth was observed in the production of consumer goods across all industrialized countries. “Developing and emerging industrial economies performed well in machinery and equipment sectors, indicating a steady shift to high-tech industry among the countries in this group. Due to the decline in exports to industrialised market, the production of readymade garments slowed in several developing economies,” the report said.

Business | Industry

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Automobile supplier parks coming PROJECT Ministry, Japanese to recycle disused vehicles Dele Alao

fforts by the Federal Government to establish automobile supply parks have received a boost with the arrival of experts from Japan. Nigeria is seeking Japanese Government’s help in recycling huge and disused vehicular carcass scattered across the country. At a technical meeting between officials of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and In-

Firm trains youths on professional skills

ecare Limited, manufacturers of Natures Gentle Touch hair care product, has trained some students at its Hair Institute. Speaking about the development, Chief Executive Officer, Recare Limited, Mr Ramesh Hullur, stated that the institute’s nine months intensive training programme empowers students with theoretical and practical skills needed to establish financial sustenance in the beauty and personal care industry. “The Natures Gentle Touch Hair Institute was established to bridge the gap in hair care services in Nigeria. Our students are exposed to modern styling equipment and experts, who take them through courses in cosmetology, trichology and professional development,” he said. Also, Field Education Manager, Recare Limited, Mr Daniel Komlan, said: “The Institute was set up to redefine hair care services in the country. We realized that there were no professional trained hair stylists and as a result many women were suffering from different hair and scalp problems. We decided to formally train stylists and develop products to help solve these problems.” The Natures Gentle Touch Hair Institute provides student with the knowledge and skills to elevate the hair care services industry to international standards. Students graduating from the institute also have huge potentials to make impact in various other fields beyond the salon.

vestment and those of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) on the Development of Automobile Supplier Parks in Nigeria, Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Ambassador Abdulkadir Musa, said that the ratio of new and used cars in Nigeria is 5 to 95 per cent in favour of used cars. He said: “For each new car in Nigeria we have 20 used cars. It is a big market to recycle vehicle in this country,

which may serve as avenue for employment and skills acquisition as well as opportunity for manufacturers to replace used cars with new one.” Musa said that the intervention of government of Japan in the sector is welcome and fall within the present administration’s plan to develop the country’s auto industry sector. He added that the development of auto clusters in the country is achievable and the ministry is ready

to work with Japan to provide necessary support and information. The permanent secretary, who recalled that the Nigerian Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) and National Enterprise Development Programme (NEDEP) recently launched by government were meant to develop skills of Nigerian youths as well as address the skills gap in the country, said that the National Automotive Council (NAC) and Industrial Training

Fund (ITF) are working with stakeholders to develop curriculum along value chain on automobile for higher institutions in the country. He urged the Japanese team to widen their survey across the country in order to get true picture of data of automobile in the country, noting that workshop, after sales service and training of personnel must cut across the six geo-political zones of the country. The leader of the team,

Mr Akihiro Shimomura, said that the objective of the survey was to actualise the Federal Government’s request on the development of automobile supplier parks in Nigeria. It is also meant to analyse the current issues on the development of the automotive industry in Nigeria, policy and strategy, institutional framework and progress of the sector as well as sort out political and technical issues on the promotion of domestic production in Nigeria.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Brands&Marketing How not to brand a nation – Expert distinct Government communications programmes must standalone Stories by Dele Alao

rawing from South Africa’s experience in building “Brand South Africa,” a project whose marketing and communication programme she has been privileged to drive, Chief Marketing Officer,

Brand South Africa, Miss Wendy Tlou, has said that one of the keys to a successful nation branding initiative is to separate it from the government communications programmes. Featuring as guest speaker at this year’s Public Relations Consultants Association of Nigeria (PRCAN) Annual Public Relations Gold Medal Lecture themed: “Destination Marketing: A case study of the South Africa experience” in Lagos, Tlou said that the inability to separate the two distinct functions could hamper the progress of a nation’s brand building project.

She noted that while government’s activities and achievements could go a long way in supporting nation’s brand building, having the managers of that process to also act as mouthpieces of government could be counter-productive. The expert said: “The secret of successful destination marketing lies in separating national communication from government communication. The mistake we all make is to assume that government is the only source of information about the country. Government is a great source of information in terms of how it is running the

L-R: Vice President, Muyiwa Akintunde, President, John Ehiguese, both of Public Relations Consultants Association of Nigeria (PRCAN), President, Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), Rotimi Oladele and Chief Marketing Officer, Brand, South Africa and guest speaker, Wendy Tlou, at the PRCAN Annual Public Relations Gold Medal Lecture 2014, held in Lagos.

Hollandia Yoghurt TVC debuts NEW Advertising campaign flaunts benefits

hi Limited has unveiled a massive advertising campaign for Hollandia Yoghurt. The television commercial (TVC), tagged: ‘It’s All Good,’ which features Nigeria’s female singer, songwriter and excellent dancer, Seyi Shay, promotes ‘goodness,’ highlighting benefits of drinking Hollandia Yoghurt. Essentially, the TVC highlights the connection between consumption of Hollandia Yoghurt that is “nutritionally fulfilling” and a refreshingly radiating personality, which Shay embodies in her person and music. Also, the TVC draws attention to the success that is within the reach of those who dare to dream big. In the TVC, Shay

achieved her dream of becoming a star in the same way that every customer experience is a brand moment of truth. Commenting on the TVC, a member of the creative agency in charge of the copy said that the new ad is a product of innovative thinking that has helped to convey the message that the “goodness” derived from taking Hollandia Yoghurt drink is not only experienced inside but also radiates on the outside. “It is not always easy to find an emotional way to say things that are factual. This is why we decided to engage the services of Seyi Shay to highlight the goodness of consuming Hollandia Yoghurt regularly,” the creative member who craved anonymity said. Shay said that the partnership was a no-brainer and a flawless match for brand Hollandia and her. “For me, it is more than just a commercial, it is my

own way of getting millions of Nigerians everywhere to see and enjoy the goodness of Hollandia Yoghurt,” she said. A consumer, who viewed the TVC, Mr Olanrewaju Ogundipe, lauded Chi Limited and its creative team for putting together such commercial. A marketing professional, Mrs Sandra Ochulor, having watched the TVC, noted that Hollandia Yoghurt stands out in its ability to create an aspiration through its advertisement while effectively delivering on the brand promise. “Technology is clearly changing the way that consumers engage with brands and there is a clear convergence now between creative and the experience that is delivered. It used to be that customer service defined the customer experience. Now, thanks to technology, we can do so much more to enhance the customer experience.”

country; it is not, however, the only source. “The role of government is to communicate the steps and programmes, what service delivery it is putting in place to ensure that the lives of the citizens are improved every single day, while the role of the nation brand builders is to position the country to the world as a destination for tourism and investment, irrespective of what administration is in power at any particular point in time,” she explained. According to Tlou, although ‘Brand South Africa’ is the brainchild of former President Thabo Mbeki and also reports directly to the Presidency, it operates independently as a private enterprise. She argued that building a successful nation’s brand is not about a geographical location but about the people in that location. According to her, government must obtain the buy-in of the citizens, who then naturally become the project’s ambassa-

dors. “At the heart of nation’s brand building must be the people of the nation. If the people are not convinced to buy into the dreams that the country is selling to the world, the whole effort will be nothing but a waste of resources,” she said. Tlou recalled that one mistake Brand South Africa made at the outset of its work was to ignore South Africans themselves, the citizens, business organisations, civil organisations and the media and to run off, trying to sell their country to the international community. Earlier in his opening remarks, CEO, Mediacraft Associates and President, PRCAN, Mr John Ehiguese, explained that the choice of the theme was informed by repeated past failures of Nigeria at nation brand building. He noted that there were lessons to learn from South Africa that has successfully turned itself into a tourism and investment destination of choice in Africa.

Harpic activation platform excites consumers arpic activation platform; proper maintenance of toilets H Experience Moment, de- at home and public places such signed to commemorate the as the market. World Toilet Day (WTD) has been lauded by consumers. Harpic is on the stable of Reckitt Benckiser. The activation was also aimed at educating Nigerians on the need to have clean and hygienic toilets. The experience train, which visited Oke-Arin, Agege, Mushin and Ikotun markets in Lagos, gave market women and men the sense of hygiene, thus setting the pace for behavioural change. Harpic, for clean, germ-free and freshened toilet, marked the first WTD in Nigeria, to bring to the front burner the importance of having access to a clean toilet. Relying on the research, which shows that 30 per cent of Nigerians have access to flushable toilets, while about 20 per cent still have no latrines, the brand also projected the potential health implications of keeping an unclean toilet, as well as the vulnerability it poses, especially to women and children. A student on Industrial Training (IT) with Alimosho Local Government in Ikotun, Lagos, Adegbite Temitope, who experienced the mobile toilet, described the initiative as a way of helping Nigerians to understand the danger in open defecation and the need to educate everyone on the importance of

Also, a shop owner at Agege Market, Charles Nwakpa, who also experienced the activation, described his experience as interesting. “Ordinarily, most people shy away from discussing anything that has to do with toilets, but here is a company that is giving its all to teach people how to use and maintain flush toilet. Some of the people here are used to pit toilets, which is not too hygienic. I commend them for this initiative.” Alhaja Aminatu Bashiru, another shop owner at Agege Market, also commended Harpic for teaching market women simple hygiene. “You will know a clean woman by visiting her toilet and kitchen. If these two places are not clean you can assess the woman. As market women, we spend the whole day in the market and this is one of the rare moments that someone is coming to teach us about hygiene and good toilets. I thank them for this initiative,” she said. It would be recalled that Reckitt Benckiser’s Marketing Director -West Africa, Mr Oguzhan Silivrili, stated at the flag–off of the activation, that the Harpic Experience Moments is a set of activities that began with reaching one million homes across 16 cities within the country to educate consumers about how to keep a clean and hygienic toilet.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

ICT

Nigeria woos global ICT investors p.37 Based on factors such as cost and low Internet penetration, uptake of personal computers (PCs) in Nigeria has been dull over the years. The trend, however, appears headed for change in the coming years with a major initiative by Intel Corporation to boost computer ownership through consumer education and improve cyber security, writes KUNLE AZEEZ

FG, CWG partner on technology for SMEs p.38

Tackling Nigeria’s low PC ownership, online insecurity

ptake of personal computers (PCs) among Nigerians has been low despite the country’s status as the fastest growing telecoms market. According to available industry data, Nigeria’s PC ownership has been at an abysmal level visà-vis its teeming population, a major technology gap in the continent’s most vibrant telecoms market. This is in spite of the increased presence of indigenous PC makers such as Omatek Computers and Zinox Technologies and other foreign brands such as HP, Dell, Acer, ASUS, among others, Nigeria’s PC penetration is still low. Damning outlook According to the outcome of a 2012 joint survey recently conducted under the “Annual Socio-Economic Report: Access to Information and Communication Technology (ICT)” by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigeria’s PC ownership remained insignificant. The NBS survey revealed that over 95 per cent of Nigerians lack access to a PC or Internet. Access to personal computers appeared to be low, with a national average total access of 4.5 per cent while actual PC ownership stood at 0.9 per cent. The result of the survey showed that the most widely used ICT devices were radios and mobile phones while Internet usage and PC access remained considerably lower. Of the overall Nigerian population with access to mobile phones, nearly half owned the device. Similarly, over a third owned radios, while about a quarter owned TVs as well as PCs and Internet access devices, according to the survey. Going by the result of the survey conducted by the NBS, it shows that over 158 million out of 167 million Nigerians do not have access to the PC. “In Nigeria, factors such as

Minister of Communication Technology, Omobola Johnson

CEO, Intel West Africa, Mr Olubunmi Ekundayo

high cost of devices and high cost of access to the internet, where it is available, and lack of pervasive internet infrastructure to many Nigerians have been factors contributing to low uptake of PC in Nigeria all along,” said an IT expert, Mr Destiny Amana. Also, lack of awareness on the benefits inherent in the ownership of PC, poor digital knowledge across Nigerians have also been identified as a major challenge to uptake of digital tools in Nigeria, in spite of the digital revolution sweeping through Nigeria economy with the emergence of over $500 million e-commerce sector. Improvement However, between 2012 and now, a number of policy initiatives tending towards computer acquisition has been taken by the government and private sector players while the government’s penchant to drive internet penetration has also spurred gradual uptake of PCs. For instance, Nigeria and Egypt are among the countries expected to be among fastest growing PC markets in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) by the end of this year, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC). According to an IDC graph, Egypt’s PC market grew 35.78 per cent from the second quarter of 2013 to the same period in 2014. The IDC graph further highlights how Nigeria’s PC market grew 14.87 per cent in the same period. Egypt and Nigeria are, therefore, outpacing PC growth in MEA, as the region’s growth clocked 2.2 per cent to reach 4.5 million for the second quarter in 2014. The influx of device ownership is evident from desktop shipments in the region recorded

growth of 2.9 per cent year-onyear to reach 1.8 million units, while the portable product categories increased by 1.7 per cent to 2.7 million units over the same period, according to the IDC. “The healthy shipments seen in most countries can either be attributed to a recovery from instability be it economic, political, or social or to previously low PC penetration rates. Bearing this in mind, Egypt and Nigeria are expected to be among the region’s fastest growing PC markets for the year 2014,” said Fouad Rafiq Charakla, Research Manager at IDC.

It is also to ensure that we are not only selling devices, but to offer value for money to consumers if they buy any of the devices with Intel’s processor

Intel’s intervention To tackle low PC penetration in Nigeria, Intel Corporation, a global Information Technology firm, says efforts must be targeted at equipping people with digital literacy on the use of computers while also working on flexible payment mechanism for buyers, through its channel partners. As such, the global computer chip maker is pursuing this through an initiative tagged “First Buyer Campaign” initiative, aimed at providing insights on what buyers should know when purchasing a device, like those powered by Intel processors through its partners and other benefits involved. The campaign, which was first introduced in 2012 by the company, was a continent-wide campaign working with ecosystem partners to ensure that Africans have access to devices and Internet access in affordable formats. However, Intel, last week, reintroduced the scheme in Nigeria to educate buyers that, “just owning a device is not enough, but the performance and features

that suit their professional skills and mode of work should be taken into consideration to achieve the aim of purchase.” Marketing and Public Relations Manager, Intel West Africa, Mr Adim Isiakpona, said that through the initiative Intel will ensure that Nigerians are empowered using their devices and making the right choice, taking into consideration the features, especially and the type of processor inside the device they are buying. “So, as a leader in this aspect, we are telling prospective buyers to look out for Intel’s processor-powered devices sold through our partners when Nigerians are thinking of owning a device,” Isiakpona said. “It is also to ensure that we are not only selling devices, but to offer value for money to consumers if they buy any of the devices with Intel’s processor.” Also, Business Development Manager, Enterprise Solutions and Services, Intel West Africa, Mr Femi Babajide, said that the campaign, which would be held in four cities in the country, namely Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja and Warri, is to tell buyers that the performance of the device and features should be the major things to note when purchasing a device. He said that the processor, which powers devices such as computers and which Intel’s partners such Asus, Hewlett Packard (HP), Dell and Lenovo offer, has greatly enhanced the way the devices work and the benefits to owners. Cyber security Beyond owning a PC, one major challenge that may be affecting the use of digital tools has been around cyber security and, on this, Intel said it is already embarking on initiative aimed at security digital tools users while online. Explaining specific effort Intel is making in this area, Babajide stated that recent acquisition by Intel of PasswordBox, a Montreal-based provider of a crossplatform identity management service, was part of the safety measures to protect individual PC user on the one hand and the enterprises on the other hand. Consumer Lead for East and West Africa, Intel, Mr Olabanji Womiloju, also affirmed that the performance of a device such as PC, comes to play when buying one, and that the company has extended the enlightenment initiative of letting Nigerians know what is obtainable when it comes to devices and technology to the rural parts of the country.

Business | ICT

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Nigeria woos global ICT investors

GAP From estimated 170 million Nigerians, only 75 million are currently online

l Looks beyond $32bn

Stories by Kunle Azeez

igerian government has urged the global community to invest in Nigeria’s Information and Communication Technology as part of its move to increase Foreign Direct Investment (FDIs) in the sector. The government, which said it is looking beyond the recently-announced $32 billion FDI in the sector, wooed foreign investors with incentives at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Telecom World 2014, held in Doha, Qatar. Nigerian government noted that despite attaining active telephone line connectivity of 134.5 million and a teledensity of over 96 per cent, there was still much to do to achieve an all-inclusive penetration of telecommunications services, especially broadband, to every part of the country. Addressing a large gathering of telecoms investors, friends of Nigeria and the global Information and Communication Technology community at the event, Nigeria’s Minister of Communication Technology, Dr. Omobola

Johnson, said that government was upbeat in deepening investment with appropriate incentives to willing investors. Johnson said that the theme of the ITU Telecom World 2014, ‘The Future in Focus’, resonates with the vision of the Nigerian government as “we work to build a better and brighter future for our youthful population, especially using ICT.” The minister, who spoke at the Nigeria-sponsored Leaders Lunch at the Qatar National Convention Centre, venue of the ITU yearly event, told the audience that in the last three and a half years, since the creation of her ministry, Nigeria has been putting in place key policies and initiatives that set the foundation for the widespread use of ICTs by government, businesses and citizens to further their progress. “Today, we are seeing the impact of our efforts in the continued growth of the sector in Nigeria, its contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and in the contribution of ICTs to the efficiency of other sectors of the country,” she said. Earlier in his address, Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commis-

sion (NCC), Dr. Eugene Juwah, said he was particularly excited that the audience made out time to be at the Leaders Lunch, which, he said, presented Nigeria the opportunity to interact with the audience and update them on Nigerian ICT stories

igeria’s indigenous telecoms services provider, Globacom, has cut tariffs for calls to popular international destinations by 50 per cent. Globacom said its new International Direct Dialing (IDD) promotion, which allows its over 27 million subscribers to enjoy a 50 per cent discount, is applicable to calls made to all lines in the United States, Canada, India and China, as well as calls to fixed lines in the United Kingdom. Head of Glo Gateway, Mr. Steve Stretch, explained in a statement that 50 per cent discount is available on the IDD pack, which attracts a rental charge of N500 for N500 bundled airtime for 30 days’ validity period, saying

that instead of the 20 kobo base rate, the subscriber is charged only 10 kobo per second. He urged Globacom subscribers to take advantage of the IDD promotion to connect and talk at a cost-effective rate with their friends and relations in the countries covered by the promo during this festive season. Stretch said that the IDD promo complements the Glo Unlimited Roaming promo, which allows Glo subscribers who travel outside the country to receive calls on their lines free for 15 days. According to him, roaming subscribers will also enjoy up to 60 minutes of outgoing calls at a competitive rate of N100 per minute, adding that the offer

includes 15 free Short Messaging Services (SMS) and ability to browse the Internet at 15 kobo per kilobyte. Stretch said that the offer comes with a subscription fee of N2,500 for a validity period of 15 days. He explained that the roaming plan is currently available in 27 countries including the United States, United Kingdom, Italy, Netherland, South Africa, Norway, Sweden, India, Spain, Switzerland, Canada, Brazil and Cameroon, adding that “there are plans to extend it to more destinations.” Globacom, a few weeks ago, launched Glo Overload and Glo Allawee promos to empower its customers to enjoy pleasurable experiences on the network.

