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Sanctity of Truth Facebook.com/newtelegraph

Monday, August 4, 2014 Vol. 1 No. 167

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Nigeria’s most authoritative newspaper in politics and business

Cameroun steps up fight against Boko Haram Paul Biya of Pupresident Cameroun has stepped the fight against the

outlawed Boko Haram sect with the deployment of his army chief to the north of the country.

Following a series of cross-border incursions and kidnappings, Biya said Saturday he was also sending more troops and military supplies to the area.

The announcement came ahead of a key USAfrica summit hosted by the United States President Barack Obama in Washington where the fight against terrorism

is expected to top the agenda.

“In the last few weeks our forces have made important advances against Boko Haram, but it is a long fight.

“We are dealing with a lawless enemy, which attacks in the night, who cut the throats of their victims,” a report yesterday by the Agence France Presse (AFP) quoted Biya

as saying.

Boko Haram has long considered parts of northern Cameroun close to the Nigerian borCONTINUED ON PAGE 4

Osun gov poll

APC accuses PDP of plot to rig in 10 LGs

l Opposition party alleges plans by ruling party to connive with INEC to undermine election l Candidates sign peace pact lBuhari, Tinubu, govs storm Osogbo tomorrow for Aregbesola Lateef Ibrahim, Johnchuks Onuanyim And Adeolu Adeyemo

T

he All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) yesterday exchanged brickbats over Saturday’s governorship election in Osun State.

The APC, the ruling party in the state whose candidate and incumbent governor, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola, is seeking re-election, accused the PDP of planning to rig the election in 10 identified local government areas of the state.

But the leading opposition party, which is fielding a former deputy governor of the state, Senator Iyiola Omisore, to challenge Aregbesola, who is holding the grand finale of his CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Oyinlola: Osun’s beautiful bride } 13 & 16 LAGOS

Storm

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L-R: The United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr James Entwistle; Nigerian Ambassador to the US, Dr. Ade Adefuye; Minister of Foreign Affairs; Alhaji Aminu Wali; US Assistant Chief of Protocol, Gladys Boluda, welcoming President Goodluck Jonathan on his arrival for the US-African Leaders’ Summit on Trade, Investment, Peace, Security and Good Governance in Washington... yesterday.

FG: Bitter kola doesn’t cure Ebola Muritala Ayinla and Kunle Olayeni

F

ollowing a series of claims for cure of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) that has killed at least 726 in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Nigeria

lGovt takes campaign to Synagogue church lOgun places two on surveillance and Guinea, the Federal Government has warned the public against taking serious claims by some

professionals that there is cure for the disease.

Since the death of a top official of the Economic

Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Mr. Amos Sawyer, in Nigeria, some Nigerians

Ikorodu monarch, Oyefusi, dies at 83

}4

have speculated that bitter kola could cure the disease while other spiritual healers, churches have also claimed to have the antidote to heal an infected person.

But briefing reporters at the weekend, the Director, Nigeria Centre for CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

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PDP alleges plan by APC to recruit fake electoral officials CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

rally tomorrow, in a counterattack, accused some APC chieftains trying to conspire with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recruit members of a special job scheme launched by the state government, Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (OYES), for election duties as a way of subverting the poll.

APC, in a statement in Lagos by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said as part of the plot to rig the election, the PDP was shopping for a pliable person as a returning officer.

It also accused President Goodluck Jonathan of telling security agencies that he wants victory for his party at all costs.

It said: “Nigerians from all walks of life, desirous of a free and fair election on Saturday, are reaching out to us with useful information on the plan by the desperate PDP to rig the forthcoming election, and we are taking the information very seriously.

“For example, we learnt that the PDP has identified Ife Central, Ife East, Ife North, Ife South, Olurunda, Iwo, Ifelodun, Osogbo, Odo Otin and Aiyedade as places where they plan to perpetrate massive rigging.

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“Two different results have allegedly been written ahead of the elections, while three vice chancel-

lors, one from the NorthCentral and two from the South-West, and have been pencilled in to serve

as a returning officer. The incentive for the returning officer who can announce the doctored results is N1

billion.’’

According to the party, CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

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

L-R: Chairman, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote; Bayelsa State Governor, Mr. Seriake Dickson; Chief Executive Officer, Forte Oil Plc, Mr. Femi Otedola and Managing Director, First Bank Plc, Mr. Bisi Onasanya, at the wedding reception for Onasanya’s daughter in Lagos… at the weekend.

Bitter kola doesn’t cure Ebola CO NT INU E D FRO M PAGE 1

Control, Professor Abdulsalami Nasidi, said the Federal Government was worried over the plethora of unsubstantiated claims about the cure for the virus by many orthodox and traditional health providers, saying the diseases has no cure yet.

He said: “As for the cure, let me be specific, because we are hearing so many claims in the country with both orthodox and non-orthodox healthcare providers claiming that they have cure for Ebola.

So, the Federal Government and the Lagos State Government are warning all Nigerians that are doing this to desist from doing this because Ebola is not HIV. Ebola is a killer; it will wipe out everybody if it comes to their homes, including healing homes.

They will all go, including those healing. There is no specific cure for Ebola; that doesn’t mean there is no treatment, let’s get it right, because we are encouraging people to come up, we are encouraging people with such symptoms to come up.

“Categorically, there is no specific cure, but clinical experience has shown that those who come early, the survival rate is very high more than 70 per cent, if they are treated systematically. We have one of the treatment experts in the world here in Nigeria with us. He is busy, he would have been here to tell you there is no specific cure but there is treatment for it. We all know how Ebola kills, it dehydrates; it behaves like cholera bac-

teria. So, all those that are handled well usually do survive. We are not saying that case is absolutely hopeless, Lagos State and the Federal Government are already prepositioning drug for victim. We are happy that the virus has not so far escaped into any Nigerian, so the virus that came is not indigenous to Nigeria.”

On the fate of First Consultants Hospital, Obalende in Lagos, where the first Ebola case was reported in the country, he said the government had succeeded in decontaminating the facility and it would soon be ready for use after certification by the Lagos State Ministry of Health.

On how to ensure the EVD does not spread to Nigerians through transportation of infected corpses to mortuaries, the Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Dr Jide Idris, said no private mortuary must accept any corpse without a death certificate.

This, the commissioner added, would enable the government to conduct a proper and safe burial plan to curtail the spread of the disease.

He explained that traditional leaders and community leaders would also be sensitised on the deadly virus and preventive measures.

However, as part of efforts to curtail the spread of EVD, the federal and Lagos State governments yesterday began a sensitisation programme aimed at enlightening faith-based centres on how to handle the disease.

A delegation comprising the senior officials of

the Federal Government and members of the Lagos State Executive Council visited the Synagogue Church of All Nations to begin their ‘Don’t handle Ebola Virus Victims campaign’.

Among the delegation were the state Idris; the Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr. Lateef Raji, his media counterpart, Mr. Hakeem Bello; Nasidi and an official of Centre for Disease Control, Dr. Frank Mahoney.

Idris said the meeting was to explore ways to ensure members of the congregation did not include residents or people from the affected countries.

According to him, the delegation visited the church because of the recognition that it is an international Christian centre whose congregation comprises people from all over the world, including the West African sub-region, which has already been affected by the Ebola disease.

He described the visit as one the government’s strategy of sensitising faith-based organisations on the need to cooperate with the government to prevent the spread of the disease in the country by educating their adherents to escalate health issues to medical experts.

Nasidi also said the visit was also both to inform the Synagogue Leader of the deadliness of the Ebola virus and to curtail its spread.

He described the visit as “positive engagement mission,” adding: “We are here to engage you positively. We know the powers of this house and

your powers and we are duty-bound to protect you and your congregation.”

Responding, the pastor of the church, Temitope Joshua, promised to work with the government to ensure that the disease does not spread into the country.

He added that he would put some measures in place to ensure that people from the already affected countries do not enter Nigeria.

Meanwhile, two persons have been placed on surveillance in Ogun State based on the suspicious that they might have contracted the EVD. The state acting Epidomologist, Dr. Yusuph Akeem, while featuring on a programme aired on a private radio station in Abeokuta, said the state Ministry of Health was already in possession of the names, addresses and telephone numbers of the suspected victims.

New Telegraph gathered yesterday that the development had caused panic among residents of state, even as the government assured them that border areas had been well secured against the disease.

According to him, though the victims are working in Lagos State, they reside in Ogun State.

Also commenting on the disease, the state Director of Public Health, Dr. Yusuph Qudus, explained that health officials had been holding a series of meetings with their counterparts from Lagos State and at the federal level to forestall the spread of the disease.

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

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Monday, August 4, 2014

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Ikorodu monarch, Oyefusi, dies at 83 Muritala Ayinla he Ayangburen of Ikorodu, Oba SalauTdeen Afolabi Oyefusi,

passed on at the weekend.

Oyefusi, who until his death was the Vice Chairman of the Lagos State Council of Obas and Chiefs, was 83.

A statement by the state Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Ade-

lFashola pays tribute to deceased ruler morin Kuye, confirmed the death.

It said: “With gratitude to God for a life well spent and in meritorious service to his people, the Lagos State Government regrets to announce the passing on to glory of the Ayangburen of Ikorodu and Vice Chairman of the Lagos State Council of Obas and Chiefs, Oba

Salaudeen Afolabi Oyefusi, which sad event occurred August 2, 2014.

He was aged 83. Funeral arrangement will be announced later.”

Paying tribute to the late monarch, the state Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN), described his death as shocking.

Fashola, in a state-

ment by his spokesman, Mr. Hakeem Bello, described him as an epitome of discipline and integrity who loved his people and the state.

He said the state would sorely miss the royal father who had contributed immensely to the development of the country.

Tbe late Oyefusi

Buhari, Tinubu, govs storm Osogbo tomorrow for Aregbesola when these plans are put together with the massive deployment of security agencies in Osun, the huge amount of cash being moved into the state through armoured personnel carriers and the presence of some ministers in the state, it is clear that the PDP is working hard to ensure that the election is anything but free, fair and credible.

It called on INEC not to allow any unscrupulous person to serve as a returning officer for the election and to pay a special attention to voting in the identified local governments, where the PDP plans to influence the outcome of the election.

“No one will accept the result of an election in which the returning officer is compromised with filthy lucre. This is why we are calling on INEC to ensure that only a person of integrity can serve in that important post,’’ the party stated.

It also called on the international community to pay attention to the issues that could affect the outcome of the election, instead of waiting until the deed has been done.

But in its own allegation, the PDP accused APC of perfecting a plan to rig the election by getting INEC to employ OYES ca-

dets as electoral officials.

The state chapter of PDP in a statement by its Director of Publicity, Prince Diran Odeyemi, warned INEC to be vigilant because those who wanted to embark on the plot are desperate.

“What they have been doing is to substitute the NYSC members with OYES cadets and get uniforms of the corps for them. We charge members of OYES to be wary of antics of the APC by declining being fraudulently listed for election duties as any OYES cadet caught by the security operatives will face the consequences alone, because we know those behind this illegal move will go underground immediately they are caught,” PDP added.

In another statement yesterday, PDP said it believed that the time had come for Omisore to be elected governor having sacrificed his ambition on two previous occasions.

The party in the statement in Abuja by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, said it was overwhelmed by Omisore’s massive acceptance by voters, wide-spread political structure and a track-record of abiding affinity and loyalty to Osun people.

However, six days to the

Cameroun steps up fight against Boko Haram CONTINUED FRO M PAG E 1

der as a haven for its activities, with militants often crossing between the two countries.

The group has carried out a series of attacks against Camerounian civilians and the military, and last month, the president dismissed two senior army officers in the region after at least 15 people died in violence blamed on Boko Haram.

The militants are

also accused of abducting 10 people, among them the wife of the country’s deputy prime minister and a local sultan, at the end of July.

Biya said he would use the US-Africa summit to garner support for a “regional strategy” to counter the threat posed by Boko Haram.

“Because it is an international terrorist movement, we should take action internationally,” he said.

conduct of the election, 20 gubernatorial candidates cleared by INEC have signed a peace pact to make the conduct of the exercise a crisis-free one.

The candidates all agreed to embrace peace before, during and after the election at a programme in Osogbo, organised by United Nations Development Programme / Democratic Governance for Development (UNDP/DGD) in collaboration with Centre

for Democracy and Development (CDD) and InterParty Advisory Council (IPAC).

Among the governorship candidates present at the event were Aregbesola, who was represented by the state APC Auditor, Mrs. A. Aina; Omisore, represented by a PDP chieftain, Mr. Ajao Oladipo; Mr. Afolayankan Afolabi of National Conscience Party and Action Alliance state Chairman, Dayo

Okanlawon.

Meanwhile, Aregbesola will tomorrow round off his campaign with mega rally in Osogbo.

Chairman and Secretary of the Aregbesola Campaign Committee for the Osogbo/Olorunda/ Orolu/Irepodun federal constituency, Senator Bayo Salami and Mr. Kolapo Alimi respectively in a statement yesterday listed those expected at the rally as APC National Chairman, Chief John

Odigie-Oyegun; a former interim National Chairman of the party, Chief Bisi Akande; Major Gen Muhammadu Buhari; Senator Bola Tinubu; Mallam Nasir El-Rufai; Mallam Nuhu Ribadu and all APC governors.

“The Osogbo/Olorunda/Orolu/Irepodun Federal Constituency mega rally will be the final campaign outing of the All Progressives Congress and Aregbesola,” the statement said.

L-R: Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Jide Idris; Director, Centre for Disease Control, Prof. Abdulsalam Nasidi; General Overseer, The Synagogue, Church of All Nations, Prophet Temitope Joshua and Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to Lagos State governor, Mr. Lateef Raji, during an awareness campaign on the Ebola Virus Disease to Joshua’s church in Lagos…yesterday.

Judiciary workers suspend strike lGive states 45 days to comply with court judgment Tunde Oyesina, ABUJA

he Judiciary Staff TSUN) Union of Nigeria (JUhas suspended its 21-day strike embarked upon to compel states to comply with the judgment of a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja that all funds meant for the judiciary should be released to it directly.

Confirming the suspension, the National Treasurer of Jusun

who is also the Nasarawa State Chairman of the union, Mr. Musa Jimoh, told New Telegraph in a telephone interview that the union met with some stakeholders on Friday where an agreement was reached to halt the industrial action.

He said: “We met on Friday with the Minister of Labour, Chief Emeka Wogu; the National President, Nigeria Labour Congress, Mr. Abdulwaheed Omar; representa-

tives of the accountants general of all the states and commissioners of finance and other stakeholders.

“We met and told them the need to comply with the court judgment. They asked us to give them four months to put things in order before they will start the implementation.

But instead of the four months they requested for, we gave them 45 days to tidy up their end and

start implementing the court order.

“After the meeting, we signed a memorandum of understanding and we suspended the strike.”

With the suspension of the strike, the vacation judge for the Federal High Court may resume sitting this morning.

All judges of the Federal High Court are on their annual vacation which will last till September.

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Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

2015: Tambuwal, Ihedioha disown campaign posters

Onwuka Nzeshi and Philip Nyam

S

peaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal and his Deputy, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, have distanced themselves from the campaign posters donning various streets in Abuja, purported to be promoting their alleged presidential bid.

The posters, bearing the pictures of the two officers, indicated that Tambuwal and Ihedioha would run a joint ticket on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as president and vice-president respectively.

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But in a statement issued by the Speaker's Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Malam Imam Imam, Tambuwal thanked those who placed the posters for considering him fit for such highly coveted office, but advised them not to breach the laws of the land.

“While we thank them for deeming the Hon. Speaker fit for future elective office in the country, let it be known that since the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has not given the go-ahead for those interested in elective positions to start mobilisation, it is inappropriate for any person or group to print

The life expectancy (in years) at birth of Algeria in 2010-2015.

Source: Un.org

campaign posters and have them placed in strategic locations in any part of the country.

“Laws of the federation are meant to be obeyed by all persons irrespective of their societal status. As a law abiding citizen, the Speaker will make known the direction of his political future and intention at the appropriate time,” the statement added.

Also, in statement signed by the Deputy Speaker’s Media Aide, Oke Epia, Ihedioha condemn the posters and rejected the offer.

“The attention of the Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, has

83%

The percentage of individuals using the internet in Canada in 2011.

Source: Itu.int

been drawn to posters pasted in parts of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, purporting that he is running as vice-presidential aspirant under the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2015 elections.

“This comes to the deputy speaker as laughable and completely nonsensical. Especially so, when the said posters came at a time Hon. Ihedioha is on a party assignment with the President and leader of the party, the national chairman and other stalwarts of the PDP at Osogbo, Osun State for the grand rally of the party for the August 9 governorship election.

25.44

The average age of the Ghana team in the Brazil 2014 World Cup. Source: Goal.com

Ambali delighted over UNILORIN ranking, tasks staff Biodun Oyeleye ILORIN

of Vrin,ice-Chancellor the University of IloProf. AbdulGaniyu

Ambali, has expressed delight over the latest ranking of the school as the best in Nigeria.

Ambali, according to a press statement by the university’s Deputy Director, Corporate Affairs, Mr. Kunle Akogun, described the latest Webometric ranking as the product of hard work and dedication to service of every member of the university community.

In the 2014 University Web Ranking conducted

by International Colleges and Universities (4ICU) and released last week, Unilorin was also adjudged the 20th best university in Africa and 1842nd in the world.

ADO-EKITI

Speaker of the Foformer old Ondo State House Assembly, Chief Femi

Akinyemi, has said that Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, lost the June 21 gubernatorial election in the state because of inexperience.

Speaking in Usi-Ekiti during the celebration of this year’s edition of Usi Day, Akinyemi said Fayemi, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the election, lacked strong political structures to win the election.

Akinyemi, who spoke while being conferred with an award at the occasion, said it was laughable when APC leaders started faulting an elec-

Nigeria to bid for 2016 world schools debate — FG Yekeen Nurudeen ABUJA

N

igeria and Germany have emerged as the two contesting nations for the hosting right of World Schools Debate holding in 2016.

According to the National Co-ordinator of the Presidential Schools Debate, Elder Dare Oritu, who disclosed this, a high level lobbying to enable Nigeria host the debate has commenced.

Oritu also disclosed that Nigeria had recently been elevated to become a member of the World Schools Debate Tournament Committee, where over 60 foreign countries are active participants.

"Nigeria was recently promoted to the rank of tournament committee membership, which I think gives us an edge.

The tournament committee decides which country will host in 2016 and this has given us a lot of opportunity to lobby our colleagues because hosting the world school debate is by voting," he said.

He reiterated that Nigeria is bidding against Germany in order to host the 2016 edition.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government has dispatched its national contingents to participate in the 26th edition of the world schools debate taking place in

Thailand between August 5-16, 2014.

Oritu, who spoke to journalists in Abuja, before their departure to Thailand, said those representing Nigeria in the international competition were drawn from Ebonyi and Kaduna states after emerging tops in the national schools debate competition earlier held in Nigeria.

The National Coordinator of the Presidential Schools Debate also disclosed that the contingents have since undergone intensive training both in Nigeria and Singapore to ensure they come out tops in the competition.

Among the participating countries, Nigeria is the only West African country taking part in the global educational competition.

"The Nigerian contingent which is going to participate in the 26th world school debate in Thailand between August 5 to 16 have already departed the country for Thailand.

"Beyond this, there are high expectations from them in this year’s edition because Nigeria hopes to be the host of the world school debate in 2016 and we have been really working hard to make sure we succeed in hosting the world", he said.

The 4ICU is an international higher education search engine and directory that constantly reviews accredited universities and colleges across the world. For the latest exercise, it ranked about 11,307 colleges and universities by web popularity in over 200 countries.

Akogun quoted the vice-chancellor as expressing delight over the new ranking, describing it as “one of the best so far by any university in Nigeria.”

Part of the statement reads: “Ambali, who congratulated the university’s governing council headed by Prof. Chukwuka Okonjo, all lecturers and other stakeholders for taking us thus far, pledged that the university would strive to become the best in Africa by the next ranking."

Fayemi lost Ekiti guber poll to inexperience, says ex-Speaker Adesina Wahab

L-R: Brand Manager, Ford, Coscharis Motors Limited, Mr. Felix Mahan; winner, Ford Odyssey Competition, Mr. Okezuo Chinonso and General Manager, Marketing, Coscharis Motors Limited, Mr. Abiona Babarinde, during the Ford Odyssey competition organized by Coscharis Motors Limited, Ford in Lagos… at the weekend

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tion that was declared free and fair by local and international observers.

The ex-Chairman, Ekiti State Local Government Service Commission during Segun Oni’s administration, said the PDP was the most visible party and had remained so since people were not satisfied with the judicial route the APC took to the Government House, AdoEkiti.

“I just consider it laughable when APC people were talking about photo or thermo-chromic rigging in an election that was transparent.

Governor Fayemi lost to inexperience and incompetence. He has no viable structure. He did not conduct local government election, where people can go to seek help."

Wada urges communities to cooperate with contractors Muhammad Bashir LOKOJA

overnor Idris Wada of Gcommunities Kogi State has urged at the cor-

ridors of Kabba-Egbe-Ilorin road to take special interest in the safety of personnel and equipment of the construction company rehabilitating the road, which was recently approved by the Federal Government.

Wada, made the appeal while inspecting on-going work on the Kabba-EgbeIlorin road.

The governor commended the construction company, CGC, for the palliative measure that has made the road motorable up to Isanlu, even though it was not part of their contract term, but

as a corporate social responsibility.

The governor, who was represented by his Deputy, Yomi Awoniyi, said his government is committed to showing more than a passing interest in ensuring that the Kabba-EgbeIlorin road is completed on schedule.

Wada expressed excitement at the sand filling work done on the road by the contractor that has made it passable by motorist who had since abandoned the road for other routes.

The governor, however, charged the contractor to speed up the sand filling of the failed portion of the road despite the challenge posed by the rain that was washing off part of the areas sand-filled.

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NEWS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Delta APC still swimming in confussion

Dominic Adewole ASABA

ather than abating, the RState crisis rocking the Delta chapter of the All

L-R: Alake of EgbaLand, Oba Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo flanked by General Manager, GOtv, Elizabeth Amkpa and General Manager, Sales and Distribution, MultiChoice Nigeria, Akinola Salu, during a presentation of the new GOtv Combo Decoder to the Oba in Abeokuta…yesterday

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The number of goals scored by Germany from open play at Brazil 2014 World Cup. Source: Fifa.com

ALERT

From Lagos to Abeokua and now Abuja, Ebola keeps Nigerians on their trees Yekeen Nurudeen ABUJA

F

ollowing the death of a Liberia national, Patrick Sawyer in Lagos, last week, due to the Ebola virus disease, the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has called on the residents of the territory to be vigilant and report any suspicious case to a health facility nearest to them.

The call was made by the Secretary, Health and Human Services Secretariat, Dr Demola Onakomaiya, during an emergency meeting at the weekend

$103bn

The amount required to finance water, sanitation and wastewater treatment in developing countries annually through 2015.

Source: Unesco.org

283,560

The total area (in sq. km) of Ecuador.

Source: Worldfactsandfigures.com

Ebola: FCTA procures protective equipment with the Management Staff of the Secretariat on the preparedness of the FCT to tackle the threat of the disease and the steps taken to inform the residents of the territory on the development.

He said that even though Ebola is clearly a severe disease with high fatality, it is also an infection that can be controlled with simple personal hygiene like hand washing with soap.

Onakomaiya added that infection in humans occurs when they come in contact with body fluids from an infected person, other contaminated objects/articles from infected

persons, consumption of "bushmeat” infected with the virus and which has not been properly cooked or the handling of dead animals.

The Secretary, however, disclosed that the FCT administration was stepping up implementation of key outbreak containment strategies including community engagement and involvement, tracing of contacts, sensitization of health workers at all levels both public and private, provision of personal protective equipment, distribution of information leaflets and ensuring effective coordination of all response activities.

While explaining further on the risk factors of the disease, he added that those at higher risk of the infection are health workers, family members and others in close contact with sick people and deceased persons.

He said that symptoms of the Ebola disease typically include intense weakness, sudden fever, aches, diarrhoea, vomiting and stomach ache.

Additionally, people may experience rashes, red eyes, chest pain, throat soreness, difficulty in breathing or swallowing, impaired kidney/liver function and bleeding(internal and external.

Progressives Congress has assumed a dangerous dimension.

The two warring factions in the state have started selling councillorship and chairmanship forms to aspirants, who are contesting the October 25 council polls declared by the state’s Independent Electoral Commission (DSIEC).

The factions have equally started grooming aspirants and issuing statements on how Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan successor would emerge next year.

The faction loyal to Dr. (Major) Isaac Tobore Ajueshi, at the weekend in Asaba, the state

capital, threatened war against the faction of Prophet Jones Ode-Erue.

Arising from leaders and stakeholders meeting held at Ajueshi’s factional party secretariat in Asaba, the leaders did not only pass a vote of no confidence on Erue’s leadership but rejected the idea of interim executive succeeding itself as APC state executive without being formerly dissolved.

Although, the national body of the party backed Erue, who emerged during the party’s state congress the crisis posed by the former chairman of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Chief Adolor Okotie-Eboh and Ajueshi, who mobilized for the party shortly after the merger was consummated, has continued to interrupt the party’s progress in the state.

2015: South-South told to support Jonathan Gabriel Choba UGHELLI

head of the 2015 PresiAbernatorial dential election, a guaspirant in

Delta State, Mr. Gabriel Oyibode, has called on the people of South South geopolitical zone to support President Goodluck Jonathan for his second term in office. He said that no other aspirant in any party matches the qualities of President Jonathan.

Oyibode in a brief chat with New Telegraph in Sapele at the weekend said that Jonathan has the capacity to take Nigeria to a greater height and therefore, worthy of the support of all Nigerians.

He described the incumbent President as a humble, selfless, kind and one who has the fear of God and deserved a 100 per cent support for all Nigerians irrespective of tribe and political party.

The governorship hopeful also condemned the incessant bombing in the northern part of the country by the Boko Haram insurgents, alleging that it was a targeted attempt to stop the President from seeking re-election for a second tenure.

Oyibode appealed to Nigerians to continue to encourage and pray for the Nigerian military in the war against terrorism.

Kwara, PDP disagree over Town Hall meeting

Obadan harps on security

ILORIN

Cajetan Mmuta

Biodun Oyeleye

T

he Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and the Kwara State government disagreed yesterday on the propriety of a series of Town Hall Meetings being organised by the state government.

While the state government said the meetings were meant to gauge public opinion and evaluate governance from the perspective of the people, the PDP said it was a subtle campaign by the APC-led government in alleged violation of extant electoral law.

The party, in a statement by its state Publicity Secretary, Chief Rex Olawoye, asked INEC to sanction the state government by declaring that it was preposterous and hasty for the APC to start open campaigns through

so-called town hall meetings, erecting billboards and printing posters, urging voters to vote for the party.

But in its reaction through Dr. Muideen Akorede, Senior Special Assistant (Media) to Governor Abdulfattah Ahmed, the state government dismissed the allegations by the PDP, saying the opposition party was only being jittery over its expected negative electoral fortunes.

Part of the PDP statement reads: "The PDP, Kwara State chapter, has watched helplessly bewildered how the Kwara State Governor, the All Progressives Congress and their members, under the guise of Town Hall meeting, are serially violating the electoral laws of the land which forbid electioneering campaigns until 90 days to the election.

"We are alarmed that under a dubious façade of Town Hall meeting, the Kwara State Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed and his aides, have surreptitiously begun electioneering campaign ahead of the 2015 elections, in clear breach of the constitution, the Electoral Act and relevant INEC guidelines.

"It bears repeating that, Section 99 (1-3) of the Electoral Act stipulates that the period of campaigning in public by every political party shall commence 90 days before polling day and end 24 hours prior to that day.

"We are therefore disappointed that Mr. Ahmed, who should ordinarily be in the forefront of ensuring strict observance of the rule of law, is the No. 1 person who is openly indulging in the violation of it."

BENIN

A former Deputy Governor of Edo State, Reverend Peter Obadan, yesterday urged the Federal Government to take seriously the various security reports produced by operatives of the Directorate of Security Services (DSS) and the military in the fight against Boko Haram in the North Eastern parts of the country.

Obadan stated this in an interview with newsmen in Benin the state capital.

He said there was an urgent need for government to reconsider its strategies in view of the huge funds, time, properties and lives so far lost in the efforts to clamp down on the insurgents.

"I am positive that the security services

must have been writing reports. Whether we like it or not, the security services are very efficient in Nigeria. The DSS I know are very efficient but whether their reports are being taken seriously is another story. The presidency should look or rely on the reports of the security agencies and not what the politicians counsel. Politicians are not on ground there, the people on ground are the DSS and other security agencies," he explained.

Besides, Obadan suggested that part of the funds channelled towards the fight against members of the Boko Haram should be given to the governors of the states in the North East since they are familiar with the terrains of their home states to ena-

ble them ensure realistic action to end the wanton killings and destruction of properties in the affected areas.

He said; “Lots of people have died and the terrorists have not given up but what bothers me again is the billions of naira being said to have been spent; billions of naira that is not accountable. The question I ask myself is that the demands of the terrorists, are they more than this billions of naira. If the money is truly spent, we would have had peace”.

"If the governors were given the money themselves to use, they would have been able to stop these terrorists act. To me, the strategy approach from a layman point of view is wrong.

A stitch in time saves nine”, he added

7

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

UPP charges new IGP to restore peace Yekeen Nurudeen

Abuja

newly appointed ActTofheingPolice, Inspector General Suleiman Abba

has been charged to use his new position to effectively restore peace and order in various flash points across the country.

The National Chairman of United Progressive Party (UPP), Chief Chekwas Okorie who made the call in a congratulatory letter to the acting IGP, a copy of which was obtained by New Telegraph lamented that life has become short and brutish as Nigerians are killed everyday with impunity.

He emphasised the need for effective crime prevention and control noting that as the nation prepares for another general elections, all hands must be on deck to overcome the security challenges.

The letter reads in part: "The nation is currently facing exceptional security challenges. It is hoped that your new position will afford you and your colleagues the opportunity to effectively restore peace and order in various flash points across the country.

“Indeed, life has become short and brutish as fellow compatriots are killed everyday with impunity.

The need for effective crime prevention and control cannot be overemphasized, more so, as the nation prepares for the 2015 general election".

Chief Okorie who on behalf of the leaders and members of UPP congratulated the acting IGP said his appointment was well deserved as it was based on his track record of patriotism, professionalism, diligence, tenacity, integrity and loyalty in the discharge of his duties.

Group wants economist as next Abia governor Steve Uzoechi

OWERRI

A

s the race for the successor of Governor Theodore Orji of Abia State gathers steam, residents of the state have been urged to go beyond politics and elect a governor with tested economic and business acumen to accelerate job creation in the state.

A group, Coalition of Abia Professionals noted in a statement made available to New Telegraph in Owerri, shortly after the mid-year thanksgiving ceremony of Abia indigenes resident in Owerri, that

what Abia presently needs is a man with a private sector background, who can stimulate industrial reawakening with a view to creating employment for the youths.

According to the leader of the group, Engr. Kelechi Onwudinjo; “Dr Alex Otti, the incumbent Managing Director of Diamond Bank Plc perfectly fall in the bracket of such desirable professionals with the relevant credentials to give Abia the spur it needs.”

He disclosed that through Dr. Alex Otti, Diamond Bank has injected more than 455 million United States Dollars to

jumpstart the Alaoji Independent Power Plant as a prelude to reviving moribund industries in Aba. “We believe that such a man, who has the economic well being of the state and employment of our youths at the back of his mind is most suited to be the governor of our state”, he said.

Onwudinjo was of the view that Dr Alex Otti has “the right attitude, the charisma and connections to bring about economic revolution in Abia State”.

He argued that given the chequered history of the state, where the previous administrations paid more attention to the pol-

ity and stabilization of the state, the time has come to lay emphasis on economic rejuvenation of Abia starting from Aba. Said he, “We have about over 6,000 industries that collapsed in Aba as a result of lack of power supply.

With the independent power plant coming on stream soon, we need a governor to leverage on that development and jumpstart our economy again”.

He enjoined Orji and Abia PDP to encourage Otti to contest the next governorship election to consolidate on the gains of the out-going administration.

Group seeks Alison-Madueke’s intervention in pipeline project Gabriel Choba

Ughelli

he Niger Delta IndigTRadical enous Movement for Change (NDIMRC)

has urged the Minister of Petroleum, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke to halt the planned cancellation of the Trans Niger Pipeline Loopline Projects (TNPL) by the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC).

In a statement yesterday signed by its President, Nelly Emma, Secretary, John Sailor and Public Relations Officer, Stanley Mukoro, the group described as unfair the treatment being melted against the people of the Niger Delta region by Shell.

Specifically, the group alerted the Petroleum Minister of alleged move

by the company to cancel the Trans Niger Pipeline Loopline Projects (TNPL).

According to the statement, the company was still playing dirty politics with the people of the Niger Delta region, claiming the company was developing cold feet towards the Trans Niger Pipeline Loopline Projects because they are to be awarded to local contractors that have invested heavily on capacity building over the years in the oil rich region.

While insisting that the Company cannot cancel the projects expected to give a life line to the people of the region, the group said the company should be made to demonstrate strict compliance with the provision of Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act.

Mark's wife at 63, implores terrorists to embrace peace Chukwu David Abuja

ife of the President of W the Senate, Mrs Helen Mark has appealed to the

insurgents and terrorists currently ravaging the country to sheathe their swords and save citizens from avoidable deaths and agony.

Mrs. Mark said at a church service to mark her 63rd birthday in Abuja yesterday that violent crimes and terrorism posed serious challenge and that it jeopardises the peace, unity and development of Nigeria.

Mrs Mark, who was highly worried by the State

of insecurity in the country said: "The mood of the nation does not call for celebration. I wish that we live in peace in Nigeria. I am not celebrating the birthday because of the situation we now find ourselves. It is sad.

"The security situation is embarrassing. I wish that by next year, I will celebrate my birthday in a very joyous mood and in an atmosphere of peace and unity.

Not in this kind of sober mood.

"I sincerely join our compatriots and all well-meaning citizens of the world to plead with the terrorists to sheathe their swords and let us come together," she said.

L-R: Former Vice-Chancellor, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Prof. Wale Omole; Prof. Pat Utomi and Head of Public Relations, Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Adefemi Adeniran, during the premiere/official screening of the documentary film titled; Nigeria: Alternative Perspective, Inspirations and Lessons from Osun in Lagos…yesterday.

PHOTO: TONY EGUAYE

Youths blast Orji over comment on APGA leadership Yekeen Nurudeen

Abuja

T

he All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) Youths for Change has condemned a statement credited to Abia State Governor, Theodore Orji in which he described the party leaders as naïve and retrogressive who could not lead Ndigbo to the Promised Land.

The Youth group also lamented that the Governor also insulted Ndigbo by saying APGA is not the symbol of their unity and the late national leader, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu had left the party before he died which was why his amiable wife, Mrs Bianca Ojukwu was appointed Nigerian Ambassador to Spain.

In a statement issued yesterday, by its Coordinator, Hon. Samuel Ndukwe Kalu, the group said it was forced to react to the Gov-

ernor's outburst because he "disparaged Ojukwu and was contemptuous of APGA, the Igbo symbol of unity".

"We would have ignored Governor Orji’s cantankerous outbursts as the ranting of a frustrated man who dissipated energy in under-developing Abia State for over seven years, if he had not disparaged Ojukwu and contemptuous of APGA, the Igbo symbol of unity" it said.

This was as the group demanded an apology from Governor Orji for denigrating APGA leaders and lying against the late Dim Ojukwu and his wife, Ambassador Bianca or face legal action.

The group recalled that APGA National Chairman Chief Victor Umeh was in Abia State recently to open the new State secretariat of the party in Umuahia and was shocked at the level

of poverty and poor infrastructure that had denied the good people of the State dividends of democracy particularly in Aba, the famous Enyimba city.

It said it was out of exceptional patriotism, Umeh directed Governor Orji to prepare his handover note for the APGA government in 2015 as the people would no longer tolerate further PDP misrule, misadventure and maladministration of the State.

While asking the Governor to justify the billions of naira the federal government had allocated to Abia state since 2007 and explain why the state has not been developed, the APGA Youth group said the party would probe the administration of Governor Orji when it takes over in 2015.

"APGA Youth for Change, indeed the good people of Abia State will

no longer tolerate leaders without vision, mission and purpose in governance. The 2015 gubernatorial election is an opportunity for Abia electorate to vote for a progressive party which APGA represents in the South East and beyond, and jettison “political waka waka” governors of Abia and Imo States whose idea of politics is to jump from one party to another in a marriage of convenience.

“Since Governor Orji has not justified his mandate, it is inconceivable for him to contemplate running for Senate. It is a mission impossible and remains a mirage as no right thinking person will vote for him. Leadership is a deep and heavy responsibility" it said It also argued that for all his achievements as National Chairman of APGA, it has endorsed Chief Victor Umeh’s candidature for Anambra Central Senatorial seat.

8

NEWS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

PTI boss charges media practitioners Joe Obende WARRI

Principal of Aingcting the Petroleum TrainInsttute (PTI), Ef-

Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa'ad Abubakar 111 (sixth left); former President Shehu Shagari (third right); Sokoto State Governor, Aliyu Wamakko (fifth riht), and members of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) Course 18, during their visit in Sokoto…yesterday

NNPC: Yakubu’s kinsmen tackle Jonathan over sack Ibraheem Musa KADUNA

A

few days after his sack as the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation(NNPC), the kinsmen of Mr Andrew Yakubu have berated President Goodluck Jonathan for betraying the people of Kaduna State in general and Southern Kaduna Senatorial District in particular.

In a statement issued by the Kaduna State APC Justice Forum,

Yakubu’s kinsmen noted that the people of southern Kaduna have been voting solidly for PDP since 1999. They noted that Andrew’s removal “has exposed the contradictions within the PDP political family in which godfatherism and negative political backstabbing have taken the centre stage against equity, fairness and sense of political decency.’’

The statement, which was signed by Barrister Mohammed Musa Soba, the forum’s secretary, noted that ‘’no reason

No external candidates for Adamawa, says Madaki Ibrahim Abdul YOLA

of the Adamawa Amanhead bye-election, the Chairof the Peoples Dem-

ocratic Party PDP in the state, Chief Joel Madaki has debunked speculations that the party was shopping for someone from the opposition party to defect so as to be it candidate in the coming governorship poll. He stressed that Adamawa PDP has more than enough governorship contenders.

Madaki, said there was no iota of truth in the speculations, “because the party was blessed with so many qualified persons, whose pedigree was not in doubt and who can fill the vacancy of the executive Governor of Adamawa State and can contest for the plum job of the presidency.’’

According to him, PDP was a fully loaded party with experienced politicians, who has held many laudable national assignments in different capacities; who have been tried and tested to occupy any office hierarchy in the country and have been found worthy, and who are amongst the aspirants who are currently contrib-

uting eminently to building the party.

Madaki further stated that the Adamawa State PDP was blessed with an array of qualified politicians and there was no need to bring somebody from outside the party to run its ticket for the 2015 race and those speculating were doing so to fan the embers of their pay masters.

In a related development, a gubernatorial aspirant of PDP, Ahmed Gulak has said that the PDP in Adamawa state will not accept the candidature of the former Economic and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC, Chairman, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, as being speculated.

Speaking in Yola, Gulak said it was only mere speculations because Ribadu himself will not accept to run on the platform of the PDP. He said: “Ribadu is a highly respected person, who happens to be my classmate and I have tremendous respect for him.

So, I know that he will not run on the PDP banner having established his tentacles in the All Progressives Congress Party.

He will not abandon the party midstream.”

was adduced for Yakubu's removal because none could be justified in view of the fact that Yakubu has one more year for his tenure to expire either by reason of reaching the mandatory 60years of age or putting in 35years in service.’’

The forum condemned what it saw as Yakubu’s premature removal which portrays the PDP as unjust and insensitive to the political solidarity and patronage it enjoys from the good people of Southern Kaduna

OAU releases post UTME screening exercise uthorities Of the AUniversity, Obafemi Awolowo Ile-Ife yes-

terday said that "in less than four hours after the conduct of its postUTME screening exercise for Fourteen Thousand, Six Hundred and Forty Eight candidates (14,648),it has released the results of the exercise with eight (8) candidates scoring 300 marks and above out of the available 400 marks".

In a release from the Public Relations Officer of the University, Mr. Abiodun Olarewaju, the insti-

tution added that "out of the total number of 14,648, who participated in the screening, Seven Thousand, Seven Hundred and Seventy Nine(7,779) candidates scored Two Hundred (200) and above".

"Interestingly, seven out of the eight candidates who scored above three hundred (300) applied to read Law while the eighth candidate applied to read English Education. One candidate scored 360, two candidates scored 352 each, and each of the remaining six candidates scored 348."

furun, Warri in Delta State, Mr. Avuakporeta Orukele, has charged media practitioners not to undermine the power of the pen by staying "within the ambit of the ethics and codes of the press".

Orukele, who spoke yesterday when members of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Warri Correspondents' Chapel paid him a courtesy visit, told journalists that "while performing your duties, I strongly advise you to stay within the ambit of the ethics and codes of the press which range from ultra-conservatism to extra-sensationalism, commonly called yellow journalism.

"You should report news objectively and fairly. Endeavour to cross-check your facts before going to print.

When facts are not crosschecked, it could cause monumental damage to corporate image and reputation.

"I want to stress that you should have a heart and should not unnecessarily damage people's character or corporate reputation just for the sake of making a sensational story.

Adeyeye: PDP ready to dance in Osun

Rival groups in gun duel in Delta community

Adesina Wahab

Joe Obende

ADO-EKITI

inister of State for M Works, Prince Adedayo Adeyeye, has as-

sured the people of Osun State that there will be another Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) victory dance in the state this week, saying; "Ekiti State has through our Governor-Elect, Dr Ayodele Fayose, opened the floodgate of victory for the PDP in the SouthWest and nothing will

stop the victory ship from berthing in Osun State on Saturday."

Adeyeye, who expressed confidence that the PDP candidate in the Osun State governorship election billed for next Saturday, Senator Iyiola Omisore, will secure a landslide victory on Saturday, said; "Osun people have shown that they are tired of All Progressives Congress (APC) government of deceit and are ready for a change."

Aregbesola set for final campaign ll Progressive Congress Salami and Kolapo Alimi Afrom (APC)National leaders respectively are National all over the country Chairman of the party, will storm Osogbo, Osun State capital as from Monday to participate in the mega rally organized by the party for the reelection of Rauf Aregbesola into office.

Expected at the event according the Chairman and Secretary of the Aregbesola Campaign Committee for the Osogbo/Olorunda/Orolu/ Irepodun federal constituency, Senator Bayo

John Oyegun; Chief Bisi Akande, Gen Muhamodu Buhari, Senator Bola Amed Tinubu, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, all governors of the APC, among others.

In the statement made available to newsmen in Osogbo, they stated that the programme would come up on Tuesday, August 5, 2014 in Osogbo, the capital of Osun State.

WARRI

he precincts of the Tsional Warri Police Diviheadquarters ('A'

Division), Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State, last week became a battle ground as two warring rival groups from Ugborodo, Warri South Local Government Area exchanged fierce gunshots with bullets flying freely.

Passersby and shop owners around the police station and the Warri Central Hospital, scampered to safety in different directions with some sustaining injuries in the process.

Given the helplessness of the Police, who themselves took to their heels in the melee, some of the shop owners even closed shop for the day as there were fears that the battle was yet to be over.

According to a senior police officer at the Police Station, a young man had come with injuries he claimed he sustained from attacks from a rival group, accompanied by others, to lodge a complaint that he had

just escaped lynching.

An entry was made and since government hospitals were still on strike, he was referred to a nearby police clinic for treatment and doctor's report.

As he left the police station with his company, they met members from their rival gang, who chased and opened fire on them. They returned fire.

Scampering for safety, some of them ran to the police station but the gates had been locked with the policemen taking cover from straying bullets.

When New Telegraph visited the scene of the gun battle, raindrenched empty rounds of ammunition littered the area.

After the smoke cleared, members of the other group came to the station to lodge complaints of attack by a rival group.

The police made no arrests but simply transferred the matter to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) at its command headquarters in Asaba, the state capital.

NEW TELEGRAPH

9

www.newtelegraphonline.com/metro

ABIODUN BELLO FEATURES Editor

abiodun. bello@newtelegraphonline.com; otuntise@yahoo.co.uk

monday, august 4, 2014

0802 393 8212

Chisom Duruokpo: A cry for help

...Seeks N2m to undergo surgery

Chisom before

Isioma Madike

T

he life of Chisom Duruokpo, a final year Agriculture Economics student of Federal University of Technology, Owerri, is currently endangered. And she needs help, urgently.

What particularly raises concern on her condition is the ongoing nationwide doctors’ strike that has been on since July 1.

But even as 21-year-old Chisom grapples with the reality of the situation, which may affect her academic programme, what is more important to her now is getting her health back to normal.

Looking frail and tired, she said her predicament started late last year after she successfully undergone an appendicitis operation at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH). Curiously, a few months later, her stomach began to protrude, even as there was an unusual sensation within her.

Merely looking at Chisom, there could be the temptation that the once vivacious lady was due for labour. But that is far from the situation. She is only suffering from an abdominal inflammation, which doctors assured could be corrected through surgery.

Incidentally, Chisom, who hails from Orlu, Imo State, even in her troubling circumstance, is optimistic that she would bounce back to her former self with the

Chisom with a protruding belly

help of kind-hearted Nigerians.

She manifested her determination to live when even with her excruciating health challenges, she managed to finish her first semester examination. She had before the doctors’ strike, gone to LUTH for diagnosis.

But sadly, while her result was being processed in a private laboratory, the doctors had already embarked on an industrial action. When she returned to LUTH, the hospital was as silent as a graveyard.

She was advised to visit any of the private hospitals that had the capacity to handle her case.

It was at that point that the family knew that financial danger was looming.

The family members traversed many private hospitals. Unfortunately, the medical bill in those hospitals was way beyond their reach.

Her abdominal ultrasound’s report, made available to New Telegraph, and signed by a Consultant Radiologist, Dr Igwilo J.U., reveals that there is a large central complex mass in her stomach.

The ultrasound, however, shows that her liver, both kidneys and gall bladder are in normal working conditions.

Her condition, she managed to mutter in considerable pain, was giving her restless nights, describing it as a burden too heavy for her.

The medical report reads: “There is a large central complex mass displacing the viscera postero-laterally. The mass

measures 380.18cm, comprising multiple nodules, cystic and necrotic tissue. There is also a gross enlargement of the ovaries by a soft tissue mass. The liver is of normal span and shows a normal homogenous echogenicity. No focal lesion is seen within it. The porta hepatis, veins are all normal.

Both kidneys are of normal size, shape, colour and contour. No calyceal dilatation or calculus is seen in either kidney. The gall bladder, pancreas and spleen are also normal.”

Her fear and anxiety over the gradual

deterioration of her health could be felt as she beseeched doctors to urgently call off the strike. Having just one semester examination to sit for her to become a graduate, she also begged Nigerians to quickly come to her assistance in seeking medical treatment at a private hospital.

Except help comes quickly, she may not partake in her last examination, which is already around the corner. It is, indeed, a gloomy and dicey situation for Chisom as she worries over her health as well as her education at the same time.

“Some months ago, I noticed that my stomach began to swell up gradually. I told my parents and we went to LUTH for a scan. By the time the result was ready, the doctors were already on strike. We went to LUTH but there was no doctor to assess the result.

“I am feeling great pain at the moment, but it gets worse at night. My last exam for me to become a graduate is very close.

There is no way I can concentrate on reading my books. My legs are also swollen and I only manage to walk. I am pleading with the governor of my home state of Imo, Rochas Okorocha and President Goodluck Jonathan to help me out of this painful situation. My plea also goes to all spirited Nigerians to help put smile on my face again,” she pleaded.

