Binder1 01 october, 2014 by Newtelegraphonline

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Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Vol. 1 No. 225

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Hilary Clinton lauds New York Times, New Telegraph partnership Biodun Durojaiye

ormer United States’ Secretary of State, Senator Hilary Clinton, has lauded the partnership between the New York Times and New Telegraph, for the publication of the international

edition of the highly reputable American newspaper in Nigeria. In a telephone conversation with Chairman and Publisher of New Telegraph, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, Clinton, who was a senator representing New York in the American

Congress, said the partnership signalled cooperation between two great institutions. She expressed the hope that the partnership with the New York Times would help New Telegraph to deepen democracy, as well as promote justice and

human rights in Africa’s most populous nation. The former Secretary of State has been contacted by New Telegraph newspaper to deliver its first anniversary lecture in March, next year, and talks are on to concretise this. The international edi-

tion of the New York Times will make its debut in Nigeria on Monday, October 6, as an insert in New Telegraph newspaper. Political and business leaders in Nigeria are already excited about this development, which offers CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

Senator Clinton

A giant’s slow march

lI weep every day for our nation, says Zik’s widow }5 lJonathan: We can’t transform our country overnight Quick Read

Editorial Nigeria at 54: Looking back, looking forward }5

Why I’m running again, by Buhari }6 Reps divided over Electoral Act amendment }7 Three Boko Haram members jailed for 75 years }7 Obasanjo enrols for PhD at NOUN }12 LAGOS

Storms

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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

News

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Nigeria at 54: Looking back, looking forward A

t exactly 12 midnight on Saturday October 1, 1960, that is, 54 years ago today, the Union Jack was lowered and the green-white-green flag was hoisted to signal the birth of an independent Nigeria. That simple, symbolic act of lowering one flag and hoisting another ended 60 years of Britain’s direct colonial rule over Nigeria and signposted the

EDITORIAL start of self-rule in the world’s most populous black nation and Africa’s hope for respect in the world as a progressive part of the human community. Independence brought with it hopes, expectations and challenges. After 60 years of colonialism,

independence came as the elixir that people needed to keep hope alive, as the long-awaited path to social, economic, psychological and spiritual emancipation from the mental slavery that colonialism had imposed on the human person in this part of the world. CONTINUED ON PAGE 19

I weep every day for our nation, says Zik’s widow lJonathan: We can’t transform our country overnight lMark, Tambuwal, Ekweremadu, Atiku, govs preach hope Our Reporters

s Nigeria marks its 54th independence anniversary today, a cross-section of dignitaries, including President Goodluck Jonathan; Senate President David Mark; Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, Mark’s deputy, Senator Ike Ekweremadu; former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar; governors and widow of Nigeria’s first President, the late Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Prof. Uche Azikiwe, expressed concern about the state of the nation. They were however hopeful that the future is promising for the nation. According to Azikiwe’s widow, she has been so bothered by the insurgency ravaging the country that she weeps for Nigeria every day she reads the activities of Boko Haram in newspapers. Sharing her views on the Nigeria’s journey to nationhood in the past 54 years, she lamented what she called the attitude of not planning by successive governments in the country; a situation she said was responsible for the inability of the country to attain the desired level of growth since its independence in 1960. Speaking to New Telegraph at her Onuiyi Haven residence, Nsukka in Enugu State, she frowned on the reign of insecurity, especially the pogrom unleashed on people in the North-East part by Boko Haram. She said: “I weep for Nigerian women; I weep for Nigerian girls because it seems they are the most outstanding targets of this insurgency in the North-East and it is quite disheartening to me. “If you don’t have money and you are free and secure, it is relatively okay; but if you are poor and your state is worsened

L-R: Deputy Managing Director, New Telegraph, Mr. Gabriel Akinadewo; Vice-Chancellor, Covenant University, Prof. Charles Ayo and Editor, New Telegraph, Mr. Yemi Ajayi, during a courtesy visit by a delegation of the newspaper to the university in Ota, Ogun State…yesterday. PHOTO: TONY EGUAYE

by this kind of insecurity, it becomes a burden too huge to bear.” Zik’s widow, a professor emeritus of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), also took a hard look at certain factors that lead to the country’s underdevelopment; she deplored the neglect of agriculture, which was the main stay of the nation’s economy at independence. On his part, Jonathan, who is expected to make a national broadcast today to mark the nation’s 54th anniversary, said it was impossible for his administration to transform Nigeria overnight. The president said in Abuja while been conferred with an award of excellence in Christian stewardship by the Primate of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Archbishop Nicholas Okoh, that despite the enormous developmental challenges,

Nigeria was on the right track of growth. “We have drawn our map and we have progressed. I believe we are progressing in the right direction. For you to really build a society, you need to do things that are critical and continue to do them well. “If the government continues to do those things very well, it would not take a lifetime for this country to change. It would not take more than 10 years,” he said. According to him, his government is committed to providing quality infrastructure that will improve the lives of Nigerians. “We have our transformation agenda. It is not something we can do overnight even if you have all the money in the world. If you want to build a sixstorey building, you must give yourself a period that

must be a time for you to complete that project. “I believe whatever is happening to Nigeria will be very temporary. We will go through the challenges. With your prayers, we will go through the challenges,” he added. Conferring the award on the president, Okoh said the president was honoured because, he has, among others, effectively distributed the country’s resources equitably, including among traditional and religious leaders. However, in his independence anniversary message, Mark urged Nigerians to remain steadfast in promoting peace and unity, no matter the challenges. He said the indivisibility of the nation was not negotiable because there was no better place than Nigeria. He recalled the nation’s chequered political

history since 1960, during which Nigeria went through 30-month of fratricidal civil war, various ethno-religious conflicts and assured Nigerians that the crises are surmountable. Also, Tambuwal urged Nigerians to work tirelessly to promote the tenets of democracy, good governance and responsible citizenry. Tambuwal, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Mallam Imam Imam, appealed to the political elite to moderate their utterances and be mindful of their responsibility to the country. He said with elections scheduled for early 2015, all leaders must avoid acts that would heat up the polity. According to him, what is of paramount importance now is for political office holders to approach

elections with the intention to play by the rules. Like Tambuwal, Ekweremadu urged Nigerians to do everything within their powers to sustain the current democracy. In his message, Atiku hit hard at politicians for playing up ethnic and religious differences for personal advantages, saying that their action is a threat to the unity of the country. He said the country’s wealth would not automatically lead to better life without good governance. He, however, urged Nigerians not to lose hope in the country, stressing that the country could get out of the woods if leaders are elected on the basis of their competencies rather than primordial considerations. According to him, the consequences of misgovernance and poor leadership have no ethnic and CONTINUED ON PAGE 7

News

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Why I’m running again, by Buhari

ormer Head of State, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday defended his decision to run for the presidency again. Buhari, a presidential aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC), had, after the Supreme Court judgement that dismissed his objection to the victory of President Goodluck Jonathan in the 2011 presidential election, said he would not run again. He had vied for the position in the last three presidential elections. Buhari contested the election on the platform of the now defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), one of the parties that coalesced to form APC. But Buhari, one of the main contenders for the APC ticket for the February 14, 2015 presidential election, said he decided to run because the Federal Government, which has been under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) since 1999 had been purposeless and that there appeared not to be a government in place in Nigeria now. A report yesterday by an online news channel,

PREMIUM TIMES, quoted the former head of state as telling about 60 different groups, under the aegis of Buhari Support Groups (BSG), urging him to run for the presidency. The APC leader criticised the PDP-led administration since 1999, saying they lacked purpose, adding that under the circumstances, it is important for him to step in to seek an opportunity to salvage the situation. He said: “Today, we are in the 15th year of purposeless leadership by the PDP and all we have seen is unprecedented deterioration in the security and law and order situation, astronomical rise in the incidence and intensity of corruption, and in the failure of governance. “And as we reach this last lap of the journey, I would like to request that we concentrate all our efforts and energy toward realising and achieving change in how this coun-

try is run. “The only way to meaningful change in this country is to vote the PDP out of power to which it was never legitimately elected, anyway. The task before us today is wide ranging and very great. The first and most important is to take away power from those who have been misusing it. “Indeed, except for the call of patriotism, publicspiritedness and an abiding love for the people of this country, nothing will today make honest, honourable and sane politician want to be saddled with Nigeria and an economy in trouble and a society in even deeper trouble – with its perilous security situation, with its extensive and almost unmanageable corruption and with its pervasive lawlessness. And a government – is there really a government? – that is not working. “With your support, I intend to offer myself for

the position of the president of the republic on the platform of our great party. “I intend to make a formal announcement soon (October 8), and I hope I can count on your continuing support and sacrifice.” The APC leader, however, urged the groups not to limit their support to him alone, saying, “I will like to point out to you that, to be more meaningful, your support must extend beyond my person and always be available to the party and all those the party puts forward; because it is the party that is the platform.” According to him, the APC is a party with several qualified people for each and all the positions that would be contested, including that of the president.” He said the primaries would determine who eventually represent the party in which capacity, adding: “If I get the party nomination, I expect you

will redouble your effort and commitment until we clinch the presidency. But in the event that it happens to be one of the other aspirants who wins, I will expect you as good party men to extend to him your total support. We are a united party, and united we shall remain, because our strength lies in our unity.” Buhari said he was proud and thankful of his supporters, adding that although “we may be the most under-funded project in the history of this country, but by the grace of God and your support, we are the greatest crowd puller in the nation today; and the credit for all this goes to you for being there on the scene of the struggle.” He, however, warned all his supporters, volunteers and other well-wishers within the APC and outside the party not to insult or be rude to any other aspirant or party leader on his behalf.

29o C 21oC Storms

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18o C 9oC Very Cloudy

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

TODAY’S WEATHER FORECAST ABUJA

FLIGHT SCHEDULE

Vice-Chancellor, National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), Prof. Vincent Ado Tennebe (left), presenting admission letter to former President Olusegun Obasanjo for his PhD programme in Lagos…yesterday. PHOTO: MOJEED ALABI

Hilary Clinton lauds New York Times, New Telegraph partnership CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

them a window to market their products and services to the international community. The Board of Editors of New Telegraph has since been working round the clock to ensure a hitch-free take-off of the weekly insert and is leaving nothing to chance. The International New York Times insert, which is to be published every Monday, is sequel to the granting of an exclusive licence by the New York Times to New Telegraph,

to print and distribute the publication in Nigeria every week for the next three years. As a result, business and political leaders in Nigeria will, from next Monday, be able to join their counterparts across the globe in reading one of the world’s most reputable newspapers. The insert will be a cobranded weekly section in New Telegraph, in the layout and typography of the New York Times domestic edition. It shall be composed of news cover-

age, business, arts, science, commentary, colour photos and graphics about the United States, world affairs, culture and social trends. The deal with the New York Times (NYT) is the first of its kind by the newspaper with any newspaper organisation in Africa and it entails New Telegraph carrying the 12-page insert of which is produced by chief correspondents and editors of NYT, every Monday for the next three years. Also as part of the

deal, New Telegraph will display a PDF version of each issue of the insert on the newspaper’s website, http://www.newtelegraphonline.com, for a period of no more than 14 days following the first publication. The New York Times is an American daily newspaper, founded in New York City in September 18, 1851, and has continuously published since then. It has won 112 Pulitzer Prizes, more than any other news organisation in the United States.

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

News

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Reps divided over Electoral Act amendment lGive INEC exclusive powers to deploy troops Philip Nyam Abuja

he House of Representatives yesterday averted another rowdy session even as members disagreed over attempts to amend the Electoral Act No. 6, 2010 forcing the

Three Boko Haram members jailed for 75yrs Akeem Nafiu

deputy speaker, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, to suspend consideration of the bill indefinitely. It, however, granted the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) the exclusive powers to request for deployment of military during elections by amending section 29 (1) of the Electoral Act. If this amendment is signed into law, deployment of military during elections can only be done with the request from INEC. The amended section 29 (1) reads: “Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law and for pur-

poses of securing the vote, the Commission shall be responsible for requesting for the deployment of relevant security personnel necessary for elections or registration of voters and shall assign them in the manner determined by the commission in consultation with the relevant security agencies. “Provided that the Commission shall only request for the deployment of the Nigerian Armed Forces only for the purpose of securing the distribution and delivery of election materials and protection of election officials.” Although this created

a heated debate between Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmakers as the PDP led by the Deputy House Leader, Hon. Leo Ogor, argued vehemently that the proposed amendment be deleted out rightly to deny INEC the powers to request for deployment of armed forces. Ogor’s position was countered by the Minority Leader, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, and Hon. Simon Arabor who submitted that the clause cannot be deleted at that stage and should be put to vote. When the deputy speaker put it to question,

the ayes overwhelmed the nays and the motion was negative. What however broke the camel’s back was the point of order by Arabor, a member of the Electoral Matters Committee, that an amendment proposed and agreed to at the public hearing was visibly missing from the report. Arabor complained that the amendment to section 31 to delete the proviso to clause 9, which stipulate that INEC cannot reject any candidate presented by a political party was not included in the report on the bill. When called upon by the deputy speaker to

react to the observation, chairman of the committee, Hon. Jerimon Manwe, apologised that it was an omission because the committee was under pressure to submit its report. In his ruling, the deputy speaker noted that he was not convinced with the explanation of the committee chairman that they were under pressure to submit report and so made some mistakes. He said it was obvious that the report had other defects and therefore its consideration be stood down until after the Independence and Salah break celebrations.

ustice Ibrahim Buba of a Federal High Court in Lagos, yesterday, sentenced three members of Boko Haram sect to a cumulative jail term of 75 years for their involvement in terrorism. Justice Buba, who jailed the accused persons, delivered the judgement in camera as he asked journalists, litigants and lawyers in other matters to vacate the courtroom. Even though the judge delivered the judgement in camera, one of the parties in the matter, informed New Telegraph that the three accused persons were convicted on all the charges and sentenced them to 25 years imprisonment each. The convicts were Ali Mohammed (1st accused), Adamu Karumi (2nd accused), Ibrahim Usman(3rd accused) while another member of the sect, Bala Haruna (4th accused) who was accused of providing money to fund the escape of the 1st accused person was however discharged and acquitted by the trial judge for want of diligent prosecution. Initially, 17 members of the sect were dragged before the court over alleged terrorism and membership of Boko Haram by the Lagos State Government on an eight-count charge of conspiracy to commit terrorism, illegal possession of firearms, and being members of the proscribed terror group. Though all the 17 pleaded not guilty on arraignment four were brought to court yesterday for the court’s judgement.

L-R: Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III; Delta Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan and Bishop Hassan Kukah of Sokoto Diocese, at the inauguration of Holy Mother and Child Clinic in Sokoto…on Monday

Jonathan: We can’t transform our country overnight CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5

religious borders. The Northern State Governors Forum (NSGF) also said yesterday that despite its present challenges, Nigeria could remain united and stable with the right attitude from its citizens. The chairman of the forum and Governor of Niger State, Dr. Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, urged Nigerians to mark the nation’s 54th year as an independent country working for its unity and prosperity. Aliyu, in a statement by

his Chief Press Secretary, Israel Ebije, expressed optimism over the continued existence of Nigeria despite speculations on its possible collapse ahead of the 2015 elections. He urged Nigerians to remember the labour of the country’s founding fathers and shun acts that would make the prophecy real. Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN), in his message, identified peaceful co-existence and rule of law as the most viable means of building a virile and pros-

perous nation. Fashola said it was only in the atmosphere of peaceful and harmonious co-existence that development and progress could be guaranteed. The governor, who expressed gratitude to God for preserving the nation thus far in spite of the enormous challenges in the last few years, added that the nation, more than anything else, needed those values at this period in her history in order to consolidate the gains of her democracy. Fashola’s counterpart

in Kwara State, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed, predicted that Nigeria will survive its challenges and become one of the greatest and prosperous nations of the world. According to him, “most countries that went through trying periods as currently being experienced by the country usually emerge strong, prosperous and united. Therefore, Nigeria may not be an exception.” The governor urged Nigerians to use the 54th anniversary of Nigeria’s independence to rededi-

cate themselves to the ideals of national development, unity and cohesion even the face of obviously daunting socio-economic challenges. Also, Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, called for more prayers to make the nation overcome its challenges. The governor urged Nigerians to ensure that the nation’s unity is not compromised. According to him, the nation’s unity is its strength and everything should be done to safeguard it.

News

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Fashola sticks to ban on motorcyclists Muritala Ayinla

L-R: Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole; Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Mr. Lawrence Aghedo and Speaker, Edo State House of Assembly, Hon. Uyi Igbein, during the signing of the state’s 2015 Appropriation Bill into Law, in Benin City…yesterday

agos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, yesterday said Lagosians have a choice to elect a governor who may choose to return commercial motorcyclists to the prohibited roads when he leaves office on May 29, 2015. Fashola, who expressed concern that despite the visible gains of the Lagos Traffic Law, some residents kept quiet when some politicians were clamouring for the return of the motorcyclists on the prohibited roads to score cheap political point. He said the hallmark of his responsibility as a governor was to ensure the safety of lives and property of residents, which could also be achieved with a policy to regulate operations of commercial motorcyclists.

$1bn security loan: Okonjo-Iweala, Minimah absent at Reps’ hearing deffence

More time will elapse as president Goodluck Jonathan awaits approval for more cash to fight terrorists Philip Nyam Abuja

he public hearing organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Finance on the request of a $1 billion loan by President Goodluck Jonathan to fight insurgency could not hold yesterday as Fi-

nance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.Gen. Kenneth Minimah, were absent. The absence of the duo forced the joint Committee on Finance and Loans and Debts to postpone the public hearing. Most members and other stakeholders had gathered at the venue of the public hearing in anticipation of the event, but left disappointed as there was no reason given for their absence. But at the plenary, Deputy Leader of the House, Hon. Leo Ogor, reminded the deputy

speaker of the need to impress it on the joint committee to turn in its report to enable the House take a decision on the $1 billion loan request. Ogor argued that the non-presentation of the report was delaying action on the loan, saying the Senate had already approved it. The deputy speaker, who thought the public hearing was underway, informed the deputy house leader that the exercise was currently going on somewhere in the National Assembly premises. It will be recalled that President Jonathan had

sent the $1 billion loan request since July 16, 2014, to the House for approval for the procurement of arms to tackle insurgency in the country. Although, the senate granted the presidential request last week amidst bickering from APC senators, the House is yet to attend to the loan request. Both the Chairman of the House Committee on Finance, Hon. Abdulmuminu Jibrrin and his Loans and Debts counterpart, Hon. Yinka Adejare, did not comment on the postponement and when the joint committee would reopen the public hearing.

Buhari gets Kaduna APC lawmakers’ backing l Tells supporters: ‘Don’t insult anybody on my behalf’

Ibraheem Musa and Adesina Wahab

awmakers of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Kaduna State House of Assembly have endorsed General Muhammadu Buhari as the party’s presidential candidate, arguing that he remains the only candidate that can compete favourably with any candidate from the other political parties in the 2015 presidential election. Addressing a press conference yesterday, the Minority Leader, Hon. Muhammad Ali, said they

also resolved to endorse General Buhari because he is an incorruptible leader. “When General Muhammadu Buhari was the Head of State, Nigeria blossomed as a nation and discipline was restored and Nigeria was respected worldwide. We are all living witnesses to the fact that General Buhari made a difference in the life of this country within permissible space that was allowed by the agents’ provocateurs,” he said. Meanwhile, General Buhari will today inau-

gurate the Ekiti Parapo Square as part of activities marking the fourth anniversary of the Governor Kayode Fayemi administration in Ekiti State. According to the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Yinka Oyebode, in a release in Ado-Ekiti yesterday, Buhari would be supported by other eminent Nigerians. Also, Buhari yesterday called on his supporters to stay focused, shun insult and rudeness to any aspirant on his behalf. Buhari gave the advice in Abuja while addressing

his 66 support groups that came under one umbrella, Buhari Support Centre. According to him, whoever engages in any of the acts will be assumed to be working for the enemy. ”I must warn all my supporters, volunteers and other well-wishers within the party or even out of it, not to insult or be rude to any other aspirant or party leader on my behalf. “My supporters must not engage in any kind of behaviour or conduct that will tarnish the image of any leader or promote division and rancour within the ranks of the party.”

Speaking shortly before inaugurating the One-Stop Centre for Vehicle Administration, the governor said residents have a better opportunity to choose between a governor who will sustain the gains of the Lagos Traffic Law 2012 and a governor who cares less about the safety of lives and property of the residents. He said: “That is the only reason we are in government; to save lives and property. For me, that is what government should be doing: to save lives and property, that is the only reason to seek and acquire power. “Now, those who don’t really care, say there

should be no regulation for motorcycles. Lagosians are keeping quiet about this. Perhaps that is what you want. This is the time to make the choice. It is the choice between policy that saves lives and the one that endangers lives and you have to make that choice as you all know I’m leaving. “You have to choose another governor and you have to decide whether to choose a governor that will bring commercial motorcyclists back and the one that manages public transportation in a way that everyone would have a fair share and everybody is safe. So, these are the choices,” the governor said.

Pre-election campaign: PAC wants INEC to sanction offending parties Onyekachi Eze ABUJA

he Inter Party Advisory Council (IPAC) has called on the Independence National Electoral Commission (INEC) to sanction political parties that violated the electoral act on the commencement of electoral campaigns. At the third quarterly meeting between the commission and registered political parties in Abuja, IPAC Chairman, Dr. Tanko Yunisa, said the parties are violating the law through the use of third party campaigns. He also decried what he called the use of shadow civil society groups to perform the duties of political parties in organising the campaigns and expressed worry that the electoral body seemed to

be helpless in the face of the violation. “A number of political parties have started campaigning, using the third party group in violation of the electoral act that provides a 90-day window. “High public servants are seen on the rostrum making speeches while INEC watches helplessly. INEC must call them to order,” Yunusa noted. He added that political office seekers are spending huge amounts of money on campaigns that transcend the limit of campaign expenditure as contained in the Electoral Act. IPAC had earlier called on the commission to enforce the aspect of the Electoral Act that gave a 90-day window on political parties to commence electioneering campaigns.

Zakzaky exposes plan to use fake Shi’ites to kill soldiers Ibraheem Musa Kaduna

he leader of an Islamic movement in Nigeria, Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky, has alerted the nation that the army had planned to infiltrate his sect and kill other unsuspecting soldiers in order to blame his followers for the deaths. In a statement issued yesterday by Malam Ibrahim Usman, the Sheikh reportedly told his followers about the aborted plan at Hussainiyah Baqiyyatullah Centre, after his weekly Quránic study in Zaria. According to the statement, Zakzaky said the

plan was to make some armed soldiers wear Hurras (Guards) traffic control volunteers’ uniforms, and they would open fire on unsuspecting soldiers, who will be passing by. “While this is happening, they would have their camera ready, filming it and later blame it on ‘Shi’ites.’ They would then begin a manhunt and indiscriminate shooting of people,” the sect leader reportedly told his followers. He further disclosed that the unsuspecting soldiers had actually arrived Leventis Roundabout, scene of the planned shooting, “but a sudden heavy downpour foiled the plan.”

News

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

AMCON appeals ruling against take-over of Bi-Courtney’s assets Akeem Nafiu

arely twentyfour hours after an ex-parte order granted in its favour to take-over Bi-Courtney’s assets was vacated by Justice Ibrahim Buba of Federal High Court, Lagos, Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) has headed to the Court of Appeal. The order had included the take-over of BiCourtney’s assets such as the Muritala Mohammed Airport (MMA2). AMCON in its appeal is asking the apex court to invalidate Justice

Buba’s verdict on the grounds that the judge misapplied the law when he barred the asset managers from taking over all Bi-Courtney assets following its inability to offset a N50bn debt owed it. Justice Buba had in a ruling on Monday, set aside an earlier order made by his brother judge, Justice Okon Abang, empowering AMCON to take over the assets of Bi-Courtney group over the N50billion debt. Justice Abang in the ex-parte order had equally approved the appointment of a former Presi-

dent of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Olisa Agbakoba (SAN) as the receiver/manager over Bi-Courtney assets. However, Justice Buba, in the ruling, upturned Justice Abang’s orders, on the grounds that it amounted to an abuse of court process as the orders were made in the ‘face’ of previous orders and suits in respect of the subject matter. Dissatisfied with the order, AMCON, through its counsel, Agbakoba, filed a notice of appeal and formulated four grounds before the appellate court. On ground one, Ag-

bakoba argued that Justice Buba erred in law and misdirected himself when he heard and granted the oral application of counsels to the Bi-Courtney Group to vacate the receivership, possession and freezing orders made by Justice Abang on September 22, without such application being fixed for hearing. Besides, Agbakoba contended that Part XIV of AMCON Practice Directions, 2013 was clear that all applications other than a simple application must be filed and served on each party before hearing. On ground two, the ap-

pellant (AMCON) argued that Justice Buba equally erred and misapplied the law when he held that the orders of Justice Abang amounted to an abuse of court process, as the cause of action in the suit before Justice Buba was different from that which Justice Abang based his orders. Specifically, the appellant added that there was a full disclosure of all relevant materials and facts at the time Justice Abang was moved to grant the orders, and as such Justice Buba was legally wrong to arrive at the conclusion that AMCON misled Justice Abang.

AMCON however, averred that Justice Buba was equally wrong when he held that the discharge of Justice Abang’s orders had concluded the suit, as Sections 49 and 50 of AMCON Act allowed the appellant a period of 14 days from the date an order was granted to file a debt recovery action. Accordingly, AMCON insisted that the orders by Justice Buba setting aside Justice Abang’s orders, were made without jurisdiction as it was trite in law that a court could not grant prayers not sought by any of the parties before it.

Oshiomhole assents to N159.3bn fiscal bill Cajetan Mmuta Benin

overnor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo state yesterday assented to the appropriation budget of about N159.3 billion for 2015 fiscal year into law, with a warning on management of some electronic media houses operating in the state to desist from factionalising the state legislature. He also called the bluff of the activities of nine Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lawmakers who absented themselves from the proceedL-R: Acting Vice-Chancellor, Edwin Clark University, Prof Timothy Oyebode Olagbenro; founder, Chief Edwin Clark and founder, The Truth ings of the house. Advocate of Nigeria, Dr. Love Arugu, during the donation of books and journals to the university in Abuja…yesterday. Governor Oshiom PHOTO: ELIJAH OLALUYI hole stated this when he accepted details of the budget from the Speaker of the state house of assembly Hon. Uyi Igbe. He Akeem Nafiu Sued are the Acting the day was for the court judgment, adding that the Governor of Adamawa to deliver its judgment application should not be ustice Abang Okon State, Mr. Umaru Fintiri, in the suit, having enter- entertained. of a Federal High Adamawa State House of tained argument from Justice Abang in Court in Lagos will Assembly and the Acting parties. a ruling held that alon October 16 entertain Chief Judge of the State, But Chief Wole Olani- though the court had Uwakwe Abugu an application, seeking to Justice Ambrose Mam- pekun (SAN), represent- adjourned the matter Enugu set aside a suit challeng- madi. ing the first, second and for judgment, it was in ing the impeachment of Others are chairman third respondent respec- the overriding interest ormer national chairformer Governor of Ad- of the seven-member tively, drew the court’s of justice to hear the apman of the People’s amawa State, Murtala panel that investigated attention to his pending plication of counsel to Democratic Party (PDP), Nyako. allegations of gross mis- application before it. the respondents. A Lagos-based law- conduct against Nyako, He argued that the The judge said: “On Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo yer, Mr. Olukoya Ogung- Justice Buba Kajama, originating processes September 11 during and former member of beje, had filed the suit to Independent National were not served on his the court’s vacation, I the House of RepresentaElectoral Commission clients, adding that when adjourned this matter tives, Ambassador (Mrs.) challenge the legality of Nyako’s impeachment (INEC) and the Inspector the lapses in the proceed- for judgment, having Justina Eze were among ings were brought to the heard parties in the suit. leaders of the Enugu by members of the state General of Police (IGP). House of Assembly on Justice Okon Abang court’s attention, the However, on September North senatorial zone had taken arguments court directed counsel 22, the court registrar of the party that rose in July, 15. The lawyer in the suit from parties on Septem- to adopt their written ad- drew my attention in defence of the endorseargued that Nyako’s im- ber 11, and had reserved dresses. chambers, to an applica- ment of Hon. Ifeanyi Olanipekun urged the tion by the first, second Ugwuanyi as the party’s peachment was a clear judgment till September derogation from the due 30. court for leave to move and third respondent; I consensus candidate for process of law. He howAt the resumed hear- his application. then fixed it for hearing the 2015 governorship ever asked the court for ing of the case yesterday, However, the applicant on September 26, and or- election in Enugu State an order reinstating him Ogungbeje reminded the insisted that the business dered hearing notices to as effected by the PDP as governor. Caucus of the zone last court that the business of of the court was to deliver be issued on parties.”