Schneider opens customer centre in Lagos

global specialist in energy management, Schneider Electric, has unveiled the APC by Schneider Electric experience centre, the first of its kind in Africa, at the famous Computer Village in the heart of Lagos. The company said that the move was to enhance the legendary reliability brand promise slogan of its products, grow its access channels, reduce counterfeiting and make its products readily available to customers. The APC by Schneider

Electric’s experience centre showcases Schneider Electric’s Information Technology solutions for home and business networks to complex data solutions including cooling, IT security and data centre system, as well as data management software. The centre, the company said, will also serve as a hub for UPS test and swap, as well as for sales and service enquiries. Speaking at the opening of the centre, the Lagos State Commissioner for

while sharing its experiences. Juwah said: “We will ruminate on our ICT potentials and opportunities as a nation, which we believe you may have influenced in one way or the other as opinion leaders in the industry.” The NCC boss further said that Nigeria, being the most populous nation in Africa with over 170 million people and hav-

ing made giant strides in ICT development, it is obvious that a lot must be happening in the industry. He disclosed that top on Nigeria’s desk today is broadband availability and usage, hence the country’s theme in the conference: “Broadband Nigeria: Enabling Access, Transforming Communities.”

L-R: Director-General, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Alhaji Bature Umar (left) and Founder/CEO, Computer Warehouse Group (CWG) Plc, Mr. Austin Okere, during the signing ceremony on SME development between SMEDAN and CWG Plc, in Abuja.

Glo cuts int’l call rates by 50% N

Science and Technology, Mr. Adebiyi Mabadeje, commended Schneider Electric for the initiative. He described the location as strategic, considering the prime position of the popular IT hub to business in Nigeria and West Africa. According to Mabadeje, “Lagos State Government is happy to play host to the experience centre. As a state known for excellence and setting the pace for others, we are pleased to know that this experience centre is the first in Africa.

‘MTN has invested N2.5trn in Nigeria’

anaging Director of MTN Nigeria, Mr. Mike Ikpoki, said that the country’s largest telecommunication company has invested over $15 billion in the last 13 years of its operations in Nigeria. Ikpoki disclosed this at the ITU Telecom World 2014 holding in Doha, Qatar, where he also assured of the company’s plan to increase its investment in Nigeria. Ikpoki said: “With 58 million telecoms subscribers and over $15 billion investment in the last 13 years, MTN is seen to have done well, but there is still more to do in the area of broadband.” Ikpoki, who described MTN as “an investment ambassador for Nigeria,” said that “at the beginning, only a few global players were interested in coming to Nigeria. But the story has changed now.” New Telegraph had, on October 17, 2014, reported that as at December last year, MTN investment profile in the country had hit $13 billion. However, between January 2014 and now, an additional investment of $2 billion has been made by the telecoms company. MTN’s leadership position in network investment, coverage, expansion and

state-of-the-art infrastructure was evident in its huge investment in the Nigerian economy. As a result of the massive investment, MTN currently has the most expansive network coverage spread across 3,649 cities, towns and villages in all 36 states of the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory. MTN also provides network coverage to 74.56 per cent of Nigeria’s land mass, while about 87.15 per cent of the population has access to MTN services. “Today, MTN is Nigeria’s leading ICT company, employing over 5,800 staff, with Nigerians accounting for 99 per cent of this number. MTN operates an extensive distribution chain with 78 trade partners and an information distribution chain of over 450 walk-in centres across Nigeria,” Ikpoki said. According to him, MTN is guided by a win-win philosophy that the success and growth of the company is tied to the well being of the people and the communities where it operates. He noted that this informed MTN’s investment in areas of need while the company gives back to society through its corporate social investment vehicle, the MTN Foundation (MTNF).

Business | ICT

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

‘NITEL/M-TEL sale will deepen competition’ REVIVAL The sale of NITEL is expected to revive the fixed-line segment Stories by Kunle Azeez

ollowing the sale of Nigeria Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) and its mobile arm, Mobile Telecommunications Limited (M-TEL) to NATCOM Consortium last week, telecoms subscribers in the country have expressed optimism that the reinstatement of the telecoms entities will deepen competition in the nation’s telecoms sector. They spoke under the auspices of their umbrella rights group, the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers (NATCOMS). Reacting to last week’s sale of the telecoms entities to new

investors by the Federal Government, NATCOMS President, Mr. Deolu Ogunbanjo, said that the sale was long overdue and would benefit the industry. Ogunbanjo, who spoke in a telephone interview with New Telegraph, said: “We are happy that eventually, government has found a buyer for NITEL/ M-TEL. There was a time government was pursuing ‘willing seller, willing buyer’ and later we came to the guided liquidation and this has today, resulted in the sales of the two telecoms companies.” He hoped that the buyer would fulfil its financial obligations to government and begin a rebuilding process to restore the telecoms entities to further improve competition in the country. “We hope that the buyer will make its financial obligations on time as we have had this kind of arrangement before now, where the prospective buyer eventually failed to fulfil its fi-

nancial obligations at deadline. We pray that this one will sail through because it is good for the consumers.” According to him, the coming on board of NITEL and M-TEL will lead to reduced tariffs on mobile services while also rekindling the fixed line services in the country. The Federal Government had on October 3, 2014, announced the sale of the moribund NITEL and M-TEL for $252.251 million, with NATCOM Consortium as winner of the bid. The firm, which had initially offered $221 million for the company, an amount Chairman of the NPC Technical Committee, Mr. Atedo Peterside, described as unreasonable, jacked up its bid to $252.25 million. The second bidder, NATTAG Consortium, was disqualified for failure to enclose a $10 million bid bond as clearly stipulated in the Request for Proposals (RfP). “I am happy to announce that the bid has met the reserve

L-R : Managing Director, M5 Direct Limited, Mr. Tope Olaigbe; Managing Director, Card Mega Systems Limited, Mr. Ope Adefolaju; Globacom’s State Manager, Ekiti, Mr.Tunji Omoworare and Managing Director, Divinelinks Limited, Mr. Bukola Adewuyi, at the Mobile Money Town Hall Meeting held by Globacom in Ado-Ekiti.

Social intervention: Kwara gov lauds Airtel

igeria’s telecoms operator, Airtel, has been commended by Kwara State Governor, Abdul-fatah Ahmed, for its contributions towards the socioeconomic development of the state through its robust Corporate Social Responsibility interventions. Speaking during a courtesy visit by the Airtel team led by the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Airtel, Mr Segun Ogunsanya, the governor noted that the telco, through its multi-faceted CSR initiatives, has brought positive development in many states across the country. Ahmed particularly praised Airtel for its Adopt-A-School project, Airtel Rising Stars (ARS) football competition and the Airtel Touching Lives programme, noting that these social intervention

platforms of the telco has created huge empowerment opportunities which have positive impact on the lives of Nigerians. He said: “We are highly delighted about Airtel’s role in transforming society. We are happy to receive you today and we commend Airtel for its robust CSR initiatives. I am most especially pleased about the Airtel Touching Lives programme, which cuts across youth and women empowerment, sports and education and truly translates to positive impact on our society. “Kwara State is poised to work with Airtel to make its CSR projects very successful. We are going to ensure that the partnership is sustained as I assure you that the state is very receptive and willing to receive the support.”

price. Unfortunately, of the two pre-qualified bidders, NATTAG Consortium was disqualified for failure to enclose a $10 million bid bond as clearly stipulated in the Request for Proposals (RoP),” Peterside, who was represented by his deputy, Alhaji Haruna Sambo, said. According to him, following the disqualification of NETTANG Consortium as a result of its failure to submit a bid bond together with its technical proposal, only the financial bid of NATCOM Consortium qualified for opening. NATCOM, he said, scored an average of 92 per cent in its technical proposal, which was above the minimum pass mark of 75 per cent and satisfied the requirements of a valid bid bond.

Atedo said that as stipulated in the RFP, 30 per cent of the bid price should be paid within 15 days of notification and the balance would have to be paid within 90 days. He added that as part of the reform of the telecommunications sector, a new National Telecommunications Policy was adopted in August 2000 and a new Nigerian Communications Act was passed into law in 2003. According to him, the new legal framework provided the basis upon which the process for privatising NITEL commenced in 2001 and since then, there had been four different unsuccessful attempts to privatise the company and one failed management contract.

Two win $35,000 in Etisalat contest

inners of the 2014 edition of the Etisalat PanAfrican Prize for Innovation, Anthony Oniwon and AbdulGaniyu Onabanjo, have been presented with prizes of $25,000 and $10,000 respectively. While Oniwon emerged with his Exammate Application, an exam preparatory programme for JAMB candidates, Onabanjo won with his Interactive Media Interface Design, a remote communication interface for GPRS-enabled prepaid meters. Presenting the two winners with their prizes at an event in Lagos, Chief Executive Officer of Etisalat Nigeria, Mr. Matthew Willsher, explained the rationale behind the innovation as well as the company’s continuous support for innovative platforms and initiatives. He said: “We are presenting our proof of the promise we made at the launch of this prize over two years ago

and further reinforcing our uniqueness as the organisation that makes a difference in the society.” Willsher said that the telecoms firm was pleased to formally present the two gentlemen who developed the most innovative product and idea of the 2014 Pan-African Prize for Innovation to the media and present their prizes to them as well. “We will work with them to further enhance the product and idea in order to provide realistic solutions to everyday challenges and make a difference to our average customer either financially or socially.” Speaking after the presentation, Oniwon commended Etisalat for providing such platform for young inventors and developers. He expressed the opinion that the prize would spur great inventions and innovations that would further boost the economy of African countries.

FG, CWG partner on technology for SMEs GROWTH The pact provides an e-commerce platform to enable SMEs grow fast

he Federal Government and Nigeria’s fastest-growing Information and Communication Technology (ICT) conglomerate, Computer Warehouse Group Plc. (CWG) have partnered on technology in a bid to ensure the growth of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria. Government is represented in the scheme by the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), its agency set up to promote entrepreneurship in the country. SMEDAN has thus signed a Memorandum of Under-

standing (MoU) with CWG Plc with the objective of an ICT technology platform for the use of MSMEs at affordable cost. The partnership would also avail them the services of an Enterprises Resource Planning (ERP) platform called Small and Medium Enterprise Resource Planning (SMERP) provided by CWG Plc. The platform will allow the MSMEs to manage their business operations and provide functionalities such as accounting management, inventory management, sales and order tracking. The MOU’s second objective is to provide an e-commerce platform that enables MSMEs to sell their goods and services online by creating a virtual store for each SME on the Internet. Speaking at the MOU signing ceremony at the headquarters of SMEDAN in

Abuja, the Director-General of SMEDAN, Alhaji Bature Masari, lamented the major issues affecting MSMEs, including access to finance and markets. He, however, noted that the signing of the MoU would effectively ameliorate these challenges. Masari said that the challenges facing the country today would be a thing of the past if the potentials of the MSME sub-sector of the economy is fully realised. He added that the development of the MSME sector is key to poverty alleviation, adding that the collaboration with CWG Plc is crucial to the development of MSMEs in the country. Founder and Chief Executive Officer, CWG Plc, Mr. Austin Okere, said that SMEDAN/CWG collaboration would boost the development of MSMEs in the country.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader, Senator Bola Tinubu (middle); winner, Lagos West Senatorial District, Mr Olamilekan Solomon (second right) and other APC leaders, during Solomon’s visit to Tinubu in Lagos.

L-R: Compliance Manager, Western Union, Abimbola Jegede; Deputy Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria, Tony Okpanachi; Ecobank customer, Olutoye Olutayo and Area Manager, Victoria Island, Ecobank Nigeria, Charles Nwobi, during the bank’s activation of Outbound Money Transfer Service with Western Union in Lagos…on Tuesday. PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

L-R: Chairman/CEO, Zinox Group, Chief Leo Stan; Managing Director/CEO, Fidelity Bank Plc, Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo; Co-Chief Executive Officer, JUMIA, Mr. Nicolas Martin and Chairman, Fidelity Bank Plc, Dr. Christopher Eze, at the bank’s annual SME Conference in Lagos. PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

L-R: Head of Department, Business Fellowship Fountain of Life Church, Pastor Moji Awokoya; Senior Pastor, Pastor Taiwo Odukoya; his wife, Pastor Nomthni; Chairman, Trade fair Committee, Mrs Charity Babatunde and member, Trade fair Committee/Head Media Relations, Mrs Nkechi Ali-Balogun, at the church’s annual market place in Lagos. PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

Photo | News

Former Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Oduah (right), and her supporters, after her victory at the PDP Senatorial primary for Anambra North zone…recently

L-R: Kwara State PDP gubernatorial aspirants, Alhaji Bakeem Lawal; Mallam Abdullahi Sanusi; Senator Makanjuola Ajadi and Senator Gbemisola Saraki at a press conference on the botched PDP primaries in Ilorin...on Tuesday.

L-R: Former Executive Director, Sterling Bank Plc, Mr. Abubakar Sule; Chief Executive Officer, Marthee’s International, Mrs. Christie Adejoh; Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola; his wife, Sherifat and former Kogi State Commissioner for Health, Mallam Suleiman Baba, during a courtesy visit to the governor in Oshogbo…recently.

A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Lagos State, Hon. Chief Nicholas Adekunle (middle); Treasurer, Red Cross Society of Nigeria, Lagos Chapter, Mrs. Kemi Wright and friends, at the first anniversary of the Royal Daughters of Nigeria for the less Privileged, Ejigbo Chapter, in Lagos

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Leisure Arcade NUTS

NTPuzzle

By Kaycee

q g m s q m o o d y I r m I c m z p m t d h e x o t c j g u s r h u o u d y c r g x q d f o n v d o g o k e o t b u l u b i n n s e h 1 n 1

MAMA LASISI

By Aliu Eroje

q s i t d k h r x p a a a u e d t r z s k a v c r w g p a f w d r c n x g b t n a i b q i f d e j a w r j e l n v g c o s x l d p o l y l q w m k p s c b l p e y d o a h v d u m b l e d o r e p e

MOYIN & FRIENDS

By Ayo Oyerinde binns moody

snaps hagrid

flitwick mcgonagall

trelawney lockhart

quirrelt

sprout

NTJokes Family Feud SUDOKU - Answer to No 10

SUDOKU - No 11 2

8 5

6 9

2 3

9 1

4 1

1 8

How to play

Sudoku

ALIU EROJE

CHIEF CARTOONIST aliu.eroje@newtelegraphonline.com

The objective is to fill a 9x9 grid so that each column, each row, and each of the nine 3x3 boxes (also called blocks or regions) contains the digits from 1 to 9. A cell is the smallest block in the game. A row , column and region consists of 9 cells and the whole game consists of 81 cells. A region has thicker lines surrounding it. This simply makes it easier to play the game.

One day, a woman asked her son to call her husband to ask him what he wanted her to cook for dinner. After the sixth time, the boy complained to his mother that a female voice was what he heard every time he called and the lady would not let him speak to his dad. By the time the man got home that evening, his wife was fuming seriously. She was so angry that she met him at his car and grabbed his shirt right there in the front yard. “How dare you cheat on me?” she shouted, attracting the neighbours instantly. “How could you? After all we have been through?” The confused man stared at her - he could not fathom why she was so mad at him. The neighbours tried to calm her down but she refused, and when someone asked for evidence, she recounted the phone call episode and called on Junior to repeat everything the lady on the phone said. “The number you are calling is not reachable at the moment. Please try again later,” Junior said.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Business | Money Line

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Naira gains after oil firms, CBN sell dollars DEPRECIATION

Dealers expect naira to depreciate if the CBN fails to intervene

he naira firmed 1.5 percent against the dollar yesterday after the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) sold $200 million, coupled with a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) intervention to boost interbank forex market liquidity, dealers said. The naira according to Bloomberg news, closed at N179.90 in volatile trades, gaining some ground after it eased to an intraday low of N184.65 before the dollar sales. The naira closed at N182.60 to the dollar previous day. The apex bank has been struggling to keep the naira within a new target band of N160-N176 against the dollar it set last month after it devalued the currency by 8 percent, to halt a decline to its foreign reserves. But its foreign re-

serves fell to $35.95 billion by Dec. 8, down 19.3 percent from a year earlier as the bank stepped up its defence of the currency, latest figures from the bank’s website showed yesterday. “As soon as the dollar liquidity dries out, we expect the naira to depreciate again unless the central bank intensifies intervention,” one dealer said. Oil companies also sold dollars in addition to NNPC and central bank. Total sold $16 million, Brass LNG $12 million, while Shell sold an undisclosed amount, dealers said. The NNPC accounts for the bulk of dollars traded on the interbank market as the state-oil company buys naira monthly in exchange for proceeds from the country’s oil receipts to help fund the government. Dealers said it would take up to two days for lenders to deliver naira to the NNPC, giving some relief to overnight lending rates, which have been under pressure with the CBN squeezing liquidity to support the currency. Nigeria’s overnight

lending rate fell to 20 percent yesterday, from 50 percent the previous day, as dealers cut their borrowing exposure on

the interbank market in anticipation of a treasury bill payout. Dealers expect a N150 billion ($834 million)

ulk Holdings, a UAEbased conglomerate, is investing $40 million to develop a duty free shopping centre in Lagos, Nigeria. Already, the company has signed a contract with retailer Suzanne Group to develop the mall at the National Theatre of Nigeria.

Godson Ikoro

idelity Bank Plc has earmarked the loans worth N600million for Small and Medium scale Enterprises (SMEs) operating in the leather shoe industrial clusters in Aba, Abia State, the Managing Director and Chief Executive of the lender, Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo has said. He made this disclosure at the maiden annual SMEs conference of the bank with the theme “Positioning Nigerian SMEs for growth,’ held at the Civic Centre in Lagos. The Fidelity Bank boss promised that the bank will earmark similar amount of

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

Money Market Offer 11.85 11.85 11.80 Offer 163.38

The naira has fallen 11.8 percent against the dollar this year, including the one-off devaluation, as oil prices plunged.