Her father, Mr. Paul Duruokpo, said the family had been to several private hospitals in search of lasting solution to his child’s ailment but was currently hampered by its financial limitations.

According to him, about N2 million is being demanded to save the life of the first of his two children.

Duruokpo grieved that the doctors’ strike was adding to the family’s sorrow, explaining that the financial requirement wouldn’t have been that huge if clinical services were available at public hospitals.

According to him, N2 million is out of the family’s reach.

He said: “I was previously dealing on tailoring materials but for now, I operate a commercial tricycle, otherwise known as Keke Marwa for survival. There is no way we can raise such amount of money.

That is why we are using this medium to beg Nigerians to come and assist us so that my daughter can successfully finish her education and become more useful to herself and the society. She has just one semester to complete her education.”

For any financial or otherwise assistance, the family can be reached on 08161184471 or 08055811404. Interested individuals and groups may also send money to the Fidelity Bank account no 6016918387. The name is Duruokpo Ebere Paul.

Ogun reconstructs 23km Papalanto-Ilaro Road

O

gun State Government said it had started the reconstruction and expansion of the 23 kilometre Papalanto-Ilaro-Federal Polytechnic Road in the Yewa South Local Government Area.

The Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Mr Olamilekan Adegbite, disclosed this in Abeokuta, the state capital.

Adegbite said the need to reconstruct the road was borne out of the people’s clamour as its existing alignment, according to him, runs through low densely populated areas of Papalanto, Abule Odo, Ajegunle and Ilaro towns.

The commissioner disclosed that the road was in a bad shape with a lot of its

sections in deplorable conditions, adding that there was neither drainage system along the developed area nor crossing culverts at low points to channel water.

He said: “The existing roads width and standard cannot cope with the current traffic volume estimated at 22,500 vehicles per day that ply the road.”

The commissioner said the road work, with a construction period of 24 months, would be a six-lane carriageway with other furniture such as walkway, median, green belts, streetlights and standard drainage system.

According to him, the road will have a dual carriageway flyover at the Ilaro junction to ease traffic bottleneck often experienced in the area.

10 METRO

Sambo, Yero’s wives task women on peace Ibraheem Musa Kaduna

ife of the Vice-President, Hajia Amina W Sambo, and that of the Kaduna State governor, Hajiya Fatima Yero, have called

on women to use their position as mothers to ensure that peace prevails at all levels of society.

The two women spoke yesterday at the opening ceremony of the Annual Conference of the Northern Baptist Pastors’ Wives’ Conference in Kaduna.

According to them, by their creation, women are natural peace lovers and peace makers, sensitive, compassionate to the wellbeing of others than their men counterparts.

“Women are more cooperative and generally possess a temperament that makes peace building and conflict resolution achievable and sustainable,” Sambo said.

The vice-president’s wife, who spoke through a member of Presidential Committee on Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P), Halima Alfa, cited examples where women played prominent roles in restoring peace in some troubled countries, noting that such could be replicated in addressing the insecurity in Nigeria.

She said: “In recent times, the contributions of women to the ECOWAS mediation efforts that led to the resolution of the civil war and political crisis in Liberia and Sierra Leone have been particularly noteworthy.

“The pastor’s wife is always a well-mannered and cultured woman who serves as examples to others. She therefore commands respect of everyone in the society irrespective of faith.

This can therefore serve as a veritable tool to facilitate peace.”

The guest speaker, Mrs Comfort IdowuFearon, said that pastors’ wives were expected to be servants of the people, women of integrity who should be worthy of respect.

According to her, if peace must be achieved in northern Nigeria and the country at large, people must join hands together; ensure that there is justice and fairness in all that they do, regardless of their religious differences.

Earlier in her welcome address, the President, Northern Pastors’ Wives’ Conference (Nigeria Baptist Convention), Pastor Rahila Lyamgohn, called on every pastor’s wife to be woman that could bring peace in the church and society in general.

Edo LG records N20m monthly IGR CajetanMmuta Benin

do State House of Assembly yesterday commended EArea, the Chairman of Owan East Local Government Mr Jimoh Ijegbai for the laudable developmental

programmes of his administration and positive steps aimed at increasing the internally generated revenue (IGR) to N20 million monthly.

The Speaker, Mr Uyi Igbe, gave the commendation when the chairman appeared before the legislators to brief them on the performance of his administration between April 2013 and April 2014 at the old Assembly Complex in the Government House, Benin, the state capital.

Ijegbai told the lawmakers that the council recorded about N58 million as IGR from April 2013 to April 2014 and with an increase in its IGR to the tune of N20 million monthly from May 2014 when the administration came on board, a feat he disclosed was recorded from transportation and petroleum products businesses.

He said: “This administration has embarked on aggressive internally generated revenue through transportation and oil. It may interest you to know that the local government has a 24 fleet of buses plying Benin City and Abuja routes.

“The local government now operates a filling station which is rated as one of the best in Edo because of the effectiveness of the pumping machines and prompt service delivery.”

Monday, August 4, 2014

72-year-old man held for defrauding jobseekers OLD FRAUDSTER An old man is playing on desperation of unemployed graduates to dupe them Dahiru Suleiman Dutse

M

en of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) have arrested a 72-year-old man for allegedly duping jobseekers in Jigawa State.

The suspect, Malam Aliyu Yahya, and two others, who are still at large, had duped job seekers, mostly graduates, money running into millions of naira with a promise to get them employments in

Abolurin, NSCDC commandant

federal agencies such as Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Immigration Service, among others.

Recently, the suspect collected N45,000 each from the 25 graduates. Thereafter, he kept dodging them and refusing to pick their calls.

NSCDC sources said that when the matter was reported, the corps arrested the suspected fraudster on July 18.

Yahya, according to the sources, promised to produce the money within two weeks.

Last Friday, the NSCDC recovered N495,000 out of N3.690 million.

The sources added that the NSCDC had refunded 11 of the 25 applicants their money.

One of the victims, Abubakar Mustapha, an NCE holder in Business Education, said his friends introduced Yahya to him, claiming he had helped

them to secure employment.

Meanwhile the accused person is still under the custody of the NSCDC until he produces the remaining money to be settled to others.

Speaking with journalists, Yahya said he saw it as a business venture.

He said: “All I know is that it is business. It involves me and two other prominent peoples. One of them is a retired police officer in Kaduna who was assisting our people to gain employment on commission basis.”

Yahya added that in every N45,000, his commission was N5,000, while the two ‘prominent people’ shared the remaining money.

“Ever since I started this business, I have never failed until now,” he said.

Poverty eradication requires collective effort, says Fashola

Muritala Ayinla

L

agos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola and Chairmen of the 57 local government areas at the weekend underscored the need for collective efforts to tackle poverty and other challenges confronting the nation.

They spoke at the grassroots’ empowerment programme organised by the local government chairmen popularly known as Conference 57.

The governor and the chairmen bemoaned Nigeria’s failure to achieve socio-economic and political growth after over a decade of democratic governance.

Fashola, who spoke through the Commissioner for Transportation, Comrade Kayode Opeifa, at the empowerment programme held at the Adeyemi Bero Auditorium, Lagos State Secretariat, Alausa, said the vision of state and local government areas was to work together to grow the state to be the pride of the country.

He said: “We do not do poverty alleviation but grassroots’ empowerment. The council chairmen have done well in providing infrastructure for the Camillus Nnaji

P

rices of bitter kola, a popular West African medicinal plant, have skyrocketed because of claims that it is a possible antidote to the dreaded Ebola virus.

Our correspondent, who went some parts of the Lagos metropolis and its environs yesterday, reports that bitter kola which was sold at N10, has jumped to N50, while the one sold for N20 now costs N100.

One of those selling bitter kola inside kiosks at Ogba, who gave his name as Mohammed, said it had become scarce.

He said: “The prices have gone up that is why we changed the price. They said it is a medicine and many people are eating it now because of a new disease (Ebola virus)

citizens. They have built roads, schools, hospitals; construct drainages; provide empowerment programmes and others.

I must thank the council chairman for taking care of the grassroots.

“The council chairmen have come together to do the biggest Beneficiaries empowerment programme in the country.”

The governor emphasised the need for the residents to be vigilant in the face of security challenges rocking the country.

Fashola also urged them to continue to be security conscious to keep the state safe.

He added: “I want to tell the residents of Lagos that the security of this great state is also their responsibility. We should not leave it for the government alone. We need to support the council chairmen in their pro- Some of the items grammes so that they can pro- country that did not ban the vide the dividends of democracy. activities of commercial motor“We need to be steadfast and cycle operators, saying it was do not accept expired rice from outright ban in other states consome people who claim to love trolled by the opposition parties. you. These are tactics from the Harping on the empoweropposition. And I do not want ment programme, the Chairthem to scare you with their man of Conference 57, Akeem strategies.”

Omoyele, said the gesture to The governor explained that empower over 3,000 people at Lagos was the only state in the

the grassroots was to enable the beneficiaries to become employers of labour.

He said: “Poverty seemed to have become a natural phenomenon in Nigeria. Successive government in Nigeria has been noted to have made effort towards poverty alleviation in Nigeria.

Ebola: Price of bitter kola shoots up

Bitter Kola

which has entered Nigeria.”

Another seller at Mowe in Ogun State said that bitter kola prices had gone up because the demand for it was high.

He said: “Today alone, more than 10 people came within one hour to ask for bitter kola.

The ones I bought yesterday have finished.”

The demand for bitter kola

is high on the strength of claims that a Nigerian doctor based in the United States, Maurice Iwu, found that Garcinia, popularly called bitter kola in West Africa, might be a possible cure for Ebola.

Bitter kola, a staple health fruit in Nigeria, was reported to have stopped the virus at test tube experiments.

The virus has so far killed more than over 700 victims since its outbreak in Guinea, with Nigeria’s only recorded death being that of a Liberian consultant, Patrick Sawyer, who died in Lagos recently.

A correspondent with Washington Bureau reported Iwu, a professor of pharmacology and former chairman of Nigeria’s Independent Na-

tional Electoral Commission (INEC), who made the discovery, as saying that a cure could be sourced from the same African forests where the disease was identified.

One of the top infectiousdisease laboratories in the US was said to have tested the fruit, and said that it passed the crucial and difficult first hurdle.

A virus expert and Head of US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases in Fort Detrick, Maryland, established to find antiviral drugs to fight exotic diseases, John Huggins, said: “It certainly is a promising compound.

So far, it’s made it through all the gates that it has been sent through.”

METRO

Monday, August 4, 2014

Traffic law has saved 500 lives, says Opeifa Muritala Ayinla

Kayode Opeifa, said yesterday that it had prevented at least 500 deaths.

Governor Babatunde Fashola had on August 2, 2012 signed the Lagos Road Traffic Law. With the law, operation of commercial motorcycles also known as Okada on major highways was outlawed while driving against traffic attracts stiffer penalties.

Hence, a number of bullion vans had been impounded for driving against traffic, in accordance with the provisions of the law.

But speaking on the gains of the law, Opeifa said its basic objective was to introduce orderliness on the road, adding that the law had also reduced abuse by law enforcement agencies, especially misdirected enforcement and extortion.

The commissioner also said that over 5,000 injuries had been averted through the law, saying sanity had returned to the state roads as a few people, according to him, now drive against the traffic.

On restriction of commercial motorcycles on major roads in the state, Opeifa said the law was largely misconstrued by the motorcyclists, saying that hundreds of lives would have been lost if government had not enacted the law to restrict operations of the motorcyclists on highways.

He said: “I don’t want to say anything about Okada restriction because there is a lot of misconception on it. But truly speaking, we have saved lives, we have prevented over 5,000 injuries, we have saved over 500 lives. And I know many people have gone through Okada accidents. With the new transportation system, we are developing, there are many benefits attached to it.

“If not for some of the provisions of the law, our traffic situation will be worse in Lagos. People now know more about road signs. They now know when to make Uturn. They now have a better understand-

Cult war claims three in Ogoni communities Emmanuel Masha Port Harcourt

wo years after the enactment of the Tmissioner Lagos Road Traffic Law 2012, the Comfor Transportation, Comrade

least three persons were reported Atiestdead in Bane and Kpaa communiin Khana Local Government Area of Rivers State after youths believed to be cult members clashed.

Witnesses said all manners of weapons were used during the clash by two rival cult groups, while socio-economic activities were paralysed in the two communities.

One of the suspected cult members was shot dead by members of the rival group, and his head cut

of the Lagos State Task Force Oesfficials on Environmental and Special Offenc(Enforcement) numbering about 20

yesterday allegedly demolished a showroom and goods worth N16 million belonging to a businessman.

The building housing the showroom is located at 3 Oregun-Opebi Link Road, Ikeja, Lagos.

It was gathered that the task force was at the place on Saturday and removed the roof of the building before it came back yesterday and demolished the structure.

The owner of the building, Mr Victor Iwerumor, said about 2pm on Saturday, he was informed on phone that some people were trying to remove the roof of his showroom.

He said: “When I eventually got to the shop, what I saw was that some policemen numbering about eight and some hoodlums had removed the roof of my shop while part of the shop was also destroyed.

“I tried to persuade them to stop. One of the policemen said they were sent from the Government House at Alausa. Then I told him that the matter relating to the property is in court.

“I also called my lawyer to come and see what it was going on. After I had left the scene, my sales girl called me back that they had come back. I immediately put a call to the police control room, when the policemen came, those who were

off.

A woman, another victim of the violence, was shot dead.

Witnesses said efforts to ascertain what led to the clash were futile, just as their attempt to find the names of the cult groups.

But the local government Chairman, Hyacinth Nwiye, who confirmed the incident, said that he saw the body of the cult member, which was taken to the mortuary.

He said: “When I heard about the incident, I quickly called the DPO to find out what happened. I also went there myself.”

Anambra carries out first heart surgery Opeifa

ing of traffic light. They now understand that yellow doesn’t mean ‘go’ but ‘ready to go’ and that green means ‘go.’

“The road traffic law of Lagos State has also achieved most, if not all its objectives.”

Many Lagosians, according to him, believe there is an improvement, even though some may look painful.

He added: “On the issue of traffic flow, among the basic objectives of the law is the need to review and rewrite the old law that has been amended several times for over 50 years.

“The law was to also improve on road safety and to improve on security as it relates to transportation sector so as to make the law more friendly and easy to understand and interpret and give the opportunity to drive awareness for all the road users.

“In the area of better understanding of the law, a lot of Lagosians now understand the law, even though there are still so many areas that are not clear.

“In the area of quality of life, we have been able to reduce gaseous emission.”

Obi (in black), with Nwiloh (on his left), who led other doctors from the USA and Nigeria to perform the first heart surgery at the hospital.

State may have started Ainnambra reaping the fruits of its investment the health sector with the heart surgery performed at St. Joseph Specialist Hospital, Adazi Nnukwu.

The surgery is being carried out

Lagos Task Force destroys showroom, N16m goods Taiwo Jimoh

11

there to destroy my shop fled.

“The policemen were not done with what they did on Saturday; they came back today (yesterday) to complete the job they started. They pulled down the whole structure. They destroyed the foreign executive chairs, tables, security safes and file cabinets.

“What surprised me most was that when I went to report the matter at Oregun Police Post on Saturday there I saw one of the policemen who came to demolish my shop. It was through the policeman I got to know that they were sent by a politician from Alausa.”

Iwerumor standing in front of the demolished building

It was gathered that the task force was led by one Nubor Nuah with force number 194247 and Echo Abraham. The task force pick up van is marked AKD 343 CJ while Lagos State Task Force and Environmental Unit is boldly inscribed on the vehicle.

When contacted on phone yesterday, the Chairman of the task force, Bayo Sulaiman, referred our correspondent to the state Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide.

But Braide did not pick her calls to confirm the involvement of policemen in the demolition.

by a team of 15 doctors and medical workers led by the Anambra State-born cardiac surgeon, Dr Joseph Nwiloh, who is based in the United States and is globally regarded as one of the best in the world.

The building housing the heart clinic was named after him by the former Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, who built it as a way of celebrating worthy Anambra sons and daughters and hold them out as role models for the young.

Nwiloh, who helped in equipping the centre, thanked God for His mercies and Obi for his vision.

He promised to even work harder to make sure the centre becomes fully functional.

Obi, who was visiting the state and was requested by Nwiloh to witness the first surgery on Saturday, said he was happy at the many fruits of the collaboration between the church and the government.

He said he was even happier that his successor, Chief Willie Obiano, had continued in the collaboration, saying that the ultimate beneficiaries were the people.

Speaking on the development, the President General of Adazi Nnukwu, Mr Ben Enemuo, said the people of the town were happy over the development.

He thanked God for the gift of Obi who initiated the Heart Centre and commended his successor for the promise to build on his foundation.

The former Anambra State Commissioner for Health, Dr Lawrence Ikeakor, who visited the hospital to witness to surgery, said that with the development, Nigerians might not have the need to travel outside the country again for categories of heart diseases requiring surgery.

12 NEWS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Jonathan, Kalu eulogise Anenih at 81 Wale Elegbede

P

resident Goodluck Jonathan and eminent businessman and former governor of Abia State, Dr. Orji Kalu, yesterday congratulated the Chairman, Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Tony Anenih, as he clocks 81 today.

While President Jonathan described Chief Anenih as one of Nigeria’s most highly respected political icons, Dr. Kalu saluted his consistent relevance in the politics of Nigeria, eulogising his leadership role in the country.

Jonathan, in a one-page

letter titled: “Birthday Felicitations” dated July 30, 2014, said Anenih had remained an icon over the years because of his “uncommon leadership qualities, courage, forthrightness, and evident faith in the peace, unity, progress, and prosperity of our dear nation.”

The President, who felicitated with the BoT chairman on behalf of his family, the Government and people of Nigeria, further affirmed in the letter that he (Anenih) has contributed untiringly to the success of the PDP administration in the country.

Also, in a congratu-

latory message signed

by Dr. Kalu’s Special Adviser, Prince ‘Kunle Oyewumi, the business mogul noted that Chief Anenih’s large heart and dynamism have earned him innumerable disciples, followers and apostles, culminating in his consistent relevance in the Nigerian polity.

He said: “I join the family and millions of wellwishers of Chief Anenih in celebrating an icon, whose fatherly advice and support have helped us individually and collectively.

“Baba’s ideology anchored on justice and fairness has made him a pillar of support and a reference

point to Nigerians irrespective of age, ethnic, religious and political divides.”

The former governor called for the celebration of Nigerians, who have served the country selflessly in different capacities, noting that Chief Anenih’s elderly advice has promoted peace and tranquility in the country.

He said further that it is uncommon to have leaders of Chief Anenih’s pedigree, who understand both the conventional and contemporary politics, despite his age.

Kalu wished the celebrant long life and prosperity in the service of God and humanity.

APC: Amaechi will beat Wike in 2015 Emmanuel Masha

Port Harcourt

All Progressives Tsaidhe Congress (APC) has that Governor Chi-

buike Rotimi Amaechi will unmake the Minister of State for Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike in 2015 by retaining APC's political dominance in Rivers State.

The party through its chairman, Dr. Davies Ibiamu Ikanya, who stated this in Port Harcourt also described Wike's rumoured governorship ambition as something the party prayed and fasted for, stressing

Soldiers, part of election, says Ladoja Sola Adeyemo Ibadan

Leader NandATIONAL of Accord Party former Governor

Emir of Hadejia, Alhaji Adamu Maje (left) and the Jigawa State Deputy Governor, Alhaji Ahmed Mahmoud, during his sympathy visit to the emirate over flood disaster…yesterday

Benue governorship: Waku Oke admonishes Ekiti drums support for Nyitse poly students Cephas Iorhemen

Makurdi

ormer Senator, repreFEast senting Benue North in the nation's upper

parliament, Chief Joseph Waku, has opened up on who would succeed Governor Gabriel Suswam in next year’s governorship election in the state.

He has urged the people of the state, especially those from his immediate constituency in Utyondo, Guma Local Government Area to work assiduously towards securing the governorship seat for the immediate Permanent Secretary, Government House Administration, Dr. Tivlumun Nyitse.

Speaking during a meeting hosted by Nyitse in Makurdi, Waku stated that by all standards, the area has all it takes to produce the next governor

and should be supported to present a candidate for the plum seat.

He described Nyitse's emergence as a beacon of hope for the people of the area, pointing out that it behoves them to pray earnestly for the aspirant to actualize his dreams.

Also throwing his support behind Nyitse's aspiration, retired Justice Augustine Utsaha, implored the people to take the governorship ambition of Nyitse as a collective project; while an elder of Nyitse's campaign organization and former member of the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission, Mr. Richard Asema, admonished the people to hold onto the aspiration in order not to allow the opportunity of having their son as governor next year elude them.

Adesina Wahab

Ado-Ekiti

management of Crown ThashePolytechnic, Ado-Ekiti, said it will not tolerate

any criminal act among the students, saying anyone lacking in morals would not be allowed to earn the certificate of the institution.

The Rector of the institution, Engr. Aderemi Oke, said this in Ado-Ekiti at the weekend while distributing call up letters to the third batch of graduates that would be mobilized for the one-year compulsory service under the National Youth Service Corps Scheme.

The school is privatelyowned. Oke, while commending the graduates of the school being mobilised for the NYSC scheme, advised them against fanning the ember of discord by getting involved in acts

that could lead to ethno-religious crisis in their places of assignments.

He said the institution through concerted efforts had rid the institution of those with bad records, particularly those found to have allegedly associated with cult groups in order to protect the image of the fastest growing polytechnic in the country.

He advised the 43 graduates that were churned out for service to be good ambassadors of the polytechnic and refrain from doing things that could damage the reputation of the institution.

“I know this institution has been able to build an enduring culture of hard work, integrity and morality in our students. All we need to tell you is to sustain these legacies in order to portray you as good ambassadors," Oke added.

that the party was sure of defeating Wike and the PDP at the polls anyday. Ikanya added, in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, that Wike might be forced to quit politics prematurely after 2015.

Ikanya also said that 2015 would mark Wike's political waterloo, adding that the minister owes his appointment as junior minister to Amaechi. "The same Amaechi that made him, will politically unmake him during the governorship election. Wike is living in the past."

of Oyo State, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, has said the deployment of soldiers to supervise elections was not new in the country.

Ladoja said this against the complaints by the All Progressives Congress (APC) that the deployment of soldiers in Ekiti and Osun states was wrong on the part of the Federal Government.

He said that those crying against the process might have forgotten that the General Officer Commanding 2 Division of the Nigerian Army, Major General Saleh, gave evidence at the Elections Petition Tribunal in Ibadan in 2007.

According to the former governor, politicians threatening fire and brimstones and violence during campaigns may have made deployment of sufficient security by the Federal Gover nment a necessity, to protect lives and property.

The guber natorial aspirant of Accord in the 2015 elections noted that the use of soldiers gave people sense of security in Ekiti and could be said to have accounted for the highest tur n-out of voters in the history of elections in the state.

He noted that the electorate might not have come out en masse if they were not sure of their security.

He, however, said the de ployment of

massive security in 2015 to states by the Federal Gover nment will not be possible, explaining that whatever happened in Ekiti and Osun cannot happen in Oyo State for example where a sitting governor was defeated during the last elections.

While noting that the All Progressives Congress (APC) got it wrong by saying the heavy security presence threatened voters in Ekiti, Ladoja said security was necessary to give the electorate confidence to come out and perform their civic responsibilities.

"Soldiers have always supervised elections in Nigeria. So, there is nothing new.

In 2007, the GOC gave evidence at election petition tribunals. The deployment of heavy security in Ekiti was due to the hype at that time between the forces of PDP and APC. May be, if security had not been deployed, people might not have come out to vote. The fact that the election recorded more voters than ever before showed that people had confidence to come when they knew security was in place.

"But whatever happens in Osun and Ekiti cannot happen in Oyo State. Where will you get five police, two soldiers to man one pooling booth during 2015 general elections?

Also, the deluge of people moving around will not happen because all politicians will be in their states fighting for survival. So this should not disturb us.

‘Omisore not comparable to Aregbesola’ / PAGE 15 | Shelle: PDP not projecting Agbaje for Lagos guber / PAGE 18

POLITICS

NEW TELEGRAPH

newtelegraphonline.com/politics

ayodele Ojo

Deputy Editor, politics

ayodele.ojo@newtelegraphonline.com

13

2015: Sectional agitations dominate Oyo politics

p-14

ayodeleojo@yahoo.com

MONday, AUGUST 4, 2014

Oyinlola: Osun’s beautiful bride

For former Governor of Osun State, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, the song, ‘should I say No, should I say Yes,’ must be humming in his mind anytime he gets confronted with issues concerning this weekend’s governorship election in the state.

In this piece, WALE ELEGBEDE captures the various overtures that have turned the suspended National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) into a sought after beautiful bride for the Osun election.

T

here is no shortage of political gladiators for the August 9 governorship election in Osun. But one big name seems to be the selling blueprint for both the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) - Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola. Regardless of what may have transpired between them and Oyinlola, both parties are presently dropping the name of the Okuku born prince as an item in their various rallies, press statements and campaigns, making him the toast of the two dominant parties in the election.

Clearly, the barrage of proposals to Oyinlola signifies to an extent the political credence of the former governor both within and outside the State of the Living Spring. But whether the looming influence could transmute to electoral value is a different kettle of fish.

Once Upon a soft-spot for Omisore During his tenure that spanned more than seven years, Oyinlola’s influence loomed large within the state and his party. Before the Federal Appeal Court, Ibadan, kicked him out as governor in November, 2010, Oyinlola had

Aregbesola

Oyinlola

started making moves more than one year before the anticipated election over who will succeed him. Interestingly, his body language seemed to align with the candidature of Omisore then, not even threats of defection from some of his foot soldiers who were interested in succeeding him budged him at all. Omisore, who was in the Senate as at then, had started erecting billboards and campaign team for the aborted governorship election in 2011.

To ensure that his preferred egg hatches, Oyinlola as the chief executive of the state ordered any member of his cabinet eyeing political offices especially his seat, to resign and face their ambition.

Despite the emergence of over 20 aspirants, Oyinlola kept the Omisore card to his chest, but

Omisore

not for too long. The once-upon-a-time love between Oyinlola and his aides gave way easily when his then Chief of Staff, Peter Babalola and the Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Fatai Akinbade, among others, gleefully resign their appointments, but were shocked to see some other aspirants like Professor Wale Oladipo who was the then Chairman of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) not resigning.

They also discovered after quitting, that Oyinlola had a soft-spot for Omisore despite charging them to aspire for his seat. The tussle then began afterwards as Akinbade, Babalola, Alhaji Lateef Bakare, Toye Wahab and Hon. Gbenga Onigbogi, among others decided to take the battle to Oyinlola’s

gate by forming a parallel PDP executive in the state following an unofficial directive to all the council and party chairmen in the local governments to stop further relation with Akinbade and his ilk. The several jostle and bickering left the PDP with a scar that has not healed as many of the foot-soldiers of Oyinlola and the PDP were lost in transit to the opposition, while some who still remained appear to be non-functional.

Things Fall Apart With the various calculation for the 2011 Osun governorship election hitting the rocks following the ouster of the Oyinlola’s administration through a court ruling, the battle for the soul of the PDP shifted to who controls the

CROSSFIRE Each of us made it a deliberate resolution not to be bi-partisan or non-partisan to support the President to make sure that we get rid of this insurgency and indeed suggesting that before December -Babangida Aliyu

From which position were they giving that deadline? Some serious people should have done it. The Chief of Defence Staff should be the one if the President is absent -Rabiu Kwankwaso

structure of the party through the machinery of state executive. According to those in the know, it was at this point that the theater of war between Oyinlola and Omisore actually opened up. The two forces had since collided for political relevance and influence within and outside the state. The crux of the matter was the intrigues that trailed the 2011 state council election where Omisore reportedly threw up the incumbent state chairman, Alhaji Ganiyu Olaoluwa against the late Kayode Idowu who was the candidate of Oyinlola.

As it turned out, Omisore and his candidate defeated Idowu and his backers. Though a truce was reached and a harmonization was done to accommodate some candidates from the Oyinlola’s camp, it was an infraction that made the party fall on its face severally.

Afterwards, it was speculated in some quarters that Omisore was the brain behind the plot that removed Oyinlola as the PDP National Secretary. This particular school of reasoning averred that Omisore had felt unsafe and threatened by the power embedded in office of the party’s scribe, and with the no love lost between the duo, Oyinlola might object to the emergence of Omisore as the CONTINUED ON PAGE 16

14 POLITICS

Ladoja

TEMITOPE OGUNBANKE writes on the quest of Ibadan indigents to produce Oyo State governor in 2015

A

head of the 2015 gubernatorial election in Oyo State, Ibadan indigenes are tactically positioning themselves to produce the number one citizen in the Pacesetter State. In fact, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirants, who are of Ibadan origin, have publicly made known their intention to ensure that the next governor of Oyo State comes from Ibadan, the state capital in 2015.

The Ibadan origin aspirants in a communiqué released after a closed-door meeting held at the residence of the former Minister of Special Duties, Elder Wole Oyelese, on Sunday, July 20 unanimously agreed that PDP must present an indigene of Ibadan as its gubernatorial candidate in 2015.

The communiqué reads in part: “We unanimously agreed to work together as a team to ensure victory for our party in 2015 elections and deliver Oyo State for President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan’s re-election.

“Given the political reality on ground, the PDP candidate who by the grace of Almighty God will be the next governor of Oyo State must come from Ibadan land.

“The body takes cognizance of the importance and political interest of other zones and resolved to work assiduously with them to achieve victory for our great party at all levels.

“We appreciate the patience of our teeming and loyal supporters and indeed the good people of Oyo state for enduring all the inhuman treatments inflicted on them by the current APC administration and we assure them of a responsible and responsive government as from May 29, 2015.”

The seven aspirants that met and signed the communiqué were; Oyelese, former Minister of Sports and Special Duties, Prof. Taoheed Adedoja; former Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Alhaji Hazeem Gbolarumi and former Senate Leader, Senator Teslim Folarin. Others are Prof. Soji Adejumo, Engr Seyi Makinde and Dr. Azeez Adeduntan.

Without any iota of doubt, the position of the seven PDP aspirants has again thrown-up the bone of contention over Ibadan dominance in Oyo State politics, particularly in term of the governorship of the state.

Though Oyo State is largely divided into five major areas; Ibadan, Oyo, OkeOgun , Ogbomoso and Ibarapa but since the advent of the Third Republic, Ibadan has always had a firm grip on the affairs of the state. In 1992, late Chief Kolapo Ishola emerged as Oyo State governor

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Ajimobi

Oyelese

2015: Sectional agitations dominate Oyo politics on the platform of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and he governed the state between January 1992 and November 1993.

His administration was short-lived by the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election and the military coup, which produced Gen. Sani Abacha as Head of State.

At the beginning of the present Fourth Republic, an indigene of Ibadan, late Lam Adesina governed Oyo State on the platform of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) between 1999 and 2003 and handed over to another Ibadan man, Senator Rashidi Ladoja who contested against Adesina on the platform of the PDP during the 2003 governorship election and defeated the incumbent governor.

For having a running battle with Alhaji Lamidi Adedibu, the late godfather of Ibadan politics, Ladoja was impeached in January 2006 and he was later reinstated in December 2006 through a court verdict that nullified his impeachment by members of the Oyo State House of Assembly. During Ladoja’s impeachment, his deputy, Otunba Christopher Adebayo Alao-Akala, who hails from Ogbomoso steered the ship of the state.

Alao-Akala eventually took over from his boss democratically on May 29, 2007, but his ambition to secure a second term was truncated by another Ibadan indigene, as he lost the 2011 governorship election to the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) governorship candidate, Senator Abiola Ajimobi.

The first tenure of the incumbent governor, Abiola Ajumobi, is supposed to end in May 29, 2015 and there is a strong indication that he will seek for re-election in 2015. If the signal from the state is anything to go bye, Ibadan indigenes are seriously warming up for the governorship position. At present two prominent indigenes of Ibadan seem to be enjoying the support of larger population of not only the people of Ibadan, but the entire state to govern Oyo State in 2015.

On one part, some are drumming support for Governor Ajimobi’s re-election while some are canvassing for Ladoja’s return to the Agodi Government House.

Some people in Oyo State are also campaigning that PDP should zone its governorship ticket to Ibadan. And considering the demand of the seven PDP gubernatorial aspirants in the state’s governorship contest, definitely the Ibadan people are on the march again to produce who occupies Agodi Govern-

The position of the seven PDP aspirants has again thrown-up the bone of contention over Ibadan dominance in Oyo State politics, particularly in term of the governorship of the state ment House in 2015.

While some see the PDP aspirants’ agitations as a normal trend for Ibadan to continue to dominate the state’s politics, some school of thoughts are of the view that the position of the PDP aspirants of Ibadan origin is a deliberate move to stop Akala, from emerging as the party’s candidate in the next year’s governorship election in Oyo State.

Oyelese in an interview with a national daily said there is nothing wrong in the campaign by the PDP gubernatorial aspirants of Ibadan origin for next Oyo State governor to come from the state capital, since other divisions in the state are also working towards producing a gubernatorial candidate in 2015.

His words: “If you are following what’s going on in Oyo State, you will realise that just a little while ago, Ogbomoso people held a meeting with Akala and Ayo Adeseun and gave them a mandate to go and secure the PDP ticket and bring it to Ogbomoso that any of them who brings the ticket will be supported by Ogbomoso. That was a gang-up. So, I really don’t see what the noise is all about, that aspirants from Ibadan also met and said the candidate for PDP should come from Ibadan. I don’t see what the big deal is. If Ogbomoso people can give Akala and his man that assignment to go and bring the ticket to Ogbomoso, why is everybody talking about Ibadan?”

In a swift reaction to the seven PDP governorship aspirants request, Akala condemned the demand that Ibadan should produce the governor in 2015. He said that the call by the Ibadan aspirants is undemocratic and an exercise in futility, because the governorship candidate would not govern Ibadan alone. “That demand is undemocratic and will definitely fail. So, candidates that come from

the other parts of the state have no right to the slot. We will define those who are from Ibadan and Ijebu very soon,” he said.

Also kicking against the position of the PDP governors of Ibadan origin, a political pressure group in Oyo State, the Ibadan Peoples Democratic Party Forum, in a communiqué after its meeting in Ibadan stated that such a move would be counterproductive given the antecedents of the past.

The group stated that the demand to restrict candidature to a particular area negated the party’s constitution as well as the 1999 Constitution, which allows Nigerians to aspire for elective positions irrespective of ethnic, religious and sectional background.

“We have passed through this stage before and this kind of conspiracy had cost us the mandate to rule the state in 2011. Similar alliances anywhere only result to nullity, fear, failure and unpopular choices. We therefore enjoin the aspirants to have a rethink in the interest of our party. We must all embrace a level playing ground to pave way for a popular and acceptable candidate that will guarantee victory for the party in Oyo State come 2015,” the group stated.

They also called on residents of the state to disregard sectional sentiments in the choice of candidates, saying this could generate bad blood in the polity, which is very much not needed at this point in time, in the nation’s nascent democratic experimentation.

Worried by the ongoing scenario, Oyo State Unity Forum (OSUM) in a statement jointly signed by its chairman and secretary, Mr. Olusoji Oyelakin and Pastor Benjamin Akpan, respectively, cautioned aspirants seeking to govern the Pacesetter State on the platform of the PDP not to throw the state into chaos and violence in their desperation to win the party’s ticket.

The forum, comprising indigenes and non-indigenes of the state spanning over five zones of the state, also expressed worry that the battle over which zone should produce the governor is capable of bringing back the long-forgotten days of politics of violence and killings in the state.

As the 2015 election draws closer, people are watching with keen interest the supremacy battle in the state. Will the governorship remain in Ibadan or shift to another zone in Oyo State. This is a crucial question that the Oyo 2015 governorship election will proffer answers to.

POLITICS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

15

‘Omisore not comparable to Aregbesola’ Prince Bola Ajao is the publicity secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Osun State. In this interview, he reveals why his party’s standard-bearer in the August 9, 2014 governorship election, Senator Iyiola Omisore, will defeat the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Rauf Aregbesola, among other issues. CHINEDU EKEJA brings excerpts Today, you are rounding off the houseto-house and community-to-community campaign of your standard bearer in August 9 governorship poll, Senator Iyiola Omisore. How do you assess the reception of the people to your party in communities visited so far?

First and foremost, we would like to put on record our gratitude to God, Almighty for his kindness, mercies and benevolence. The reception has been something else. It was huge, wonderful, tumultuous, encouraging and it is pointing to no other thing than victory that is waiting for Otunba Christopher Iyiola Omisore and the Peoples Democratic Party come August 9, 2014 gubernatorial election in Osun State.

What do you think are the marketable features of your candidate?

I challenge anybody to proof any contrary assertion that Senator Iyiola Omisore remains the most visible, the most talked about and most prominent political figure in Osun State in the last 20 years. This is a very high point. He has been there for the people of Osun State. He was there as a deputy governor to former Governor Bisi Akande and he performed creditably well. As a Senator, representing Osun East in the National Assembly, for two terms, he represented us excellently, distributing democratic largesse to the people of his constituency and beyond. In terms of democratic dividends to the people, he has always been there as a philanthropist, humanist, realist and somebody that can be relied upon. He is very assessible, but very difficult to manipulate.

What do you think Omisore would do differently if he emerges the winner of the election from what Osun people are witnessing under Governor Rauf Aregbesola One thing that he would do real different is that there would not be any capital flight anywhere. This is a homeboy and son of the soil. Omisore is a practical politician and somebody whose peoples’ yearnings and aspirations have been his topmost priority and major concern. His goal has always been driven by the need to make life abundantly comfortable for the generality of Osun State. There would be immediate halt of capital flight to Lagos and this would pave way for prosperity and economic empowerment of our hardworking people, who have been subjected to debilitating effects of poverty and frustration by Aregbesola’s callous administration.

The APC recently kicked against the planned deployment of heavy security for the conduct of the governorship election, saying doing so would amount to the militarisation of the nation’s democracy. What is you take on this?

Almost everywhere in the world, particularly in the third world countries, the conduct of election has always brought some form of disturbances, violence, worrisome threats to peace and tranquility. The only antidote to ensure a free, fair, credible and rancour free election is to have

adequate security to ensure that lives and properties are effectively protected. Anybody that is saying something contrary or holds different position on this matter is planning to benefit from some mayhem and hoping to achieve some sinister objectives through violence. We must give credit to the PDP-led Federal Government, currently under the able leadership of President Goodluck Jonathan, which has been protecting and sustaining our hard earned and uninterrupted democracy in the last 15 years. In this regard, adequate and effective security is germane to the survival of our democracy.

Not quite long ago, the ruling APC government in Osun allegedly said your party was collaborating with INEC to perpetrate electoral fraud through the use of NYSC members, who would serve as adhoc officials during the election.

How do you react to this?

Was it not the same NYSC members that were used in Anambra governorship poll? Why did the PDP not collude with INEC there? Was it not the corpers that were used in Ondo election and did the PDP connive with INEC to rig the poll, which was won by Governor Olusegun Mimiko of the Labour Party? Ditto for a number of places the PDP lost. There is no connivance.

You can see for yourself wherever the PDP and Senator Omisore went for campaign the magnitude of people and intimidating crowd trooping out to show love and sincere acceptance for our party. This is amazing. There is no doubting the fact that our people are seriously yearning for a change from this misrule and mis-governance of these aliens and interlopers in the corridors of power, holding our innocent people by the jugular through harsh economic policies and other programmes, which have no direct bearing or impact on the entire citizenry.

They have grossly mismanaged our economy and succeeded in wantonly and recklessly demolishing our properties, without paying compensation and also taken away our source of livelihood. But, Osun people have collectively resolved to send them packing on August 9. There is no need for any connivance or rigging. We are looking forward to a free and fair election, where there would be one man, one vote. From the temperament of Osun people, it is clear and evident that PDP would coast home to victory, while Aregbesola would return to where he came from.

Despite the credentials and what you claim is the fascinating political profile and achievements of Omisore, the APC insists that he has nothing to offer people of the state against the provision of durable infrastructural facilities and enviable projects of Aregbesola.

What’s your take?

What is the basis of comparison between Omisore and Rauf Aregbesola. Where was Aregbesola when Omisore was the deputy governor here? He was just a mere appointee of Bola Tinubu in Lagos. Where was Aregbesola when Omisore was contributing meaningfully to the devel-

Ajao

There is no ground for comparison between Omisore and Aregbesola.

Comparing Omisore with Aregbesola is like comparing Cosmos with chaos. Omisore is a known name opment of this state? It was in the hotel suite of Omisore, in Abuja, where the Alliance for Democracy (AD), the political platform upon which Aregbesola’s mentor, Tinubu became what he is today politically.

So, there is no ground for comparison between Omisore and Aregbesola. Comparing Omisore with Aregbesola is like comparing Cosmos with chaos. Omisore is a known name. Aregbesola is not a content in the political vocabulary of Osun, not until 2007 political brouhaha. He never schooled here. He never worked here nor payed tax here to contribute to the commonwealth of Osun State.

So, he was just transferred by what we used to have in the days of colonialists by the self-styled Asiwaju of the Yorubas. Omisore has got the discipline, pedigree, human faced programmes and most importantly the backing of the people. Hence, there is no basis for comparing him with Aregbesola.

The APC at the national level has called for the postponement of this August 9 election. Do you subscribe to this idea?

How can a student who has worked hard or prepared diligently begin to ask the lecturer or the school authority for postponement of examination? It is a mark of defeat abinitio, because they know the terrible failures and pointer to defeat that is imminent. They believed the only way to save themselves from the looming electoral defeat is to call for the postponement of the much awaited governorship election. The call for postponement is unwarranted. The PDP has done its homework and we have paid our dues by waiting at the sidelines when they were holding sway, inflicting sufferings on the people.

Now the entire citizenry have seen that PDP is the better alternative.

INEC is not postponing any election and our people cannot take that from the APC. The handwriting is clear on the wall that they are heading towards the exit.

As a result of reported violent clashes between your supporters and members of the APC in Ile-Ife and few other communities, there are fears among the electorate that violence may mar the coming poll. Do you have any assurance to allay the fears of the people?

That is exactly why the Federal Government is not taking chances or treating the security needs of the election with levity. We want to assure our people that there would be adequate security for them during the election exercise. Nigeria as a country has got what it takes to provide adequate protection for its citizens. That is why we don’t have any fear. We have confidence in the security agencies to discharge their responsibilities effectively well before, during and after the poll to ensure adequate security and safety for lives and properties.

16 POLITICS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Oyinlola: Osun’s beautiful bride CO N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 1 3

party’s flag bearer.

It was said that Omisore then incited the presidency against Oyinlola, painting him as a boy of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, who at that time had scores to settle with President Goodluck Jonathan. With the then chairman of the PDP, Alhaji Bamangar Tukur already having issues with Oyinlola, the former governor was appropriately cut to size in the party hierarchy.

PDP scribe roforofo tussle The legal tussle for the National Secretary seat started on January 11, 2013 when a Federal High Court, Abuja presided over by Justice Abdul Kafarati sacked Oyinlola from office as the party’s scribe on the ground that the congress from the South-West zone of the party that produced him as a nominee, was in violation of two separate orders of a Lagos Federal High Court, that had already nullified the congresses.

Oyinlola, however, challenged his removal at the Court of Appeal and got a reprieve as the appellate court quashed the High Court judgment that ordered his removal and directed that Oyinlola be reinstated.

Presently, the appellate court’s verdict for the reinstatement of Oyinlola is currently being challenged by the Ogun state chapter of the PDP at the Supreme Court, even as the national secretary’s seat is being occupied by one of the erstwhile loyalists of Oyinlola, Prof. Wale Oladipo.

In the course of the differences, Oyinlola joined seven governors elected on the platform of the party, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and others to float the “New PDP” and he emerged as national secretary of the now defunct breakaway faction of the PDP otherwise known as New PDP led

by Abubakar Kawu Baraje. However, while others including former Ekiti state governor, Engr. Segun Oni moved to the APC, Oyinlola didn’t move with them, believing that he would still ride on the back of time to take his place again as the party’s secretary.

APC, PDP ownership claim With reports filtering in that Oyinlola had joined the ruling APC camp ahead of the August 9 election, the PDP immediately dispelled the news as mere propaganda, saying that the former sole administrator of Lagos state is still part and parcel of the umbrella party.

Omisore who addressed the media through his campaign director, Akogun Lere Oyewumi, noted that Oyinlola is a respected leader of PDP in the state and has a cordial relationship with the party and its candidate.

“Oyinlola is still with us in the PDP and he is solidly in support of our ambition. The former governor led the PDP for several years and could not at this level abandon the party. Oyinlola himself came out openly to declare that he is still in the PDP, notwithstanding the defection of some of his loyalists to the APC.” According to him “as I talk to you, Prince Oyinlola still relates with us in the PDP and the relationship we have with him is a very cordial one. By the grace of God we will together celebrate the victory of PDP come August 9, this year.”

On its part, the APC had repeatedly claimed that Oyinlola is already in its fold and was only bidding his time before publicly identifying with the party.

Governor Aregbesola during one of the on-going rallies of APC, claimed that Oyinlola was on his way to joining the party.

L-R: National Chairman All Progressive Congress, (APC), Chief John Oyegun; former Governor of Osun State, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola; Osun State Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola and former Governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu during a visit to Oyinlola in his Okuku country home

Against the backdrop of the defection of the first civilian governor of Osun, Senator Isiaka Adeleke and Senator Jumoke Ogunwale and some loyalists of Oyinlola to the APC, it was easy for political analysts to conclude that Oyinlola would soon join the broom revolution.

Behind closed-doors On different occasions, Oyinlola had course to sit with the top echelons of the two parties behind closed doors to deliberate on his possible role(s) towards the August 9 election. Last month, he met with President Jonathan at the Villa, Abuja, where expectedly, issues regarding his status in the party and where his interest would lie in the Osun election were the topical issues. The parley, which was facilitated by the party’s national chairman, Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu, might not have changed anything especially with the playing to the gallery statements of Oyinlola after the meeting.

At end of the meeting, Oyinlola said he remains the national secretary of the PDP, describing Professor Oladipo – the man currently holding the position – as a “pretender”. Oyinlola who said he was taken to the Villa by Mu’azu, said “All I am telling you is that Oyinlola in the face of the law remains the authentic secretary of the PDP. Anybody in that office for now, is a pretender,” adding that “we had some discussions as to how to move the fortunes of the party forward”. Weeks after the meeting with the president, there has not been any known public identification with the party or its candidate for the Osun election by Oyinlola. While some averred that he is exercising the no harm, no foul option, others noted that Oyinlola is only waiting for directive from Obasanjo on what step to take next.

At aftermath of the Ekiti election flop, the leadership of APC stormed the Okuku country home of Oyinlola behind closed doors to put pressure on him to defect to the party. The team, which reportedly touched down in Aregbesola’s chopper, was led by the national chairman of the party, Chief

John Odigie Oyegun; former interim chairman of the party, Chief Bisi Akande, former governor of Lagos State and national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun.

Absent at Jonathan’s visit, may defect on Tuesday Oyinlola was conspicuously absent at last Saturday’s campaign grand finale of Omisore which was led by President Jonathan and he made out reasons for his unavailability few hours after the rally. In a letter he personally signed and sent to the president, Oyinlola said he would not be doing himself any good “if I don’t think seriously about my political journey and take a firm decision.”

Dated July 30, 2014, the retired general said it wass clear that President Jonathan does not want him in the party even after going the extra mile to prove his loyalty, stating that, “I, however, learnt that you were not sure of my support for you, given my closeness to former President Olusegun Obasanjo hence the decision to disallow me from returning to my legally recognized position as the national secretary of the PDP. “I have met you on several occasions on this matter to pledge my loyalty. At my last meeting with you, which was at the instance of the party’s national chairman, Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu, you requested that I be part of the ongoing

Mr. President, I may at this point, need to look beyond the party and take my destiny in my hands... It seems to me that I am not wanted by the national leader of the party; and I know that

Osun State governorship campaigns.