Court hears suit on Nyako’s impeachment October 16

signed same into law at a brief ceremony held at the Government House Benin, the state capital. This year’s budget was passed by the house and signed into law by the governor after parliament raised it from initial N156.7b to about N159. 3b, amounting to about N3bn differentiation. Oshiomhole described the reports of the listed electronic media houses as laughable and warned the owners not to put their medium into wrong use, adding that “you can’t refer to the parliament in terms of factions”. According to him, there is evidence about the fact that Edo state is working and the various arms of government are functioning optimally.

Nwodo, Eze endorse Ugwuanyi for Enugu PDP guber slot

Friday. Both Nwodo and Eze are from the Enugu North zone of the party and they are members of the Board of Trustees (BOT) of PDP. They reacted separately yesterday to the protest by Senator Ayogu Eze, a governorship aspirant from the zone who had on Monday addressed newsmen in Abuja, rejecting the endorsement of Hon. Ugwuanyi, a member of the House of Representatives adopted by the Enugu North senatorial zone caucus as the party’s governorship consensus candidate for next year’s election.

Metro Flood destroys houses, cars in Ilorin

One of the affected houses at Ita Amodu Biodun Oyeleye Ilorin

roperty, goods, household items, cars and other valuables worth millions of naira have been lost to downpour in Ilorin, Kwara State. Although at press time, no death had been reported, many of the residents whose houses or business premises were affected claimed their losses would run into millions of naira. The flood, which followed the downpour that started at 2am and ended about 3am, pulled down many fences and destroyed properties. Occupants of houses No 1 and 4 on Motunrayo Olanipekun Close, SakaSaka Street at Odota area of the state

Some of the damaged cars

capital, lost three vehicles which were crushed by the collapsed fence, apart from household items destroyed when the flood broke into their homes. The flood also affected those living beside the bridge on Oko-Erin Road. The flood covered the bridge, according to some of the residents. When our correspondent visited the area yesterday, the water had receded but the debris it carried to the place were yet to be cleared while the residents were salvaging the remnants of their property. The flood also destroyed three sections of the fence of the Irewolede Housing Estate on Asa Dam Road and the fences of two buildings beside the bridge near Circular Hotel. Also affected were houses beside the bridge at the popular Ita Amodu busi-

Applicants to get driving license in two hours Muritala Ayinla

agos State Government yesterday said that drivers in the state would begin to process and get their driving licences in two hours. The Commissioner for Transportation, Comrade Kayode Opeifa, disclosed this at the inauguration of the Motor Vehicle Administration Agency (MVAA)’s One-Stop Centre. He also said that no fewer than 302,000 driving licences were fully processed from 2011 till this year, adding that about 194,000 applicants were

ABIODUN BELLO FEATURES Editor

abiodun.bello@newtelegraphonline. com

yet to be processed out of the 511,030 captured since then. Opeifa said that with the new one-stop centre, the state MVAA had further raised its capacity to benchmark the best in the world in the provision of cutting-edge vehicle documentation service and products. He said: “The building we are commission-

ing today will afford Lagosians the opportunity to come into this building, fill their forms, access the internet, pay at the same point, visit the Motor Vehicle Administration Agency, Vehicle Inspection Services, do their data capture and get their temporary driving licence the same day within maximum of two hours.

Teachers pray for Nigeria Biodun Oyeleye Ilorin

ore than 2,000 Christian teachers will converge on Ilorin, Kwara State from tomorrow till Sunday to deliberate on how to effectively perform their roles and fulfil their calling as destiny moulders.

The meeting, a baby of the Africa Christian Teachers (ACT), is expected to draw participants from across Nigeria and some neighbouring countries according to a statement by Nigeria’s National President of ACT, Prof Gbenga Oyeyemi, and the International Director of the programme, Olusola Adebayo.

ness area of the state capital. Some of the residents called on the government to conduct integrity test on the bridge because many heavy-duty vehicles use the road on a daily basis. Mr Adam Olanipekun, whose house at Saka-Saka Street was damaged, said the flood was diverted to the area from Olorunsogo because of a row of makeshift shops built there. He said: “The rain started about 2am on Tuesday. It is actually the rainwater from Olorunsogo area which was blocked by a row of shops around there that diverted the flood to our houses. “The flood pulled down fences which fell on three cars and destroyed them beyond repairs.” One of the victims, Mr Olaoge Segun, an official of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), who

lost his car to the flood, called on the state government to relocate the shop owners to make way for construction of proper water channels to prevent perennial flooding in the area. Another victim, Mr Kehinde David, described the incident as disastrous, saying the people had to start knocking on doors of their neighbours to alert them of impending flood. He said: “The shops actually blocked the water at Olorunsogo from flowing properly. Proper drainage must be constructed. It happened around 2:30am, we just discovered that there was water in the rooms. We had to quickly evacuate our children. “There was no place for us to go. We started knocking on people’s doors just to find a place to stay. It is disastrous; we do not know what to call this or what to do.”

Police free abducted Chinese Clement James Calabar

wo Chinese nationals said to have been abducted by gunmen in September have been rescued in Calabar, Cross River State by policemen attached to Zone 6 Command. This was disclosed by the new Assistant Inspector General (AIG), Zone 6, Mr Mark A. Idakwo, in his maiden interactive session with journalists in Calabar yesterday. Idakwo said the two Chinese were kidnapped on September 16 at Ibiae, Biase Local Government Area of the state and were rescued on September 26. He said: “As a result of the rescue operation,

Idakwo two of our men are being treated in the hospital. The leader of the gang was coming to town to buy food when he was accosted. He put a call across to his men who left their AK 47 rifles behind with the hope that they will find a gun when they come.” Idakwo, however, did not give the names of the Chinese or the name of the gang leader. The AIG claimed that

the Chinese were rescued alive, saying that the rescue operation was tough and that the Chinese ambassador in Nigeria had been informed of the rescue. Other achievements recorded by the zone in August and September, according to him, include the arrest of four suspects for armed robbery, one for murder and two for child stealing. Similarly, one child female victim was rescued while one Toyota Corolla car with registration number AS 35 CAL was also recovered. The former Commandant of the Police Staff College, Jos, appealed to the general public to assist the police with information to enable them to rid the society of criminal elements.

Metro 11

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Changing faces of national monuments

Tafawa Balewa Square, Onikan, Lagos

Like her heroes and heroines, Nigeria hardly pays attention to her pre-independence landmarks and monuments, writes ABIODUN BELLO

igeria, even before it gained Independence on October 1, 1960, had a lot of expectations. At Independence, the country was expected to take the lead on the continent of Africa and show the direction to other countries in economy, politics, technology, etc. The country is regarded as the giant of Africa; not only because of its size but also because of its natural and human endowments. Nigeria, with estimated 170 million people, has the largest concentration of blacks in the world. Today, Nigeria has some of the best brains in almost all areas of human endeavour technology, business, politics, sports, arts, entertainment, etc. While many countries of the world waged wars to gain independence, Nigeria got its own through intellectual struggle championed by people such as the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, the first indigenous Governor-General, the late Nnamdi Azikiwe, the late Sardauna of Sokoto, Ahmadu Bello, the late Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, the late Joseph Tarka and the late Antony Enahoro. The list is inexhaustible. Many others who played prominent roles in the struggle for Independence actually died unsung. The country also had some monuments and landmarks, which predated the independence. But like the country treated its Independence heroes and heroines, most of these monuments today exist in name only. Some of these pre-independence monuments are the Race

National Assembly Complex, Tafawa Balewa Square

Course later renamed Tafawa Balewa Square (TBS) after the late Prime Minister, the National Museum, Rowe Park, Tinubu Square, King George V Stadium, which was later renamed Onikan Stadium, among numerous others. The TBS is situated in the heart of Lagos Island, the commercial nerve centre of the country. It is surrounded by imposing structures and memorials. It has an imposing entrance gate with four giant white horses and seven red eagles on top of the gate. There are many other buildings bordering the square. The structures bordering the square include the once tallest building in the country, the 26-storey Independence House, and the Remembrance Arcade, housing memorials of those who fought in the World War 1 (WWI), World War 2 (WWII) and the Nigerian Civil War. It has continued to host many events of national importance. One of the most important and probably the first was the hosting of activities marking the country’s Independence from Britain in 1960. On October 1, 1960, it was at the TBS, then known as Race Course, where the Prime Minister, Tafawa Balewa, announced Nigeria’s Independence. Probably the most important guest at the event was Princess Alexandra who represented Queen Elizabeth of England. A Lagos resident, Mr. Sunday Showunmi, said the TBS was named Race Course in those days because it was where dignitaries used to place bets on horses. It now hosts events such as the Eyo masquerade, trade fairs, etc. A few metres from the square is the National Museum, housing the bullet-ridden Mercedes Benz in which the former Head of State, Murtala Ramat Muhammed, was assassinated on February 13, 1976. The museum also hosts the Benin City brasses, traditional ivory carvings, royal crowns and the Nok Terracottas, regarded as some of the world’s most ancient artworks. The National Museum was

Many of these pre-independence monuments have lost their relevance because of years of neglect

established in March 1957 through the efforts of Kenneth Murray. It is regarded as the flagship of the country’s 34 museums. It is designed to collect, preserve and exhibit the country’s vast cultural heritage. Another national monument in the area is the Onikan Stadium, which is a multi-purpose stadium. The 5,000-capacity stadium, according to Wikipedia, was originally built in 1930 and named after King George V six years later. Onikan, which is Nigeria’s oldest stadium, was in the past home to many football clubs, notable among them were the Stationery Stores, First Bank and Julius Berger. Between 1963 and 1973, the stadium was known as the Lagos City Stadium before it metamorphosed into Onikan Stadium. Another important pre-independence landmark is the Tinubu Square on the Lagos Island. The square represents the past beauty of Lagos. “Tinubu Square was a beauty to behold. Although it has been renovated many times by the Lagos State Government, it can never be like the original. “In those days in the late 1960s and early 70s, it was a place many people, young or old, used as a relaxation centre. “In the evenings, we always go there to relax. Then we always watch those returning from of-

Tinubu Square

fice. They usually ride bicycles; they always present a spectacular view,” Showunmi added. According to him, the square used to have a fountain, which was functioning. Perhaps one of the most important national monuments in Lagos is the Rowe Park, now Mobolaji Johnson Sports Centre, named after the first military governor of Lagos State. It is located in the Yaba area of Lagos. Rowe Park is a sports centre that has three major components – the indoor sports hall, outdoor sports centre and the swimming pool. The indoor sports hall hosts sporting activities such as table tennis, boxing, basketball, judo, taekwondo, etc. the outdoor sports centre houses basketball court, lawn tennis court, volleyball court, etc. It is perhaps noted for its swimming pool. It also hosts the first and longest running privatelysponsored table tennis tournament – the Asoju Oba Cup. The park, like many other monuments, has been rehabilitated and still plays host to many events of national importance. For instance, this year, it hosted the 64th edition of JK Randle Swimming Classics. Many of these pre-independence monuments have lost their relevance because of years of neglect.

PHOTOS: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

News

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Airlines condemn high interest rates, multiple taxation Wole Shadare

igh interest rates charged airlines by financial institutions have been blamed for the precarious financial situation airlines have found themselves in. This is coming as the Managing Director, Arik Air, Mr. Chris Ndulue appealed to the government to ensure reduction in the borrowing cost of the Nigerian airlines to the tune of either 50 or 75 per cent. Ndulue insisted that the borrowing cost in the country was on the high side, decrying that this impact negatively on the operations of the airlines especially when seeking funds to acquire aircraft abroad. Speaking yesterday at the unveiling of its frequent flyer programme, Arik Affinity Wings, at the airline’s headquarters in Lagos, Ndulue argued that if the borrowing cost was reduced, it would enable the country’s airlines to compete favourably

with its counterparts anywhere in the world. Ndulue also condemned multiple taxations on the country’s airlines, maintaining that as one of the key sectors necessary for national development, it was wrong for the government or its agencies to continue to impose high tax regime or multiple taxations on the operating carriers. He emphasised that the country’s aviation industry should not be mapped out as a source of revenue for the government even when the government was not able to support its agencies 100 per cent, but rather, the operating airlines should be supported by the government to continue to create employment opportunities for Nigerian youths. He said: “We keep saying that what we expect from the government is just the environment for doing business. As long as this environment is good, everybody is happy, including Arik Air.”

L-R: Designer of the Nigeria National flag, Pa Michael Akinkunmi; Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun and his wife, Olufunso, after Akinkunmi and Amosun were conferred with the National Awards of Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic (OFR) and the Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) respectively, at the 2014 National Honours Award Investiture in Abuja…on Monday

Senate to overrule Jega on new polling units

Chukwu David Abuja

Adamawa: INEC clears seven candidates, 30 observers Onyekachi Eze ABUJA

he Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has cleared seven candidates for the Adawawa State governorship bye-election scheduled for October 11. The candidates are: Sen. Mohammed Umar Jibrilla of All Progressives Congress with Martins Babale as his running mate; Aminu Hamman-Joda Furo of All Progressives Grand Alliance with Honourable Elisha Jalo as running mate; Kowa Party’s Aminu Dahiru Abubakar Waziri, with Raymon Mamuno as running mate.

Others are: Mohammed Adamu Malgwi of National Congress of Progressives with Serah Daniel as his running mate; RT. Hon Ahmadu Umaru of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with Jingi Afraimu Kandamwe as running mate; Amos Yusuf Sunday of PPN, with Semen Ibrahim Gangpete as running mate; and Abdulnasir Umar Hamman of MPPP with Ta’aziya Day Ishaya as running mate. In a statement signed by the Commission’s Director for Election and Party Monitoring, Bala Shittu, INEC also said 24 domestic organisations and seven international had been accredited. or-

N125bn fraud: Atuche, Ojo know fate November 18 Akeem Nafiu

ormer Managing Director of the defunct Bank PHB, Francis Atuche and his Spring Bank Plc’s counterpart, Charles Ojo, would on November 18, know their fate as their trial over an alleged N125 billion fraud commences before Justice Saliu Saidu, of the Federal High Court, Lagos. This was sequel to a rul-

ing by the court following Atuche’s objections to the request by the prosecution that there was the need to adhere strictly to the doctrine of practice direction. The judge, in the ruling declared that the practice direction, which was made pursuant to Section 254 of the Constitution had not altered or amended the Criminal Procedure Act (CPA) as it was aimed at preventing delays in criminal trial.

he Chairman, Senate Committee on Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Senator Andy Uba yesterday said that the senate would overrule the Commission, if its Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega went ahead with the proposed additional 30,000 polling units after being told to suspend the exercise by the senate. That was as the Majority Leader of the Senate, Senator Victor NdomaEgba, insisted that de-

spite the explanations given by the INEC Chairman over the creation of the additional polling units, the exercise lacked merit and was ill-timed. Uba, who declared the position, told journalists that the senate had in addition to holding meeting with the INEC Chairman, written him a letter, asking him to suspend the contentious proposal, which tended to overheat the polity. However, Jega recently gave reasons why it was necessary to create additional polling units and had also in a television programme on Monday justified his action,

stressing that creating additional polling units should be done on a continuous basis. Fielding questions from journalists on what was viewed as hard position taken by the INEC over the controversial polling units, Uba said, “We have sent a letter to the INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, and we expressed our reservations over the planned creation of additional polling units across the country. “What he is doing is good but the timing is wrong. We are close to an election year and we have so many displaced people

in the North Eastern part of the country. So, where will the INEC put the new polling units?” He said that some of the explanations given by the INEC Chairman were genuine, but with elections very close, such exercise should be suspended, adding that if the commission went ahead with the exercise, the senate would have no other option than to overrule the Commission. According to him: “If they continue with it, we will pass our resolution. It is simple, and once we pass our resolution, is he going to go ahead and say that he doesn’t care?

Obasanjo enrols for PhD at NOUN doctor

How about Dr. Olusegun Obasanjo. From General to Chief, ex-President will soon crown his academic efforts Mojeed Alabi

igeria’s former President Olusegun Obasanjo yesterday returned to his alma mater- National Open University of Nigeria, to pursue his doctorate degree programme in Christian Theology. Obasanjo, who was formally enrolled yesterday for the programme at the university’s headquarters on Ahmadu Bello Way,

Victoria Island, in Lagos, will begin with his Masters degree for one year before gaining express entrance into the PhD class. According to the 77-year-old student, the decision to return to school at his age was to prove to the world that age and status should not be seen as barriers to learning. He said eight of his children were already PhD holders and that he had held discussions with two of them to always help him out whenever he faced challenges in his studies. He said; “When about eight years ago I decided to register in this school for Post Graduate Diploma in Christian Theology, I did it for a number of reasons; I wanted

to acquire knowledge especially about Christian Theology; I wanted to make a statement that no matter your position or your age, learning is a continuous process whether with or without the formality of a university education; and I wanted to give limelight to this university as a veritable tool for open and flexible access for university education. “Without being immodest, I think I have achieved the three because as the Dean of the School of Postgraduate Studies just revealed, as soon as the report of my enrolment went to the public, people began to show interest in this institution and the enroll-

ment population rose.” Obasanjo said he had always liked every minute of his life to be occupied and had always set target for himself. Earlier in his welcome address, the university’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Vincent Ado Tenebe, who listed the achievements of the institution to include the growth in its enrollment population from 16,000 in 2010 to 308,000 in 2014; the winning of the National Moot Court competition by its School of Law students, among others, sought the intervention of stakeholders in the rejection of the institution’s graduates by the National Youths Service Corps, NYSC and the Nigerian Law School.

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Fasoranti: Why Nigeria is not making progress

Party system still wobbling

Political events that shaped Nigeria since Independence

Yakasai: We’ve made progress as a nation

42, 43

Politics There were high hopes at independence on October 1, 1960. For the country’s founding fathers and the citizenry, it was freedom at a great cost. But 54 years after, it is still unfulfilled dreams, leaving many to wonder if Nigeria’s Independence is not freedom mismanaged, FELIX NWANERI writes

t Independence from colonial rule, Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation held the hope of black renaissance. With a citizenry fired by the zeal to make a mark in the world space within the shortest possible time, the country looked forward to a future with prospect. The belief that the nation would stamp its feet in the comity of nations in a record time was never in doubt, given the zeal with which nationalists like Herbert Macaulay, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo, Ahmadu Bello and Abubakar Tafawa Balewa fought the departing colonialists as well as the abundant human and natural resources. With an area of over 923,773 square kilometres, the largest single geographical unit along the west coast of Africa and the largest population in Africa, Nigeria has the most envious economic profile on the African continent. The nation is also the leading producer of crude oil and gas in Africa and 6th in the world. But 54 years down the line, Nigeria remains a land of poverty and violence despite her huge potential. This, many

AYODELE OJO

DEPUTY EDITOR, PoLITICS ayodeleojo@yahoo.com

Nigeria: Still unfulfilled dreams at 54 believe, was made possible, mainly by ineffective leadership, unbridled corruption and ethnicism, which have in turn forced the various nationalities that make up the country to continue to lose interest in the union. The leadership deficit is so legendary in an emerging world order that emphasises able leadership. With a few exceptions, Nigeria has been struck by a string of incompetent leaders who have only succeeded in running the country aground, while less endowed nations that got independence the same time have continued to make giant strides. Leadership failure There is no doubt that no nation makes progress without visionary leadership, but there is

apparently no Nigerian leader since independence, whose circumstances of ascension to the throne showed that he was prepared for the task of leadership. In the First Republic, Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Balewa emerged as leader of government business in the parliament, courtesy of an arrangement that he should hold forth for the Sardauna of Sokoto (Sir Ahmadu Bello) as prime minister in Lagos. Six years after, the five army majors led by late Chukwuma Nzeogwu who drew the blueprint for the first military coup that sacked the First Republic, ended up in jail, while Major Gen. Aguiyi Ironsi became the surprise beneficiary of the mutiny. Ironsi was still grappling with the challenges of the bad

blood generated by the coup when a counter-coup claimed his life, just six months after he assumed office and General Yakubu Gowon (then a Lt. Colonel), who was not actively involved in events until that point, was named head of state. The leader of the counter-coup, and who later succeeded Gowon was late General Murtala Mohammed. General Olusegun Obasanjo, who took over from Mohammed after his assassination in 1976, was equally unprepared for the job at the time, and he gave very graphic details of his lack of readiness in his book: “Not My Will.” It was the same story when he emerged as a civilian president in 1999. He was barely out of prison over an alleged involvement in a plot to over-

throw the then regime of late General Sani Abacha, when he was “conscripted” into the race for the 1999 presidential election. But unlike in his first coming, Obasanjo demonstrated that he learnt some leadership lessons after he stepped down as a military ruler, given the way he ran state affairs between 1999 and 2007, he was in office under a democratic setting. For Alhaji Shehu Shagari, the first executive president of Nigeria, he only wanted a seat in the Senate before he was drafted to run for the presidency in 1979. What later became of his government, especially his inability to control some of his ministers proved that he was ill-prepared for the job. CONTINUED ON PAGE 48

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Politics 17

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Pa Reuben Fasoranti is the leader of the pan Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere. At Independence, he was a school principal. In this interview with BABATOPE OKEOWO, he speaks on the expectations of Nigerians 54 years ago. To him, Nigeria has not really made progress. He described the country as a crawling baby at 54. Excerpts:

Fasoranti: Why Nigeria is not making progress cheated at that time, he would regret it. For this federation to survive, we must have new rethinking, the leaders and workers must be shown the proper way of doing things so that this nation can become great. As it is now, corruption has eaten deep into our fabrics and unless we are careful, it will destroy this country. In your view, what do you think are responsible for Nigeria’s underdevelopment? Corruption, laziness, indifference attitude; these are the things that are destroying the set up and then permissiveness. What I mean by permissiveness is when a public figure steal; you only hear they have stolen so much but at the end of the day the thing just fizzle out. There should be punishment meted out to people.

What was your experience like when Nigeria got independence in 1960? Everybody was happy. But it appears that our dreams have been shattered. Our expectations by way of honesty, hard work and all the good things of life, our people were so elated, enthusiastic and after sometimes, the whole thing died down. As at that time, what were you doing? As at 1960, I was the principal of Iju/ Itaogbolu Grammar School and I have been in that school for about five years as a founding principal, I was working very hard and I was happy with the result of my work, the teachers were enthusiastic, honest and hardworking, even the students. Although we are in the bush, we put in our best, but after sometime the enthusiasm went down. What we are seeing today is a contradiction of what we expected to continue. At that time, there was honesty and hard work. Those who were coming out of school were encouraged to work hard and it was easy for them to settle down. For instance, in my case, when I came back from the U.K in 1956, jobs were waiting for me, I had difficulty in making choice so I came to Akure and people from Iju/Itaogbolu community came and besieged my father and pestered him to persuade me to come and work for them. I had already gotten a job when I was in the U.K as an education officer, when I came, they came in their hundreds after much pressure, I succumbed and I decided to come and work for them. The spirit at that time was give what you have to the community. How would you access Nigeria’s stride since 1960? It has slowed down. In fact, there is frustration all over the place, students who get out of school now can no longer get job easily, there is so much frustration and I begin to wonder what will happen. At the time we came back from the UK, jobs were hunting us, we were being chased and given offers to come and work. The situation now is very frustrating and I only hope government will sit down and find a way of creating jobs for the people. We are not developing and that is my fear. Looking at all development indices, do you think Nigeria has made progress as a nation since independence? I think we are moving around in a cycle, initially yes but after sometime, we were carried away by the good things of life. Looking at the problems facing Nigeria, the question that comes to mind is at what

Before now, we had groundnut pyramid in the North, cocoa in the South, but now we only depend on oil as the mainstay of our economy. How would you rate our economy? When we were young, we were going to the farm with our fathers and even in the secondary school and the university whenever I came home, I went with my father to the farm. We worked on his cocoa farm, we were hard working and people were happy marketing their cocoa, palm kernel and so on. But at the moment, people have deserted the countryside, each time I go to the farm now I feel very unhappy, people have really migrated to the cities and the cities are really finding it difficult to cope with the numbers of people. Unless there is a rethink to turn things around so that people will pay emphasis on agriculture. The great and powerful countries of the world do not neglect agriculture; in Britain even in America, about five per cent of the population produce the food they eat. We are paying lip service to the issue of agriculture. Unless we do that, we shall be in trouble, we are importing food and everything, so the cities are becoming choked. We should pay emphasis on agriculture. What we have now are people who love to live in the cities without producing anything. The oil is the bane of our economy and there is a shift and everybody want to be in oil, the leaders should sit down and think of what to do to turn things around so that we pay emphasis on agriculture. I still go to the farm where I grew up with my father. I still nurture and replant the cocoa my father left for me. But not many people are doing that. I hope we will see what we can do to turn things around. White collar job is our bane: Everybody runs round white collar job if not so, it is oil, and that is not going to sustain our economy.

Fasoranti

point did our leaders got it wrong? I think it is because we love good things of life, people enjoying themselves without working hard, corruption in high places; people who are corrupt are not being punished adequately and so people get away with many things and if we continue like this, we shall get to a halt one day. When you look at the federal system, do you think there is need for any correction? There is need for the system to be corrected. You talk of federal character, you donate people into positions, if people are made to work hard, there will be more jobs, productivity will increase but as it is at the moment, you just donate your quota and whether it is working or not does not matter. We are top heavy, there is no incentive for people to work hard and they easily get their pay and because of that people are nonchalant as it were. The whole system has to be shaken up and people should be made to work hard. Do you see Nigeria remaining as one entity? I think in our best interest, we should remain where we are. What I mean by that is that we will continue to work together in spite of our differences; otherwise we shall never be a good and strong nation. And if we do we shall fall to pieces and the whole country will disintegrate. In the spirit of oneness, we tolerate one another and move ahead having a goal at the horizon that this nation must be geared up to become a good nation. Can you compare the type of leadership we had at independence with the one we have now? Since the time of Papa Awolowo and Zik people are used to working hard and honesty was on the pedestal, if anybody

As it is now, corruption has eaten deep into our fabrics and unless we are careful, it will destroy this country

Nigeria is 54, should we roll out drums for the celebration? I don’t think so, I don’t feel happy if not that they say we should bring out our children to march, I should have told our children to stay at home because there is nothing to feel happy about. If they themselves think of what is happening, their own future is at stake, they are not enthused, the school is alright but they must be looking at when they finish, where do they go. Are there jobs waiting for them? If there is no job, are the leaders thinking of creating jobs? They are running around oil money and that is all, the economy is not growing, we are importers of everything, there should be a rethink, there is nothing to be jubilant about.