Mulk Holdings invests $40m in Nigeria mall

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

treasury bill maturity today. Overnight lending rates spiked to a record high of 70 percent last Monday.

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

Rate (%) 11.33 11.63

NIFEX Spot ($/N)

Bid 163.4000

Offer 163.5000 Source: FMDQ

“Mulk Holdings is adopting aggressive strategies to expand its core business, while diversifying into other sectors like retail, commodities, health care and energy solutions. “Our vision 2020 is an ambitious initiative, which involves serious investment into both our existing busi-

nesses and diversification into sustainable industries,” Shaji Ul Mulk, chairman of Mulk Holdings, said in a statement. Mulk Holdings has operations in primarily four sectors — construction, renewable energy, plastics and health care. It has net worth of Dh2 billion.

Fidelity Bank earmarks N600m for Aba industrial cluster money for the Matori Lagos, and Kano industrial clusters when the field studies are completed. Okonkwo said that the conference has been put together as an additional platform amongst our other running platforms to help SMEs in Nigeria to build the needed capacity for entrepreneurial success in furtherance of the bank’s long running support for the growth and development of small businesses in the country. Also speaking, Chairman of the occasion, Mazi Ohuabunwa, said that global development is entering a phase where entrepreneurship will increasingly play a more important role. He said that analysis of sources of economic growth by World Bank 2013, shows that the biggest differences between developed and developing economies are in innovation and performances. Nigeria’s Business Density Index, a measure of the growth of entrepreneurship has risen by 169 per cent to 0.91, according to World Bank

statistics. Though this represents an appreciable growth from its rating of 2004 when the density was 0.32, the country is still significantly behind such economies as Uganda, 1.17; Tunisia, 1.52; Malaysia; South Africa, 6.54; Singapore, 8.04, said Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, Chairman of the African Centre for Business Development Strategy and Innovation Ltd /Gte. He urged that the stakeholders to contribute their quota to ensure that SMEs develop and take the front seat in the economy. The conference featured a wide array of business personalities who started as SMEs and transformed to big businesses and manufacturing outfits. They include Chief LeoStan Ekeh, Chairman CEO Zinox; Mr. Austin Okere, MD/CEO Computer warehouse; Nicolas Martin, Co Chief Executive Officer, Jumia, Funke Opeke Founder and CEO main One among others, who spoke on how to leverage technologies to build their businesses.

Six winners emerge in Sterling Bank’s promo

ix lucky winners with Sterling Bank Plc’s Arsenal accounts will have the privilege of an allexpenses paid trip to watch home matches involving Arsenal Football Club and other top clubs in the English Premier League at the Emirates in the first Sterling Bank Gunners Promo. The six lucky winners, who were picked at the promo draw held at the Sterling Towers, the Bank’s corporate head office in Lagos, to watch the Arsenal versus Aston Villa match are Olaiya Joseph Rotimi; Oduntan Femi Abimbola; Oseni Adekunle; Segun John; Tamunokubie Tamunobarao and Obi Blessing Uwachukwu. An excited Rotimi, when called during the draw, ex-

pressed his gratitude to the bank for fulfilling its promise to reward owners of Arsenal Accounts. Although he stated that the account was not opened for the purpose of the draw, “but to identify with a bank supporting the darling team of millions of Nigerians”. He lauded the lender for demonstrating value and assurance that it is a strong and reliable financial institution that can be trusted. Furthermore, 30 winners will emerge from five draws making it six winners per draw. The next draw will hold in the first week of January 2015 for the Arsenal-Everton match, while the third draw for the match between Arsenal and Liverpool will hold in February.

Business | Financial Market News

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

FMDQ Daily Quotations List

10-Dec-14

The DQL contains data relating to, amongst other things, market and model prices, rates of foreign exchange products, fixed income securities and instruments in the financial market (the “Information”). The Information does not constitute professional, financial or investment advice. We attempt to ensure the Information is accurate; however, the Information is provided “AS IS” and on an “AS AVAILABLE” basis and may not be accurate or up to date. We do not guarantee the accuracy, timeliness, completeness, performance or fitness for a particular purpose of any of the Information, neither do we accept liability for the results of any action taken on the basis of the Information.

Bonds FGN Bonds

Price

Rating/Agency

Issuer

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)

Maturity Date

TTM (Yrs)

Bid Yield (%)

Offer Yield (%)

Bid Price

Offer Price

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

535.00 573.89 452.80 20.00 100.00 300.00 351.30 233.90 600.00 396.68 75.00 150.00 200.00 591.57 150.00

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

0.37 1.68 2.38 2.63 2.72 3.47 4.55 4.87 7.13 9.26 13.97 14.45 14.95 15.62 19.60

14.11 14.25 14.26 14.24 14.23 14.19 14.14 14.09 13.96 13.90 13.15 13.07 12.99 13.46 13.15

13.67 14.15 14.18 14.16 14.16 14.07 14.06 13.98 13.90 13.84 13.10 13.02 12.93 13.41 13.10

96.43 98.20 101.60 90.61 89.25 90.68 106.05 75.60 110.70 101.50 111.71 96.25 70.67 77.60 93.00

96.58 98.35 101.75 90.76 89.40 90.98 106.35 75.90 111.00 101.80 112.01 96.55 70.97 77.90 93.30

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

4,730.13

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

4,514.89

Rating/Agency

Issuer

Description

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

Risk Premium (%)

Valuation Yield (%)

Indicative Price

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

0.00 17.25 0.00/16.00 0.00/16.50 0.00/16.50

24.56 3.00 112.22 116.70 66.49

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

0.45 1.19 2.00 2.36 2.57

2.63 2.27 2.00 1.00 1.00

16.12 16.94 16.25 15.25 15.24

93.16 100.45 99.59 96.83 93.85

Agency Bonds FMBN ***LCRM

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

322.97

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

313.06

Sub-National Bonds A+/Agusto

KADUNA

12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015

31-Aug-10

12.50

8.50

31-Aug-15

0.72

4.44

18.35

96.14

A/Agusto

*EBONYI

13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015

30-Sep-10

13.00

4.18

30-Sep-15

0.56

3.23

16.60

98.90

A-/Agusto

*BENUE

14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-11

14.00

6.27

30-Jun-16

0.85

4.46

18.78

95.93

A+/Agusto

*IMO

15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-09

15.50

7.37

30-Jun-16

0.85

3.48

17.81

98.15

A+/Agusto; A+/GCR

LAGOS

10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017

19-Apr-10

10.00

57.00

19-Apr-17

2.36

5.59

19.84

82.11

A-/Agusto

*BAYELSA

13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017

30-Jun-10

13.75

29.92

30-Jun-17

1.40

1.00

15.49

97.80

A/Agusto

EDO

14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017

30-Dec-10

14.00

25.00

31-Dec-17

3.06

1.79

16.00

95.28

14.00

34.14

30-Sep-18

2.23

1.80

16.05

96.53

A+/Agusto; A+/GCR

*DELTA

14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018

30-Sep-11

A-/Agusto; A-/GCR

NIGER

14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018

04-Oct-11

14.00

9.00

04-Oct-18

3.82

1.00

15.16

96.66

A/Agusto; A-/GCR†

*EKITI

14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018

09-Dec-11

14.50

13.73

09-Dec-18

2.43

1.00

15.25

98.58

A-/Agusto

*NIGER

14.00 NIGER III 12-DEC-2018

12-Dec-13

14.00

11.13

12-Dec-18

2.23

4.78

19.03

90.95

A/Agusto; A-/GCR

*ONDO

15.50 ONDO 14-FEB-2019

14-Feb-12

15.50

27.00

14-Feb-19

2.61

1.00

15.24

98.56

A/Agusto; A-/GCR

*GOMBE

15.50 GOMBE 02-OCT-2019

02-Oct-12

15.50

16.23

02-Oct-19

2.87

1.00

15.22

100.80

Aa-/Agusto; AA-/GCR

LAGOS

14.50 LAGOS 22-NOV-2019

22-Nov-12

14.50

80.00

22-Nov-19

4.95

1.00

15.08

98.00

A/Agusto; A-/GCR

*OSUN

14.75 OSUN 12-DEC-2019

12-Dec-12

14.75

27.51

12-Dec-19

2.83

2.74

16.97

95.21

A/Agusto

*OSUN

14.75 OSUN II 10-OCT-2020

10-Oct-13

14.75

11.40

10-Oct-20

3.39

1.00

15.19

98.92

13.50

87.50

27-Nov-20

5.97

1.00

14.98

94.27

Aa-/Agusto; AA-/GCR

LAGOS

13.50 LAGOS IV 27-NOV-2020

27-Nov-13

A-/Agusto; BBB+/DataPro

KOGI

15.00 KOGI 31-DEC-2020

31-Dec-13

15.00

5.00

31-Dec-20

6.06

1.94

15.91

96.50

A/Agusto A-/GCR

*EKITI *NASARAWA

14.50 EKITI II 31-DEC-2020 15.00 NASARAWA 06-JAN-2021

31-Dec-13

14.50

4.78

31-Dec-20

3.54

1.44

15.62

97.14

06-Jan-14

15.00

4.79

06-Jan-21

3.57

1.95

16.13

97.15

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

470.44 446.20

Corporate Bonds Aa/Agusto Nil

GTB NGC

13.50 GUARANTY TRUST 18-DEC-2014

18-Dec-09

13.50

13.17

18-Dec-14

0.02

5.21

24.01

99.74

17.00 NGC 31-DEC-2014

01-Apr-10

17.00

2.00

31-Dec-14

0.06

8.71

26.91

99.33 96.59

Bbb-/Agusto A-/Agusto

*UPDC

10.00 UPDC 17-AUG-2015

17-Aug-10

10.00

3.61

17-Aug-15

0.44

4.88

18.46

*FLOURMILLS

12.00 FLOURMILLS 9-DEC-2015

09-Dec-10

12.00

9.34

09-Dec-15

0.75

1.00

15.01

97.95

BB+/GCR

*CHELLARAMS

14.00 CHELLARAMS 06-JAN-2016

06-Jan-11

14.00

0.60

06-Jan-16

0.60

2.63

16.11

98.91

A+/Agusto; A-/GCR

NAHCO

13.00 NAHCO 29-SEP-2016

29-Sep-11

13.00

15.00

29-Sep-16

1.80

1.00

15.32

96.41

A-/Agusto

FSDH

14.25 FSDH 25-OCT-2016

25-Oct-13

14.25

5.53

25-Oct-16

1.88

1.34

15.63

97.78

A/GCR

UBA

13.00 UBA 30-SEP-2017

30-Sep-10

13.00

20.00

30-Sep-17

2.81

1.00

15.23

95.01

BBB-/GCR

18.00 C&I LEASING 30-NOV-2017

30-Nov-12

18.00

0.64

30-Nov-17

1.83

1.88

16.19

103.57

Nil

*C & I LEASING *DANA#{r}

MPR+7.00 DANA 9-APR-2018

09-Apr-11

16.00

6.30

09-Apr-18

1.83

3.48

17.79

97.64

A-/DataPro†; BB-/GCR

*TOWER#

MPR+7.00 TOWER 9-SEP-2018

09-Sep-11

18.00

2.90

09-Sep-18

2.00

5.20

19.45

98.07

AAA/DataPro†; A+/GCR

*TOWER

MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-2018

09-Sep-11

16.00

0.80

09-Sep-18

2.00

5.06

19.31

101.85

A/Agusto; A/GCR

UBA

14.00 UBA II 22-SEP-2018

22-Sep-11

14.00

35.00

22-Sep-18

3.78

1.35

15.52

95.72

Bbb+/Agusto; BBB+/GCR

*LA CASERA *CHELLARAMS#

15.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018

18-Oct-13

15.75

2.40

18-Oct-18

2.10

2.29

16.54

98.92

MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-2019

17-Feb-12

17.00

0.41

17-Feb-19

2.19

6.11

20.36

94.61

BBB-/DataPro†; BB+/GCR

#{r}

Nil

*DANA

16.00 DANA II 1-APR-2019

01-Apr-14

16.00

4.50

01-Apr-19

3.06

2.16

16.37

99.22

A+/Agusto; A-/GCR

NAHCO

15.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020

14-Nov-13

15.25

2.05

14-Nov-20

5.93

2.76

16.75

94.47

A/GCR

STANBIC IBTC

182D T.bills+1.20 STANBIC IA 30-SEP-2024

30-Sep-14

11.93

0.10

30-Sep-24

9.81

1.00

14.71

85.74

STANBIC IBTC

13.25 STANBIC IB 30-SEP-2024

30-Sep-14

13.25

15.44

30-Sep-24

9.81

1.00

14.71

92.49

A/GCR

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

139.80

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

134.74

Supranational Bond AAA/S&P

IFC

10.20 IFC 11-FEB-2018

11-Feb-13

10.20

12.00

11-Feb-18

3.17

1.00

15.21

87.72

Aaa/Moody's; AAA/S&P

AfDB

11.25 AFDB 1-FEB-2021

10-Jul-14

11.25

12.95

01-Feb-21

4.39

1.00

15.13

88.28

Bid Price

Offer Price

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

24.95 21.96

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION Rating/Agency

Issuer

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

5.88

5.66

104.43

105.55

5.13 JUL 12, 2018

12-Jul-13

5.13

500.00

12-Jul-18

5.03

4.73

100.30

101.28

6.38 JUL 12, 2023

12-Jul-13

6.38

500.00

12-Jul-23

6.16

6.02

101.39

102.38

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

1,530.62

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

8.35

103.30

B+/Fitch; B+/S&P

GTBANK PLC I

7.50 MAY 19, 2016

19-May-11

7.50

500.00

19-May-16

4.75

103.75

B+/S&P

ACCESS BANK PLC

7.25 JUL 25, 2017

25-Jul-12

7.25

350.00

25-Jul-17

7.47

99.48

B/Fitch; B/S&P

FIDELITY BANK PLC

6.88 MAY 09, 2018

09-May-13

6.88

300.00

02-May-18

10.32

9.33

90.32

92.98

B+/Fitch; B+/S&P

GTBANK PLC

6.00 NOV 08, 2018

08-Nov-13

6.00

400.00

08-Nov-18

7.84

6.82

93.90

97.23

B/Fitch

AFREN PLC II

10.25 APR 08, 2019

08-Apr-12

10.25

300.00

08-Apr-19

9.66

102.00

102.00 95.50

B+/Fitch; BB-/S&P

ZENITH BANK PLC

6.25 APR 22, 2019

22-Apr-14

6.25

500.00

22-Apr-19

7.48

95.50

B/Fitch; B/S&P

DIAMOND BANK PLC

8.75 May 21, 2019

21-May-14

8.75

200.00

21-May-19

11.67

10.09

90.09

95.27

B-/Fitch; B/S&P

FIRST BANK PLC

8.25 AUG 07, 2020

07-Aug-13

8.25

300.00

07-Aug-20

8.14

99.75

6.63 DEC 09, 2020

09-Dec-13

6.63

360.00

09-Dec-20

10.72

82.25

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

24-Jun-14

9.25

400.00

24-Jun-21

10.40

10.01

94.88

96.63

8.00/2Y USD SWAP+6.488 JUL 23 2021

23-Jul-14

8.00

450.00

23-Jul-21

9.30

92.88

8.75 AUG 14, 2021

14-Aug-14

8.75

250.00

14-Aug-21

9.64

8.88

94.88

98.50

B-/Fitch; B/S&P

AFREN PLC III

B-/Fitch; B/S&P

ACCESS BANK PLC II

B-/Fitch; B/S&P

FIRST BANK LTD

B-/S&P

ECOBANK NIG. LTD

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

4,760.00

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

4,571.98

**Treasury Bills DTM 15 22 29 36 43 50 57 64

FIXINGS Maturity 25-Dec-14 1-Jan-15 8-Jan-15 15-Jan-15 22-Jan-15 29-Jan-15 5-Feb-15 12-Feb-15

Bid Discount (%) 18.65 18.15 17.00 15.50 14.15 14.80 14.45 14.25

Offer Discount (%) 18.40 17.90 16.75 15.25 13.90 14.55 14.20 14.00

Bid Yield (%) 18.79 18.35 17.23 15.74 14.39 15.11 14.78 14.62

Money Market

NIBOR Tenor O/N 1M 3M 6M

Rate (%) 44.7917 18.0922 17.0253 17.3035

Tenor

Rate (%)

OBB

20.83

O/N Tenor Call 1M

22.83

REPO

Rate (%) 24.00 18.79

Foreign Exchange (Spot & Forwards) Tenor

Bid ($/N)

Offer ($/N)

Spot 7D 14D 1M 2M 3M

179.90 180.38 180.66 181.32 182.55 183.77

180.00 180.48 180.80 181.77 183.51 185.21

A+/Agusto

KADUNA

12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015

31-Aug-10

12.50

8.50

31-Aug-15

0.72

4.44

18.35

96.14

A/Agusto

*EBONYI

13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015

30-Sep-10

13.00

4.18

30-Sep-15

0.56

3.23

16.60

98.90

A-/Agusto

*BENUE

14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-11

14.00

6.27

30-Jun-16

0.85

4.46

18.78

95.93

A+/Agusto

*IMO

15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-09

15.50

7.37

30-Jun-16

0.85

3.48

17.81

98.15

A+/Agusto; A+/GCR

LAGOS

10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017

19-Apr-10

10.00

57.00

19-Apr-17

2.36

5.59

19.84

82.11

A-/Agusto

*BAYELSA

13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017

30-Jun-10

13.75

29.92

30-Jun-17

1.40

1.00

15.49

97.80

A/Agusto

EDO

14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017

30-Dec-10

14.00

25.00

31-Dec-17

3.06

1.79

16.00

95.28

A+/Agusto; A+/GCR

*DELTA

14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018

30-Sep-11

14.00

34.14

30-Sep-18

2.23

1.80

16.05

96.53

A-/Agusto; A-/GCR

NIGER

14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018

04-Oct-11

14.00

9.00

04-Oct-18

3.82

1.00

15.16

96.66

A/Agusto; A-/GCR†

*EKITI

14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018

09-Dec-11

14.50

13.73

09-Dec-18

A-/Agusto

Business | Financial Market News

2.43 1.00 98.58 THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 201415.25 NEW TELEGRAPH