Mr. President would remember that I stated that the minimum the party leadership could do to get me to campaign was to instruct the Ogun State chapter of the party to withdraw its appeal at the Supreme Court; or alternatively, obey the Appeal Court order, and allow me to resume duty, the same way the party obeyed the faulty Federal High Court verdict that ousted me.

“Mr. President, I may at this point, need to look beyond the party and take my destiny in my hands. I sincerely hope that this will solve the problem. I have, therefore, come to the conclusion that it is this mindset that is at the root of my challenges in PDP. It seems to me that I am not wanted by the national leader of the party; and I know that,” the letter read.

Meanwhile, indications emerged that the formal defection of Oyinlola to the APC might be on Tuesday as Aregbesola and other leaders of the APC have solidified arrangement for a grand entry of the Okuku born prince into the progressives. Though it was learnt that some kinsmen and supporters of Oyinlola are said not to be favourably disposed to his pending move to the APC, others believe that it is a move for relevance.

Electoral worth While some analysts are already rating high the electoral value of Oyinlola to either of the camp he aligns with, others simply regarded him as a bloated personality whose weight ceased to count in any election since he was booted out of office in 2010.

A ranking member of the PDP who doesn’t want his name printed told New Telegraph that the perceived political clout of Oyinlola is inconsequential, saying that, “I don’t know why our party is bothering their heads about Oyinlola, go to Okuku, he is not on ground. The last election he contested, he lost woefully. I have told them, his case would only be like that of Segun Oni in Ekiti who was reduced to nothing even in his ward during the election.”

POLITICS 17

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Mr. Umana Okon Umana, is the immediate past Secretary to Akwa Ibom State Government.

His sack from office last year generated so much controversy following his alleged public declaration to contest the 2015 governorship election. In this interaction with journalists in Uyo, he bares his mind on some raging issues and insists that he will contest the election despite alleged threats to his life. TONY ANICHEBE brings the excerpts It was earlier rumoured that you said that Governor Godswill Akpabio promised to make you his successor; was there any such promise?

What is important is that I am in the race and I am committed to it. It does not really matter who could have made promises to me in the past or who offered to support me in the past because whether the governor offered to support me in the past or whether he has changed his mind, what is important is that I have set out to run for the position of the governor in 2015, and that I have something to offer in that regard, to better the lot of our people. I would not want to dwell on whether the governor promised to support me in the past or whether he is no longer supporting me. I only would like to concentrate on the fact that I am committed and I appreciate the massive support I have been shown all over the state.

You suddenly left office at some point, why were you locked out of office; did you actually resign your position or what transpired at that level?

You know, any position of appointment that you accept is retained at the pleasure of the governor, and at any point in time, if you feel you can no longer continue, you have the right to resign and if the governor who appointed you also feel you can no longer continue, he also has the right to ask you to disengage.

So, I believe that based on my letter of disengagement, if we have to go by that, the governor thanked me for my services and contribution to the development of the state and wished me well. That is to say we have come to that point where we say we had to separate. But maybe the manner of separation was not ideal because I was out of town when I heard the story that my office was sealed up by the police and SSS. Was it true that the governor’s wife led the delegation which locked you out of office?

I wasn’t in the office when that happened and I am not in a position to confirm who led the operation, but just like you, I also read that it was the wife of the governor who led the operation, but I was not an eye witness, so I am not in the position to confirm whether that was true. For the fact that the office was sealed up, you may want to ask, why that level of drama over a matter of a routine engagement. So, the whole drama of sealing off the office was really unnecessary, I think that was taken too far.

Why are you running for the position of governorship?

This is a question that I would have to answer very well when the time comes to explain to Akwa Ibom people why they have to vote for me. Even though I cannot give you a full picture of what my blueprint would be, I want to say that for the fact that I have been involved in the last two administrations as Commissioner for Finance in the administration

Umanna: A’Ibom people’ll decide their next governor powerful that even some commissioners were removed on his instructions.

I have read that in some of the papers and it is absolutely ridiculous because it is only the governor who can appoint and fire. It is totally ridiculous because if I can have the power to sack a commissioner without the knowledge of the governor, it would mean that maybe I also would go to the lodge and put a gun on the governor’s head to sign and approve a nomination letter for new commissioners that would go to the House of Assembly and I would also arrange and put a gun on his head to swear them in. It is totally ridiculous; it also goes to show that people could tell a lot of stories. If I recommended the dropping of commissioners, who recommended my own disengagement? When I got fired, I also made the recommendation? It has even been rumoured that I also recommended my successor who happens to be my cousin, meanwhile I am not related to him in anyway. The governor is the chief security officer and that is why if we have insecurity in the state, you cannot go and blame someone else. That is the way it is by law.

Umanna

of Obong Victor Attah and SSG in the administration of Governor Akpabio, I can appreciate the challenges of the state. I am aware that we still have a lot to do especially in the area of infrastructure.

At some point, you raised the alarm over threat to your life. What prompted that?

All I ask for is that people should be investigated, and that is not too much to ask for. If you drive into Transcop in Abuja and you find suspicious movement, you have a right to call the police and say come and investigate. You are aware of the case of our Director General, Chief Sunny Udom; armed men invaded his office, but thank God he was not around.

We were told they were robbers, and we felt we should write to the appropriate authorities so that the matter can be exhaustively investigated and dealt with.

The next was my own personal experience. I received a threat letter; of course I had submitted a copy of the letter to the police, I was asked to withdraw from the governorship race, else I would be attacked either in Uyo, Lagos or Abuja and I did not pay too much attention to it because I had police protection.

I travelled out, I was in Abuja when I got the report that my police details have been withdrawn and it came as a surprise, a curious coincidence of police details being withdrawn a few days after I received the threat letter, and when I made further enquiries I was told that they were withdrawn on the order of the governor. That is why we are saying that there is need for investigation. And it is against the background of what we witnessed in 2010/2011, when elections were around the corner. There seems to be a corelation and the authorities should be investigated. So, we call on the police and other relevant agencies to investigate and come out with a report, and if the report indicts any person, then the law would take its course. So, we acted as responsible citizens by making a report and calling for investigations. We didn’t say anybody is guilty, but we suspect that there must be foul play.

It is alleged that you were part and parcel of whatever were committed by government today; that you even advised the governor on how to go about them. If that is true, why are you shouting now?

You think that because I served the last administration, so whatever transpired, I must have been the one who gave advice?

I don’t think that you can give advice for assassinations and murders of terminal magnitude. That wasn’t part of the mandate of my office. If you go and look at the constitutional demands of my office, I don’t think you would find anything on how to advice for killings and the rest.

So, I only operated and acted within the mandate of my office. And let me also point out that even in government, it is the governor who is the chief security officer because all the security chiefs reports to him, because he is vested with the executive powers to run things.

The bulk stops on his table. That means he must take responsibility.

That means there is no way you would talk about Umana’s administration, everybody will talk about Akpabio’s administration, same way you talk about Attah’s administration, nobody knows who was SSG. Leadership means you must take responsibility for whatever you do; you don’t blame subordinates, especially when you are vested with veto power. When people talk about Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration, nobody would talk about Ufot Ekaete. Even the people who have been convicted for murder, it is only the governor who can sign for their execution. As SSG, I did not have the power to approve any item of expenditure and the treasury would only pay when the governor approves, that is the way it works.

Sometime, people feel that because you hold a sensitive position, you must know everything. There have been stories that Umana as SSG was very

Let the people of Akwa Ibom State decide who they want to vote for.

That is all we are asking for, and we have been very consistent with our position

What is your relationship with the current SSG? Of course it has to be cordial. He is a fine gentleman and from day one, I wished him well and prayed for his success in office. Attending his swearing in ceremony was to underscore the fact that there was nothing personal about it; that if you stay in that kind of office, one day you’ll have to leave, it is not a permanent office, even the office of governor is not permanent, it has an expiring date. For instance, on May 29 next year, the tenure of the current governor will end, as provided by the constitution. So, if such one would end, what is the big deal about appointed positions, it would have to end. It was even to show an example to others who would come after me that there should be no ill-feeling, it is not a permanent office; you make your own contributions and move on. So, I did not feel bad that I had to leave as SSG; I was happy that I made contributions and had to move on. That was why I attended the swearing in ceremony of my successor.

There are speculations that you and other aspirants are coming together to form a formidable force against the interest of some people in government in terms of succession, how true is that?

I don’t know why the government should have an interest as government.

I don’t know why, because when we say there should be a level playing field, we are saying that let there be an equal opportunity, and let the people of Akwa Ibom State decide who they want to vote for. That is all we are asking for, and we have been very consistent with our position. We have made references to the past, even when our incumbent governor contested the primaries against 57 other aspirants in 2006, the state governor did not interfere, he did not issue a threat, we didn’t have report about the former governor threatening aspirants or delegates that they would die, or that they should not come close to the gate where the election would be held. There was nothing like that, everybody was given the opportunity to go round to make consultation, the party was open to all aspirants. The party was there for everybody, there was no discrimination, the party chairman was not barred from taking calls from certain aspirants. So, there is nothing wrong, the aspirants can talk to each other and form alliances, it is part of politics, there is nothing wrong with that.

18 POLITICS So much seems to be happening in governance in Lagos State. In your assessment, is Lagos of our dreams evolving already?

No. Because a lot could have been done to transform Lagos considering the resources available now compared to Lagos of yesterday. Before now, poverty was relative and household needs were met, and there was no congestion, population was little then and people could manage their lives. Thus armed robbery, stealing and other vices were not too pronounced. If there were any stealing at all, it was petty and policemen were on ground.

No recklessness, no exploitation or bribe. But today, from the leadership to the downtrodden, everybody is a hustler, people are not contented and the people in government are not helping matters by not providing the basic infrastructure needed for the development of the society. They are concentrating two much effort in the centres; a lot of places are neglected and people are really suffering. Houses are not affordable, transportation is difficult, welfare of the people is not the major priority of government anymore and so forth.

What do you think could be responsible for this shift?

Greed is the bane of our problems.

Imagine this, just one person wants to dominate a whole environment, he now chooses a few of his contemporaries and friends and they came together to dominate the economic potentials of the state. So, the same set of people are replicating infrastructures in Victoria Island, Ikoyi, and Lekki, even the basic things that should go to the people, they are cornering them to ensure that they are billionaires. The unfortunate aspect of it is that it is wealth that they cannot defend.

Given the scenario you just painted, what would your party do differently if given the opportunity?

Lagos is now divided into the region of the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots.’

Central Lagos is being over developed, over concentrated with activities, V.I, Ikoyi, Lekki are now over congested.

Rather than redistributing the population, they are even sand filling more areas thereby causing flooding within that neighbourhood. The recklessness has even taken them to start sand filling the Atlantic Ocean and this is now destroying the Coastline of Lagos and unless they build an alternative Coastal road parallel to Lekki/Epe road, we can imagine the unusual.

Instead of building alternative roads that will help to redistribute traffic in the state, they are now thinking of cable cars. How many people can run on cable cars? Where and how will the cable cars work?

The other aspect of transportation where they have problem is the lightrail. Yes, they have good intentions with the light-rail along Lagos-Badagry expressway but it’s taking too long and the money invested so far is not commensurate enough for the project we are seeing on ground. Apart from this, the pace of work on the road is very slow. It is obvious that this present administration cannot complete it. It is a worrisome situation.

What are the things that they should have done?

Left to me, the seat of government in Ikeja should also shift. If the capital of Nigeria was not removed from Lagos to Abuja, only God knows what Lagos will look like today. So, a very sincere mind would know that you need to reShelle distribute the population

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Shelle: PDP not projecting Agbaje for Lagos guber Capt. Tunji Shelle (rtd) is the Chairman of the Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). In this interview with TOSIN OMONIYI, he bares his mind on the state of governance in Lagos, the coming of Jimi Agbaje into PDP, the effort of his party to battle the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2015, among other issues. of Lagos. You apply the principles of inter-connectivity; you put roads that will integrate to water, land and rail.

Boat services are essentially expensive projects. The government needs to subsidise it before any private individual can go into it. I have run it for Lagos state government before, all you need in Lagos today is to go to Ajegunle, drain the canal and you can be able to take people from Marina in thousands to Ajegunle and Tin Can Island area.

It will reduce traffic congestion on our roads, and it will reduce the pressure on our roads. It will even save a lot of lives and stress that people are going through. Lagos can be transformed.

From recent body languages, it seems your party is projecting Jimi Agbaje for 2015 governorship election in the state?

My party is not projecting a n y b o d y.

T hat is why I said we are going to have a level playing ground for everybody to participate in the next general e l e c tion. Nobody is projecting anybody and we should not blackmail anybody. I urge all to have open minds when the primaries come, let peo-

ple come out and show interest. If you want to be governor, senator or House of Representatives member; we shall ask you to bring your documents, your credentials and we will review them to make sure you are qualified to participate in the election. And as soon as we complete that, we would put everybody on a common platform to test their popularity among our delegates. So there is no issue of being in a vantage position, or giving someone special treatment, anybody can come and participate in the exercise.

How does your party intend to overcome its second-fiddle record against the APC in 2015 in Lagos State?

I am so impressed with the political development in recent times. I am impressed because I have been able to bring together all the leaders to think of the party first and not individual.

They have realised that we now have a party and the objective now is uniting towards 2015 elections and that is why we are working to ensure that we have the best of candidates to every elective office.

We shall ensure that we have

the best candidates for the governorship that can beat anybody. APC is ready to present, we too are going to present candidates in the senatorial seat that will ensure we win in the three senatorial districts and we shall equally win House of Reps and Assembly seats and even have the majority. That’s our aim and what we are planning for.

Don’t you think your projections may not be feasible due to the belief that Lagos is an APC state?

As at today, that mindset is not true.

Maybe if you said in 1998, I could agree with you. In 2003, PDP was to win the election but somebody manipulated it. They paid money to secure the victory. I am convinced that was what happened. In 2007 election, even before the election proper, they snuffed life out of our candidate who was coasting home to victory. Those people are mean and devilish; all these things are on record.

People’s memories are still fresh, they think people have forgotten but they knew of their criminal act.

Thank God for them, they had somebody in office in person of Governor Fashola who played on the intelligence of the people. People thought a magician has come. All the tricks have failed him, he has lost attention, and he is now derailed and can no longer cope. Added to this are the loans being taken; they go to the bond market and to the capital market to source for loans despite the heavy budget that they have.

Definitely, they can’t account for all the money that is coming into their coffers; the federal allocation, the Locally Generated Revenue, and the loans they are taking. I have not seen where Lagos State government has openly presented its budget side by side what they have done with it. All these are what PDP hopes to check.

Another thing is the acquisition of government properties by the same people who are in power today. They have bought the School of Nursing, local government area office, to the Lagos State Polytechnic in Ikosi and so many others. Go and check Oniru local government, they have slashed it into two; somebody took one part of it, built it for himself and gave the other half to the local government. We know those people behind it. Lagosians are now asking questions. I have been talking, many people have been talking but probably because the law is weak and they have a way of covering up these things; they bought over the judiciary and can even use the judiciary to send people to jail. God has now exposed them, our people know their tricks. Everything in this government is about business and every other person is an onlooker.

What is the selling point of your party to Lagos residents as 2015 approaches?

The vision of the PDP is to ensure that there is good governance; there is peace, security and harmony in the system, that we should have economic prosperity and that social infrastructure should work at their utmost levels.

Some of us have sat down to look at what and what will make Lagos work. It is possible to build modest buildings, affordable housing units, quality hospitals, basic schools that people can attend among others. From what I can see now, My party is education in Lagos would have completely not projecting collapsed if there were anybody... we are no private schools in the state. Even these going to have a level private schools are playing ground not allowed to prosper because of multiple taxations from the government.

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EDITORIAL

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

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

MONDAY, AUGUST 4, 2014

A dangerously evolving insurgency

or a lot of Nigerians, surprisingly including the authorities who have been in the habit of giving assurances in the face of mounting security challenges, the latest terror tactic unleashed by Boko Haram appears unexpected. For four days, four bombs exploded in various parts of Kano, the Kano State capital, despite the preceding high alert during the Sallah period. Most unusually, the suicide bombers were all females.

In his reaction, President Jonathan condemned what he termed a ‘new low’ by Boko Haram. While Jonathan could be excused for showing surprise that a terrorist organization can utilize inhumane strategies, the same excuse is not tenable for security professionals.

By their training, especially given the global nature of terrorism, the deployment of female suicide bombers is part of insurgencies that are not effectively checked.

Indeed suicide bombing, including the use of females, has been an established feature in the Iran –Iraq wars, the civil war in Lebanon, the Palestinian intifadas, the brutal civil war in Sri Lanka and Chechnya, as well as in Afghanistan, Iraq and South East Asia.

Terrorism experts have noted that the deployment of females as suicide bombers has become a favourite tactic of insurgents.

Suicide bombing itself, unlike other forms of attack, is a low cost option.

It requires little training, it is low risk, and guarantees maximum efficiency because the attacker is mobile and therefore can adjust the point of attack. The addition of the female factor increases the element of surprise, while heightening the possibility of evading detection because of cultural and religious norms.

As it is now, the insecurity in the country has further escalated because the safety margin, even for high profile personalities has been drastically reduced. This new strategy deployment by Boko Haram further heightens the need for the Federal Government to move to a new high in stamping out the dangerously evolving insurgency.

It can be safely argued that Boko Haram has shown a deadly capacity for being forward thinking. In effect, the reaction of government is always reactive. An insurgency cannot be successfully fought if the insurgents consistently dictate the pace, because it means the authorities are always on the back foot.

The emergence of female suicide bombers should serve as a basis of drawing a line in the sand. This is the time for a reality check mode for the administration. It is an established fact that an insurgency in a country is likened to being in a state of war. It is not about reassurances to the public, which is steadily being pushed into a state

of fear. We cannot afford to give the insurgents leeway to terrorise hapless citizens of Nigeria.

Already, there is enough cause for concern that despite the second phase of the State of Emergency in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States, Boko Haram has become more menacing in its operations within that region. One of the looming problems is that of famine. The Chairman of the Presidential Ad Hoc Committee, set up to probe the 2013 Presidential Relief Materials to Borno State, Mr. Bashir Maidugu, while submitting the report earlier in the year, had noted that only an urgent allocation of at least 1,000 trucks of grains to the emergency states of the North East will avoid imminent famine.

According to Maidugu, “For the last couple of years, farming activities, especially in Borno and Yobe states, have virtually come to a halt.

Already, prices of food items have skyrocketted in those areas. There are reports of drought in the neighbouring Niger Republic this year. In Borno State, for example, most surrounding villages and towns around Maiduguri have virtually become ghost settlements as their inhabitants have migrated to Maiduguri in search of better security.”

Beyond famine is also the growing reality that the insurgents are deliberately taking over rural areas and systematically blowing up access bridges. These point to some form of plan to establish control by

isolating swathes of territory surrounding Maiduguri. Further proof can be seen in the manner that Damboa has become a significant battlefield, a situation underscored by a report that the military has been unable to retake the town after three attempts.

The spokesperson for the Defence Headquarters, Chris Olukolade had been reported on July 21 as saying that the Nigerian military was preparing to embark on actions that would enable it to regain the Damboa area of Borno State. The defence spokesperson who spoke during the regular briefing by the National Information Centre (NIC) had instructively stated: “We are firming up our deployment in that general area. Right now, they (members of the armed forces) are setting up their activities to reverse any form of insecurity that is noted around there.” A fortnight later, there is no indication that the situation has changed in favour of the military.

The fact is that things cannot continue in a manner that suggests the insurgency is becoming uncontrollable. The CommanderIn-Chief must make specific demands from his service chiefs.

They must be able to tell him the truth without covering up, and he should be firmly responsive in dealing with those who fail in the line of duty as our next door neighbor Cameroon has just done.

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Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

OPINION Osun: Crushing the Jonathan siege (1) Abiodun Komolafe "Champions aren't made in the gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them - a desire, a dream, a vision." - Cassius Marcellus Clay.

I

ndividual interpretations notwithstanding, elections are generally regarded as contests. The United States of America's quadrennial election of 1876, which eventually led to the Compromise of 1877, through Kenya's "tribalism-marked" election of 2007, to Zimbabwe's “deeply flawed" presidential contest of 2008, even, Venezuela’s “decisive” election of 2012, among numerous others, all point to the fact that, Nigeria as an indivisible part of the Global Village cannot be said to be indifferent to the dynamics of its global villageness.

As a matter of fact, anyone who has read the book, 'Why Nations Fail' by Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson would readily admit that there’s clearly more to the gubernatorial election which returned Ayodele Fayose as Governor-Elect than meets the eye. Aside any other reasons already in circulation for the sad event of June 21, 2014, I have personally described the quintessential Governor Kayode Fayemi as the [Governor Babatunde] Fasola of Ekiti State. The question then is: if the Fasola in Fayemi did so well - and, he did very well - in Ekiti, why then did he lose the election by such a wide margin? In my considered opinion, the answer is simple: the Bola Tinubu of Ekiti politics was conspicuously absent; and the Lamidi Adedibu, the Azeez Arisekola Alao and the Olusola Saraki of Ekiti politics were either dead, incompetent, unrecognized, uncommitted; not

empowered, or simply gone into self-imposed exile, thereby leaving the stage for the pro-masses-yet-integrity-deficient Fayose with such a landslide.

Some people tagged it "stomach infrastructure"; I'd rather refer to it as the "PDP abracadabra": the more you look, the less you see!" Till date, I have continued to ponder what went so wrong and how things went so bad that none of Fayemi's men of political “timbre and caliber” was able to deliver his local government to the ruling party. Too bad!

Fayose won the election the usual People’s Democratic Party, PDP-way and the Umbllera went gaga, thinking that all elections would go the way of Ekiti!

Anyway, as one Nigerian privileged with witnessing the Ekiti saga, what happened as well as what did not happen during governorship election are issues for another day!

Goodbye Ekiti, the Fountain of Knowledge! Welcome Osun, the Land of a Virtue! In less than two weeks, precisely, on August 9, 2014, residents of the state will go to the polls to elect the governor who'll run the affairs of the state for the next four years. And, as a respected political leader once remarked, with the way this "mere geographical expression" is constitutionally structured, in any of the country's 36 states, after God, the next person is the governor. Little wonder why every Tom, Dick or Harry wants to grab power at all costs! What more? With Goodluck Jonathan, Nigeria's sitting Khalifa, unwilling to let go of power; and, with the North scheming with unparalleled crudity to take back the power it "willingly conceded to the South", the ruling party at the centre is indeed desperate in its bid to capture the Southwest in order to make up for any shortcomings that may come its way from the Northern

part of the country during next year's general elections.

"The journey is the reward", said the Chinese Proverb. In other words, it is a settled case that Rauf Aregbesola, the sitting governor, has simplified the art of governance and has laid the foundation for modern welfare in the state. Apart from some of his achievements which have been comprehensively articulated by respected commentators, the governor has also surpassed the people's expectations in other areas.

For example, his First Term in office witnessed the establishment of the Quick Impact Intervention Programme (QIIP) - to deal with small-scale farmers on a cooperative basis; and Osun Debt Management Office - to centrally coordinating the management of the state's debt. 185 Km Oyo Boundary (Asejire) to Osun-Ondo Boundary (Owena) was beautified; super highways to connect Osun to Lagos and Osun to Kwara States were built; and Freedom Park, the first of its kind in the history of the state, was constructed.

Aregbesola's administration also saw to the payment of salaries to old age people (referred to as Agba Osun). Not that alone, over 3,000 permanent teachers were employed into the state's Education Sector while 339 university graduates were recruited into Osun State Civil Service. Even, as we speak, there are free rail services to all indigenes of the state living in Lagos State; and 61 township roads covering128km are being upgraded all over the state.

Albert Einstein describes politics as being more complicated than science. He was right! Politics is all about issues. It is about morality and credibility. It is about loyalty to the country, not to any particular individual, however strong, powerful or connected.

The Iyiola Omisore you didn't know (1) Omodele Akanji

S

enator Iyiola Omisore appeals to different people in different ways.

As a politician, he is like the proverbial elephant that is easily described in a myriad of adjectives by onlookers depending on the part of the body that catches your fancy. However, some common features have been attributed to the image of the Distinguished Senator and politician since the beginning of the Fourth Republic.

Some political foes have painted him as someone whose quest for power is insatiable and one who is equally impatient in that quest. Some have painted the image of a deadly, if not dangerous politician who will brook no opposition on his way to power. Others painted the image of an academic never do well, whose inroad to wealth and power remained his association with the military in its hey days.

Omisore’s brush with the leadership of Alliance for Democracy (AD) when he served as Deputy Governor in Osun State under the administration of Chief Bisi Akande might have helped to tar him at the start of the current democratic experiment. And no one would deny that the tar, which saw to his removal from

office as Deputy Governor, was indeed a strong one.

As someone who has monitored Omisore’s politics over the years and one who worked closely with him in his days at the National Assembly, I have found it imperative to straighten some apparent misconceptions about the person and character of the man who served as Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation, the mother of all Standing Committees in the Red Chamber.

For politicians, there is nothing to celebrate in the virtues Omisore demonstrated by adhering to the dictates of the elders in AD in 1999, when he agreed to be the running mate to Chief Akande, despite having what was seen as a strong political structure on ground. After a series of gubernatorial campaigns during the General Sani Abacha transition period, Omisore had succeeded in establishing a formidable political structure ahead of 1999. He would easily have won the primaries if the elders had allowed one. But unlike the situation in Lagos, which threw up the Bola Tinubu versus Funsho Williams saga, Omisore agreed to serve as deputy to Akande. It was agreed then he would be allowed to vie for the main office in 2003. But as everyone knows, that kind of promise was

difficult to abide by, so the genesis of his scuffle with Akande, leading to his being branded as hungry for power.

More than anything else, the linkage of Omisore with thuggery pokes a sharp finger in the eye. Apparently for political convenience, his opponents painted a picture of a man who is only seen in the midst of thugs, a sort of Baba ita, (leading thug) whose hallmark remains deeply rooted in aberrant character. But that was a disservice for a Prince of Yoruba land. Perhaps, his undoing was the decision he took out of humility not to adopt the preferred title of Prince, the fad for those from royal homes. Here is a man whom the odyssey of his educational career is neither shrouded in mystery nor confusion. He is a registered engineer who runs an engineering firm, which is reputable for constructing major dams and structures across the country.

I must confess that the widespread picture painted about the Omisore Character as somewhat of a never-do-well and a Baba Ita affected the relationship many of us had with him in his first tenure in the National Assembly. As a senator in 2003, he had few friends and also had little or no time to prove himself as he was kept in detention for a long time. Indeed, there was a push for his recall at

a stage until the leadership of the Senate under Senator Adolphus Wabara invoked the Constitutional provision and told those pushing for his recall that he was away from the chamber on “just cause.” Eventually, when he was admitted fully into the Senate at the end of his trial for the death of Chief Bola Ige, where the court cleared and acquitted him of any wrong doing, it was a bit late for him to stamp much impact on the workings of that Senate.

His return to the Senate in 2007 was remarkable. He was to emerge as the Senate Leader but for religious considerations, which had thrown up Senator Teslim Folarin. Since Senator David Mark and the Ike Ekweremadu had emerged Senate President and Deputy respectively, there is the need to get a Muslim from the South West as Senate Leader and the odds fell on Folarin.

The Senate appeared in quandary as to what position to give Omisore. Those who saw him as a fiery fellow were afraid he could prove difficult to handle if not given the Chairmanship of Appropriation Committee, which was next most important seat allocated to the South West, but they were said to be apprehensive he was untested for the huge task.

• Akanji, a Legislative Consultant, writes from Abuja

INVESTIGATION MONDAY, AUGUST 4, 2014

21 NEW TELEGRAPH

www.newtelegraphonline.com/investigation

ISIOMA MADIKE EDITOR, INVESTIGATION

isioma.madike@newtelegraphonline.com isiomamadike69@gmail.com

Ebola patients receiving treatment. Inset: Advanced manifestation of the virus

Ebola: Death at the door Patrick Sawyer, a United States citizen of Liberian origin, who died of Ebola virus disease (EVD) on Nigerian soil, appears to have heightened the fear that the most populous black nation may be in grave danger of the deadly hemorrhagic disease. Our health Correspondents, APPOLONIA ADEYEMI and CAMILLUS NNAJI, who have been following the story, tell of the devastating effect from the perspective of experts

I

t started like a fairy tale from an unknown land, the same manner the equally dreaded Human Immuno Virus (HIV) was ascribed to the white man. But, on Friday, July 25, the picture became clearer. It downed on Nigerians that, indeed, the country has caught the bug of the new monster; Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). The news, though, came as a surprise to the doubting nation. Yet, it threw both the health community and the general populace into quagmire. However, it was Patrick Sawyer, a United States citizen of Liberian origin’s death that made a bold statement, which rattled government agencies that were supposed to be on red alert manning airports, seaports and land borders. They were caught off-guard.

Sawyer, a senior diplomat with the

Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) flew into the country on Tuesday July 22, to attend the ECOWAS convention in Calabar.

Although, some other countries have placed surveillance on persons accessing their countries from Liberia as well as Sierra Leone and Guinea where hundreds have lost their lives to Ebola virus to prevent the contamination of their citizens, the same did not happen in Nigeria. This paved the way for Sawyer to arrive the country unchallenged. With his subsequent death three days later, in a private hospital in Obalende, Lagos, Nigeria registered its presence in the unpleasant league of countries with EVD outbreak.

But, the huge challenge before the country now seems to be how to contain the deadly virus and sustain the

present frenetic activities to ensure that all those who came in contact with Sawyer do not develop infection nor spread the disease. So far, details jointly released by the federal government and Lagos State, show that 59 persons had contact with Sawyer before he died.

According to the Commissioner for Health in Lagos State, Dr. Jide Idris, those who had contact with the Liberian in Nigeria included hospital contacts, healthcare workers and laboratory staff. Others were airport contacts comprising ECOWAS staff-driver, liaison and protocol officer, nursing staff and airport passenger handlers. About 20 of this number were said to have been physically screened.

The Director of Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Prof. Abdul-

salam Nasidi said, “two laboratories are on standby 24 hours where screening of the 20 contacts are being carried out.” Besides, because these persons are widely believed to be potential carriers of the Ebola virus in the country, is already sending shivers down the spine of many. “There is trouble, indeed, if all these 59 contacts being tracked are in the country,” said Alan Aderele, an unemployed university graduate residing in Lagos.

He, like many other Lagos residents, have vowed never to have anything to do with Obalende, the location of the private hospital where Sawyer received healthcare for three days before he died. As far as he and others were concerned, the Ebola virus could be CO NTINUED O N PAGE 22

22 INVESTIGATION

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Monday, August 4, 2014

Nigerians apprehensive about Ebola spread

Medical expert in the laboratory testing blood samples of patients

Sawyer CONTINUED FR O M PAGE 21

lurking within that environment and may latch onto anyone around that area.

Some Nigerians spoken to were equally apprehensive about the death of Sawyer in Nigeria and the possibility of spreading the Ebola virus through the numerous persons, who had contacts with him during the few days he spent receiving treatment in the country. Some fear that many more Nigerians may contract the virus and go the way of Sawyer. While some Nigerians already have their hearts in their mouths because, according to them, an EVD outbreak in Nigeria could be equated to “death at the door”, considering the high fatality resulting from the disease. Others described the outbreak of EVD as the Biblical prediction of “end time”, which is fast coming to fulfilment.

The first outbreak of Ebola was recorded in Sudan and later Zaire in 1976. Since then, the virus has spread to most countries in West Africa such as Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and recently Nigeria where the first known victim died in Lagos last week. A virologist championing the campaign against the virus in Sierra Leone, Sheik Umar Khan, reportedly contacted the disease and is now being treated by the French-founded humanitarianaid, a non-governmental organisation, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), Doctors Without Borders.

All you need to know about Ebola virus Ebola is an infectious and generally fatal disease marked by fever and severe internal bleeding, spread through contact with infected body fluids by a filovirus (Ebola virus), whose normal host species is yet unknown. The virus

Victim being taken for burial

Worker fumigating a quarantine environment

is lethal, causing a severe viral hemorrhagic fever, and has so far killed 60 per cent of people infected in the latest West Africa outbreak. Symp-

toms of Ebola HF typically include: Fever, headache, joint and muscle aches, weakness, diarrhoea, vomiting, stomach pain and lack of appetite. In

pregnant women, abortion (miscarriage) and heavy vaginal bleeding are common Ebola symptoms. Death usually occurs during the second week of Ebola symptoms, and it is usually due to massive blood loss.

According to World Health Organisation (WHO), more than 900 cases of Ebola have been recorded in the epidemic currently sweeping across West Africa sub region. Incidentally, Nigeria recorded the first casualty, though from a foreigner. It is transmitted by direct contact with the blood of an infected person, handling and body contact with sick infected persons and wild animals like chimpanzees, gorillas, monkeys, forest antelopes and fruit bats.

Breaking the news of the disease in Nigeria, the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Public Health, Dr Yewande Adesina, told journalists that a 40-year-old Liberian, Patrick Sawyer, a WASH consultant at the Ministry of Finance, working for a West African organisation in Monrovia, Liberia, who arrived Lagos on July 20 had the disease. However, Sawyer died of the disease a few days later. Idris confirmed Sawyer’s death. “The patient had died overnight and ever since then we have tried as much as possible to contain it; we need to sanitise, treat the body properly, and dispose of it properly. Those are the things we are working out right now. There are processes, which we are following and we are doing this in conjunction with the Federal Ministry of Health staff.

“There is protocol to follow, there are people involved, we are talking with the hospital involved, the staff over there, after dealing with the body CO NTINUED O N PAGE 23

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Monday, August 4, 2014

23

Virus has travelled over countries in West Africa CONTINUED FR O M PAGE 22

we have to deal with the hospital, to sanitize the hospital, more importantly too there is the need for us to do contact tracing. We are doing that with the World Health Organisation (WHO) people and we are going to trace all the contacts that the man came in with on the air plane and where they went to,” Idris said.

What you can do?

Nasidi said the Federal Government would support Lagos State in its efforts to prevent the disease from spreading.

“We cannot afford not to support Lagos State in this. We are aware that Lagos is a densely populated state. We would support the state government technically and financially to curtail the spread of the disease,” he added.

Also, a surgeon at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) Idia-Araba, Lagos, Dr Emmanuel Anorue, advised Nigerians to be alert on the symptoms and report immediately to the hospital for early treatment. Anorue believed that early detection and treatment would prove to save a patient of the disease.

In like manner, Head of the Centre on Global Health Security at London’s Chatham House, David Heymann, said every person, who had been on the plane to Lagos with Sawyer would need to be traced and be told to monitor their temperature twice a day for 21 days.

Ebola is a Central African disease that has travelled over countries in a living host to West Africa. It is easily spread by physical contact and eating contaminated bush meat. Major hosts are in five species of bats but monkeys and apes are easily infected and killed.

It kills in a week, leaving no time to treat an individual. It has no known vaccine or cure.

Known cases have been experienced recently in Guinea, Liberia and Central Africa Republic, spreading eastwards and westwards towards Nigeria.

Death toll so far in West Africa is put at over 900. The Ebola outbreak of 2014 is the most challenging one witnessed in Africa.

Avoid eating any bush meat for now, especially apes and bats. Wash your hands as regularly as possible, especially after shaking a stranger.

It is spread by contact. Wash your hands often with soap and water. Sanitizer is a good alternative. The most straightforward prevention method during Ebola outbreaks is by touching patients, their excretions, and body fluids, or possibly contaminated materials and utensils. Patients should be isolated, and medical staff should be trained and apply strict barrier nursing techniques (disposable face mask, gloves, goggles, and a gown at all times). Traditional burial rituals, especially those requiring embalming of bodies, should be discouraged

Patient under examination

or modified. Always wash your fruits and vegetables before cooking. Avoid contact with people with suspicious signs and places of outbreak. Watch out for the warning signs, which mimic malaria symptoms.

Identification of EVD Ebola virus disease should be suspected in persons, who develop bleeding from the body openings like the mouth, nose, rectum and ear. Later symptoms include bleeding from the eyes, ears and nose, bleeding from the mouth and rectum, eye swelling, swelling of the genitals and rashes all over the body that often contain blood.

It could progress to coma, shock and death.

Explaining why fatality rate of the disease is high, Idris explained that there is neither a cure yet nor any vaccine available to prevent the condition. Adesina added that presently, there is no specific treatment for EVD and stressed that infected persons will need to be admitted into the hospital for specialised care and treated in isolation in line with international standards as recommended by the WHO. Observing personal and environmental hygiene has proven to reduce infection. Nigerians, experts say, must take steps to reduce risk of infection by observing high standard of personal and environmental hygiene; by washing their hands often with soap and water; avoiding close contact with people who are sick and ensuring that

Fruit bats (like these) are a local delicacy in Guinea, but health officials fear that their infected blood may be causing the spread of Ebola

objects used by the sick are decontaminated and properly disposed.

"There is no need for panic if we follow the rules of hand washing and infection control. There is need for Nigerians to be at alert as it is happening within the West African countries. Where Ebola virus infection has spread, it is because people have abandoned the rules of hand washing and infection control,” said medical experts. According to them, the measure to observe strict hygiene standard is in line with WHO recommendation to use hand washing to reduce infections and diseases worldwide.

Going by the campaign, critical times to wash hands are: after using the toilet, before eating, and before feeding children. Similarly, for handwashing to be properly carried out, it must be done with either soap or ash in situations where soap is not available.

Origin of Ebola virus Ebola is categorised as a member of the filoviridae family of viruses, one of three negative-stranded RNA viruses (Marburg, Ebola, and Reston) which often take on a “U” shape. AlCO NTINUED O N PAGE 24

24 INVESTIGATION

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Experts say Nigeria not yet free from Ebola outbreak CON TINUED FR O M PAGE 23

though it’s not yet known how it enters the cell, once inside, the RNA of the Ebola virus is transcribed and replicated inside the cytoplasm, thereby infecting the cell. Based on the experiences from the response to this first EVD outbreak in Nigeria, the Joint Federal and State Team have recommended the following to combat the disease: Mobilise funding for response activities, logistics and supplies, train and orientate health staff on the Ebola outbreak response Standard Operating Procedures (SOP), supply laboratory diagnostic supplies or activate the mobile Viral Haemorrhagic Fever Laboratory, provide adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), organise psychological support and provide incentives to health personnel involved in Ebola outbreak response, design key messages in the local language and intensify public enlightenment in local languages and involve the community in response activities.

Barely seven days after Sawyer died in a private hospital in Lagos, one of the personnel, who helped him out of the aircraft on his arrival in Lagos, showed signs of EVD. The victim, who was said to have helped the late Sawyer, was believed to be among the 59 persons the Federal Government and the Lagos State Government registered to have had contact with the Liberian immediately on his arrival in Nigeria. However, the Lagos State Government has refuted the claim of a new incident yesterday, assuring residents and Nigerians alike that no fresh case of the dreaded Ebola virus disease has been found in the state or any part of the country.

Commissioner for Information, Lateef Ibirogba, has nonetheless, advised the citizenry to be wary of the activities of fraudsters, who were making spurious claims about their ability to provide cure for the new disease, urging

Medical personnel

Affected mouth, hand and the virus

them to always contact health providers to report unusual feelings noticed. He cautioned people to desist from sending panicky text messages round about the Ebola disease that could heighten tension and create anxiety. He also advised those who wanted to make cheap money from the case to desist from their strange claims of cure for the disease or risk the wrath of the law, as only medi-

cal solutions were known to be appropriate for the disease.

Citizenry advised to be wary of the activities of fraudsters Following the death of Sawyer, public health experts say it is too early to say Nigeria is free from the deadly hemorrhagic disease. They are of the belief that it is not always possible to identify patients with EBV early, as initial

Health workers transport the casket of a nun whose death resulted from an Ebola infection in Kikwit, Zaire.

symptoms may be non-specific. Though, it remains a potential risk to both crossborder and international spread, which constitute a grave public health concern.

Oyewale Tomori, regional virologist with WHO and president, Nigerian Academy of Science, was quoted to have said that Nigeria is not free from EVD proper monitoring to ascertain all who came into close contact with Sawyer are free from infection. “We must trace all passengers on the plane (ASky Airline) that brought him to Nigeria, to those in contact with him at the Lagos airport, and all those who attended to him in the hospital where he was treated. Every such person must be monitored for the duration of the incubation period of Ebola virus infection that is up to 21 days from point of contact. We must get in touch with them on a daily basis to find out if they fall sick, showing the signs and exhibiting the symptoms of viral hemorrhagic fever. This must be carried out thoroughly, efficiently and rapidly,” Tomori explained.

David Heymann, professor of infectious diseases at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine was also reported to have said, “Still, detecting Ebola in departing passengers might be tricky, since its initial symptoms are similar to many other diseases, including malaria and typhoid fever. It will be very difficult now to contain this outbreak because it has spread. The chance to stop it quickly was months ago before it crossed borders. But, this can still be stopped if there is good hospital infection control, contact tracing and collaboration between countries.”

Another professor of community medicine and public health of the College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Adebayo Onajole, said Nigeria needs to strengthen its disease surveillance system in a bid to monitor, control, and prevent any occurrence of the disease.

BUSINESS Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Monday, August 4, 2014

What's news Nigeria has 500 unemployed pilots, says AON boss The number of unemployed pilots in the country has risen to 500, Chairman, Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), Capt. Noggie Meggison, has said.

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PZ Cussons acquires Australian food brand Five:am PZ Cussons Plc, one of the leading international consumer products group, at the weekend announced the exchange of contracts for the acquisition of Australian food brand Five:am.

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Nigeria, others move to eradicate fake ECOWAS Brown Cards Insurers within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have resolved to put an end to the use of the region’s fake Brown Cards. This they hope to achieve by initiating a new document by January 2015.

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Leadership instability as bane of NNPC The erstwhile Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Andrew Yakubu, got the fate that befell some of his predecessors last Friday as he was relieved of the position barely one year to his retirement. The Kaduna State-born former NNPC boss spent 34 years in civil service out of the mandatory 35 years before his ouster.

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BUSINESS CREW AYODELE AMINU, Deputy Editor (Business) Simeon Ogoegbulem, Dep. Business Editor BAYO AKOMOLAFE, Asst. Editor (Maritime) SUNDAY OJEME, Asst. Editor (Insurance) SIAKA MOMOH, Asst. Editor (Industry/Agric) Godson ikoro , Asst. Editor (Money Market) JONAH IBOMA, ICT Editor DAYO ADEYEMI, Property Editor ADEOLA YUSUF, Energy Editor

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}p-42-43

ayodele aminu, Deputy Editor, business

ayodele.aminu@newtelegraphonline.com ayodeleaminu@yahoo.com

Power generation drops below 3, 200 MW Consumers assault electricity workers GAS FUSS

The drop in power generation was caused by gas shortage Adeola Yusuf

P

ower generation in Nigeria, a country of about 160 million has again dipped below 3, 200 MW, New Telegraph gathered at the weekend.

This came few days after angry electricity consumers commenced physical assault on staff of distribution companies across the country.

A source at the federal ministry of power told this newspaper that the drop in power generation has affected the supply to distribution companies.

"The DISCOs have been rationing power and nothing shows that they would be out of it soon," he said.

According to the source, the drop in power generation was caused by the gas shortage, which was triggered by the left over of the June shut down of Utorogu and Ughelli East gas

L –R: Director, Acquisitions and Divestitures, COP, Greg Ewbank; President, Other International, COP, Kerr Johnston; Director, Energy Group, BNP Paribas, Marianne Daryabeguin; Group Chief Executive, Oando Plc, Adewale Tinubu; Manager, Commercial Negotiations, Mick Jarvis and Managing Counsel, West Africa, COP, Nigel Walker, after the signing for Oando’s landmark acquisition of ConocoPhillips Nigerian oil and gas business for $1.5 billion in Paris

plants.

Further checks showed that Lagos, Nigeria's commercial nerve center was given an average of 500 MW per day out of the maximum demand of 10, 000 MW. The remaining 1,900 MW is being rationed among the

of RPG Enterprises, which comprises over 15 companies in the areas of infrastructure, tyres, technology, and specialty, posted the following note on Twitter: "MTN doing due diligence of a large Mumbaibased telecom firm. Will this mega deal happen?"

MTN has not hidden its desire to have presence in the Indian market.

Last year, MTN Group held detailed discussions for a potential acquisition in India with Reliance Communications, the company it tried unsuccessfully to merge with in 2008. However, the talks were put on hold. MTN was said

"This has in return led to load shedding for consumers, who assault our staff," he said.

The company and its counterpart at the Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) had earlier confirmed the increase in the assault of their staff by the consumers.

In separate statements, the spokesmen for the two companies, Godwin Idemudia (EKEDC) and Pekun Adeyanju (IKEDC) said that their companies have lodged complaints on these incidents to the security agents.

Meanwhile, Special Adviser to the Minister of Power on Power Systems, Mr. Jonathan Ogbonna, confirmed that the drop in electricity supply was a result of gas supply disruption.

There had earlier been shutdowns of the Utorogu and Ughelli East gas plants last June. Ogbonna said the shutdown had drastically affected power generation.

Two major thermal plants; Egbin and Omotosho are some of the plants that depend on these gas plants for supplies.

At the time the plants were shutdown, he said, supply fell

CONTINUED ON PAGE 26

CONTINUED ON PAGE 26

remaining nine distribution companies across the country.

A top management staff of Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) told this paper that the company has been receiving about 255MW to service its maximum demand of 1,250MW.

MTN linked to India's telecom firm ACQUISITION MTN has budget of $8 billion for acquisitions Jonah Iboma

T

here were speculations at the weekend that Africa's largest mobile operator, MTN, is in talks to acquire some of India's biggest telecoms operators.

Reports quoted CNBC TV India as having reported that MTN, which has a presence in 22 countries in Africa and the Middle East, "has been fairly interested" in Tata Teleservices, a subsidiary of Tata

Communications - the controlling shareholder in Neotel. This follows reports that Vodafone pulled out of talks with Tata Teleservices.

"Right now it (MTN) is talking to Tata Teleservices, and also trying to talk to other small cap players as well, Uninor etc. They are trying to explore options. So, right now one cannot be 100 per cent sure on how serious they are as far as TTSL is concerned," CNBC said, citing two sources.

Uninor is a subsidiary of Norwegian operator, Telenor Group, claiming to be the 6th largest operator in India.

The reports seem to also have gained further credence as Harsh Goenka, Chairman

WOLE SHADARE, Aviation Editor DELE ALAO, Brands/Marketing Editor CHRIS UGWU, Capital Market Editor Abdulwahab Isa, Finance Editor Chuks Onuanyin, Energy Nnamdi Amadi, Reporter JOHNSON ADEBAYO, Asst. Production Editor

Rates Dashboard INFLATION RATE June 2014................................8.2% May 2014....................................8% April 2014.................................7.9%

LENDING RATE

EXCHANGE RATE

(Parellel As at Aug 01)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N168.50 InterBank Rate . . . . . . . . . 10.50% Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N290 Prime Lending Rate. . . . . 16.93% Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N228 Maximum Lending Rate..25.83% • Foreign Reserves – $38.942bn as at 24/07/2014

EXCHANGE RATE

(Official As at Aug 01)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N156.73 Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N263.12 Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N209.70 Source: CBN

26 business | NEWS MORE INVESTMENTS The aviation industry needs to open up for more investors to create employment Wole Shadare

T

he number of unemployed pilots in the country has risen to 500, Chairman, Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), Capt.

Noggie Meggison, has said.