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Opinion Where did we go wrong? (1)

Olaboludele Simoyan

ear Nation builders, Change Agents and Patriots, I write this letter with a heavy heart and also with a heart full of HOPE as we celebrate another Independence Day today. This is a paradox and isn’t that so typical of almost everything Nigerian (which I very much am) and everything in Nigeria? Nigeria is a land full of paradoxes. Let me just mention a few: (a) Nigeria is a rich nation with so many poor people. (b) A number of us (Nigerians) are corrupt and many of us are also incredibly religious! (c) Many of us (Nigerians) have enough bad things happening to us in any one day to make us extremely unhappy and yet we were once voted the happiest people in the world. (d) We (Nigerians) are incredibly optimistic about life generally (and it is expressed in some of our daily expressions like ‘E go beta!’ ‘God dey!’). However, we are unfortunately VERY pessimistic about the future of our nation Nigeria (as if most of us have another country to call our own). (e) Nigeria produces one of the most educated immigrant groups in the United States and at the same time Nigeria has a high level of decadence in our educational system. (f) The cost of education in Nigeria keeps rising meanwhile the standards of education keeps falling. (g) Nigeria is supposed to be the sixth largest oil producing country in the world yet we refine our crude oil outside the country only to import it to meet our domestic needs. Ludicrous! (h) We, Nigerians are also peace-loving people yet there is

so much violence happening in our nation today in the name of Boko Haram! And I can go on and on from one thing to another that is a paradox in Nigeria. Les Brown once said: “Wanting something is not enough. You must hunger for it. Your motivation must be absolutely compelling in order to overcome the obstacles that will invariably come your way.” How badly do we want the GREAT NEW NIGERIA? How hungry are we for the GREAT NEW NIGERIA? What price are we ready to pay for the GREAT NEW NIGERIA to become our reality? For the first time in years on Nigeria’s 51st Independence Day anniversary three years ago I felt…. (I really cannot explain the feeling) but it wasn’t a good feeling and it lasted throughout the day. I normally send out Independence Day text messages to family, friends and patriots but that year, I couldn’t get myself to do it until late at night and I only sent to a few people. This was the SMS I sent out. Dear Patriots, The WINDS of crisis, chaos and confusion may blow over our nation! The storms of tribalism, nepotism and corruption may rage over our land! The HURRICANES of Boko Haram and terrorism may blast through the world! However, I stand strong! I am tough! I have the bounce back ability! I have the never-say-die attitude! I never, never, never bow to my circumstances because I am NIGERIA! I always find a way to WIN and FLOURISH! I am Nigeria! I am flourishing like a palm tree. P.S. Please look at a picture or a film of a hurricane blowing through a town/city. One of the few things it doesn’t destroy is the palm tree. The palm

tree bends with the violent winds but it never breaks, it always bounces back! Nigeria will bounce back with our help! Happy Independence Day Anniversary! Looking back I cannot help thinking that I needed the inspirational message more than the people I sent it to. So dear Nation-builders, Change Agents and Patriots, WHY, WHY, WHY is our nation the way it is after over 54 years of independence? WHY? That is a question we must answer NOW! Dear nation-builders, change agents and patriots, when did things start going wrong in our nation? When did things take a nose dive for the worst in Nigeria? What were those little things that first went wrong and we chose to ignore? What BIG problems have those little things caused today in Nigeria? How can we fix Nigeria? How can we create the NEW NIGERIA? What are the little things we need to start doing NOW to create the NEW NIGERIA of our dream? If we were to put all our problems and challenges in one basket and we were only allowed to solve one problem that will have a positive rippling effect on all our other problems and challenges, which problem would you suggest we solve first? Which problem if solved first would have a domino effect on all the other problems? Which Nigerian problem if solved first would have a chain reaction on the other Nigerian problems? These are questions we must answer! These are questions that will cause us to think! These are questions that create solution- oriented nation builders! What other kind of questions do we need to start asking ourselves? The quality of the questions we ask will determine the quality of answers we get!

Nigeria: A sleeping giant at 54 Orunbon Ademola

oday, Nigeria celebrates its 54th anniversary as an independent nation. Traditionally, every national anniversary brings with it reasons to roll out the drums in celebration. But in a country where the people are bogged down by many inadequacies, there is really nothing to celebrate. Nigeria, a place where nothing works, where political office-holders are there to line up their pockets with public funds, where graduates are wandering here and there with no job opportunities, where Boko Haram insurgents are having a field day, where no security of lives and properties is guaranteed, where fuel scarcity is the order of the day and only the rich can afford to buy it; where the poor are getting poorer and the rich richer, what is there to celbrate? Rather than celebrate, many Nigerians would want to pause and take stock of their country’s journey from an optimistic point in 1960 to the valley of despondency at the moment. Can a man be a toddler at 54? This is the question that confronts Nigerians from all walks of life as the independence anniversary gets under way. Though this is the longest run of civil rule in the country after the enthronement of democratic rule in May 1999, many ills still bedevil the sleeping giant of Africa

15 years on. In the main, a family political system has led to the “selection” of incompetent leaders who are bereft of the kind of ideas that can maximize the huge but wasting potential of Nigeria. With an inept leadership, Nigeria, the seventh largest oil-producing country in the world is perennially wracked by massive corruption, insecurity, poor infrastructure (lack of electricity, bad roads and a moribund railway system for example) and a dilapidating education and health system all of which have combined to leave Nigerians seeking redemption from their self-inflicted woes through several unorthodox means. Indeed, assessing a country that has witnessed many military and civilian governments in its 54 years of existence cannot be a tea party. Nigeria has seen over 30 years of military regimes and a total of 22 years of civilian administrations. And while a total of eight soldiers have ruled the country, civilian administrations have produced only six leaders. Interestingly, while the military rulers-General Aguiyi-Ironsi, Yakubu Gowon, Muritala Muhammad, Olusegun Obasanjo, Muhammad Buhari, Ibrahim Babangida, Sanni Abacha and Abdul Salam Abubakar-were believed not have impacted much on the growth of the country because they were soldiers whose regimes in

modern language were termed aberration, Nigerians believe they have not fared any better either under democratic administrations. Indeed, it has been canvassed over time that Nigeria’s problems stem largely from bad leadership. Perhaps, with the exception of Nigeria’s first generation leaders like the late Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe, Obafemi Awolowo, Sir Ahamdu Bello and their co-independence fighters, nearly all that have subsequently held leadership positions here, especially in the political realm, have been found wanting. As the nation celebrate its 54th independence anniversary today, questions and more questions have cropped up. Has the country come of age? Is there need for celebration? Are there hopes of a better tomorrow? Many are of the view that in education, economy, sports, health, agriculture, security and other socio-economic endeavors, Nigeria has not done well after 54 years of nationhood. Incidence of religious fanaticism in Northern Nigeria, political unrest, killings, maiming and kidnapping of innocents in the country, nepotism, favoritism and the like are the vices that easily spring up in the country at the snap of the finger. The nation’s political and electoral systems are not what they should be. There must be electoral reforms in order to usher in stability in the

polity. Economic development cannot be divorced from political stability. Nigerians must choose their leaders; leaders must never be imposed on electorate. Government and the National Assembly must have to partner to ensure that electoral reforms work. Another school of thought has also questioned the nature of the nation’s unity since independence. Apart from a handful of religious and political crises, the country has experienced a 30-month civil war that resulted in the killing of many people of Igbo extraction. Interestingly, since the end of the war, and preachment of reconciliation, reconstruction and rehabilitation by the then regime of General Gowon, the nation has not known true peace. This attestation can further be seen in the several agitations for a Sovereign National Conference (SNC) by perceptive political observers and analysts. So, as we mark the independence anniversary today, political commentators, analysts and other Nigerians look forward to the actualization of the dreams and visions packaged by the founding fathers of this country. They also need to look forward to seeing a realistic, steady reduction of the inherent inadequacies that have stood in the way of attaining peace, harmony, tranquility, progress and unity, in the first instance, and the accomplishments of all the characteristics that will make room for true attainment of a Nigerian nation.

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

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Nigeria at 54: Looking back, looking forward C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 1

Free at last we were, free to aspire to any calling of our choice, free to hone our talents and give our imaginations free expressions, free to be whatever we wanted to be; free, indeed, from all the physical and psychological limitations colonialism imposed on the peoples of Nigeria. We started well, to be sure. For the first few years, we maintained the strength of the civil service, ensured that our social infrastructure—schools, the justice system, water supply and sanitation, the road network, e.t.c—functioned optimally. We built our economy based on primary production— cocoa, cotton/groundnut and oil palm plantations—and used proceeds from produce exports to build our towns and cities, schools and churches/mosques, roads and bridges, parks and water works and so on. We rewarded hard-work and productivity and graduated from our tertiary institutions men and women who had love of country and fear of God in their hearts. But, soon, the black man’s syndrome crept in. Those who originally stuck together as Nigerians and fought the British colonialists to a standstill, soon gave in to primordial instincts: they began to see themselves from the prism of tribes and ethnic groups, no longer as Nigerians. True, the British had brought together a hodge-podge

of tribes and nationalities and formed a country called Nigeria. But, having fought side by side against the British and won the ‘war’ of independence together, it was hoped that as true compatriots, they would continue along that line with the dawn of self-rule. But, alas, that was not to be. Barely six years after independence, the country was already in flames! There was a coup d’état in January 1966 and a counter coup in July of the same. Whether the coup was warranted or not is a matter about which there is as yet no agreement; indeed, it’s a matter for historians to decide. But, suffice it to say that the nation’s leaders could not satisfactorily manage the fallouts from those ugly events and the result was that on July6, 1967, Nigeria was in a free fall: a civil war had broken out. By the time the war ended on January 15, 1970, the damage had almost irretrievably been done to the fabrics that held the nation together. Many are wont to wager that Nigeria is yet to recover from the deleterious effects of the civil war. Everything that has been done since the end of the war—every decision taken, every action taken, every project embarked upon, every election won and lost, every act of brutality or goodness, every political or religious crisis that has happened—has been judged by whether it goes a long way to

heal the wounds of the war or exacerbate them. From 1970 to date, we have had had five successful coups—from Murtala Mohammed’s to Buka Suka Dimka’s to Muhammadu Buhari’s to Ibrahim Babangida’s to Sani Abacha’s—and several unsuccessful ones. We have, in effect, had six military regimes and five civilian administrations, including Chief Ernest Shonekan’s short-lived Interim National Government. We have had an annulled national election, widely acclaimed to have been free and fair, and several massively rigged ones that couldn’t really go by that name, elections. All these are signs of a country that is scarcely at peace with itself. So, as Nigeria turns 54 today, it is an opportunity for us to make out time to look at ourselves straight in the face and take a decision as to what tomorrow holds. We have doodled enough. May be it’s because independence came on a platter of gold, some may rightly argue. The British did not raise even a battery of troops in tropical Nigeria or anywhere else, to confront nationalists. In fact, it was a matter of readiness on our part as the Union Jack could have been lowered earlier than 1960. Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was as elated as other compatriots as he received the Instrument of Independence from the Queen’s representative,

her cousin, Princess Alexandra of Kent. He described it as a wonderful moment. And it was expected that Nigerians would cease that moment to begin a new chapter in the journey to greatness. However, if watchers expected independence to unite the people more than ever before, they were disappointed early enough. In less than six years, seeds of discord blossomed into a bloody pyramid of military coup d’etat, counter coup, pogrom and Civil war. Peace appeared to have returned at the end of hostilities in 1970. It was lopsided peace which ushered in a new form of oppression, even worse than colonialism. Although war Head –of-State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon preached ‘no victor, no vanquished’, many believe that in action or non-action, the federal government always made it clear who lost the war and who won. But, Nigerians were prepared to forge ahead even in the face of so many odds. The extent of this determination to forge ahead was demonstrated by the fact even though the Igbo were defeated in Biafra, the country had, barely nine years after the war, offered the Igbo the position of vice president. The Second Republic adopted the American Presidential style, dropping the British Parliamentary system. C O N T I N U E D O N PA G E 4 5

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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Arts

Secret from Mother Nature, lessons from ants Book title: Greatness secret from Mother Nature Author: Samson Moses Publisher: Source Waves Communication Ltd Year of publication: 2010 Reviewer: Yusuf Shuaib

“T

he small Ants build giant ant hills because they discover how powerful and united they could stand”. Ants constitute some of the smallest creatures found in the ecosystem. They are minute in size, weak at sight, unattractive in appearance, yet in the authors investigation of nature; he considers them the greatest animals created by God. They are great in conduct; industry and wisdom. They also teach some of the greatest lessons you will appreciate learning from nature. “The strength of a man is measured not by how imposing his size or brawny his stature but the power of his will and the size of his heart” On the story of the ant, the author explained that nature has a way of empowering those you might underrate, sighting example with the former minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, as though smallish in status, who in his hay days, sent shiver in the mind of the people within and around the FCT by concentrating in restoring the master plan of the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria, a task everybody considered impossible. Samson Moses, a certified speaking professional, is a passionate speaker who understands the need for individual, family and society. He is the founder and president of Unlimited Impact International Concept, an organisation dedicated in building people towards their dreams and making impact in their time. He is married to blessing, with Naphtali as their first son; he lived in Abuja

TONY OKUYEME tony.okuyeme@newtelegraphonline.com

with his family. Speaking in a brief chart in Abuja, Moses argued that the problem of the country is not corruption as most Nigerians portray. He explained that the country’s problem is neither corruption nor has it anything to do with (electricity) power, but for Nigerians to be able to apply the principles of nature which will assist the nation to develop. “However, the asset of a nation is not in her mineral resources, it is not in her man power but the character of the people,” he stated, stressing that once a country has people/leaders with quality character, everything will be in a perfect and great shape that will liberate the country as well as take its citizens to the centre stage of the world economy. Moses who doubles as a publisher and has just launched one of his books “Greatness Secret from Mother Nature” explained how people move around ignorantly without being sensitive enough to hear from the voice of nature, “whereas nature is there to teach and talk to us”. According to him, “When I look around, what I see puzzles me, most especially in a country like Nigeria that is blessed with abundant mineral resources; yet compared to most nations we are not doing well as we ought to be doing because we refused to learn from mother nature. There are some salient principles that we are supposed to utilize that will propel us to greatness, and those principles are timeless, universal and cannot be disputed”. Moses further stated that it actually took him 31/2 years to be able to complete the book following some inspiration, research among other things, adding that finance is one of the major challenges in publishing books in a country like Nigeria, just as publishers also don’t believe in local authors. Following his future plans to compile over 10,000 inspiring quotes, most of them based on the principles of nature, he pointed out the choice for the title of his book ‘Greatness Secret from Mother Nature’ is born out of his desire to make the reader understand that nature teaches a lot unless people deliberately fail to hear from it.

Members of the National Troupe in performance during the Easter Chorale 2014

First Nigerian cultural trade show holds in Lagos Tony Okuyeme

ll is set for the First Nigerian Cultural Trade Show which holds tomorrow October 2, 2014, at Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos. The event is organised by the German Delegation of Industry and Commerce (AHK Nigeria) and the NigerianGerman Business Association (NGBA) in cooperation with the German Goethe Institute and Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany, to underline the positive image of Nigeria by creating an event dedicated to the cultural variety of the country. The organisers in a statement signed by the Chief

Operating Officer (NGBA), Jennifer Ijeoma Anoyika and Delegate, AHK Nigeria, Andre Ronne, stated that the event offers the unique opportunity to take the participants on a journey through Nigeria’s tremendous cultural wealth. “The first week of October, Nigeria will be celebrating its 54th year of independence, and Germany its 25th year of the fall of the Berlin Wall and its reunification. Therefore, ahead of the two national days of both countries, the above mentioned organisers decided to underline the positive image of Nigeria by creating an event dedicated to the cultural variety of Nigeria. “We are planning to host individual booths exhibiting

Nigerian Arts. The event is about showcasing the growth and vibrant industry of the Arts and Culture in Nigeria. We have the support of Tunde Kelani, prominent Nigerian film maker, coordinating the presence of Nollywood, Oliver Enwonwu of Omenka Gallery and President of Society of Nigerian Artists (SNA), bringing in the arts and many more exhibitors. Furthering art and culture is a corporate tradition. We invite the business community to collaborate with Nigeria’s up and coming and established,” the organisers stated, adding that the Nigerian Culture Trade Show is a platform where business can engage their cultural commitment.

University don traces human origin to Africa Camillus Nnaji

lecturer at the department of History and Applied Arts, Abia State University (ABSU), Dr. Uwakwe Esse has said that the origin, evolution of human race started Africa, while humanity later spread to Europe, Asia, Middle East and Americas. Delivering a lecture titled: “Igbere Origin facts and fallacies” in Lagos recently, the university don also said that scientists and archaeologists agree that man first evolved in East Africa. “Scientists and archaeologists agree that man first evolved in Africa, in the Olduvai George in the present Tanzania in East Africa, and it was from here that the early man traveled along the

Nile Valley until they settled down in the present Southern Sudan… it was from Africa that man spread to other parts of the world,” he said. Esse pointed out that the original inhabitants of Africa were the Negro race to which the Igbo, Igbere and indeed all Africans belong. According to him, “the Negro is black in colour, with broad nose and thick hips. Evidence of Negro origin is found in the Sudan region of Africa”. Tracing further the origin of Igbos and Igbere people, Esse debunked claims by those who believe that Igbos belong to the lost tribe of Israel as fallacy, adding that such claims can only be dismissed by scholars as ”a vain search for a noble cultural ancestry”.

He said the Igbo, Yoruba, Edo, Igala ancestors left the Sudan region and moved to the Niger - Benue Confluence. They spoke a common language which belonged to the ‘Kwa Sub’ family of the Niger Congo family group. And it took about 400 years for the languages to diversify. The Niger- Benue confluence, he posited, was the melting point of culture of different ethnic groups that inhabit the central and southern Nigeria. Esse added that the Igbo ancestors of which Igbere people originated from moved down the Benue River until they got to a point where favourable crossing of the River existed. On crossing the River, they moved on until they found settlement at in Awka-Orlu and the Nsukka-Udi-Okigwe highlands.

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Blame govt, parents, students for poor education quality — NUT chair

25&26

At UNN, experts brainstorm on climate change Nigeria has received no adaptation funding, but has been able to access less funds for climate change mitigation programmes

Education 54 years of education: The good, the bad DASHED HOPE

There is no doubt that 54 years into Nigeria’s independence; the nation’s education sector is still wobbling as it has failed to produce the desired results.

Kayode Olanrewaju and Mojeed Alabi Background he history of Nigeria’s education system could be said to be robust. According to researchers, the country’s noticeable contact with western education dated to the 19th Century, with the establishment of St. Thomas Primary School, Badagry, in the present day Lagos State, by the country’s acclaimed first teacher, Mr. Claudius Phillips. The 40 men, who were recorded as the first set of ‘pupils’ reportedly spent 12 years. This was said to have been followed by Hope Wadell Primary School, Calabar, which was said to have been established in 1895, by Reverend Hope Wadell of the Church of Scotland Mission. Similarly, there was the establishment of the CMS Grammar School, Bariga, Lagos by the Christian Mission Society (CMS) on June 6, 1859 and Methodist Boys High School (MBHS), Lagos, founded by the Methodist Church on March 14, 1878, which aimed at providing secondary school education. At the higher level, the establishment of the Yaba College, now Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH) in 1948, and the University College, Ibadan (now University of Ibadan) also in 1948, marked the beginning of higher education in Nigeria. These two institutions were recorded to have offered Nigeria a sound educational footing. However, stakeholders claim that after YABATECH and UI in 1948, Nigerians are not happy today, that after 54 years of independence, and with 129 universities (46 federal, 37 state and 50 private); 76 polytechnics (public and private); 29 colleges of educa-

Pupils receiving lesson under a tree

tion; 159 technical colleges and several thousands of primary and secondary schools, Nigeria is yet to evolve a strong education sector that will bail the country out of its socio-economic and technological woods. This does not mean that there were no attempts to position the nation’s education, as several attempts had been made in the past by government, including the 1969 National Curriculum Conference, organised to design the objectives and philosophies of education and pave way for the development of a national policy on education. There was also the Ashby Commission of 1959 on post-secondary and higher education, which harped on education as the tool for achieving national development, economic expansion and socio-political emancipation of the people. This opened the floodgate of higher education with the establishment

About 10.5 million children of school age are currently out of schools, while the level of illiteracy still stands at about 50 million

of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), as the first indigenous university in 1960 by Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe; and followed by the University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in 1962; Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, both founded on regional basis; as well as the University of Lagos (UNILAG), which was established by the Federal Government. Faced with the palpable fear of poor education system, the then Western and Northern regional governments in the 50s came up with different policies on education. While in the Western Region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, the then Premier of the Region introduced the Universal Primary Education (UPE), which was followed by the Eastern Region. The policy brought significant relief to the regions in terms of education development. CONTINUED ON PAGE 22

Education

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Education, so far, so good C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 2 1

The forceful take-over of primary and secondary schools founded by missions and some private individuals by the Second Republic government, especially in the South-West, to pave the way for the implementation of the UPE, was another turning point in the educational life of the country, which the nation was grappling for till the introduction of democracy in 1999, when some state governments, especially Lagos State returned such schools to their owners. Determined to bring out the nation’s ailing education sector from it woods, the Federal Government in 1999, under Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, however, took a major step with the relaunch of the Universal Basic Education (UBE) in Sokoto in which Ezekwesili N144.7 billion had been spent between 2009 and 2013, apart from N113.507 billion spent in the early stage of the programme. Another giant stride was the resuscitation of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) in 2002, also by the Obasanjo administration to provide access to university education through distance learning platform.

Despite the N3,042.357 trillion invested on the sector in the last 15 years, the country has nothing to show for it

Education sector today Today, there is nothing to celebrate about the education sector, if Nigeria has produced 35 Education Ministers and 13 Ministers of States between 1960 and 2014, and the country’s search to revolutionise the sector and position it as one of the best in the 21st Century, is still elusive. To stakeholders, the story of the education sector 54 years after Nigeria gained its indepen- Late Fafunwa dence from Britain has been that of dashed hope, failed expectations and loss of confidence in a sector Budgetary allocation to the that is expected to galvanise the sector 1999-2014 country along the path of growth and national development. Year Allocation % The stakeholders, who scored the 1999 N23.047b 11.2 performance of the sector very low despite abundant resources at the 2000 N44.225b 8.3 disposal of the country, however 2001 N39.885b 7.0 wondered that it is more worri2002 N100.2b 5.09 some that efforts at every facet of 2003 N64.76b 11.83 the country in the last 54 years, to 2004 N72.22b 7.8 evolve a functional education system that will leapfrog the sector and 2005 N92.59b 8.3 rank the country among the best in 2006 N166.6b 8.7 the comity of developed economies, 2007 N137.48b 6.07 have remained elusive. 2008 N210b 13 While blaming successive admin2009 N164.64b 13 istrations between 1999 and now, for the level of stagnation bedeviling 2010 N249.08b 12 the education sector, they regretted 2011 N356.51b that despite the N3,042.357 trillion 2012 N400.15b invested on the sector in the last 15 2013 N427.52b years, the country has nothing to 2014 N493.45b show for it. To this end, key stakeholders TOTAL N3,042.357tr. in the system, especially parents, guardians and students are expressing concern that government cent of the nation’s fiscal budget at the federal, state and local gov- suggested by the United Nations ernment levels are slaking in their Educational, Scientific and Culapproach in taking bold steps that tural Organisation (UNESCO) to be will put the comatose and sliding voted to education is still far to be met by the country. Nigeria’s budeducation system on the path of reckoning. getary allocation to education since According to them, the 26 per 1999 has not been up to 14 per cent.

Jubril Aminu

Rukayyatu Rufai

Stakeholders are today worried that 54 years after nationhood, the sector is still dogged by misfortune, sliding quality, poor facilities, dilapidated structures, poor remuneration, incessant strikes, inadequate funding and admission spaces, mass failure of pupils in external examinations, dearth and obsolete laboratory equipment, shortage of qualified teachers, brain-drain, deficient research and lack of political will on the part of the government to tackle these problems headlong. Another twist to the crises in the sector include the challenges of rising cases of cultism, examination malpractice, certificate forgery, indecent dressing, sexual harassment, kidnapping and other forms of anti-social activities. However, more worrisome is the challenge of the recent Boko Haram insurgency, especially in the North-Eastern part of the country, which has adversely affected education in that part of the country with the burning of schools, killing and kidnapping of students. As at the time of filing this report, over 200 school girls kidnapped by members of the insurgents while writing the 2014 May/ June WASSCE at the Government

Secondary School, Chibok in Borno State are yet to be released by the dreaded Islamic sect. Decrying how children still sit on bare dusty floors and under trees and sheds to learn, the stakeholders lamented that about 10.5 million children of school age are currently out of schools, while the level of illiteracy still stands at about 50 million. Only last year, the nation’s public university system was shut for six months, paralyzing academic activities as a result of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) indefinite nationwide job boycott. And same with the colleges of education and polytechnics. Presently, teachers in the 104 Federal Unity Schools across the country are on indefinite strike, over the failure of the Federal Government to effect their promotion arrears, among other demands. The problem of incessant strike in the nation’s higher institutions, especially the university system, the supposed harbinger of development, reached a crescendo few years ago when the Nobel Laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka, called for the shutting down of the entire university system for a whole academic session or two in order to harmonize the bedeviled system. Stakeholders are also expressing worries over the mass failure in external examination, where for example, in the 2014 May/June Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) results released by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) the candidates recorded only 31.2 per cent pass, while in the National Examination Council (NECO) SSCE, it was 52 per cent pass. According to Prof. Peter Okebukola, former executive secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC), while over one million candidates sit for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) in higher institutions (universities, polytechnics, colleges of education) yearly, only about 500, 000 representing less than 50 per cent of youths aspiring for university education are yearly able to secure admission into the nation’s 129 universities (public and private) due to lack of admission spaces. In its move to address the problem of space in our universities to meet the yearly teeming admission seekers, and to massage the ego of some geo-political zones, the Federal Government in the last three years established no fewer than nine federal universities, across six geo-political zones hitherto without existing federal universities. Today, several universities are in a hurry to increase fees in their institutions without recourse to the socio-economic well-being CONTINUED ON PAGE 24

Education 23

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

At UNN, experts brainstorm on climate change F or one-day last week, deliberations and discussions on how to source funds to promote campaigns on climate change adaptation and mitigation in the country was at the front burner at a research seminar at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), Enugu State. The seminar was organised under the auspices of the Africa Climate Change Adaptation Initiative (ACCAI). Leading the discussion, Mr. Olugbolahan Mark-George, a Financial Adviser and Consultant, in his paper entitled: “Climate Finance and Associated Research Opportunities,” said though the United Nations Framework for Climate Change had earmarked over 30 billion US Dollars to assist developing countries to cushion the impact of climate change, Nigeria was only able to access an insignificant fraction of the funds. “Nigeria has received no adaptation funding, but has been able to access less funds for climate change mitigation programmes,” he noted In fact, Mark-George blamed the development on initial absence of a National Implementing Entity in the country, which he said was recently accredited under the Federal Ministry of Environment. The financial expert stressed that the transformation agenda as being implemented by the Federal Government, requires that the country should be an active actor in climate change adaptation and mitigation process. While pointing out that over

Participants at the seminar on Climate Finance and Associated Research Opportunities.