*NIGER

14.00 NIGER III 12-DEC-2018

12-Dec-13

14.00

11.13

12-Dec-18

2.23

4.78

19.03

A/Agusto; A-/GCR

*ONDO

15.50 ONDO 14-FEB-2019

14-Feb-12

15.50

27.00

14-Feb-19

2.61

1.00

15.24

98.56

A/Agusto; A-/GCR

*GOMBE

15.50 GOMBE 02-OCT-2019

02-Oct-12

15.50

16.23

02-Oct-19

2.87

1.00

15.22

100.80

Aa-/Agusto; AA-/GCR

LAGOS

14.50 LAGOS 22-NOV-2019

22-Nov-12

14.50

80.00

22-Nov-19

4.95

1.00

15.08

98.00

A/Agusto; A-/GCR

*OSUN

14.75 OSUN 12-DEC-2019

12-Dec-12

14.75

27.51

12-Dec-19

2.83

2.74

16.97

95.21

A/Agusto

*OSUN

14.75 OSUN II 10-OCT-2020

10-Oct-13

14.75

11.40

10-Oct-20

3.39

1.00

15.19

98.92

Aa-/Agusto; AA-/GCR

LAGOS

13.50 LAGOS IV 27-NOV-2020

27-Nov-13

13.50

87.50

27-Nov-20

5.97

1.00

14.98

94.27

A-/Agusto; BBB+/DataPro

KOGI

15.00 KOGI 31-DEC-2020

31-Dec-13

15.00

5.00

31-Dec-20

6.06

1.94

15.91

96.50

A/Agusto A-/GCR

*EKITI *NASARAWA

14.50 EKITI II 31-DEC-2020 15.00 NASARAWA 06-JAN-2021

31-Dec-13

14.50

4.78

31-Dec-20

3.54

1.44

15.62

97.14

17.00

0.41

17-Feb-19

2.19

Investment value dips further by N241bn activities on the shares the NSE ASI and market 06-Jan-14 of blue chip companies capitalisation, dropped TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE Stock marketCAPITALISATION slowed momentum to by 2.26 per cent, as the TOTAL MARKET give the bears the enable- market tempo lowered. sustains downward Corporate Bonds At the close of trading, ment to sustain strongGUARANTY TRUST 18-DEC-2014 18-Dec-09 Aa/Agusto GTB trends 13 stocks appreciated, hold on the13.50 local bourse. µ 17.00 NGC 31-DEC-2014 01-Apr-10 NGC Nil PZ Cussons, Nigerian while 34 others consti10.00 UPDC 17-AUG-2015 17-Aug-10 Bbb-/Agusto *UPDC tuted the losers’ table. Breweries and Seplat Pe12.00 FLOURMILLS 9-DEC-2015 A-/Agusto 09-Dec-10 *FLOURMILLS introleum along with Guin14.00 CHELLARAMS 06-JAN-2016 The twin market BB+/GCR by Chris Ugwu 06-Jan-11 Stories *CHELLARAMS 13.00 NAHCO A+/Agusto; A-/GCR 29-Sep-11 NAHCO ness Nigeria and 29-SEP-2016 other dicators, the All-Share FSDHweight, 25-OCT-2016 A-/Agusto he 25-Oct-13 FSDH Index dropped by 728 Nigerian blue chips14.25 shed 30-SEP-2017 A/GCR 30-Sep-10 UBA stock market basis points or 2.26 per dragging 13.00 theUBA market 18.00 C&I LEASING 30-NOV-2017 BBB-/GCR 30-Nov-12 & I LEASING yesterday *C consouthwards. cent from 32,932.41 the MPR+7.00 DANA 9-APR-2018 09-Apr-11 Nil *DANA#{r} tinued to tread The twin market previous day to close at MPR+7.00 TOWER 9-SEP-2018 09-Sep-11 A-/DataPro†; BB-/GCR *TOWER# maronAAA/DataPro†; the negative as# performance measures, MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-201832,203.62, while the 09-Sep-11 A+/GCR path, *TOWER ket capitalisation 22-Sep-11 fell by 14.00 UBA II 22-SEP-2018 A/Agusto; A/GCR UBA 15.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018 Bbb+/Agusto; BBB+/GCR 18-Oct-13 *LA CASERA N241 billion or 2.26 per

PLUNGING

PZ Cussons’ profit falls on Nigeria woes BBB-/DataPro†; BB+/GCR

*CHELLARAMS#

MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-2019

Nil

*DANA#{r}

16.00 DANA II 1-APR-2019

A+/Agusto; A-/GCR

NAHCO

15.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020

A/GCR

STANBIC IBTC

182D T.bills+1.20 STANBIC IA 30-SEP-2024

A/GCR

STANBIC IBTC

13.25 STANBIC IB 30-SEP-2024

17-Feb-12

ritish soap and corded the previous year, shampoo maker PZ representing a decline of Supranational BondPlc said Cussons 30.8 per cent. 10.20 dipped IFC 11-FEB-2018 IFC itsAAA/S&P first-half operating Turnover to 11.25 AFDBduring 1-FEB-2021 Aaa/Moody's; profit fell 4AAA/S&P per cent,AfDB hurt N15.019 billion OUTSTANDING VALUE the period, compared byTOTAL tough trading conditions inMARKET Nigeria and a with 15.066 billion in the TOTAL CAPITALISATION devaluation of the naira. same period of last year. According Description Rating/Agencyto Reuters IssuerThe Nigerian unit of News, the maker of Impe- British household prodFGN Eurobonds rial Leather soaps, said a ucts maker had reported potential further volatil- 9.15 per cent decline in pre6.75 JAN 28, 2021 BB-/Fitch; B+/S&P ityBB-/Fitch; in the currency and tax profit for the financial 5.13 JUL 12, 2018 year ended May 31, 2014 the upcoming presiden- FGN BB-/S&P In a filing with the 6.38 Ex-JUL 12, 2023 tial elections in its core BB-/Fitch; BB-/S&P Nigeria could be market change, the company’s TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE key contributing factors pre-tax profit fell to N6.94 MARKET CAPITALISATION billion during the year forTOTAL the full year. PZ Cussons Nigeria under review against Corporate Eurobonds Plc had also recorded N7.65 billion recorded 11.50 FEB 01, 2016 AFREN PLC I a B/Fitch; 30.8 B-/S&P per cent decline the previous year, repre7.50 MAY 19, 2016 B+/S&P GTBANK PLC I inB+/Fitch; pre-tax profit for the senting a decline of 9.15 7.25 JUL 25, 2017 B+/S&P ACCESS BANK PLC per cent. first quarter 2015 ended B/Fitch; B/S&P FIDELITY BANK PLC August 30, 2014. The revenue rose6.88toMAY 09, 2018 6.00 NOV 08, 2018 B+/Fitch; B+/S&P GTBANK PLC In a filing with the Ni- N72.90 billion 2014 from 10.25 APR 08, 2019 B/Fitch AFREN PLC II gerian Stock Exchange N71.34 billion a year earlier. 6.25 APR 22, 2019 B+/Fitch; BB-/S&P ZENITH BANK PLC (NSE), the company’s The company said con8.75 May 21, 2019 B/Fitch; B/S&P DIAMOND BANK PLC pre-tax profit fell FIRST to N tinued unrest in north8.25 AUG 07, 2020 B-/Fitch; B/S&P BANK PLC 872.29 during thePLC IIIern Nigeria has resulted 6.63 DEC 09, 2020 B-/Fitch;million B/S&P AFREN period under review, as BANKinPLCaII decline in9.25/6M sales in USD LIBOR+7.677 JUN 24, 2021 B-/Fitch; B/S&P ACCESS against N1.261 billion rethat region. 8.00/2Y USD SWAP+6.488 JUL 23 2021 B-/Fitch; B/S&P FIRST BANK LTD TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

8.75 AUG 14, 2021

ECOBANK NIG. LTD

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

16.00 01-Apr-19 3.06 inancial analysts have 4.50 14-Nov-13 15.25 2.05 14-Nov-20 5.93 expressed worry over 30-Sep-14 11.93 0.10 30-Sep-24 9.81 the structure of Fed- 15.44 30-Sep-14 13.25 30-Sep-24 9.81 eral Government of Nigeria 139.80 (FGN) spending. 134.74 Seventy-seven per cent of the government’s spend- related with the price since 11-Feb-13 11-Feb-18from a num3.17 ing are recurrent; 10.20 while the 12.00 they are derived 10-Jul-14 11.25 01-Feb-21 4.39 rest are capital, leaving little 12.95 ber of taxes as well as sales funds for infrastructural proj- 24.95 of crude. ects that would leapfrog the 21.96“They give a good starting growth of the economy. point of N1.3 trillion for the Outstanding Value Coordinating Minister reduction Maturity in disbursements Date Bid Yield (%) Issue Date Coupon (%) ($mm) of the Economy (CME), Dr. over a full year at US$70/b. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who dis- Total capital spending by the FGN alone,28-Jan-21 the largest of5.88the closed these, acknowledged in 500.00 07-Oct-11 6.75 her speech that there would three tiers of government, 12-Jul-13 5.13 cuts in 500.00 12-Jul-18 “inevitably” be some amounted to N1.1trn in 5.03 2013. capital spending in 2015. We have to recognise that gov12-Jul-13 6.38 500.00 12-Jul-23 6.16 According to analysts at ernments the world over tend FBN Capital, Okonjo-Iweala, 1,500.00 to cut capital projects ahead estimates by the local media 1,530.62 of recurrent costs such as sallast week suggested that dis- aries and statutory transfers bursements by the Federation because they thereby lessen 01-Feb-11 01-Feb-16 8.35 Account Allocation11.50 Commit- 450.00 the confrontation with inter19-May-11 7.50 19-May-16 4.75 tee (FAAC) would fall by N110 500.00 ested parties,” the experts 25-Jul-12 25-Jul-17 7.47 billion each month 7.25 next year, 350.00 said. 09-May-13 02-May-18 10.32 that the CME’s compared with the6.88 recorded 300.00They noted 08-Nov-13 6.00 400.00 08-Nov-18 7.84 averages for January-October proposals have to be approved 08-Apr-12 10.25 300.00 08-Apr-19 9.66 2014.22-Apr-14 They were based on an by the National Assembly, 6.25 500.00 22-Apr-19 7.48 average oil price of8.75US$70/b 200.00 which knows that a lowering 21-May-14 21-May-19 11.67 for 2015. of the benchmark broadly 07-Aug-13 8.25 300.00 07-Aug-20 8.14 “We note that oil6.63 revenues 360.00 means less09-Dec-20 spending money 09-Dec-13 10.72 flowing into the federation ac- 400.00 for the three tiers. 24-Jun-14 9.25 24-Jun-21 10.40 count are not all directly cor- 450.00They added this 23-Jul-14 8.00 23-Jul-21that at 9.30 14-Aug-14

8.75

6.11

20.36

94.61

2.16

16.37

99.22

2.76

16.75

94.47

1.00

14.71

85.74

1.00

14.71

92.49

250.00

14-Aug-21

9.64

point, it is not clear that the 1.00 15.21 assembly has taken on87.72 board 1.00full implications 15.13 88.28 the of the macro worries. “We also have to mention the inconvenience of the electoral calendar. several Offer Yield (%) Bid Price It isOffer Price years since the budget has Prices & Yields been signed off by February, so5.66 we have 104.43 to note the prob105.55 ability that the 2015 docu4.73 will not 100.30 101.28into ment be passed law until Q2. According to one 6.02 101.39 102.38 theory, the high point in the year for global crude supply and the low point for the international price will fall in this quarter,” they said. 8.35 103.30 The FGN103.30 has lowered its 4.75 103.75 proposed oil price 103.75 bench7.47 99.48 99.48 mark for the 2015 budget 9.33 90.32 92.98 from US$73/b to US$65/b. The 6.82 93.90 97.23 CME said in her conference 9.66 102.00 102.00 speech in Abuja recently that 7.48 95.50 95.50 her budget team had made 10.09 90.09 95.27 the necessary 8.14 99.75projections 99.75 for a 10.72 US$60/b 82.25 benchmark 82.25 and could the exercise 10.01 even repeat 94.88 96.63 for9.30US$40/b.92.88 92.88 8.88

4,760.00

FMDQ Daily Quotations List

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

ers’ with 6.21 3.57 per cent 1.95subsector 06-Jan-21 16.13was enhanced 97.15 to close at N30.98 per by the activities in the share. Shares of Nige- shares of GTB Plc and rian Breweries, Seplat ETI Plc. Petroleum Plc, Guinness Also, other financial 18-Dec-14 0.02 5.21 24.01 99.74 Nigeria and Livestock services subsector99.33 of the 31-Dec-14 0.06 8.71 26.91 Feeds depreciated by 5 financial services sector, 17-Aug-15 0.44 4.88 18.46 96.59 per cent each to0.75close at 1.00boosted15.01 by the activity 09-Dec-15 97.95 in N161.31, N135.85 2.63the shares 06-Jan-16 N341.92, 0.60 16.11 of FBNH 98.91 Plc, 29-Sep-16 1.80 96.41 and N2.28 per share re- 1.00followed15.32 with a turnover 25-Oct-16 . 1.88 1.34of 110.4 15.63 97.78 spectively million shares 30-Sep-17 2.81 On the activity chart, 1.00valued 15.23 at N916.8 95.01 billion 30-Nov-17 1.83 1.88 16.19 103.57 the Banking sub-sector in 786 deals. 09-Apr-18 1.83 3.48 17.79 97.64 dominated in 2.00 volume 5.20 In all, investors ex09-Sep-18 19.45 98.07 terms with 179.4 a total of 376.2 09-Sep-18 2.00million 5.06changed 19.31 101.85 shares N2.8 bil- 1.35million15.52 shares, 95.72 worth 22-Sep-18 worth 3.78 18-Oct-18 2.10 16.54 in 4,230 98.92 lion in 1,607 deals. The 2.29N6.6 billion deals.

Structure of government’s spending worries analysts

01-Apr-14

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

B-/S&P

cent, 15.00 from N10, 872 4.79trillion to N10.631 trillion. 470.44 Further analysis 446.20 of the day’s trading showed that Nacho Nigeria Plc 13.50 13.17 advanced by 4.94 per 17.00 2.00 cent to close at N4.45 per 10.00 3.61 share12.00 to lead the gainers’ 9.34 table,14.00 while e-Transact 0.60 13.00 Plc followed with 15.00 a gain 14.25 of 4.74 per cent to5.53 close 13.00 at N2.43 per share.20.00 Acad18.00 0.64 emy 16.00 Press Plc appreci6.30 ated by 4.63 per cent to 18.00 2.90 close 16.00 at N1.13per share. 0.80 On14.00 the flip side, 35.00 PZ 15.75 Cussons led the2.40los-

90.95

94.88

98.50

10-Dec-14

4,571.98

The DQL contains data relating to, amongst other things, market and model prices, rates of foreign exchange products, fixed income securities and instruments in the financial market (the “Information”). The Information does not **Treasury Bills FIXINGS Money Market Foreign Exchange (Spot & Forwards) constitute professional, financial or investment advice. We attempt to ensure the Information is accurate; however, the Information is provided “AS IS” and on an “AS AVAILABLE” basis and may not be accurate or up to date. We do not DTM Bid Discount (%) Offer Discount (%) (%) Tenor (%) guarantee the accuracy, timeliness, Maturity completeness, performance or fitness for a particular purpose of anyBid of Yield the Information, neither do we accept liability for the results of any actionRate taken on the basis of the Information. NIBOR FGN

15 22 29 Bonds36 43 50 Rating/Agency 57 64 71 78 85 92 106 113 120 127 NA 134 141 148 155 239 267 358

25-Dec-14 1-Jan-15 8-Jan-15 15-Jan-15 22-Jan-15 29-Jan-15 Issuer 5-Feb-15 12-Feb-15 19-Feb-15 26-Feb-15 5-Mar-15 12-Mar-15 26-Mar-15 2-Apr-15 9-Apr-15 16-Apr-15 NA 23-Apr-15 30-Apr-15 7-May-15 14-May-15 6-Aug-15 3-Sep-15 3-Dec-15

18.65 18.15 17.00 15.50 14.15 14.80 Description 14.45 14.25 4.00 23-APR-2015 14.40 13.05 16-AUG-2016 14.70 15.10 27-APR-2017 13.75 9.85 27-JUL-2017 14.10 9.35 31-AUG-2017 14.10 10.70 30-MAY-2018 13.80 16.00 29-JUN-2019 13.30 14.05 7.00 23-OCT-2019 13.23 16.39 27-JAN-2022 12.52 14.20 14-MAR-2024 12.30 15.00 28-NOV-2028 12.19 12.49 22-MAY-2029 12.90 8.50 20-NOV-2029 12.35 10.00 23-JUL-2030 13.35 12.1493 18-JUL-2034

18.40 17.90 16.75 15.25 13.90 14.55 Issue Date 14.20 14.00 23-Apr-10 14.15 16-Aug-13 14.45 27-Apr-12 13.50 27-Jul-07 13.85 31-Aug-07 13.85 30-May-08 13.55 29-Jun-12 13.05 13.80 23-Oct-09 12.98 27-Jan-12 12.27 14-Mar-14 12.05 28-Nov-08 11.94 22-May-09 12.65 20-Nov-09 12.10 23-Jul-10 13.10 18-Jul-14

18.79 18.35 17.23 15.74 14.39 15.11 Coupon (%) 14.78 14.62 4.00 14.81 13.05 15.18 15.10 14.20 9.85 14.62 9.35 14.70 10.70 14.42 16.00 13.91 14.77 7.00 13.91 16.39 13.16 14.20 12.95 15.00 12.86 12.49 14.09 8.50 13.58 10.00 15.36 12.1493

Bonds

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

Tenor O/N 1M 3M Outstanding 6M Value

Maturity Date

(N'bn) 535.00 573.89 452.80 Tenor 20.00 1M 100.00 2M 300.00 3M 351.30 6M 9M 233.90 12M 600.00

OBB

Rate (%) 44.7917 18.0922 17.0253 17.3035

NITTY

23-Apr-15 16-Aug-16 27-Apr-17 Rate (%) 27-Jul-17 14.8575 31-Aug-17 15.0190 30-May-18 15.0813 29-Jun-19 15.1194 15.2697 23-Oct-19 15.5180 27-Jan-22

396.68 14-Mar-24 75.00 28-Nov-28 150.00 NIFEX 22-May-29 200.00 20-Nov-29 Current Price ($/N) 591.57 23-Jul-30 BID($/N) 181.7500 150.00 18-Jul-34 OFFER ($/N) 181.8500

4,730.13

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION *for the Amortising bonds, the average life is calculated and not the duration