He disclosed this to New Telegraph on the side-lines of the second memorial lecture for the

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Nigeria has 500 unemployed pilots, says AON boss Seeks tight security at airports late Director-General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Zakari Haruna, who was the pioneer Director-General of the agency.

The expert lamented that many of the pilots who graduated from the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT),

Zaria and other aviation institutions are jobless.

He added that the collapse of many carriers in Nigeria coupled with the penchant for airlines to engage foreign pilots and engineers has done incalculable damage to the sector.

Meggison stated that until

L-R: President/CEO, Erisco Foods, Chief Eric Umeofia, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Olusegun Aganga, and Managing Director/CEO, Keystone Bank Limited, Mr Philip Ikeazor, during the minister’s official visit to Erisco Foods in Oregun Industrial Estate, Lagos.

PZ Cussons acquires Australian food brand Five:am Sees Africa revenue rising 10% BULLISH NIGERIA Nigeria is PZ Cussons’ biggest market in Africa, which accounted for about 42 percent of its revenue in financial 2014 Chris Ugwu

P

Z Cussons Plc, one of the leading international consumer products group, at the weekend announced the exchange of contracts for the acquisition of Australian food brand Five:am.

The entire issued share capital of Five AM Life Pty Limited is being acquired for £44.1 million in cash with completion expected to follow within a very short period.

According to EUbusiness News, additional consideration of a maximum of £7.7 million is payable subject to the performance of the business in the year ending 30 June 2015.

Five:am is a leading Australian organic yoghurt brand and one of the most successful entrants to the Australian food industry over the past decade.

The business has strong retail partnerships across the country and the potential for significant growth, both within Australia and other markets.

Products are manufactured at its state of the art facility near Melbourne. Revenue and EBITDA for the year ended 30 June 2014 were £19.6million and £3.4million respectively.

The business is being acquired on a cash and debt free basis using existing facilities and is expected to be earnings enhancing in the current financial year.

Alex Kanellis, Chief Executive of PZ Cussons Plc, said: "We are delighted to have acquired such an exciting brand, which is an excellent fit with PZ Cussons' existing presence in the fast growing core food and nutrition category. Since its launch in 2011, Five:am has become a market leader in the Australian organic food category. A combination of industry leading innovation, a compelling brand proposition and a high quality product range has driven the business' growth to date and leaves it uniquely placed to take advantage of the market trends of increasing yoghurt consumption and demand for organic and nutritious products.

Kanellis said: "Following the acquisition, our balance sheet remains strong, giving us the capacity to take advantage of further investment opportunities as they arise."

David Prior, founder and former owner of Five:am commented:"I am delighted that Five:am has chosen a great home for the future. The cultural fit with PZ Cussons was apparent immediately and I am sure that the business will flourish under its ownership. I am very pleased to be maintaining an involvement in Five:am for a period post-completion and am looking forward to working with Alex and his team over the coming months."

there is a policy that guarantees the engagement of these pilots, they would continue to roam the streets.

He recalled that as far back as 2008, the country had about 1140 private flying clubs, lamenting that Nigeria with about 160 million people have just two training schools and not a single flying club.

The AON Chairman noted that in the United States, pilots from the flying schools do not look for jobs in bigger airlines such as Delta and United because they will not employ them since they do not have the required flying hours.

He said that America does not feel the effect because they have many general aviation aircraft.

Another pilot, who spoke on condition of anonymity, noted that instead of roaming the streets, young pilots in the US usually pay owners of aircraft, who are doing small cargo business from New York to New Jersey because they want to build hours.

To address the problem, the source advocated strong General Aviation (GA), saying that Nigeria aviation is having this problem because the country did

not train pilots for long period.

Speaking in the same vein, Managing Director of Finum Aviation Services, Sheri Ayuba Kyari, decried the unemployment of pilots, engineers and other cadre of aviation workers, stressing that it is still an issue.

He noted: “Last year, we were told that over 200 pilots were without work and similar situation is befalling others. We need to open up the industry for more investors and give these young ones an opportunity to achieve their aspirations.

“All bottlenecks for investors should be removed to allow serious investors whether domestic or foreign to buy into aviation.

This will also pave the way for more jobs and even consultants to thrive.”

Meanwhile, Kyari has called for an increase in security level at the nation’s airports in view of the bombing of public places in the country.

He noted that since airports are also public places, “we have a duty to use technology for surveillance of secured environments around the airports, adding that undoubtedly, they need to increase the level of security awareness and employ latest technology to scan the airports to keep air travellers, workers and infrastructure safe and secure.”

Power generation drops below 3, 200 MW C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 2 5

from over 4,000 megawatts to as low as 2,900MW. Ogbonna, however, said the maintenance works on the gas plants were still on, adding, “From the last report I got this morning, they are now re-commissioning the plants.

“When you demobilise after working on the system, recommissioning will then be done. The re-commissioning is in stages; this is to ensure that everything is in order before we re-commission.”

Minister of Power, Professor Chinedu Nebo had on June 2, announced the shutdown of Utorogu and Ughelli East gas plants, explaining that the closure of the plants was to ensure their proper maintenance.

The output of power generation stations relying on them for gas supplies would be affected,

he had said.

“I am publicising the planned closure for maintenance by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Corporation of its Utorogu and Ughelli East gas plants. This will no doubt have an impact on the output of the power stations fed by these gas plants, which include Egbin and Omotosho.

"The plants to be shut for short periods of time on different dates will inevitably result in the temporary loss of generated power.

“This is regretted but I assure you all that it will not last longer than the short period needed for the maintenance and re-commissioning work, and our experts will be at work to ensure that available power is distributed in a manner to minimise inconvenience to consumers,” the minster assured.

MTN linked to India's telecom firm C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 2 5

to have been discouraged by a revision in India of its telecommunications mergers and acquisitions rules.

MTN has also previously held talks with Bharti Airtel for a potential $24 billion merger deal in 2009, which was called off.

Reliance Communications, which is owned by billionaire Anil Ambani, boasts a customer base of over 130 million, including 7.2 million 3G customers and 29.4 million data

customers.

While MTN has not commented on speculation, it is said that a successful deal would give the group its first major foothold in Asia, having also tried, unsuccessfully, to merge with Bharti Airtel in a deal reportedly worth $24 billion, in 2009.

MTN could "quite comfortably" fund an acquisition with debt and its own cash, Bruce Main, a fund manager at Ivy Asset Management told Bloomberg. An obstacle would be "the competitive environ-

ment in India, which is so aggressive that the main mobile operators started slashing margins substantially."

In April, MTN said it could spend up to $8 billion on an acquisition and is looking for targets on the continent, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

In May the group announced that former chief executive, Phuthuma Nhleko, had rejoined the group as its chairman, following the official resignation of Cyril Ramaphosa in March.

YOUTH CULTURE

MY CITY, MY WORLD (OYEDELE) We lost nothing to the relocation of the Federal Capital to Abuja ... Lagos is commercial capital

Photo posted on Instagram by young residents of Festac, Amuwo-Odofin, Mile 2 and Snake Island.

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INTERVIEW (OPEIFA) What we have achieved with Lagos traffic law and why we want to register drivers and conductors.

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MONday, AUGUST 4, 2014

...for the love of Lagos

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Lagos Cable Car Transit Project: Govt, RTL carry out sub-soil tests (: 0802 301 5582 sms only

LCCI group to train women entrepreneurs he Women Group of the Tmerce Lagos Chamber of Comand Industry (LCCI)

has promised to teach women entrepreneurs how to exploit international linkages to promote businesses.

The group gave the assurance in a statement issued at the weekend and signed in Lagos by its Chairperson, Mrs Adenike Shobajo.

It said the women would be trained on Aug. 12 at a business forum, where the Chief Representative of the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Mr Tetsuo Seki, would be the guest speaker.

According to the group, the forum will have the theme: ``Gender Mainstreaming in Private Sector Development’’.

The group said that the Japanese envoy would focus his presentation on how JICA could collaborate with female members of the LCCI to reach out to women entrepreneurs to boost grassroots development.

It said that Seki would also speak on how to foster bilateral relations between women in Nigeria and their counterparts in Japan to boost cooperation through finance and investment.

The LCCI Women Group noted that JICA had for many years been at the forefront of promoting cooperation on development issues between Nigeria and Japan, especially on poverty eradication and business development.

It said that the forum would also review the activities of the group toward promoting ideas among entrepreneurs.

The group that the outcome of the forum would boost activities of entrepreneurs at local and international levels.

Many outstanding female entrepreneurs in Nigeria are expected to grace the one-day event, which will attract captains of industries.

The Women Group of the LCCI is charged with responsibility of coordinating the activities of female members of the body in the promotion of their businesses and key projects of the LCCI.

Oluwatosin Omoniyi

T

he $500m Lagos Cable Car Transit Project (LCCTP) is moving closer to commencement as the Lagos State government and its private sector partner, Ropeways Transport Limited (RTL) are carrying out sub-soil tests of

the designated sites for the three concrete towers and the eight stations expected to be built.

Lagos State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Mr. Toyin Ayinde, who disclosed this in a chat with The MegaCity, said the State government was

already securing properties needed to accommodate the project, assessing the site for the stations and trying to determine the nature of electricity to power it.

He said sub-soil investigation of the various designated sites was already on-going, adding that the aim was to deter-

CHANGING LANDSCAPE OF LAGOS

mine the strength of structure to erect.

According to him, the state government was expecting a detailed report from its private sector partners, RTL, by next month.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 27

LASU senior staff suspends 3-month strike he Senior Staff AssociaTsities tion of Nigerian Univer(SSANU), Lagos State

FACT FILE Client: Lagos State government Type of Development: 11 floors luxury residential apartment Location: Isale Igangan, Lagos Island, LGA

University (LASU) Chapter, has suspended its threemonth old strike.

The Chairman of the association, Mr Saheed Oseni, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos at the weekend that the strike would be suspended till Aug. 30.

He said that the decision was taken at a congress meeting on Friday morning following an agreement the union reached with the LASU Governing Council.

The union embarked on an indefinite strike on May 26, to press home some demands.

The union demands reduction in tuition fee, repeal of LASU’s `no-vacancyno-promotion policy, and implementation of the 2012 Universities Miscellaneous Provision Act. Oseni said that SSANU suspended the strike after the governing council Chairman, Mr Bode Augusto, assured the union that the council would resolve the conflict at its next meeting on Aug 29.

“We are giving the governing council a benefit of the CONTINUED ON PAGE 28

Photo: Sulaiman Hussaini

Lagos begins households survey today Muritala Ayinla

L

agos State Government will begin households survey of the entire Local Government and local Council Development Area of the State.

This was disclosed by the

Director, Lagos Bureau of Statistics, Mr. Tayo Oseni-Ope in a Press Statement signed on behalf of the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Economic Planning and budget.

The survey exercise, which is to commence today, will last for 25 working days in entire

State concurrently.

Households surveys conducted by the Bureau are used in gauging public response to socio-economic infrastructure and services rendered by the State Government to its CitiCONTINUED ON PAGE 28

IN NUMBERS 20,638 the number of women who gave birth in Lagos State public hospitals in the first 10 months of 2013

9,326

the number of women who gave birth through Caesarean surgical operations in Lagos public hospitals in the first 10 months of 2013

28 NEWS /MEGA CITY CONTINUED FRO M PAG E 27

will determine the next step by the state government, he added.

According to plans obtained by The MegaCity from the African Development Bank (AfDB), subsoil tests are to be followed

by Substructure works.

This would entail piling, construction of bases for three concrete towers of between 150 and 180 metres each, and foundations for stations expected to be sited at Ijora, Iddo, Adeniji Adele, Oluwole, Apapa, Falomo, Obalende, and Victoria Island.

Substructure works are to be followed by Superstructure works, which would entail the construction of the three concrete towers and erection of 11 steel towers.

Monday, August 4, 2014

Lagos Cable Car Transit Project LASU senior staff suspends strike Lagos begins These would then be followed by the construction of the eight stations.

In a recent interview with Channels Television, Dapo Olumide, former Managing Director of Virgin Nigeria Airlines and the Chief Executive Officer of RTL said the proposed Lagos cable cars will start operations in 2015.

According to him, it will start its operation on three routes around the Adeniyi Adele axis.

“The cable car transit system is the first in the quest in Nigeria to provide commuters affordable, safe, timely and stress-free mode of transportation, particularly in urban centres like Lagos,” he said. He added

that his company has already signed a 30-year Franchise Agreement with the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) and the Lagos state government for the execution of the project.

The idea, he explained, is to build networks several miles long with fleets of large gondolas that pass stations every couple of minutes and are capable of carrying up to 35 people each, the same as a large bus or three smaller minibus taxis.

Construction of the project, according to Olumide, is to begin by November, starting with the construction of towers, stations and connecting network cables.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27

doubt; that is why we gave a time frame to the suspension, since the members would meet on Aug. 29.

If the issue is resolved at the council meeting as promised, congress will convene to call off the strike,’’ he said.

The unionist said that the union also reached an agreement with the university authorities to pay SSANU members’ two months salaries the authorities withheld during the strike.

“We are giving the authorities till Aug. 5 to pay the outstanding salaries.

“It will be wrong for

the university to hold its convocation on Aug.6 in an atmosphere where its members of staff are depressed,’’ he said.

According to Oseni, withholding salaries within two months of strike negates labour laws, describing it as victimisation.

“It was unfair to selectively pay some staff by mere signing of a register opened by the authorities, while they actually were on strike and did not work,’’ he said.

Oseni urged the authorities to adhere to the agreement it signed with the union, adding that it should not victimise any SSANU member.

households survey today

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27

zenry.

The statement also highlighted that the exercise, which the Bureau is mandated to carry out on regular basis, is mostly done to extract indicators that will further enhance plans and policy formulation of the State Government to improve the quality of life of its citizens.

Meanwhile, members of the public are enjoined to give maximum cooperation and assistance to the enumerators as the exercise has nothing to do with tax but development.

Two years after, traffic law has restored sanity to Lagos roads – Opeifa The Lagos State Commissioner for Transportation, Comrade Kayode Opeifa in this interview with MURITALA AYINLA, speaks on the gains of the Lagos Traffic Law, 2012, and other sundry issues. Excerpts: What can you say are the achievements of the Lagos Road Traffic Law? The road traffic law of Lagos State has achieved most, if not all its objectives. Even though some may look painful, Lagosians believe there is an improvement. They believe the reforms are necessary and they are ready to bear it. They believe we should be able to do it and with human face. On the issue of traffic flow, if not for some of the provisions of the law, our traffic situation will be worse in Lagos. People now know more about road signs. They now know when to make U-turn. They now have a better understanding of traffic lights. They now understand that yellow doesn’t mean “Go”, but “ready to go” and that green means “go”.

In the area of quality of life, we have been able to reduce gaseous emission.

In the area of better understanding of the law, a lot of Lagosians know better, even though there are still areas that not clear to our people.

On the area of enforcement agencies, we still have a lot to do. So, if I should comment about the law for myself, I will say I feel fulfilled. To me, the law looks like the most understood and advocated law in terms of public advocacy. What looks like this law was the turning of right to left hand drive during former Minister for Transportation, Alhaji Femi Okunu’s era.

It took us not less than four years working on the Law. We met with the stakeholders. We even had lawyers who called us to work on law to regulate reckless driving in the state, unknown to them that we were doing something on that.

People have raised issue that some of the penalties are tough, like the minimum fine of N20,000. Yes! I wish it could be N5,000. But from experience, we have discovered that that people used to take one-way along Lagos Ibadan Express-

way from Ojota and they are ready to pay a LASTMA personnel N10,000 as fine just to allow them to go. It was that terrible. Now, you hardly see driv-

transportation policy, they will become more respected. The NURTW chairman should be a big man in our community.

That is one of the things that the road traffic law is intending to achieve.

We have raised the tempo that is what we are saying to those who want to practice that profession. Many renowned artists are now patronising them to render one service or the other.

When we started the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), we called the drivers captains and they all wore uniforms. Sometimes they used ties. What stops a Danfo driver from putting on good uniforms and ties?

That is the essence of the accreditation.

But do you think it will be possible for average Lagos bus conductors who ‘hangs’ to wear of tie and uniform?

That is one of the targets of the road traffic law. These bus conductors don’t understand that ‘hanging’ on buses is not healthy for them. There will be nothing like hanging again. They will operate with dignity. That is part of what the law will achieve eventually.

Opeifa

ing against traffic except in some areas where we have problem with road network, especially during peak hours.

The intention is that we don’t want to fine anybody, we just want to a situation whereby people will voluntarily comply.

When we turned the minimum fine to N20,000, do you know our revenue is still what it was before the law?

What we are doing is to enhance the living standard of transport operators in the state. Our Danfo drivers and conductors must be proud of their jobs. Nigerians drive taxis and the rest in the United States. They are proud to do that.

They come back home and build houses.

Do you know that drivers get better pay than most of us? Yet most of us don’t respect them. With the road traffic law, by the time we get through with the

But wearing tie by Danfo driver and their conductors in this clime, do you see that as feasible?

We don’t say they must use tie at all cost. Ok, some companies’ drivers use ties, there are taxi drivers that use ties.

Mechanics wear uniforms. If you go to Apapa, you will see transport unions and some NUPENG drivers, they wear uniforms. They have their own VIOs, they wear uniforms. They even were tie. The Danfo drivers are not secondclass citizens. Our transport operators are not second-class citizens. They must be respected. There are a lot of prominent Nigerians who have driven public transport in the United States, United Kingdom and other countries abroad and they are well respected. So, what is wrong in it? Must we drive Danfo and hang? They don’t have to hang? They should be seated. The owners of Danfo must get maximum money, conductors must get good remuneration. It is difficult for them to apply for LagosHoms now because they don’t have a face. Now we have met with them, we now know who they are. Through our accreditation system we now know who they are. We

can recognise them through LARAA. Through Lag route, we can say this man is a Danfo driver. So, we can say danfo drivers possibly earn N60,00 monthly or 100,000 monthly if he is an owner .

So, it is easy for them, through identification to also apply for loan. So what makes a danfo driver different from other citizen? So, they must have access to the bank for loan. That is why we will give them a commercial passenger vehicle operator licence. It could be equivalent to liquor licence whereby you can’t sell beer without it. So, if you want one, you pay heavily to get from somebody who has it. We want them to have a licence that they can take to the bank to get a new vehicle. The taxi drivers are enjoying now. They love what is going on with them. We are about unfolding a system whereby every taxi driver will get a licence so that when they need to renew their vehicle, they should be able to go to the bank, drop the licence, which has the value from government and then, they can get a loan. This is possible because they have an ID. We are doing something that people who want to drive a taxi don’t need to own a taxi.

A lot of youths are there who want to work. Why can’t they drive taxi over the weekend and make like 15,000-N20,000 a week?

On the issue of traffic flow, it is to create a system, that once people know the law, and we put traffic lights there, people will do the right thing. You can see that LASTMA personnel are more relaxed. The traffic light does the job and LASTMA manages the enforcement. People hardly park where they shouldn’t park. So, the junctions are now free. Thanks to the road traffic law. There is less of contact of LASTMA and the citizens. We don’t get much complaints of citizens about LASTMA personnel like before. That is why we believe that better traffic management will enhance better traffic flow.

On the quality of life, the Bus Mass Transit. There is now LAGBus plying Agege to Alusa and there is one in Ajegunle owned by the residents. There is another one in Lekki owned by private individuals. We have given another licence to the NURTW to make their licence 4. So, all what we are doing in the

NEWS / MEGA CITY 29

Monday, August 4, 2014

Jeremiah Madaki

T

he Heritage Park is one garden that is peculiar in many ways when compared with others in several parts of Lagos.

The product of collaboration between the state Ministry of Environments and LASPARK supported by Clear Edge Media, the park is located at a once notoriously messy and crowded part of Oshodi, just by the right-hand side before the bridge flies over Agege motor road. Beside it is a busy road filled with traders and commuters, while behind it is a garage where people board buses going to Ibadan, Iyana paja, Agege and other places.

No one who knew what the spot used to be like in years gone by would ever imagine such a beautiful garden could grow in a once busy and rough environment.

Fenced half-way with iron bars, the Heritage Park has three gates; one facing the Oshodi bridge towards Mile-2 road, another facing those coming from Gbagada road while the third gate faces the by-road joining Agege motor ways.

At the centre of this garden is a huge advertising screen flashing multi-colour lights at night, thus beautifying the park and making it colourful at night. The good ambience makes the place a lovers’ haven. Most of those who visit are the youths.

On an average day, towards evening, youths in their sexy attires, could be seen flocking in there, while during the day time, the garden is for children and their parents or guardians. There are seats and play facilities, including a playground for children. Complementing these facilities are lush green grasses and benches for relaxation, among others. Umbrella shape trees provide shade for some of the benches, and ooze out fresh air to the environment. The walk path and some parts of the garden are paved with inter-locking stones, while the rest are covered with carpet grass.

The Heritage Park also showcases the cultural heritage of the state, with an Eyo statue placed at all the gates leading inside the park.

According to Chukwuemeka Patrick, manager Oshodi Heritage Park, is a place where children and adults can come and have fun.

He noted that in the city, children now have very few places to play, as everywhere has been built up, adding that even private schools that are supposed to have recreational places often comprise of just a storey building.

Patrick further said “my major challenge as the manager, is disturbances from those Agberos (transport touts) at the garage and those staying under the bridge but many thanks to Lagos State Gardens and Parks AgenCONTINUED FROM PAGE 28

transportation sector is to benefit those who are in the profession and not those who are making life difficult for them.

So what stops all our LAGBUS buses and Danfos to be air conditioned if the fare will not change. You recall when the fuel price was increased from N65 to N97 and they doubled their transportation fare.

We called the union into a meeting and guess what. They agreed to 20 percent reduction. That is the kind of transportation sector we want to build when the operators and government talk amicably. When did they fight last? It is over four years ago, that is the kind system we want to achieve.

Part of the objectives of the traffic law is to ensure security and safety on Lagos roads; will you say the law has been able to achieve this?

Do you know our transporters unions are now using security gadgets at their motor parks? They are as important to us as lawyers and medical doctors. They

Oshodi Heritage Park: From notoriety to ‘stardom’

A huge billboard at the heart of the park.

cy, LASPARK. They are really working hard so that those things would not be issues.”

The manager stressed that entrance is free, as it is part of the social responsibility of government to the people.

Qardri Muslim, a passer-by said the management of the park deserves applause because the place is always clean.

He also commended the effort of the state government and that of the LASPARK. Muslim, who lives somewhere close to the park, observed that the park is always busy at festive periods.

In ensuring security of the users, there is provision of Police station around the park. According to the park manager, the police station provides necessary and adequate protection for people who visit the garden.

Eyo at the entrance of one of the gates.

A section of the park.

Traffic law has restored sanity to Lagos roads must not be seen as street boys. They are the best resource we have in Lagos, they move the economy. And we want them to appreciate that. Right now a lot of people are now working hard to invest in transportation because they have seen the reform and realise that their return is guaranteed. Good news, do you know there 100 new buses on our BRT corridor in the last six months? The NURTW bought in two batches. We didn’t give them money; they bought it from their own re-fleeting programme. They are repairing all the ones bought 2007 which are already seven years old. That is the life span of those buses. So, through this system, we are building a viral and sustainable public transport system. So, if everything is moving on fine, everyone will love to go on public transport which means more money for the operators.

Regarding safety and restriction of motor-

cycles on major roads, what do you have to say about that?

You know what? I don’t want to say anything about Okada restriction because there is a lot of misconception on it. But truly speaking we have saved lives, we have prevented over 5,000 injuries we have saved over 500 lives. And i know many people have gone through Okada accident. With the new transportation system we are developing, there are many benefits attached to it. People want to put their buses but they can’t.

Because it has to be regulated and well managed we must ensure they put the adverts on the buses that we know and we must make sure that the BRT buses have adverts on them because the owners are known to government.

There were speculations that government charges between N20,000 to N30,000 for the accreditation exercise.

How true is that?

That is absolutely rubbish! We don’t charge them at all. No registered Danfo will tell you that we collected anything from them to get registered. They have been doing the accreditation free of charge. It is in their interest to get registered.

Why the need for identification of drivers and conductors in Lagos State?

All journalists have union and identified by their employers. But it is unfortunate that key players in important sectors are not recognised. If there is any accident involving them, how will we identify them? Who are your witnesses? Do you even know who is driving you? When you enter a commercial bus, you should be able to see the face of your conductor and driver. If you lose anything in the bus, you will be able to trace it.

30 THE MEGACITY

Monday, August 4, 2014

UPCOMING EVENTS

Study in the UK Workshop

Organiser: BlueSense Group Events Date: Monday, August 4, 2014 at

8:00 AM - Friday, August 8, 2014 at 4:00 PM (PDT) Venue: Protea Hotel Oakwood Park

Customer Service Management Training Organiser: School of Business

Without Boundaries Date: Wednesday, August 6, 2014 at 7:00 PM - Thursday, August 7, 2014 at 10:00 PM (WAT) Venue: Ocean Suites & Hotels, Gbagada

YOUTH CULTURE,

#happy by @vovonash

M, L, XL by @glamoutfitss

Homeland Security Training

Organiser: TARGET GLOBAL SECURITY LTD and UK Partners Date: Saturday, August 9, 2014 from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM (PDT) Venue: Lagos (Specific place not disclosed)

Siemon, The DC Physical Infrastructure And Cabling Experts, Are Coming To Your Region!

Organiser: Siemon Date: Tuesday, August 12, 2014 from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM (CEST) Venue: VCP Hotel, 292B Ajose Adeogun St, Victoria Island

photos as posted on Instagram (#Festac, Amuwo and Mile2)

Grandpa, grandchild, great grandchildren and great grandma.... @arabiabimbola

Moët Bath by @softdammy

#Tbt by @bukilicous

by @whichwayay

My City, My World Nothing lost to relocation of capital to Abuja – Oyedele

Oluwatosin Omoniyi or Alhaji Bode Oyedele, Chairman of Lagos State chapter of SURE-P, Lagos is like a pot of water that can never dry up.

Proud of his Lagos origin, Oyedele said Lagosians are peace loving people and easy going, and recalled the Oyedele popular saying ‘Jeje ni omo Eko nlo’ (a Lagosian moves about calmly). This, he said, also means the city dwellers try to avoid trouble.

“Lagos is also a melting pot... Basically, we are peace loving people who love the social lifestyle.” Comparing Lagos of old and now, he said then there was healthy competition among different age groups. At that time, people knew themselves, and as such one could vouch for someone in another compound. But now, there is high rate of dropping out of schools, big disappointment in terms of available infrastructure probably due to over population, and the ubiquity of street urchins better known as area boys.

Now, Alhaji, as Oyedele is fondly called, further noted that there are cases of students sitting on the floor of classrooms to study, “which never happened in our time.”

He fondly recalled that decades back, inspectors would pay unscheduled visits to schools to keep the teachers and principals on their toes, while the teacher-to-student ratio was quite low. “There is no more of such culture.”

During Alhaji’s time, over 60 years ago, he said, there was the provision of milk in the afternoon with free school meal. “The best legacy any government can give is education along with functional classrooms.”

On the social life of Lagos, Oyedele said it is now with a very strict sense of security. Those days, he said, people were free to move about in the midnight or before dawn, like 3am. But now, to do that will be risky. However, he believes what attracts people to Lagos is still there and evergreen.

The fact that the capital has been taken to Abuja does not take the beauty and importance away from the state. Lagos remains the commercial nerve centre of Nigeria. It is the melting pot.

F

The State has become pacesetter for national development – Fosudo Mojeed Alabi TBT Micheal Angelo’s Luxury hotel #JBurg#styled by me by @007miami

untitled by @softdammy

#instagood#instamood#selfie#me#my self#wuhuuu by @wuhuuu

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Wearenowhonorarymembersofteamlightskin By @Miss_chinney

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r. Sola Fosudo is a conactor, dramaDtist,summate theatre director, schol-

ar, critic and currently the Acting Director, Centre for Information, Press and Public Relations, Lagos State Fosudo University, LASU, Ojo. He has stayed in Lagos for decades, believes Lagos is a city anyone desiring access to firsthand information, exposure and good orientation about life should consider relocating to. He said having stayed in major cities in Nigeria; he still regards Lagos as home.

However, the lecturer of Theatre Arts believes that if the infrastructure in the city is improved upon and the culture of maintenance is imbibed by the people, the city would compare very well with those in the advanced nations of the world.

Fosudo, who commended the state’s leadership for its innovation in tackling insecurity by involving the people especially through the introduction of the Security Trust Fund, also believes that if employment opportunities are provided for the teeming young Nigerians roaming the streets, the criminal activities in the state would be reduced.

He said: “I think there is need for improvement on the general infrastructure, especially roads so that the perennial traffic logjam could be eased. Compared with other Nigerian cities, Lagos has grown to become not only the commercial nerve centre of the country, but already the pacesetter for national development.

“This does not mean that I cannot live in any other place in the country; in fact, there is none of the cities in the country where I cannot live as I have actually lived in many already but I still believe other cities should emulate the on-going development in Lagos.”

BUSINESS | NEWS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

31

Why Lagos isn’t aviation hub, by Sabre boss UNDERPERFORMING Despite the massive population put at about 160 million people, aviation contributes only 0.4 per cent to GDP Wole Shadare

T

he lack of deployment of technology at the nation’s premier airport, the Murtala Muhammed Airport or any major airports in Nigeria, coupled with infrastructure decay, lack of serious national carrier and chronic electricity problem, are some of the problems that have im-

peded Lagos from attaining the status of a hub of aviation for airlines.

Airline hubs are airports that an airline uses as a transfer point to get passengers to their intended destination.

It is part of a hub and spoke model, where travelers moving between airports not served by direct flights change planes en route to their destinations.

In spite of the massive population put at over 150 million people, the overall contribution of paltry 0.4 per cent of Nigeria’s aviation to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) further exposes the under-belly of the sector.

In monetary value, the overall contribution to nation’s GDP in 2012 was a meager

N198 billion according to Oxford Economics 2012.

Speaking as a guest lecturer at the 2nd memorial lecture in honour of Zakari Haruna held at the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority’s head office in Lagos, President, Sabre Network Incorporated (West Africa) Gabriel Gbenga Olowo, said Nigeria would continue to play a catch-up to many other smaller nations in aviation if these problems are not tackled.

Olowo noted that international air traffic to and from Africa has been growing by 6 per cent while domestic has been growing by 12 per cent. He added that an explosion of activity in Nigeria other than any other factor largely drives this.

According to him, in South and East Africa, the recog-

L-R: Head Corporate Planning & Strategy, Skye Bank Plc, Mr Tajudeen Ahmed ; Winner of the KiA Picanto Car, Teju Ogunjimi and Manager, Digital Marketing, Dana Motors Limited, Peter Aweyoh, at the redemption of the grand prize of the World Cup Dream League, organised by Skye Bank Plc, in Lagos.

nised and functioning hubs are those in Johannesburg, Addis Ababa and Nairobi.

He lamenting that the markets in West and Central Africa are stagnant and that vacuum is created by the tension created in Cote D’Ivoire, occasioned by the demise of Nigeria Airways and Air Afrique.

He regretted that no clear hub has emerged in West Africa, stressing that Lagos would be an obvious choice, but was quick to say that it is not currently in a position to play the role.

“Chronic power problem impede growth and productivity. Inadequate generation capacity, unreliable services and skyrocketing prices cause serious bottlenecks”, he added.

The expert disclosed that no airport would function efficiently without the deployment of technology, which he said is driving the industry. He lamented that the Lagos airport in its shambolic state is an eye sore to the country.

To him, information is virtually nonexistent and services very poor with no self service kiosks at any of the nation’s airports at a time airports in Europe, Asia, United States are deploying technology to save time, cost efficient and productive.

He noted: “Overall, African air transport has grown strongly in recent years. Air freight has boosted exports, however, air transport in Africa is expensive, connections are patchy and safety is a problem. Handling charges are high and operating costs have soared with fuel prices

It’s healthy rebound for manufacturing, says FBN Capital SiakaMomoh

ILLEGAL BUILDINGS Sudden surge in the construction of event centres is a major concern to town planners Dayo Ayeyemi

T

he Lagos State government needs to expedite action on the passage and implementation of the Building Plan Regulation, former Chairman of the Lagos Chapter of Nigerian Institute of Town Planners (NITP), Mr Makinde Ogunleye, has said.

He said that no one could categorically trace the location of the document, noting that the last time it was mentioned among stakeholders, the response was that it had been sent to the state Ministry of Justice for perfection.

The NITP scribe pointed out that there was need to seek stakeholders' input into the regulations since nobody seemed to know what it is all about.

He stressed the need for a

Expert to Lagos: Execute T building plan regulation special committee to review the law.

What the state relies on presently for regulation of building plan, Ogunleye said, has been the Lagos State Urban Planning Law 2005.

Other town planners at the forum had pointed out that their major concern about the implementation of the law has to do with the surge in the construction of event centres in the state. Specifically, they said some of them were made up of temporary structures in mega forms.

He said that town planner want the government to scrutinise these event centres and subject them to regulation.

He said that the Building Plan Regulation Law should specify the details of development permit. “It is like preparing a layout and within the layout, you now have details,” he said.

The expert urged town planners to intimate government

about the law, and also set up a committee to pressurise government to implement it.

“Town planners should urge the government to put the issue of temporary structure in the regulation,” he said.

The building plan regulation is one of the components of the Lagos State Urban and Regional Planning Law 2010.

Meanwhile, the Lagos State government has called on all stakeholders, professionals and property owners to ensure full compliance with the Lagos State 2010 planning laws in the construction of buildings in the state, in a bid to curtail incidences of building collapse.

The Urban and Regional Planning and Development Law 2010, which was endorsed in July 2010, by Governor Babatunde Fashola is aimed at achieving zero tolerance to incidents of collapsed buildings, illegal development and non – conformity with development plans.

choking off air connections in many countries”.

“Air traffic control requires major updates policy challenges include strengthening regulatory oversight”, he added.

Speaking on the state of the airline industry in the continent, the former Executive Director of the defunct Bellview Airlines disclosed that air traffic to and from Africa has grown by 89 per cent between 2000/2012. He added that 2014/2032 prediction indicates Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 5.7 per cent when compared with global rate of 4.7 per cent.

He said: “Global market forecast by aircraft giant, Airbus states that Africa is expected to be the third fastest growing region of the world during the period after China and India. African airlines fleet will grow by 150 per cent from 608 to 1540 pieces. South Africa alone will grow by 5.4 per cent during 2012/2032.”

Speaking in the same vein, chairman, Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), Capt. Noggie Meggison, said the whole world is disappointed with Nigeria’s stunted aviation growth in spite of huge human resource.

He regretted that one of the greatest problems of the industry was formulation of bad policies by successive Ministers of Aviation, stressing that a situation where the government keeps opening its airspace for foreign carriers has done incalculable damage to operations of local airlines.

he latest report for FBN Capital’s manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) indicates a recovery in the headline reading, which grew from 51.4 in June to 56.2 in July.

The index, according to FBN, is a familiar data release at the start of the calendar month in developed markets (such as the ISM in the US), the larger emerging markets like Brazil and China, and a few other frontier markets such as Vietnam.

“At some point, we should like to launch an index for services, which comprises 51 per cent of the economy in the rebased national accounts,” FBN said.

The index is based on the responses of a number of manufacturing companies to set questions on core variables in their businesses. It is unweighted.

Said FBN: “In the model we have chosen (the ISM’s), they are asked whether output, employment, new orders, suppliers’ delivery times and stocks of purchases have improved, are unchanged or have declined.

They are asked to make allowances for seasonal factors in their responses. Our sample is a representative blend of large, medium-sized and small

companies.

“We have seen several pronounced swings since we launched our index in April 2013. In our view, these are consistent with Nigeria’s frontier market status. Changes in the operating environment such as access to electricity, fuel and credit, as well as swings in business confidence, help to explain these movements.”

FBN noted this latest headline reading is broadly in line with the new national accounts (base year 2010), which show manufacturing growth of 15.3 per cent y/y in Q1 2014 and an average of 16.8 per cent over the past eight quarters.

“These stellar growth figures for the sector may cause a few heads to turn yet are consistent with the rapid, consumption-led transformation of a frontier market. A mark of the Asian tigers in development was for manufacturing to outpace the other sectors in growth.”

FBN said that it is encouraged that the latest report has the sub-indices for output, employment and new orders moving upwards in sync. It noted: “Output responds to new orders, which often drive recruitment. In a weighted index, these are traditionally the most important sub-indices.”

BUSINESS | MONEYLINE

32

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Sterling Bank is receiving lender for Oyo, Kaduna bonds

TRACK RECORD Choice of Sterling Bank influenced by its track record in collections Godson Ikoro

for N15 billion. These bonds are being raised by the state governments to generate funds for the execution of developmental projects in their respective states.

Sterling Bank’s Head of Structured Finance, Mr Lanre Olalusi, who disclosed these in Lagos, said that the choice of Sterling Bank may have been influenced by its track record in collections. He noted that Sterling Bank collects Visa fees for

T

he governments of Oyo and Kaduna states have appointed Sterling Bank Plc as receiving bank for their bond issuance programmes in recognition of the lender’s robust and efficient payment system, A statement from Sterling Bank said that Oyo State is in the market to raise N5 billion, while Kaduna State is shopping

the British High Commission, French Embassy, Dubai and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Similarly, he said that the lender collects school fees in conjunction with Interswitch using the Paydirect platform.

Olalusi also noted that the “bank’s adherence to rules as specified by the regulatory authorities based on antecedents, transparency and professional service delivery in a timely manner also stood it out as a

Access Bank counsels impresarios on funding

A

ccess Bank Plc has advised entrepreneurs on steps they need to take in addressing funding challenges they face in their businesses.

Head, Women Banking Unit, Access Bank, Titilola Familoni, said this at the Fifth Annual Young Entrepreneurs Network (YEN) Conference in Lagos.

She said the entrepreneurs need to keep proper records of their transactions and operations, as such would support their loan application process.

Familoni, in a statement made available to New Telegraph, said lenders approve loans based on statistics or information available to them as required by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The expert said there is also need for entrepreneurs to put the right struc-

ture in place their businesses, adding that proper accounting show seriousness on the part of the entrepreneurs. She said a bank would always ask for collateral for a loan because it is a requirement from the CBN. Familoni said: “Entrepreneurs need to get their records right as such would help them in accessing funding from banks. When the records are right, no bank can say no to a loan request.”

Besides, she advised the entrepreneurs to invest in their personal and staff training to equip them with challenges that face businesses.

“You do not need to reinvent the wheel. See what other entrepreneurs have done and learn from that. Such experience will help speed up your growth and

development,” she said.

Familoni said entrepreneurs do not need to be in a hurry to grow their businesses without doing proper homework.

She said: “Entrepreneurs need to know how banks think.

Banks do not like funding a customer’s risk. A bank will ensure that it is protected from whatever risk that lending to a customer carries. Equity is important in business. A customer desirous of a loan need to have a savings culture,” she said.

The expert however, added that entrepreneurs need to prepare themselves before approaching a bank for a loan.

Preparation makes the borrower to approach the bank from superiority point of view and he will get the loan, she explained.

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

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

Bid 12.10 12.10 12.05

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

FX

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

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

Rate (%) 11.33 11.63

NIFEX Spot ($/N)

the necessary support to the issuing house, Olalusi said that the lender will continue to offer top notch service and robust platforms to ensure the success of the exercise.

He commended states for approaching the capital market to raise funds, adding that this will help to bridge the country’s infrastructural deficit and improve the living standard of the populace. “ Such medium to long term financing are typically channeled towards infrastructure and developmental projects like construction of roads, rural electrification, and the execution of housing and water supply schemes, which have a direct impact on living standard of the people”, he said.

FG to raise N195b in Treasury bills

T

he Federal Government plans to raise N195.17 billion ($1.21 billion) in short-dated treasury bills at an auction on Wednesday, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said last Friday.

The banking watchdog according said it plans to raise

N45.17 billion in one month treasury bills, N50 billion in 6-month paper and N100 billion in the one-year debt note.

Traders said yields on the debt are expected to fall in line with the trend seen at the previous auction since June.

Interbank rates flat, to rise this week

T

he Nigeria's interbank lending rates were flat last Friday, trading at an average of 11.12 per cent, the same level they closed at penultimate week, but they are expected to climb this week as some liquidity exits the banking system to fund cash reserve requirements.

Traders said although overnight placement eased marginally by 25 basis points, the Open Buy Back (OBB) climbed by some 25 basis points, compared with the level they each closed at last week.

The retirement of matured Open Market Operations (OMO) according to Bloom-

berg, was matched by sales of additional N150.5 billion debt notes last Wednesday.

"We see rates inching up next week because of planned debit of cash reserves requirements, funding for treasury bills and foreign exchange sales," one dealer said.

The open buy-back (OBB) rate climbed to 11 per cent, from 10.75 per cent, 100 basis points below the central bank's benchmark interest rate of 12 per cent.

Overnight placements however, eased to 11.25 per cent compared with 11.50 per cent penultimate week.

GTBank partners Forte Oil

Offer Yield 13.01 13.40 13.47 13.49 13.44 13.59

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

financial institution of choice for the programme.”

He said: “The antecedent of Sterling Bank in this business is unparalleled. This business is all about experience, deep understanding of the terrain, sincerity and trust. Sterling Bank has demonstrated all these qualities in similar transactions. The issuing houses also look out for banks with rich experience in the business and they are comfortable with Sterling Bank based on our past experience. For instance, Sterling Bank handled a similar responsibility for Wema Bank during its capital raising exercise and it was a huge success”.

While assuring that the Sterling Bank would provide

Bid 163.4000

Offer 163.5000 Source: FMDQ

G

uaranty Trust Bank Plc has launched “GTExpress”; a comprehensive Agent Banking Service at Forte Oil locations nationwide as part of its efforts at bringing banking services closer to its existing and potential customers.

Through this partnership with the oil firm, GTBank in a statement, said it will leverage the extensive reach of Forte Oil to further bring banking services such as account opening, cash deposit and withdrawal via Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), customer enquiries, bills payment and funds transfer closer to the people.

The bank said it has rolled out in 14 Forte Oil locations.

GTBank for mally launched this service in November 2013 at Ebeano Supermarket in Lekki, Lagos and has recorded tremendous success at this location since inception. Basic banking services and any other activity

as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) may prescribe from time to time, can be carried out at these agent locations, the statement explained.

GTExpress is banking via agent locations such as supermarkets, schools, cinemas, markets and restaurants. It is an initiative to reach out to the underserved and unbanked segments of the population in a cost efficient manner through the use of non-banking retail outlets.

Managing Director, Guaranty Trust Bank, Segun Agbaje said: “The unbanked sector of the economy presents a significant growth area for banks in emerging markets.

Our objective is to offer banking products and services to this segment via non-banking outlets thus breaking down barriers to financial inclusion such as accessibility and cost. This is a great step in achieving a more inclusive financial services industry”.

BUSINESS | ISSUE OF THE WEEK 33

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Leadership instability as bane of NNPC

Joseph Dawha

T

he erstwhile Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Andrew Yakubu, got the fate that befell some of his predecessors last Friday as he was relieved of the position barely one year to his retirement. The Kaduna Stateborn former NNPC boss spent 34 years in civil service out of the mandatory 35 years before his ouster.

President Goodluck Jonathan had, in a late Friday night statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, announced the removal of Yakubu and his replacement “with the immediate effect.” The leadership mantle fell on Joseph Dahwa.

Curiously however, President Jonathan had, through the same Abati, said in a statement in June 2012, that Yakubu’s appointment was “to further strengthen the on-going reforms and transformation of Nigeria’s petroleum sector, and in furtherance of efforts to achieve greater transparency and accountability in government.”

Conflicting reasons for removal Although the Presidency gave reason for the appointment of Yakubu as the GMD in 2012, it has kept sealed lips on the reason for his removal.

Yakubu is the fourth GMD since the emergence of Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke as the minister. He was the 15th NNPC boss.

The minister started with the sack of Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo who was replaced by Mallam Shehu Ladan. Ladan was also swiftly sacked to pave the way for Austen Oniwon from whom Yakubu took over in June 2012.

A source at the Ministry of Petroleum Resources told this newspaper last Saturday that the minister recommended Yakubu’s sack following what she felt to be “insurbordination” in the way the latter handled the controversy surrounding the N10 billion private jet scandal.

NNPC had earlier denied any rift between the minister and the erstwhile GMD, but the source said that what he referred to as cold war between the two has now consumed Yakubu.

“In fact, the removal of Yakubu could have been effected during the heat of the jet saga but it was delayed to avoid suspicion,” the source said, adding that the “Presidency has since pencilled Yakubu down for sack.”

Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of NNPC, Ohi Alegbe, had earlier said that Yakubu was in harmonious working relationship with Mrs Alison-Madueke, who is also the Chairman of the NNPC Board of Directors.

Dismissing reports of a frosty relationship between the duo, Alegbe said that both Yakubu and Mrs Alison-Madueke have in the last few months been working together over the various summons by the National Assembly over

Andrew Yakubu

Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke

ENERGY EDITOR, Adeola Yusuf, x-rays the emergence of Joseph Dawha as the sixth Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) within just five years. the N10 billion controversy purportedly spent by the corporation to charter of private jets for the minister.

“This denial is not abnormal. You should be aware of this,” the source insisted when New Telegraph made reference to the statement, adding that the “removal, which was primarily caused by this, has now confirmed that the rift was only kept in the cooler.”

Yakubu’s turbulent flight Although NNPC went through turbulence on matters relating to graft under Yakubu, he fought hard to take the corporation through the gloom.

It would be recalled that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had earlier alleged unremitted $49.8 billion crude oil revenue.

This was, among others, followed by the allegations of misappropriation of $10 million to charter private jet for the minister.

The major shake-up in the top echelon of the NNPC also consumed the Managing Director of the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), Mr Victor Briggs.

Briggs, who only last March took over from Abiye Membere, will now also make way for Mr Anthony Ugonna Muoneke as the new Managing Director of NPDC. The president also approved the appointment of Ms Aisha Mata Abdurrahman as the Group Executive Director (GED), Commercial and Investment of NNPC as well as Dr. Attahir Yusuf as the GED Business Development of NNPC. Six GMDs in five years With the appointment of Joseph Thlama Dawha, NNPC has witnessed the selection of six Group Managing Directors (GMDs) to superintend its affairs in less than five years, a trend, which industry stakeholders described as undermining the corporation’s policy focus and direction.

This seeming instability is a bad signal to investors and it is dangerous for the country’s oil and gas industry.

Yakubu’s removal could have been effected during the heat of the jet saga but it was delayed to avoid suspicion

Jonathan

charge of Refining and Petrochemicals.

Although the presidency also served notice that government was set to probe the accounts of the corporation and will engage the services of an astute firm for this purpose, it stopped short of admitting that some measures of financial malfeasance may have been uncovered.

When the late Rilwanu Lukman and Mohammed Barkindo were removed as minister and GMD respectively, the industry got excited because their seeming lack of ability to carry the IOCs along had badly affected investments.

“Stakeholders felt that President Jonathan knew what the industry wanted.

He created a panel to review the PIB and this inspired confidence,” another oil industry operator said.

It was gathered that the preliminary report of the panel to President Jonathan served notice that foreign investors have been chased away, Nigeria rendered less attractive as an investment destination, on-going projects had ceased in the upstream and those who hitherto superintended policy formulation and implementation failed to position Nigeria to take advantage of the global economic downturn. Another industry operator who did not want his name in print disclosed that “the fear now is that as usual, all group executive directors could be sacked and with the spectre of probe of the corporation’s accounts, I hope we would not wake up one morning to hear that fire has gutted the NNPC headquarters?”

The latest change at the NNPC is said to have heightened concerns.