50, 000 Nigerians were displaced in 2013 by the impacts of climate change, he advised participants to tailor their research towards solving climate change-related problems to enable them access funds meant for climate change mitigation and adaptation programmes. The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) and Chairman, Africa Climate Change Adaptation Initiative of the university, Prof. Polycarp Chigbu, who said though farmers had been contending with problems of climate change over

the decades, noted that the issue in recent time had become a subject of global concern to humanity because of its increasing impact on the environment. Chigbu stressed the determination of the university to be at the forefront of the crusade for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. The Director of Centre for Africa Climate Change Adaptation Initiative of the host institution, Prof. Anthonia Achike, in her welcome address, explained that ACCAI-

UNN was established in 2010, to partner with African Technology Policy Studies Network (ATPS), Kenya, with a view to building TransDisciplinary Climate Change Adaptation Capacity at the university. According to her, the objective of ACCAI-UNN is to “build human capacity needed to address climate change adaptation that meets Africa’s unique needs through university-based curricular for conventional postgraduate degrees, and undertaking short training courses for a wide range of professionals from all sectors of the economy.”

UNESCO frowns on state of girl-child education Kayode Olanrewaju

s the world marked this year’s International Literacy Day, indications have emerged that an estimated 67 million children have no access to primary school education. The shocking statistics also revealed that 31 million girls are out-ofschool. This was part of the reports of this year’s World Literacy Day, a day set aside globally to highlight the importance of literacy and the challenges ahead in promoting global literacy. The statics are shocking and reinforce the urgency behind the significance of the celebration. According to the World Literacy Foundation, gender inequality

is embedded heavily in determining access to education. With about 480 days to the deadline for achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), it is obvious that girl’s illiteracy is not inevitable, while girls are more likely to be illiterate than boys. To address the education need of the girlchild, it is imperative that the political will and momentum is kept apace to ensure all children, especially girls, are given the chance to fulfill their potential and secure their future. September 8 every year has been set aside by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to reiterate its call to governments and international organisa-

31m

girls out of school in Nigeria

tions on the importance of ensuring all people have the opportunity to read and write. The theme of this year’s International Literacy Day 2014 “Literacy and Sustainable Development” is to highlight how literacy promotes sustainable development by allowing greater decision-making power in economic development, social development and environmental protection. Irked by the development, UNESCO described education as a basic human right, and one that remains unfilled for many children around the world, saying accessing and resourcing schools is most challenging in the developing world, particularly in Africa and South Asia where a large majority

of the world’s illiterate live. “The problem is even more extensive when looking at the gender inequality reflected in literacy rates: almost two-thirds of the global illiterate are adult women,” the organization added. On the benefits of achieving literacy and challenges of girls-child education, it noted that since women make up a majority of the world’s poor of 70 per cent of the 1 billion poorest people, investing in women’s literacy skills will greatly benefit the society as a whole. Investment in women will go a long way to enhance their capacity to deliver better nutrition and health outcomes for their families, drastically reducing the risk of child malnutrition and

food insecurity. “Literate women are more likely to be healthier, enabling them to be more empowered towards decision-making to lift their families out of poverty. As such, promoting literacy is directly entwined with meeting wider development goals,” UNESCO added. In view of the number of women who die yearly from pregnancy related complications, literacy and education are highly important in ensuring women are able to access and understand health services and information about their health. However, poor quality education is increasing the number of illiterate children, far greater than previously estimated, according to UNESCO’s Global Monitoring Report.

24 Education

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Mojeed Alabi

ndications have emerged that an average Nigerian living in the major cities in the country spends minimum of 30 per cent of his monthly earnings on transportation. The startling revelation was contained in the 2013 report on human settlements by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme- UN-HABITAT. Apart from the heavy spending, the report also added that average of five hours per day are being wasted on Nigerian roads by commuters due to several reasons, which include but not limited to bad road network system, poor modes of transportation, indiscipline among commuters and bad governance. However, the UN says if the trend continues, Nigerian cities, especially Lagos, Port Harcourt, Kano, Ibadan, the Federal Capital Territory, among others may be in for greater troubles as the population of their residents is projected to grow astronomically, signaling a further overstretching of the already overused facilities.

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of the people, whose monthly minimum wage is N18,000 due to understanding of the sector. Recently, at the 20th Nigerian Economic Summit, on Roadmap to Sustainable Education System, organised by the Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG), and with the theme: “Transfor ming Education through Partnerships for Global Competitiveness,” stakeholders expressed worries over the daunting woes and myriad of problems confronting Nigeria’s education system. It expressed worries that the nation’s institutions, at all levels, are producing graduates not fit enough for job purposes. In other words, our children are leaving school without the skills required to sustain them to contribute to the growth and development of the national economy.” But reeling out figures and statistics on government funding, the Minister of State for Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike once revealed that between 2009 and 2013, the Federal Government has invested over N144.7 billion in the basic education sub-sector alone, while the Federal Government since 2005 has dedicated two per cent of its education vote as assistance to the states, under the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), formerly Educa-

UN partners Covenant Varsity to tackle mobility crisis These were the main thrust of the report on UN-HABITAT during its launch at the Covenant University, a private university founded by the Living Faith Worldwide (aka Winners Chapel) at Ota, Ogun State. In the report, tagged: “Planning and Design for Sustainable Urban Mobility,” the Director of Research and Monitoring Department of UN-HABITAT, Prof. Oyebanji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, noted that 90 per cent of global population growth will occur in the coming decades and that the large chunk of the percentage will take place in developing countries especially Nigeria. During the review of the report, Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, who led the team of the UN agency to the public launch of the report, stated that as at 2013, a total of

Oyedepo

3.8 billion people live in the cities globally, but by 2030, five billion people are projected to relocate to cities, and thereby putting more pressure on the already overstretched facilities in these cities. This is even as the Lagos State Commissioner for Transportation, Mr. Kayode Ope-Ifa, in his remarks at the event, insisted that the percentage is doubled in Lagos, stressing that average Lagosian spends about 60 per cent of his earnings on transportation. As a way out therefore, the global agency researched into transportation as a major aspect of human life and recommended four parameters to be considered in transportation system. These parameters, according to them, are affordability, availability, accessibility and

Not yet Uhuru for education tion Trust Fund (ETF). At the level of tertiary institution, the government, through TETFund intervention allocations, the Federal Government had allocated N268.484 billion to universities; N129.33 billion to polytechnics; while N124.38 billion had been released to the colleges of education sub-sector. “Of the amount, several billion according to the Minister were still unaccessed by the institutions, thereby reducing the presence of the Federal Government in the sector. In the last few years, he said apart from the funds from TETfund, the government had allocated N94.129 billion to the federal universities through the National Universities Commission for capital, direct teaching and laboratory cost, as well as the procurement of teaching and research equipment. As part of moves to improve the quality of education and reduce the number of out-of-school children, the President Goodluck Jonathanled administration embarked on the construction of the Almajiri Model Schools, especially in the northern part of the country, under which about 125 such schools had already been built. Pursuant to this philosophy, the Vice President, Mr. Nnamadi Sambo, said government has widened the horizon of

Okebukola

Our children are leaving school without the skills required to sustain them

education by evolving the Almajiri Model of education into the mainstream of the western educational system in the country. The Almajiri model schools built across the country, he said were equipped with state-ofthe-art learning and teaching facilities to fasttrack the acquisition of spiritual, western and moral education under the same roof. But, former Education Minister and former Vice-President

(Sub-Sahara Africa) of the World Bank, Dr. Oby Ezekwesilsi has expressed dismay that the nation’s education sector was performing poorly despite increase in public and private sector funding. While acknowledging the importance of funding to the sector, Ezekwesili traced the most critical challenges confronting the system to governance and accountability processes. To her, with improved accountability in the sec-

acceptability, saying the government should encourage non-motorised transportation system for healthier lifestyle and environmental protection. The Chancellor and Chairman of Board of Regents of the university, Dr. David Oyedepo, who chaired the event, traced the circumstances surrounding the choice of the ivory tower for the launch of the global report to the existing partnership between the institution and the UN-HABITAT, which he said began with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding in 2011. He said the launch of the report, which was the second in the series, was the first leg of the university’s efforts to redirect policy making and implementation not only in Nigeria, but also in African continent. tor, more private funding could be attracted to Nigeria’s education system. The Edo State Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, faulted the admission process into public institutions, which he noted was fraught with corruption and irregularities, drawing the attention of policy makers and operators of the system to tackle the onerous challenges. According to Prof. Michael Omolewa, former Nigeria’s Representative to UNESCO for 10 years, Nigeria has not done badly in education in the last 54 years. “If we have not achieved any other thing, I think in terms of human capital, we have done well,” he said, adding that most of the institutions that had hitherto been managed by expatriates because of lack of personnel are now being directed by Nigerians having acquired the necessary knowledge whether at home or abroad. He stressed: “Besides, the nation has been able to shift global attention to issues surrounding our cultural beliefs and traditions through development of curriculum and there is now growing interest among non-Nigerians to know about us. All these cultural studies, language studies and arts were not really deeply taught in the past, but today even foreign universities give them prominence.”

Education | Interview

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Mr. Segun Raheem is the Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Lagos State wing. In this interview with KAYODE OLANREWAJU, he speaks about the myriad of crises confronting the education sector and blamed the government, parents and students mostly for the sliding quality of education.

Blame govt, parents, students for poor education quality — Lagos NUT chair

Teachers are being blamed for the poor quality of education, especially pupils’ poor performance in schools, since no education can rise above the quality of its teachers. What is your reaction to this? It is out of ignorance when anything that happens in the education system, particularly negative things, and the bulk is being passed on the door steps of teachers. When we talk about poor performance of pupils, particularly in external examinations, there are so many factors responsible for this. The factors are very numerous. We have factors of the government, economy, environment and we have factors attributed to parents too. Not only this, the pupils also constitute a strong factor in the crisis bedeviling the school system. And, of course, in few cases we have the factor of teachers especially those who are not qualified or professionals. Could you shed more light on this? Yes. When we talk about the government as a factor, you will agree with me that government is charged with the responsibility of initiating policies. Education itself is a way by which the system arranges the students in a way to occupy the rightful or useful positions in the society in the future. So, education that does not direct its attention to how to build the future is a useless education. Hence, it is the right of the government to put in place policies on how to achieve that objective. Because of changes in the government and changes in policies, everybody wants to be identified with one policy or the other. We have seen the policy of the 6-3-4 and the policy of 6-3-3-4. The issue now is that, are these policies well packaged. Who were those that packaged the policies, who were those executing it, and are they doing it well? How about policy somersault? There are several times the government would put up policies and the policies would somersault, like the 6-3-3-4 system of education. It is an education system that centred towards making the child independent on his own, but what we have on the ground now is about a policy that centred on mere certification. And, whenever you see an education that is focused on getting a certificate, like the situation we are witnessing now, the problem is what we would get particularly in Nigeria which has been tagged an examination-based country. Apart from this, parents nowadays have lost their traditional parental role to their children. Majority of parents leave home as early as possible before the children wake up, and they won’t come back in the night until when the children had gone to bed. Most of them are parents in weekends. And, this is mainly because of the state of the economy of the country and the fact that many of them do not know what their major roles are in making sure they model the children. Essentially, parents have failed in their responsibilities to monitor the activities of their children in schools and at home. The situation is so bad that most parents don’t know the schools of their children. Even, when you force some of them to come to the school, instead of telling the teachers exactly what the child do at home, they will tell the teachers different things. Mean-

Raheem

while, it is when there is synergy or interface between the home and the school that could bring about effective communication system in building up the children. However, the next factor is the pupils themselves and the question is that are they ready to learn? Of course, majority of children these days do not even understand why they have to go to school. Why do you think so? In the first instance, they are forced to be in school at a very tender age particularly when they are not ready for education. That is, when the brain is not ready for such activities. Those who designed the curriculum understand why they said age so and so are for crèche, pre-school and primary, secondary and so on. But, a situation in which have age 12 or 13 completing secondary school education, is not what education supposed to look like. And, that is why some tertiary institutions these days that have quality are saying if a student is not up to 16 years old he or she cannot enter into the university. Let me add here that how about the impact of home video on the education of the children, who prefer home video to home work. Technology has taken over almost everything. The reading culture is no lon-

ger there; the children most often are into social networking. It is sad that when you are teaching them in the class some of them will be making calls or pinging. Come and see how our students surf the Internet for pornographic materials. Instead of using it positively to bring about academics, what they do is another thing entirely that can ruin their lives. This is very wrong for the system. Now, let us look at the society itself as it does not create an advantage for successful education. Before now, when you passed out from the university, employment was already awaiting you. So many companies would have registered the undergraduates for employment. For instance, during our school days in the universities, polytechnics or colleges of education, during holidays there were vacation jobs for students. But nowadays it is no longer so. Graduates of six or eight years don’t get jobs. You see graduates becoming taxi drivers, bus conductors and what have you against the wish. Let also look at our culture. Does our culture encourage Western education in its true sense? Some parts of the country actually see it as being wrong and sinful to CO NTINUED O N PAGE26

Essentially, parents have failed in their responsibilities to monitor the activities of their children in schools and at home

Education | Interview

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Lagos overburdens teachers with taxes

More importantly, the salary system does not encourage sound brain to go into teaching

read or learn western education. Also, in the area of teaching, the government has not done enough to professionalise teaching. There are so many things teachers need for them to have a successful and quality teaching, which the government is expecting them to provide. For instance, the government wants the teachers to buy textbooks, teaching and instructional materials, and to get teaching information on the Internet. But what is the take home of a teacher to successfully do all these. Recently, in 2008 to be precise, the Nigeria Union of Teachers struggled to bring the union and government together to talk about the financial backing of the promulgation of the Act 31 of 1993 that established Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) which professionalized teaching. It was that time that the 27.5 of the basic salary was approved. The question now is that how many states of the federation are paying to their teachers. In Lagos State for instance, it is only 16.2 that is being paid so far. Under what the Lagos State Government is paying, an Assistant Director of Education on Grade Level 15 Step 2 will only attract N7,000. What has this achieved? More importantly, the salary system does not encourage sound brain to go into teaching, because parents prefer their bright children to go into medicine, engineering and law, and so on. When I left primary school, I went to the Modern School in Epe. The Headmaster of the school then finished from the school, and simply because he was the best student he got a scholarship from the community to go to Grade Two. After his Grade II, he came back to the school where he became the Headmaster before he rose to Education Secretary. What I am saying in effect is that the best brains at that time were the ones going into teaching. After the royal setting, the teacher was the next in the hierarchy in the society. Every parent wanted their children to be teachers. But today the story has changed, and teaching has been relegated to the background. Our tertiary institutions are not even helping matters and perhaps because the government does not give them enough subventions to actually cushion the effects of their head cost they go to any length to look for means of making ends meet. In fact, go to our colleges of education, majority of them are just admitting students even without the prerequisite qualifications. In some instances, some of them will ask students without results to sign undertaking that before they finish they will produce their results. You will see those with three or two credits are studying there. Even, those in the faculty of education in our universities, institute of education or colleges of education are those who cannot meet up with their requirements of their intending courses, and that brings the quality of teaching down. On the issue of pupils’ maturity, what do you suggest could be done to address this? Psychologists and experts in Psychology of Education have come to an agreement on what age a child should attain before he or she could belong to the school setting. For instance, there are categories: age zero to two; three to five; six to 11, and so on for a particular class. And for school system, the age is

Raheem

six years. When the brain is not ready or mature for certain setting and it is forced to fit in, a time will come when the brain will collapse and things that were being taught will not be understood or absorbed. Indeed, that is the problem we are witnessing now. The reason why we have underage in our school system is that parents no longer want to wait to actually take care of their children at home. They just want to keep them somewhere and go about their businesses or work. This should not be so. They shouldn’t abdicate their responsibilities for the school. What are the challenges of teaching and teachers, especially in Lagos State where some teachers describe teaching as a hell? Well, the challenges are numerous and they range from that of motivation to shortage of facilities and pupils’ attitude to learning. When someone is not well motivated to do a job, there is no way he will do it well. So, the government is expected to put in place a very robust motivation system that will make sure that the teachers’ mind will be set to teach. That is the first thing and indeed, there are so many other ways the government could do this. For instance, when the Lagos State Government gave out vehicles to Directors, less than one per cent of the majority of the directors in the teaching profession were beneficiaries of the vehicles. The question now is that of what importance is that to us. Secondly, majority of our schools are not good enough for effective teaching and learning. Here, let me appreciate His Excellency, the Governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Fashola he has tried his best, but his best was not good enough because the system had been bastardised before he came on board. To be frank, it will take some time for all his efforts to show. But the infrastructure he put in

place is very encouraging and I want to acknowledge that. Apart from the school environment, there is the challenge of accommodation for teachers as we all know that accommodation in Lagos is very exorbitant. Majority of our teachers, at least more than 95 per cent are living on the outskirts of Lagos. They can only live where they can afford the rents. The government said it built houses for workers but they are exorbitant. How can a teacher that is earning N80,000 monthly pay N65,000 monthly for the house for 18 years. How is he going to do that? It means he and his family will no longer eat. More importantly, there is the need for training and retraining of teachers on regular basis. Though, the government is trying in that direction, but I can say it is still not enough because when we look at the percentage of the training programmes and the number of teachers that are involved vis-à-vis the number of teachers on the field, the disparity is so wide to conclude that the training is all encompassing. Another challenge is of course that of understaffing. It is no longer a hiding fact that Lagos State schools are grossly understaffed. For instance, in the primary school sector, we have not had any new appointment in the past 11 years. We should also realise that teachers are moving out of the system, while the number of pupils keep on increasing on daily basis. So, the pressure is much on the few available teachers. When a teacher looks at the number of pupils in a class; that he is going to teach, give assignment and the number of scripts he has to mark, it is not only devastating, but also frustrating. That is not the standard set by the United Nations International Children Education Fund that a class should have a maximum of 40 pupils to a teacher. Even in advanced economies, it is 40 pupils to two or three teachers.

Right age for primary school pupil enrolment

Education | Campus

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Parasitology society lists ways to curb diseases Oladele Oge UNN

ow could Nigeria be free from unhygienic and unhealthy living environment that will safeguard its citizenry from diseases? This was one of the knotty issues the members of the Parasitology and Public Health Society of Nigeria (PPSN), last week gathered to provide answers at their 37th/38th annual conference, which took place at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN). The three-day conference focused extensively on how to chart a way that will enable the people tackle the various environment health challenges in the country. With the theme: “National Transformation Agenda: Role of Parasitology and Public Health in Disease Control,” part of the aims of the conference was to enlighten the society about sanitary equipment required for the people’s use before eating or bathing. In his welcoming address, the Chairman of the Local Organising Committee, Prof. Fabian Okafor, who noted that though the conference would have been organised last year by the university, said it had to be put on hold due to the six-month-old strike of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). This, according to him, resulted

to the conference being combined this year and which availed participants the opportunity, not only to evaluate the roles of Public Health and Parasitology within the context of the transformation agenda, but to also access, prioritise and mitigate the problems of waste management in the country. On the aims and objectives, he explained that the society had initiated an action plan anchored on Action, Continuity, Teamwork, Innovation, Outreach and Network-

ing. While the transformation agenda envisaged interdisciplinary cooperation within the health sector, Okafor, however, noted that the one of its main objectives is to address some of the poor and uninspiring health indices such as infant and maternal mortalities, virtually caused by parasitic and infectious diseases, water scarcity and poor hygiene. He advocated the training of medical doctors and building and

Annual conferences held so far by the PPSN

The president of the association, Prof. Fabian Okafor shaking hands with one of the new inductees after the conference

 As lecturer shines at Malaysia conference Professor of Linguistics, Francis Olugbemiga Oyebade yesterday delivered the seventh inaugural lecture of the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), Ondo State. The lecture entitled: “Phonology/Morphology: Interfacing Theory with Application,” took place at the Multipurpose Hall of the university. The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Femi Mimiko chaired the lecture. According to the institution’s Information Unit, the university’s maiden inaugural lecture entitled: “Yahwism Tradition Vis-à-vis African Culture: The Nigerian Milieu”, was delivered by Prof. Gabriel Abe in 2004; the late Prof. Oladele Duyilemi delivered the second lecture, with the title: “Biodiversity and Science Education Divides in 2006, while the third inaugural lecture on: “Chemistry on Earth as it is in Heaven,”

38th

equipping teaching hospitals, stressing that members of the society have vital roles to play in the realization of the transformation agenda. While declaring open the talkshop, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. B.C. Ozumba, represented by the Deputy Vice- Chancellor (Administration), Prof. M. Igbokwe assured the participants of the university’s continued support for the society in all ramifications as the need arises.

Oyebade delivers AAUA 7th inaugural lecture A

was delivered by Prof. Christopher Aboluwoye on August 23, 2007. The fourth inaugural lecture, entitled: “Radiation Bombardments on Our Earth: Are We Safe?,” was delivered by the incumbent Deputy ViceChancellor, Prof. Rotimi Ajayi IN 2011. Prof. Oluyemisi Adebowale delivered the fifth lecture, entitled: “Writing and Reacting: The Experience in Yoruba Literary Art,” in 2011, the university’s sixth inaugural lecture was delivered by Prof. Felix Oluwatelure in 2012, on: “Psychology and the Search for a Healthier Heart.” In a related development, a lecturer at the Department of Environmental Biology and Fisheries, Dr. Francis Gbore, was one of the participants at the third international conference on “Applied Life Sciences,” between September 18 and 20 at the National University

…Worker named NCA secretary

Prof. Mimiko

of Malaysia, UKM, Bangi, Malaysia. The conference, which focused on ‘Application of Science, Technology and Humanities in Environment, Biology and Agriculture,’ was attended by researchers, scholars, students and policy makers across the globe. According to Gbore, the conference availed him the opportunity to

share knowledge and practical experience with other scholars, researchers, students and policy makers across the world. He added: “In recognition of the relevance of our research efforts at AAUA and the quality of the paper I submitted on “Brain Regional and Hypophyseal Protein Profiles of Boars Fed Dietary Fumonisin B1.”

Cartographer in the Department of Earth Sciences, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, Ondo State, Mr. Lawrence Akinola, has been elected the National General Secretary of the Nigerian Cartographic Association (NCA). He was elected during the association’s 2013/2014 annual conference and general meeting, which took place last month at Delta State University (DELSU), Abraka. Akinola, who is presently the Chairman of the Ondo State chapter of the association, is expected to serve the association at the national level for the next two years. He thanked the university management and solicited its support to make his tenure worthwhile both at the state and national levels.

Education | Campus

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Ebola: Pharmacists on role to demystify disease

Shadarck Yusuf

run

he role of Pharmacists towards demystifying the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) and its spread was the main thrust of the symposium organised by the West African Postgraduate College of Pharmacists (WAPCP) as part of activities making this year’s World Health Day. The symposium, which held at the Presbyterian Church Hall, Yaba, Lagos was attended by stakeholders in the nation's pharmacy industry and chaired by a Professor of Clinical Pharmacy and Chief Executive Officer of Health System Management Consultant Ltd, Fola Tayo. In his presentation on the theme: “Ebola Virus Disease: The Facts and Fiction about Hand Sanitizers,” the college's Secretary General, Prof. Wilson Erhun, advised that using warm water for hand washing could give better results than most of the hand sanitizers on sale. While urging members to always put in place activities that will promote the advocacy roles of pharmacists in containing the dangerous disease and towards improving Nigeria's healthcare system, the speaker advised collaborations with other healthcare givers in and outside the country for better status. He applauded the country for the swift approach adopted in the fight against Ebola, saying if such united front could be formed against other challenges confronting the country, Nigeria would be a better place to live. Alluding to the President of In-

Some of the participants at the event

ternational Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP), Dr. Carmen Pena, the Secretary said: “Access to health is not just an economic issue. It is also about access to medicines, which has big research and evidence elements, access to correct information and advice, and access to education. The current Ebola emergency provides a good illustration. We know that pharmacists

in affected countries are offering reliable advice and playing important parts in education and dispelling such myths. “We have been consistent in mobilizing and encouraging pharmacists to adopt best practices as they increased their counseling activities. At the same time, pharmacists have been mobilized to use their training and calling in disman-

tling ignorance about Ebola while ensuring that they themselves did not become victims in the crusade. There is no better health professional to do this than the pharmacists." Meanwhile, in his remarks, Prof. Tayo further emphasised the power of Pharmacists in enlightening the society through rigorous campaigns.

Nasarawa varsity: Business operators lament low patronage Jeremiah Madaki NSUK

usiness operators and food vendors within and around the Nasarawa State University’s host communities in Keffi have continued to recount their losses due to poor patronage and rising activities of robbers, among other challenges as a result of what they described as an unusual prolonged vacation of the institution. Worried by the low patronage, some of the shop owners and landlords in the community, who spoke to New Telegraph, said the situation had crippled commercial activities in the area and almost turned the community to a ghost one when compared to the beehive of activities that characterized the university town. The owner of Ponch Stationary one of the stationery operators, Illabuchi Blessing, recalled

how she had to stock her shop following earlier announcement of a resumption date, which she regretted had to be postponed. “As a result I have not able to pay my distributors as promised and that is already causing problems,” she lamented. Similarly, Favour Nwafor, who owns a provision store, said his business had been badly affected as a result of the students’ absence from school because of the prolonged holiday, and urged the authorities of the university to ensure that the new October 15 resumption date is a reality in order the return life and activities to the university. A landlord at Angwan Lambu area of the town, Muhammad Abdullahi, said robbery cases have increased since the students left the school for their homes. Meanwhile, the Acting Head of the university’s Department of Mass Communication, Mal-

Mainoma, VC

October 15,

new resumption date for Nasarawa State University

lam Mohammed Rabiu explained the circumstances warranting the postponement of the

students’ resumption, saying the Long Vacation Training (LVT) students, who are on

campus for their degree programmes caused the university management to shift the resumption dates. Rabiu, who disclosed this on a Facebook page for the students, said the students are already making use of the students’ hostel and the situation was further complicated by the public holidays in October. Meanwhile, ahead of the new resumption date, the business owners are already busy preparing for the students, just as the university is also putting finishing touches to some infrastructure currently being upgraded on the campus. According to the Manager of Cornerstone Centre, Afolabi Dayo, all his photocopy machines, have been fully repaired and the power generating set in prepration for the students’ resumption, saying he had also acquired new machines to ensure smooth business when the school resumes.