20.83

Spot O/N 22.83 7D 14D REPO Offer Tenor Rate (%) 1MYield TTM (Yrs) Bid Yield (%) Call 24.00 2M (%) 1M 18.79 3M 0.37 14.11 13.67 3M 18.10 6M 1.68 14.25 14.15 6M 18.75 1Y 2.38 14.26 14.18 2.63 14.24 14.16 NOTE: 2.72 14.23 14.16 3.47 14.19 14.07 :Benchmarks 4.55 Bond 14.14 14.06 * :Amortising µ :Convertible 4.87 Bond 14.09 13.98 AMCON: Asset Corporation of Nigeria 7.13 Management 13.96 13.90 FGN: Federal Nigeria 9.26 Government of 13.90 13.84 FMBN: Federal of Nigeria 13.97 Mortgage Bank 13.15 13.10 IFC: International Finance Corporation 14.45 13.07 13.02 LCRM: Local Contractors Receivables Management 14.95 12.99 12.93 NAHCO: Nigerian Aviation Handling Company 15.62 13.46 13.41 O/N: Overnight 19.60 13.15 13.10 UPDC: UAC Property Development Company WAPCO:West Africa Portland Cement Company

Rating/Agency

Issuer

Bid ($/N)

Offer ($/N)

179.90 180.00 180.38 Price 180.48 180.66 180.80 181.32 181.77 Bid Price Offer Price 182.55 183.51 183.77 185.21 96.43 96.58 187.96 190.80 98.20 98.35 196.89 202.24 101.60 101.75 90.61 90.76 89.25 89.40 90.98 NA :Not90.68 Applicable 106.05Rate Bond 106.35 # :Floating ***: Deferred 75.60 coupon bonds 75.90 110.70 111.00 †: Bond rating expired 101.80 101.50 N/A :Not Available 111.71 112.01 {r} :Issuer in receivership96.55 96.25 70.67 70.97 NGC: Nigeria-German Company 77.60 77.90 UBA: United Bank for Africa 93.00 93.30

4,514.89

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

Tenor

Description

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

Risk Premium (%)

Valuation Yield (%)

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

0.45 1.19 2.00 2.36 Implied Yield 2.57

2.63 2.27 2.00 1.00 Implied Portfolio 1.00Price

16.12 16.94 16.25 15.25 INDEX 15.24

Indicative Price

Agency Bonds FMBN ***LCRM Modified Duration Buckets

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION 3<5 >5

Sub-National Bonds

Market

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-2017Total Outstanding Porfolio Market Value(Bn) 0.00/16.50 LCRM III 06-JUL-2017 Volume(Bn)

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

24.56

INDEX3.00

112.22 116.70 Bucket Weighting 66.49

322.97

1,023.60

1,026.68

32.95

33.43

1,439.38

1,347.98

43.26

47.02

313.06 0.43

598.56

741.57

23.80

19.55

0.24

3,061.54

3,116.23

100.00

1.00

14.02

14.26

117.3480

1,114.57

45.46

13.97

124.3471

1,052.92

5.2924

40.52

13.39

93.1347

1,088.91

8.8908

13.78

114.6135

100.00

1,094.46

11.4567

9.4459

A+/Agusto

KADUNA

31-Aug-10

12.50

31-Aug-15

0.72

4.44

18.35

96.14

A/Agusto

*EBONYI

13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015

30-Sep-10

13.00

4.18

30-Sep-15

0.56

3.23

16.60

98.90

A-/Agusto

*BENUE

14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-11

14.00

6.27

30-Jun-16

0.85

4.46

18.78

95.93

A+/Agusto

*IMO

15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-09

15.50

7.37

30-Jun-16

0.85

3.48

17.81

98.15

A+/Agusto; A+/GCR

LAGOS

10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017

19-Apr-10

10.00

57.00

19-Apr-17

2.36

5.59

19.84

82.11

A-/Agusto

*BAYELSA

13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017

30-Jun-10

13.75

29.92

30-Jun-17

1.40

1.00

15.49

97.80

A/Agusto

EDO

14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017

30-Dec-10

14.00

25.00

31-Dec-17

3.06

1.79

16.00

95.28

A+/Agusto; A+/GCR

*DELTA

14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018

30-Sep-11

14.00

34.14

30-Sep-18

2.23

1.80

16.05

96.53

A-/Agusto; A-/GCR

NIGER

14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018

04-Oct-11

14.00

9.00

04-Oct-18

3.82

1.00

15.16

96.66

12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015

8.50

0.33

93.16 100.45 99.59 YTD96.83 Return (%) 93.85

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY DECEMBER 11, 2014

News 45

SOUTH-WEST

$90m loan: Lagos, SERAP know fate March 3 EXPENDITURE Spending on furniture in Lagos public schools is called to question Akeem Nafiu

ustice Saliu Saidu of a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos will on March

3, next year rule on a suit filed by a human rights group, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) against the Lagos State governor, Babatunde Fashola and the AttorneyGeneral and Commissioner for Justice, Ade Ipaye. The applicant is seeking information on the spending of a $90 million loan given to the state government by the

World Bank to develop the education sector. At yesterday’s proceedings, SERAP’s lawyer, Olakayode Majekodunmi, in his argument, said the information being sought for is not a public record and that by virtue of the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act, the Lagos State government is duty bound to make the information requested, available. However, in his sub-

mission, the Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, urged the court to dismiss the plaintiff ’s action for want of jurisdiction. He said: “Having regard to the principles of federalism, the court has no jurisdiction to entertain the matter.” Ipaye noted that the matter before the court is expressly covered in

paragraphs 4 and 5 of the concurrent legislative list of the constitution, saying matters of public records of the state have been confined to the House of Assembly. After listening to the submissions of lawyers to the parties, Justice Saidu adjourned to March 3, 2015 for ruling. It will be recalled that SERAP had in January sued the government over alleged failure to release in-

formation and documents on the spending for the past five years on furniture and other facilities in public schools in Lagos State. The schools over which the governor is being dragged to court include Ewutuntun Grammar School in Mafoluku area of Oshodi; Ikeja Grammar School; Iloro Grammar School in Agege and Fagba Junior Grammar School, Iju Road.

SURE-P job fair ends in Lagos Lanre Odukoya Lagos

Chairman, APC Election Committee, Dr. Kayode Fayemi (left) and former Osun State governor, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, at the party’s presidential primaries in Lagos … yesterday

Etaghene Edirin

he Lagos State governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Jimi Agbaje, has challenged Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, to speak the truth about the so-called excess votes reportedly recorded in Monday’s primaries. He also responded to a statement by the Lagos State Publicity Secretary for the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Joe Igbokwe, that it would not be congratulating Agbaje because of the controversy, asking the rival party

Agbaje says Obanikoro privy to excess votes, blasts APC to put its house in order before meddling into the business of others. Agbaje called on the APC not to present a holierthan-thou attitude over the issue since it does not adhere to democratic tenets, but rather rely more on imposition of candidates. In a statement released yesterday by Felix Oboagwina, Director of Media and Publicity for Agbaje campaign group, the PDP candidate said that in the

course of the primaries, the six aspirants agreed that there was a clerical omission in the originally announced tally of 806, as it had left out some ad hoc and statutory delegates from a few local governments, and that they should be reckoned and allowed to vote. The statement said: “Obanikoro and the other aspirants, together with their agents, were party to this agreement,” Oboag-

wina said. “In fact, Obanikoro left his seat, along with the others, when the chairman of the Electoral Committee, Senator Seidu Kumo, called attention to the clerical omission. “The agents and aspirants were previously informed of the clerical omission. And it is the height of mischief, indecency and dishonesty for anyone to falsely cry Wolf to something that everybody mutually agreed to.”

Bankole faults Ogun PDP primaries Kunle Olayeni Abeokuta

he former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole, yesterday faulted the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primaries in Ogun State, saying that his ambition to contest the gubernatorial election in 2015 is still on course. He spoke while reacting to Monday’s gubernatorial primaries, where former governorship

candidate of the Peoples Party of Nigeria (PPN), Prince Gboyega Isiaka, was elected as the PDP standard bearer. Bankole, in a statement made available to reporters in Abeokuta, said the governorship primary election was in violation of the decision reached on Sunday with the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) in Abuja. The statement was signed by the Public Relations Officer, Dimeji

Bankole Movement (DBM), Hon. Kayode Akintunde. According to the former speaker, the Sunday meeting had the PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu, ex-Governor Gbenga Daniel and Prince Buruji Kashamu as well as himself in attendance. He said it was resolved at the meeting that Monday’s gubernatorial primary should be put on hold pending the time all issues are resolved. He added that all the purported primaries

earlier conducted were declared null and void. Bankole also claimed that the meeting resolved that no member should query or challenge the decision of the NWC in court ‘and finally that the party will make a decision that will be fair and acceptable to the three leaders by Monday.’ He said: “It is however unfortunate that despite the agreement reached on the said date, some people still went ahead to conduct the primaries.”

he Subsidy Re-investment and Employment Programme (SURE-P) through its Community Service, Youth and Women Empowerment scheme has commenced a job fair for unemployed graduates in Lagos State. The job fair, organised under the SURE-P Graduate Internship Scheme, commenced on Monday, December 8 and will be ending today. The venue of the fair is the Welcome Centre Hotels, International Airport Road, Ikeja, Lagos, for potential employees who are mainly resident on the mainland.

Majekodunmi blasts NMA, JOHESU over strike issues Adesina Wahab Ado-Ekiti

he Chief Medical Director of the Federal Teaching Hospital, IdoEkiti, Dr. Ayodele Majekodunmi, has called on the Federal Government to confront the issue of incessant strike in the health sector by preventing impunity on the part of unions to declare strike unrestrained. He said if such restraints are in place, health unions like the Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU), the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), among others, would think twice before declaring strike actions. Speaking in Ido-Ekiti yesterday, Majekodunmi said until such was done; the needless contest for supremacy among practitioners in the sector would continue to hold the sector and the country at large to ransom. He also lauded the efforts of President Goodluck Jonathan in upgrading the hospital

to a full-fledged teaching hospital, saying the feat was made possible through partnership with Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti. Lamenting the protracted feud between doctors and other medical personnel in the sector, Majekodunmi said the situation had bred unhealthy rivalry in every government ownedinstitution across the country and is taking its toll on the system. The consultant psychiatrist added that the leadership crisis between members of the NMA and those of JOHESU, was affecting the system, urging President Jonathan to end the crisis once and for all through stringent policy pronouncements. He said: “There is so much impunity in the system. Nigerian health workers seem not to have respect for the constituted authorities. That accounts for the incessant strike they embark upon that has crippled the sector.”

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY DECEMBER 11, 2014

Clement James CALABAR

he Cross River State government has challenged security agents in the country to provide adequate security whenever required, particularly in the run off to the State carnival, as well as for the general election next year. This call was made by the Special Adviser on security to the governor, Mr. Rekpene Bassey, at a one day security training workshop for security operatives held at the Trans-

8,100

News 47

SOUTH-SOUTH

C’River tasks security agents on Calabar carnival

Oghiadomhe blasts APC over comment on insurgency

corp Metropolitan Hotel in Calabar yesterday. Speaking at the event, Bassey, said the carnival has assumed a prominent place in the life of the people of the place, urging security agents to rise up to the occasion of adequately protecting lives and property during important occasions like the carnival and the

Cajetan Mmuta

he number of adults and children estimated to be living with HIV in Bolivia in 2008. Source: Blatantworld.com

coming general election. He noted that the success of security during the period will go a long way in determining the preparation of the security agencies to providing adequate security in the forthcoming elections. “This security workshop has been held yearly since I assumed office. It is important to look back and

1.3m

The number of children under five years that died of diarrhoeal diseases in 2001. Source: Unesco.org

review our security in the past and map out strategies for the coming Calabar carnival, which success will go a long way in helping us to plan for next year’s election,” he said. While appreciating the cooperation of some security agencies in fighting crime in the state, Bassey noted that as the most peaceful

18%

he percentage of the population under 15 years in Auba in 2012. Source: Un.org

state in the south south region, security agencies have enormous responsibility to ensure that the carnival was conducted in an atmosphere devoid of security threat. He urged them to be more proactive in order to nip crime in the bud before it happens, explaining that preventing crime is the best way to go.

1.34m

The number of fixed-telephone subscriptions of Bangladesh in 2008. Source: Itu.int

L-R: Public Releations Manager, GOtv, Efe Obiomah; MultiChoice Mega Dealer, Jacob Awona and General Manager, GOtv, Elizabeth Amkpa, at the GOtv media launch in Warri, Delta State …yesterday

BENIN

ormer Chief of Staff to President Goodluck Jonathan condemned the position of chieftains of the main opposition party, All Progressives Congress over claim that they would end insurgency if the party is elected into office come 2015. Ogiadomhe, who stated this while fielding questions from newsmen in Auchi, headquarters of Etsako West Council of Edo state during the just concluded Senatorial primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), described the opposition’s position as hypocritical, stating that the posturing by anybody that they would end insurgency only suggests that such elements are only grandstanding as a way of hoodwinking the citizenry to have access to the nation’s seat of power.. He cautioned the opposition, stating that leaders who wish the country well should not wait until the insurgents have done the damage, before they intervene. He pointed out that such promise or claim was laughable as no one ever knows who the next victim of the insurgents will be as the violence was not being targeted at a particular set of people.

Activists mark Human Rights’ Day in Benin

Nwaoboshi may dump PDP for Accord

Cajetan Mmuta

ASABA

BENIN

takeholders at this year’s World Human Rights Day yesterday kicked against the continued supervision of the Nigeria’s judiciary by the executive arm of government they insisted that it does not create room for autonomy, but rather paves the way for brazen violation of the people’s fundamental human rights. At the event organized yesterday in Benin Edo State capital by members of the civil society organizations and human rights activists, the speakers in turn, harped on the importance of intensified awareness creation on the empowerment of the judicial arm of government. They noted that human rights are God-given rights and bestowed on human beings, pointing out that the Univer-

sal Declaration of such rights by the United Nations goes to show that they are not subject to the whims of powers that be. Among the speakers at the event were Comrade Austine Osakue, Chairman and Coordinator of Coalition to Save Nigeria Dr. Philip Ugbodaga, Edo State Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Comrade Desmond Agbama, Barrister L.O. Alao, who canvassed the need for greater awareness campaigns among the citizens. According to them law officers and the judiciary cannot do much to protect the rights of the citizenry if they are not sufficiently empowered. The speakers argued that most Nigerians are ignorant of their rights, even when sections 33 to 49 in the 1999 constitution as amended contain the fundamental human rights of Nigerians.

Dominic Adewole

ne of the two Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), senatorial aspirants for the Delta North Senato rial district laying claim to victory from the rescheduled party’s primary election, which was inconclusive on Tuesday, Chief Peter Nwaoboshi, may have defected to the Accord Party. The exercise was said to have produced paral-

lel candidates, Nwaoboshi and wife of former National Chairman of the party, Dr. Ahmadu Ali, Mariam Ali, as there was a seeming uproar yesterday in Asaba over alleged double-candidature for the party. Nwoboshi, who claimed to have defeated Ali and three others in the race during the rescheduled primary election, is said to have secured the Accord Party (AP) Senatorial ticket, as alternative if the odds do not favour him in the PDP.

Although, Nwaoboshi, declined comments when contacted yesterday, he, however, boasted during the botched primary election that he has his plan ‘B’, if the party hijacks the ticket for Mrs. Ali. “This is the third time she (Mrs. Ali) has contested election in this state and she has failed in all the elections, and I call on PDP to take appropriate action, because also, I have an option”, he said. The duo of Nwao-

boshi and Mrs. Ali, have been at daggers’ drawn for months over who succeeds Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, who has won the governorship ticket of the state, at the Senate next year. The primary election was shifted from last week Saturday to Tuesday, following security reasons. Before the three-man electoral panel, headed by Mr. Raphael Kukuh, abandoned the election halfway for safety reasons.

Akwa Ibom aspirants want primaries cancelled Onyekachi Eze ABUJA

he Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), governorship aspirants, under the umbrella of the Akwa Ibom Aspirants’ Forum has called for the nullification of the December 8 governorship primaries

held in the state. The body consisting of the 22 governorship aspirants, were at the PDP national secretariat in Abuja, yesterday to register their grievances over the conduct of the primary election, stating that the process did not comply with the rules, as they described the exercise as a sham.

Spokesman of the group, Ambassador Assam Assam alleged that there was no accreditation of the delegates before the exercise. “Accreditation was not done, meaning that delegates are not members of the party. People from all sorts of places were gathered. The pro-

cess was flawed; no ballot papers were issued”, he said. The aspirants had, earlier in a petition to the chairman of the PDP Governorship Electoral Panel for Akwa Ibom State, Prince Bola Oyebowale, alleged multiplicity of the lists of delegates for the primary.

News

Court clears Ugbah for APC guber primaries Cephas Iorhemen Makurdi

he leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Benue State yesterday suffered its first defeat before a Makurdi High Court, presided over by Justice Theresa Igoche, when it renounced its earlier exclusion of its governorship aspirant, Prof. Steve Torkuma Ugbah, from contesting the governorship primaries in the state. APC Chairman in the state, Mr. Abba Yaro, who spoke through his lead counsel, Omale Omale, told the court that; “We concede everything. Ugbah is a candidate in the primaries and will continue to be. We have no problem with that. And we are not contesting it.” With the APC conceding easily at the resumed hearing in the case yesterday, the stage is now set for the conduct of the governorship primaries in the state. Yaro had last week told journalists that the party’s defeated governorship candidate in the 2011 general election, Ugbah was excluded from contesting the primaries of the party last Friday on the grounds of zoning. Following the announcement by the party, Ugbah swiftly filed a suit at the Makurdi High Court to seek redress and was granted an injunction restraining the APC from going ahead with the primaries until the determination of the substantive suit, which it fixed for December 9, 2014.

Biodun Oyeleye Ilorin

embers of the Kwara State Elders’ Forum in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rose from an emergency meeting yesterday and rejected proposals to transfer the party’s botched gubernatorial primaries to Abuja, just as they warned against the imposition of any candidate on the party. Chairman of the party, Akogun Iyiola Oyedepo, had, on Monday, announced the cancellation of the exercise on arguments that the security arrangement had been breached. Eleven out of

101

Jos

he Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) Plateau State chapter has called on all state Houses of Assembly to endorse the bill on local government autonomy recently passed by both chambers of the National Assembly.

Kwara PDP elders warn against transfer of primaries the 12 gubernatorial aspirants came out later to condemn the alleged subversion of the exercise by some members of the party’s executive committee. They alleged that Oyedepo was working in tandem with some key members of the party to impose Mr. Dele Belgore on them, adding that some fake delegates were allegedly imported to the voting venue by the duo of Oyedepo and Belgore. Both men have, however, denied the allegations.