“Why will the president not allow Yakubu to retire, he has just about one year to retirement?” an oil and gas operator who craved anonymity because of the risk this could have on his business concerns," said.

“We have chased everybody away with our shoddy way of doing business.”

The late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua inherited Mr Funsho Kupolokun from the Chief Olusegun Obasanjo administration and after keeping him for about four months, he was replaced with Alhaji Abubakar Lawal Yar’Adua.

Yar’Adua (not related to the late president) then took the corporation through 16 grinding months noted for lack of clear cut policy direction and rudderless leadership. He was also replaced in January 2009 with Dr. Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo.

Dr. Barkindo’s background, cerebral disposition and international background inspired hope and confidence in industry watchers. But his 15 months spell at the helm of the corporation’s affairs was marked by constant face-off with the National Assembly Committees on Petroleum and seeming state of perpetual disagreement with the International oil comNNPC'S MANAGING DIRECTORS TILL DATE panies (IOCs) over review of the Petroleum 1.

Chief R. A. Marinho July 1977 - April 1980 Industry Bill.

However, his leader2.

Chief Odiligi Lolomari Apr. 1980 - Aug. 1981 ship provided a concise programme regarding 3.

Mr. Lawrence Amu Oct 1981 - Nov. 1985 the transformation of the corporation from a 4.

Mr. Aret Adams Nov. 1985 - Apr. 1990 stereotype national oil company to an interna5.

Dr. Thomas John Apr. 1990 - Jun 1990 tional oil company.

In April 2010, the 6.

Mr. Edmund Daukoru Jun. 1992 - Oct. 1993 Presidency announced his replacement with 7.

Chief Chamberlin Oyibo Nov. 1993 - Aug 1995 Mallam Shehu Ladan who had been retired 8.

Alh. Dalhatu Bayero Aug. 1995 - May 1999 in April, 2009 and no reason was advanced 9.

Dr. Jackson Gaius Obaseki May 1999 - Nov. 2003 for Barkindo’s replacement.

10.

Prof. Funsho Kupolokun Nov. 2003 - Sept. 2007

By May, 2010 a little over one month after 11.

Abubakar Yar'Adua Sept. 2007 - Jan 2009 Mallam Shehu Ladan was appointed and the 12.

Mohammed Sanusi Bakindo Jan. 2009 - 2010 oil and gas industry operators were still trying 13.

Shenu LAdan Apr. 2010 - 2010 to find a rhythm, the Presidency announced 14.

Oniwon 2010-June 2012 his replacement with Mr Austen Oniwon 15.

Andrew Yakubu June 2012 –August 1, 2014 who, until his appointment, was the Group 16.

Dahwa.

August 1, 2014-till date Executive Director in

34

business | STOCK WATCH

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Cadbury Nigeria: Strong contest stifles profit UNDERPERFORM

N274.59million in March 2014 from N487.23million in March 2013, according to market watchers.

The decline in the first quarter, which signaled signs of worry by investors were sustained during the second quarter as the company posted a 50 per cent decline in post-tax profit during the half year ended June 30, 2014.

The company in a filing with the NSE, said its half-year net earnings decreased from N2.51 billion in 2013 to N1.26 billion, accounting for a drop of 50 per cent.

Pre- tax profit equally fell to N1.79 billion, down 50 per cent from N3.58 billion in the same period last year.

Turnover decreased by 12.1 per cent to N15.32 billion during the six months to June 30 from N17.46 billion recorded during the comparable period of 2013.

Analysts advise that the company will underperform the market Chris Ugwu

C

hallenges of erratic supply of electricity, weak logistics, insecurity and other high costs of operations attributable to poor infrastructure, made the business-operating environment difficult, especially the real sector of the Nigerian economy in 2013.

However, while it was accepted generally that the overall economic and business climate was mixed due to mounting economic challenges, Cadbury Nigeria Plc was not insulated.

Alhough its share price movements has fairly maintained an upward trend, it remains susceptible to the challenges facing the manufacturing businesses in Nigeria.

The company’s bottom-line had soared during the financial year ended 2013, but began to dwindle during the first quarter of 2014 due to what market watchers attributed to stiffer competition and lack of accessibility to key markets in the Northern part of the country, coupled with increased financing cost, which have resulted in slow growth of many fast moving consumer goods companies.

However, market sentiments for the shares of the company has remained firm not only on the back of improved product rebranding, introduction of new product packing across a wide spectrum and increased market penetration but also on excess capital in its disposal to attend to the needs of the company.

Stockbrokers attributed investors’ sustained confidence in the stock to continued sales; marketing and distribution efforts as well as its strong presence across Nigeria.

The share price, which closed at N45.50 per share in September 30, 2013, has recorded a leap.

As at the close of business last Friday, the company’s share price had risen to N74.25, an increase of N28.75 or 38.72 per cent year to date.

Corporate Profile Cadbury Nigeria is a member of the Cadbury Schweppes Group, a major player in the global confectionary and beverages markets with over 40, 000 employees and business operations in 200 countries.

The company has a portfolio of brands that are market leaders in the Confectionery, Food Drinks and Foods categories.

Cadbury’s initial objectives in the 1950s were to source cocoa and prospect for a market in Nigeria. This led to the establishment of a manufacturing facility in Ikeja, north of Lagos, in 1965.

The company has since grown organically to become one of the leading manufacturers in Nigeria, with a rising

Moskofian

Share price movement of Cadbury Nigeria Plc 2013 Sept 30

N45.50

Oct 31

N56.50

Nov 30

N62.85

Dec 31

N59.01 2014

Jan 31

N58.27

Feb 28

N86.25

Mar 31

N78.55

Apr

N75.05

May 30

N75.31

Jun 30

N80.00

Jul 31

N74.25

Aug 1

N74.25

profile in the Europe, Middle East Africa (EMEA). Listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) since 1976, Cadbury is in the top 10 of the 258 quoted equities by market capitalisation at the end of 2002. Cadbury Schweppes currently owns 46.3 per cent of the equity, with the balance stock held by about 40,000 individual and institutional shareholders.

Cadbury Nigeria is one of the few signatories to date to the Convention on Business Integrity.

Its lead brands include Tom

Tom, Bournvita and Bubba bubble gum. Other brands are Cadbury Eclairs, Cadbury Chocki, Trebor Mints, Halls Take 5 (vitaminised candy), and Creme Rollers. Cadbury Nigeria also owns a cocoa processing business, the Stanmark Cocoa Processing Company.

Financials Cadbury Nigeria posted an impressive financial performance as shown in its audited financial statement for the year ended December 31 2013.

The company grew gross revenue by 7 per cent year on year (y/y) to N35.76 billion from N33.55 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2012.

Gross profits were up 32.5 per cent y/y to N13.10 billion in FY13 compared with N11 billion as at FY12. Hence, gross profit margin rose to 36.6 per cent as against 32.78 per cent in 2012.

The above performance was as a result of reduction in inputs cost as price of sales in the review period declined to 63.36 per cent in FY13 from 67.21 per

To analysts at FT.com, as of Jul 25, 2014, the consensus forecast amongst 12 polled investment analysts covering Cadbury Nigeria Plc, advised that the company will underperform the market

cent FY12, which explains why cost of sales remained flat at 0 per cent to N22.66 billion (current period).

Cadbury reported profit before tax (PBT) of N7.42 billion for the 12-month period to December 2013, an increase of 38 per cent Year-on-Year (YoY), from N5.36 billion as at year-end (FY) 2012.

Overall efficiency improved as net profit margin in the review period increased to 20.94 per cent from 16.40 per cent in FY12. It means that the company has been able to achieve satisfactory returns on shareholders’ fund.

The stellar performance of Cadbury stemmed from its ability to minimise cost as operating expenses increased slightly by 3 per cent to N7.43 billion from N7.25 billion FY12, while finance charges were down by 52 per cent y/y to N1.77 billion in the current period of Q4’13.

Profit after tax (PAT) in the year ended December 31 2013 soared by 80 per cent to N6.0 billion from N3.35 billion in the erstwhile period (FY) 2012.

Return on equity (ROE) climbed to 43.17 per cent in FY13 as against 40.16 per cent as at FY12, while Return on Assets (ROA) climbed to 25 per cent from 16.75 per cent in FY12.

However, the company’s dwindling fortune began with the first quarter of 2014 as earnings were compressed by weak sales, leading to a dip in Pre-tax profit by 31.31 per cent relative to the reduction in gross profit to N1.15 billion in March 2014 from N1.68 billion in March 2013.

This was principally due to the decline of 43.64 per cent in net finance income to

Outlook Cadbury Nigeria had said that the reason behind its capital reduction was due to the excess capital at its disposal to attend to the needs of the company.

Capital reduction entails the reduction of the company‘s share capital and share premium and the return of this capital to the company’s shareholders.

The Managing Director, Cadbury Nigeria Plc, Mr. Emil Moskofian, who stated this while addressing stock market community at the company’s facts behind the capital reduction, said that the company’s projections indicated that it would generate sufficient capital to meet its expansionary and operational requirements.

He noted that rather than invest the excess capital on behalf of shareholders at what might be sub-optimal returns, the board of directors decided to recommend the return of excess capital to shareholders who are best placed to take their own investment decisions.

“Whilst the company’s board and management do not currently foresee any future capital requirements, that will not be met from the internally generated resources, to the extent that the company is faced an opportunity requiring significant capital, the board is confident that shareholders will continue in their steadfast support and participate in any capital raising requirement. The company also has excellent relationship with banks and other financial institutions that can be relied on to meet capital requirements as they arise,” he said.

Analysts’ perception "According to analysts at FT.com, as of Jul 25, 2014, the consensus forecast amongst 12 polled investment analysts covering Cadbury Nigeria Plc, advised that the company will underperform the market. This has been the consensus forecast since the sentiments of investment analysts deteriorated on Apr 11, 2014. The previous consensus forecast advised investors to hold their position in Cadbury Nigeria Plc.

BUSINESS | CAPITAL MARKET REPORT

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

35

NSE trading floor

Profit taking persists on local bourse BEARISH The bears out performed the bulls at the Nigerian Stock Exchange

Chris Ugwu

T

he stock market sustained southward movements in spite of the one-day bullish run witnessed last week.

The bears had continued to ravage the market, as gains recorded last week were totally submerged.

Market watchers believed the tempo for position taken by bargain hunters remained lower as they picked profits from the gains recorded recently after the two days declared by the Federal Government to celebrate the Eid-el-fitri Muslim festival.

These developments made the stock market lose points to remain on the red territory just as in the previous week, following sell pressure on blue chip companies Cumulatively, the NSE AllShare Index and Market Capitalisation depreciated by 0.83 per cent to close last Friday at 41,934.40 and N13.847 trillion respectively.

Similarly, all the NSE sector indices depreciated with the exception of the NSE Consumer Goods Index, NSE Oil and Gas Index and NSE Industrial Goods Index that appreciated by 0.14 per cent, 3.93 per cent and 0.41 per cent respectively.

Meanwhile, the NSE ASeM index closed flat.

Investor confidence returns However, trading activities on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) began last week pointing northward

as transactions in the share prices of Oando and Dangote Cement Plc led other gainers to lift the market indicators.

The key benchmark indices maintained positive trajectory to close in the green, taking supports majorly from large capitalised stocks, which were particularly driven the two companies.

The market had opened last Wednesday after the two days holiday.

Specifically, the market capitalisation of equities appreciated by N28 billion as market sentiments remained positive.

At the close of trading session, the NSE All-Share Index firmed up by 0.20 per cent to close at 42,368.99 index points as against the previous session’s 42,285.85.

Consequently, market capitalisation appreciated by N28 billion or 0.20 per cent to close at N13.990 trillion as against N13.962 trillion the previous day.

The number of gainers at the close of trading session stood at 29 as against 29 losers.

Banking sub sector led the market transaction volume with 509.3 million units valued at N3.7 billion in 1,604 deals.

The volume recorded in the sector was driven by transaction in the shares of Access Bank and Wema Bank Plc. Insurance sub sector activated by the shares of Guinea Insurance followed with 53.5 million units of shares valued at N33.6 million in 206 deals.

Further analysis of the day’s trading showed that Oando topped the gainers’ table with N2.47 to close at N27.94, while Dangote Cement followed with N1.94 to close at N233.94 per share.

On the flip side, Seplat Nigeria Plc led the losers with a drop of N5.04 to close at N670 per share, while Forte Oil Plc shed N5.00 to close at N211.00.

At the close of trading, in-

Five most capitalized stocks@ Aug 1, 2014 Dangote

N3.9tn

Cement Plc Nigerian

N1.3tn

Breweries Plc Nestle

N876.6bn

Nigeria Plc Guaranty

N847.6bn

Trust Bank Plc Zenith Bank

N786.7bn

Plc vestors exchanged a total of 713.6 million shares worth N6.7 billion in 5,829 deals.

Stocks retreat The Nigerian stock market degenerated from sell offs last Thursday as the bears overshadowed the bulls leading to share decline in most blue chip companies.

The key market performance measures, the NSE All Share Index and market capitalisation, dropped by 0.64 per cent as market sentiments turned red on the back of losses recorded by three of the blue chip stocks - Dangote Cement Plc and Guinness Nigerian Plc. The bulls had regained market dominance the previous day following investment positions taken by bargain hunters.

Specifically, the NSE AllShare Index depreciated by 271.51 basis points or 0.64 per cent to close at 42,097.48 as against 42,368.99 recorded the

previous day.

The market capitalisation of equities equally declined

by N90 billion or 0.64 per cent to close at N13.900 trillion from N13.990 trillion recorded the previous day.

At the close of trading, 24 stocks appreciated in price as against 34 others that depreciated in value.

Forte Oil Nigeria Plc advanced by N7.00 to close at N218.00 per share to led the gainers’ table. Similarly, Seven Up followed with a gain of N6.97 to close at N107.00, while Nigerian Breweries Plc trailed with a gain of N1.05 to close at N180.10 per share.

Reversing the previous day gains, shares of Dangote Cement Plc depreciated by N3.94 to close at N230.00 per share, Guinness Nigeria Plc followed with N2.30 to close at N195.00 per share.

UACN Plc depreciated by N1.40 to close at N61.00 per share.

Meanwhile, a turnover of 354.7 million shares worth N6.9 billion in 6,248 deals were recorded in the day’s trading.

Just as in the previous day, the banking sub-sector of the financial services sector was the most active during the day (measured by turnover volume); with 173.4 million shares worth N1.8 billion exchanged by investors in 1,656 deals.

Volume in the banking subsector was largely driven by activity in the shares of Access Bank and UBA Plc. Also, shares of FBNH Plc also boosted activities with a turnover of 42.7 million shares valued at N370.5 billion in 2,860 deals.

E Sell pressure Last Friday, the Nigerian stock market slumped further as the bears overwhelmed the bulls following profit taking by investors that began the previous day.

The key market parameters,

the NSE All Share Index and market capitalisation, fell 0.39 per cent each as Nestle Nigeria Plc and Seplat Petroluem Development Company Plc were the worst hit.

Consequently, the All-Share Index shed 163.06 basis points to close at 41,934.40 as against 42,097.46 recorded on Monday, while the market capitalisation of equities depreciated by N54 billion or 0.39 per cent as market sentiments turned red.

Meanwhile, a turnover of 276.5 million shares worth N5.9 billion in 4,997 deals were recorded in the day’s trading.

As usual, the banking subsector of the financial services sector was the most active during the day (measured by turnover volume); with 125.2 million shares worth N2.3 billion exchanged by investors in 1,265 deals.

Volume in the banking subsector was largely driven by activity in the shares of GTB Plc and Zenith Bank Plc. Also, other financial services sub sector of the financial services sector, boosted by activities in the shares of FBNH Plc, followed with a turnover of 34.2 million shares valued at N346.8 billion in 767 deals.

The number of gainers at the close of trading session was 19, while decliners closed at 36.

Forte Oil Plc led on the gainers’ table with N10.90 to close at N228.90 per share while Flour Mills Nigeria Plc followed with a gain of N3.69 each to close at N77.67. Ashaka Cement Plc added N1.92 to close at N33.00 per share.

On the other hand, Nestle Nigeria Plc led on the price losers’ table, dropping at N14.00 to close at N1,106.00 per share while Seplat followed with a loss of N10.62 to close at N659.38 per share. Mobil lost N1.10 to close at N160.00 per share.

Insurance Nigeria, others move to eradicate fake ECOWAS Brown Cards 36

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

NEW ORDER

The delay in cross-border claims payment to transporters within the ECOWAS will soon end as underwriters issue new cover in 2015

Sunday Ojeme

I

nsurers within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have resolved to put an end to the use of the region’s fake Brown Cards. This they hope to achieve by initiating a new document by January 2015.

The Brown Card is a document issued to transporters and allied professionals who conduct businesses within the region.

Disclosing the new order in Lagos, the Director-General, Nigerian Insurers’ Association, Sunday Thomas, said that the need to review the protocol in line with current realities was among the challenges confronting the ECOWAS card scheme.

He added that the Nigerian National Bureau had continued to face challenges of delay in payment of cross border claims management, adding that other challenges faced by the bureau, included issues with the police formation of some member countries to get motorists released in time.

According to him, this happens when accidents involve loss of life.

He said: “The secretariat is also designing an online claim management software that will reduce the time for claims processing.”

Earlier in the year, Nigerian insurers and their West Africa counterparts resolved to put an end to the trauma experienced by travellers in getting their claims paid promptly, a development that has grossly affected the ECOWAS Brown Card Insurance Scheme over the years.

Compensation plan As part of the new arrangement, they decided to put in place a compensation fund which they could use to pay claims under the scheme, having realised that slow payment of such claims is one of the main hindrances to the scheme.

The Brown Card Insurance Scheme is basically a third party liability cover whereby members undertake to provide compensation for accidental damage to property, bodily injury and death arising from the use of motor vehicle within the ECOWAS sub-region. The scheme was established in 1982 and signed by 16 ECOWAS member-states in Cotonou, Benin Republic, with the objectives of enhancing the free movement of road users and to foster real regional integration.

Over 70 senior insurance practitioners from the 16 countries in West Africa agreed to set up the fund during the 6th Extra-ordinary General Assembly of the Council of Bureau of the ECOWAS Brown Card Insurance Scheme in The Gambia.

Permanent Secretary-General at the secretariat of the Council of Bureau of the ECOWAS Brown Card, Bio Adamou, said that the slow payment of claims is even contrary to the spirit of the pro-

Cross boarder travellers

stressing that the service they rendered could only be meaningful if they delivered on mandate.

Hajia Wabi noted that insurance consumers do not anticipate delays in the settlement of claims when they are entering into the contract, advising insurance operators not to allow such unnecessary delays in meeting their clients’ expectations.

Commissioner for Insurance, Mr Fola Daniel

Wiggle

visions of the ECOWAS protocol that established the scheme. The protocol says that the scheme has to be based on prompt and fast settlement of claims.

“But instead of fast payment, things are slow,” Adamou lamented.

The Secretary-General of The Gambia National Bureau, Henry Jawo, stated that even though the protocol requires claim payment process to be fast, national bureaux lack the resources to be able to promptly settle claims. He added that they have to wait for the insurance company that issued the insurance cover to settle the claim first before they (the bureau) can settle it. The main cause of the delay in payment, he said, “is that the arrangement is slow.

“It was because of this reason that the Brown Card Council of Bureau urged all national bureaux to do their best to put in place the compensation fund. With the establishment of this fund, national bureau can pay claims quickly and later the insurance company that issued the cover will reimburse it,” Jawo noted.

Mass Transit Revolving Fund.

A former Minister of State for Finance, Hajia Yabawa Lawan Wabi, had said that the Federal Government was desirous of ensuring free and safe movement of people within the West African sub-region and as such had set up a N300 billion mass transit revolving fund for this purpose.

She said: “It is our hope that the transporters will take advantage of this government’s initiative and for those that will be operating across our borders, securing the ECOWAS Brown Card is of utmost necessity.”

She also challenged insurance operators to rise up to brown-card holders’ expectations whenever and wherever road accidents occur in the sub-region involving motor vehicles and drivers from other countries in the sub-region,

FG's efforts The Federal Government had made third party motor insurance using the ECOWAS Brown Card mandatory for sub-regional mass transit operators, particularly beneficiaries of its N300 billion

The secretariat is also designing an online claim management software that will reduce the time for claims processing

Obstacles According to her, fake motor insurance documents have continued to pose great danger to the populace who may be victims of road accidents in the subregion, adding that operators should double their efforts at eliminating fake insurance.

Regulator's perspective Commissioner for Insurance, Mr Fola Daniel, in his contribution, appealed to insurance operators not to allow the dream encapsulated in the brown-card project die, saying that it was an important part of insurance that must be sustained to the end.

He said that the project would help to deepen insurance penetration, awareness and premium in all the ECOWAS member-states, adding that the regulatory body on its path would do all within its powers to ensure that the objectives of the brown card are achieved in Nigeria.

Brown card The Brown-card scheme was established following the endorsement of the 1982 Protocol to enhance inter-state transports by the Head of Governments of the Economic Community of West African States.

The Protocol, as amended, aims at facilitating free movement of citizens of member states and guaranteeing fair and prompt compensation for damages suffered by victims of road accidents involving international road users.

It is modelled after the Green Card Scheme in Europe, Pink Card in Central African sub-region and Yellow Card Scheme in the Arab countries sub-region.

BUSINESS | INSURANCE 37

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

BOTCHED Attempt by insurance stakeholders to lobby the national conference fails Sunday Ojeme

W

orried by the discouraging attitude of the Federal Government towards identifying insurance as an agent of economic growth, stakeholders in the sector had taken their message to government through the on-going National Conference in Abuja.

However, events in the last few months since the conference began show that other burning issues such as derivation, state creation and other ethnocentric and religious concerns have since been given priority over the underwriters’ worries.

The stakeholders comprising

Confab: Derivation, others overwhelm underwriters’ memo the Nigerian Insurers’ Association, the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria, the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers and the Institute of Loss Adjusters of Nigeria, in a memorandum to the conference, had recommended that government should show more commitment to the policy that could positively transform the insurance sector as an agent of national economic growth.

They contended that the public apathy towards patronising insurance as well as government’s attitude had relegated the sector to the background, leading to its abysmally poor contribution to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product.

The insurers also regret-

Sovereign Trust to raise N1.1bn from rights issue

S

overeign Trust Insurance Plc has concluded plans to raise about N1.1 billion from existing shareholders through a rights issue.

The company’s Head of Corporate Communications and Brand Management Department, Segun Bankole, said in a statement that the rights issue was a necessary step towards accomplishing its five-year strategic blue-print which, amongst others, will reinforce its competitiveness in the Nigerian Market and improve its market share.

The company is placing on offer by way of rights over 2.2 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at 50 kobo per share on the basis of one (1) new ordinary share for every three (3) ordinary shares of 50 kobo each, subject to approval of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

The principal activity of the company continues to be the provision of all classes of nonlife insurance and special risk insurance and the fundamentals of its business remain solid.

Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Wale Onaolapo, also encouraged existing

shareholders in the company to see this as a vista of opportunity to take up their rights during the offer and buy into the growth objectives of the company.

He said that in addition to ensuring the actualisation of the company’s goals, the exercise will further boost the aspiration of the company to creating exceptional values for all its stakeholders. According to him, “in achieving the huge tasks that have been placed before us, we have identified that a very robust capital base is critical to the realisation of our strategic objectives, hence the need to call on shareholders to exercise their rights when it eventually opens.

He added that in today’s challenging economic environment, the company is continually poised to enhancing its capital structure and fortifying its investments portfolio for better positioning in taking advantage of the burgeoning opportunities in the Nigerian insurance industry.

Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc has been growing its business in the last five years, achieving outstanding revenue growth and delivering superior profitability.

FBN Insurance Q2 revenue up 60.3%

F

BN Insurance Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of FBN Holdings, has announced a 60.3 per cent increase in revenue for the second quarter 2014.

The company said in a statement that its insurance business group revenue increased by 60.3 per cent at N2.7 billion from N1.7 billion The statement by the Head, Media and External Relations of the company, Babatunde Lasaki, added that profit before tax rose to N0.52billion, up 62.5 per cent y-o-y from N0.32 billion in the same period of 2013.

It also revealed that FBN Insurance business contributed 57 per cent to the insurance

group’s profit with N297 million split between life business (N153.7 million) and the general business (N143 million), while the insurance business group total assets appreciated by 28.9 per cent y-t-d to N16.7 billion (December 2013: N13.0 billion) The Insurance Business Group offers insurance brokerage and composite underwriting services to customers.

The FBN Insurance Brokers, a 100 per cent owned subsidiary of the firm provides the brokerage business, the full underwriting business is provided through FBN Insurance, which is 65 per cent owned by First Bank Holdings and 35 per cent by Sanlam.

ted that the industry was not deemed worthy of representation at the conference.

Prior to the recent outcry by stakeholders, a keen observer in the industry had described the exclusion of underwriters from the conference as a grand error.

Barely two weeks after it was inaugurated, Public Relations Officer of the National Council of Registered Insurance Brokers, Mr Tope Adaramola, said that it was regrettable that the Federal Government could exclude representations from the insurance industry without considering the pivotal role it played in economic development.

He said that with the list cutting across different political, social and economic strata, giving an indication that government is poised to make the confab as representative as possible, some operators hold the views that the omission of the

risk bearers was another demonstration of the lax hands with which the Federal Government holds the risk bearers and by extension, risk management.

He said: “Remarkably, the list also consisted of names of professional bodies representing accountants, advertisers, public relations professionals, surveyors, among others.

“Whether wittingly or unwittingly, suffice it to say that there is no nation that could have a vibrant economy without giving insurance a pride of place. In advanced economy, insurance is regarded as the last hope of the common man and a device where citizen’s misery is reduced in times of disasters or risk, which is usually a fait accompli.”

He pointed out that the omission becomes even more unpardonable when one considers the fact that insurance constituent bodies, such as

the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria, the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers and the Nigerian Insurers’ Association constituted the earliest trade and professional bodies in Nigeria.

He added that the Federal Government by itself established the National Insurance Commission to regulate and grow the industry, a duty the body has been performing creditably to date.

“The thinking is that it is not too late for this error to be corrected, as it believed that the list of representatives is not cast in stone. Such inclusion by the appropriate body will signify a step to encourage the industry and motivate its professionals as done in other advanced nations where insurance industry is regarded as the hub of economic, and even by extension, political survival.”

L-R: President, Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS), Mr Albert Okumagba; Vice Chairman, NASD Plc, Chief Chike Nwanze and Managing Director/CEO, Mr Bola Ajomale, during a courtesy visit of the Council Members of CIS to NASD Plc office in Lagos

US agency to pay $84m claims in Gaza bombing

A

s lawmakers on Capitol Hill scrambled to approve increased military funding for Israel, a little-noted federal agency across town prepares to spend as much as $84 million to compensate an American company for losses sustained in the Israeli bombardment of a Gaza power plant.

The money would come from the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, which helps US companies expand business abroad in ways that, to quote OPIC’s website, “help solve critical development challenges and in doing so, (it) advances US foreign policy.”

The agency does all this in part by offering insurance policies designed to protect companies from political risk, a broad term that includes “war, civil strife, coups,” and “terrorism.”

An OPIC spokesman told The Huffington Post that a “US investor in the power plant whose

investment is covered by OPIC political risk insurance, notified OPIC that the facility in question has been damaged.”

That investor is likely to be Morganti Development LLC, a Delaware-based corporation that owns a stake in the only power plant in the Gaza Strip.

As of Wednesday, OPIC said that the company had yet to file a claim for the losses.

The Huffington Post was unable to contact Morganti Development LLC directly, while a representative for Morganti Group Inc., an affiliated company, did not respond to a request for comment.

The potential Gaza insurance claim highlights the costliness of US foreign policy. First, the United States sends more military funding to Israel than to any other country. That kind of aid makes it possible for the Israel Defense Forces to conduct its highly sophisticated - and some say overly brutal -

campaign in Gaza. Ultimately, paying for the results of that operation will also partly fall on the US government.

The Obama administration is already working to rebuild Gaza and restore the region to a pre-war state, starting with a $47 million humanitarian aid package and more likely to come. The destruction of the power plant could produce a second wave of costs to be borne by US taxpayers.

Complicating matters is the fact that Hamas continues to fire rockets into Israel and Hamas leaders have repeatedly pledged to keep up those attacks until Israel and the international community lift the blockade currently imposed on Gaza. In Washington, most of the recent funding proposals have been aimed at bolstering Israel’s “Iron Dome” missile defence shield, which has neutralised hundreds of missiles fired from Gaza in the past month.

38 business | FINANCIAL MARKET NEWS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

FMDQ Daily Quotations List

1-Aug-14

The FMDQ Daily Quotations List (DQL) comprises market and model prices/rates of foreign exchange ($/N) products, fixed income securities and instruments in the OTC market. The use of this report is subject to the FMDQ OTC PLC Terms of Use and Disclaimer Statement.

Bonds

Price

FGN Bonds Issuer

Rating/Agency

NA

NA

Description 9.25 28-SEP-2014 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)

28-Sep-07 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

9.25 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

100.00 535.00 515.27 452.80 20.00 100.00 300.00 351.30 233.90 600.00 220.15 75.00 150.00 200.00 591.57 35.00

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

4,479.99

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

4,562.80

Rating/Agency

Issuer

Agency Bonds AMCON FMBN

NA

***LCRM

Description

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

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

Maturity Date

TTM (Yrs)

28-Sep-14 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

0.16 0.73 2.04 2.74 2.99 3.08 3.83 4.91 5.23 7.49 9.62 14.33 14.81 15.30 15.98 19.96

Bid Yield (%)

Offer Yield (%)

Bid Price

Offer Price

10.60 10.68 11.16 11.11 11.08 11.09 11.17 11.35 11.37 12.10 12.20 12.16 12.16 12.16 12.21 12.17

9.66 9.93 11.08 11.05 11.02 10.97 11.07 11.28 11.29 12.04 12.15 12.12 12.12 12.11 12.16 12.13

99.74 95.43 103.35 109.15 96.95 95.55 98.53 117.10 83.09 120.75 111.10 118.99 102.19 74.80 84.60 99.82

99.89 95.93 103.50 109.30 97.10 95.85 98.83 117.40 83.39 121.05 111.40 119.29 102.49 75.10 84.90 100.12

#

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

Risk Premium (%)

Valuation Yield (%)

Indicative Price

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

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

978.35 24.56 3.30 112.22 116.70 66.49

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

0.25 0.81 1.42 2.36 2.72 2.93

1.00 2.63 2.27 2.00 1.00 1.00

11.82 13.31 13.10 13.07 12.07 12.08

97.16 90.06 105.40 100.40 98.97 96.54

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

0.01 0.21 1.08 0.68 1.21 1.21 2.72 1.76 3.42 2.39 4.18 2.59 2.59 2.97 3.04 5.31 3.10 3.72 6.32 6.42 3.90 3.93

1.56 3.29 4.44 3.23 4.46 3.48 5.59 1.00 1.79 1.80 1.00 1.00 4.78 1.00 1.00 1.00 2.74 1.00 1.00 1.94 1.44 1.95

11.80 14.00 15.13 13.92 15.20 14.22 16.66 11.97 12.91 12.87 12.21 12.07 15.85 12.08 12.08 12.40 13.83 12.16 12.70 13.66 12.62 13.13

100.02 99.88 97.43 99.92 98.97 101.67 85.86 102.91 102.89 102.48 105.67 105.36 96.44 105.79 108.62 107.95 102.27 107.38 103.38 105.55 105.53 105.45

1,301.62

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

1,268.53

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

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

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

14.00 KWARA 5-AUG-2014 14.00 NIGER 15-OCT-2014 12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015 13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015 14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016 15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016 10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017 13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017 14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017 14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018 14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018 14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018 14.00 NIGER III 12-DEC-2018 15.50 ONDO 14-FEB-2019 15.50 GOMBE 02-OCT-2019 14.50 LAGOS 22-NOV-2019 14.75 OSUN 12-DEC-2019 14.75 OSUN II 30-SEP-2020 13.50 LAGOS IV 27-NOV-2020 15.00 KOGI 31-DEC-2020 14.50 EKITI II 31-DEC-2020 15.00 NASARAWA 06-JAN-2021

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

17.00 6.00 8.50 6.08 6.27 7.37 57.00 29.92 25.00 37.25 9.00 14.96 11.13 27.00 17.28 80.00 28.37 11.40 87.00 5.00 4.78 4.79

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION Corporate Bonds

501.10 510.94

A+/Agusto; AA/GCR

LAFARGE WAPCO

11.50 LAFARGE WAPCO 7-OCT 2014

Aa/Agusto

GTB µ NGC

17.00 NGC 31-DEC-2014

Nil

10.00 UPDC 17-AUG-2015

Bbb-/Agusto A-/Agusto

*UPDC

BB+/GCR

*CHELLARAMS

*FLOURMILLS

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

NAHCO

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

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

FSDH

A/GCR

13.50 GUARANTY TRUST 18-DEC-2014

UBA

13.00 UBA 30-SEP-2017

*C & I LEASING *DANA#

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

*TOWER#

MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-2018

*TOWER#

MPR+7.00 TOWER 9-SEP-2018

UBA

14.00 UBA II 22-SEP-2018

*LA CASERA *CHELLARAMS#

MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-2019

*DANA NAHCO

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

07-Oct-11

11.50

11.80

07-Oct-14

0.18

1.00

11.66

99.90

18-Dec-09

13.50

13.17

18-Dec-14

0.38

5.21

15.97

99.02

01-Apr-10

17.00

2.00

31-Dec-14

0.42

8.71

19.45

98.95

17-Aug-10

10.00

5.29

17-Aug-15

0.56

4.88

15.58

96.31

09-Dec-10

12.00

13.62

09-Dec-15

0.87

1.00

11.67

100.72

06-Jan-11

14.00

0.60

06-Jan-16

0.95

2.63

13.29

100.91

29-Sep-11

13.00

15.00

29-Sep-16

2.16

1.00

12.06

101.69

25-Oct-13

14.25

5.53

25-Oct-16

2.23

1.34

12.41

103.45

30-Sep-10

13.00

20.00

30-Sep-17

3.16

1.00

12.10

102.28

30-Nov-12

18.00

0.73

30-Nov-17

1.98

1.88

12.93

109.74

09-Apr-11

16.00

7.20

09-Apr-18

1.94

3.48

14.52

102.82

09-Sep-11

18.00

3.27

09-Sep-18

2.11

5.20

16.26

103.33

09-Sep-11

16.00

0.90

09-Sep-18

2.11

5.06

16.12

101.84

22-Sep-11

14.00

35.00

22-Sep-18

4.14

1.35

12.56

104.51

18-Oct-13

15.75

2.70

18-Oct-18

2.21

2.29

13.36

104.81

17-Feb-12

17.00

0.45

17-Feb-19

2.29

6.11

17.18

99.77

01-Apr-14

16.00

4.50

01-Apr-19

3.42

2.16

13.28

107.25

14-Nov-13

15.25

2.05

14-Nov-20

6.29

2.76

14.45

103.19

11-Feb-18

3.53

1.00

12.14

94.56

Maturity Date

Bid Yield (%)

Offer Yield (%)

Bid Price

Offer Price

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

143.81

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

146.95

Supranational Bond AAA/S&P

10.20 IFC 11-FEB-2018

IFC

11-Feb-13

10.20

12.00

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION Rating/Agency

Issuer

12.00 11.35 Description

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

FGN Eurobonds

Prices & Yields

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

FGN

BB-/Fitch; BB-/S&P

6.75 JAN 28, 2021

07-Oct-11

6.75

500.00

28-Jan-21

4.86

4.71

110.41

111.27

5.13 JUL 12, 2018

12-Jul-13

5.13

500.00

12-Jul-18

4.10

3.88

103.70

104.48

6.38 JUL 12, 2023

12-Jul-13

6.38

500.00

12-Jul-23

5.23

5.11

108.08

108.98

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

1,500.00

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

1,610.97

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

AFREN PLC I

11.50 FEB 01, 2016

01-Feb-11

11.50

450.00

01-Feb-16

3.71

2.96

111.45

112.64

GTBANK PLC I

7.50 MAY 19, 2016

19-May-11

7.50

500.00

19-May-16

4.90

3.97

104.38

106.03

GTBANK PLC

6.00 NOV 08, 2018

08-Nov-13

6.00

400.00

08-Nov-18

6.20

5.83

99.27

100.63

7.25 JUL 25, 2017

25-Jul-12

7.25

350.00

25-Jul-17

7.03

6.41

100.59

102.30

6.88 MAY 09, 2018

09-May-13

6.88

300.00

02-May-18

8.66

8.12

94.37

96.01

10.25 APR 08, 2019

08-Apr-12

10.25

300.00

08-Apr-19

6.99

5.77

109.60

111.70

6.25 APR 22, 2019

B+/S&P

ACCESS BANK PLC

B/S&P; B/Fitch

FIDELITY BANK PLC

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

AFREN PLC

22-Apr-14

6.25

500.00

22-Apr-19

6.39

6.09

99.41

100.66

B/Fitch; B/S&P

8.75 May 21, 2019

21-May-14

8.75

200.00

21-May-19

8.77

8.52

99.91

100.87

B/S&P; B-/Fitch

DIAMOND BANK PLC FIRST BANK PLC

8.25 AUG 07, 2020

07-Aug-13

8.25

300.00

07-Aug-20

7.26

6.56

103.42

105.92

B+/S&P; B+/Fitch

AFREN PLC

6.63 DEC 09, 2020

09-Dec-13

6.63

360.00

09-Dec-20

6.00

5.10

104.41

105.89

ZENITH BANK PLC

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

3,660.00 3,767.50

**Treasury Bills DTM 13 20 27 34 41 48 55 62 69

FIXINGS Maturity 14-Aug-14 21-Aug-14 28-Aug-14 4-Sep-14 11-Sep-14 18-Sep-14 25-Sep-14 2-Oct-14 9-Oct-14

Bid Discount (%) 10.10 10.35 10.10 10.35 10.55 10.65 10.45 10.55 10.30

Offer Discount (%) 9.85 10.10 9.85 10.10 10.30 10.40 10.20 10.30 10.05

Bid Yield (%) 10.14 10.41 10.18 10.45 10.68 10.80 10.62 10.74 10.50

Money Market

NIBOR Tenor O/N 1M 3M 6M

Rate (%) 11.4167 12.8859 13.7870 14.5554

Foreign Exchange (Spot & Forwards)

Tenor

Rate (%)

OBB

11.00

Tenor

Bid ($/N)

Offer ($/N)

O/N

11.29

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

161.35 161.70 161.95 162.55 163.69 165.02 168.63

161.45 161.96 162.31 163.20 164.86 166.66 172.22

Tenor Call 1M 3M

REPO

Rate (%) 10.83 12.76 13.39

Agency Bonds AMCON FMBN

NA

***LCRM

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

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

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

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

978.35 24.56 3.30 112.22 116.70 66.49

1.00 2.63 2.27 2.00 1.00 1.00

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

14.00 KWARA 5-AUG-2014 14.00 NIGER 15-OCT-2014 12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015 13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015 14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016 15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016 10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017 13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017 14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017 14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018 14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018 14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018 14.00 NIGER III 12-DEC-2018 15.50 ONDO 14-FEB-2019 15.50 GOMBE 02-OCT-2019 14.50 LAGOS 22-NOV-2019 14.75 OSUN 12-DEC-2019 14.75 OSUN II 30-SEP-2020 13.50 LAGOS IV 27-NOV-2020 15.00 KOGI 31-DEC-2020 14.50 EKITI II 31-DEC-2020 15.00 NASARAWA 06-JAN-2021

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

The market regulator wants key enterprises quoted on the official list

Stories by Chris Ugwu

T

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE he Nigerian Stock ExTOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

change (NSE) has called

Corporate Bonds Oil and Gas companies to

A+/Agusto; WAPCO list AA/GCR their firmsLAFARGE on the NiAa/Agusto GTB gerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

NGC Nil The Chief Executive Officer Bbb-/Agusto *UPDC ofA-/Agusto the Exchange, Mr.*FLOURMILLS Oscar OnyBB+/GCR *CHELLARAMS ema, made the call at the quarA+/Agusto; A-/GCR NAHCOfeast is terly CEO Dinner. The A-/Agusto FSDH part of the Exchange’s commitA/GCR ment to developing UBA key sectors BBB-/GCR *C & I LEASING ofBBB+/DataPro†; the nation's economy BB+/GCR *DANA. A-/DataPro†; BB-/GCR Speaking at the*TOWER banquet, AAA/DataPro†; A+/GCR on the *TOWER which focused oil and A/Agusto; A/GCR gas sector, OnyemaUBA reiterated Bbb+/Agusto; BBB+/GCR *LA CASERA the commitment of the NSE BBB-/DataPro†; BB+/GCR *CHELLARAMS toBBB/GCR providing enabling environ*DANA µ

#

# #

#

A+/Agusto; A-/GCR

97.16 90.06 105.40 100.40 98.97 96.54

BUSINESS |FINANCIAL MARKET NEWS 39

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

17.00 6.00 8.50 6.08 6.27 7.37 57.00 29.92 25.00 37.25 9.00 14.96 11.13 27.00 17.28 80.00 28.37 11.40 87.00 5.00 4.78 4.79

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

0.01 0.21 1.08 0.68 1.21 1.21 2.72 1.76 3.42 2.39 4.18 2.59 2.59 2.97 3.04 5.31 3.10 3.72 6.32 6.42 3.90 3.93

5.29

17-Aug-15

0.56

1.56 3.29 4.44 3.23 4.46 3.48 5.59 1.00 1.79 1.80 1.00 1.00 4.78 1.00 1.00 1.00 2.74 1.00 1.00 1.94 1.44 1.95

11.80 14.00 15.13 13.92 15.20 14.22 16.66 11.97 12.91 12.87 12.21 12.07 15.85 12.08 12.08 12.40 13.83 12.16 12.70 13.66 12.62 13.13

4.88

15.58

NSE to oil firms: List your companies APPEAL

11.82 13.31 13.10 13.07 12.07 12.08

1,268.53

Sub-National Bonds Sanctity of Truth

0.25 0.81 1.42 2.36 2.72 2.93

1,301.62

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

A/Agusto Monday, A-/GCR August 4, 2014 A+/Agusto A/Agusto Nil A+/Agusto A+/Agusto; A+/GCR A-/Agusto A/Agusto A+/Agusto; A+/GCR A-/Agusto; A-/GCR A/Agusto; A-/GCR† A-/Agusto A/Agusto; A-/GCR A/Agusto; A-/GCR Aa-/Agusto; AA-/GCR A/Agusto; A-/GCR A/Agusto Aa-/Agusto; AA-/GCR A-/Agusto; BBB+/DataPro A/Agusto A-/GCR

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

NAHCO

ment for the development of all the sectors of the economy.

He noted that the major idea behind the CEO Dinner was to get policy makers, prospective companies, listed companies and other stakeholders together to discuss issues that are common to a particular sector and see how such can be advocated for.

The NSE boss also highlighted the reasons why prospective companies should list on The NSE and the benefits they stand LAFARGE WAPCO 7-OCT 2014 to11.50 gain.

13.50 GUARANTY TRUST 18-DEC-2014 He noted that to salvage in17.00 NGC 31-DEC-2014 vestment in the stock market 10.00 UPDC 17-AUG-2015 12.00 FLOURMILLS from further9-DEC-2015 depreciation, it 14.00 CHELLARAMS 06-JAN-2016 introduced new sets of require13.00 NAHCO 29-SEP-2016 ments for companies seeking 14.25 FSDH 25-OCT-2016 listing on the secondary seg13.00 UBA 30-SEP-2017 ment ofLEASING the Nigerian capital 18.00 C&I 30-NOV-2017 market.

MPR+7.00 DANA 9-APR-2018 MPR+7.00 TOWERsaid 9-SEP-2018 Onyema that the new MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-2018 listing requirements was part UBA II 22-SEP-2018 of14.00 its commitment towards 15.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018 championing Nigeria and AfMPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-2019 rica’s economic 16.00 DANA II 1-APR-2019 growth and 15.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

development.

He noted that the new listing requirements were also part of a number of initiatives to be introduced by the NSE designed to make the Nigerian market a gateway to the African market.

Onyema said the Exchange had been involved in efforts aimed at increasing the confidence of companies to source funds from the equities market to boost their activities. He said companies should be encour11.50 aged07-Oct-11 to carry out Initial Public 18-Dec-09 13.50 Offers and Rights Issues from 01-Apr-10 17.00 the market, adding10.00 that this 17-Aug-10 would boost activities 09-Dec-10 12.00 in the 06-Jan-11 14.00 market.

29-Sep-11 13.00 Delivering his keynote ad25-Oct-13 14.25 dress30-Sep-10 (The Role of Government 13.00 in Unlocking the Potential of 30-Nov-12 18.00 Oil and Gas in the 21st Century 09-Apr-11 16.00 09-Sep-11 the former 18.00 Group in Nigeria), 09-Sep-11 Director16.00 Managing of NNPC, 14.00 Engr.22-Sep-11 Andrew Yakubu, stated 18-Oct-13 15.75 that 17-Feb-12 Nigeria still remains Af17.00 rica’s01-Apr-14 largest producer 16.00 of oil

and gas.

Yakubu also noted that the Oil and Gas companies could play their part in the development of the sector by taking advantage of the opportunities provided by the NSE. In a bid to restore stability and liquidity in the nation’s equity market, market analyst had called on the Exchange to 501.10 lobby the Federal government 510.94 to push for mandatory listing of major government-owned 11.80 07-Oct-14 0.18 enterprises in the electric 13.17 18-Dec-14 0.38 power, energy , metallurgical 2.00 31-Dec-14 0.42

Supranational Bond

D

AAA/S&P

IFC angote Flour Mills Plc has

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE reported 4.5 per cent drop TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

in pre-tax profit during the 9-month ended June 2014.

Rating/Agency Issuer In a filing with the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), the FGN Eurobonds company’s profit slipped to BB-/Fitch; B+/S&P N6.28 billion compared with BB-/Fitch; N6.57 billion in the same peFGN BB-/S&P riod a year ago.

This indicated BB-/Fitch; aBB-/S&P 4.5 per cent decline.

The company’s TOTAL OUTSTANDINGrevenue VALUE also fell by 3.7 per cent to N28.73 bilTOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION lion, from N29.84 billion a year Corporate Eurobonds earlier.

B-/S&P; B/Fitch Flour Mills AFRENPlc PLC had I Dangote I recently divested itsGTBANK 99 perPLC cent B+/S&P; B+/Fitch GTBANK PLC stake of the total issued ordiB+/S&Pshare capital of ACCESS BANK PLC nary Dangote B/S&P; B/Fitch BANK PLC Agrosacks LimitedFIDELITY (DASL).

B/Fitch AFREN PLC In a notice to the Exchange, B+/Fitch; BB-/S&P BANK PLC the company said ZENITH the divestB/Fitch; B/S&P DIAMOND BANK PLC

10.20 IFC 11-FEB-2018

ment became necessary following a strategic review of its portfolio of businesses, aimed at aligning its core business arDescription eas with that of its core shareholder, Tiger Brand Limited.

It noted that focusing on 6.75 JAN 28, 2021 its food related businesses going forward, the company 5.13 JUL 12, 2018 has executed a share sale and 6.38 JUL 12, 2023 purchase agreement (‘’SSPA’’) with Dangote Industries Limited (‘’DIL’’) in respect of the sale of the company’s 84,150,000 ordinary shares of 01, 2016 which N1.00 each 11.50 in FEB DASL, 7.50per MAY 19, 2016 of the represents 99 cent NOV 08, 2018 share total issued6.00ordinary 7.25 JUL 25, 2017 capital of DASL. 6.88 MAY 09, 2018 The company said the ex10.25 APR 08, 2019 ecution of the SSPA followed 6.25 APR 22, 2019 the receipt of from 8.75approvals May 21, 2019

and telecoms industries when privatised.