Education | Campus

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

UNN Biochemistry students laud minister Oladele Oge and Olanrewaju Ajala, UNN

niversity undergraduates of the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), have expressed gratitude to the Foreign Affairs Minister, Prof. Viola Onwuliri for donating a trophy to the department for this year’s edition of the annual quiz competition organised by the department among undergraduates in the department. The commendation was contained in a released by the students’ body signed on their behalf by Prof. Obi Njoku, a renowned Professor and lecturer at the department, expressing the gratitude to Prof. Onwuliri for her moral support and encouragement to the youth in the area of sports. Responding, the Minister noted that the quiz competition was part of the activities marking annual general meeting of the soci-

ety, recalling the Federal Government’s pledged to promote sports among the youths at all levels of national development. She, however, announced the cash prizes for the first, second and third place winners of the competition. Meanwhile, Njoku, the initiator and facilitator of the donation thanked the Minister for the gestures and support to the department, even as he hinted that the Katchy Company Ltd had expressed its readiness to partner the society. In another development, the curtains had been lowered on the annual 37th and 38th conference of the Parasitology and Public Health Society of Nigeria (PPSN), which took place at the Princess Alexandra Hall of the university. The high point of the conference was the launching of a book on: “Life After Death” of late Prof. Celestine Onwuliri, former ViceChancellor of the Federal University of Technology, Owerri, who died in the Dana plane crash on June 3, 2012, as one of the pioneer

patron of the association. Speaking at the conference, the President of the association, Prof. Martins Aisien said the members examined the good work and enormous contributions

of the late Onwuliri to the PPSN. As part of activities to honour the late Professor, the association wrote the book on Parasitology to honour the pioneer patron of the association.

Njoku (right), presenting the book

OPINION

The making of UNILAG: A tribute to Prof. J. F. Ade-Ajayi Tayo Popoola

ithin government, institutional and corporate circles, the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Akoka, Lagos is generally regarded as first amongst equals. There is no pretence about this to the extent that the official slogan of the university is “University of First Choice and Nation’s Pride.” The foundation of this enviable position was laid by great scholars, who piloted the ship of the university over the years. One of these great scholars was the late Emeritus Professor J. F. Ade-Ajayi, who was laid to rest on September 19, in Ikole-Ekiti. He was aged 85. In the words of Emeritus Professors Michael Omolewa and Akinjide Osuntokun, “Ade-Ajayi was largely responsible for giving the University of Lagos its academic character, credentials and physical infrastructure.” He was Vice-Chancellor of the university between 1972 and1978. In a reminiscent piece entitled: “Ade-Ajayi’s Years of Development at the University of Lagos,” Professors A. F. Ogunye and T.G.O. Gbadamosi said his tenure was characterized by growth, development and expansion. “The University made notable strides in the area of constitutional, academic and physical development. These generated public awareness and interest in the university, thus leading to financial and moral support for the institution.” In the area of physical development, Ogunye and Gbadamosi argued that “about 21 buildings emerged including

hostels for both male and female students and the sports centre. Faculty buildings including those of Chemical Engineering, Mass Communication, Science, Arts and Advanced Legal Studies were built during his administration, as well as service buildings including the Health Centre, Main Auditorium, Conference Centre and Guest Houses.” Till date, these buildings greatly eased the problem of congestion and consequently enhanced teaching and research in the university. Reflecting on the physical and academic transformation of the university during Prof. Ade-Ajayi’s administration, a colleague wondered what would become of UNILAG today, if those structures put in place during Ade-Ajayi’s tenure were to be removed. In the area of sports development, Profs Ogunye and Gbadamosi recalled how Prof. Ade-Ajayi during his tenure removed the derogatory remark of ‘Eko for Show’ which was usually used to tongue-lash and present Lagos athletes as only good in flashy and flamboyant dresses and not good on the field of play. According to Ogunye and Gbadamosi, ‘Eko for Show’ was reversed and re-coined ‘Eko for Gold’ when UNILAG made a tremendous impact at the 7th NUGA Games hosted by the university in 1978. “The University won a total of 19 gold medals to place second behind UNIFE, now Obafemi Awolowo University’s 20 gold medals.” Among the students of the university, who excelled in different sports during Ade-Ajayi’s administration were

The late Prof. Ade-Ajayi

Ade-Ajayi was largely responsible for giving the University of Lagos its academic character, credentials and physical infrastructure

Tony Omoregbe, Adokie Amasiemeka, Felix Owolabi and Francis Onwuchi, who were once key members of the National Football team, the Green Eagles. A sports commentator, Hameed Adio also featured prominently along with P. Idahosa, Joshua Kio, Felicia Ochonogor and Eseroghene Ibini, who were track and field athletes who represented Nigeria and excelled at several international competitions. Accommodation was a major problem of students in the university before the Ade-Ajayi administration. The Ashby Commission originally conceived the university as a non-residential institution. However, the plan was abandoned when it was discovered that majority of the students came from outside the state.

Ade-Ajayi died at the age of 85

Education

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

OOU students bow to Amosun on fees slash Mojeed Alabi

resh facts have emerged on how students of Olabisi Onabanjo University, OOU, Ago-Iwoye, succumbed to the decision of the Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun that the reduction of school fees announced in August by the governor should take effect during the 2014/2015 academic session instead of their earlier stance on immediate implementation. According to the Vice-President of the university’s Students’ Union, Seliat Ogunbiyi, a group of students allegedly being sponsored by both the government and the university management had infiltrated the union, there by mobilising other students against the earlier position of the students. Ogunbiyi, a graduating student of the Department of Political Science accused those she described as government agents of attempting to balkanize the union by creating a parallel students’ organ with a view to fomenting trouble within the rank and file of the union and cause chaos in order to give the student leaders a bad name. She stated: “The students have in

EDUPEACE

with Mahfouz A. Adedimeji (08066372516, sms only)  Dr Adedimeji is a Senior Lecturer and Director, Centre for Peace and Strategic Studies, Unilorin

54 years after…

one time or the other raised several spurious allegations against us saying we were leading the protest because we were no longer students, and so had nothing to lose no matter how long the institution remained closed. “But what we understand as ‘diplomatic students’ is that no captain goes to war without an army of officer. We could not lead ourselves without the students backing us and when we interacted with the students we found out that were tired of staying at home, expressing their readiness to abide by the governor’s condition.” Meanwhile, the university’s Governing Council, which ordered the immediate reopening of the campus, had also insisted that academic activities should commence on Monday in continuation of the suspended 2013/2014 academic session. A statement issued by the university’s Head of Corporate Affairs Division, Niyi Oduwole, all returning students were expected to sign an undertaking to be of good behaviour, while an investigative panel would be set up by the university to look into immediate and remote causes of the students’ protest and suggest ways of preventing such in the future.

Gov. Amosun addressing students during the protest

Ebola: FCT schools comply with preventive measures Yekeen Nurudeen Abuja

wo weeks after public and private primary and secondary schools in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja resumed for the new school year, management of the schools have intensified efforts to adhere strictly with the precautionary measures to prevent the outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease in the schools. Schools in the FCT had last week Monday resumed for 2014/2015 session following directive by the Minister of Education, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau

that schools should resumed following assurance that the government has recorded huge success in the containment and prevention of the Ebola virus. When New Telegraph visited some school in Abuja metropolis, several schools were seeing measuring the temperature of their pupils before allowing them into the school compound. All the classrooms were also provided with bucket of water fixed with tap and soap as well as hand sanitiser. Nigerians At Government Secondary School, infected with Area 10, all the students and visitors to the school were screened with the Ebola Virus Diseas thermometer.

19+

hen the Union Jack was lowered exactly 54 years ago and was replaced with the Green White Green, the expectation of Nigerians was that the new era of independence would usher in a period of plenty for the infant nation. Just as the case was in Ghana, as recalled by the former Secretary General of the United Nations, Mr. Kofi Annan, in his engaging book, “Interventions: A Life in War and Peace” (2012), the days around the Independence “were days of extraordinary hope and promise, the expectation that Africa was about to take off, and that we finally had an opportunity to create for ourselves all that we had accused the colonial power of denying us.” However, 54 years after in Nigeria, it is still not yet “Uhuru” with us as we have even deprived ourselves more of what the colonial power offered us. The reality of our lives is that the expected gains of Independence have been eroded in the long years of military and civilian misrule. The result is that a vast majority of Nigerians have been subjected to the worst form of dependence by the successive Nigerian rulers. What the literature theorists of political scientists refer to as neocolonialism is what has been applicable to Nigeria since 1960, not Independence in the true sense of it. Therefore, as Nigeria marks another Independence anniversary today, what most Nigerians mark are misery, frustration, hunger, poverty, insecurity, unemployment and the negation of all what the fathers of Nigeria’s Independence envisioned. Rather than being independent, we are largely a dependent nation, to the incredible extent of importing ordinary toothpicks. Prof. Robert Rotberg, formerly of Harvard University, nailed the head when he regretted several years ago the fate of Africa under our own leaders: “Africa has long been saddled with poor, even

Being the foundation of all development, education is one of the worst hit in our nation’s bumpy journey to progress malevolent leadership: predatory kleptocrats, military-installed autocrats, economic illiterates and puffed-up postures. By far, the most egregious examples come from Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zimbabwe – countries that have been run into the ground despite their abundant natural resources. But these cases are by no means unrepresentative: by some measures, 90 per cent of Sub Saharan African nations have experienced despotic rule in the last three decades” The don continued, “Under the stewardship of these leaders, infrastructure in many African countries have fallen into disrepair, currencies have depreciated, and real prices have inflated dramatically, while job availability, health care, education standards and life expectancy have declined. Ordinary life has become beleaguered: general security has deteriorated, crime and corruption have increased, much-needed public funds have flowed into hidden bank accounts, and officially sanctioned ethnic discrimination – sometimes resulting in civil war – has become prevalent.” With the situation of things, rather than exult and celebrate, the occasion of the 54th Independence anniversary to reflect on the state of the nation and just like Chinua Achebe determine where the rain started to beat us. It is only after that sober reflection and the prognosis of our national malady that we can then start to steer the country to the path of peace and progress.

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Money

The Investor

Energy

ICT

For banking sector, a pass mark

Period of volatility at NSE

Mixed grill for energy

Impressive outlook despite hurdles

Business What's news

Fear grips concessionaires over designated Export Free Zones

Anxiety has gripped port terminal operators over moves to amend the Oil and Gas Export Free Zone Authority Act Cap 05 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2011 in favour of Intels Nigeria Limited.

p.32

NCC moves to toughen enforcement activities The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has released a report of its enforcement activities for the second quarter of the year with a promise to strengthen industry monitoring to sustain healthy competition in the sector.

p.32

The Business Desk

Ayodele Aminu l Deputy Editor (Business)

Simeon Ogoegbulem l Dep. Business Editor

Bayo Akomolafe l Asst. Editor (Maritime)

Sunday Ojeme l Asst. Editor (Insurance)

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

Wole Shadare l Aviation Editor

INCREDIBLE

It is unacceptable that 90% of people in the world’s 48 least developed countries remain totally unconnected to broadband

CONTINUED ON PAGE 26

Kunle Azeez

obile broadband penetration in Nigeria and other African countries have reached 172 million, according to a report by the Broadband Commission. Titled ‘2014 State of Broadband” the report features country-by-country rankings based on access and affordability for over 160 economies worldwide. The Broadband Commission was launched in 2010 by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). The study notes that Africa represents eight per cent of the geographical distribution of mobile broadband subscriptions across the globe. ITU defines mobile broadband as access to data communications (the internet) at broadband downstream speeds greater than or equal to 256 kbit/s (kilobit per second). “Mobile broadband (3G and 4G) continues to show the highest growth rate of any ICT, growing almost 20 per cent during 2014,” reads the report, referring to the global boom in this space. The report further says that in light of 6.9 billion mobile cellular subscriptions worldwide

L-R: President/Chairman of Council, Institute of Directors (IoD), Mrs Eniola Fadayomi Fellow, IoD; GMD/CEO, FirstBank, Bisi Onasanya; and 1st Vice President, IoD, Mr Yemi Akeju, Fellow, IoD at the IoD Annual Fellows induction evening, recently.

by the end of 2014, there will be 2.3 billion mobile broadband subscriptions. Smartphones, however, account for between a quarter and a third of all mobile broadband subscriptions, notes the report. According to the IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, the Middle East and

Africa region alone shipped around 140 million smartphones, which cost less than $100. ITU Secretary-General, Dr Hamadoun Touré said: “Broadband uptake is accelerating, but it is unacceptable that 90 per cent of people in the world’s 48 least developed countries re-

main totally unconnected.” “With broadband internet now universally recognised as a vital tool for social and economic development, we need to make connectivity a key development priority, particularly in the world’s poorest nations. CONTINUED ON PAGE 32

Nigeria’s alcoholic drinks market to boost Africa’s $61.2bn target Sunday Ojeme

he alcoholic-drinks market in Nigeria is expected to more than double between now and 2018 as the African market is forecast to grow by 56 per cent to $61.2 billion in 2018 from $39.3 billion last year.

According to Bloomberg Intelligence analyst, Kenneth Shea, the market in Nigeria, the continent’s most populous nation, will probably more than double over the same period. Growth will be driven by a large, young population and increasing urbanisation that will demand branded consumer

goods. World’s largest distiller, Diageo Plc (DGE), is relying on spirits such as Johnnie Walker whisky and Smirnoff vodka to drive expansion in Africa, as economic growth boosts incomes and demand climbs for CONTINUED ON PAGE 32

Dayo Adeyemi l Property Editor

Africa’s mobile broadband subscribers hit 172m

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

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

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

EXCHANGE RATE

(Parellel As at Sept 26)

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

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

Source: CBN

EXCHANGE RATE (Official As at Sept 26)

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

Business | News

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Fear grips concessionaires over designated Export Free Zones MONOPOLY

Port concessionaires flay monopoly in the ports Bayo Akomolafe

nxiety has gripped port terminal operators over moves to amend the Oil and Gas Export Free Zone Authority Act Cap 05 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2011 in favour of Intels Nigeria Limited. Already, they have sent a petition to the Senate Committee on Trade and Investments. It is feared that if the Act is amended and passed into law, Intels Nigeria Limited with terminals in Onne, Warri and Calabar ports would become a monopoly in handling oil and gas-cargoes in Nigeria. In the petitition, Secretary of the Seaport

L-R: Vice President NBCC, Kayode Falowo; DG NBCC, Joyce Akpata; President NBCC, , Prince Adeyemi Adefulu; Deputy general manager NERC, Abdulahi B. Mohammed, representing Chairman /C.E.O of NERC, Dr Sam Amadi; C.E.O Leading Edge Consultancy, Dr Ije Jidema and Vice President NBCC, Ray Atelly, at the NBCC’s monthly breakfast meeting in Lagos.

Ter minal Operators Association of Nigeria (STOAN), Uzamot Boye, said that the plan was contrary to the aims and objectives of the Federal Government ports reforms, modernisation and concessions through privatisation and commercialisation programme. He said that stake-

holders in the trade chain in Nigeria and the terminal operators were not informed nor invited to the public hearing, which touched on the essence of the concession programme of the Federal Government. Boye said: “The Seaport Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria (STOAN) have taken

a position that there is nothing like oil and gas related designated port, which has been communicated to the Presidency, the Bureau of Public Entreprises (BPE) the National Assembly through its Committees on Privatisation & Marine, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and the Federal Ministry

of Transport. “In the circumstances therefore, we see these proposed amendments as illegal, biased and an attempt to serve a particular interest against the wish and will of Nigerians and against the spirit and letters of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, which the senators as lawmakers swore to uphold. “A critical look at the proposed amendment, in particular the amendment of Section 12, shows a clear violation of the existing extant laws and agreements on which the present port concessions are based,” he said. The STOAN secretary explained that the amendment to the oil and gas export free zone Act CAP 05 LFN was premised on the consideration of the substantial investments made in Onne oil and gas free zone concession to Intels Nigeria Limited.

NCC moves to toughen enforcement activities APPREHENSION

Quality of service delivery and other attendant consumer matters has been a concern to the Commission

Kunle Azeez

he Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has released a report of its enforcement activities for the second quarter of the year with a promise to strengthen industry monitoring to sustain healthy competition in the sector. The Commission, in the report said that consistent with Section 89 of the Nigerian Communication Act 2003, which mandates the Commission to monitor all significant matters relating to the performance of all licensed telecoms service providers, the Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement Department has developed monitoring strategies to prosecute the above mandate.

This, the report said, will allow the Commission to achieve its objectives of fair competition, ethical market practices and optimal quality of service in the Nigerian telecoms industry. Explaining some of its monitoring activities, the commission said: “The Commission has carried out enforcement action against Masters Energy and Gas Limited regarding interference on Etisalat’s uplink frequency in Port Harcourt, which was as a result of a jamming device installed at its premises. “Also, further to the activities of some people using licences not allocated to them to provide services, NCC said it issued a public notice banning the sale, installation and use of phone jammers in Nigeria.” The report also said: “Commission, in the course of its compliance and enforcement exercise, detected that Webb Fountaine Nigeria Limited was providing telecommunications services to the Nigerian Customs Service without the requisite license from the Commission.

“The attention of Webb Fountaine was drawn to the illegal provision of these services, which started since 2010 despite several advices from the Commission to regularise its operations. As part of the sanctions for illegal operations,

Webb Fountaine was fined a cumulative sum of N266.4 million.” New Telegraph gathered that the Commission this month stormed the premises of Monarch Communications Limited, located on the Victoria Island, Lagos,

as part of its enforcement and monitoring activities. However, the actual offence committed by the communications company has yet to be made public, as sources at NCC said findings were still on-going.

Africa’s mobile broadband subscribers hit 172m CON T I N UE D F ROM PAG E 31

Connectivity is not a luxury for the rich – rather, it is the most powerful tool mankind has ever had at its disposal,” Touré added. Meanwhile, the status of the African continent’s fixed broadband subscriptions has continued to shrink, according to the report. According to the Broadband Commission’s report,

Africa has three million fixed broadband subscriptions, which represents 0.5 per cent of the world’s fixed subscriptions. However, despite predictions that global fixed broadband subscriptions will rise to 711 million by the end of 2014, it is noted that fixed broadband growth may be flattening out globally in terms of subscriptions. Nigeria is driving mo-

bile broadband penetration through the Ministry of Communication Technology in collaboration with the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC). According to statistics, while the country currently has about six per cent mobile broadband penetration, it hopes to achieve 30 per cent threshold in the next four years.

Nigeria’s alcoholic drinks market to boosts Africa CON T I N UE D F ROM PAG E 31

premium drinks. London-based Diageo is in the process of registering a distribution company to strengthen the business in Angola, said managing director

for Africa Regional Markets, Ekwunife Okoli. It’s opened a Gilbeys gin factory in Mozambique and plans to begin bottling Smirnoff Ice in the southeast African country to exploit economic growth, he said.

“We’ve been able to reach out to our consumer segment in these markets,” Okoli said in an interview in Accra, Ghana’s capital. “The middle income and above consumers like quality brands and consume spirits.”

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

FCT Business Watch Abuja, Kano to get 100 megawatts electricity Amadi Nnamdi Abuja

consortium of American companies has indicated interest to inject about 100 Megawatts of electricity in Abuja and Kano states. The group disclosed this during a courtesy visit led by Executive Partner of Global Business Resources USA, Mr James C. Nicholas, to the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Mrs Saratu Umar, in her office recently. The group is in Nigeria to explore opportunities in Renewable Energy Development under the aegis of Power Africa Initiative of President

Barak Obama. This disclosure is coming on the heels of the quest by the Federal Government to attract investment into the energy sector and boost electricity supply in the country. Nicholas disclosed that “the group has already begun discussion with Abuja Distribution Company and will visit Kano to deliberate on where to site the project and other logistics.” They are also desirous to embark on rural electrification project across the country with a view to supplying electricity to rural dwellers and provide relevant tools or device that will assist in monitoring and securing electricity infrastructure in the country. Responding, Mrs Umar com-

mended them for their interest to invest in Nigeria and help develop the power sector, which is very critical to the economic development of the country. She promised the Commission’s readiness to provide all necessary assistance and sup-

port for the smooth take-off of the project in Abuja and Kano, stressing that NIPC as an Agency of the Federal Government is mandated to encourage, promote, coordinate and monitor all investments in the Nigerian economy.

BPE pledges support to OPS

irector General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises, Mr Benjamin Dikki, has said that the Bureau will always support any initiative by the private sector to grow the nation’s economy. He said that the essence of the reform and privatisation programme of the Federal Government is to galvanise private sector participation and engender the growth of small and medium scale industries in the country. Dikki, spoke through the Acting Director, Oil and Gas Department of the Bureau, Mr Yununa Jackdel Malo, at the opening ceremony of the 9th edition of the Abuja International Trade Fair at the Trade Fair Complex, Abuja. He said that the Bureau accepted to partner with Abuja Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (ABUCCIMA), because there is the need to make Abuja a business hub, more so as the city is equidistant to all geopolitical zones of Nigeria. He said that the Bureau would always support the effort to harness the entrepreneurial spirit of Nigerians and change the image of commerce in the Federal Capital.

Dikki noted that the trade fair provided an opportunity for prospective investors to network and explore investment opportunities which the sector reforms and privatisation have provided. The Director General explained that through the various reform efforts, the Bureau has helped to turn the economy of the nation around in line with the Transformation Agenda of the Federal Government. He said that there had been reforms in various sectors including telecommunications, ports, financial sector and tourism, among others, championed by the Bureau. Dikki enjoined visitors to the fair to visit the Bureau’s stand and avail themselves of the investment opportunities that abound from the reform initiatives. President ABUCCIMA, Dr. Solomon Nyagba, had earlier in his welcome address commended the Federal Government on the reform initiatives which he said are impacting positively on the citizenry. According to him, “business, which is the hallmark of the Organised Private Sector (OPS), can only thrive in a conducive environment,” and this is what the reforms are engendering.

L-R: Country Director, World Bank, Nigeria, Ms. Marie-Francoise Marie-Nelly; Kogi State Deputy Governor, Mr Yomi Awoniyi; Representative of the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Amb. Abdulkadir Musa and Executive Secretary, Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission, Hajiya Saratu Umar, at the Launch of World Bank’s ‘Doing Business in Nigeria 2014’ in Abuja …yesterday

NDIC pays tribute to founding fathers Simeon Ogoegbulem Abuja

he Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has flagged off activities marking its 25th anniversary with glowing tributes to its founding fathers. Its Managing Director/ Chief Executive, Alhaji Umaru Ibrahim, who spoke in Abuja at a media briefing, singled out the late Alhaji Abdulkadir Ahmed, former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the late Mr John Ebhodaghe for special mention. Ahmed was the pioneer chairman of the board of NDIC while Ebhodaghe served as the pioneer managing direc-

Heritage Bank to sponsor Customer Service Awards

riven by passion for excellence in service delivery and customer’s satisfaction, Heritage Bank has emerged major sponsor of the 2014 Nigerian Customer Service Awards (NCSA). Besides, the bank in a state-

ment, disclosed that its participation in the annual event is part of an overall plan to consolidate on recent positive achievements. Last week, Heritage Bank and the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) signed a Share Purchase

Agreement (SPA) that paved the way for the bank to acquire Enterprise Bank Limited. Heritage Bank which was earlier announced as the preferred bidder for Enterprise Bank paid 20 per cent or N11.2 billion being part of the bid price.

tor/chief executive. Ibrahim said that the duo did a lot of work that led to the establishment of the institution that has in the last 25 years played a critical role in financial sector stability in the country. He noted that NDIC was set up under the leadership of Ahmed as governor of CBN with a clear mandate and strong foundation. According to him, Ebhodaghe not only served in the committee that designed the type of deposit insurance that is operational in Nigeria today but also turned out to be the first staff of the corporation. Ibrahim further acknowledged that the work done by the two men has made “NDIC and indeed the deposit insurance system in Nigeria to become not only the leader in Africa but also the envy of other countries.” NDIC was established in 1989 to provide a “a further layer of protection to depositors and compliment the role of prudent bank management as well the CBN supervisory activities in ensuring a safe and sound banking system.”

AVIATION | BUSINESS

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Not yet Uhuru for aviation of poor infrastructure at the aerodromes. Indeed, the airports, according to the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), lack adequate fire cover, efficient airspace communication infrastructure, water hydrant, fire fighting vehicles and airfield lighting, while poor security of the airport, coupled with lack of perimeter fencing, among others, are factors militating against standard airport system stipulated by the global aviation regulatory body.

Wole Shadare

ne ministry that is key to Nigeria’s economy is aviation. The mandate of the Federal Ministry of Aviation is to formulate, update and implement the National Aviation Master Plan for the overall development of the industry. It is also to collect, store, analyse, and disseminate meteorological data to end users; install, maintain and upgrade equipment and infrastructure on timely basis and at all airports. The ministry’s mandate also extends to airports development and management, the provision of aviation security, and the improvement of airspace management. Appraisal The story of aviation in Nigeria in the last six years could better be described as ‘bittersweet’. The sector has gone through many crises occasioned by frequent plane crashes, incessant removal of aviation chiefs that has caused instability, while corruption and infrastructure decay all combine to drag the sector backward. However, it is not all gloom and doom as the sector recorded pockets of success, but the minuses far outweigh gains made. Airlines in financial dire straits/ crashes Nigerian airlines do not have access to funds with single digit interest rates that is made available by financial institutions in the developed world, but instead, they are given double digits interest rates, which made it difficult for them to access loans. Under this condition, these airlines cannot compete with their foreign counterparts in terms of financial status, fleet renewal and route development. In the last few years, Nigeria has seen many plane crashes, killing over 400 people, the collapse of many of its airlines and a central bank order banning lenders from giving its main carriers more cash until they repay burgeoning debts. Airlines the world over are suffering from high fuel costs and the weakness of the global economy, but small national flag carriers and private rivals in Africa also have to compete with global giants controlling 70 per cent of traffic. A central bank document shows Nigeria’s only other two major domestic carriers are deep in the red. The biggest, Arik, owes N85 billion to statebacked “bad bank,” AMCON, set up in 2010 to stem a financial crisis. The other, Aero Contractors, owes AMCON N32.5 billion. Most of the carriers in Nigeria have one thing in common: ownership by powerful

Jonathan

Chidoka

oligarchs, usually with core interests in other things. Ibrahim’s NICON investment is in everything from oil to hotels to insurance. Arik owner, Johnson Arumemi-Ikhide, has lucrative interests in oil and engineering. The super-rich Ibru family own Aero Contractors, but also banks, deluxe hotels and newspapers. Making Lagos aviation hub Nigeria’s government has long cherished ambitions of making Lagos a regional transport hub. When British billionaire, Richard Branson, set up domestic and international carrier, Virgin Nigeria in 2000, that dream seemed within reach. Branson pulled out in 2010 in frustration at what he said was interference by corrupt politicians and regulators. Yet the economics that lured Virgin to Nigeria still look promising on paper; it has Africa’s biggest population, economic growth of around seven per cent year after year, a growing middle class and a small, but hugely wealthy elite. Lagos, the commercial hub, is about 330 miles from the political capital, Abuja, and both are hundreds of miles from oilproducing regions in the southeast. Roads connecting them are poor. Many Nigerians, as well as foreign oil workers, bankers and other business people have little or no choice than to fly. International carriers such as British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are making huge profits out of Nigeria. President, Aviation Roundtable, Capt Dele Ore, has declared that Nigerian airlines can only survive in the industry if they agree to merge. Ore, a former Director of

Operations of the defunct Nigerian Airways, believed that Nigerian airlines must merge into two in order to remain relevant and viable. Dearth of manpower The problem of inadequate manpower is so critical that it is predicted that if there is no urgent programme to train Nigerians in the technical areas of the industry in the next five years, expatriates would become the only personnel in the engineering and flight operations of every airline in the country. Infrastructure development Kudos must be given to the immediate past Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah. At least, she did what her predecessors could not do by giving it a thought to ‘remodel’ some of the nation’s decrepit airports. That is where it ended. Experts in airports aesthetics and operations have not been too generous with words to describe the whole exercise of airports remodelling as a sham and one that costs far more than would have been used to build new ones. Surprisingly, all the 22 airports in the country have remained uncertified by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) on account

International carriers such as British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are making huge profits out of Nigeria

Retention of American category one certification From the United State came cherry news last week Tuesday confirming the retention of the country’s category one aviation status. FAA Category 1 retention elevates the image of Nigeria in the comity of nations and granted the country the reputation of nation that is serious with air transport. Since the passing of ICAO audit and the rating of the country as Category 1, the number of foreign airlines that come into the country has doubled. And after so many years, American airlines started operation into Nigeria, giving Nigerian travellers direct flight to destinations in the United States. The fear that Nigeria may lose the rating was palpable because of the frequent air disaster and numerous changes in the leadership of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). There were, however, other genuine reasons to fear. One was the recent downgrading of India from Category 1 to Category 2 by FAA. The general feeling among those involved in shaping the safety of air transport in Nigeria was that more work has gone into improving safety in the country. Nigeria’s sole carrier to the US, Arik, would have been affected had Nigeria failed the test. Arik would have stopped operations to America. It would have been forced to lease airplanes from a category one nation to fly directly to North America. The audit of NCAA was predicated on eight critical elements, which include primary aviation legislation, which is the Civil Aviation Act; specific operating regulation; civil aviation system and setting oversight function, and technical personnel function and training. Conclusion Despite the shortcomings, it could be safely said that the aviation sub-sector of the economy has not done too badly in the period under review considering the few progressive steps taken and the retention of the country’s category one aviation status.