The sex ratio of men to 100 women in Australia in 2012. Source: Un.org

58,755

The number of air travel passengers of Ilorin airport in 2013. Source: National Bureau of Statistics

NULGE Chairman in the state, Comrade Samson Mafuyai, who led other officials during a press conference in Jos yesterday, called on all state Houses of Assembly to join their voices with those of other Nigerians to endorse the bill in the interest of progress and development in the council areas. Mafuyai said voting

against the bill by the state Houses of Assembly will amounts to a betrayal of the wishes of the electorate as all of them are representative of one local government or the other. “We call on all state lawmakers against the granting of autonomy to local government to stop and rethink, because rather than brooding over spilled milk, we should be exploring avenues and mechanisms by which any loophole should be redressed for the overall benefit of our people.”

Haruna appointed VC education varsity Dan Atori MINNA

he Niger State governor, Muazu Babangida Aliyu, has approved the appointment of Prof. Farouk Abdulrasheed Haruna as the pioneer vice-chancellor of the newly established Niger State University of

There had been insinuations that the state would be given the ‘Taraba treatment’ by transferring the venue of a fresh primaries to Abuja, where it is feared those rooting for a particular candidate would have an easy ride. But addressing newsmen in Ilorin at the end of its meeting, the elders’ forum said members were opposed to any other venue for fresh primaries outside Ilorin, pointing out that the fears of a possible

transfer of the primaries to another venue was the major reason for yesterday’s conference. Those present at yesterday’s meeting were former Deputy Governor, Chief Joel Ogundeji, Deputy Chairman of the forum, Alhaji Ayinla Folorunsho, Chief Henry Olaosebikan, Alhaji LAK Jimoh, Hon. Ayo Afolayan and Chief Kola Bukoye. Others were Alhaji Woru I. O; Alhaja Kuburat Kazim and Alhaji Bayo Adisa, as well as

£902,000

The average yearly salary of Russian League players in 2013-2014 season. Source: Soccernet.com

a cross section of the forum which met in the Ilorin home of Ogundeji. Folorunsho, who addressed newsmen on behalf of the group, also announced some ‘pleas’ from the forum to the national leadership of the party, chief among them, that the delegates’ list used for Monday’s botched primaries should be maintained and that the number of delegates on the list must not exceed the accredited 709 names certified by all stakeholders.

1.7%

The annual rate of population increase of Northern Africa in 2010-2015. Source: Un.org

A cross-section of Internally-displaced people of Goza, Borno State waiting to collect relief materials in Abuja... yesterday

NULGE urges Plateau House to endorse LG autonomy bill Musa Pam

THURSDAY DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

NORTH

Education, Minna. The appointment, as signed in a letter by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Hon. Saidu Ndako Idris, is for a single term of five years and it is expected to take effect from January 1, 2015. The letter reads in part: “Acting on the power conferred on him by the Con-

stitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and the law establishing the Niger State University of Education, No. 21 of 2013, the Governor of Niger State, Dr. Muazu Babangida Aliyu has approved your appointment as the Vice-Chancellor of the University with effect from January 1st, 2015.”

Pandemonium in Zamfara over PDP primaries Idris Salisu Gusau

here was pandemonium on Tuesday at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primaries in Zamfara State, following announcements on the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) and the Africa Independent Television (AIT) that the former governor of the state, Mahmuda Aliyu Shinkafi, who is aspiring to contest the governorship seat, has been declared the PDP candidate for the 2015 elections. The announcement came even before the commencement of voting that was scheduled to begin by 4.00pm. Officials of the Independent National Elec-

toral Commission (INEC) were said to have mysteriously disappeared from the venue of the election, leaving behind the delegates and the contestants. Speaking to the delegates, the party Chairman, Alhaji Hassan Nasiha, said there was a plan by some people to disrupt the election in order to destabilise the party. The chairman, who expressed disgust over the incident, told the delegates to disperse while no new date was announced for the primaries. Addressing journalists at the venue of the election, one of the contestants, Alhaji Bello Mutawalle, blamed some people in Abuja for the cancellation, because according to him, they realised that their

candidate would not win. According to Mutawalle, they have tried to impose a candidate on the people and when they realised that their candidate was going to lose, they told the INEC officials from Abuja to leave the venue. Also commenting on the development, another candidate, Alhaji Ibrahim Sahehu, said they would be going to Abuja to protest, adding that the primary election must be conducted. According to him, there were some people in Abuja, who wanted to kill the party in the state for their selfish interest. Sahehu said he would do everything to ensure that those people did not succeed in their sinister agenda.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY DECEMBER 11, 2014

News 49

NATIONAL

Anambra Assembly passes N164bn budget Tony Okafor AWKA

he Anambra State House of Assembly, yesterday passed the 2015 appropriation bill estimated at over N164 billion into law. Speaking on the passage of the budget,

264

Chairman of the Finance and Appropriation Committee, Hon. Nikky Ugochukwu, explained that after a thorough examination of the provisions in the budget, the estimated overhead cost was reduced from N282billion to N82billion. According to her, the

The number of Ebola virus case that occurred in Congo DR in 2007. Source: Who.int

overhead cost of the office of the Secretary to the State Government was slashed from N855 million to N755 million, while that of the Executive Governor’s office was increased from N16.774 billion to N17.07 billion. Similarly, the estimate for the Anambra State

The sex ratio of men to 100 women in the 60+ age group of Chile in 2012. Source: Un.org

Lands Information Management System, was reduced from N100 million to N30 million, while the financial provision for completion/expansion of the Ministry’s headquarter building was increased from N30 million to N100 million. Speaker of the House, Princess Chinwe Nwae-

N2.6bn

The total capital importation value of the Shares sector in 2007. Source: National Bureau of Statistics

bili, commended the lawmakers for working assiduously towards the passage of the budget in a record time, adding that it would enable the governor to start implementing the budget for the betterment of the state. The budget was the fastest ever passed by the House.

59.72%

The percentage of individuals using the internet in Belgium in 2006. Source: Itu.int

L-R: Executive Director, Zakat and Sadaqat Foundation (ZSF), Imam Abdullahi Shuaib; Chairman, Advisory Board, Alhaji Umaru Abdul Mutallab and Chairman, Prince Sulayman Olagunju, during the foundation’s 3rd mini-Zakat distribution in Lagos

INEC recants on rejection of PDP primary Adesina Wahab Ado-Ekiti

he Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has said that it did not fault the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), House of Representatives primary election in Ekiti North II, saying its duty is limited to the role of an observer in such exercise. According to a statement signed by the Public Relations Officer, Ekiti State, Alhaji Taiwo Gbadegesin, in Ado-Ekiti yesterday, INEC said it had no power to annul or reject the outcome of parties’ primary elections. This followed protest by the PDP that it duly conducted the exercise in accordance with all laid down rules and regulations and that Thaddeus Aina emerged the winner of the election. INEC, through the same Gbadegesin, in an interview had on Monday faulted the exercise, saying it was not aware that the exercise held. While agreeing that it had the power to monitor such exercise, INEC added that it could not dabble into the internal affairs of political parties.

Group wants Kalu in senatorial race Ambode’ll manage Lagos debt

group of Abia youths has called on the former Governor of Abia State Dr. Orji Kalu, to rescind his decision to withdraw from the Abia North senatorial race. The youths, under the auspices of Abia Mass Movement for Positive Change (Youth Wing), insisted that the former gover nor’s decision to withdraw from the race under the Peoples

Democratic Party (PDP) banner was understandable, but his decision not to run at all was not acceptable to them as the entire Abia citizens are presently clamouring for positive change. “Your Excellency, we are here today not for ourselves but as representatives of Abia youths. The older citizens, who are alive today appreciate your philanthropic gestures

especially the free medical scheme of Orji Kalu Foundation”, Nnaukwu Ndukwe remarked. “Our elders have sent us here today to deliver this noble message. They have sent us to plead with you to change your mind. We are pleading with you not to withdraw from the race, which is achievable on another platform other than the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).”

Elechi’s loyalists defect to LP Charles Onyekwere ABAKALIKI

ollowing the unsavoury outcome of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senatorial primary election in Ebonyi State, prominent members of the part and loyalists to Governor Martin Elechi, have dumped the party for the Labour Party in the state. Those who defected to the opposition include his son, Elechi Elechi, his in-law Senator Chris Nwankwo and two other members of the House of

representatives Hon. Tobias Okwuru representing Ikwo/Ezza South and Peter Ogali Ohaukwu/ Ebonyi yesterday defected to Labour Party(LP). Other defectors are some commissioners of Elechi’s cabinet, Care-taker Chairmen of the 13 local government areas of the state, seven members of the Ebonyi state House of Assembly, EBHA, Hon. Blaise Orji deputy speaker, Hon. Eni Udoma, former PDP chairman Prince Ama Ogorji, Hon. Mabel Aleke, Oliver Nwachukwu among others.

Addressing the defectors, the Deputy National Chairman of Labour Party, Chief Calistus Okereafor, revealed the preparedness of the party to win the next general election in the state, stressing that it was a welcome development for the aggrieved PDP faithful to join them. Meanwhile, the party has adopted Dr. Edward Nkwegu from Ebonyi North senatorial zone as against the wishes of governor Elechi, to hand over power to Ebonyi South zone as its gubernatorial flag-bearer.

profile, says Fashola’s aide Muritala Ayinla

gainst the backdrop of fears about the debt profile of Lagos State, described as capable of plunging it into serious crisis in future, the State Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Ayo Gbeleyi, yesterday said that the gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in the state, Akinwunmi Ambode, would manage the state finances better, if elected as the next governor.

He said that contrary to the perception of the public about the state’s debt profile, considered as huge, the state has maintained a sustainable debt ratio since 2009. He said, Ambode was part of the solid financial foundation for the state and will continue the developmental agenda and progress witnessed in the state, beyond institutionalizing and putting the necessary legal framework in place if he emerges gover-

nor in the 2015 election. He allayed the fear over debt profile while addressing investors and stakeholders First Annual General Meeting for the N87.5b Fixed Rate Bond Programme II, Series II, at the Civic Centre, Lagos. Gbeleyi, said Ambode, the former Accountant General of the State, has proved his mettle in recent times and has had a firsthand experience as far as governance in Lagos is concerned.

Osun PDP flays APC over financial ‘recklessness’ Adeolu Adeyemo Osogbo

sun State Chapter Of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has described the All Progressives Congress was led administration in the state as a failure saying, the government it reckless as well as being economical with the truth on the true state of situations in the state. The opposition party’s Director of Publicity,

Prince Diran Odeyemi, who stated the position in a statement in Osogbo, also alleged that the present administration of Governor Rauf Aregbesola, in the state has been looting the state resources. He accused the governor of squandering the state money on frivolities saying, “The fact that the aides of Ogbeni could not muster any meaningful defence against all our claims could only mean that Aregbesola, knows and is feeling sorry

for plunging Osun into huge debt because of personal ambition.” “We, however, call on Aregbesola to pay salaries of workers and stop funding his case before the Tribunal with state funds. Health workers in the state are on strike over unpaid entitlements , teachers are on sit down strike and every other sector is not spared of the self-created problems of the present ruler of Osun who sees every wrong doings as good.”

News

IN THE FAMILY

In a smart move, Imo gov. keeps the position in the family, win or lose the presidential primary Steve Uzoechi OWERRI

ollowing pressures and controversies, the Imo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has finally announced

SOUTH - EAST

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Okorocha picks son-in-law as Imo APC guber candidate Governor Rochas Okorocha’s son-in-law, Chief Uche Nwosu as its governorship candidate for the 2015 election. In an unannounced event shortly after the conclusion of the party's senatorial primaries last Saturday, Nwosu was ratified as the party’s

1.96m

The number of people that died due to infectious diarrhoeas in 2001. Source: Unesco.org

candidate in the small hours of Tuesday morning at the International Conference Centre, Owerri. The governorship candidate is the State Commissioner for Lands and Urban Development. It is widely believed in political circles that

36.19

The number of fixed-telephone subscriptions per 100 inhabitants of Aruba in 2009. Source: Itu.int.

Nwosu may be merely holding brief for Okorocha, who is vying to secure the party’s presidential ticket. Party sources confided in New Telegraph that Nwosu was apparently chosen because he seems the only person that can be trusted by the gover-

750m

The number of individuals using the internet in developed countries in 2008. Source: Itu.int

nor to hand him back the governorship ticket in the event of his failure in the APC presidential primaries. Speaking with journalists in Owerri, the State Chairman of the party, Dr. Hilary Eke, said the party decided to give its ticket to whoever it thinks

14%

The crude death rate of Middle Africa in 2010-2015. Source: Un.org

could win elections. It will be recalled that before this development, two top functionaries of the government had engaged themselves in a cold war over who succeeds Okorocha in the event that he bids for the presidency of the country.

Jonathan woos Ndigbo in Ibadan Sola Adeyemo IBADAN

L-R: Igwe Patrick Okolo of Nkpunano Autonomous Community; his wife, Lolo Grace; representative of NACA/SURE-P, Dr. Uduak Essien and Igwe Boniface Eze, at the inauguration of HIV counselling and test campaign in Nsukka, Enugu State …yesterday

Monarchs tip Umeh

Court dismisses fresh attempt to sack Obiano

bout 32 traditional rulers in Anambra Central Senatorial district yesterday endorsed the National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Sir Victor Umeh for senate in 2015, describing him as an asset to Ndigbo. Anambra central district has 57 traditional rulers. The monarch averred that Umeh remains a strong voice of the Igbo, who should be supported to the National Assembly to fight for the interest of the Igbo race. The monarchs made the assertion at the Palace of the Traditional Ruler of Ifitedunu community, Igwe Dr. Emeka Ilouno, during Umeh’s consultative visit to the monarchs. Umeh, the APGA Senatorial Candidate for Anambra Central district, while addressing the monarchs, gave

AWKA

Tony Okafor

Federal High Court sitting in Awka, Anambra State, yesterday dismissed a fresh suit to sack the state Governor, Willie Obiano over his alleged multiple registration as a voter. An Onitsha based human rights lawyer,

Jezie Ekejiuba, had approached the court, seeking the disqualification of Obiano as the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in the November 2013 governorship poll in the state, as well as the nullification of the entire election that produced the governor because of the alleged discrepancies in

his voting documents . In suit No.FHC/AWK/ CS/269/2013, brought against Obiano, the Anambra State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Prof. Chukwuemeka Onukaogu, and Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the plaintiff claimed the first defendant (Obiano) allegedly submitted a fake

voter’s card in his INEC Form CF001 sworn affidavit contrary to Section 31 (1) to (6) of the Amended Electoral Act, 2010. Justice Gafai, in dismissing the suit for lack of merit and inconsistency in reliefs sought, described the plaintiff ’s matter as a misconception, speculative and nonissue.

Appeal Court orders three federal lawmakers to pay N600m to firm

he Court of Appeal, sitting in Enugu, has ordered three members of the House of Representatives from Anambra State, to pay the sum of N200 million each to Kay Kay Construction limited. The company is said to be owned by Chief Chris Uba. The lawmakers ordered by the court to pay the debt are: Hon. Ben Nwankwo of Orumba North and

South(Federal constituency) Hon. Chizo Obidigwe o( Oyi and Ayamelum) and Hon Eucharia Azodo of Aguata Federal constituency. It was gathered that the lawmakers borrowed the said money from the firm to finance their 2011 elections, but reneged in paying. In a two against one judgment delivered by the Court of Appeal, Enugu, the court dismissed the appeal of the

three lawmakers. The lawmakers had challenged the judgment of the Enugu State High Court delivered by the Chief Judge of the state, Justice Innocent Umezurike. In the said judgment, Justice Umezurike held that the trio were indebted to Kay Kay Construction Limited and ordered them to pay the sum of N200 million each as reached in their agreement with the company.

Two of the three Judges, Justice Agim and Justice Sanusi agreed with judgment of the court below and dismissed the appeal for being frivolous and lacking in merit and awarded a N100, 000 costs against each of the lwamakers. However, Justice Bolaji, gave a dissenting judgment, disagreeing with the lower court and ruled that the matter should be re-listed for retrial

resident Goodluck Jonathan has described the Igbo nation as an agent of development, tolerance, peace and national integration. That was just as he solicited the support of the people of South-East in the 2015 poll. The President stated this in his message to the '2014 Igbo Cultural Day' organized by the Oyo State branch of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, which took place at the Obafemi Awolowo Stadium. In the message delivered on his behalf by the Director-General of the Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilization (CBAAC), Sir Ferdinard Ikechikwu Anikwe, the President commended the spirits of enterprise and creativity exhibited by Igbo people throughout the country. The Ezendigbo in Ibadanland and Oyo State, Eze (Dr.) Alex C. Anozie and President of the Oyo State branch of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Ndidi Emmanuel Nzeako, led thousands of members of different Igbo town unions and associations from all the 33 Local Government Areas of the state to the colourful event. Delivering Jonathan’s message, Anikwe declared that the President would continue to give encouragement to people that build bridges across various ethnic groups and nationalities like the Igbo people. He informed them that the President recognized the support that the people of the South-East have been giving to his administration, expressing optimism that the Igbo people would continue to support the transformation agenda of Jonathan’s administration.

WORLD | News

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Palestinian minister dies after altercation with Israeli forces in West Bank

Palestinian minister died yesterday shortly after an altercation with Israeli border police in the West Bank during which one of the policemen grabbed him by the neck. Ziad Abu Ein, 55, a minister without portfolio, was taking part in a protest against Israeli settlements when he was involved in clashes with around 30 Israeli troops and border police, a Reuters witness said. Abu Ein was confronted by a border policeman who grabbed him by the neck and briefly held him with one hand. Minutes later, the minister began to look faint and fell to the ground clasping his chest. He died on his way to the hospital. It was not clear what caused his death. Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas described the attack as “a barbaric act which we cannot be silent about or accept”. Abbas announced three days of national

mourning and said he would take “necessary steps” after an investigation. The Israeli army said it was looking into the incident. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Arabic language spokesman said the circumstances leading to the death of the minister were being investigated. The incident comes at a time of heightened tension between Israel and the Palestinians, following months of violent unrest in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Ten Israelis and a foreign visitor have been killed by Palestinian assailants over the past three months, while more than a dozen Palestinians have also been killed, including most of those who carried out the attacks. Abu Ein, who was convicted of killing two young Israelis in a bomb attack in 1979 and released as part of a prisoner swap in 1985, was a vocal opponent of Israel’s settlement building in the

West Bank, which Palestinians want as part of an independent state together with Gaza and East Jerusalem. Yesterday, he and around 100 foreign and Palestinian activists were on their way to plant trees near a Jewish settlement as part of a regular protest by a group called the Committee to Resist Settlements and the Wall. Shortly before his death,

Abu Ein spoke to television reporters, sounding hoarse and short of breath. “This is the terrorism of the occupation, this is a terrorist army, practicing its terrorism on the Palestinian people,” he told the official Palestine TV. “We came to plant trees on Palestinian land, and they launched into an attack on us from the first moment. Nobody threw a single stone.”