The Chief Executive Officer, Lamberth Trust & Investment Limited, Mr. David Adonri, who made the appeal, said that the revival of the equities primary market is a necessity if new listings are to be attracted by the Exchange.

Adonri noted that modification of the listing and post-listing requirements can align the Exchange with international 1.00 11.66 99.90 best practices thus encourag5.21 15.97 99.02 ing8.71 more cross border listings.

19.45 98.95 96.31

09-Dec-15

0.87

1.00

11.67

Flour Mills profit dips 24%

100.72

13.62 0.60

06-Jan-16

0.95

2.63

13.29

100.91

15.00

29-Sep-16

2.16

1.00

12.06

101.69

5.53

F

25-Oct-16

2.23

1.34

12.41

103.45

20.00

30-Sep-17

3.16

1.00

12.10

102.28

lour Mills of Nigeria1.98Plc 30-Nov-17 24.4 per cent fall 7.20 has posted 09-Apr-18 1.94 3.27 in pre-tax 09-Sep-18 profit for the2.11 full0.90 09-Sep-18 31, 2014.

2.11 year ended March 35.00 22-Sep-18 The company in a filing4.14 with 2.70 18-Oct-18 2.21 the Nigerian Stock Exchange 0.45 17-Feb-19 2.29 (NSE) last Friday full4.50 01-Apr-19, said its3.42 year profit 14-Nov-20 dropped to N8.22 14-Nov-13 15.25 2.05 6.29 billion, compared with N10.88 143.81 billion the previous year, rep146.95 resenting a decline of 24.4 per cent.

11-Feb-13 10.20 11-Feb-18 3.53 its board and shareholders, as 12.00Gross earnings however, well as requisite regulatory 12.00 climbed to N332.14 billion from approval from the Securities & 11.35 N301.94 billion in the same peExchange Commission (SEC). riodValue last year.

Outstanding Issue Date Maturity Date Bid Yield (%) Dangote FlourCoupon said(%)the di- (N'bn)According to analysts at vestment is in furtherance of FBN Capital, although a gross its group-wide business opti- margin expansion of 872bps to 07-Oct-11 4.86 misation initiative,6.75 aimed at 500.00 21.0 per cent28-Jan-21 more than offset a ensuring that the company is 5 per cent y/y decline in sales 12-Jul-13 5.13 500.00 12-Jul-18 4.10 to efficiently structured to max- N92.0billion led to gross profit 6.38 12-Jul-23 5.23 imise12-Jul-13 shareholder value and 500.00 advancing by 63 per cent y/y ,a sustain its market leadership 1,500.00 combination of factors culminated into the pre-tax loss. position in the Nigerian food 1,610.97 The factors according to the and beverages sector.

Tiger Brands Limited’s analysts, include a burgeoning 01-Feb-11 11.50 01-Feb-16 interest expense, which3.71ex(TBS) first-half profit had 450.00 19-May-11 7.50 19-May-16 4.90 to fell by 52 per cent after South 500.00 panded by 117 per cent y/y 08-Nov-13 08-Nov-18 6.20deN5.5billion, a 71 per cent y/y Africa’s largest food6.00 company 400.00 7.25 7.03 wrote25-Jul-12 down its investment in 350.00 cline in other25-Jul-17 operating income, 09-May-13 6.88 02-May-18 8.66 Nigeria’s Dangote Flour Mills 300.00 a 25 per cent y/y reduction in 08-Apr-12 10.25 300.00 08-Apr-19 6.99 Plc less than two years after investment income and a 5 per 22-Apr-14 6.25 500.00 22-Apr-19 6.39 buying the stake. 8.75 cent y/y rise21-May-19 in opex.

21-May-14 200.00 8.77 0.73

Dangote Flour records marginal drop in Q3 profit TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

100.02 99.88 97.43 99.92 98.97 101.67 85.86 102.91 102.89 102.48 105.67 105.36 96.44 105.79 108.62 107.95 102.27 107.38 103.38 105.55 105.53 105.45

“Despite the PBT 12.93loss on the 109.74 line, com3.48 PAT grew 14.52to N132m 102.82 5.20 with a16.26 103.33 in pared loss of N1.2bn 16.12 period 101.84 the5.06comparable of 2013, 1.35 12.56 104.51 thanks to a positive result on 2.29 13.36 104.81 the comprehensive income 6.11 17.18 99.77 line, in at107.25 N690m 2.16 which came 13.28 (vs2.76 -N488m in14.45 Q4 2013). 103.19 “Sequentially, although sales were up by 27 per cent q/q, the pretax loss of -N123m was significantly lower than the PBT 12.14 94.56 of 1.00 N1.0bn that the company reported in Q3 2014,” FBN Capital noted.

The analysts said that despite Offer Yield (%) Bid Price Offer Price the sequential weakness on the PBT q/q, the PAT of N132milPrices & Yields lion was an improvement over 110.41 111.27 the4.71 post-tax loss of -N352million reported in Q3 2014, which 3.88 103.70 104.48was driven by an unusually high tax 108.08 5.11 108.98 the charge of 90 per cent during quarter.

FBN Capital said: “Compared with our estimates sales were in line (-2.8 per cent) with 2.96N94.6bn 111.45 112.64 our forecast. However, 3.97 and PAT 104.38 PBT missed by106.03 a wide 5.83 99.27 negative 100.63surmargin because 6.41 100.59 102.30 prises on the opex, associates 8.12 94.37 and interest expense96.01lines 5.77 109.60 111.70 overshadowed a better-than6.09 99.41 100.66 expected gross margin result.

8.52 99.91 100.87 1.88

B/S&P; B-/Fitch

FIRST BANK PLC

8.25 AUG 07, 2020

07-Aug-13

8.25

300.00

07-Aug-20

7.26

6.56

103.42

105.92

B+/S&P; B+/Fitch

AFREN PLC

6.63 DEC 09, 2020

09-Dec-13

6.63

360.00

09-Dec-20

6.00

5.10

104.41

105.89

FMDQ Daily Quotations List

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

3,660.00 3,767.50

1-Aug-14

The FMDQ Daily Quotations List (DQL) comprises market and model prices/rates of foreign exchange ($/N) products, fixed income securities and instruments in the OTC market. The use of this report is subject to FIXINGS Money Market Terms of Use and Disclaimer Statement.

Foreign Exchange (Spot & Forwards)

**Treasury the FMDQBills OTC PLC

DTM Maturity Bid Discount (%) 13 14-Aug-14 10.10 20 21-Aug-14 10.35 FGN Bonds 27 28-Aug-14 10.10 34 4-Sep-14 10.35 41 11-Sep-14 10.55 Issuer Description Rating/Agency 48 18-Sep-14 10.65 55 25-Sep-14 10.45 9.25 28-SEP-2014 62 2-Oct-14 10.55 4.00 23-APR-2015 69 9-Oct-14 10.30 76 16-Oct-14 10.50 13.05 16-AUG-2016 83 23-Oct-14 10.60 15.10 27-APR-2017 90 30-Oct-14 10.40 9.85 27-JUL-2017 97 6-Nov-14 10.30 9.35 31-AUG-2017 104 13-Nov-14 10.75 10.70 30-MAY-2018 111 20-Nov-14 10.30 16.00 29-JUN-2019 118 27-Nov-14 10.75 NA NA 125 4-Dec-14 10.20 7.00 23-OCT-2019 132 11-Dec-14 10.75 16.39 27-JAN-2022 160 8-Jan-15 10.10 14.20 14-MAR-2024 174 22-Jan-15 10.10 15.00 28-NOV-2028 188 5-Feb-15 10.15 12.49 22-MAY-2029 202 19-Feb-15 10.15 8.50 20-NOV-2029 216 5-Mar-15 10.15 10.00 23-JUL-2030 251 9-Apr-15 9.90 265 23-Apr-15 10.15 12.1493 18-JUL-2034 279 7-May-15 9.90 TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE *from the Amortising bonds, # the average life is is acalculated TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION Risk Premium combination of credit risk and liquidity risk premiums

Offer Discount (%) 9.85 10.10 9.85 10.10 10.30 Issue Date 10.40 10.20 28-Sep-07 10.30 23-Apr-10 10.05 10.25 16-Aug-13 10.35 27-Apr-12 10.15 27-Jul-07 10.05 31-Aug-07 10.50 30-May-08 10.05 29-Jun-12 10.50 9.95 23-Oct-09 10.50 27-Jan-12 9.85 14-Mar-14 9.85 28-Nov-08 9.90 22-May-09 9.90 20-Nov-09 9.90 23-Jul-10 9.65 9.90 18-Jul-14 9.65

Bid Yield (%) 10.14 10.41 10.18 10.45 10.68 Coupon (%) 10.80 10.62 9.25 10.74 4.00 10.50 10.73 13.05 10.86 15.10 10.67 9.85 10.59 9.35 11.09 10.70 10.63 16.00 11.14 10.57 7.00 11.18 16.39 10.57 14.20 10.61 15.00 10.71 12.49 10.75 8.50 10.80 10.00 10.62 10.96 12.1493 10.71

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

Issuer

Tenor

Rate (%)

OBB

11.00

O/N

11.29

REPO TTM (Yrs) Bid Yield (%) Tenor Rate (%) Call 0.16 1M 0.73 3M 6M 2.04

10.83 10.60 12.76 10.68 13.39 14.16 11.16

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

AMCON ModifiedFMBN Duration Buckets

***LCRM <3

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

3<5 >5

Market TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

Tenor Spot 7D Offer 14DYield 1M (%) 2M 9.66 3M 9.93 6M 1Y 11.08

2.74 11.11 11.05 2.99 11.08 11.02 3.08 11.09 10.97 :Benchmarks 3.83Bond 11.17 11.07 * :Amortising 4.91Bond 11.35 11.28 µ :Convertible 5.23 Management Corporation 11.37 11.29 AMCON: Asset of Nigeria FGN: Federal 7.49Government of Nigeria 12.10 12.04 FMBN: Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria 9.62 12.20 12.15 IFC: International Finance Corporation 14.33 12.16 12.12 LCRM: Local Contractors Receivables Management 14.81 Aviation Handling 12.16 Company 12.12 NAHCO: Nigerian 15.30 12.16 12.11 O/N: Overnight 15.98 12.21Company 12.16 UPDC: UAC Property Development WAPCO:West Africa Portland Cement Company 19.96 12.17 12.13 NOTE:

Bid ($/N) 161.35 161.70 161.95 Bid Price 162.55 163.69 99.74 165.02 95.43 168.63 176.40 103.35

Offer ($/N)

Price 161.45 161.96

162.31 Offer Price 163.20 164.86 99.89 166.66 95.93 172.22 183.38 103.50

109.15 109.30 96.95 97.10 95.55 95.85 NA :Not Applicable 98.53 98.83 # :Floating Rate Bond 117.10coupon bonds 117.40 ***: Deferred 83.09 83.39 †: Bond120.75 rating expired 121.05 111.10 111.40 118.99 119.29 102.19 102.49 NGC: Nigeria-German Company 74.80Bank for Africa 75.10 UBA: United 84.60 84.90 99.82 100.12

4,479.99 4,562.80

Description

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

FMDQ FGN BOND INDEX

Agency Bonds NA

Value

Rate (%) 11.4167 12.8859 13.7870 Maturity Date 14.5554

100.00 28-Sep-14 535.00 23-Apr-15 NITTY 515.27 16-Aug-16 Tenor Rate (%) 452.80 27-Apr-17 1M 10.3423 20.00 27-Jul-17 2M 10.6844 100.00 31-Aug-17 3M 10.7439 300.00 30-May-18 6M 10.7842 351.30 29-Jun-19 9M 10.8693 12M 10.9755 233.90 23-Oct-19 600.00 27-Jan-22 220.15 14-Mar-24 NIFEX 75.00 28-Nov-28 150.00 22-May-29 Current Price ($/N) 20-Nov-29 BID($/N) 200.00 161.4475 591.57 23-Jul-30 OFFER ($/N) 161.5475 35.00 18-Jul-34

**Exclusive of non-trading t.bills

Rating/Agency

NIBOR

Bonds

0.00 AMCON 31-OCT-2014 (SR.5 TR.1) 0.00Porfolio FMB 24-MAY-2015 Market Total Outstanding 17.25 FMB II 03-APR-2017 Value(Bn) Volume(Bn) 0.00/16.00 LCRM 09-DEC-2016 0.00/16.50 LCRM II 20-APR-2017 1,026.76 968.07 0.00/16.50 LCRM III 06-JUL-2017 1,135.87 951.30

28-Dec-11

24-May-10 Weighting by 03-Apr-12 Outstanding Vol

09-Dec-11 20-Apr-12 35.45 06-Jul-12 34.83

0.00

0.00 Weighting

by Mkt 17.25 Value

0.00/16.00 0.00/16.50 35.31 0.00/16.50 39.06

978.35 24.56

Bucket Weighting 3.30

112.22 116.700.35 66.49 0.35

745.05

811.72

29.72

25.62

1,301.62 0.30

2,907.69

2,731.09

100.00

100.00

1.00 1,268.53

31-Oct-14

24-May-15 % Exposure_ 03-Apr-17 Mod_Duration

09-Dec-16 20-Apr-17 16.62 06-Jul-17 35.63

0.25 0.81

Implied Yield 1.42

2.36 2.72 11.13 2.93 11.87

#

Risk Premium (%) 1.00

2.63 Implied 2.27 Portfolio Price

47.75

12.21

2.00 1.00 118.2991 1.00 133.6011 100.8745

100.00

11.91

118.4503

Valuation Yield (%) 11.82 13.31

INDEX 13.10

13.07 12.07 1,123.60 12.08 1,131.28 1,176.78

1,125.15

Indicative Price 97.16

90.06 YTD Return 105.40 (%)

100.40 98.97 12.3600 96.54 13.1283 17.6783

12.5151

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

KWARA NIGER KADUNA *EBONYI *BENUE *IMO LAGOS *BAYELSA EDO

14.00 KWARA 5-AUG-2014 14.00 NIGER 15-OCT-2014 12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015 13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015 14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016 15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016 10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017 13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017 14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017

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

14.00 14.00 12.50 13.00 14.00 15.50 10.00 13.75 14.00

17.00 6.00 8.50 6.08 6.27 7.37 57.00 29.92 25.00

05-Aug-14 15-Oct-14 31-Aug-15 30-Sep-15 30-Jun-16 30-Jun-16 19-Apr-17 30-Jun-17 31-Dec-17

0.01 0.21 1.08 0.68 1.21 1.21 2.72 1.76 3.42

1.56 3.29 4.44 3.23 4.46 3.48 5.59 1.00 1.79

11.80 14.00 15.13 13.92 15.20 14.22 16.66 11.97 12.91

100.02 99.88 97.43 99.92 98.97 101.67 85.86 102.91 102.89

40 business | CAPITAL MARKET

Sanctity of Truth

Daily Summary as of 01/08/2014

Monday, August 4, 2014

Daily Summary as of 01/08/2014 Printed 01/08/2014 15:49:40.040

Printed 01/08/2014 15:49:40.040

The Nigerian Stock Market Exchange as at July 25, 2014 Daily Summary (Equities)

Daily Summary (Bonds)

Activity Summary on Board DEBT

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

Federal

Bond Name 15.10% FGN APR 2017 16.00% FGN JUN 2019 16.39% FGN JAN 2022 Federal Totals

Symbol FG9B2017S2 FG9B2019S3 FG9B2022S1

DEBT Board Totals

No. of Deals 2 2 2 6

Current Price 108.65 116.60 120.20

6

Bond Activity Totals

6

Quantity Traded 28,900 28,970 17,510 75380

Value Traded 32,592,472.30 34,247,926.93 21,118,739.99 87,959,139.22

75,380

87,959,139.22

75380

87,959,139.22

Daily Summary (Equities) Activity Summary on Board EQTY AGRICULTURE Crop Production

Symbol OKOMUOIL PRESCO

OKOMU OIL PALM PLC. Daily Summary as of 01/08/2014 PRESCO PLC Printed 01/08/2014 15:49:40.040 Crop Production Totals Livestock/Animal Specialties LIVESTOCK FEEDS PLC. Livestock/Animal Specialties Totals

Symbol LIVESTOCK

No. of Deals 34 29 63 No. of Deals 50 50

Daily Summary (Equities)

AGRICULTURE Totals Activity Summary on Board EQTY

Current Price 33.22 37.00 Current Price 3.20

113

CONGLOMERATES

Diversified Industries Published by A.G. The Nigerian Stock Exchange LEVENTIS NIGERIA PLC.©

Symbol AGLEVENT TRANSCORP UACN

TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATION OF NIGERIA PLC U A C N PLC. Diversified Industries Totals

No. of Deals 4 339 48 391

CONGLOMERATES Totals

Current Price 1.47 5.51 61.00

391

CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Building Structure/Completion/Other COSTAIN (W A) PLC. Building Structure/Completion/Other Totals

Quantity Traded 1,226,056 919,114 2,145,170

Value Traded 40,843,202.29 34,563,970.96 75,407,173.25

Quantity Traded 1,804,688 1,804,688

Value Traded 5,696,881.84 5,696,881.84

3,949,858

81,104,055.09

Quantity Traded 14,337Page 30,451,367 207,732 30,673,436

Value Traded 1 20,105.50 of 13 167,611,688.85 12,492,264.36 180,124,058.71

30,673,436

180,124,058.71

Symbol COSTAIN

No. of Deals 9 9

Current Price 1.18

Quantity Traded 52,649 52,649

Value Traded 62,184.02 62,184.02

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

Symbol JBERGER ROADS

No. of Deals 14 2 16

Current Price 63.00 8.46

Quantity Traded 54,041 1,832 55,873

Value Traded 3,484,751.00 14,729.28 3,499,480.28

Real Estate Development UACN PROPERTY Daily Summary as of 01/08/2014DEVELOPMENT CO. LIMITED Real Estate Development Totals Printed 01/08/2014 15:49:40.040

Symbol UAC-PROP

No. of Deals 63 63

Current Price 17.06

Quantity Traded 1,107,199 1,107,199

Value Traded 18,649,358.61 18,649,358.61

1,215,721

22,211,022.91

Quantity Traded 10,200

Value Traded 84,762.00

CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Totals CONSUMER GOODS Beverages--Brewers/Distillers CHAMPION BREW. PLC.

88

Daily Summary (Equities) Symbol CHAMPION

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

Current Price 8.74

Page

Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © CONSUMER GOODS Beverages--Brewers/Distillers GOLDEN GUINEA BREW. PLC. GUINNESS NIG PLC INTERNATIONAL BREWERIES PLC. NIGERIAN BREW. PLC. PREMIER BREWERIES PLC Beverages--Brewers/Distillers Totals Beverages--Non-Alcoholic 7-UP BOTTLING COMP. PLC. Beverages--Non-Alcoholic Totals Food Products DANGOTE FLOUR MILLS PLC DANGOTE SUGAR REFINERY PLC FLOUR MILLS NIG. PLC. HONEYWELL FLOUR MILL PLC Daily Summary as of 01/08/2014 NATIONAL SALT CO. NIG. PLC Printed 01/08/2014 15:49:40.040 N NIG. FLOUR MILLS PLC. Food Products Totals Food Products--Diversified CADBURY NIGERIA PLC. NESTLE NIGERIA PLC. Food Products--Diversified Totals

No. of Deals 2

CONSUMER GOODS Household Durables VITAFOAM NIG PLC. Household Durables Totals

Personal/Household Products P Z CUSSONS NIGERIA PLC. UNILEVER NIGERIA PLC. Personal/Household Products Totals

FINANCIAL SERVICES

13

Symbol 7UP

No. of Deals 20 20

Current Price 107.00

Quantity Traded 27,822 27,822

Value Traded 3,125,742.88 3,125,742.88

Symbol DANGFLOUR DANGSUGAR FLOURMILL HONYFLOUR NASCON NNFM

No. of Deals 54 51 227 63 47 4 446

Current Price 7.37 9.00 77.67 4.18 10.12 19.75

Quantity Traded 271,737 303,625 3,807,422 4,292,253 909,554 30,666 9,615,257

Value Traded 2,004,416.88 2,736,569.99 285,368,953.73 18,011,308.60 9,253,388.78 577,808.82 317,952,446.80

No. of Deals 10 31 41

Current Price 74.25 1,106.00

Quantity Traded 22,335 450,155 472,490

Value Traded 1,575,510.90 498,443,825.38 500,019,336.28

Symbol VITAFOAM

No. of Deals 16 16

Current Price 4.33

Quantity Traded 224,440 224,440

Symbol PZ UNILEVER

No. of Deals 38 45 83

Current Price 39.00 49.25

Quantity Traded 224,954 1,657,269 1,882,223

Value Traded 8,432,775.05 81,578,189.62 90,010,964.67

18,925,016

2,068,054,495.99

Quantity Traded 12,880,368 3,636,680 2,812,434 3,913,040 55,047,857 16,986,280 3,236,060 6,827,614 311,651 458,029 637,349 18,488,863

Value Traded 126,605,371.12 23,094,568.00 46,112,405.22 7,845,420.00 1,614,414,472.12 51,209,053.33 7,564,138.00 52,127,783.73 2,636,712.95 229,014.50 645,071.49 462,778,146.56

4 Value of Traded13 2,395,262,157.02

CONSUMER GOODS Totals FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ACCESS BANK PLC. DIAMOND BANK PLC ECOBANK TRANSNATIONAL INCORPORATED FIDELITY BANK PLC GUARANTY TRUST BANK PLC. SKYE BANK PLC Daily Summary as of 01/08/2014 STERLING BANK PLC. Printed 01/08/2014 15:49:40.040 UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA PLC UNION BANK NIG.PLC. UNITY BANK PLC WEMA PLC. Daily Summary as BANK of 01/08/2014 ZENITH15:49:40.040 INTERNATIONAL BANK PLC Printed 01/08/2014 Activity Summary on Board EQTY

of

Value Traded 6,017.68 13,984,320.15 8,343,338.90 1,133,586,195.29 3,040.00 1,156,007,674.02

800 Symbol No. of Deals ACCESS 128 DIAMONDBNK 42 ETI 111 FIDELITYBK 66 GUARANTY 275 SKYEBANK 174 STERLNBANK 15 UBA 118 UBN 60 UNITYBNK 7 Daily Summary (Equities) WEMABANK 26 ZENITHBANK 243

Current Price 9.98 6.35 16.87 2.01 28.80 3.01 2.30 7.49 8.45 0.50 1.01 25.06

Page

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Value Traded 938,331.34 938,331.34

Current Price 0.81 1.12 0.50 0.50 2.55 0.54 0.76 0.50 0.54 0.50 0.50 0.88

Quantity Traded 7,701,018 3,937,173 4,754 1,967,959 2,022,246 2,955,000 5,981,229 540,200 2,258,238 1,650 2,000 3,452,528 30,823,995

Value Traded 6,262,183.61 4,368,289.90 2,377.00 984,792.78 5,156,757.30 1,587,830.00 4,711,361.62 270,100.00 1,219,447.64 825.00 1,000.00 3,035,651.35 27,600,616.20

Symbol NPFMCRFBK

No. of Deals 4 4

Current Price 1.00

Quantity Traded 20,500 Page 20,500

Value Traded 20,276.88 5 20,276.88 of 13

Mortgage Carriers, Brokers and Services INFINITY TRUST MORTGAGE BANK PLC Mortgage Carriers, Brokers and Services Totals

Symbol INFINITY

No. of Deals 2 2

Current Price 1.60

Quantity Traded 40,000 40,000

Value Traded 64,000.00 64,000.00

Other Financial Institutions AFRICA PRUDENTIAL REGISTRARS PLC CUSTODIAN AND ALLIED PLC

Symbol AFRIPRUD CUSTODYINS

No. of Deals 53 34

Current Price 3.16 3.96

Quantity Traded 1,257,067 988,358

Value Traded 4,008,929.99 3,896,429.37

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11,489,419.01

Symbol COURTVILLE

No. of Deals 12

Current Price 0.51

Quantity Traded 1,960,000

Value Traded 1,001,720.00

Page

7

of

Processing Systems CHAMS PLC Processing Systems Totals

Symbol CHAMS

No. of Deals 17 17

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 27,420 27,420

Value Traded 13,710.00 13,710.00

1,997,585

1,033,625.35

Quantity Traded 1,151,561 17,971 100,478 1,230,817 939,036 2,000 187,800 390,714 4,020,377

Value Traded 37,670,915.50 151,034.01 3,972,560.60 17,166,868.65 215,969,541.55 2,200.00 1,026,810.00 46,885,219.40 322,845,149.71

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Packaging/Containers AVON CROWNCAPS & CONTAINERS Packaging/Containers Totals

31 Symbol No. of Deals ASHAKACEM 83 BERGER 8 CAP 18 CCNN 76 DANGCEM 49 DNMEYER 1 Daily Summary (Equities) PORTPAINT 9 WAPCO 36 280 Symbol

Current Price 33.00 8.60 39.00 14.00 230.00 1.15 5.40 120.00

No. of Deals 13 13

Current Price 1.99

Quantity Traded 188,700 Page 188,700

No. of Deals

Current Price

Quantity Traded

CUTIX Daily Summary (Equities) Symbol Symbol AVONCROWN

No. of Deals 1 1

Current Price 1.69

294

Value Traded 1,001,720.00

8

Value Traded

Quantity Traded 561 561

Value Traded 903.21 903.21

4,209,638

323,216,547.12

No. of Deals 28 28

Current Price 0.51

Quantity Traded 799,849 799,849

Value Traded 408,247.99 408,247.99

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

Symbol OANDO

No. of Deals 518 518

Current Price 27.00

Quantity Traded 10,676,506 10,676,506

Value Traded 289,545,094.87 289,545,094.87

Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors CONOIL PLC ETERNA PLC. Daily Summary as of 01/08/2014 FORTE OIL PLC. Printed 01/08/2014 15:49:40.040 MOBIL OIL NIG PLC. MRS OIL NIGERIA PLC. Published by TOTAL The Nigerian Stock Exchange © NIGERIA PLC.

Symbol CONOIL ETERNA FO MOBIL MRS TOTAL

No. of Deals 26 27 89 26 4 28 200 Daily Summary (Equities)

Current Price 62.32 3.80 228.90 160.00 61.99 171.48

Quantity Traded 55,016 286,332 309,660 63,811 1,192 176,150Page

SERVICES Automobile/Auto Part Retailers R T BRISCOE PLC. Automobile/Auto Part Retailers Totals

Value Traded 3,326,782.82 1,095,299.85 70,651,704.75 10,205,861.47 70,208.80 9 of 13 30,223,761.30

892,161

115,573,618.99

Symbol SEPLAT

No. of Deals 25

Current Price 659.38

Quantity Traded 66,313

Value Traded 43,714,750.00

Symbol

No. of Deals 25

Current Price

Page Quantity Traded 66,313

OIL AND GAS Totals

771

10 of 13 Value Traded 43,714,750.00

12,434,829

449,241,711.85

Symbol RTBRISCOE

No. of Deals 13 13

Current Price 1.00

Quantity Traded 113,273 113,273

Value Traded 114,979.90 114,979.90

Symbol REDSTAREX

No. of Deals 14 14

Current Price 4.40

Quantity Traded 2,163,945 2,163,945

Value Traded 9,505,789.00 9,505,789.00

Symbol CILEASING

No. of Deals 24 24

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 3,228,960 3,228,960

Value Traded 1,616,743.60 1,616,743.60

Symbol TANTALIZER

No. of Deals 1 1

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 1,500 1,500

Value Traded 750.00 750.00

No. of Deals 1 1

Current Price 0.76

Quantity Traded 8,900 8,900

Value Traded 6,497.00 6,497.00

Daily Summary (Equities) Symbol IKEJAHOTEL

Symbol DAARCOMM

No. of Deals 1 1

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 1,000Page 1,000

11

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

Symbol LEARNAFRCA UPL

No. of Deals 9 32 41

Current Price 1.61 4.42

Quantity Traded 418,490 408,336 826,826

Value Traded 646,958.90 1,810,268.04 2,457,226.94

Road Transportation ASSOCIATED BUS COMPANY PLC Road Transportation Totals

Symbol ABCTRANS

No. of Deals 14 14

Current Price 0.85

Quantity Traded 420,590 420,590

Value Traded 351,179.86 351,179.86

Symbol AIRSERVICE NAHCO

No. of Deals 7 34 41

Current Price 2.21 4.95

Quantity Traded 186,300 3,632,281 3,818,581

Value Traded 411,723.00 18,154,904.52 18,566,627.52

Symbol CAVERTON

No. of Deals 12 12

Current Price 6.51

Quantity Traded 63,800 63,800

Value Traded 395,272.00 395,272.00

162

10,647,375

33,015,565.82

4,996

276,498,149

5,939,303,803.98

Transport-Related Services AIRLINE SERVICES AND LOGISTICS PLC NIGERIAN AVIATION HANDLING COMPANY PLC Transport-Related Services Totals Daily Summary as of 01/08/2014 Printed 01/08/2014 Support15:49:40.040 and Logistics

SERVICES Totals

Daily Summary (Equities)

Activity Summary on Board ASeM EQTY Board Totals CONSUMER GOODS Food Products Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © MCNICHOLS PLC Food Products Totals

Symbol MCNICHOLS

No. of Deals 1 1

CONSUMER GOODS Totals

Current Price 1.41

Quantity Traded Page 2,000 2,000

1

13

Value Traded 370,494.20 of 13 370,494.20

Symbol JAPAULOIL

CAVERTON OFFSHORE SUPPORT GRP PLC Support and Logistics Totals

Value Traded 500.00 of 13 500.00

Value Traded 12 of 13 2,960.00 2,960.00

2,000

2,960.00

ASeM Board Totals

1

2,000

2,960.00

Equity Activity Totals

4,997

276,500,149

5,939,306,763.98

Daily Summary (ETP) Exchange Traded Fund

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

13

2,093,109

67

Value Traded 18,195.35 18,195.35

SERVICES Media/Entertainment

No. of Deals 43 27 17 25 15 9 34 7 5 1 1 57 241

Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange ©

Daily Summary (Equities)

Quantity Traded 10,165 10,165

COMMUNICATIONS PLC Published byDAAR The Nigerian Stock Exchange © Media/Entertainment Totals

Symbol AIICO CONTINSURE EQUITYASUR INTENEGINS MANSARD MBENEFIT NEM NIGERINS PRESTIGE STACO STDINSURE WAPIC

Value Traded 16,104.48 4,407,284.30 6,204,244.94 841,802.29 3,540.00 16,443.00 11,489,419.01

Current Price 1.88

Hotels/Lodging IKEJA HOTEL PLC Activity Summary on Board EQTY Hotels/Lodging Totals

Value Traded

Quantity Traded 7,048 1,467,970 95,050 511,341 3,000 8,700 2,093,109

Current Price 2.26 3.00 65.01 1.65 1.21 1.80

No. of Deals 2 2

Printed 01/08/2014 15:49:40.040 Hospitality TANTALIZERS PLC Hospitality Totals

Quantity Traded

Micro-Finance Banks NPF MICROFINANCE BANK PLC BanksExchange Totals © Published byMicro-Finance The Nigerian Stock

No. of Deals 6 24 15 19 1 2 67

Symbol TRIPPLEG

Employment Solutions C & I LEASING PLC. Employment Solutions Totals Daily Summary as of 01/08/2014

Current Price

FINANCIAL SERVICES Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services AIICO INSURANCE PLC. CONTINENTAL REINSURANCE PLC EQUITY ASSURANCE PLC. INTERNATIONAL ENERGY INSURANCE COMPANY PLC MANSARD INSURANCE PLC MUTUAL BENEFITS ASSURANCE PLC. N.E.M INSURANCE CO (NIG) PLC. NIGER INSURANCE CO. PLC. PRESTIGE ASSURANCE CO. PLC. STANDARD TRUST ASSURANCE PLC STANDARD ALLIANCE INSURANCE PLC. WAPIC INSURANCE PLC Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services Totals

Symbol EVANSMED FIDSON GLAXOSMITH MAYBAKER NEIMETH PHARMDEKO

IT Services TRIPPLE GEE AND COMPANY PLC. IT Services Totals

Courier/Freight/Delivery RED STAR EXPRESS PLC Courier/Freight/Delivery Totals

No. of Deals

2,769,813,302.13

Quantity Traded 1,960,000

Exploration and Production Totals

Symbol

Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

190,351,582

Current Price

OIL AND GAS Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © Exploration and Production

Page Quantity Traded 125,236,225

Value Traded 4,150.00 189,366,821.48 46,331,311.73 68,062.50 92,959,711.47 10,230,835.49 346,866,252.03

No. of Deals 12

Exploration and Production Activity Summary on Board EQTY SEPLAT PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LTD

13

Quantity Traded 5,000 13,108,490 10,909,100 131,125 2,996,273 4,835,449 34,230,862

Symbol

Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors Totals

Current Price

Daily Summary (Equities)

ICT Computer Based Systems Computer Based Systems Totals

Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange ©

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

No. of Deals 1,265

Banking Totals

ICT Computer Based Systems Activity SummaryBUSINESS on Board SOLUTIONS EQTY COURTEVILLE PLC

Current Price 0.87 14.40 4.23 0.52 31.00 2.08

2,279

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Totals

Symbol

Published byBanking The Nigerian Stock Exchange ©

HEALTHCARE Totals

Activity Summary on Board EQTY Packaging/Containers

Quantity Traded 8,132 72,819 316,448 6,291,385 3,800 6,702,784

NESTLE

HEALTHCARE Pharmaceuticals EVANS MEDICAL PLC. FIDSON HEALTHCARE PLC GLAXO SMITHKLINE CONSUMER NIG. PLC. MAY & BAKER NIGERIA PLC. Daily Summary as of 01/08/2014 NEIMETH INTERNATIONAL PHARMACEUTICALS PLC Printed 01/08/2014 15:49:40.040 PHARMA-DEKO PLC. Pharmaceuticals Totals

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Electronic and Electrical Products CUTIX PLC. Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © Electronic and Electrical Products Totals

Current Price 0.71 194.00 26.65 180.23 0.77

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

No. of Deals 1 421 68 2 95 93 767

FINANCIAL SERVICES Totals

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials ASHAKA CEM PLC Daily Summary as of 01/08/2014 BERGER PAINTS PLC Printed 01/08/2014 15:49:40.040 CAP PLC CEMENT CO. OF NORTH.NIG. PLC DANGOTE CEMENT PLC DN MEYER PLC. PORTLAND PAINTS & PRODUCTS NIGERIA PLC LAFARGE WAPCO PLC. Daily Summary as of 01/08/2014 Summary onTotals Board EQTY Building Materials Printed Activity 01/08/2014 15:49:40.040

No. of Deals 1 35 40 115 1 194

Symbol

Symbol DEAPCAP FBNH FCMB ROYALEX STANBIC UBCAP

ICT Totals

Symbol GOLDBREW GUINNESS INTBREW NB PREMBREW

Daily Summary (Equities) CADBURY

Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange ©

2

FINANCIAL SERVICES Other Financial Institutions DEAP CAPITAL MANAGEMENT & TRUST PLC FBN HOLDINGS PLC FCMB GROUP PLC. ROYAL EXCHANGE PLC. STANBIC IBTC HOLDINGS PLC UBA CAPITAL PLC Other Financial Institutions Totals

Symbol NEWGOLD VETGRIF30

No. of Deals 1 2 3

Current Price 2,005.00 19.11

Quantity Traded 16 60 76

Value Traded 32,080.00 1,150.60 33,230.60

ETF Board Totals

3

76

33,230.60

ETP Activity Totals

3

76

33,230.60

Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange ©

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business | INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES 41

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Winning qualities of successful consultants

Y

ou can find success in consulting by developing certain qualities. They make you more effective.

After years of consulting experience, I have distilled these qualities into a top 10 list.

Professionalism Consultants should always keep in mind that client relationship should remain at a professional level. It is sometimes easy for consultants to take on a “employee attitude,” which in many environment can backfire on the consultant and actually create a negative situation for the project.

Time management Consultants should look for ways to adjust their work style to accommodate the schedule, budget and overall requirement of the project. This is particularly true when faced with pressure to maintain high quality within finite time and budget constraints.

Good sense of Judgment Consultants are required to have good judgment when confronted with a problem. We should not jump to conclusions.

Consultants should take time to consider the fact and to get feedback from their peers and management before reaching a decision.

Team player Consultants must demonstrate that they are team player and are willing to learn from team members, genuinely valuing the input and expertise of others. It is important to establish a collaborative relationship with peers.

Good communication skills The consultant should have excellent oral and written communication skills. Since we are often viewed as the subject matter expert (SME), we should be able to communicate our opinions effectively. In addition to English, it is beneficial to know the language widely used by the employees of the company.

Expert knowledge Clients typically approach an external consultant for two reasons: the client expects the consultant to have more expertise than the organization’s internal resources or because clients do not have sufficient time to solve their own problems or implement their own projects. As consultants, our level of knowledge should be broad enough to know when to ask questions and/or where to research to find solutions.

At all times, the consultant should remain current by reading journals, magazines,

more streamlined.

Ogbeide

and informative websites and through networking with fellow consultants. We should know how to apply theory into practice and also be skillful in using appropriate tools (software, professional journals, etc.) to function efficiently in the job.

Good listening skills During the consulting process, consultants will meet different people with unique characteristics. Some will be verbose, others reticent. Having excellent listening skills will encourage all to talk freely.

This leads to more information sharing which, in the end, can make the consulting process

Roles and responsibilities It is important for consultants to understand the responsibilities of their role, as well as the practices and parameters of the job. You may notice that each client has a different take on what the role of a consultant entails. Clarifying your client’s expectations and deliverables beforehand may possibly be the single most undertakes.

Remember that in a consulting role the client also has duties and responsibilities: they are bringing you in to recommend what they should implement. If they fail to implement within the agreed terms then you can’t help them further and it’s time to walk away.

Remember that each client has his or her own preconceived view of the consultant’s abilities and capabilities-views that will almost certainly differ from reality by varying degrees. Clarifying what you can and cannot do, and what you are willing to do, are paramount concerns before commencing work.

Involve other consultants Saying “l don’t know” is often a very good answer to a question. An even better answer is “l don’t know, but I know people who do know.”

Consultants do not know

everything, and should not be expected to know everything.

Saying, “ l do not know” will not damage your prestige. For example, If your client has a problem related to legal issues, try to consult with a legal consultant to help your client find a solution to the problem.

Reputation Protect your public reputation above everything else-you will not get an easy chance to repair it if it is damaged. If necessary, walk away from situations or contracts that could potentially damage your reputation.

Consulting is not simply contracting by another name; it involves duties of care and levels of accountability, responsibility and integrity that may well be greater than those of the client. If that proves to be the case and you find a client’s operations and methods are not ethical, then it is time to walk away. Be selective about the clients for whom you work.

In my early years I worked as a consultant, I once worked for a client who treated me as a staff of her company. Ogbeide, is a business consultant, columnist and MD / CEO of Business Builders Limited. He can be reacted via email excelogbeide@yahoo.com

perspective

US engaging a new Africa, says Tony Elumelu

T

he Obama administration and US private sector should recognise the new Africa they are engaging with.

Tony Elumelu, of Heirs Holdings and founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, said this in an article published in The Wall Street Journal on the heels of the US -Africa Leaders Summit holding in Washington this week.

He argued that the continent is no longer exclusively a natural-resource play, that it now holds great potential for a wide range of sectors, from manufacturing, retail and agribusiness to hospitality and financial services.

“Next week's (this week) summit”, according to the turnaround expert, “offers an opportunity to move beyond the usual conversations on aid and instead to explore new opportunities to collaborate and co-invest in initiatives that generate value on both sides of the Atlantic.”

Said he: “The three-day US -Africa Leaders Summit being convened by President Obama in Washington next week (this week) could be a defining moment for the African continent as it emerges on the world stage. The gathering could also be a defining moment for the United States as it formally recognizes the strategic importance of Africa in a multipolar world to its own future growth.

With over 45 heads of state

and the continent's leading industrialists in attendance, how can the US make the most of this historic summit?”

He explained: “First, the Obama administration and US private sector should recognize the new Africa they are engaging with. No longer exclusively a natural-resource play, the continent holds great potential for a wide range of sectors, from manufacturing, retail and agribusiness to hospitality and financial services. Next week's (this week’s) summit offers an opportunity to move beyond the usual conversations on aid and instead to explore new opportunities to collaborate and co-invest in initiatives that generate value on both sides of the Atlantic.

“America's generosity will always be welcome, but today we in Africa are most interested in your capital, ideas and innovations. US cor porations recognize this shift. General Electric is investing in railway manufacturing in Calabar in Nigeria, Wal-Mart has set up shop in South Africa through Massmart, and IBM has chosen Nairobi as its hub for an aggressive African expansion strategy. US corporations are not alone. There is a level of worldwide competition for Africa—political, commercial and cultural—that we have not seen before.

“At the same time, African

Tony Elumelu

leaders are now able to negotiate from a stronger position and articulate and deliver what is best for our continent. US Secretary of State John Kerry, far right, with employees of the General Electric Sonils compound in Luanda, Angola, in May.” He argued Africa's one billion consumers are an increasingly compelling market. The continent's consumer spending per capita already matches that of India or China and is expected to reach $1.4 trillion in 2020. “Some of Africa's most exciting and successful businesses—such as the United Bank for Africa, with operations across 19 African countries, and Dangote Industries—have produced phenomenal returns by understanding, and catering to, the African consumer.

Their respective founders

are now focusing on how to invest in communities to build the growing African middle class,” he said.

He said beyond the continent, Africans are also taking stronger leadership roles within the global business community listing the likes of Tidjane Thiam CEO ofPrudential PRU.LN -1.83% PLC, one of the UK's largest insurance businesses, and Bayo Ogunlesi's Global Infrastr ucture Partners controls leading infrastructure assets globally.

“The, and their counterparts on the continent, understand that the macroeconomic story of Africa is aligned to a long-term investment cycle focused not on extraction but on local value addition and job creation,” he said.

For him, in this light, the US -Africa Leaders Summit beginning today should be less about Washington's commitments during a time of fiscal constraint, and more about the platform that is created for partnerships between the US and African governments, and US and African companies. “ Perhaps most important, the summit will encourage relationships between American and African business leaders as partners, colleagues and friends, creating the conditions for this new Africa to bloom,” said Elumelu.

US auto sales fall short of expectations

A

uto sales in US growth slowed slightly in July despite hefty discounts, with most manufacturers on Friday reporting gains below expectations.

Among the major automakers, according to Reuters, only Ford Motor Co (F.N) and Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) beat analysts' estimates. Ford's sales were up 10 percent at 212,236, with Toyota's up 12 percent at 215,802.

Toyota was the No. 2 seller in July, edging past Ford, which had held that spot for the first half of this year and for 2013 overall. General Motors Co (GM.N) remained in top place.

With all of the major carmakers reporting by midday, industry sales were up 9 percent from the previous July, to 1,433,016. Analysts surveyed

by Reuters had expected an 11 percent increase.

Results were mixed. Honda Motor Co (7267.T) said July sales tumbled 8 percent to 135,908. It was the only one of the top car companies to cut incentives from June to July, with per-vehicle discounts averaging $1,754, according to research firm J.D. Power.

Average industry discounts last month rose slightly to just over $3,000 per vehicle, with Ford incentives averaging close to $3,919. Industry incentives were the highest since 2010, said Larry Dominique, president of research firm ALG.

42 business |INTERVIEW Uche Orji is the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA). He spoke to some select business editors on the Nigerian Sovereign Wealth and sundry issues. AYODELE AMINU was there. Excerpts

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

The best way to save

What is the SWA doing to make sure that Nigeria gets the best returns and also secure her investments?

First of all, we invested in Hedge Funds. Hedge Funds are businesses that are designed to try and protect you in a market downturn, as well as maximise returns in the market upscale.

Those Hedge Funds have done very well. The best performing Hedge Fund we have in the first-three months of the year returned 12 per cent, which is remarkable.

The worst one was down 2.8 per cent, but all-in-all, our Hedge Fund strategy is up, quite significantly. On a blended basis, we are up somewhere around seven per cent.

The markets have been in our favour. So, we expect the Hedge Funds to continue to do well. We have invested in four of them. 25 per cent of the Futures Generation Funds is with Hedge Funds.

What steps have been taken to cover the low inflation rates in the United States?

The steps we have taken at the top level is to structure the Futures Generation Funds in a way that will allow us to cover US inflation rates, plus another four per cent, that will give us roughly another five to six per cent expected returns, and don’t forget, we are programmed to earn this annually.

So, over a period of five to 10 years, the Fund will actually grow significantly.

And the way we have done this is to invest 25 per cent of the Futures with Hedge Funds, 25 per cent with private equities, which is long duration. But most private equities will return the money anywhere between three, four times the value of the money over a period of 10 years.

We have also invested in public markets, public equities. We are yet to make investments in commodities, which we will. We are also yet to invest in hard assets such as real estate.

These are the steps taken to find the asset classes to put the money in that will give us these kinds of returns.

What is the percentage allocated to each of your investment window?

We got 20 per cent in stabilisation, 40 per cent is generation and the remaining 40 per cent is infrastructure, which we have started to invest locally. This is Nigeria infrastructure.

The Infrastructure Fund will be long duration. The first investment we’ve made is the Second Niger Bridge, which is on-going, work has continued.

It is a four-year construction period.

Two years of initial operations and then we start earning returns after six years. But over 25 years, the expectation is that we will earn somewhere about 15 per cent a year return from our investment.

Another thing we have also signed up to is Eagle Hills. One of the projects we are evaluating is the Centenary City, which is a whole Economic City.

We are also evaluating other related projects in Lagos and other parts of

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PHOTO: AYOELE AMINU

Nigeria as well. Again, we anticipate earning about 10 to 15 per cent a year from those kinds of investments.

We have also made commitments to invest in agriculture and we anticipate earning over 20 per cent a year.

What law has been put in place to prevent truncating the idea of Sovereign Wealth Fund?

Well, it is helpful in answering that question to accept that various governments in the past, particularly that of President Olusegun Obasanjo, through the Excess Crude Account, attempted to do this. But with the government of President Goodluck Jonathan, a law was actually enacted to make this happen. It is now a question of: Can we consistently keep to that law? If we can, then we will most likely, succeed.

You measure the success of SWFs, not in weeks, or quarters, you measure it actually in most cases, in decades.

I can tell you this because when Norway started, I was there. At Goldman Sachs, they gave us a small slice of $50 million to manage for them. Here we are almost 20 years, and it is one of the biggest SWFs in the world.

We’ve stated today, which is great, but we must contribute consistently to this, because really, this is not about me, or any individual. It is the foundation that you put in place today - the consistency of the contribution - that will determine the success of the Nigerian SWF in 20, 30 years’ time.

Let’s not forget why we set up this Fund. Our oil resources, who knows when it will run out, but one thing is guaranteed - it will run out. We don’t know when, but it will, so we have to be prepared.

But there were resistance to the creation of this Fund?

It is not unusual that there was resistance to the creation of the SWF. Firstly, there are competing needs for the resources and it’s a question of, do you save, or do you invest. Even in other places, there are issues, even in Norway, you will hear about people saying, oh, we have saved enough, let’s start spending. The younger generation now want to spend the money. Whenever there’s a pot of resources, the debate has always been, do we invest, or do we save?

I also need people to understand that the two are not necessarily mutually exclusive. So there is perception issue as to what a SWF does. I personally believe that the bridge in the conversation is to accept that the best way to save is to invest.

Let me explain. If you keep N10 million in your bank account and it’s cash, every time somebody comes to say, this

Let’s not forget why we set up this Fund. Our oil resources, who knows when it will run out, but one thing is guaranteed - it will run out. We don’t know when, but it will, so we have to be prepared

one, you give, that one, you give, that money will never be of any use to you.