Business | Money

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

For banking sector, a pass mark Godson Ikoro

perators, customers and analysts have lauded the achievements of Jonathan administration in the money market in the past six years. The series of developments witnessed in the sector, especially the positive impact of reforms, projects and regulatory measures they argue, have given the nation’s pride of place among the comity of emerging market economies. Prior to the administration President Jonathan, the banking sector was likened to the Aegean’s stable with so much rut. For Oyeka Nwazie, a customer of First Bank Holdings limited, the administration produced strong character, which like Hercules, had the strength to redirect the flow of the rivers that swept away the rut on the stable. He compared the reforms carried out by former Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Sanusi Lamido and now Emir of Kano, to cleansing of the sector of toxic assets and put the banks on their toes. Rescue mission Mr. Mike Bidemi a former banker, who lost his job because of Sanusi ‘s reforms at intercontinental bank, said, “the stress test of 2009, exposed the rut in as many as eight banks built up toxic assets to the tune of NI.28trillion.” The rescue operation of the apex bank ensured that banks such as Inter Continental Bank Plc, Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, Spring Bank Plc, Bank PHB, Afribank, Finbank and Oceanic Bank, were given some money to make stabilize them, improve their capital and corporate governance, recapitalize and make them saleable. The sacked banker argued that Sanusi brought back the global practice of sound risk management back to the system. All those who were able to recapitalise, like Union Bank retained their names, But those who were unable to do so were sold. Access Bank swallowed Intercontinental, First City Monument Bank acquired Fin Bank, while Ecobank bought Oceanic Bank. Those who were unable to be recapitalised or sold within the deadline had their licenses withdrawn and turned into Bridge Banks. That was why Afribank became Mainstreet Bank, Spring bank tuned to Enterprise Bank and Bank PHB, now Keystone Bank. AMCON Another measure, which resolved the banking crisis was the creation of the Asset Management corporation of Nigeria,(AMCON), which became the vehicle by which the total risk and incalculable damage to the system was spared the nation. President Jonathan signed the AMCON Act into law on July 19, 2010. AMCON acquired eligible Bank Assets (EBAs) from lenders at a fair value and put these assets to economic use in a profitable manner. AMCON’s acquisitions freed up resources for more profitable activities and improve capital position of the institutions. AMCON protected the interest of depositors and creditors of these banks and ensured the integrity of the financial system. Speaking on the benefits of AMCON, Managing Director and Chief Executive of Financial Derivative Company limited, Mr. Bismarck Rewane, said that

Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele

AMCON has equally created awareness about the soundness of corporate governance structure of the Nigerian banks. According to him, “Depositors and shareholders in Nigeria are now better aware of the risk factors inherent in the management of these banks”. Besides, the punitive prices at which AMCON purchased the toxic assets of these banks and imposed levy, is expected to serve as a deterrent to unguided expansion of the credit in future. Rewane contended, that an alternative of not having AMCON would have had some grievous consequences, which are better imagined than experienced. Today Nigeria’s banks are strong and can compare with the world ‘1000 banks as shown in The Banker magazine and compliant with global standards.

Settlement System (NIBSS), says that its instant payment (NIP) used for online transfers has grown at an annual growth of 199 per cent and 190 per cent in volume and value, respectively with total transfers on the platform in 2013 grossing N10.85trillion. Quality of service The qualities of service to various customers have tremendously improved. The advent of many e-business products and services offered by banks showed that customers spend less time in banks for any transaction, even in banks, usually regarded as being slow. Agent banking Another aspect is the agent banking system whereby a bank can have a reliable agent (a local entrepreneur) that could be used to send code to beneficiary, distribute fertilizer among others. The administration Godwin Emefiele has also started with good regulatory measures. He has continued to strengthen the financial system with the recapitalisation of Bureau de Change operators. He has also recapitalized the finance companies, and reset the template for money transfer.

Corporate governance Yet another milestone was the good corporate governance practices. Going by the reform, the retirement of bank managing directors must take place after two tenures of five year each irrespective of age. Sequel to the new code of corporate governance in the sector, a bank MD/ CEO’s who retires could come back after three years as chairman. Cashless economy The Jonathan administration also brought the cashless economy to Nigeria. Despite the initial hitches, the cashless project is progressing well. The CBN had said that the cashless banking system in the country is an attempt to use alternative means of payment in the cause of transacting business; adding that it means the use of electronics as a means of effecting payment. Today, from all the works and cranny, people can use their telephone handsets, point of sale terminal (POS), Automated teller machines to transact their banking businesses. According to a research by Nexton Services Limited, and data from the banking payments system department, the growth of electronic payment system, is consistently improving. The volume and cash transactions in Nigeria had hit 355,252,401 and N1, 6741.4 billion in 2011 to 382,252,401 and N2, 095.7 billion in 2012 for instance. Also Data from, the Nigerian Interbank

Monetary stability The CBN had in the past three years, had maintained the inflationary rate within the single digit band. It has managed the rate for three consecutive years.

The volume and cash transactions in Nigeria had hit 355,252,401 and N1, 6741.4 billion in 2011 to 382,252,401 and N2, 095.7 billion in 2012 for instance

Interest/exchange rates The CBN has also succeeded in keeping both the interest and exchange rates within the desired brackets mopping of excess cash and intervention in the foreign exchange market. Bank Verification Number The Bank Verification Number (BVN) is another project currently being championed and if well implemented, would reduced the incidence of fraud in the banking industry. Conclusion The Jonathan administration has fared fairly well. The reforms, projects, and regulatory measures have jointly and severally positioned the banking sector for greater challenges.

Business | The Investor

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Period of volatility at NSE Chris Ugwu

hough investors in the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) are still groaning over depression in their shareholdings, stakeholders believe that the local bourse has acted as a catalyst in the nation’s stride to economic greatness and relatively performed well comparatively with other Exchanges in the emerging economy. The market has continued to weather the storm over the years in spite of some economic policies churned out by authorities, which have affected the capital market adversely. Ndi-Okereke Onyuike’s removal 2010 was not the best of times for investors in the nation’s stock market due to their dwindled fortunes and volatility witnessed in prices of shares occasioned by crisis of confidence following the removal of Professor Ndi-Okereke Onyuike by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), in the wake of allegations of corporate governance lapses leveled against her by Alhaji Dangote, which were considered detrimental to investors’ interest. Dangote was also suspended by SEC, as the president of the council of Exchange. In a petition to the DirectorGeneral of SEC, Ms Arunma Oteh, dated July 22, Dangote had urged the regulatory authority to investigate certain irregularities, in respect of the accounts and books of the NSE. He alleged that apart from the misappropriation of N11 billion, the management of the NSE had not presented the audited financial statement for the year ended December 2009, seven months into the current financial year and had not been able to produce for consideration by the Finance and General Purpose Committee of the council, interim financial statements for the first and second quarters of 2010. Following the sack of Onyuike and suspension of Dangote, SEC appointed Mr. Ballama Manu and Emmanuel Ikazoboh as the Interim Head of the Council of the Exchange and the Interim Administrator of the Exchange respectively.

NSE trading floor

Enter Oscar Onyema In order to further douse the tension the exit of Okereke-Onyuike created, SEC undertook a process of recruiting a substantive Chief Executive Officer, which saw the emergence of Mr. Oscar Onyema on 4th of April 2011 as a prelude towards demutualising the Exchange. Onyema joined the local bourse from the American Stock Exchange, where he was a Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer.

In a bid to restore confidence in the stock market, the Federal Government in December 2012 announced the bail out 84 stockbroking firms with N22.6billion. Justifying the government bailout, Minister of Finance, Mrs. Ngozi OkonjoIweala, said at a press briefing in Abuja, that the bailout was the first step in government’s intervention and that the move was necessary to clear the debt overhang in the sector. She said the government could no longer watch the sluggish recovery of the capital market, adding that the stock exchange was essential to the Federal Government’s economic transformation agenda. The minister said, “The first measure is a forbearance of about N22.6bn on the margin loans of 84 stock brokers, in accordance with Section 6(5) of the AMCON Act. AMCON had purchased these margin loans from banks for about N42.6bn, but the value of the underlying assets or collateral is worth only N19.96bn. “In furtherance of AMCON’s cleanup of the banking sector, it is necessary to wipe off the debt overhang in the capital market, as this is dampening market activity. But let me state clearly that this forbearance will be accompanied with sanctions to discourage excessive borrowing behaviour by capital market operators in the future.

tee on Capital Market, Herman Hembe of demanding a bribe from her, which culminated in his removal. Market operators have continued to lament the continuous stifling of SEC’s regulatory functions by the non-allocation of funds to the commission by the National Assembly in the budget. At a time the nation’s capital market was steadily recovering from the burst occasioned by the near total crash of the market, the SEC was being unwittingly denied the opportunity to perform its much needed regulatory function to revamp and reposition the market to restore investors’ confidence and favourably compete globally. The zero-allocation to the SEC in the two-year budget is stalling capital market development, as the commission has not been able to carry out any capitalintensive project aimed at restoring investor-confidence The capital market committee programmes aimed at taking the market to the next level, have remained unrealised due to budget limitations. They have also at different fora called on the National Assembly to reconsider its combative posture with the SEC, while imploring the board and management of the commission to explore innovative options of resolving the current impasse in the overall interest of capital market.

Brokers’ bailout Major reasons stockbrokers were badly hit at the peak of the equities market downturn due to the fact that they were not well capitalised. To remain in business, a good number of them had to secure margin loans, and as the market slumped, banks had to call back those facilities, leaving them exposed. This development comes on the heels of the summoning by the NSE, of 18 dealing member firms and three individuals, said to have been involved in unauthorised sale of investors’ shares between January and September 30, 2012.

Zero allocation to SEC However since 2013, the market had been left to survive and dictate its own pace without assistance from any quarters (Federal government) following the two chambers of National Assembly’s decision to deny the apex market regulator, the SEC budgetary allocation in both 2013 and 2014 following feud with the House of Representatives. The Reps and Oteh’s face-off culminated in the former’s call on President Goodluck Jonathan to sack her for alleged incompetence. Ms Oteh had accused former Chairman, House Commit-

Conclusion The capital market has aided and propelled long term capital formation for the economy since independence but mainly in the services and light industrial sectors. Due to monopoly by government and its attendant public finance, the heavy industrial sector is virtually non-existent in the stock market. The exclusion of state monopolised heavy industries from quotation on the NSE has diminished its capacity to accelerate strategic capital formation and serve as barometer of national economic performance.

In a bid to restore confidence in the stock market, the Federal Government in December 2012 announced the bail out 84 stockbroking firms with N22.6billion

MARITIME | BUSINESS 37

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Maritime: Little devt under Jonathan In the last six years, several policies and measures were introduced to move the maritime industry forward. Despite these, the industry is still bedevilled with illegal activities such as piracy, theft and poor policy implementation, BAYO AKOMOLAFE reports.

n the last six years, Nigeria has recorded some achievements in the maritime sector of the economy, but this is far from expectations, given the potentials in the industry. Stakeholders were of the opinion that government did not take the sector serious as corruption, greed and policy inconsistencies by government remained the defining characteristics of the sector. Non-maritime experts were appointed as minister and head of parastatals, this has dealt a big blow to shipping development. Malaysia, Brazil and South Korea, which had the same background with Nigeria, have since risen to giants in all facets of maritime development, especially in the last five years. Statistics has shown that over 80 per cent of the global oil is transported by ships. But in Nigeria, it is 100 per cent. Maritime crimes In the last five years, the nature of maritime crimes off Nigeria coast has sparked debate, with some prominent organisations calling the country as emerging piracy hub. Over 117,000 metric tons of cargo worth $100 million were lost to sea robbers while 244 vessels were arrested in the last two years by the apex maritime regulator, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA). According to the International Maritime Bureau (IMB), Nigerian pirates accounted for 31 of the region’s 51 attacks, since 2008. Miffed by this, the agency partnered with Nigerian Airforce to monitor and secure the country’s territorial waters and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) with a view to further enhancing the agency’s capacity in enforcing extant maritime laws. The Nigerian Air Force in defending the territorial integrity of Nigeria by Air acquired ATR 42 Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) and other platforms. Also, the agency’s Director General, Mr Patric Akpoboloke-

Idris Umar, Transport Minister

Abdulahi, MD, NPA

mi, said that NIMASA has collaborated with the Nigerian Navy, Nigeria Police Force and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC). Some vessels were also procured for the Navy by the agencies to combat maritime crimes.

• Investments at

port hit N150.49 billion • N470 billion lost to export waivers • N170 billion lost to import duty • Over 600 foreign ships on Nigeria waters • Local ship owners owed banks N480 billion • Imports hits 100 million metric tons of general goods • 65 million litres of petroleum products imported every year • Over 117,000 metric tons of cargo worth $100 million stolen • 244 vessels arrested for illegal activities

Coastal Trade No fewer than 50 per cent of Nigerian shipping companies have been thrown out of business due to poor implementation of the Cabotage Law in the last three years. There were complaints and anger by local shipping operators over the poor enforcement of Cabotage Law enacted 11 years ago. As at 2014, ship owners said that they were owing banks an accumulated debt of over $3 billion (N480 billion). Also, the Chairman of Nigerian Indigenous Ship owners Association (NISA), Chief Isaac Jolapamo, said that the nation was losing as much as $4 billion to foreign ship owners yearly due to lack of indigenous capacity in the local maritime transportation. Transport services for the personnel and equipment for oil exploration in the deep sea are still being rendered by foreigners. Statistics by NISA also revealed that about 600 ships were operating on Nigerian waters; some of them even earn $150,000 per day but only 60 of the ships belong to Nigerians. Jolapamo said that there were no success stories in the sector because of its domination by foreigners while Nigerian ship owners were jobless. It was learnt that the forces working against the Cabotage Act are strong. Imports Under the present administration, the country is still importing 100 million metric tons of general goods and 65 million litres of petroleum products yearly. Data by Maersk Nigeria

Akpobolokemi, DG, NIMASA

Limited revealed that items such as paper, stationery, printing materials and electronic recorded a sharp increase in the import volume in the last three year. “The containerised market in Nigeria continues to be strongly dominated by imports and for the last six years, the import/ export ratio has remained at around 92 per cent import versus eight per cent export. “Nigeria has witnessed a good trend of fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) multinational companies increasing their presence and building capacity to cater for domestic demand,” it said.

lost some N170 billion to import duty in the same period.

Export Agricultural commodities such as cocoa, charcoal, sesame seed and cotton continue to dominate Nigeria’s non-oil export since 2011. Export of finished goods, mainly foodstuffs, grew by over 80 per cent, which is an indicator that local manufacturing is increasing. Most non-oil agricultural exports were loaded to Europe, followed closely by exports to the Far East. Provisional data revealed that Nigeria’s export volumes remained small and volatile, depending on agricultural seasonality.

Port security Twenty-two Nigerian port facilities have demonstrated effective anti-terrorism measures based on United States Coast Guards rating of the provisions of the International Ship and Port Security (ISPS) Code. Between 2013 and this year, the US Coast Guard has worked cooperatively with the government of Nigeria to identify and address port security deficiencies observed during assessments of numerous facilities in the last six years. However, the United States Government said that Nigerian ports still lack effective anti-terrorism measures.

Waivers Under the Jonathan administration, importers of rice, palm oil, energy equipment, textile machinery, steel and vegetable are feeding fat from the government waivers. Statistics from Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and National Association of Nigerian Traders (NANT) revealed that Nigeria lost about N470 billion to import and export waivers to firms and individuals in the last three years. Also, export grants to individuals and firms cost government over N300 billion. The Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) declared that Nigeria

Investments at ports Investments by port concessionaires in the last few years have reached $925 million (about N150.49 billion). The investments, which are mainly in terminal development and acquisition of cargo handling equipment were meant to increase the efficiency of the Nigerian maritime sector. The private terminal operators have also, in the last five years, increased cargo throughput at the ports.

Dredging of channel The dredging of lower River Niger has cost government N36 billion, while the sum of N13 billion was also expended in constructing jetties and other ports. A lot has been spent on Calabar port channel dredging without result. Record by NPA indicated that Lagos Management Company dredged 53.5 million cubic metres of sand at the Lagos Port channel while the volume dredged by Bonny Channel Company from 2006 to date is 43.5 cubic metres with 14 wrecks removed at the port channels outside Lagos.

ICT | BUSINESS

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Impressive outlook despite hurdles As Nigeria marks 54 years of nationhood today, the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is one of the sectors of the economy that continue to exude a sterling performance, though amidst myriad of challenges such as infrastructure rollout, writes KUNLE AZEEZ

industries such as e-commerce. In the e-commerce sector, for instance, the country has attracted $200 million Foresign Direct Investment (FD) to date, according to Mrs Johnson. This is propelled by the fact that 36 per cent of Nigeria’s 170 million population is now make online purchases among all sorts of other transactions. According to reports, “increased internet use could propel private consumption almost 13 times high from $12 billion to $154 billion by 2025.” Growing mobile subscriptions As of 2009, Nigeria’s total telephone subscriptions stood at 74.5 million with corresponding teledensity of 53.23 per cent. Six years after, the rate of mobile penetration has increased tremendously, bringing the total active telephone subscriptions in the country to 130.7 million at the end of June, 2014 with teledensity of 93.41 per cent. This represents about 18.91 per cent increase in teledensity in the last six months. This, according to the NCC, has been made possible by the increase in network rollout by telecoms networks, boosted by the entrant of Etisalat network, the fifth GSM operator in the market. According to available data, MTN has grown its subscriberbase to over 56 million; Glo to over 27 million; Airtel around 25 million while Etisalat has about 19.3 million subscriber-base. However, the situation is not the same with the players in the Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) segment whose fortune has waned over time with only Visafone in operation. Also, a $210 million merger agreement struck by three ailing CDMA players – Starcomms, Multi-Links and First Wireless in 2012 - has reached deadlock, resulting in a retrained investment in the CDMA segment.

nformation and Communication Technology industry has been described as an enabler of economic development in Nigeria owing to its role in positively impacting on other sectors of the economy. The ICT sector, which started growing in leaps and bounds, following the sector’s liberalisation in 2001, recorded astronomical growth in the area of deepening Nigerians’ access to ICT up till 2007 when former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s second term ended. It is also instructive that many policies put in place by the last and current administrations in the country have continued to exert far-reaching positive impacts on the economy. Thus the impressive growth recorded so far in the last six years has been further enhanced by the creation in 2011 of the Ministry of Communication Technology, headed by Dr. Omobola Johnson, in recognition of the strategic role ICT plays in national development. Saddled with the role of coordinating and aligning all government efforts in the administration and implementation of ICT throughout the country, the ministry has continued to drive the vision of making Nigeria ICT hub for Africa through harnessing and consolidating the growth of the ICT sector; as well as increasing the integration of ICTs across all sectors in a manner that supports the diversification of the economy while achieving job and wealth creation. Policy initiatives In the last six years, Nigeria has crafted specific policies and legislations relating to the development of the ICT sector. These include the development of a harmonised National ICT Policy of 2012; National Broadband Plan 2013-2018 approved in May 2013 and Guidelines for Nigerian Content in ICT in November 2013.

Telecom mast

Others include the implementation of the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) Card registration exercise, introduction of Mobile Number Portability (MNP), among others, all of which have resulted in positive impacts on each aspect of the industry and the economy as a whole. Contribution to GDP Following the overhauling of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data, with the GDP figures indicating that Nigeria has surpassed South Africa as the largest economy in Africa, ICT sector has been identified as a star performer. It contributes about nine per cent to the nation’s GDP and 19 per cent to the services sector which constitutes over half (56 per cent) of Nigeria’s GDP. This, according to industry analysts, is apt, given that ICT is now driving both electronic transactions in the financial services sector, transportation, oil and gas, and other services

MTN has grown its subscriber-base to over 56 million; Glo to over 27 million; Airtel around 25 million while Etisalat has about 19.3 million subscriber-base

Upsurge in Internet usage and broadband drive The country has also recorded growth in Internet usage, with Nigeria now occupying the eighth position in the comity of countries with the largest number of Internet users in the world. From below 20 per cent users per population in 2009, the industry has recorded over 36 per cent basic Internet penetration, according to recent data. Similarly, broadband Internet usage, which hovered around two per cent as at 2007, has further increased to reach six per cent, while plans are underway to increase broadband penetration in the country to 30 per cent by the end of 2018, in line with the National Broadband Plan 2013-2018. To achieve the set 2018 target, government, through the NCC, had licensed 2.6 gigahertz spectrum to Bitflux Consortium in February this year and it is in

the process of licensing 2.3 gigahertz and the issuing six Infrastructure Companies (InfraCos) licences, as these initiatives are bound to promote last-mile connectivity and maximum use of the 10 terabyte of international bandwidth lying fallow on the Nigerian shores. Till date, findings showed that the international capacity, brought about by SAT-1, Main 1, Glo 1 and the West African Cable System (WACS), are still highly underutilised. Poor service quality lingers It is noteworthy that while the networks have been building their subscriber-base, the issue of quality of service (QoS) has been a major problem to subscribers, forcing the regulator to, at different times in the last six years, sanction the operators heavily for failure to meet the key Performance Indicators (KPIs) set for them as minimum quality thresholds. In fact, it is not only in voice service that telecoms operators are found wanting, subscribers told New Telegraph that the quality of internet service is still below expectation, though NCC has yet to sanction operators for poor data service. Investment boost Indeed, the Ministry of Communication Technology, the NCC and NITDA have been working to advertise Nigeria as a favourable investment destination for ICT business. From a paltry $500 million investment in 2001, the sector had attracted $18 billion as at 2007. Three years between then and now, the foreign direct investment (FDI) and local investment attracted by the sector has jumped to $25 billion in 2012 and at the end of April, this year, the NCC declared that the industry had hit $32 billion. As such, the industry has attracted new players in different areas of the industry. Hurdles and way forward Meanwhile, telecoms operators under the auspices of the Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) and Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) say their “being found wanting in some areas” has been a result of many challenges. These, according to them, include multiple taxations, vandalism and high cost of obtaining Right of Way, among others. However, with the on-going consultation by the Ministry of Communication Technology with state governments to remove obstacles to telecoms infrastructures rollout for the operators, industry analysts say consumers may begin to witness much better services with attendant reduction in services and increased contribution of ICT to the nation’s GDP.

ENERGY | B USINESS 39

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Mixed grill for energy sector The energy sector has been a mixed grill in the six years President Goodluck Jonathan has held sway. Energy Editor, Adeola Yusuf takes a retrospective look

n April 2010, a new dawn beckoned in the oil business in Nigeria with President Goodluck Jonathan signing the Nigerian Content Act. Although it took government about 50 years before taking this leap, the move, which led to the establishment of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), was meant to give a new direction to the oil industry. As juicy as this development is, the energy industry is still dogged by myriads of challenges ranging from the dearth of investments in the oil and gas sector to the incessant drop in the power generation due to gas insufficiency. Interestingly, the energy sector retained its status as the cash cow for Nigeria’s economy between May 2008 when President Jonathan was sworn-in and today. From the major increase in crude oil production to stability in supply of premium motor spirit (PMS) and other refined products, the oil and gas sub-sector of the industry share similar achievement with the power sector witnessing concerted efforts by new investors to stabilise power generation and distribution through investments. Power On Friday, November 1, 2013, government handed over the power assets to new investors at a programme that climaxed its privatisation of the sector. A review of the energy sector in the last six years however showed that the nation is yet to generate 5,000 Mega Watts (MW) despite the privatisation of the sector. Federal Government’s 7,000-megawatt power generation projections by the end of this year would, based on this, remain a mirage, unless there is a boost in gas supply to raise generation beyond the current average of 3,500 megawatt, a level, which it attained since 2007. Stalled PIB The Federal Government’s loss to the non-passage of the PIB from February 2009 to February 2014, had already hit $125 billion, occasioned by the inability of Nigeria, Africa’s biggest crude exporter, to attain her annual crude production capacity of about 3.6 million barrels per day due to investment draught

Power plant

in her oil and gas industry since five years ago. Experts have, after assessing the growth prospects of Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, raised the alarm over the declining investment in exploration and production since 2009, when PIB became controversial. Immediate past president, Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE), George Osahon, said that Nigeria’s target of 40 billion barrels oil reserves would remain ‘a tall dream’ if the foot-dragging on the PIB passage continues. “That we are yet to have the bill has implications on exploration activities in the country and, like I said earlier, it is in the interest of all of us that the bill is passed,” he told newsmen in a recent interview. At the Chatham House forum on the controversial PIB, experts from the private sector, operators in the oil and gas industry, management and financial consultants, also warned that government’s business was facing a turbulence, which may wreak havoc on the economy of the country that depends largely on oil proceeds to service over 85 per cent of its budget. Oil production The oil and gas sector has, however, witnessed a long list of achievements starting from a daily production of 2.4 million barrels per day, which had been restored to the crude oil output available for export in the country. The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) acknowledged this feat in a statement. Pipeline vandalism Pipeline vandalism and crude oil theft had resulted in the shutdown of three major trunk lines, accounting for the

shut-in of 400,000 barrels per day. It said that the rise in crude oil production in the country to 2.4 million barrels per day was as a result of the recent intervention by the Federal Government. In the same vein, the privatisation of the power sector was primarily driven by a number of factors such as the need to enhance the business an investorfriendly environment, by providing reliable and constant power supply; to tackle the increasing demand for sustainable power and to address the need for an efficient distribution, generation and transmission network. Gas flaring Lack of the infrastructure to produce and market associated natural gas had made oil companies to resort to gas flaring, which continued in the six years of President Jonathan’s administration. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Nigeria flared 532 billion cubic feet of natural gas in 2008, down from 593 billion cubic feet in 2007. While there were no current estimates as to the cost of flaring the natural gas, in 2007, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) claimed that flaring cost Nigeria $1.46 billion in lost revenue. The Federal Government, which, sources said, had been working to end natural gas flaring for several years, has repeatedly postponed the deadline, pushing the date forward as far as 2012. But the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke put the record on gas pricing regime straight during a press briefing recently: “I have outlined a focused twopoint agenda for gas. The first is expeditious implementation of the Nigerian Gas Master-

Plan to attain used short-term objectives and a few sustained medium term objectives. The second is positioning Nigeria competitively in global gas export by securing the FID of Brass LNGG by the end of the year and refocusing effort on OKLNG and TSGP.” Gas shortage The current shortage of gas supply continues to hamper the availability of new gas-fired power stations to generate electricity in sufficient quantity. Also, the lack of a gas pricing framework is a clear and present danger to the entire framework of things, as supply is greatly affected by inadequate gas transportation infrastructure. Though ranked as one of the largest oil producers in the world, the country currently has only four refineries, all operated by the Federal Government. These refineries, if not operating at a 22 per cent capacity, could nonetheless meet the current demands of refined products in the country, which is estimated to be about 270,000 bpd. But this is unattainable, as the crude oil extracted is transported out of the country to be refined, re-imported into the country as refined product at highly exorbitant prices, before it can meet domestic demands. There have been attempts, however, by the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) and a few individuals, to build ultramodern refineries to boost Nigeria’s current refining capacity. Last line Expectations are high among Nigerians that the energy sector of the country should be well harnessed to boost the economic fortunes of the country and her citizens.