Palestinians in Ramallah closed shops in protest at the minister’s death and youths threw stones at Israeli soldiers guarding a Jewish settlement outside the city, Palestinian security sources said. Palestinian officials indicated that cooperation between Palestinian and Israeli security forces in the West Bank could be suspended as a result of Abu Ein’s death.

Ukraine to extend truce with separatists

kraine will continue upholding a truce with Russian-backed separatists following a day largely free of exchanges of fire between the warring sides, a military spokesman in Kiev said yesterday. Andriy Lysenko said there have been attacks on government positions over the previous day, but noted a significant reduction in their quantity. Rebels in turn accused Ukrainian forces of sporadic violations of the truce that began Tuesday. Military authorities have indicated that the truce is seen as a confidence-building exercise and that heavy weaponry could be pulled back from the front if

fighting stops for several days. The cessation in hostilities follows a proposal last week by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to hold a “day of silence” as a bid to revive a largely ignored cease-fire deal reached in September. A new round of peace talks is expected this week, although no date has been set. Speaking in the separatist stronghold of Donetsk, senior rebel representative Denis Pushilin said a videoconference call to discuss preparations for the negotiations was scheduled for Wednesday but fell through after Ukraine pulled out. Pushilin said the cancellation of the call could harm the prospects of the peace process.

UN expert calls for prosecution over US torture

enior US officials who authorized and carried out torture as part of former President George W. Bush’s national security policy must be prosecuted, a top UN special investigator said yesterday. Ben Emmerson, the UN’s special rapporteur on counterterrorism and human rights, said in addition that all CIA and other US officials who used waterboarding and other torture techniques must be prosecuted. He said the Senate Intelligence Committee report on the CIA’s harsh interrogation techniques at secret overseas facilities after the 9/11 terror attacks shows “there was a clear policy orchestrated at a high level within the Bush administration, which allowed to commit systematic crimes and gross violations of international human rights law.” The report, released Tuesday, has sparked a firestorm

of controversy in the US and abroad. President Barack Obama said the interrogation techniques “did significant damage to America’s standing in the world and made it harder to pursue our interests with allies. The individuals responsible for the criminal conspiracy ... must be brought to justice, and must face criminal penalties commensurate with the gravity of their crimes,” Emmerson said. “The fact that the policies revealed in this report were authorized at a high level within the US government provides no excuse whatsoever. Indeed, it reinforces the need for criminal accountability.” European Union spokeswoman Catherine Ray emphasized that the Obama administration has worked since 2009 to see that torture is not used anymore but said it is “a commitment that should be enshrined in law.”

Palestinian minister Ziad Abu Ein falls after being hit by Israeli soldiers during a protest.

South African judge approves Pistorius’ appeal

scar Pistorius again faces the possibility of a murder conviction after a South African judge ruled yesterday that prosecutors can appeal against the double-amputee Olympian’s conviction on the lesser charge of culpable homicide. The sensational case will go to the Supreme Court of Appeal, which will review the murder trial of Pistorius, who fatally shot girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp through the closed door of a toilet cubicle on Valentine’s Day last year. Judge Thokozile Masipa, who convicted Pistorius and sentenced him to five years in jail, acknowledged that chief prosecutor Gerrie Nel had raised legitimate “questions of law” that should be studied by the appeals court. “This might have a practical effect” on the

conviction, Masipa said. “We note the finding of the court and abide by the ruling,” Pistorius’ family said in a statement. Pistorius could face a minimum of 15 years in prison if the appeals court overturns the culpable homicide conviction and raises it to a murder conviction. Under his current sentence, Pistorius could be released from prison and placed under house arrest after serving 10 months, or one-sixth of his sentence. It is unclear whether the appeal court will have ruled on his case within 10 months. Nathi Mncube, the prosecution spokesman, said he hopes the appeal will be “expedited,” but acknowledged that the process can take a long time. “We’re happy,” Mncube told journalists. The approval of an appeal represented a victory for

South African prosecutors who had been disappointed that Pistorius was acquitted of murder. In another disappointment for the state, British businessman Shrien Dewani left South Africa on Tuesday after being acquitted of the murder of his wife Anni during their honeymoon in Cape Town in 2010. The appeal court has panels of three or five judges and does not meet again until Feb. 15, according to the website of the court, which is based in the South African city of Bloemfontein. Decisions are based on the opinion of a majority of judges. “Witnesses do not appear before the court, and the parties need not be present during the hearing of an appeal. A written judgment is usually handed down shortly after the argument,” the court’s website says.

Mauritius votes over presidency, economy

auritians voted yesterday in parliamentary elections with rival parties promising to boost the economy and battling over the proposed strengthening of presidential powers. The issue of constitutional reform makes the polls some of the most important since the Indian Ocean nation gained independence from Britain in 1968. Polling stations on the main island for some 936,000 voters opened at 7:00 am (0300 GMT), and will close at 6:00 pm (1500 GMT). “Everything is in place,” said Electoral Commissioner

Irfan Rahman, who said 14,000 election officials were working to ensure the smooth running of the polls. The sale of alcohol is banned until Thursday, when the results of the vote are expected. Two rival coalitions are competing for 62 parliamentary seats -- 60 on the main island of Mauritius, and two on the small island of Rodrigues, some 560 kilometres (350 miles) to the east. On one side, the centre-left group brings together the Labour Party (PTR) of Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam and the former opposition Mouvement

Militant Mauricien (MMM) party. Ramgoolam is expected to run for president, currently a largely ceremonial position elected by parliament. Should they win, the PTR-MMM coalition have agreed to try to amend the constitution so the president will be directly elected. On the other side is the Alliance Lepep, a centreright coalition led by former president, Anerood Jugnauth and three other political parties. But Lepep fiercely opposes the constitutional reform proposed by the government alliance.

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Sports News

International Sport

Cristiano deserves Ballon d’Or, says Ronaldo

ITTF rankings: Aruna, Toriola, others drop

COPA Lagos: Siasia, Ikpeba, others for ceremonial match

Sport Ajibade Olusesan

igeria Football Federation and national team players are on a fresh collision course over kit sponsorship, New Telegraph has learnt. Sports kit manufacturers, Adidas, last August, notified the NFF that it would not renew the contract with the football federation after several Super Eagles players and Coach Stephen Keshi wore kits of competing brands at the last World Cup, a development which was in contrast with the contractual agreement between the two parties. The German company complained to the NFF and expected the soccer body to sanction the coach who facilitated the deals for his players, but Adidas was surprised that the Aminu Maigari-board could not call the coach to order. Adidas consequently terminated the $7m-a year- deal for breach of contract. But the new board led by Amaju Pinnick has approached the company on the need to rescind the decision and continue

Rackets and Bats

Did you know? That a Manchester City fan was banned in 1995 from bringing dead chickens into City’s Maine Road ground. He used to celebrate City goals by swinging the birds around his head.

Kit sponsorship:

NFF,Eagles on collision course

as the kit supplier of the national teams, but our correspondent learnt that discussions have not been fruitful. A top official of the federation revealed that Adidas could still do business with Nigeria but that one of the stringent conditions was that the players must stop wearing the outfit of rival brands during international engagements.

However, according to our source, the affected players were not ready to drop their personal deals. “It is true that many kit manufacturers are not ready to do business with Nigeria. For instance, a company like Nike especially could not be involved because of Eagles’ recent poor performance, also the incessant crisis in Nigerian football makes it difficult for them to do business. To the best of my understand-

ing, Adidas are ready to come back but they are still not happy with so many things including the fact that some Eagles still have contracts with their rivals. “But the problem is that these players are not ready to drop their deals, President Pinnick himself has spoken with them but they would not back down and I don’t know the next line of action at the moment,” the source said.

Okagbare begins preparations for 2016 Olympics Emmanuel Tobi Sapele

Okagbare

The Sport Team Adekunle Salami Deputy Editor, Sports

Emmanuel Tobi Assistant Editor, Sports

Ifeanyi Ibeh Sports Correspondent

Ajibade Olusesan Sports Correspondent

Charles Ogundiya Sports Correspondent

ew weeks after her wedding ceremony, reigning Nigeria and Commonwealth Games 100m and 200m champion, Blessing Okagbare, has began preparation for the 2016 Olympics in Rio, Brazil. Coach Daniel Esebinimo, who nurtured Okagbare to stardom, told New Telegraph on Wednesday in Sapele that the African champion was poised to win gold medals at the 2015 World Athletics Championship and the Rio 2016 Games. E s e b i n i m o said:“Blessing is back in the US and she has started preparations for next season. She is a very strong-willed athlete because few days to her wedding, she never missed her regular training at the Sapele Stadium.

“She is a great role model to many athletes here in Sapele and in Delta State as a whole. Her target is gold at the World Championship and Olympics and that is why she started early in other to meet up with her training schedules.” He stressed that the World Championships billed to hold from August 22 to 30, next year in Beijing, China, would be a springboard for the Rio 2016 Olympics. In July, Okagbare became the fourth woman to win the 100m and 200m double at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, winning the 100m with a time of 10.85secs and breaking the games record of 10.91secs set by Debbie Ferguson-McKenzie 12 years earlier at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester. She also won the gold medal in the 200m, with a time of 22.25secs.

Omeruo

SPORT

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Returning from sabbatical

eally, it shouldn’t have been this headline, because when I look back, I cannot but give credit to Jones Usen for always dragging me into the studio for analysis and can I forget Effiong Nyong or my big uncle, Fabio Lanipekun, who always gets in touch for updates …and certainly my Egbon, Uncle Segun Adenuga, and the “overlapping” Robert Ndabai, who cannot stop believing in me for information. So, really I have not been lost in this world of communications. I cannot leave out Paul Ogazi and Emeka Odigbo, Tunde Orebiyi, Omofome Ebare when I keep my Abuja – Lagos shuttle hanging out with colleagues including… wait for it Eric Osagie (sorry boss!)… and discussing a lot about Nigerian sports. Then it happened on a day I least expected it. Can you believe it? On the day of Christ the King. That is one day we Catholics move round the world with our faith.

Muyiwa Daniel on Thursday

md_muyiwa@yahoo.com 08023525087 (sms only) And I will head for whatever is left of life in that…whatever it takes. Now we are here. I guess I am back from sabbatical. Tributes first… Amusa Shittu, Martins Osaile, Dimgba Igwe (my classmate at NIJ- 1980/82 set and colleague at Concord Group of Newspapers), Yomi Peters and lots more that have been felled by the insurgency that have enveloped my country in the last three years…got close at Nyanya Park. Now to the basic facts. I am not going to be the combative guy you used to follow in the Concord and later-National Lifeat this level and age; I think I can be the Sports Minister of

Well, we have a lot of barbers chair now as decision of sacking Stephen Keshi is an issue. Coaches have two swords-getting employed and getting sackedPeriod

ACCM: Mark Mentors off to Tunisia Ifeanyi Ibeh

ne of Nigeria’s two representatives at the upcoming Africa Champions Cup for Men, Mark Mentors, on Tuesday left Nigeria for Tunisia, venue of the championship. The championship, which runs from December 12 to 22 in the Tunisian capital, Tunis, will feature 12 teams with Nigeria represented by the Abujabased Mentors and reigning DSTV Premier League champions, Kano Pillars, who secured a wildcard

to the tournament after initially failing to get an automatic ticket to the championship following their third-place finish at October’s FIBA Africa Zone-3 qualifying tournament. Pillars are perennial campaigners at the ACCM but Mentors will be making their debut appearance at the tournament. Mentors Head Coach, Peter Ahmedu, doesn’t however see that as a disadvantage as he has a host of players in his squad who are quite familiar with the championship.

“We might be rated as underdogs because this is the first that people will get to hear about us but it does not mean that we are new to what to expect at this stage of the competition because we are prepared to earn some respect among the big teams out there,” said the former Dodan Warriors coach. “The players are battle ready likewise the coaching crew. Our management has done a lot to encourage us to do our best in Tunisia, we also have the backing of our teeming supporters across Nigeria.”

this country. That is the least for me as President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and I are in the same age bracket. I thank the Lord I had sandals to primary and secondary schools but he made it to the P.hd level like Larry Izamoje. No mean talk. I have drunk from the water of wisdom…from Isaac Akioye, Mamman Lagos, John and Sunday Dankaro, Chief Sebastian Williams, Kodjo Alakija, Austin Akosa, Prince Isidore Oduah and lots more…but wait for it, perhaps the biggest of them ALL, Pa J.C. Ojidoh – a man of steel and integrity who gave me the courage to disqualify my friend and the power of the Sports Ministry at the Nigeria Football Association polls in 2000. Ojidoh is with the Lord and Tijani Yusuf and Amos Adamu are still friends. I remember Amaju Pinnick placed a call to Ojidoh when we received awards at the Sheraton Hotel in Lagos last February when he represented the Delta

COPA Lagos: Siasia, Ikpeba, others for ceremonial match Charles Ogundiya

igeria U-23 national team coach, Samson Siasia, former African footballer of the year, Victor Ikpeba, and some other ex-internationals will be entertaining fans in a celebrity match on the final day of the fourth edition of COPA Lagos. The competition scheduled to kick-off on Friday, December 12, will see celebrities and some famous ex-internationals thrilling beach soccer fans to some artistry as part of the annual celebrity games of Copa Lagos Beach soccer tournament. One of the highlights of the

Ideye in line to start against Villa Charles Ogundiya

uper Eagles striker, Brown Ideye, is in line to start a game for English Premier League side, West Brom, in their league game against Aston Villa on Saturday after impressing club boss Alan Irvine in training. The club record-signing from Dynamo Kiev of Ukraine scored twice in a 5-2 win over Northampton in a-behind-closed-doors friendly on Tuesday to push his claims for a starting berth in the clash against Aston Villa. The AFCON 2013 winner has started just two games so far in the league and is yet to score in com-

Ifeanyi Ibeh

hief coach of Nigeria’s U-23 national team, Samson Siasia, has offered to hand trial opportunities to some of the outstanding players of the recently concluded Achievas Cup football tournament. AFU Football Academy emerged

winners of the Achievas Cup, defeating Ethiopia 5-4 on penalties. And the former Nigeria international, who is currently conducting trials for the U-23 team ahead of next year’s All Africa Games and the Rio 2016 Olympics, expressed delight at the standard of play exhibited during the tournament. “I have been impressed with the

three-day tournament will be the Celebrity match which will take place on Sunday, December 14, at 4pm. Entertainment stars such as Sound Sultan, Ali Baba, Chinedu Ikedieze (Aki), Ehis, Frank Edoho, Famous Otakponmwen, AY, and Fred Amata will be up against exinternationals like former Super Eagles goalkeeper, Peter Rufai; ace defender, Taribo West; Emma Okocha and Waidi Akanni. As prelude to the kick-off of Copa Lagos on Friday, December 12, Sports Writers’ Association of Nigeria Lagos Chapter will play a novelty match against Cool FM and Super Sports clubs.

Sounders keen on Obafemi

petitive match. “He’s actually trained the best he has trained in the last couple of weeks,” Irvine told the Express and Star. “That’s not in terms of his application, which has always been good, but in terms of his effectiveness. “So, he’s certainly looking more like what we would hope he would look. He has scored goals in training. “There was a time when he was struggling to do that. And I think he is feeling a lot better about himself.” He was considered to start last weekend against Hull City but was dropped after his compatriot Victor Ideye Anichebe passed a fitness test.

Siasia to try out Achievas Cup stars

State Governor. He is now the NFF President. Well, we have a lot of barbers chair now as decision of sacking Stephen Keshi is an issue. Coaches have two swords -getting employed and getting sacked- Period! As for reporters, it is about your last byline. The lines are opening and the brain is talking about the principles of journalism. The What? Where? When? Who? And How? That is what Eric demands. I think that is the level we can move onto investigative reporting instead of continuous harassment with downloading of stories from the internet written by others. Do we know that there exist 513 landlords at the Lagos National Stadium? Is it right for states that do not have in place existing Sports Council Boards to feature at the National Sports Festival or produce athletes for Nigeria according to the LAW? Education is key. That is what will happen here. Keep faith. The Sabbatical is over!

Emmanuel Tobi

standard of play here and I have seen a couple of players that should be giving a trial,” said Siasia, who also admitted that the screening process has been strenuous even as he added that it was paramount to give all eligible players a fair chance to showcase their talent. “I must admit though that it has not been easy staying under the sun from 8am to 6pm daily looking out for quality players,” added the former Super Eagles handler.

ajor League Side, Seattle Sounders, have expressed their interest to keep former Nigeria international, Obafemi Martins, in their ranks for next season after selecting him as one of the protected players for the team. Obafemi, who was selected for the MLS All Stars last week, was listed as one of the Sounders’ protected players ahead of the MLS Expansion Draft, which took place yesterday (Wednesday). The draft provided the ideal opportunity for the newly formed New York and Orlando City football clubs to snap up the unwanted players in Major League Soccer. However, these drafts were also strong indicator of which players clubs currently competing in the MLS value the most. Among the Seattle Sounders that were protected during the draft were: Osvaldo Alonso, Chad Barrett, Clint Dempsey, Brad Evans, Stefan Frei, Chad Marshall, Obafemi Martins, Lamar Neagle, Marco Pappa, Gonzalo Pineda and Andy Rose.