But if you take that money and buy a flat and you rent the flat out and start collecting rent, you can spend that return and keep your capital, and may be your capital will appreciate.

So, it is a matter of how you decide to approach what people have perceived as a conflict in definition. So when I hear people say, why are we saving when the roof is leaking, my answer is, it’s not so much about saving, it’s about savings through investing.

Because we asked the same question 20 or 30 years ago. In the first Gulf War, we had a lot of money, in the oil crisis in the 70s, we had a lot of money. Could you imagine, if we consistently saved a bit of that since the 70s, where we will be today? We would have enough pool of capital to take on major projects. So the resistance is the age-old perception of the difference between savings through investing and spending.

The number two reason is obviously the matter in court between the Federal Government and the states, on which I cannot comment, but the reality of the issue is, we are investing this money.

But I want you to take away one impression, which is that it is not unusual to have a debate around the issue of, do we save, or do we invest. People should understand that we are investing this money, we are not taking it, and the best way to save is to invest, that’s my personal view.

So, how would you convince Nigerians – especially the governors - who are always pushing to share all the money in the Excess Crude Account (ECA), to invest in

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is to invest, says NSIA boss More recently, we have been given money by government to invest in gas infrastructure. Gas was what we wanted to do later on, but government said gas is priority right now and they have given us $200 million to work out opportunities to invest in gas.

In motorways, there are three projects we have evaluated. The second Niger Bridge, we have already announced. We are working with Julius Berger on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and we have been in discussion for a long time on that. Government will be in a position to make a pronouncement on that very soon. There is one more project in the Northern side of the country. We are still in the early stage of discussion on that. We have set up a subsidiary vehicle, the NSIA Motorways Investment Company and some of our staff are mid-wifing it.

Once the national tolling policy is a place, we will become more active in this sector.

There are many things to do and I hope that when the primary client, the federal and state governments make these projects for PPP participation we will be there.

BIODATA Work experience: Joined Diamond Bank in the financial control department in 1993, rising to the post of financial controller in 1996; Consulting and audit staff; Associate Portfolio Manager, Goldman Sachs International, London; Vice President, Goldman Sachs; Oversaw Goldman Sachs Asset management investment in the field of technology in Asia and the United States; Vice President, JP Morgan, London; Managing Director, Union Bank of Switzerland; MD/ CEO Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority; Schools: University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria; Harvard Business School, Cambridge Massachusetts.

Degrees: B.Eng. (Chemical); MBA; Years of experience: 23years

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the SWF? It does call for a lot of enlightenment, which on the one hand we can do, but it’s not just us. It’s enlightenment across, by government and the media, who have the benefit of seeing and hearing about other countries where this has worked. It is a stakeholder’s enlightenment by everybody who understands what this is.

So, for everybody to expect that I would be the one to go about and explain to all these people, there’s already a conflict of interest issue here. You need to understand this, that this is not so much about my career. I was a managing director of an investment bank for almost 15 years before I took this job. So I’ve had a successful career, but this is about all of us. So, I will do my best to enlighten people, by making sure that people like you who shape opinion, understand it better so that you will be able to help shape peoples opinion.

Does it mean that every investment you make would yield returns?

Make no mistake about it, the markets are volatile. It’s not every investment we make that is going to work, but so far so good. We score ourselves highly on the little investments that we have made so far because we’ve been very, very careful.

But there’ll be moments when things would be a little difficult when you have significant macro-economic issues.

The Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund in 2011, or sometimes within the last five years, lost over a $100 billion, and two years later, they made $120 billion. Sometimes it can be that volatile, but people need to understand that is how the markets are.

But in the long-run, one thing is clear, it has been proven that the markets always end up expanding, because demography is growing, innovation is happening, businesses are becoming more efficient. All of these are the reasons we need to be more patient about the long-term effect of this business.

Specifically, what does the law says in terms of the Funds you manage?

The law requires us to manage three funds. The first is the Stabilisation Fund, which has to provide daily liquidity for us to give to government whenever it needs stabilisation.

That fund is not designed to earn a

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lot of money. It’s not long-term. We’ve invested in a way that it yields daily liquidity. That fund, in my opinion, will earn, somewhere roughly two per cent, or less.

Returns and duration are correlated. The longer the duration, the higher the returns. Essentially, that’s how the fund is structured. We’ve tried to push the returns higher while maintaining the requirement for daily liquidity as defined by the law. We have put 20 per cent of the fund there.

The main returns will come from the Future Generations Fund and the Infrastructure Fund. The Future Generations’ Fund, in many ways, is where we expect to see significant returns.

There, as at the end of March, we have committed 50 per cent of the Generations Funds to various assets.

And the Future Generations Fund is 40 per cent of the SWF. It is a wealth with five pool of assets in the following categories…

So, what guides your investment decisions?

There are four things that guide our

investment strategies.

Number one, is it a national priority, and that has been very important in making us focused and we have put this constraint on ourselves as an early stage-guide. We have small capital and we will want to use it wisely. Somebody came and wanted us to invest in his water park. I said Water Park is a good idea, but not a national priority.

Number two, is the regulatory and legal environment conducive for private investment? Number three, can we attract private co-investors and four, can we earn a reasonable return?

The minimum specified return for us in infrastructure is US inflation rate plus five per cent. So, we are looking to earn seven to eight per cent in dollars.

These are the four immediate guiding factors.

Which of the areas in the Nigerian economy are you focusing on?

For now we are focusing on five areas which are power, agriculture, healthcare, real estate, which is in commercial and affordable housing, highways and motorways.

Given the development in other jurisdictions, would you say Nigeria stated late?

In my place, they always say, whenever you wake up, you say good morning. We have woken up to this and our morning for this has started. Obviously, if we had started the SWF in 1976, at the same time that Abu Dhabi started theirs… which at the time, I was told, they started with less than $30 million, Abu Dhabi has built a complete business now of $675 billion. Abu Dhabi produces less oil than Nigeria.

In 1996 when Norway started, and Norway produces about the same amount of oil as Nigeria, it started with $300 million and I remember this clearly, because when I was at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, we co-managed a portion of their funds for them.

Today, the Norwegian government puts into its SWF, the equivalent of $1 billion every week. When I met with them last October, they said every week since last year and the year before, they’ve been putting $1 billion.

As we are sitting down here, they are doing that every week. And now they have built their SWF to be the World’s biggest at about $840 billion.

The point is, we can sit back and say, if we apply the same principles that Norway or UAE applied in 1976 or 1996, we could have been much bigger. But all of that is water under the bridge.

We have woken up and the most difficult challenge is to make sure that the contribution is consistent. The biggest danger is that you start and you stop. It becomes difficult to achieve what you want to achieve with this business.

Can we say that the SWF is exposed to the same kind of risks taken by banks?

Sovereign Wealth Funds are managed conservatively. They don’t borrow money the way banks do, so you can’t compare this business to banking business. For every dollar of banking equity, you know sometimes, they leverage it, may be 100 times. This business does not expose itself to that kind of risk. It is not the same thing as private equity.

They invest in equity as a diversified pool of asset, so you don’t take the same extreme level of risk as other people take. The value-added of Sovereign Wealth Fund is the consistency of contribution by the governments that started it. That is the only way you distinguish SWFs from other forms of investments

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Stanchat doubles commitment to Power Africa to $5bn S tandard Chartered has increased its pledge from $2 billion to $5 billion, after reaching its initial commitment in 12 months. By this act, according to a report from Africa Finance Company , the bank has more than doubled its commitment to 'Power Africa.'

For President Obama's launch of Power Africa in July 2013, Standard Chartered ini-

tially committed $2 billion. With its extended commitment, the Bank remains the largest private sector contributor within the Power Africa partnership.

The governments of Ghana, Tanzania, Kenya, Nigeria, Ethiopia and Liberia and a group of private-sector firms are taking part in the initiative to improve access to clean, reliable power supply, and ultimately deliver electricity to more than 20 mil-

lion new households and companies by 2018.

Peter Sands, Group Chief Executive of Standard Chartered, noted: "Over our 150 years of history in Africa, we have always strived to contribute to social and economic development, financing trade and investment across the continent.

"A lack of access to electricity is one of Africa's most critical infrastructure challenges. With

L-R: Head, Business Development, R-Wells Media Limited, Mr Michael Lestat; winner/student, Light House International School, Lagos, Ifeoluwa Awodesu; winner/ student, Landmark University, Mr Okpata Daniel; winner/student, Divine steps College Lagos, Ms Chuks Udoh and Public Relations Manager, StarTimes, Irete Anetor, during the prize presentation to winners of StarTimes Digital Migration and Me in Lagos.

US unemployment rate rises

U

S job growth slowed in July and the unemployment rate unexpectedly rose, pointing to slack in the labour market that could give the Federal Reserve room to keep interest rates low for a while.

According to the report from Reuters, Nonfarm payrolls increased 209,000 last month after surging by 298,000 in June, the Labor Department said on Friday. Economists had expected a 233,000 job gain.

Although job growth was below expectations, July marked the sixth straight month employment expanded by more than 200,000, a signal of strength last seen in 1997. In addition, data for May and June was revised to show 15,000 more jobs created than previously reported.

The one tenth of a percentage point increase in the unemployment rate to 6.2 per cent came as more people entered the labor market, an indication of confidence in job prospects.

"It's a goldilocks report for an economy that is steadily expanding but not lifting off. It will reinforce for now the Federal Reserve's commitment to a gradualist policy approach," said Mohamed El-Erian, chief economic advisor at Allianz in Newport Beach, California.

Prices for US Treasury debt rose as traders trimmed bets the Fed would push rates up in the first half of next year, with rate futures indicating only a 48 percent probability of an increase in June, down from 58 percent.

US stocks briefly gained as the prospect of continued low interest rates soothed investors after a sharp sell-off on Thursday, but were lower by midday.

The dollar was little changed against a basket of currencies.

The report showed average hourly earnings, which are being monitored as a potential signal of reduced job market slack that could prompt the Fed to raise rates, rose only one cent.

That left the annual rate of increase at 2.0 per cent, well below the levels that would make Fed officials nervous. Other measures that have shown wages rising more briskly have some economists worried the central bank could fall behind the curve.

Policymakers on last week cautioned that "significant" labor market slack remained, signaling patience on the rate front. The Fed has kept benchmark rates near zero since December 2008.

A separate report from the Commerce Department showed inflation easing in June. A price index for consumer spending, excluding food and energy, edged up 0.1 per cent after gaining 0.2 per cent in May. Through the 12 months through June, the index was up just 1.5 per cent, still below the Fed's 2 per cent target.

The same report showed income grew 0.4 percent in June.

"We are looking for stronger earnings gains as slack in the labor market dissipates," said Scott Anderson, chief economist at Bank of the West in San Francisco.

The cooling in hiring did little to change expectations for strong economic growth in the third quarter. Another report from the Institute for Supply Management showed factory activity at its highest level in more than three years in July, buttressing those expectations.

The rise in activity was driven by a surge in orders and hiring.

"It adds to the growing list of economic indicators pointing to a sustained rebound in economic growth momentum," said Millan Mulraine, deputy chief economist at TD Securities in New York.

The economy grew at a 4.0 percent annual pace in the second quarter after shrinking at a 2.1 percent rate in the first three months of year. While restocking by businesses lifted the figure, growth is seen remaining sturdy for the rest of 2014.

our extended commitment to the "Power Africa" initiative, we expect to add around 7,500 megawatts to Africa's power grid - equivalent to the electricity production capacity of Nigeria and Cote d'Ivoire."

Projects that Standard Chartered has been involved with under its Power Africa commitment include: AzuraEdo Power Project in Nigeria, a privately-owned and funded greenfield independent power plant (IPP) , which is setting an industry standard in legal and regulatory frameworks for other developing power plants to follow, progressing the Nigerian Government's power sector reform.

The Azura-Edo plant will harness that country's domestic gas resources to generate 450MW of power as the first non-captive IPP in Nigeria in more than 10 years. Standard Chartered is the Global Coordinating Mandated Lead Arranger and Structuring Bank.

The total invested capital in the power plant and gas supply would exceed one billion dollars.

Okija Power Project in Nigeria a privately-owned and funded greenfield IPP will be the second (after Azura-Edo) to seek long term debt financing on a limited recourse basis.

This plant of 495MW installed capacity will also utilise domestic natural gas to generate electricity in south-eastern Nigeria. Standard Chartered is the Mandated Lead Arranger and Structuring Bank.

Zambian Energy Corporation Standard Chartered's Private Equity Africa division invested USD57million into Copperbelt Energy Corpora-

IFC injects $70m in local cement firm

T

he International Finance Corporation (IFC), a private sector lending arm of the World Bank, will inject Sh5.9 billion ($70m) into National Cement Company Limited, a member of the Devki Group Of Companies formed in 2008.

The cash injection will enable the Athi River-based firm expand operations, increase local supply of cement and promote infrastructure development in Africa. This is part of the Sh6.4 billion deal that was agreed upon in February between IFC and the cement firm. Under the arrangement, IFC will provide $55 million in debt. In addition, IFC and the IFC African, Latin American and Caribbean Fund will inject $15 million in equity into National Cement and will have

G7 freezes new World Bank projects in Russia freeze on new World Bank The move comes amid fresh quires board approval,” said Scott Aaimed projects in Russia would be rounds of far-reaching sanctions Morris, a former deputy assistant at punishing President targeting Russia’s banking, ener- secretary at the US Treasury DePutin’s action over Ukraine, and may affect planned spending of $1.5 billion.

This measure was agreed by Deputy Finance Ministers from the G7 during a conference call last week, reports Bloomberg citing three government officials familiar with the plans.

gy and defense. The EU and US have been insisting Russia was destabilizing the situation in Ukraine, even though Moscow repeatedly denied any involvement in the conflict.

“It will be very difficult for management to contemplate proceeding with anything that re-

tion, which will flow into its regional operation, CEC Africa (CECA).

CECA has acquired a power plant and distributor within Nigeria's privatisation plans (600MW Shiroro Hydro Plant in Niger State and Abuja Electricity Distribution Company).

This will support CECA's power infrastructure expansion strategy in Nigeria and other Sub-Saharan Africa countries.

On launching Power Africa in July 2013, the White House said: "More than two-thirds of the population of subSaharan Africa is without electricity, and more than 85 percent of those living in rural areas lack access.

"These countries have set ambitious goals in electric power generation and are making the utility and energy sector reforms to pave the way for investment and growth."

Over the last two decades, academic research has shown that the under-performance of Africa's power infrastructure has restricted economic growth, thus reducing per capita GDP growth by 0.11 per cent per year for the continent as a whole, and as much as 0.2 per cent in Southern Africa," where mining and manufacturing - the big industrial users of electricity - have traditionally been more important.

In Nigeria, current power output is approximately 4,000 megawatts, but the country's demand is sitting at 10,000 megawatts. It is estimated that if Nigeria could close this infrastructure gap, it would raise economic growth by three percentage points, equating to just over $15 billion annually.

partment. More than 40 percent of votes on the bank’s board belong to G7 member states.

Representatives of the World Bank declined to comment.

The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the World Bank’s branch that lends directly to governments has

a seat on the company's board.

IFC investment will enable the firm to multiply its production five-fold to 1.7 million metric tonnes per year. National Cement plans to expand its cement factory in Nairobi, creating over 6,000 jobs. Small businesses that transport the firm's raw materials and provide general services will also benefit economically.

Devki Group Chairman Narendra Raval said by partnering with IFC, National Cement looks forward to combining its experience in Kenya's building materials sector with IFC's international expertise in infrastructure and environment management. As National Cement expands, we aim to contribute actively to improving infrastructure and housing in Kenya," he said.

nine projects in preparation with Russia worth $1.34 billion. Moreover, 10 other projects worth $668 million are already in progress.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development last week bowed to its shareholders and said it’s halting new Russian projects including agricultural deals worth around $271 million, after a majority indicated it would not support them.

SDP denies forming alliance with PDP Adeolu Adeyemo OSOGBO

O

sun state chapter of Social Democratic Party (SDP) at the weekend denied the rumour going round that it has formed an alliance with any political party to actualize its political dream in the governorship election.

The chairman of the party, Mr. Ademola Isola in a statement in Osogbo charged members of

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Monday, August 4, 2014

the public to disregard the claim he described as lies and far from the truth.

The chairman specifically cautioned the State PDP to stop spreading false information that both parties had an alliance to work together.

He said: "The current insinuation and SMS messages believed to be emanating from the PDP that SDP candidate, Mr. Olusegun Akinwusi and the PDP candidate, Sena-

The life expectancy of men at birth (in years) in Canada in 2010-2015.

Source: Un.org

tor Iyiola Omisore had a pact was a bad taste.

“SDP has said it severally that we are contesting this election to win and that our candidate is the best and can stand this election alone.

We are quite aware that some others want to hide behind the integrity of Mr. Akinwusi and use it as an opportunity to shoot up their battered images.

“It is true that SDP and PDP had a common

930,000

The number of adults and children estimated to be living with HIV in Malawi in 2007.

Source: Blatantworld.com

enemy at the poll but Akinwusi and Omisore are not having a joint mandate under a single party to vie for Osun governorship seat.

“We are silent campaigners in this election and many people thought that because we don’t have moneybags, godfathers, federal or state might and rascality. the election would be difficult for us but SDP will prove them wrong."

5.2

The average number of goals scored at Brazil 2014 World Cup. Source: Fifa.com

Modakeke monarch prays for Akinwusi’s success he Ogunsua of Moda- tion while quoting from Tedoyin keke, Oba Francis Ad- several scriptures, just at the weekend as he blessed Akinwusi prayed for the success of Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate in Osun state, Mr. Olusegun Akinwusi.

The monarch who welcomed SDP’s campaign team to his palace in Modakeke-Ife, IfeEast Local Government described Akinwusi as a worthy ambassador of the town and urged people of Osun state to support him.

“We know your positive roles towards the development of our town.

We all love you as our son and welcome you home as our worthy ambassador.

“To those who followed you from other communities, like in every other democratic world, we have members of other political parties here but we want to assure you of our peoples support both at home and abroad”, he stated.

Oba Adedoyin expressed his confidence in God to fulfill his will in the forthcoming elec-

asking the Almighty to see him through in the forthcoming race.

Earlier, the SDP governorship candidate gave reasons why he ventured into politics, saying he was only answering the call of God to serve him for just four years.

He said: “I want to say that two years ago when you hosted me here, I said I have no interest in politics. But when you look at what is going on today, only a bastard will refuse to stand up to help in the rescuing of this state.

“We are faced by a strange type of government and it will be bad if we keep quiet. I am coming on board to put things right, to help youths of this state rediscover themselves and put in place right policies for the revival of the state economy”, he said.

He thanked Ogunsua’s in council for hosting him in spite of the fact that he came to the palace unannounced.

‘We'll win without Oyinlola’ Adeolu Adeyemo OSOGBO

sun State chapter of Ocratic the Peoples' DemoParty (PDP), yes-

L-R: Managing Director, Osun Investment Company Limited (OSICOL), Alhaji Bola Oyebamiji; Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola; Regional Director, West/Central Africa, RLG Communications, Mr. Tosin Ilesanmi and Mrs Lawal Rasidat, during the official launch of Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme-Technology (OYES-TECH) at Government House Lawn, in Osogbo…at the weekend

Akere charges electorate on permanent voters cards Adeolu Adeyemo OSOGBO

O

sun State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Sunday Akere at the weekend appealed to all registered voters in the state who are yet to collect their Permanent Voters Cards to speedily do so to be able to participate fully in the governorship election.

The commissioner who expressed worry over the revelation from INEC that about 450,000 permanent voters cards are yet to be collected charged the concerned

people to collect the PVC at the INEC offices in the state without wasting time.

He said: "The collection of the permanent voters cards will end today (Monday) August 4 and I am now appealing to those who are yet to collect theirs to do so unfailingly today in order to be able to exercise their civic duties and vote on Saturday."

In an another development, the Commissioner for Women and Children Affairs, Mrs. Mofolake Adetoun Adegboyega, said women in the State would vote en

masse for Aregbesola.

She made the assurance while reacting to the list of registered voters by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Osogbo, the state capital which revealed that there are 1,407,222 eligible voters and that from the list, 661,394 are male while 745,828 are female.

According to the Commissioner, it is obvious that women carry the larger percentage of the registered voters and it is a surety that women registered in Osun, will give their

100 percent votes to Governor Rauf Aregbesola.

"The Governor has at numerous times met the needs and desire of all categories of women in the State, such as caring for aged women, empowering women artisans and youths, empowering physically challenged women, providing functional education for children, and caring for the widows."

"With all these, women in the state will gladly cast their votes for the governor in the August 9th, election", she declared.

terday affirmed that, non-appearance of the former governor of the state, prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola in the party's last Saturday campaign grand finale for its governorship Candidate, Senator Iyiola Omisore in Osogbo would not in anyway stop Omisore from becoming the governor of the state.

The Publicity Secretary of the party, Prince Bola Ajao who made the affirmation while speaking with newsmen in Osogbo after the programme, said the party was not moved by his absence.

"We are not unmindful of the fact that he had sent all his aides as advance party into the APC. So, his action or reaction has nothing to do with our victory come Saturday August 9 as PDP would definitely win overwhelmingly, insha-Allah", he averred.

The PDP spokesperson

UPN candidate promises dividends of democracy Adeolu Adeyemo OSOGBO

over norship canGParty didate of the Unity of Nigeria (UPN),

Mr. Ibrahim Adeoti at the weekend said UPN is the only party that has democratic goodies for the people.

The UPN candidate who said this in an interview with newsmen in Osogbo, said the party has not deviated from the late sage, Obafemi Awolowo's democratic and doctrinal principle and promised to alleviate poverty in the State if voted for in the election.

"We will adopt Awolowo’s approach to develop the State to the satisfaction of its founding fathers by improving the health care delivery system and place priority attention to both the elderly and children in all parts of the state.

"All the major hos-

pitals would as well be given necessary medical equipment to function efficiently well", he stated.

Adeoti argued that the blue-print and template of the party remain outstanding if compared with other political parties contending with it at the poll and revealed

that their progrmme for is people oriented.

He however assured them that his administration would create avenues for entrepreneurship to thrive if he becomes the next governor.

“Within the first year of my administration, I promise to ensure that

added: "You must have observed that Oyinlola has not been part of anything we are doing in the party for a long while. He claims to be under suspension as well as fighting in the law courts to retain the position of National Secretary".

Ajao said: "Whether he is in PDP or not, God will do what he will do. Without him or with him, the people have resolved to vote massively for their, Senator Iyiola Omisore."

He however charged the electorates especially party members to distant themselves from undemocratic acts that could retard the progress of democracy in the state.

In a separate interaction with the DirectorGeneral of the Senator Iyiola Omisore Campaign Organisation, Akogun Lere Oyewumi, he said: "Oyinlola is still part of us. By his utterances, with what he had been telling us, I think we still recognize him as our member in the party".

3,000 entrepreneurs are made in the state. Apart from this, my administration will embark on massive agricultural development while rapid developmental programmes for the transformation of the state will be introduced.

"The party will also make the State economic hub of the South West if voted in”, he declared.

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Niger bye-election: APC, dead on arrival, says PDP CAMPAIGN

Things hot up as Vatsa accuses resident electoral commissioner of partisanship Dan Atori MINNA

T

he Niger East Senatorial-Bye election slated for this month end is taking another twist as the Niger state Peoples Democratic Party PDP has described threats of boycott by the All Progressive Congress (APC) as spurious, deceitful and an attempt to cover up its lack of electoral value.

The opposition party through its Publicity

34.72

Secretary, Mr. Jonathan Vatsa had earlier alleged that INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, Dr Emmanuel Onucheyo is a card carrying member of the PDP insisting that he be transferred to pave way for free and fair election.

Niger State Deputy Chairman of PDP, Barrister Tanko Beji in a statement issued in Minna yesterday said the opposition party presently bedeviled by at least 6 factions should concentrate on its problem and not find excuses which are not only puerile but laughable.

"The allegations against the REC have no substance, it is therefore clear that the opposition is presently without

The number of fixed-telephone subscriptions per 100 inhabitants of Estonia in 2012.

Source: Itu.int

structure or supporters and are already heading towards defeat. They are looking for who to blame for their own political problems. They should leave the REC alone and brace up to looming defeat which is quite inevitable for them", they declared.

But the APC spokesman, Vatsa said the PDP is the greatest confused party in the state, adding that "APC will unmask PDP's financial recklessness in the state".

Beji while reacting to allegation of funds allegedly handed over to the REC by Niger state government said the money has nothing to do with the REC or INEC. He added that the fund is yet to be released, insisting it's the

76

The life expectancy of women at birth (in years) in Belarus in 2010-2015.

Source: Un.org

effort of the State government aimed at sensitizing electorates.

Denying that the PDP gave money to the REC, Beji said: "The State government has made its position clear on the matter of release of funds to the REC and for emphasis sake, the money is meant for the Niger State committee on voter education, sensitization for use in educating Nigerlites through the media and production of educational leaflets, banners and flyers.

"The said amount of money is for sensitization of voters in Niger ahead of the general election. It has nothing to do with Dr. Onucheyo or the INEC. It is Niger State government’s personal effort

24.3m

The total population of Ghana (rep. 0.35% of world’s population) in 2010.

Source: Blatantworld.com

aimed at educating people on how to obtain and use their permanent voters cards, understanding their rights and express their free will at the polls", he explained.

But Vatsa won’t believe all that. He said: "They (PDP) are very confused

in this State and with the emergence of APC in Niger State, the big masquerade will be unmasked.

They try to defend the REC because he is their rigging master. Since his arrival in the State, he has been supporting them (PDP) to rig elections."

2015: AD backs Jonathan Sola Adeyemo IBADAN

National Executive Tforhe Council of Alliance Democracy (AD) has raised fresh alarm over the state of insecurity across the country, especially in the North-East geopolitical zone, saying, “the Boko Haram fundamentalist insurgency calls for sober reflection and concerted action by all patriotic stakeholders in the Nigeria project.”

At a meeting, presided over by the AD national chairman, Senator Mojisoluwa Akinfenwa, the party emphasized its determination to give President Goodluck Jonathan “unflinching support” in the ongoing fight against

insurgency.

In a communiqué jointly signed by Akinfenwa and the party’s National Secretary, Mr. Rafiu Salau, copies of which were made available to journalists, the party specifically enjoined the Federal, State and all other government entities involved in managing the nation’s security to deploy the fullest technological resources of counter- terrorism in the defence of the nation.

It therefore called on the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega, to continue to “run the Commission with the fear of God” to ensure free and fair elections in the country.

Akpabio commends best airtel distributor overnor Godswill Ak- Nigerian glitterati in atGState pabio of Akwa Ibom tendance. has described the Idem came away with a

L-R: Minister, Wesley Cathedral Church, Olowogbowo Circuit, Revd. Michael Femi-Adebanjo; Archbishop of Lagos, Methodist Church Nigeria, Dr. Joseph Sunday Ajayi; Chairman, Nigeria Union of Journalist (NUJ), Lagos Chapter, Mr. Deji Elumuye and Mrs. Bimbo Oyetunde, during the Methodist Church Nigeria, Diocese of Lagos, Olowogbowo Circuit 62nd All Societies Day celebration, where Elumuye was honoured as Professional of the Day in Lagos… yesterday.

PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

Charles Onyekwere ABAKALIKI

A

civil rights group, Future Hope Initiative (FHI) has expressed dismay over Governor Martin Elechi’s broadcast, saying that the governor’s failure to condemn the abduction and attempted murder of the majority leader of Ebonyi State House of Assembly, Hon. Sam Nwali, “is a grave omission pregnant with a lot of hidden meanings”.

Governor Elechi had in a press conference condemned an advertorial published in one of the national dailies (not New Telegraph) on Tuesday 29th July, stressing that the publication “was a calculated attempt by the sponsors to ram his head against the lawmakers and his in-laws in Izzi clan over the impeachment of

Group tackles Elechi on kidnap of Ebonyi majority leader the embattled Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Chukwuma Nwazunku.

The Ebonyi Chief Executive also informed the journalists that efforts were still on to reconcile all the House members to ensure peace and stability across the state, adding that since the impeachment of the former Speaker, people have reacted differently; in some cases reaction bordered on peace and security.

But in a statement made available to newsmen, FHI described the governor’s position as an attempt to play the ostrich over the abduction and attempted as-

sassination of Mr. Nwali pointing out that a lot of people in Ebonyi believe that the sponsors of the advertisement were behind the kidnap of the majority leader.

In the statement signed by Ezekiel Nkwuda and Dr. Ikpa Agwu, Executive Director and Publicity Secretary respectively, the rights group noted that by avoiding any mention of the criminal abduction and mayhem meted on the majority leader, the governor “seems to weaken the gravity of the crime and its implications on peace and security in Ebonyi State.

Part of the statement

reads: “We listened to the press conference addressed by Ebonyi State Governor Chief Martin Elechi on the attempt by some people to use a sponsored advertorial in a national daily to dismiss the recent impeachment of the former Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Mr. Chukwuma Nwazunku, as an attempt to impeach Governor Elechi.

“The Governor succeeded in his clever use of words to show the negative intentions of the sponsors of the advertorial by stressing that ‘their intention is evil and all it is about is condemnable’.

back-to-back winning of the best Airtel Distribution Partner in Nigeria

by Idems Ultimate Ltd, an Akwa Ibom State company, as a true reflection of the Akwa Ibom spirit of industry, integrity and honesty.

Idems Ultimate, which was founded by Mr. Uyime Idem, emerged the best Airtel Distribution partner in Nigeria for 2014 and was honoured in a momentous ceremony in Eko Hotel, Lagos on Saturday with the

Land Cruiser (2014 Model) and an i35 Hyundai Sports Utility Vehicle as his rewards for being the number one Airtel partner in Nigeria. He had also won the Best Airtel Distribution Partner in Nigeria for the year 2013.

Governor Akpabio, who expressed the happiness of the Government and the good people of Akwa Ibom State over Mr. Idems success, described it as the result of hard work, diligence and good conscience.

Ajimobi lauds Indabawa Sola Adeyemo IBADAN

State Governor, Obi yo Senator Abiola Ajimohas described the just

retired police commissioner, Mr. Mohammed Indabawa, as the best commissioner of police his administration has worked with.

Represented at the send forth ceremony organized for the officer at the weekend by his Deputy, Chief Moses Adeyemo, the governor said the police officer changed completely the face of policing in the state.

While wishing Indabawa well in his future endeavours, the governor encouraged other officers to emulate the identified sterling qualities in order to better the image of the

police force.

The Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) in the State, Sam Okaula, also described his senior colleague as an excellent and good police officer, who deserved to be celebrated by all and sundry.

According to him, Indabawa gave all he had to community policing during his time. "It is symbolic that he is retiring from Ibadan having worked through the length and breadth of this country.

He made friends with junior and senior police officers without compromising discipline", he said.

Okaula remarked that it was the first time the kind of elaborate sendforth party would be organized for any retired police officer in this state.

47

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Potato farmland destroyed disease Buhari Bello

Jos

State CommisPMr.lateau sioner for Agriculture, Nanvan Steve Barko,

L-R: Director, Government and Regulatory Affairs, Etisalat Nigeria, Ibrahim Dikko; Chief Executive Officer, Thistle Praxis Consulting, Ini Onuk and Special Adviser to Cross River State Government on ICT Development, Odo Effiong, during the fourth edition of Sustainable Conversations in Lagos.

101.2

The number of mobile-cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants of Europe in 2006.

Source: Itu.int

50%

The percentage of flood disaster of world’s water-related natural disaster between 1990 and 2001.

Source: Unesco.org

78

The sex ratio of men above 60 years per 100 women in Botswana in 2012.

Source: Un.org

has said that over 1,000 hectares of potato farm have been devastated by Beait disease.

“People are now dying because of the huge investment. Some of them collected loans and others to cultivate their farms and this is not a good situation.”

Barko made this known during a stakeholders’ forum organised by the Office of Research and Development (ORD) University of Jos, on ‘Potato production on the plateau: The current challenges and prospects.”

According to him, the earlier figure he gave at

‘Nobody can stop Jonathan in 2015’ Hassan Jirgi

Damaturu

Nasarawa Assembly insists Y on dissolution of panel IMPEACHMENT Al-Makura is still marked for demolition by assemblymen Cheke Emmanuel

LAFIA

T

he Nasarawa State House of Assembly, yesterday insisted that the seven man panel set up by the state Chief Judge, Justice Suleimen Dikko to investigate the allegation of gross misconduct levelled against Governor Umaru Tanko Al-makura remains disbanded and does not have any right to function.

Chairman, House Committee on Information and

Security, Mohammed Baba Ibaku (Udege/Loko) told New Telegraph on Telephone yesterday that so long as the House was concerned, the panel of investigation remained disbanded and seized to exist . It further said that it does not have any mouth to speak.

His words: “So long as the House is concerned, the seven man panel remains disbanded and seized to exist and if the panel is going ahead to sit, then they are on their own. If they (Government) open page one of the constitution and say anything, we (House) will open page two of the constitution and do what is right and at the end of it, the court is there to interpret our actions.’’

On the allegation raised by the state Chairman

of APC, Philips Shekwo, that the house members have pocketed the sum of N7,783,455,172.00 as part of their constituencies allowances paid to them by the state government in just three months, Ibaku responded this way “the APC chairman is not competent to speak from that end because he is not a member of our party. It is only members of our party that have the right to ask us questions concerning constituency allowance.’’

“The APC are the people to tell us how much AlMakura has collected in the last three years from the federation account and how much he has spent on projects? Ibaku disclosed that the House has already petitioned Al-makura before the Economic and Financial Crimes commis-

sion, (EFCC) adding that after the impeachment, the governor would prepare to defend himself. He promised that very soon, all the money given to them by the state government would be published in dailies to enable members of the public to get to know the total amount members of the House received as constituency allowance in the past three years.

Meanwhile, security has been beefed up both at the state House of Assembly complex and Ministry for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, venue of the Panel’s sitting, as Governor Al-makura appears before the panel tomorrow to defend himself against allegation of gross misconduct and Abuse of office levelled against him by the House.

APC kicks as ex-militants threaten to return to creeks Clement James

Calabar

T

he South-South office of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has warned ex-militants to desist from threatening the peace of the country.

The ex-militants have been threatening to go back to the creek if President Goodluck Jonathan does not win the 2015 presidential poll.

Also, the APC called on security agencies to take proactive measures ahead of the elections to ensure that nobody takes the laws into his hands.

The party made this

known in Calabar, at the weekend, while reacting to an alleged threat by the President of “Leadership, Peace and Cultural Initiative,” Mr. Reuben Wilson, who was quoted by a Port Harcourt-based weekly tabloid as threatening to return to the creeks should President Jonathan fail to make it to Aso Rock after the election.

In a press release signed by the Media Officer to the National Vice-Chairman, South-South, Mr. Bassey Ita, the party accused those threatening to return to the creeks of creating tension in spite of the current security challenges in the

country.

“As a party, we reserve the right to decide where our candidates emerge from and if it does not fall within the confines of the South-South, we strongly accede to the fact of Nigeria’s unity and to vote for whoever he is that becomes our standard bearer for the presidential poll on merit rather than on ethnic prejudices,” the statement said.

It warned that ethnic politics should not be allowed to determine where people’s conviction lies.

Noting that the country needs the political will of the late President Umaru

Yar’Adua, to solve the myriads of problems confronting the South-South geo-political zone, the statement noted, however, that President Jonathan, though from the zone, ‘lacks such a political will.’

“Incidentally and of course interestingly, we wish to pointedly say that in doing a dispassionate assessment of the development index of the zone in the last five years, we may come to terms with the reality that we indeed need a leader who has the political will like Umaru Yar’Adua to fix the problem of the zone, notwithstanding his tribal or religious leanings,” the statement added.

500 hectares of devastated land was a conservative estimation,” because the situation has changed.”

The commissioner said the state started noticing the adverse effect of the disease on potato farms six years ago, but that ‘it is now threatening our lively hood in the state.’

“We surveyed the farmlands and we found farmers losing up to 100 per cent of their seeds.

That was even about five years ago, now with Beait disease, my earlier pronouncement was indeed small.”

Barko explained that the situation, which is only restricted to Bokkos Local Government is now threatening the farming industry in the state.

obe State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Yo u t h Leader and the NorthEast Coordinator of Jonathan 2015 Agenda, Alhaji Ado Adamu Bomboy, has said that President Goodluck Jonathan is concerned and is interested in the development of the North-East part of the country.

Adamu disclosed this to newsmen in Damaturu, the Yobe State capital, over the weekend.

He said the party will definitely give opportunity to the President to run again and that he would win the election, adding that on the issue of 2015, there is no going

back.

He said Jonathan is already on board by the grace of God and that the problem facing Nigeria now is part of the challenges of nationhood, but that things will get better soon.

Adamu added that; “We had lots of challenges in the past and these are not new to any democratic country; it is our hope that these challenges will form part of our history that will further strengthen the party and the country.

“We are also mindful of these challenges and the present situation around the party, what I can say is that as youths of this party and Nigeria in general, we will do our best to bring the country together.

Boko Haram: Deeper Life begins crusade in Enugu Uwakwe Abugu Enugu

inisters of the Deeper M Christian Life Ministry planning a soul-saving cru-

sade in Enugu, capital of Enugu State, said prayers during the event, would be channeled toward resolving the myriads of debilitating social malaise threatening the sovereignty of Nigeria, especially the intractable Boko Haram insurgency.

The ministers said attention would be given to the general insecurity in the country that has been making life nightmarish for the citizenry.

Also, the programme is being planned to provide opportunities for those desiring miraculous healings in their lives. The crusade is being put together under the theme: “Greater encounter with the God of Wonders.”

Addressing newsmen in Enugu on the import of the

programme slated to take place from August 15 to 17, Enugu State Overseer of the church, Pastor Godson Ezenwajiofor, along with the Awka Regional Overseer, Dr. Godwin Okeke, as well as his Nkanu Regional counterpart, Dr, Kenneth Ozoemenam, said whereas the primary focus of the crusade to be hosted by the General Superintendent of the church, Pastor W. F. Kumuyi, is to salvage individuals from sin, prayers would also be directed specifically towards the conversion of people involved in evil deeds in the country.

Ezenwajiofor said: “Much of the prayers at the crusade to be held at the church's camp ground would be channeled toward bringing peace to the nation. We need divine solution to these problems of insecurity and others and we desire that evil doers be rescued during the crusade prayers."

48 NEWS STAY HOME Student teachers suffer while lecturers slug it out with school authority Cajetan Mmuta

BENIN

M

embers of the Academic Staff Union of Colleges of Education, Ekiadolor chapter, Edo State yesterday announced a three-day warning strike over unpaid arrears and staff welfare.

The union said the members are protesting the failure by the management of the college to honour an

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Edo COEASU members embark on warning strike over pay arrears earlier agreement they entered into concerning their welfare.

The strike option was part of resolutions reached by the congress of the academic staff of the institution on July 30, 2014.

The aggrieved lecturers are demanding, among others, the immediate payment of their 2013 headship allowance to the heads of departments/ coordinators, deans/ directors of various

schools, including the non-payment of their 2010 and 2011 outstanding promotion arrears and 2012/2013 promotion arrears respectively.

Members of the COEASU complained bitterly about the huge debts owed the trust fund established by the members, a development that has complicated the plight of the members, making them to receive half salaries each time salaries are paid.

According to a communique jointly signed by the Chairman of COEASU, Mr. Fred Omonuwa, and the Secretary, Dr. Victor Okosun, the body lamented that all the peace meetings held between the management and the academic staff to avert a strike action has proved abortive.

They said if nothing urgent is done at the expiration of the threeday warning strike, the members would embark

on a total strike to press home their demand.

Similarly, members of the Coalition of Unions of State-Owned Tertiary Institutions, Edo State, have appealed to the state government to pay the 16 months’ salary arrears owed staff of state-owned institutions.

The accumulated salary arrears are the differentials in the implementation of the salary structure of CONPCASS and

CONTEDISS from July 2009 to October 2010.

Omonuwa said: “The College of Education, Ekiadolor, has been facing series of problems, ranging from non-payment of many agreements entered into with the school management and lecturers’ welfare which, of course, include payment of headship, defrayment promotion arrears since 2010, which has been agreed would be defrayed one after the other.

Adamawa guber race: ‘No need for doctrine of necessity’ Ibrahim Abdul

Yola

F

ormer Political Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan and a gubernatorial aspirant in Adamawa State, Ahmad Ali Gulak, and a former minister in the President Goodluck Jonathan administration, Dr. Aliyu Idi Hong, among other contenders for the coveted position, have allayed fears over the possibility of invoking the doctrine of necessity over the conduct of the governorship election in the state.

According to them, the constitution is explicit on the issue of succession; especially when a vacuum is created in the office of the governor and his deputy.

Fielding questions from newsmen in Yola, Gulak said in the case of Adamawa State, where the governor was impeached and his deputy resigned, the constitution has clearly indicated that the Speaker of the House of Assembly should assume office in acting capacity and election should be conducted within 90 days.

Gulak, who was also

a former speaker in the House of Assembly, was emphatic that INEC will conduct election to fill the vacuum created by the ouster of Governor Murtala Nyako, and the resignation of his deputy to avert a looming constitutional crisis.

He said the issue of doctrine of necessity can only come when the constitution is silent where a vacuum exists for the offices of the governor and his deputy.

“From my understanding of the constitution, a doctrine of necessity cannot be invoked in a situation where the constitution is silent. But in our case, the constitution is very clear.”

Also speaking, former Minister of State, Dr. Aliyu Idi Hong, said in case election did not hold within the 90 days stipulated by the constitution, it could lead to another constitutional crisis.

Hong, therefore, called on the Assembly to, as matter of urgency; transmit the impeachment letter and proceedings to the electoral body, INEC, to avoid impunity.

Emir donates to bomb blasts' victims Hassan Jirgi

DAMATURU

of Fika and Chairman Yobe State Council Eofmir Chiefs, Dr. Muham-

madu Ibn Abali Muhammadu Idrissa, has donated free drugs to the victims of bomb blasts in Potiskum, Yobe State.

The emir, who disclosed this when he paid a visit to the patients at the General Hospital, Potiskum, shortly after the blasts that claimed eleven lives and in which 35 others were injured.

According to the emir; “It is a very sad development, we are in the state where we have many security

challenges. I condemned this attack, it is very barbaric and saddening, we pray God to bring peace, unity and good health for those injured, we also pray that Allah will expose them,” the emir said.

He also described the attack as barbaric and wickedness of the highest degree on humanity, saying it is unfortunate and uncalled for. He urged Nigerians to remember that human life is sacred and should be treated as such.

Idrissa added: “All of us are created by God; killing one another will not bring any solution to the problem on ground.

We need to come together and dialogue.”

L-R: Communications Consultant, Mr. Derwin Johnson; Director General, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mr. Mike Omeri and Senior Information Specialist, US Embassy, Abuja, Mr. Sani Mohammed, during a Media Training workshop for State Directors of National Orientation Agency (NOA) in Abuja

Resident petitions JTF over soldier’s unethical conduct

Abuja Disco assures customers of transparent billing

Buhari Bello

Lateef Ibrahim

Jos

resident, Alhaji AhasJos Jibrin Mazadu Tahir, petitioned the special

Joint Task Force (JTF) in Jos, against a military officer, Lt.-Col. D. C. Bako, serving in Damaturu, over alleged ‘unethical conduct,’ just as the complainant mulls court action.

The complaint in a petition signed by his counsel, Ahmad S. Garba, made available to newsmen in Jos, said; “That Lt.-Col. D. C. Bako, presently the Sector 4 Commander of the JTF at Damaturu in Yobe State, came to Jos, and forcefully entered the house of our client, at Race Course (Filing Sukuwa), on the 20th of July, 2014, without any lawful reason and forced his wife and children out of the house.”

It further averred that the wife and children of Alhaji Jibrin were psychologically traumatised and had remained in fears as a result of the house invasion.

The petition said the soldier went along with some men of the Special Task Force (STF), serving in Plateau State, alleging that they had molested and injured the house watchman, Malam Usaini Yakubu.

“That our client has never transacted any business with the officer and has never met him in person,” the petition reads in part.

It further alleged: “That the officer threatened to kill our client any time he sees him in the house.”

The complainant prayed the Yobe JTF commander, under whose command the alleged officer is serving and the Nigeria Defence Headquarters (DHQ), to do justice by conducting full scale investigation into the matter.

He further prayed the JTF to: “Take any other measure within the confines of the law to protect our client and compel the officer to pay damages on the house in issue discovered in the cause of the investigation…”

Abuja

Electricity DistribuAthebuja tion Company (AEDC) at weekend assured its nu-

merous customers of stability in electricity distribution in its zone and a transparent and fair billing system.

The company said with the successful handover of power metering facilities to it by the government, it is out to satisfy the yearnings of its customers and be fair to them in its billing system.

AEDC Executive Director, Commercial Services, Mr. Ernest Mupwaya, gave the assurance at the weekend duringtheformalhandoverof Electricity Trading Metering Points to various investors and other participants in the nation's power sector by the Minister of Power, Prof.

Chinedu Nebo in Abuja.

Mupwaya said the handover of the meters provides his company with the facilities to effectively monitor access to energy flow statistics from the generating companies.

This, he said, is significant

in improving the services that the company will render to its customers, through better planning as well as equitable allocation of energy to its clients.

In addition, he said, analysis and identification of portions of the network that were contributing to high losses would be enhanced, thereby resulting in efficient and effective loss reduction interventions that are necessary for stabilising electricity tariffs in the long run.

The executive director also assured the government, especially the minister and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), of his company’s commitment to engendering a transparent electricity payment system to enhance consumer confidence in the power reform programme.

Mupwaya used the opportunity to commend the Nigerian government's transparency and sincerity of purpose, in driving the Power Sector Reform and Transformation Programme.

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

AFRICA | NEWS

Libya evacuations gather pace as Tripoli clashes kill 22

T

he exodus of foreigners from Libya gathered pace yesterday as the government said at least 22 people were killed in clashes in Tripoli and warned of a "worsening humanitarian situation". Thousands of Egyptians seeking to flee the strife-torn North African country were being airlifted home after being allowed into neighbouring Tunisia, many after a wait of several days at a border crossing.

And a British navy ship was evacuating Britons from Tripoli, the defence ministry in London said.

The latest flare-up, which broke out on Saturday, takes the death toll in Tripoli to 124 since July 13, with more than 500 wounded. A medical source said the weekend casualty figures of 22 dead and 72 wounded did not cover hospitals outside Tripoli, in particular in the town of Misrata which has sent fighters to the capital.

The transitional government said "several hundred" families had been displaced and there was a "worsening humanitarian situation" in Tripoli, where petrol, bottled gas and food supplies are scarce. Yesterday, the city centre was livelier than in past days despite the renewed fighting around the airport to the south. However, most shops and banks were shut and the sky was filled with black smoke from a fuel depot ravaged by a fire resulting from the clashes of the past two weeks.

Tripoli airport has been closed and several aircraft destroyed or damaged in the clashes between rival militias which fought together in 2011 to help overthrow dictator Moamer Kadhafi. The unrest is seen as a struggle for influence, both between regions and political factions, as Libya plunges into chaos, with authorities failing to control the dozens of militias in the absence of a structured regular army and police force.

49

OPINION

Late to the party, Obama seeks bigger U.S. Africa role

A

sk Major-General Wayne W. Grigsby Jr., the top U.S. military officer in Africa, how he thinks U.S. and Europeanbacked African troops are faring in their war on Islamist militants in Somalia, and his answer comes back smartly: "Pretty darn good!" But when "son of Africa" U.S. President Barack Obama hosts 50 African leaders in Washington this week, the admiration may be less than mutual. Many Africans feel America is lagging behind China and others in its engagement with their continent.