40 Politics

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Party system still wobbling Since independence in 1960, Nigeria’s political parties have developed and operated under complex atmospheres. In this report, WALE ELEGBEDE chronicles the experiences of political parties in the postcolonial era

political party has been generally defined as an organised group of people with at least roughly similar political aims and opinions, that seeks to influence the public by getting its candidates elected to public office. From 1960 till date, Nigeria has had 14 heads of state, and of this number, nine were not elected, leaving only five as the ones duly elected through the instruments of political parties. Whether the process that ushered their ascendancy into power was deemed free and fair, is a different kettle of fish. First Republic, 1960-1966 For a tottering nation that just secured her independence, the First Republic was spilt along geopolitical regions, namely Western, Eastern and Northern. Little wonder, the political parties took on the identities, processes and ideologies of each region in their classifications and workings. With Nigeria scheduled for Independence from Britain in 1960, three main political parties ran in the preparatory elections in 1959. The NCNC had control of the Eastern Region under the tutelage of Azikiwe; the NPC had control of the Northern Region (Hausa-Fulani) and was led by Ahmadu Bello; while the Western Region under the leadership of Awolowo was controlled by the AG. Thus, the three political parties that existed during the pre-independence era dominated the landscape in the First Republic. Though some other parties joined the fray, party politics remained organised in the same way as during the precolonial era. These also included NEPU by Aminu Kano; United Middle Belt Congress (UMBC) led by Joseph Tarka, among others. The peaceful transfer of power from Britain through constitutional negotiation gave considerable advantage to the political parties, but the seed of ethnicity and nepotism that was entrenched in the conception of the three major political parties by the three regions, became the albatross of the republic. With the NPC having a majority in the federal parliament, it formed a coalition with NCNC. Dramatically, Bello, who was the leader of NPC, decided not to assume the post of the Prime Minister. Instead, he chose to become the Premier of the Northern Region, but supported his deputy, Tafawa Balewa to become the Prime Minister and Head of Government, while Azikiwe of NCNC was named President. The trend of events in the polity breed resentment among some southern politicians and the nation descended into chaos. The immature handling of the AG crisis made the nation to boil and Awolowo, who was Premier of Western Region, was charged with sedition and convicted in a controversial trial. By 1966, the First Republic collapsed under the jackboots of the military.

First Republic

Nigeria Advance Party (NAP)

Electoral Commission Chairman: Eyo Esua, Key Political Parties

Major Players Shehu Shagari, President, NPN

Northern Peoples Congress (NPC)

Obafemi Awolowo (UPN) Chairman

Action Group (AG)

Nnamdi Azikiwe (NPP)

National Council for Nigerian Citizens (NCNC)

Aminu Kano (PRP)

Nigeria National Democratic Party (NNDP)

Waziri Ibrahim (GNPP)

Northern Elements Progressive Union (NEPU)

Tunji Braithwaite (NAP)

United Progressive Grand Alliance (UPGA)

Adisa Akinloye (NPN)

United Middle Belt Congress (UMBC)

Joseph Wayas, Senate President (NPN)

Major Players

Edwin Ume-Ezeoke, House Speaker (NPP)

Sir Tafawa Balewa, Prime Minister (NPC)

Olusola Saraki, Majority Leader, Senate (NPN)

Obafemi Awolowo, Premier, Western Region (AG)

Third Republic

Ahmadu Bello, Premier Northern Region (NPC)

Chairmen, Electoral Commission: Prof. Eme O. Awa and Prof. Humphrey Nwosu

Nnamdi Azikiwe, Premier Eastern region (later President) NCNC Ladoke Akintola, Premier, Western region (AG; later, NNDP) Michael Okpara, Premier, Eastern Region (NCNC) Denis Osadebey, Premier, Mid-West (NCNC) Second Republic Chairmen, Federal Electoral Commission, (FEDECO), Michael Ani and Justice Ovie Whiskey Key Political Parties

Key Political Parties Social Democratic Party (SDP) National Republican Convention (NRC) Major players Babagana Kingibe, SDP Chairman Tom Ikimi, NRC Chairman MKO Abiola, SDP Presidential Candidate Bashir Tofa, NRC Presidential Candidate Ahmed Kusamotu, NRC Chairman (later)

National Party of Nigeria (NPN)

Anthony Anenih, SDP Chairman (later)

Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN)

Iyorchia Ayu, Senate President, SDP

Nigeria Peoples Party (NPP)

Agunwa Anekwe, House Speaker, SDP

Great Nigeria Peoples Party (GNPP)

Shehu Musa Yar’Adua, Presidential Candidate

Peoples Redemption Party (PRP)

Olu Falae, Presidential Candidate

The immature handling of the AG crisis made the nation to boil and Awolowo, who was Premier of Western Region, was charged with sedition and convicted in a controversial trial

Second Republic: 1979-1983 After 13 years of military rule, the yearning for democratic governance was high and when it came, the electorate received it with gleeful anticipation. With the 1979 Constitution stipulating that for a political party to be registered, it must have a national outlook, the regional leaning of parties that characterised the First Republic was played down. However, the new political parties registered still had their leadership cadre structured along ethnic lines. The leadership of AG was retained by Awolowo and it metamorphosed into United Party of Nigeria (UPN); Azikiwe controlled the Igbo speaking areas under Nigeria Peoples Party (NPP) which was an offshoot of the old NCNC. The National Party of Nigeria (NPN) dominated the Hausa-Fulani areas; The Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) had stakes in the Hausa speaking area while the Great Nigeria Peoples Party (GNPP) led by Ibrahim Waziri controlled the Kanuri speaking area. Thus, political party’s formation in the Second Republic was still laced with ethnic colouration and this expectedly reflected in the voting patterns during the election. At the 1979 election, five major parties competed for power and a literal continuity between the old parties of the First Republic and the new parties of the Second Republic was obvious. However, out of the five parties, only the GNPP had no clear and distinct First Republic roots. Interestingly, the NPN dominated the election following the path of its successor, the NPC. Alhaji Shehu Shagari of the NPN won the presidency, defeating Azikiwe in a close poll. The Second Republic was however enmeshed with many ills, chief among which was corruption. Also, the NPN governed without any strong coalition

that could challenge its supremacy. With four years gone, the 1983 elections were conducted and they were marked by rigging, violence and intimidation. The election witnessed large scale electoral malpractices with widespread falsification of results. It didn’t take long before the military cashed in on the political unrest through another coup. The abortive Third Republic in 1993 With the constitution of the Third Republic drafted in 1989 by General Ibrahim Babangida, his regime gave a sense of hope to the populace on quick return to civil rule. While promising to terminate military rule in 1990, IBB had lifted the ban on political activities a year earlier. Interestingly, the formation of political parties in the third republic had a different dimension. The two registered political parties were formed and funded by government. These were the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the National Republican Convention (NRC). The climax of the Third Republic was the annulment of the June 12 presidential election by Babangida and this threw the polity into confusion until the eventual enthronement of the Interim National Government (ING) headed by Ernest Shonekan by the military. Fourth Republic, 1999 till date At the return of democracy in 1999, the process of electioneering was initiated through the 1999 Constitution. Against that backdrop, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) gave recognition to only three parties namely, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the All Peoples Party (APP) and the Alliance for Democracy (AD) for its first elections. A peep into the historical mappings of these three parties that berthed the new democratic dispensation after a tortuous military regime indicated that the composition of the parties were done in doubts as the sincerity of the General Abdulsalami Abubakar-led administration was being tested. Late Justice Ephraim Akpata was the first chairman of INEC responsible for the 1998/1999 elections. In the February 27, 1999 presidential elections, the AD and APP fielded a joint candidate, Chief Olu Falae. They lost to the PDP candidate, General Olusegun Obasanjo who gained 63 per cent of the votes. Elections for the governorship were held in January 1999, with the PDP winning 19 out of 35 states, the APP winning nine states and the AD six states. By 2003, under the leadership of late Dr. Abel Guobadia, INEC registered 25 new political parties, bringing to 28 the number of political parties that contested the 2003 elections. Some of the parties included the National Conscience Party (NCP), All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), Justice Party (JP), National Action Council (NAC), Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), and Democratic Alternative (DA), among others. Again, few months to the 2007 elections, INEC under Prof. Maurice Iwu registered additional 17 political parties to contest the general election. The political space also witnessed another unprecedented emergence of 63 registered political parties for the April 2011 elections. But not long after, INEC under Prof. Attahiru Jega came with a hammer through Section 78(6) of the 2010 Electoral Act, which provided INEC with the power to de-register any political party that failed to win any executive and legislative seats in elections. Thus, the commission in August 2011, de-registered seven parties and later conducted two more de-registration exercises.

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

42 Politics

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Abiola casting his vote during June 1993 presidential election

Yar’Adua and Jonathan at a public function

Political events that shaped TEMITOPE OGUNBANKE chronicles major political events that shaped Nigeria in the last 54 years 1960 - 1966 After several years of waiting, on October 1, 1960, Nigeria gained her independence from Britain with Sir Tafawa Balewa as Prime Minister and Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe as President. In 1962, there was a leadership tussle in the Action Group (AG), which split the party into two-broad factions loyal to the party’s leader Chief Obafemi Awolowo and deputy leader, Sir Ladoke Akintola respectively. The crisis led to declaration of a state of emergency in Western Region and the Federal Government also invoked its emergency powers to administer the region directly and consequently the AG was toppled. Awolowo and some of his loyalists were later convicted for treasonable felony. October 1, 1963 marked the birth of Nigeria’s First Republic. Azikiwe became the first President. Awolowo, AG leader, became the leader of the opposition. The regional premiers were: Sir Ahmadu Bello of Northern Peoples Congress (Northern Region), Akintola of AG (Western Region), Michael Okpara of National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC) (Eastern Region). Dennis Osadebey of NCNC was Premier of the Mid-Western Region, which was carved out of old Western Region. On December 1, 1964 national election was held. The military overthrew the civilian administration on January 15, 1966 and brought an end to the First Republic. Junior officers of the Nigerian

army, who were mostly Igbo and Majors, overthrew the government in a coup d’etat. In the process, Balewa, Akintola, Bello, were assassinated in Lagos, Ibadan and Kaduna respectively. Finance Minister, Chief Festus Okotie-Eboh, and some senior Northern officers were also assassinated in the military putsch. On January 16, 1966, the Federal Military Government was formed with General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi, an Igbo as Head of State and Supreme Commander of the Federal Republic. The regime promised to establish a strong and efficient government committed to a progressive programme and eventually to new elections. On May 29, 1966, massive rioting started in some major towns in the North as some Igbos were attacked by northerners to avenge the death of many senior northerners, who were killed during the January 16 coup. July 29, 1966 was another bloody day in Nigeria. It was a day a group of Northern officers stormed Ibadan and killed Aguiyi-Ironsi and his host; the Military Governor of the Western Region, Lt. Col. Adekunle Fajuyi. Following the success of the coup, Lt. Col. Yakubu Gowon, a northerner became the Head of State on August 1, 1966. 1967 - 1979 On May 30, 1967, the Military Governor of Eastern Nigeria, Lt. Col. Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, declared a secession, and formed the Republic of Biafra. And on July 6, 1967, first shots were fired heralding a 30-month civil war between the Federal government and Republic of Biafra. After the civil war, Ojukwu fled into exile on January 8, 1970 and his deputy, Philip Effiong became acting President of Biafra. A week later, January 15, Effiong surrendered to Nige-

rian forces for Biafra to be reintegrated into Nigeria and that incident ended the civil war. Gowon regime announced creation of 12 states on May 30, 1967. On October 4, 1975, the Constitution Drafting Committee headed by Chief Rotimi Williams was set up. On October 1975, Gowon was overthrown in a coup and the event paved the way for Brig.Gen. Murtala Mohammed to become the new Head of State. In adherence to the recommendations of a panel earlier set up by the Federal Government, the movement of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) from Lagos to Abuja was approved in 1976. On February 3, 1976, seven additional states were created increasing the states in Nigeria to 19. On February 1976, Gen. Mohammed was killed in the traffic on his way to work. General Olusegun Obasanjo succeeded Mohammed on February 14, 1976 and promised to handover to civilian administration in 1979 as promised by his predecessor. Federal Government lifts ban on political activities on September 21, 1978 to usher in the Second Republic. 1979 - 1983 In 1979, Nigeria got a new constitution, known as 1979 Constitution. In July and August 1979, there was general election across the country. Five political parties competed for the presidency. The parties were National Party of Nigeria (NPN), Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), National People’s Party (NPP), Great Nigeria People’s Party (GNPP) and Peoples Redemption Party (PRP). October 1, 1979 marked the beginning of Second Republic as General Obasanjo handed over to Alhaji Shehu Shagari, who contested and won the pres-

idential election on the platform of NPN. On June 24, 1981, Governor Balarabe Musa of Kaduna State became the first civilian governor to be impeached by the state House of Assembly. President Shagari granted pardon to Ojukwu on May 18, 1982. After four years of civilian administration, another general election was held in 1983 but the conduct of the election was criticised by opposing parties and the media. There were also violence in some parts of the country, especially in SouthWest. Many people were killed and properties destroyed in Ondo State following the declaration of Chief Akin Omoboriowo as the state governor against the incumbent, Chief Adekunle Ajasin, who seemed to be the popular choice. In September1983, Shagari was re-elected as President but his administration was cut short on December 31, 1983 by a military coup, which produced General Muhammadu Buhari as Head of State. Buhari later suspended the 1979 Constitution and arrested Shagari and other politicians including, Prof. Ambrose Ali and Alhaji Lateef Jakande. 1984 - 1993 On August 27, 1985, Buhari was overthrown in a palace coup by General Ibrahim Babangida, who became the Head of State. The seat of government was officially moved from Lagos to Abuja in 1986. Two new states, Akwa Ibom and Delta, were created in August 1987 by Babangida to increase the number of states in Nigeria to 21. In October 1989, Babangida’s government refused to legalise 13 independent political parties and instead formed two political parties, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the National

Republican Convention (NRC). On August 1991, nine additional states were created, increasing the states to 30. The same month, governorship election was held in all the 30 states. Between August and September 1992, presidential primaries by political parties were reported to have been marked by corruption, boycotts, violence and illegality. Babangida later cancelled the presidential primaries, banned leaders of both parties, and pushed the date of the presidential election to June 1993. In April 1993, SDP and NRC held their presidential primaries and Chief Moshood Abiola and Alhaji Bashir Tofa emerged as SDP and NRC candidates respectively. On June 12, 1993, the presidential election was keenly contested between Abiola and Tofa. Despite the election being acknowledged as the freest and fairest election in Nigeria by both local and international observers, it was annulled by Babaginda. On August 26, 1993 Babangida resigned as military president and appointed an interim government headed by Chief Ernest Shonekan. The Senate on November 1993 impeached its president, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, a member of the SDP and strong opponent of the interim government. Few days after Ayu’s impeachment, on November 17, the Minister of Defence in the interim government, General Sani Abacha, seized power from Shonekan and abolished the constitution. The Third Republic was abruptly put to an end and the elected governors and lawmakers at state and federal levels were sacked. 1994 - 1998 Abiola, who had escaped abroad after the annulment, returned and proclaimed himself president on June 11, 1994. The

Politics 43

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Fuel subsidy protest

Suntai

Ojukwu

Nigeria since Independence declaration took place at Epetedo in Lagos. He was arrested and charged with treason. On May 28, 1994, there were nationwide elections to elect members of the Constitutional Conference. The conference was convened on June 27, 1994 and the conference submitted its report to Federal Government on June 27, 1995. On that fateful day, General Abacha lifted ban on political activities. Mrs. Kudirat Abiola, wife of MKO Abiola, was killed by gunmen on June 4, 1996. Abacha on October 1997 increased the number of states in Nigeria to 36 with the creation of additional six. In April 1998, all five legal political parties adopted Abacha as their candidate for the August 1 presidential election. Between 1993 and 1998, the major issue in Nigeria was about de-annulment of June 12, 1993 election and several groups, individuals and many prominent Nigerians led by National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) fought tirelessly for Abiola to recover his mandate. Several people were killed and properties worth millions of naira destroyed and in the cause of the battle against the military junta, Abacha died on June 8, 1998. General Abbulsalaami Abubakar became Head of State on June 9, 1998 and promised to hand over to a civilian administration. Abiola, the business mogul died in a detention on July 7, 1998. His death led to riots in many parts of the country, especially in Lagos. In 1998, three major political parties; Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), All Peoples Party (APP) and Alliance for Democracy (AD) were registered. 1999-2004 In preparation for the present Fourth Republic, states and federal elections were held in late 1998 to elect people into

various seats at state and federal level. On February 27, 1999, a presidential election was keenly contested between Obasanjo, who contested on the platform of PDP and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Chief Olu Falae, who run under APP’s platform. Obasanjo was declared winner of the election. On May 29, 1999, Obasanjo was sworn in as President. On July 19, 1999, forgery and perjury scandal broke out in the House of Representatives over the qualification of the Speaker, Hon. Salisu Buhari, and the scandal led to his resignation two days after. Senator Evan Enwerem, the Senate President was impeached on November 18, 1999 for allegations of corruption. His successor, Senator Chuba Okadigbo was also impeached on August 8, 2000 following demands for his resignation over allegations of corruption. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) on October 10, 2002 ruled against Nigeria in favour of Cameroon over the disputed oil-rich Bakassi peninsula territory. On May 29, 2003, Obasanjo was sworn into office for second term. In 2004, Obasanjo declared a state of emergency in response to the eruption of ethno-religious violence in Plateau State. In April 2005, Senator Adolphus Wabara resigned from his position as Senate President after allegations were made that he and others took a $400,000 bribe from the education minister, Fabian Osuji. President Obasanjo in 2005 organised a National Political Reform Conference in Abuja, while Pro-National Conference Organisation also organised a National Conference in Lagos. On January 12, 2006, Governor Rashidi Ladoja was impeached

in a controversial manner by the Oyo State House of Assembly and his deputy, Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala, was sworn in as the new governor. He was later reinstated on November 1, 2006 by the Appeal Court. On May 16, 2006, the National Assembly voted against the alleged third term bid of President Obasanjo. Governor Joshua Dariye of Plateau State was impeached on October 13, 2006 by the state Assembly and his deputy, Michael Botmang, became the governor. Dariye was later re-instated following the ruling of the Supreme Court, which ordered his reinstatement with immediate effect on April 27, 2007. 2007 till date On October 15, 2006, Ekiti State House of Assembly impeached Governor Ayo Fayose and his deputy, Mrs. Biodun Olujimi, on corruption charges. The impeachment created pandemonium in the state, which led to the declaration of state of emergency with Lt. Gen. Adetunji Olurin as Sole Administrator for six months. Governor of Kastina State, Alhaji Umar Yar’Adua was sworn in as Obasanjo’s successor on May 29, 2007. Hon Patricia Olubunmi Etteh, emerged as the first Nigeria female Speaker of the House of Representatives on June 6, 2007 and she was impeached on October 30, 2007. Following the health challenge of President Yar’Adua and his long absence from the country, Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan was sworn in as Acting President through the Doctrine of Necessity propagated by the National Assembly. Governor Segun Agagu of Ondo State lost his seat to Dr. Olusegun Mimiko through an Appeal Court ruling on February 23, 2009. Governors Kayode Fayemi

and Rauf Aregbesola became governors of Ekiti and Osun through Appeal Court rulings on October 15, 2010 and November 27, 2010 respectively. On May 5, 2010, Yar‘Adua died after prolonged illness and was succeeded by Jonathan. There were elections across the country in April 2011. On May 29, 2011, Jonathan was sworn into office as president. The decision of the Federal Government to remove fuel subsidy caught many Nigerians unaware on January 1, 2012 and the decision led to protests across the country, especially in Lagos. On October 25, 2012, Governor Danbaba Suntai of Taraba State escaped death after a plane he was flying crashed in Yola, the Adamawa State capital. Since the incident, the Deputy Governor, Alhaji Garba Umar, has been acting as Suntai is yet to resume duties. Governor Patrick Yakowa of Kaduna State along with the former National Security Adviser, Gen. Owoeye Azazi (rtd) died on December 15, 2012 in a helicopter crash while flying from Okoroba in Bayelsa State to Port Harcourt, Rivers State after attending the funeral of Oronto Douglas’ father in Beyelsa State. Imo State deputy governor, Mr. Jude Agbaso, was impeached on March 29, 2013 by the state House of Assembly. He was replaced by the governor’s Chief of Staff, Prince Eze Madumere. On July 30, 2013, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) registered the All Progressives Congress (APC), which was the product of the merger arrangement among Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), All Nigerian People’s Party (ANPP), Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and some members of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). Following the crisis rock-

ing the PDP, some chieftains of the party led by former VicePresident Atiku Abubakar and Governors Murtala Nyako (Adamawa), Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers), Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto), Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano), Sule Lamido (Jigawa) and Abdulfatah Ahmed (Kwara) formed the New PDP with Alhaji Kawu Baraje as its national chairman after they walked out from the PDP National Convention in Abuja on August 30, 2013. During the independence nationwide broadcast on October 1, 2013, President Goodluck Jonathan bowed to pressure from well-meaning Nigerians as he set up a Presidential Advisory Committee on National Conference led by Senator Femi Okunrounmu. Five out of the G-7 governors; Kwankwaso, Amaechi, Ahmed, Wamakko and Nyako with some members of the New PDP defected to the APC on November 26, 2013. Several PDP senators and House of Representatives also followed suit. Over 200 female students of Government Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State were abducted on April 14, 2014 by members of the Boko Haram sect. President Jonathan on May 17, 2014 inaugurated the National Conference under the chairmanship of former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Idris Kutigi. The conference with 492 delegates lasted for about four months and its report was submitted to the President on August 21, 2014. Governor Nyako was impeached on July 15, 2014 by Adamawa Assembly. On July 23, 2014, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari escaped a bomb blast in Kaduna. Enugu State deputy governor, Mr. Sunday Onyebuchi, was impeached on August 26, 2014 for gross misconduct by the state House of Assembly.

Business | Money Line

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

SMEs are engine of growth, says SEC DG INFRASTRUTURE GAP

ADB says in the next 10 years, Nigeria would need $350billion to bridge infrastructure gap

Abdulwahab Isa Abuja

he Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) is the vehicle for job creation and poverty reduction, Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Arunma Oteh has said. Consequently, she urged countries to give SMEs the desired attention. The SEC boss made this call on the sideline of the on-gong international Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) annual meeting in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She noted that SMEs development, if harnessed properly, will create more jobs and improve the standards of living of their citizens, a SEC statement issued yesterday quoted Oteh to

have said. “I think first and foremost, the recognition globally about the importance of SMEs because they are the ones who create jobs. I think there is a greater focus on how SMEs can be supported. In our own country, His Excellency President Goodluck Ebelo Jonathan recently set up an SME council, he set up a job board, all of that is focused on how we can practically address the challenges we are facing with SMEs”. To grow these SMEs, the SEC boss believes that the capital market is an absolutely important solution to source funds among other reasons. She said: “We need to provide funding at reasonable cost. Capital that is patient so that people can grow their businesses and banking finance is not patient. It is short term, sometimes particularly in the Africa and Middle East the interest rates are relatively high. “What we need is capital that would be there for a long time, a marketbased finance that is long term and there is a global recognition of that, which is why some

of the things we are focusing at the meeting in Brazil, is really the value that capital markets bring to SMEs”. Oteh said it would be good to allow SMEs list on the Ex-

•Foreign reserves dip

he Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday sold dollars directly to lenders outside of its regular currency auctions to meet demand and stabilise the naira, which gained today to pare a quarterly depreciation. “We do the auction, and when we see the interbank market going haywire, we intervene to bring the market to equilibrium,” Charles Mordi, director of research at the CBN, said in an interview in Lagos. People may be seeking dollars because of uncertainty about elections in February and a falling oil price, he said, declining to say how much was sold. Demand for dollars in Africa’s largest economy and oil producer helped push the naira 0.4 percent lower in the three months through September. The apex bank’s auctions on Mondays and Wednesday are the biggest

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

Description

TTM

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

1.21 2.53 3.22 5.39 7.98 16.47

Tenor (Days) Call 7 30 60 90 180 365

Rate (%) 11.9167 12.3333 12.6667 12.9167 13.2167 13.5000 13.7500

NIBOR

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

FGN Bonds Bid Price 90.20 99.25 104.10 109.35 114.15 76.60

Offer Yield 13.01 13.40 13.47 13.49 13.44 13.59

Price 90.35 99.40 104.40 109.65 114.45 76.90

Tenor (Months) 1 2 3 6 9 12

Rate (%) 12.1827 12.2737 12.3744 12.8521 12.8535 13.8443

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

Bid 12.10 12.10 12.05

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

NITTY

Yield 12.86 13.33 13.35 13.42 13.38 13.53

Money Market Offer 11.85 11.85 11.80 Offer 163.38

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

Rate (%) 11.33 11.63

NIFEX Spot ($/N)

one enterprise that have advisers who basically nurture them and guide them through the process of listing on the exchange and staying on the exchange.

CBN dollar sales stem naira slide

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

changes. She explained: “Also, the alternative securities market modelled after what you have in the UK, the one in Johannesburg where you have got

Bid 163.4000

Offer 163.5000 Source: FMDQ

source of foreign exchange in the country, followed by currency sales from oil companies. The naira reversed a decline of as much as 0.8 percent against the dollar today to trade 0.1 percent stronger at N163.65 by 2:48 p.m. in Lagos. The CBN keeps the naira at 3 percent above or below 155 per dollar at its twiceweekly auctions to lenders and money-changers. Oil output has stayed below the country’s 2.4 million barrel-a-day capacity this year, according to data com-

piled by Bloomberg. The CBN is still in a “comfortable position” to defend the naira with the level of external reserves and investment inflows, Mordi said. Nigeria’s gross reserves have fallen 9.3 per cent this year to $39.56 billion by Sept. 26. Reserves stood at $39.62 billion in August and were $45.66 billion in September last year. Currency traders attributed the fall to drawdowns by the CBN to support the ailing naira currency. Going by analysts report, the reserve will cover at eight months import cover.