INTERNATIONAL SPORT 53

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Cristiano deserves Ballon d’Or, says Ronaldo

“It’s very nice to see this Real Madrid team play,” he told Cope. “The team has a lot of quality in midfield and has Cristiano, who is very inspired every time he plays. “This year I have no doubt that the Ballon d’Or will be for Cristiano. This year he has quite an advantage.” The former Inter striker believes that Ronaldo and Messi are ahead of every other player in world football but believes his compatriot Neymar will soon Cristiano join them at the pinnacle of the game, saying: this year, has a clear ad“Neymar will arrive in vantage over his rivals. good time.”

razil and Real Madrid legend Ronaldo has said he has “no doubt” that Cristiano Ronaldo will win the 2014 Ballon d’Or. The Portuguese star is favourite to win the individual accolade for a second time in a row and third overall, but faces competition from Barcelona team-mate Lionel Messi and Germany and Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer. However, the double World Cup-winner feels the 29-year-old, who guided his side to the Champions League title

IAAF denies doping allegations T he IAAF has refuted fresh doping allegations after it was claimed athletics’ world governing body turned a blind eye to suspicious blood tests involving 150 athletes, including a leading Briton. German TV broadcaster ARD reported that a long-time member of the IAAF’s medical commission, whose identity has not been revealed, had a list of dozens of questionable

blood values which were not followed up. The alleged cases involved blood samples taken between 2006 and 2008 and were “highly suspicious” according to the unnamed medical commission member, but there was no followup involving target testing of the athletes involved by the IAAF’s doping department. But the chairman of the IAAF medical and anti-dop-

ITTF rankings: Aruna,Toriola, others drop

ing commission Dr Juan Manuel Alonso said on Twitter that “blood samples taken before 2009 were thoroughly examined”. The IAAF stressed in an official statement that a member of that commission would not know whether follow-up tests had been conducted or not and said it was not possible to conclude whether an athlete had doped “on the basis of one single blood value”.

Rodgers blasts ref as Liverpool crash out

rendan Rodgers criticised referee Bjorn Kuipers after a 1-1 draw with Basel eliminated his Liverpool team from the UEFA Champions League. Fabian Frei gave the Swiss visitors a deserved lead as Liverpool produced a disjointed first-half showing but the introduction of Lazar Markovic at the break brought an improvement from the hosts but the Serbian winger was sent off with an hour played. Rodgers told ITV: “I thought it was an awful

Europa Cup: Ba set to miss Tottenham clash

or mer Chelsea striker Demba Ba will be absent for Besiktas’ Europa League clash against Tottenham. T he 2 9 - ye a r- o l d swapped west London for Istanbul in the summer and on matchday two converted the penalty which secured the Turkish giants a late 1-1 draw Ba at White Hart Lane. Ba will, though, miss fellow attacker Mustafa the return fixture at the Pektemek is also absent Ataturk Olimpiyat Sta- for Slaven Bilic’s men. Both sides’ progresdium on Thursday due to a broken toe, while sion to the knockout

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with Ajibade Olusesan 07065377853

Oladapo targets national team

frica champion, Aruna Quadri, has dropped one place in the latest International Table Tennis Federation ranking. Segun Toriola, Ojo Onaolapo, Oyeniyan Boboye and Bode Abiodun all suffered similar fate. Quadri who jumped to 30th in the world from 73rd in the November rankings Toriola is now 31st in the world. He was overtaken by Muramat- the highest ranked African su Yuto of Japan who gar- player as his closest rival nered 2256 points, 10 more Egypt’s Omar Assar also fell than what the Nigerian has on the ranking, he is now 66 in the world from the initial managed. Quadri’s drop was due to 57. Similarly, ageless Toriola his inactivity in the month stumbled from 147 to 159 in the under review but he is still

decision. I thought the referee was disappointing on the evening to say the least. “Markovic came on and was bright. He made a difference to the team, he was dynamic. “He’s just taken a touch away, he’s obviously got his arm up. If that’s a sending off you’re going to get two to three sendings off every single game. “It was a really, really poor decision. I’m not even sure if the referee has seen it. “I think he’s seen the player hold his face and lie down but there’s no way that was a sending off.” Gerrard

world while Oyeniyi dropped from 241 to 235. 2014 Commonwealth Games star, Ojo Onaolapo, also stumbled on the rankings as he went down from 312 to 335 in the world just as Abiodun crashed from 214 to 241.

elgium-based table tennis player, Kolawole Oladapo, has vowed to break into the national team for the 2015 Congo Brazaville All Africa Games. Oladapo who plays for TT Brain Aleu in Brussels Belgium said that he endured uninspiring season this year and has been working hard to improve on his form so that he can make the trip to Congo next year. “I wasn’t invited to play the Commonwealth trials maybe because of poor performance last year. But right now I’m working round the clock to break into national team by God’s grace,” he said. He added that apart from making the Nigerian team to the Games, he also plan to improve on his International Table Tennis Federation rankings next year.

Djokovic eyes elusive French Open title

orld number one Novak Djokovic said he was eyeing the French Open title next year, the only major trophy missing from his cabinet, after an impressive 2014. The 27-year-old Serb won seven titles this season, including Wimbledon, and finished with a flourish at the World Tour Finals in London. But Djokovic said he was looking forward to the chal-

lenge of ending nine-time champion Rafael Nadal’s reign as the king of clay at Roland Garros. The French Open is the only major title missing from Djokovic’s Grand Slam collection having lost the 2012 and 2014 finals to Nadal. “I’ve been pretty close a few times,” Djokovic said wryly. “I have a small problem,

his name in Nadal and he’s not going away that’s for sure,” he told reporters at the International Premier Tennis League in New Delhi. “(But) I’m going to push hard for it, I’m going to keep on trying each year.” “Hopefully I can keep on going, I have that self-belief, I know I can do it and hopefully (by) the end of my career I am going to get one trophy there.”

Djokovic

stages has already been secured ahead of this match, but Besiktas know victory would see them usurp Spurs at the top of Group C. “We’ve got a good form, we have got good results,” former West Ham and Everton defender Bilic said. “We have before us a great team and a tough test awaits. “There are a number of our players that are missing and we have to be careful about injuries and fatigue.”

Dala Tennis

Imeh shocks Igbinovia as Maku crashes out

oungster Joseph Imeh yesterday shocked Monday Y Igbinovia 6-2, 6-3 to book a place

in the quarterfinal of the Dala Hard Court Tennis Championship holding in Kano. The 17-year-old, who spearheaded Nigeria’s remarkable outing at the ITF West and Central Africa Junior Circuit in Togo and Benin Republic in September, displayed great tennis skills leaving Igbinovia, the junior sibling of former Nigerian tennis star, Jonathan puzzled all through the match. “I was determined to better my performance in Abuja and I’m sure I can go far in this tournament,” Imeh, who reached the semi-final of the NPA Open last week in Abuja, said. In other second round matches, Abdulmumuni Babalola triumphed over Sunday Maku 6-0, 6-2 in the match dubbed clash of the old titans just as Thomas Otu battled hard before overpowering Emmanuel Sunday 1-6,6-3, 6-0 to also progress to the next stage. Lawal Shehu also joined the train following his 6-4, 6-2 triumph over Mohammed Mohammed while Nonso Maduekwe recovered from a set down to beat Onyeka Mbanu 3-6, 6-2, 6-1. Top seed, Clifford Enosoregbe, Emmanueol Idoko and Sunday Emmanuel all made the quarterfinal list as their opponents, Candy Idoko, John Otu and Ebuka Benjamin respectively retired due to the harsh weather conditions.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Image Makers of Nigerian Science (A Centennial Celebration of Top 100 Nigerian Scientists)

da Rocha-Afodu, John Taiwo. Emeritus Professor of Surgery, University of Lagos.

ords hardly suffice when the subject is the revered Professor Emeritus John Taiwo da Rocha-Afodu. He has not only found a place amidst the highly respected Nigerian Medical world, he stands tall like a Colossus, at a time many are lost within or simply counted with the crowd. Through the years, his landmark attainments have created for him a distinct and dignifying profile. Ever since he opted for the medical profession, he has consistently remained on the cutting edge, creating new frontiers, as well as maintaining a visible and transparent track record. John Taiwo was born on 6th March, 1937 of the da Rocha-Afodu parents of Lagos descent. Some of his professional qualifications include: MBBS(1964) Durban, England; FRCS (1969) Edinburgh, FWACS(1971) and Doctor of Medicine (MD) (1977) University of Newcastle, England; FMCS (1983) Nigeria just to mention but a few. da Rocha-Afodu was the first Doctor to be appointed Registrar in Surgery at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) without postgraduate fellowship in surgery. He has held similar posts at different well established hospitals in England.

When an incident ray of light falls on a triangular block prism one of the colours obtained in the electromagnetic spectrum is yellow. Yellow signifies gold, while gold signifies 50 in anniversary celebration. As the nation celebrated twice of its golden age since amalgamation, Science Writer, STANLEY CHIBUIHEM AMALAHA, takes a look at top 100 Nigerian scientists that have left indelible marks on the sands of time.

His record of achievements stand out like a lighthouse in the dark. He is an epitome of dedication and pride to the medical world.

John Taiwo da Rocha-Afodu

Emeritus Professor John Taiwo da Rocha-Afodu (right) recieving award from the then UNILAG Pro-Chancellor Deacon Gamaliel Onosode, and Prof. Ruqqayat Rufai at the University of Lagos

His record of achievements stand out like a lighthouse in the dark. For example, as a commission surgeon in the Nigerian Army Field Lieutenant-Colonel, he was in the first Division of the Nigerian Army that led a team of Doctors from LUTH to the war front in 1969/1970. da Rocha-Afodu is a bred scholar, highly reputed for his incisive and educative researches. Some of them include: Metabolic Response to surgery; Blood loss studies in Surgery;

Effects of helicobacter pylori infection on the structure and functions of the gastro-duodenal Microbes, just to mention a few. He is a recipient of 10 Awards of Excellence from LUTH, CMUL and the University of Lagos. Emeritus Professor of Surgery UNILAG, which is a great herculean task, is an example As an editor of many journals, da Rocha-Afodu is the pioneering editor to Nigerian Journal of Surgery and

the Nigerian Postgraduate Medical Journal. He has about 70 publications made both nationally and internationally. At 78 approximately, Professor John Taiwo da Rocha-Afodu, still possesses a lot of drive and strength to maintain a life service to the world through his chosen profession. He is an epitome of dedication and pride to the medical world. lWatchout for more Nigerian Scientists

PDD abridges the technological gap in FIIRO Stanley Chibuihem

he Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi Lagos, popularly known as FIIRO, was established in 1956. It is one of the leading Research Institutes in Nigeria. Its Mandate is to assist in accelerating the industrialization of the Nigeria economy through finding utilization for the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s raw materials and upgrading indigenous production technologies. In other to actualize this mandate, FIIRO has been in the Vanguard of technological research innovations in the country. Recently the project Development & Design Department (PDD) of the institution, held a technological week programme where different industrial and domestic equipment designed and developed by the department were showcased. Some of them include: The National pepper grinder, for grinding of pepper, onions, tomatoes and other similar food seasonings; the fruits and Vegetable washer, de-

Dr. (Mrs.) Elemo

Dr. Irabor

Little Miss Diana presenting bouquet of flowers to Vice-President Arch Namadi Sambo, flanked by Dr. (Mrs.) Gloria Elemo, DG/FIIRO; Dr. Alex Obi, Chairman FIIRO Governing Board (second left); Mrs. Oyo-Ita, PermSec. FMST and other dignitaries at the event in Lagos.

A vegetable washing machine, designed and produced by PDD FIIRO

signed for washing round and spherical shaped and firm fruits such as Oranges, Mangoes, Apples, Carrots, Cucumbers, etc. The day was chaired by the President of Nigeria Society of Engineers who was represented by Prof. Peter Onwualu, the former Director General/

CEO of RMRDC, Abuja. Amidst this great scientific and technological exhibition, symbol of peace and love was presented to the Presidency by FIIRO management. This was conveyed through little Miss Diana who presented bouquet of flowers symbolizing peace, love and

good neighborliness in our country to the Vice President, Arch Namadi Sambo, who represented President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan. Other distinguished personalities present at the programme include: Dr Alex Obi, Chairman, FIIRO Governing board; Dr (Mrs) Gloria Elemo, DG, FIIRO; Mrs Oyo-ita, Permanent Secretary, Fed. Ministry of Science & Technology; Dr Patrick Irabor, DirectorPDD, FIIRO, among others.

L-R: Dr. Irabor, Dr. (Mrs.) Elemo and Prof. Onwualu at the event

NEW TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

Sanctity of Truth

On Marble

World Record

Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.

– Winston Churchill

Leisure & Puzzle }40

Enrico Fermi: Built the first nuclear reactor at the University of Chicago (1942)

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

2015: How are the mighty fallen

psets, last-minute withdrawals, impositions and shockers were the highpoints of party primaries held in the last few days. As results trickled in and some of those who lost started reacting, negatively, I was not surprised at all. That is the way Nigerian politics is played. Winners will always take all and those at the receiving end will complain endlessly. Eventually, reason will prevail and it will be back to status quo. But for now, some of the mighty ones have fallen and the fall is heavy. The negative reaction of losers, especially the prominent ones, was expected because until their demystification, they bestrode the political landscape like leviathans, dishing out orders by the minute. Some are still dishing out orders but Nigerians are already counting down for them because they now have a terminal date to exit public office. Obviously, some of the losers have just learnt a big lesson: you cannot be in public spotlight forever. The day will come that you must leave the stage. It is also instructive this event is coming almost a year after the role model of democrats all over the world, Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, died. After spending 27 years in prison, he was elected South African president in 1994, spent one term and left in 1999 when the ovation was loudest. Unlike President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe who has turned the presidency into a family title. His wife, Grace, is already planning to succeed him. Mandela did not allow perks of office to becloud his sense of judgement and reasoning. That was why when he died December 5 last year, even those who supported his incarceration for 27 years (the United States, Britain and some Western countries) praised him to high heavens. It is ironic that one year after his death, some of Nigeria’s elected officials are yet to learn from the Madiba example. They want to occupy public offices forever. I was impressed last week when a member of the House of Representatives on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) from Lagos State, Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, decided not to contest next year’s election “to give new aspirants a chance”. She set a good precedent by stepping down and that is what politics should look like. She said: “I believe that serving Ikorodu for 12 years is a privilege and honour. Though, the law allows me to go back, it was a personal decision not to run again to allow others to contest. If I decide to contest, how will others prove they too can serve the country?” That commendable act, unfortunately, was an exception. Nigerians witnessed drama in most of the centres used for the primaries. In some zones, three parallel congresses were held and candidates emerged from the same party. When I read the story of Sunday Afamefuna Onovo, a senatorial aspirant in Enugu East District, I burst out laughing. Onovo, a leading candidate on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), was sure he would get the ticket due to his popularity. On the morning of the

Talking Tough GABRIEL AKINADEWO gabyfola@hotmail.com

08023010222, 08052097814 (sms only)

Elechi

Chime

Maku

Uduaghan

Obanikoro

Ndoma-Egba

contest, he was informed by some PDP officials in the state that the venue had changed. He was still waiting at the ‘new’ venue when someone called him that he had been deceived. By the time he arrived at the ‘original’ venue, voting was over. Now, he has petitioned the national headquarters but I doubt if he will get justice because those who deceived him at the state level must have the financial muscle to tell national officers to ‘see no evil, hear no evil’. Can you ever beat Nigerian politicians? Another notable case is that of Governor Martin Elechi of Ebonyi State who has been in government since the Yakubu Gowon years. In 2007, he was imposed as governor by his predecessor, Dr. Sam Egwu. Using his instrument of office, he was reelected in 2011. In the build up to the 2015 election, he had two plans: go to the Senate and impose his successor in the person of the immediate past Health Minister, Onyebuchi Chukwu. He has failed in the two projects and his nemesis are the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, and Egwu. In Ebonyi Central Senatorial primaries, Elechi was defeated by former state chairman of PDP, Chief Obinna Ogba. Elechi’s governorship candidate,

Chukwu, lost to David Umahi. Wait for this. Umahi is Elechi’s deputy. Even in his 70s, the governor has been turned to a political orphan. Because of this, the rumour emanated at the weekend that he may defect to another party. But, to achieve what? A comedy was added to the scenario on Monday when the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), in a full page advertorial signed by Prince Samuel Uche Udeogu, told Elechi not to defect to their party. “We are aware of the moves by the governor to defect to the PPA. No doubt we need members, but we only need those who will add to us, not a minus to our growing strength and acceptance”. Can any politician fall more than this? Look at Nasarawa State. Labaran Maku, as Information Minister, was a leading light of the President Goodluck Jonathan administration until he resigned in October to contest for the governorship of the North-Central state. The popular belief was that Jonathan would ensure his success at the primaries but he was defeated by Yusuf Agabi who got 214 votes to Maku’s 161. Similarly, Maku’s counterpart in the Ministry of Labour, Emeka Wogu, lost to Okezie Ikpeazu in Abia State. While 487 delegates voted for Ikpeazu, Wogu man-

aged to get 33 votes. It was the same situation in Lagos State as former Minister of State, Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, lost the PDP ticket to Jimi Agbaje. The scenario in Delta State was as intriguing as well as an anticlimax. It was a big upset for Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan. Not only was he stopped from going to the Senate, the man he tipped to succeed him was also schemed out. Forty eight hours to the primaries, nobody believed that any aspirant would defeat Sir Tony Chuks Obuh, Uduaghan’s anointed candidate. But an indication that crisis was imminent came when some warlords stopped the senatorial ambition of the governor, paving the way for Senator James Manager to return to the Upper Chamber. A few hours to the primaries, Uduaghan dropped his support for Obuh and backed another aspirant, David Edevbie, but that support was short-lived. To many of the stakeholders, the governorship seat must go to Delta North or nothing. Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, who in 2007 stepped down for Uduaghan, created an upset by defeating the governor’s candidate. In Enugu State, Governor Sullivan Chime also got a dose of the bitter pill as he was forced to step down for Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, in Enugu West District. However, his candidate, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, won the governorship ticket. The most pathetic was Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba (SAN). A close ally of Jonathan, he not only lost his deposit, he was ditched by those he relied on to get the ticket for the fourth time. Governor Liyel Imoke of Cross River State did everything to ensure that Ndoma-Egba did not return to the Upper Chamber and he succeeded. The governor backed a member of the House of Representatives, John Owan Enoh, who eventually defeated the three-term senator. A livid Ndoma-Egba, in a protest letter to the PDP National Assembly Electoral Appeal Panel in the state, said: “The exercise was fundamentally and fatally flawed as it fell short of the minimum integrity for an electoral process. The list of delegates used for the primaries was not made public. This was imperative as two lists were in circulation. Militants were imported from outside the state. The whole area had become so militarised that delegates were outnumbered by gunmen. Ambassador Mark Egbe was announced as a candidate in the poll with 20 votes allocated to him. But, Egbe did not even participate in the primaries.” What of Chief Chris Uba who defeated his brother, Senator Andy Uba in Anambra State and Senator Uche Chukwumerije who lost to Mao Ohuabunwa in Abia State ? The lesson in all these is that nothing lasts forever. The earlier our politicians learn to leave while the ovation is loudest, the better. What has happened so far is an indication that more heavyweights will still fall in 2015. And that makes the game more interesting.

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