The Aug. 4-6 U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit, billed by U.S. officials as a first-ofits-kind event, looks like a belated imitation of Africa gatherings hosted in recent years by China, India, Japan and the continent's former colonial master Europe. The world's richest nation has been slow coming to the party of an economically rising Africa, long dismissed as a hopeless morass of poverty and war, but now offering investors a huge market for everything from banking and retail to mobile phones. "The United States has fallen perhaps a little bit behind in the race to win African hearts and minds. So I think this is an attempt to compete with the likes of China and the European Union," said Christopher Wood, an analyst in economic diplomacy at the South African Institute of International Affairs.

The top U.S. diplomat for Africa, Linda ThomasGreenfield bridles at suggestions that the Obama administration is playing catch-up. "Absolutely not," she said. "Our relationship with Africa is a very strong historic relationship. We see this as an opportunity to reaffirm that to African leaders," she said in a presummit conference call.

CHINA RACES AHEAD China overtook the United States as Africa's biggest trade partner in 2009. Its leaders have criss-crossed the continent, proffering multi-billion dollar loans, aid and investment deals.

From Malabo to Maputo, Africa is studded with signs

Some of the young African leaders at the meeting with President Barrack Obama in Washington, United States

of Beijing's diplomatic and commercial outreach: Chinese-built roads, bridges, airports, stadiums, ministries and presidencies.

Since 2009, Obama, despite his African blood through a Kenyan father, has been a far less frequent visitor. His first substantial trip to the continent was only made last year.

Washington's many embassies in Africa imposing concrete fortresses built to protect against angry mobs or terrorist attacks project a cautious engagement from an Obama administration highly sensitive to a home public which has no appetite for overseas interventions after Iraq and Afghanistan.

Even U.S. Army Major-General Grigsby, surrounded by F-18s, C130 transports, helicopters and Humvees at his Camp Lemonnier toehold in the turbulent Horn of Africa, acknowledges the U.S. military's "small footprint" on a continent where flaring Islamist insurgencies are stirring international concern. Security, governance and democracy will be on the agenda when Obama engages the leaders in an "interactive" discussion on Wednesday, following business talks with U.S. CEOs Tuesday and discussions about health and wildlife trafficking Monday.

Presidents Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and Omar Hassan al-Bashir of Sudan are among a few left off the invitation list because they are not "in good standing" with Washington for failing to respect human rights and democracy.

Presidents Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia and Ernest Bai Koroma of Sierra

Leone have dropped out because of the deadly Ebola epidemic ravaging their nations. Thomas-Greenfield said ways of fighting the outbreak would be discussed at the summit.

TRADE IN FOCUS Some concrete initiatives are expected from the meeting. The United States will announce nearly $1 billion in business deals for the region, increase funding for peacekeeping in six African countries and boost food and power programmes. Uppermost too will be Obama's strong recommendation for Congress to renew the African Growth Opportunity Act, or AGOA, a 14-year-old trade programme giving most African countries duty-free access to U.S. markets that expires on Sept. 30 next year.

Total U.S. two-way trade in Africa has actually fallen off in recent years, to about $60 billion in 2013, far eclipsed by the European Union with over $200 billion and China, whose $170 billion is a huge increase from $10 billion in 2000, according to a recent Africa in Focus post by the Brookings Institution.

While African leaders are keen on the AGOA renewal, Robert Besseling, Principal Africa Analyst, Economics and Country Risk, at IHS consultancy, said some are seeking better terms of trade.

"Some countries are sceptical about AGOA because it is oriented towards the U.S. companies and can be politically manipulated," Besseling said. For example Swaziland was cut from AGOA last month due to U.S. concerns over de-

mocracy there.

Obama officials are hoping to leverage U.S. corporations like General Electric Co, Caterpillar Inc and Procter & Gamble Co into more business opportunities in Africa amid intense competition from across the globe. "In the boards of directors of big global U.S. companies, more and more people are raising their hands at meetings and saying 'why aren't we in Africa?'," said Toby Moffett, a former Congressman from Connecticut and a senior adviser at law firm Mayer Brown LLP, who has represented African governments.

Orji Uzor Kalu, a Nigerian businessman with oil, tourism and other interests in West Africa, echoed such complaints. "I'm not seeing the effort the U.S. made in Asia, they're not making the same effort in Africa," Kalu said from his Washington D.C. home.

BUILDING SECURITY, DEMOCRACY Pointing to an Africa map showing hotspots like Somalia, Major-General Grigsby toes the line of a cautious security policy that involves keeping U.S. "boots on the ground" to a minimum while financing African peacekeeping and local training. "My responsibility from a regional approach is to assist my East African teammates to be able to neutralize violent extremists and conduct their crisis response," Grigsby told Reuters at the Africa Command's Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, where some 3,500 U.S. service personnel are based.

Obama said last year during his Africa trip his country put "muscle behind Afri-

can efforts" to fight Islamist militants or brutal warlords in the Sahel, Central Africa and Somalia.

Although French forces did the heavy lifting on the ground in driving back an offensive by al Qaeda-allied Islamists in Mali in 2012, Washington has stepped up training African armies and deploying surveillance drones - to Niamey and N'Djamena besides those already operating over the Horn of Africa. Some of the latest U.S. initiatives have clearly played to American domestic opinion and social media campaigns, such as sending a specialist team to help Nigeria search for the more than 200 schoolgirls kidnapped by Islamist group Boko Haram.

While U.S. officials say Washington remains influential, it may no longer wield the diplomatic clout it once had in Africa when it was squaring up to the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Many noted how Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, an ally in turbulent central Africa, went ahead in February with signing into law tougher penalties against homosexuality, ignoring an appeal from Obama who warned it would "complicate" relations. This kind of diplomatic slap in the face "shows they have to reboot the relationship" with Africa, IHS's Besseling said. Friday, Uganda's constitutional court struck down the law, citing procedural irregularities.

African leaders have made clear they do not take kindly to moral lectures from Western leaders. By contrast, Beijing's pledges of aid and investment come with "no-strings attached".

But Moffett believes the U.S. insistence on democracy and good governance, which U.S. officials say will be re-affirmed at the summit, reflects a real transformation underway in Africa.

"President (Obama) can actually say, with a straight face, that the trajectory across Africa ... (is) towards more democracy, more adherence to rule of law, more transparency, more judicial independence, less corruption.

"The Chinese guys don't give that speech," Moffett said. â&#x20AC;˘ Culled from Reuters

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WORLD | NEWS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Strong quake kills at least 175 in southern China

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strong earthquake in southern China's Yunnan province toppled thousands of homes yesterday, killing at least 175 people and injuring more than 1,400. About 12,000 homes collapsed in Ludian, a densely populated county located around 366 kilometers (277 miles) northeast of Yunnan's capital, Kunming, China's official Xinhua News Agency reported.

The magnitude-6.1 quake struck at 4:30 p.m. at a depth of 10 kilometers (6 miles), according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Its epicenter was in Longtoushan township, 23 kilometers (14 miles) southwest of the city of Zhaotong, the Ludian county seat.

Ma Liya, a resident of Zhaotong, told Xinhua that the streets there were like a "battlefield after bombardment." She added that her neighbor's house, a new twostory building, had toppled, and said the quake was far worse than one that struck the area in 2012 and killed 81 people.

"The aftermath is much, much worse than what happened after the quake two years ago," Ma said. "I have never felt such strong tremors before. What I can

see are all ruins." Xinhua said at least 175 people were killed in the quake, with 181 missing and 1,402 injured.

At least 122 of the dead were in Ludian, with another 1,300 people injured there, Xinhua reported. It said another 49 people died and 102 were injured in Qiaojia county. News reports said rescuers were still trying to reach victims in more remote towns Sunday night.

Many of the homes that collapsed in Ludian, which has a population of about 429,000, were old and made of brick, Xinhua said, adding that electricity and telecommunications were cut off in the county.

The mountainous region where the quake occurred is largely agricultural, with farming and mining the top industries, and is prone to earthquakes. Relief efforts were un-

derway, with more than 2,500 troops dispatched to the disaster region, Xinhua said. The Red Cross Society of China allocated quilts, jackets and tents for those made homeless by the quake, while Red Cross branches in Hong Kong, Macau and neighboring Sichuan province also sent relief supplies. Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said the quake was the strongest to hit Yunnan in 14 years.

Islamic State grabs Iraqi dam, oilfield in victory over Kurds

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slamic State fighters seized control of Iraq's biggest dam, an oilfield and three more towns yesterday after inflicting their first major defeat on Kurdish forces since sweeping through the region in June. Capture of the Mosul Dam after an offensive of barely 24 hours could give the Sunni militants the ability to flood major Iraqi cities or withhold water from farms, sharply raising the stakes in their bid to topple Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Shi'iteled government.

"The terrorist gangs of the Islamic State have taken control of Mosul Dam after the withdrawal of Kurdish forces without a fight," said Iraqi state television. The swift defeat of Kurdish "peshmerga" troops dealt a sharp blow to one of the only fighting forces in Iraq that until now had stood firm against the Sunni Islamist fighters who aim to redraw borders of the Middle East.

The Islamic State, which sees Iraq's majority Shi'ites as apostates who deserve to be killed, also seized the Ain Zalah oil field - adding to four others already under its control which provide funding for operations and three towns.

Initially strong Kurdish resistance evaporated after the start of an offensive to take the town of Zumar.

The Islamists then hoisted their black flags there, a ritual that often has preceded mass executions of their captured opponents and the imposition of an ideology even al-Qaeda finds excessive. The group, which has declared a caliphate in parts of Iraq and Syria to rule over all Muslims, poses the biggest challenge to the stability of OPEC member Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003.Yesterday, its members were also involved in fighting in a border town far away in Lebanon, a sign of its ambitions across the frontiers of the Middle East.

Gaza situation â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;intolerable': British foreign minister

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ritish Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond yesterday demanded an unconditional ceasefire to resolve the "intolerable" situation in Gaza, adding that the British public was "deeply disturbed" by what it was seeing. Hammond, who took over from William Hague last month, told the Sunday Telegraph that the killing had to stop, having already said he was "gravely concerned" by the number of civilian casualties from Israel's military operation in Gaza.

"The British public has a

strong sense that the situation of the civilian population in Gaza is intolerable and must be addressed and we agree with them," he told the newspaper.

"It's a broad swathe of British public opinion that feels deeply disturbed by what it is seeing on its television screens," he added. The former defence minister acknowledged the concerns of both Hamas and Israel, but insisted that they could not be allowed to stand in the way of a humanitarian ceasefire.

"We have to get the killing to stop," he told the paper.

Collapsed houses after an earthquake hit Ludian county yesterday

Ukrainian army steps up attacks on rebel-held Donetsk

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ro-Russian separatists battled yesterday to keep advancing Ukrainian government forces at bay in heavy fighting on the outskirts of Donetsk, the rebels' main stronghold in eastern Ukraine. Shelling by Ukrainian troops, some of them in sunflower fields outside the large industrial city, killed six people over the weekend, city officials said, as well as setting buildings ablaze and leaving shell craters in roads.

The army has all but encircled the other main rebel redoubt of Luhansk, where three civilians were killed in the latest fighting, and is trying to tighten the noose around Donetsk.

Fighting has intensified since the downing of a Malaysian airliner in rebel-held territory on July 17 and, with each side blaming the other for the deaths of the 298 crew and passengers, relations between Russia and the West are deteriorating rapidly. British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond appealed to Russian President

Vladimir Putin to persuade the rebels to end the conflict and to ensure they do not hinder international experts trying to recover human remains from the plane's wreckage. "It is an unspeakable abomination that two weeks after this crash there are still bodies on the crash site unrecovered and the Russians have not used their influence with the separatists," Hammond told the Sunday Telegraph newspaper.

"I said last week that there is one man who can snap his fingers and make this happen and he hasn't done so. He must now do so," Hammond said, urging Putin to cut off arms to the rebels and "stop destabilising and interfering" in Ukraine.

Putin denies arming the rebels or trying to orchestrate events in Ukraine since the ousting of a president sympathetic to Moscow in February. He accuses the West of attempting to 'contain' Russia, using a Cold War-era phrase to suggest the United States wants to reduce Moscow's

global influence. A military spokesman in the Ukrainian capital Kiev told a briefing the army had now recaptured threequarters of the territory the rebels once controlled in their self-proclaimed 'people's republics' of Luhansk and Donetsk.

But Russia has firm control of the Crimea peninsula it annexed in March and the separatists are putting up fierce resistance in the last two big cities they hold in the east. A Reuters reporter in central Donetsk said shelling echoed through the night and the smoke from burning buildings in the outlying Petrovsky district stretched as far as the city centre.

"I work in the city centre. It's easier for me to be at work than to come home. You never know if your house will still be standing when you get back," the financial director of a small company who gave her name only as Antonina said in Petrovsky.

"I know people who have come back from work and found they have nowhere to live".

Toblow tips Okagbare for 2016 Olympics 100m gold Ajibade Olusesan

V Okagbare

eteran athletics coach, Tobias Igwe, has predicted that Commonwealth Games sprint champion, Blessing Okagbare, might become the first Nigerian athlete to win Olympics gold medals in 100m and 200m events.

The 25-year-old won her major titles in the global event af-

ter she powered to gold medals in the 100m and 200m events of the Glasgow Games. She also helped the 4X100m relay team to a silver medal at the competition.

And Igwe said if the athlete remained focussed she could repeat the feat in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, Brazil.

The coach who is fondly referred to as Toblow said Okag-

SPORT

bare has improved tremendously in her techniques and has kick-started a dominance in the world of athletics.

“Blessing has improved a lot, she has worked on her weaknesses. I was not really surprised that she won both races, because I knew the potential was there, she only needed to shake off the usual fright on the big stage. She has

51

overcome that now and the whole world should be ready to see the best of Okagbare in future championships.

“She is going to be the first Nigerian to win individual gold medal in sprint at the Olympics if she sustains this form. She is getting better with her take-off and by the time she perfects that, the sky will be her limit,” he said.

NEW TELEGRAPH

newtelegraphonline.com/sports

ADEKUNLE SALAMI, DepUTY Editor, SPORTS kunle.salami@newtelegraphonline.com adekunles@yahoo.com

AUTHORITATIVE VOICE IN GLOBAL SPORT

Monday, august 4, 2014

FG to take over Keshi’s salary Ajibade Olusesan

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Nigeria’s Joseph Yobo constesting with an Argentina player at the World Cup 2014

he Federal Government will take over the payment of the salary of Coach Stephen Keshi, New Telegraph has authoritatively gathered.

Keshi suffered irregular payment of his salary and other emoluments throughout the duration of his first contract, a situation the coach vowed to reject if he continued as the Super Eagles coach.

A very reliable source informed our correspondent that the Minister of Sports, Taminu Danagogo, personally assured the coach that his remuneration will come as at when due if he agreed to stay as the Eagles coach.

The new arrangement means that the salaries of the coach and his assitants will be directly drawn from the monthly allocation due the Nigeria Football Federation from the National Sports Commission.

“There have been lengthy discussions between Keshi and the sports minister. The discussion started in Brazil and they are still communicating. Keshi told the minister that among other conditions, there must be a ministerial guarantee that his salary and these of his assistants will be paid promptly. He alleged that NFF was a known chronic debtor to its national team coaches and it will be difficult for him to operate under existing ar-

lTo deduct directly from NFF monthly allocations lBig Boss wants Okpala recalled

rangements.

“I can tell you that the minister has put in place a mechanism to ensure that Keshi is not owed. In fact, the arrangement that he is working on now is that Keshi’s salary and those of his assistants will be drawn directly from NFF monthly allocations, which means before the money gets into the coffer, of NFF, Keshi’s pay would have been deducted,” the source said.

Our correspondent further gathered that the coach also demanded the recall of Sylvanus Okpala to the team’s technical crew. Okpala was sacked by the NFF board, and Keshi’s effort to have his man back has been fruitless, but the source revealed that Okpala will work with Keshi in the new arrangement.

Keshi

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SPORT

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

2015 Afcon: Eagles to battle Rwanda S Emmanuel Tobi

uper Eagles will open their 2015 Africa Nations Cup qualifying campaign against Rwanda after the Amavubi booked the last Group A

slot.

The Super Eagles are drawn to play in Pool A of the 2015 Afcon qualifiers against South Africa and Sudan, with the winner between Congo and Rwanda to take the last slot in the group.

And Rwanda, on Sunday, defeated Congo 4-3 on penalties to ensure their place in the last round of the qualifying series.

The African champions will now enter-

tain the Eastern Africans on September 5 in Nigeria at a venue yet to be determined.

Trailing 2-0 from the first leg in Pointe Noire, Rwanda had to wait till the 55th minute before going ahead through a Michel Ndahinduka effort as Rwanda looked to get back on track to qualifying.

The dream was firmly on when Meddie Kagere scored the second goal for the Wasps to put them 2-0 and tie the series 2-2 on aggregate in the 60th minute.

Rwanda triumphed 4-3 in the ensuing penalties to complete their dream to book a place in the final phase of qualifying for Morocco 2015.

Okagbare leads Team Nigeria to Morocco

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asking on euphoria of her sprint gold medals at the Commonwealth Games, tracks queen, Blessing Okagbare, takes her medal hunt in the 2014 athletics season to Marrakech, Morocco, venue of the African Athletics Championships which begin August 10 and end August 14.

Okagbare, winner of the sprint double (100m and 200m) at the just concluded Glasgow Games and a silver medal in the 4x100m, will compete in the 100m, 200m and the 4x100m.

She set a new Commonwealth Games record of 10.85sec in the 100m in Glasgow.

Also listed for the for the 100m, 200, and the 4x100m women in Marrakech are Gloria Asumnu, Lauretta Uzoh, Deborah Odeyemi, Justina Sule and Weyinmi Lindsay.

Listed for 400m and 4x400m are Folashade Abugan, Omolara Omotsoho, Patience Okon, Ada Benjamin, and Funke Oladoye.

Nichole Denby will compete in the 100m hurdles, while Amaka Ogoegbunam and Kemi Francis are listed for the 400m hurdles.

Abiye David will run the 800m; Ese Brume and Amadi Chinazom will do the long jump,

while Blessing Ibrahim will do the triple jump.

For throws, Queen Obisesan Hammer and Chinwe Okoro will compete for medals in discuss and shot put respectively.

Mark Jelks, Mozavous Edwards, Ogho-Oghene Egwero, Obinna Metu, Divine Oduduru and Seye Ogunlewe will compete in the mens 100, 200m, and 4x100m.

Robert Simmons, Orukpe Eroyakan, Akerele Omezia, Noah Akwu and Isah Salihu are listed for the 400m and the 4x400m.

The trio of Tyron Akins, Alex Al-Ameen and Martins Ogieriakhi will compete in the 110 hurdles, while Ameachi Morton and Miles Ukaoma will compete in the 400m hurdles.

Other athletes listed are Samson Idiata and Hammed Suleiman in the long jump, Tosin Oke and Olumide Olamigoke in the triple jump, Stephen Mozia and Augustne Nwoye in shot put.

Coaches for the team are Gabriel Okon, Yussuf Alli, Gabriel Opuana , Gad Onumeagbu, Solomon Aliu, Shaeed Akinpelu and Daniel Etsebiminor

Dosu celebrates Atlanta ’96 gold 18th anniversary Charles Ogundiya

F

ormer National U-23 team goalkeeper, Joseph Dosu, on Sunday, celebrated the 18th year the Dream Team won the Olympics football gold medal in Atlanta 1996.

Nigeria, against all odds won the gold medal, defeating Brazil and Argentina in the semi-final and final of the competition with Dosu featuring prominently in the campaign.

Celebrating the historic victory on the social media,Dosuwrote;“Today,3rdof August,makesit 18yearsthattheNigeriaUnder-23teamnickname DreamTeambecamethefirstAfricanteamtowin GoldMedalintheOlympicsMenSoccerinAtlanta 1996atSanfordStadium,Athenswith86,117spectators in attendance.

“We brought suspense and entertainment to the Olympic, we came into America unnoticed and unannounced only to leave as the most-loved and supported soccer team, we became lifelong heroes of a nation of over 160m people, what a golden moment!”

While speaking with New Telegraph on the

phone, Dosu said he was honoured to have represented and brought glory to the country.

“It was just like yesterday, I spoke with some of my team mates this morning, (Sunday) congratulating them on the success, it was fun and we were all happy.

“Itwasgreatbeinganambassadorof mycountry, nobody gave us a chance at the beginning of the competition, but we came out as the best in the world,” he said.

Eagles in action

NFF upbeat on Falconets, F/Eagles, others Ifeanyi Ibeh

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he Nigeria Football Federation has revealed that the body is optimistic of good representation as the various national team participate in competitions and qualifiers.

Speaking at the weekend, NFF acting President, Chief Mike Umeh, assured Nigerians that the Federation is focused and will not permit any distractions.

The U-20 Women National Team, nicknamed Falconets, will take part in the 7th FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup finals starting in Canada on Tuesday, while the U-20 boys have a 2015 African Youth Championship

final qualifying fixture against Lesotho this month.

There is the Super Eagles’ Head Coach’s matter to be sorted out, with the qualifying race for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations starting early September, and the Super Falcons’ preparations for the 9th African Women Championship in Namibia to think about, alongside the responsibility of steering a seamless transition to a new NFF board.

“The programmes and activities at hand and those that are close by, are enormous. But we have everything within focus and we are making adequate arrangements for each of them,” Umeh said in Abuja.

Chukwu wants proper hosting for Yobo’s 100 caps

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ormer Super Eagles chief coach, Christian Chukwu believes retired national team captain, Joseph Yobo should be celebrated for becoming the first Nigerian player to join FIFA’s exclusive list of Centurions. In Chukwu’s opinion, Yobo should be properly ‘pulled out of the national team’.

His words; “I have been waiting to hear the plans being put in place to honour Yobo and I have heard none. We should learn to honour our ex-internationals. This was a boy that made 100 caps. It is not easy. We have to celebrate him so as to encourage others to put in their best for the national team”.

He has a suggestion; “I suggest that he should be invited for our next home

match where we will formerly bid him farewell from the national team. That will be the avenue to officially honour him for making 100 caps”.

Chukwu acknowledges he has a lot in common with Yobo.

“He played in the central defence like me. And like me, he also won the AFCON as a captain. He joined the long list of central defenders like Dan Anyiam, Achebe, Victor Oduah, Dominic Ezeani, My humble self and Stephen Keshi who captained the national team.

“He was a stand-in captain when I was the national team coach. He was very respectful, obeyed camp rules and enjoyed the respect of his team mates.

2015 qualifier: Eaglets trash Congo DR 4-0 Charles Ogundiya

N

igeria Golden Eaglets on Sunday defeated Congo DR 4-0 at the MKO Abiola stadium, Abeokuta, to qualify for the final round of the African U-17 Nations Cup scheduled for Niger Republic in 2015.

The Emmanuel Amuneke led team qualified on a 5-0 on aggregates haven securing a 1-0 away win during the first leg in Kinshasa.

The team will battle Gabon in the final round of the series in September.

Next year’s Championship in Niger Republic will be played between 2nd to 16th May, with the top three teams qualifying for FIFA U-17 World Cup finals set for Chile between 17th October to 8th of November.

Meanwhile, Emmanuel Amuneke has expressed satisfaction with the result but said the next step is the game against Gabon.

“We will look at where there are lapses and try to correct them ahead of the match against the Gabonese,” he said.

Gabon defeated Ethiopia to set up the match against Nigeria.

SPORT

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Team Nigeria ends Glasgow campaign in 8th spot

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he Commonwealth Games, in Glasgow, Scotland, came to a colourful conclusion on Sunday with Team Nigeria, inspired by Blessing Okagbare’s two individual gold medals, finishing eighth on the medals table, one spot better than they did four years ago in New Delhi, India.

At the New Delhi Games, Team Nigeria finished their campaign with a total of 11 gold, 10 silver and 14 bronze medals.

But they got an additional silver medal this time around to finish the Games with 11 gold, 11 silver and 14 bronze medals to end the championship as the second bestplaced African nation on the table behind South Africa, who finished a spot ahead of Team Nigeria in seventh place.

South Africa also finished ahead of Nigeria four years ago in joint fifth alongside Kenya. The Ke-

nyans, this time around, however ended the Games in ninth place.

But the Kenyans appeared set to end Glasgow 2014 ahead of Nigeria until a late resurgence from Team Nigeria, on Saturday, took them way ahead of the East Africans.

And it all started on that Saturday in the Para-Sport Powerlifting Women’s Heavyweight event where Loveline Obiji beat others, including her teammate Bose Omolayo, to the gold medal, with Omolayo settling for the silver medal.

Moments later, in the Women’s Lightweight category, Esther Oyema retained her Commonwealth title from four years ago with a new world record lift of 126 kg.

Then came the turn of Paul Kehinde in the Men’s Lightweight category, with the 24-year-old beating his compatriot, Rolland Ezuruike, to become the first Nigerian male

athlete to win a gold medal at the 2014 Games.

He was quickly followed by Abdulazeez Ibrahim, who also won gold in the Men’s Heavyweight category.

Okagbare

England wins overall title T

Botswana’s Montsho fails dope test

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otswana’s former world 400metre champion Amantle Montsho has become the second athlete to fail a doping test here at Glasgow 2014.

The 31-year-old, who finished fourth in the 400m final on Tuesday (July 29) behind Jamaican trio led by Stephanie McPhearson, submitted a sample immediately after the final that tested positive for banned stimulant methylhexaneamine.

In a statement released on Saturday afternoon by the Commonwealth

Games Federation, it was confirmed that Montsho had been notified of her A sample result and has asked for her B sample to be tested.

This will take place at the World Anti Doping Agency-accredited laboratory in London on Monday (August 4).

Following the results of this being known, the CGF Federation Court will reconvene to consider the matter further, with Montsho likely to be stripped of her result in Glasgow.

eam England on Sunday emerged the overall winners of the 20th Commonwealth Games as they amassed 58 gold, 59 silver and 57 bronze, having a total of 174 medals, while Australia finished in second place on the overall table with 49 gold, 42 silver and 46 bronze all totalling 137 medals.

Canada are placed in third position with 32 gold, 16 silver and 34 bronze, while host Scotland finished in fourth position with 19 gold,15 silver and 19 bronze.

South Africa emerged the number one African team at Glasgow 2014 after winning 13 gold, 10 silver and 17 bronze medals. They stood in overall seventh position.

Kenya who placed sixth at the New Delhi Games in 2010 had to give way in Glasgow as they slid to the ninth position overall and third in Africa with 10 gold, 10 silver and 5 bronze medals.

Medals Table Country ENG AUS CAN SCO IND NZL RSA NGR KEN JAM SIN MAS WAL CYP NIR

G 58 49 32 19 15 14 13 11 10 10 8 6 5 2 2

S 59 42 16 15 30 14 10 11 10 4 5 7 11 4 3

B 57 46 34 19 19 17 17 14 5 8 4 6 20 2 7

Total 174 137 82 53 64 45 40 36 25 22 17 19 36 8 12

Usain Bolt poses with schoolchildren and Clyde the Mascot

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ultiple world and Olympic champion Usain Bolt says he will make the 200m his focus after the Commonwealth Games.

The 27-year-old 100m and 200m world record holder only competed in the 4x100m relay at Glasgow 2014, helping Jamaica to gold at Hampden Park.

“I’ve said I want to run sub 19 for 200m - that’s one of my biggest goals and my biggest dreams” “I think I’ve done enough in the 100,” he told BBC Radio 5 live.

53

Amalaha misses Mark’s $50,000 largesse

lAs NSC withdraws $ 7000 bonus

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uspended Nigerian weightlifter, Chika Amalaha, would miss the $50,000 promised her through the Director General of the National Sports Commission, NSC, by the Senate President, David Mark.

The Director General of the National Sports Commission, Honourable Gbenga Elegbeleye, disclosed that, the Senate president was thrilled by the gold medal performance of the young weightlifter which influenced his decision.

“The plan was to present the Senate President’s cash to Amalaha when the team returns to Abuja after the Games.

“David Mark’s expectation was for Chika to use the fund to develop her skills, so that in the

next two years when she would be ripe to compete in the Rio 2016 Olympics, she could as well pick up a medal.

“The planned progression is for Amalaha to win the Commonwealth Games gold in the 53kg in the specific category and she would be launched into the world stage at the Rio 2016 Olympics.”

Elegbeleye noted that, the idea of the special cash gift has been shelved and the girl’s issue is hanging in the balance.

The Director General also announced in accordance with the ruling given by the Commonwealth Weightlifting Federation that the NSC has withdrawn the cash gift of $7,000 paid to Chika Amalaha for winning the gold medal.

Quadri

Table Tennis: Oshodi regrets poor outing

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he President of the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation, Wahid Enitan-Oshodi, was yesterday full of lamentations over the poor outing of the country’s table tennis team as they failed to win any medal, the same way it happened at the 2010 edition of the Games in New Delhi, India.

The NTTF boss stated that, it was so disappointing not winning any medal at the 20th Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

“I felt so bad when I saw the last set of players crash out in the

Round of 16. Before the Round of 16 games, I had the optimism that Aruna Quadri who is the African number one ranked player would get to the medal’s zone, but instead he lost his game by 4-0 against Singapore’s Ning Mao. “It was a devastating blow, as I saw our dream of winning medals at Glasgow 2014 fizzle away.”

Ning Mao, 31 years old, had helped his country beat Nigeria earlier on in the Team Event. He was Singapore’s Sportsman of the year in 2008.

Bolt targets 200m after Glasgow

“I know people want to see me run fast in the 100 but I love my 200 and I want to do something special for myself. So for me, my main aim is the 200.”

Bolt, who will turn 28 on 21 August, set the 200m world record of 19.19 seconds in Berlin five years ago.

The Jamaican also posted a 100m world best of 9.58 at the same World Championships.

“The world record can keep going down. You never know who’s going to show up next and dominate,” he added.

“I’ve said I want to run sub 19. That’s one of my biggest goals and my biggest dreams, so I’m definitely going to be training hard and seeing what I can do.”

The eight-time world champion’s next race is a 100m on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro on 14 August.

Transfer Updates

54 SPORT

Pellegrini confirms Lampard’s City’s loan move M

Rodgers hint at Balotelli deal L

iverpool are reportedly planning a £14m bid to bring former Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli back to England from AC Milan.

Balotelli has been widely tipped for a return to the Premier League this summer with Arsenal supposedly leading the chase for the Italian international’s signature.

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has made no secret of his admiration of the player, talking him in glowing terms

anchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has confirmed former Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard’s move to the Premier League champions on loan from his new club, New York City FC. The 36-year-old, who spent 13 years at Chelsea, recently signed for New York, but as the next Major League Soccer season does not start until next year, so he has opted to return to England to maintain fitness.

“As you know, Frank has signed a contract with New

York City and will start working here (the United States) in January as the season starts in March,” Pellegrini told a press conference.

“From next Wednesday he will start working with our team and will play for us until then.

“At the moment he will work with the squad and be a member of the squad. He will fight for a position.

“He knows we have a very good team and we have a lot of players in his position. He is one player more.”

Koke: Why I rejected Barcelona

Madrid midfielder Koke has exAlona,tletico plained why he rejected a move to Barcesaying he could not bear to leave the

Vicente Calderon.

The 22-year-old had been linked with the Camp Nou club following a stellar 2013-14 season in which he helped the Rojiblancos lift La Liga and reach the Champions League final.

“The truth is that part of me said it was difficult to say no to Barca but I wanted to continue at home for many years at Atletico,” he told AS. “It wasn’t time to leave. This is my home, where I feel wanted and the club didn’t need to sell. How was I going to leave at the best time for Atletico?”

‘Falcao won’t leave Monaco’

onaco coach Leonardo Jardim has warned potential suitors off star M striker Radamel Falcao.

“At this point Falcao is our player and he’s with us 100 per cent and we don’t want to let him go,” Jardim said.

“It’s a pity we lost James [Rodriguez] but we can count on Falcao staying. Regardless of what people say, he’s our player.

“He’s in the final stages of his recovery and he’ll be with us this season.”

Leverkusen clinch Papadopoulos loan

ayer Leverkusen have signed Greek B defender Kyriakos Papadopoulos from Bundesliga rivals Schalke on loan

until the end of the season.

The 22-year-old, who was once a target of Liver- pool, has missed much of the past two seasons due to injury, but he now hopes to kick-start his career at the BayArena.

“I’m really pleased this transfer’s worked out,” said Papadopoulos on his new club’s website.

Juventus want Chicharito, Nani for Vidal

uventus have identified two Manchester Jmakeweights United squad players as possible in any deal for star midfielder

before his side’s 2-0 friendly win over Milan in the USA “Balotelli has all the qualities [I like]. “He’s 6’3”, he’s quick, his touch is terrific, he can score goals and he’s still so young. “I saw that in this time at Inter as a young player and obviously going to Manchester City when we had a real close eye on him there. “He’s a big talent. “If his focus is right, his concentration is right and he leads the lifestyle of a top player, then he can play for any team in the world.”

Eagles’ transfer Update Obi to clinch Man Utd deal Clearance stalls youngster Ogochukwu Obi Obaje’s move to Algeria Watford’s will be offered a professional deal

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Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

arri Wolves striker Joshua Obaje’s proposed move to Algerian club ASO Chlef hangs in the balance.

Obaje is currently in Turkey with the North African outfit, but is yet to officially become an ASO Chlef player because Wolves are yet to give him his clearance.

However, a source close to the player said that the issue should be sorted out soon, which would allow Obaje to join his compatriot Ikechukwu Francis at the club.

“He has agreed a two year deal but his agent Rukky is currently locked in talks with Warri Wolves over his release papers, hopefully it will be done by Monday,” the source said.

by Manchester United after posting excellent performances on trial at the Milk Cup. The 16 year old helped Manchester United youth team defend their Milk Cup trophy courtesy of a 1-0 victory over French club Vendee at Ballymena Showgrounds.

He has been monitored by Liverpool and Arsenal since he scored impressive 10 goals in five games at last year’s Milk Cup and in this year edition, Man United stole a march on their rivals by offering him a trial.

The player grabbed the opportunity with both hands by scoring and creating goals for the Red Devils Under-18 en-route to lifting the Premier League section trophy of the Milk Cup for the 5th time.

Arturo Vidal, according to Corriere dello Sport.

The Italian giants would want to open talks with United for the signings of Javier Hernandez and Nani if Vidal is to leave Turin for Manchester this summer, with the Chilean ace widely expected to make the move to Old Trafford.

United have long been in the market for a world class signing in midfield, and Vidal has been mentioned as one of their top targets for this summer, whilst other big names such as Toni Kroos and Fredy Guarin have also been linked with the club.

I never wanted Khedira -Wenger

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rsenal manager Arsene Wenger says he has not approached Real Madrid over signing Germany international Sami Khedira.

R e ports in the English Press claimed the Gunners wanted Khedira and had lodged a €25m offer with Los Blancos.

But Wenger told a Press conference that wasn’t the case and told a reporter who asked about Khedira that any link between Arsenal and the player was no more than paper talk, AS reports.

Tottenham join Eto’o chase

he Sun on Sunday claim that TotT tenham could beat West Ham to the signing of Samuel Eto’o, who is believed

to fancy staying in London after being released by Chelsea at the end of last season.

The 33-year-old is far from the marquee signing favoured by fans of Spurs but would provide a useful alternative to Roberto Soldado, who has been dreadful since moving to England last year.

SPORT 55

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, August 4, 2014

Ideye doubtful for Sunderland game

EmmanuelTobi

S

lLaments visa delay

uper Eagles and West Bromwich Albion’s new record signing, Brown Ideye, is unlikely to make his English Premier League debut at home to Sunderland on 16 August, as delays over his visa and work permit have prevented him joining up with the team.

The former Dynamo Kiev man who is still in Nigeria is hoping to travel in the next few days, while lamenting the frustration of not be able to start preseason with the Albions.

“I need to join the team first, then train with the squad in front of the manager and so far I have not been able to do that.

“It all depends on how quickly the paperwork can be done, but realisti-

cally it will be difficult to target the first league game of the season for my debut,” Ideye told BBC Sport.

Ideye who is set to miss Tuesday’s clash with Port Vale having missed a pre-season friendly

Ideye

against Nottingham Forest last week, has expressed confidence in the British High Commission to sort out the problem.

“Officials at the British High Commission (in Nigeria) are still working on it,” “The club has fulfilled all the necessary requirements, but I have been told that the British High Commission require up to 15 days to sort this, which is preventing my travelling.

“The public holiday in Nigeria last week [Eid holiday] slowed things down a little bit on this side.

“I hope to get it sorted in the next couple of days because I can’t wait to join my new team-mates in England.”

Azerbaijan graduates set to shine in Canada

Mikel glad over Drogba’s reunion lTargets trophies with Chelsea Ifeanyi Ibeh

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igeria midfielder, John Obi Mikel, has expressed his pleasure over Didier Drogba’s recent return to Chelsea, insisting that the forward’s arrival will go a long way in helping the Blues win trophies this season.

Mikel and his Chelsea teammates failed to win a trophy last season. But in an interview with Chelsea’s official website, the Nigerian is optimistic that things will be better this time around following Drogba’s return.

“I heard the rumours, but I thought there was no way it was going to happen. I thought when

he’s gone, he’s gone. But then I thought about it a bit more and I realised it could happen because of the connection that the gaffer (Jose Mourinho) and Didier always had,” said Mikel.

“I’m glad to have him back.

It’s like his home. He’s fitting in perfectly well again. It’s like he never went away. It’s good for the team because he’s a big player and a big personality.

“It’s a shame we lost Frank (Lampard) and Ash (Ashley Cole) - two big personalities and two big players – but Didier is back. I think we need a bit of his personality and his physicality in the Premier

League, too. He can offer that.

“He still gets respect from everybody in the dressing room: the older guys, the younger players, everybody.

We are all glad to have him back.”

Chinwendu (left)

A Mikel

Boro coach rules out Omeruo N

Omeruo

igeria defender Kenneth Omeruo appears unlikely to make his league debut for English Championship club Middlesbrough next weekend.

Omeruo’s loan switch from Chelsea was completed on Wednesday, but he is not expected to be fit enough to stake a claim for a starting place, although Boro coach, Aitor Karanka is not overly concerned.

“I don’t think he’ll be ready,” Karanka told the Gazette. “But that’s not a problem for him. I know what kind of player he is and he will have plenty of opportunities to play.

“If he is not ready for the first game, we have Ben Gibson, Dani Ayala, Christian Burgess or Seb Hines. They worked very well in pre-season and the season is very long.”

Musa relishes CSKA win over Torpedo Moscow S

uper Eagles striker, Ahmed Musa, has revealed that CSKA Moscow showed they were Russian league champions when they defeated Torpedo Moscow on the opening day of the season in Russia.

CSKA Moscow came from a goal down to thrash city neighbours Torpedo Moscow 4-1 on

Saturday.

The army club has won the Russian league in the last two seasons and their Nigerian star saluted the convincing style they got off to their title defence.

“It was a good game and a good way to start our title defence. We are the champions and we played like one. I am happy we

won,” Ahmed Musa told AfricanFootball.com.

He again posted a good outing as he had a goal-bound shot saved by the goalkeeper, while his crosses begged for connection.

Last week, Ahmed Musa played for 83 minutes as CSKA defeated cup holders FK Rostov 3-1 to clinch the Super Cup.

lthough yet to turn 20, a significant number of the players turning out at Canada 2014 already have valuable FIFA World Cup experience under their belts. The youngest of them were on show earlier this year at the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup Costa Rica 2014, while the majority had their baptism of fire two years ago, at the U-17 world finals in Azerbaijan.

It was there that we first caught sight of the likes of France defender Griedge Mbock Bathy and Germany midfielder Sara Daebritz first came to the limelight. These are just two of the promising players who have built on their displays in Azerbaijan to become permanent fixtures in their national teams and, in Daebritz’s case, a European champion.

In total, nearly 100 of the 336 players taking part at Canada 2014 appeared at Azerbaijan 2012 and will now be looking to surpass themselves on an even bigger stage.

And with the FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015 just around the corner, some of them will even be dreaming of making a return to the Land of the Maple Leaf in around ten months’ time.

The upcoming finals in Canada will also provide the watching world with an opportunity to assess the progress being made by the New Zealanders, who boast 13 FIFA World Cup ‘veterans’, among them goalkeeper Lily Alfeld, who excelled two years

Ayinde

ago with her superb reflexes and coolness in one-on-one situations.

There are yet more wellknown faces among the Canada line-up, including strike duo Amandine Pierre-Louise and Nichelle Prince, of whom the hosts are expecting big things.

Nigeria have equally high hopes of Chinwendu Ihezuo and Halimatu Ayinde, who scored ten goals between them at the U-17 world finals two years ago, an indication of their nose for goal and a possible sign of things to come over the next few weeks.

Another striker who has already shown the world what she can do is Brazil’s Byanca, who scored one of the goals of the tournament at Azerbaijan 2012 and left her mark on the competition with a memorable rainbow flick.

For a clutch of other players, meanwhile, Canada 2014 represents a golden opportunity to make up for the disappointments they experienced in 2012. Falling into that category are Luz Duarte and Taylor Alvarado, two of the brightest performers in a Mexico side that failed to progress beyond the group phase on that occasion, and USA starlet Summer Green, who proved one of the most exciting teenage talents on show two years back but also headed home early with her side.

The Stars and Stripes are the reigning U-20 World Cup champions, but face a tough defence, one that starts with a Group B match against Germany, the team they beat in the final at Japan 2012.

Die Mannschaft have plenty of Azerbaijan 2012 experience to call on themselves, with Daebritz, Rebecca Knaak and Lina Magull all in their ranks.

Though the stars of Canada 2014 have yet to reveal themselves, there is every reason to expect that the players who lit up the Land of Fire two years ago will seize the chance to shine once again.

Culled from FIFA.com

World Record

On Marble

Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely.

– Auguste Rodin

In 1964 the Lagos boxer Omo Oloja won a light-middleweight bronze in Tokyo, thereby becoming Nigeria’s first Olympic medallist.

Sanctity of Truth

w w w. new tel eg rap ho nl i ne. co m

Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon and the truth – Buddha MONDAY, AUGUST 4, 2014

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The Global Economy in 2014

f we think about it, 2014 is a milestone in many respects. It will mark the hundredth anniversary of the start of the First World War, the 70th anniversary of the Bretton Woods conference that gave birth to the IMF, and the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

It will also mark the 7th anniversary of the financial market jitters that quickly turned into the greatest global economic calamity since the Great Depression.

This crisis still lingers. Yet, optimism is in the air: the deep freeze is behind, and the horizon is brighter. My great hope is that 2014 will prove momentous in another way—the year in which the “seven weak years”, economically speaking, slide into “seven strong years”.

Is this wishful thinking? No, but it will not simply happen on its own. Getting beyond the crisis still requires a sustained and substantial policy effort, coordination, and the right policy mix. Let me talk about this—I will start with the global outlook, and then touch on the policy path I have in mind.

Global outlook and risks In just a few days, we will be releasing our updated forecasts. While our numbers are still being finalized, I will talk about the main trends as we see them.

• Momentum strengthened in the latter half of 2013, and should strengthen further in 2014—largely due to improvements in the advanced economies.

• Yet, global growth is still stuck in low gear. It remains below its potential, which we think is somewhere around 4 percent.

This means that the world could create more jobs before we would need to worry about the global inflation genie coming out of its bottle.

• Even for the advanced economies, however, the outlook is still subject to significant risks. With inflation running below many central banks’ targets, we see rising risks of deflation, which could prove disastrous for the recovery. If inflation is the genie, then deflation is the ogre that must be fought decisively.

• During the years of crisis, we have relied on the emerging markets to keep the global economy afloat. Together with the developing countries, they accounted for three-quarters of global growth over the past half decade. However, a growing number of emerging markets are slowing down as the economic cycle turns.

• We also see risks arising from financial market turbulence and the volatility of capital flows. The reaction to the Fed’s tapering has been calm so far, and this is

Guest Columnist Christine Lagarde

good news, but there still could be some rough waters ahead.

• Overall, the direction is positive, but global growth is still too low, too fragile, and too uneven. Moreover, it is not enough to create the jobs for the more than 200 million people around the world who need them.

• In far too many countries, the benefits of growth are being enjoyed by far too few people. Just to give one example: in the United States, 95 percent of income gains since 2009 went to the top 1 percent. This is not a recipe for stability and sustainability.

The policy agenda This all points to one thing: the need to stay focused on the policies needed for sustainable growth and rewarding jobs, which in the end are needed to make everybody better off. Let me focus on this.

We have certainly avoided a worst case scenario during the crisis, thanks to the efforts of global policymakers over the past half decade. Central banks went above and beyond the call of duty to keep interest rates low and the financial system functioning, while governments deployed fiscal stimulus where they could.

The road has certainly been difficult, and continues to be difficult, but as Edward R. Murrow once said, “difficulty is the excuse history never accepts”.

Now that the global economy looks more stable, the big priority for policymakers in 2014 is to fortify the feeble global recovery and make it sustainable. What does this mean in practice?

For the advanced economies in particular, it means that central banks should return to more conventional monetary policies only when robust growth is firmly rooted. At the same time, countries need to use the room created by unconventional monetary policies to put in place the reforms needed to jumpstart growth and jobs.

Let me go deeper and touch briefly on the different regions.

• Growth is certainly picking up in the United States, driven by private demand, and to be helped by the loosening of the fiscal corset in the recent budget deal. Still, it will be critical to avoid premature withdrawal of monetary support and to return

Lagarde

to an orderly budget process, including by promptly removing the debt ceiling threat.

• The Euro Area is turning the corner from recession to recovery, but growth is still unbalanced, and unemployment is still worryingly high. Some countries are doing well, but others are still burdened by high debt and credit constraints. Monetary policy is helping a lot, but could still do more—targeted lending, for example, could help reduce financial fragmentation. The forthcoming review of asset quality and stress tests can also help, but only if they are done in an evenhanded and credible manner. There is also a need to accelerate reforms to boost labor market participation and enhance competitiveness.

• In Japan, the initial boost from Abenomics is weakening a bit, but temporary fiscal stimulus should help offset the negative effects of the necessary consumption tax increase. The challenge is to agree on medium-term fiscal adjustments and social and economic reforms needed to strengthen growth. Deregulating product and service markets and increasing the participation of women in the workplace would help overcome the ogre of deflation.

• What about the emerging markets?

The challenge here is to navigate any bumpiness and stay strong. Policymakers must be wary of any signs of financial excess, especially in the form of asset bubbles or rising debt. Financial regulation needs to be strengthened and implemented in order to better manage credit cycles. And yes, many countries also could do more on the

structural front to unlock their growth potential—including by tackling infrastructure bottlenecks or regulatory obstacles.

• What about the low-income countries?

Here, the news is generally good. These countries have really become a bright spot.

Now is the time to lock in these gains and build stronger defenses against either direct or consequential external shocks, including by raising more revenue. In addition, countries should keep spending selectively on important social programs and infrastructure projects.

• I should mention that I have just returned from the two most dynamic regions of the world—Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, which saw growth of 6½ percent and 5 percent last year respectively. Here in Washington DC, we sometimes forget the monumental change taking place in these parts of the world—the rise in economic power and the march of the middle class. I always come away from these regions with renewed optimism.

• We should also remember the Arab countries in transition. The Arab Spring began exactly three years ago, and as these countries grapple with the reforms needed to unleash the dynamism of the private sector and create more jobs for their young people, they need the firm support of the international community.

I have talked so far about the regions.

Yet there are also many common problems that require a common resolve. Think about the legacy of public and private debt, and about fiscal and current account imbalances. Think about the reforms needed to make the financial system safer.

OMOBABA

COUNCIL OF STATE SEEKS END TO INSURGENCY BY DECEMBER - News

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