Deloitte posts US $34.2bn revenue Godson Ikoro

espite the global downturn of consulting business, Deloitte member firms (Deloitte) yesterday, reported aggregate revenues of US $34.2 billion for the fiscal year ending 31 May 2014. In a statement, Barry Salzberg, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited CEO, said the company recorded growths in all its performance indicators. The report, which was its fifth consecutive year of growth, Deloitte saw accelerated demand for its range of services in all regions of the world. The organisation’s aggregate revenues represent growth of 6.5 percent in local currency, or 5.7 percent in US dollars. The growth was led by Consulting, which experienced double-digit growth (10.3 percent in local currency), followed by Tax & Legal (7.7 percent). Similarly, Financial Advisory and Enterprise Risk Services also experienced strong growth with 6.8 percent and 4.2 percent, respectively. Audit experienced growth of 2.5 percent, reflecting growth even after accounting for the network’s significant investment in quality around its audit service. “Deloitte’s growth reflects its commitment to providing clients with high quality services through a multi-disciplinary model, delivering innovative solutions from strategy to implementation. Increasing client needs stemming from globalisation and changes in business models, technology, and regulations

are expected to drive further opportunities in the year ahead. “The network is also steadfastly committed to the growth and development of its people, with more than 63,000 professionals receiving training via its Deloitte University curricula in the past fiscal year,” the statement said. Commenting on the result, Barry Salzberg, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited CEO, said: “By repeatedly forging new ground, Deloitte continues to stay ahead of the considerable disruption facing clients, our people, and the society in which we operate.” Furthermore he said: “Member firms remain sharply focused on their unique ability to address the specific needs of their clients through distinctive breadth of skills, deep industry knowledge and strategic investments, while bolstering trust in the marketplace, hiring and developing the best talent, and delivering value to society.” He said the Deloitte Group will is focused on global industry leadership despite facing disruption from many directions—digital transformation, geopolitical change and economic volatility, as well as the need to analyse big data, address cyber risk, navigate new regulations, and manage crises—clients look to Deloitte for innovative solutions. As such, Deloitte, he said will continue to invest heavily in innovation, with an emphasis on driving differentiation in its core businesses.

Editorial

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Nigeria at 54: Looking back, looking forward CONTINUED FROM PAGE 19

There was a new constitution that guaranteed a lot more for the people. With all the checks and balances, it sounded like paradise regained. However, the military did not stay away as expected. Having tasted the juice of power, they soon returned, dragging the nation into another long journey of plots, deceit, underdevelopment and above all, division. That would slight the oil producing Niger Delta region which began fresh agitation. Democracy was restored in 1999. The Presidential system, it is called, and that only in name. Nascent democracy has achieved more on paper than

in action. The people are so polarized, the poor have become poorer, the masses do not count. What we flaunt is a new group of criminally super rich, with money coming from looting of the commonwealth, rape of the economy and Robin Hood flavoured type of militancy or terrorism. Nigeria looks up to the United States; that is the model. And the words of a former US Permanent Representative to the United Nations, W. Tapley Bernet[Jnr.] will suffice. He said: ”The United States represents an act of will, it is not a homogenous ethnic nation.” Of course, the Americans have been able

to manage their differences. Their state motto is ‘one out of many’, and they have maintained a prime position in world affairs. I t was not an easy task, though. Great men made America, leaders who left strong institutions. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, John Kennedy, Bill Clinton. Beginning from the declaration of independence on July 4, 1776, to that day in Philadelphia, September 17, 1787, when their constitution was signed, the Americans can die for the star spangled banner. At 54, Nigeria does not have a Peoples’ constitution. What

is referred to as the 1999 Constitution is a document prepared by a few military apologists, for all. Yet, it begins with ‘We the people of Nigeria.’ It is at best, fraudulent. The import is that today, the country is more troubled than at any other time in its history. With a population of over 160 million people, less than 100,000 have seized the wealth of all. In a country where graduates cannot even grab jobs as office assistants, a few are cruising about town in convertibles that when converted to cash, can employ a whole neighbourhood. Nigeria is closer to Japan and Brazil in population, and shares

similar colonial experience with Malaysia and Singapore. That is where the comparison ends. Japan, with no natural resources, leads the globe in technology. Brazil moved up in arms production while Nigeria went to bed. Palm oil seedlings were taken from Benin to Kuala Lumpur, and the Malaysians are ahead in that direction. Just one man, Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew turned Singapore around. America was 54 in 1830. At that time, they had not gone through war. We went to war at Seven. In the US, lessons were learnt. Ours is a lesson in confusion. To be or not to be? Now is time for Nigerians to decide what we want. The will to go ahead is key.

Business | Financiel Market News

Nigerian stocks advance on investors’ optimism CONFIDENCE

The stock market sustained a bullish trend Stories Chris Ugwu

espite came the way of investors yesterday, as the bulls strengthened their grip on the market, causing bargain hunters to jostle for shares on the back of blue chip companies. Analysts said the resurgent of the bulls to sustain the market rally after weeks of loss, was an indica-

tion that confidence is returning to market in spite of the security challenges that had posed threats to investment in the country. The key market performance measures, the NSE All Share Index and market capitalisation, rose by 0.25 per cent, as market extended gaining streak, following investors’ high optimism. Consequently, the All-Share Index gained 104.72 basis points or 0.25 per cent to close at 41,210.10, as against 41,105.38 recorded at the previous day, while the market capitalisation of equities appreciated by N35 billion or 0.25 per cent, as market sentiment remain

in the green territory. Meanwhile, a turnover of 1.07 billion shares worth N8.8 billion in 4,894 deals were recorded in the day’s trading. Banking sub-sector of the financial services sector was the most active (measured by turnover volume); with 764.3 million shares worth N4.1 billion exchanged by investors in 1,502 deals. Volume in the sub-sector was largely driven by activity in the shares of Skye Bank Plc and Zenith Bank Plc. Also, other financial sub-sector, boosted by activity in the shares

Access Bank to exploit market opportunities

n a bid to achieve its vision whilst delivering superior shareholder value, Access Bank has said the enhancement of Tier1capital is imperative to enable it exploit the market opportunities. Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Access Bank, Mr. Herbert Wigwe said this while addressing business editors in Lagos.’ He noted that the bank was poised for building and leveraging on resources and benefits of being a large diversified financial institution and also resolute to achieving the objective of becoming the world’s most respected African Bank. Wigwe stressed that the lender’s target was to achieve top 3 position in Africa by all financial metrics in 2017. He listed the other goals of the bank to include becoming a reference point for technology, sustaining high independent agency, leading project and structured finance bank and becoming best treasury and financial market bank in

the country. Access Bank had announced that it would hold an extraordinary general meeting to seek shareholders’ approval to raise additional equity capital by way of rights’ issue. The bank would also seek shareholders’ approval that its authorised share capital be increased from N13 billion, made up of 24 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each and two billion preference shares of 50 kobo each, to N20 billion by the creation of 14 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each. The corporate action is expected to expand bank’s operations and bolster its cash reserves. The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) had placed Access Bank’s shares on technical suspension, so as to preserve shareholders’ value before the rights issue. Access Bank had successful issued a $400 million seven-year tier-2 capital issuance, which is callable at the

end of five years. Following its Q2 2014 results, analysts at FBN Capital said they continue to believe that the lender will expand its ROE by over 400bps to around 19.0 per cent in 2014. “Management’s reiterated guidance of a 20 per cent ROE implies a slightly stronger outlook. Drivers behind the improved 2014 earnings outlook include net interest margin expansion to close to 7 per cent from around 6 per cent in 2013, over 20 per cent loan growth in 2014 and doubledigit growth in non-interest income. Y/y improvements in 2015 earnings are unlikely to be as strong as 2014. “Nonetheless, with the shares still trading on a 2014E P/B multiple of 0.8x, we do not believe the market has fully priced in the improvements we are seeing. As we roll over our valuation to 2015, we have increased our price target to N12.3 (N10.5 prev.). We retain our outperform rating,” they noted.

of FBNH Plc followed with a turnover of 47.6 million shares valued at N534.3 million in 829 deals. Further analysis of the day’s trading showed that Guinness Nigeria Plc topped the gainers’ table with N15.48 to close at N214.98, while PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc followed with N2.01 to close at N35.00 per share. Stanbic IBTC Plc trailed with a gain of N1.60 to close at N33.60 per share. On the flip side, Seplat Petroleum Nigeria led the losers with a drop of N22.00 to close at N645.00, while Nestle Nigeria shed N10.00 to close at N1,090.00. Lafarge Wapco also fell by N1.89 to close at N126.76.

Learn Africa assures of improved ROI

anaging Director, Learn Africa Plc, Mr. Olusegun Oladipo, has promised the company’s shareholders enhanced Return on Investment (ROI). Oladipo explained that the company has restructured the entire business activities in such a way that it would consistently add value to shareholders’ investment and enhance its growth. He added that the company has completely restructured the contents and aesthetics of the books in order to make them the preferred choice in the industry. He noted that the company has increased its sales team from 61 to 137 before Pearson divestment, adding that the marketing team has been restructured to achieve optimal performance. “We would continue to raise our bar in book publishing while generating optimal returns to shareholders. Within one year, we established our titles and have promoted it vig-

orously and many schools and educational bodies have adopted the concept. We will achieve higher sales and profitability this year,” he assured. He congratulated the National Examinations Council (NECO) and the candidates that sat for the June/July 2014 Senior Secondary Certificate Examinations (SSCE) on the great success recorded in the examinations. “As a leading educational book publisher that is strongly committed to the human capital development of our great country through consistent and timely provision of effective learning resources, we take great pride in aligning and identifying ourselves with this success. There is no iota of doubt in our mind that our New Concept English and New Concept Mathematics books that have been generally adjudged to be top notch in terms of content and pedagogical adequacy as well as production quality, have contributed immensely to this success.

News

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

and a single chamber legislature at the states. So far, these parliaments that were put in place since 1999 have endured for 14 years, the longest the parliament has existed since Nigeria’s independence.

n 54 years as an independent nation, Nigeria has had democratic government with a functional parliament for a cumulative period of 26 years and 28 years of military rule. During the military interregnum, the nation’s constitution was suspended, the parliament sacked and its structures left dormant for as long as the intruders occupied the political space. In the same vein, the due process of lawmaking was usurped as the military juntas usually rolled out decrees for the governance of the country. The story of the legislature in Nigeria cannot be divorced from the series of military coups that truncated the several attempts by the people to rule themselves through elected representatives at various levels. First Republic As at independence on October 1, 1960, the country operated a bicameral legislature modelled after the Westminster parliamentary system. This was the system upon which the first generation nationalists were groomed in preparation for independence. The Independence Constitution provided for a federal parliament with a Governor General, a Senate and a House of Representatives. As at that time, Nigeria was only granted political independence and not complete sovereignty. The implication was that the Constitution still retained the British Crown, Queen Elizabeth II as the Head of State while Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe was the President of the Senate for a while before transmuting to the position of Governor General. It was the 1963 Republican Constitution that finally freed Nigeria from the apron strings of the colonial lords. The First Republic paraded notable parliamentarians such as Chief Dennis Osadebe, Dr. Nwafor Orizu, Senator Hassan Rafin Dadi, Senator Nihu Bamali and HRH Adeniji Adele II, the then Oba of Lagos. It is on record that the parliament blossomed for six years until January 15, 1966 when the first military coup took place and sacked the entire system. Second Republic After 13 years of military rule, including three years of a bloody civil war, Nigeria returned to democratic rule following a political transition programme. A Constituent Assembly was established to chart a new course for the country. It was this body that sought the views of Nigerians that recommended the adoption of a new constitution based on a presidential system of government modelled after the system in the United States of America. The ban on political activities imposed on the polity by the military was lifted; political parties were formed and elections were held to choose a new set of political leaders including members of the parliament. On October 1, 1979, General Olusegun Obasanjo handed over the reins of power to the first elected President of Nigeria, Alhaji Shehu Shagari. Subsequently, Shagari inaugurated the National Assembly with Dr. Joseph Wayas as Senate President and Chief Edwin Ume-Ezeoke as Speaker of the House of Representatives. Once again, the life span of the parliament was cut short as the military came calling on October 31, 1983. The coupists led by Gen. Muhammadu Buhari sacked the Shagari government that was then in the third month of its second term. Third Republic In 1985, a benevolent dictator, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida toppled the regime of General Mihammadu Buhari and seized power in a palace coup. The new

Wayas

Eteh

Ume-Ezeoke

Mark

Nigerian legislature, 54 years after ONWUKA NZESHI takes a look at the challenges of Nigerian legislature in the last 54 years and the prospects regime initiated a political transition programme that introduced a two-party system. In the course of the transition, the National Assembly was restored even though the country was still under military rule. It was still operated along the lines of a bicameral legislature in a presidential system. The states also had their own parliaments run by their elected representatives. However, the experiment failed when the military government of the day annulled the June 12, 1993 presidential election. The Interim National Government (ING), a political contraption that was foisted on the country could not stand the pressure of resistance from the populace. This was what led to another military regime under the leadership of Gen. Sani Abacha who, in the usual military style demolished all democratic structures including the National Assembly. Fourth Republic It took the country another six years to restore democratic rule and the parliamentary institution. The rebirth of democracy and restoration of the National Assembly came with the death of Abacha and the emergence of General Abdulsalami Abubakar in 1988. He instituted a political transition programme that lasted barely nine months and came up with another constitution that restored bicameral legislature at the federal level

Positive outlook Taking a look at the journey so far, it is obvious that the parliament has travelled a rough road in Nigeria. While the political elite acknowledges the fundamental roles of the National Assembly, its real impact could not be felt in the years before 1999. This is due largely to the interruptions of what would have been a flourishing parliamentary culture in the governance of the country. However, things are beginning to change for the better. With the military staying away from the scene for more than a decade, the National Assembly is gradually entrenching itself into its rightful democratic space. It has begun to perform its statutory roles of representation of the people and passing legislations for the good governance of the country. It is also making its impact felt in terms of effecting the checks and balances on the other arms of government as envisaged by the Nigeria Constitution. The Sixth Assembly (2007-2011) played a historic role when they stepped in to the power vacuum crisis during the twilight of the Yar’Adua administration and introduced the Doctrine of Necessity to save the nation from drifting into anarchy and chaos. Women in parliament Over the last 54 years, politics in Nigeria has remained largely a male dominated territory. In the early years after independence, the absence of women in politics was understandable given the poor level of literacy amongst the country’s population which was even worse among the female folk. This disadvantage was compounded not only by some social and cultural inhibitions associated with traditional African societies, but also by hard economic challenges women faced. Politics is often associated with meetings which often drag late into the nights; gatherings that often degenerate into rowdiness and other activities that often require huge capital. This scenario gave vent to the general perception that politics was indeed an enterprise exclusively reserved for men. In spite of this, one woman, Senator (Mrs) Wuraola Esan blazed the trail in the history of the National Assembly. Esan who represented the Western Region was the only woman in the upper chamber of the First Republic. During the Second Republic, Senator Franca Afegbua representing Bendel State was elected into the National Assembly in 1979. However, many years after these two breakthroughs, female lawmakers were still regarded as endangered species in the National Assembly. At the return of democracy in 1999, only a sprinkling of females scaled the parliamentary elections. As at 2003, the Senate had only 2.7 per cent of its 109 membership as women while only five per cent of the 360-member House of Representatives were women. At the inauguration of the Sixth Session of the National Assembly in 2007, there were only nine females at the Senate and 24 at the House of Representatives. The challenges Unfortunately, the National Assembly has had its fair share of challenges over the years. There has been a high turnover CONTINUED ON PAGE 47

News 47

NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

make sure that northerners also take part in the running of Nigeria even though they were backward educationally. They all achieved their objectives. The present leadership we have are just learning how to rule the people but in the process, as we are going along, they will learn. The problem we are having is that we are not in a position to learn because we have not been practising democracy continuously. We thank God that this time around we are able to practice democracy from 1999 till date. If we continue like that, we would perfect the system and we would reach a stage where people from other countries would come and learn from us.

We have made tremendous progress in the last 54 years but that does not say we cannot do better.

Yakasai

Yakasai: We’ve made progress as a nation Alhaji Tanko Yakasai, a former Presidential Adviser on National Assembly, is the Coordinator of the Northern Elders’ Council (NEC). He speaks on Nigeria’s democracy in this interview with TEMITOPE OGUNBANKE At independence, what were you doing? On the day of the independence, I attended the independence party hosted by the Governor-General and the next day, October 2, I left Nigeria for a programme in China. I was at that time, the Deputy National Chairman of the Nigerian Youths Movement and National Publicity Secretary of the Northern Elements Progressives Union (NEPU). How would you assess the strides of Nigeria at 54? We should be grateful to God for sparing our lives to celebrate 54 years of Nigeria’s independence. We have made tremendous progress in the last 54 years but that does not say we cannot do better. For a period of 60 years under colonial rule we had only one university, which is University College, Ibadan and today, 54 years after independence, we have no less than 130 universities, apart from other tertiary institutions; such as polytechnics and colleges of education. If we use this as example, you will see the difference between time of independence and now in Nigeria. That is the same thing in other aspects of our national life like health facilities, transportation and others. Nigeria is 54 years as an independent nation. Do you think we deserve to roll out the drums? Every Nigerian should be

happy that they were born in Nigeria. We could have done better but our drawback is a result of military incursion in politics. It is not that the military are not Nigerians; they are Nigerians but they were not trained to rule; they were trained to defend the territory and integrity of the country. What they did was to learn on the job and you don’t learn ruling people on the job; you practice it. That is the reason political parties are formed and by joining a political party you are learning process of administering the country and to govern the people. And through that you will understand why you should face your priorities and in the process of implementation, you will be able to see where you made mistake and next time, you correct it. If you compare Nigeria with other countries that have not experienced military rule, like India, Malaysia and so on, you will see that the difference is so wide, and the reason is that they have operated democracy for many years. Can you share your thoughts on Nigeria’s leadership before and after independence? You cannot compare the present leadership in Nigeria with leadership of the past. The past leaders had a vision for Nigeria and they came to power after practising politics. Therefore, they were able to determine what should be

the priority. For instance, the priority of Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe was to make Nigeria independent. The priority of Chief Obafemi Awolowo was to give education to his people. The priority of Saudauna was to

In the pre and post-independence era, groundnut, cocoa, palm oil and other agriculture produce were the mainstay of the economy, but today there is overdependence on oil. How do you see the development? There are two reasons for that. One is that we have oil; oil is a spoiler. It is just like gamblers. When they get money, they spend it anyhow because they didn’t suffer to make money. Any politician going on the street spending millions of naira do not see the value of the amount of money he is spending because he didn’t labour or sweat to get it. During groundnut and cocoa days and other economic activities that we were undertaking, we suffered for them. We sweated to produce groundnut, cocoa, timber and the rest of them, therefore Nigerians were more concerned about the way government was spending their money because they sweated for it. Now, we don’t sweat for the oil money

and that is why people steal money and that is nobody’s business and nobody is saying anything or thinking of the people at the grassroots because they didn’t suffer for it. For example, if you go to the streets today and ask people, especially those who are not salary earners to show you their tax receipt, I can assure you that 90 per cent of them are not paying tax and that is why they don’t care about how government spends their money. If people are really paying tax, they will not allow anybody to steal their money. People have attributed part of the nation’s problem to structural defects. Would you say there is need for the system to be corrected? Oh yes. At the just-concluded National Conference, new ideas were generated. Take, for example, the question of dedicating five per cent of national revenue for the development of solid mineral resources. There are so many decisions and recommendations made at the National Conference that nobody believed could ever be thought of. So, definitely the conference has moved the country forward. Before the conference, there were several reports that some people were thinking that Nigeria will break up and about 500 people attended the National Conference, and despite coming from different parts of the country, they were able to agree on many things, and by the time we concluded the conference, we were embracing each other. The unity of the country was further consolidated by the conference. During and after the conference, you never heard anybody talking about break-up of Nigeria.

Nigerian legislature, 54 years after C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 4 6

of lawmakers at each election year. The popular explanation is that the Nigerian legislature is yet to overcome the challenges of incessant interruptions occasioned by prolonged military rule. This scenario has been further compounded by the tyranny of political godfathers, lack of internal democracy in political parties, non-transparent elections and executive interference in the affairs of the legislature since the re-birth of democracy in 1999. Some blame it squarely on what they call executive terrorism, a covert political instrument to keep the legislature perpetually at infancy and ultimately make it unable to exert the necessary checks and balances in the governance equation. The parliament has experienced a lot of problems in the budgetary process due to the culture of late budget preparation and submission to the National Assembly by the executive arm of government. The parliament has had a running battle with the executive each budget season because of the battle for supremacy between the two arms of government. In addition, the National Assembly has had a rough time trying to oversight the executive and recently, some heads of Ministries Department and Agencies of government have resisted the National Assembly by going to court to stop the National Assembly from exercising its constitutional mandate of conducting investigations into the operations of government. However, this resistance to parliamentary oversight may not be unconnected with the indeco-

rous manner in which some committees of the National Assembly had conducted themselves in their relationship with executive arm. While a lot of parliamentarians have displayed a good measure of integrity, a few bad eggs have diminished what would have a sterling performance. The future The Nigerian parliament has come a long way. It has had its highs and lows but has also shown resilience and strength of character. But the parliament must do away with the wrong culture of assuming a lordship position over the people. In many advanced democracies, a member of the parliament is a citizen privileged to serve his/ her constituents. It is service, notlordship. It is certainly not an avenue for primitive accumulation of wealth but an opportunity to ensure equitable distribution of the commonwealth of the nation. As an institution, the parliament has a solemn obligation to fulfil the genuine aspirations of the people. The centrality of the legislature in the provision of good governance, deepening democracy and building a virile nation based on fairness, equity and justice. There is an urgent need for the legislature in Nigeria to draw inspiration from the first generation nationalists and pioneers of the system who sacrificed their time, energy and other resources to make Nigeria what it has become today. There is hope that if the parliament endures for another decade or two, the future of Nigeria and its people will be brighter.

48 Politics

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Nigeria: Still unfulfilled dreams at 54 C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 1 3

The same goes for late President Umar Yar‘Adua and his then deputy (President Goodluck Jonathan). Many still believe they were handpicked in 2007 by then President Obasanjo when his third term bid failed. While Yar’Adua never showed interest in the presidency until he was drafted into the race by Obasanjo at the 11th hour, Jonathan was set to contest the governorship election of his home state – Bayelsa before he was equally picked by Obasanjo as Yar’Adua’s running mate. As fate would have it, Jonathan became president three years into their four-year tenure following Yar’Adua’s death in May 2010. Faulty structure Though Nigeria’s fragmentation predates independence given her over 300 ethnic groups, efforts by successive administrations to cement the crack have not yielded the desired result, as a result of this, the country is still seen by most of its citizens as nations within a nation. The unitary constitution/system of government presently in place under the guise of a federal system has not also helped matters. This explained the persistent calls for a Sovereign National Conference (SNC), which the present administration yielded to with the convocation of the justconcluded National Conference. The agitations for an SNC were over issues of autonomy for the states; need for fiscal federalism to pave the way for resource control by the states; equality of states and local governments among the six geo-political zones; state police and indigeneship question, among others. Agitators of the SNC insisted that only such participatory platform devoid of the present political affiliations will sustain the present composition of the Nigerian state, which is gradually drifting towards disintegration. A re-tooling of the Nigerian federalism by tinkering with items on the Exclusive and Concurrent legislative lists as contained in the 1999 Constitution (as amended), it was argued, is indisputable, as the centralised federal system of government presently in operation has failed the nation. North/South dichotomy Despite efforts of the nation’s founding fathers at fostering unity among the people, Nigeria has not been without challenges. At various times in history, the various regions had used threats of secession to extract concessions from the Federal Government. For instance, in 1950, the North threatened to secede if it was not granted equal representation with the South in the legislative council. In 1953, the West also threatened to secede over revenue allocation and carving

Bello

Awolowo

of Lagos as the Federal Capital Territory. In 1967, the East (now the South-East and South-South) declared the Republic of Biafra. Unfortunately, the nation paid a very high price for the civil war that ensued. The huge price of the 30-month old war, notwithstanding, some Nigerians are still having secessionist approach to national issues at the slightest provocation. Often times there have been calls for disintegration, though the history of the Nigerian federal practice and its accommodative adequacy continuously allays fears relating to North/South dichotomy and the majority/ minority cleavages.

With a few exceptions, Nigeria has been struck by a string of incompetent leaders who have only succeeded in running the country aground, while less endowed nations that got independence the same time have continued to make giant strides

Corruption One thing that has held Nigeria back since independence is a systemic and entrenched corruption. Sadly, the nation’s laws have not recognised the cankerworm for what it is. Closely linked to the leadership issue, corruption explains why successive Nigerian leaders failed to see headship as all about service, sacrifice and making positive impact on the people, but a means of amassing wealth. The country over the years has seen its wealth withered with little to show in living conditions of the masses. In 2012, for example, Nigeria was ranked the 35th most corrupt country in the world by global corruption watchdog, Transparency International (TI). Nigeria scored 27 out of a maximum 100 marks to clinch the 139th position out of the 176 countries surveyed for the report, sharing the position with Azerbaijan, Kenya, Nepal and Pakistan. However, the frightening dimension that corruption has taken in Nigeria of late, has prompted calls for more drastic measures to combat it, as the various anti-graft agencies – Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Independent Corrupt Practices

Zik

and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) are fast losing the battle. Part of the measures being advocated includes capital punishment. To those in support of the proposal, the slap on the wrist kind of judgements on several high profile corruption cases justifies why Nigeria should adopt the Chinese model. Flawed electoral processes An electoral system gives credence to the quality of any nation’s democracy. In the case of Nigeria, it has been a gradual descent since independence. The electoral process over time has been characterised by violence. To remedy the situation, many have persistently called for an electoral reform process that will revolutionise and overhaul the system to make it yield to the basic tenets of democracy. The response from the government over time, however, has not been encouraging given indifference to implement the various reports of several electoral reform panels, particularly the Justice Mohammed Uwais Electoral Reform Panel. Poverty amidst plenty About 112.5 million out of the country’s estimated 170 million population live in relative poverty conditions, as successive governments merely engaged in glorifying poverty alleviation programmes. The 2010 Human Development Index report released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), ranked Nigeria 142nd out of 169 countries. Ironically, it was the same period that Nigerians witnessed the deflation of an excess crude account that stood at $20 billion in January 2009 to $460 million in July 2010 with virtually no positive impact on their lives and living conditions. Worsening insecurity There have been concerted efforts over time to sustain the

Nigerian project. Part of these efforts included resistance of attempts by some political players to derail the process in their bid to perpetuate either themselves or their cronies in power through undemocratic means. But the Boko Haram insurgency ravaging the North-East at the moment leaves no one in doubt that it is not yet Uhuru for Nigeria. The crisis has claimed several lives and properties as well as brought economic activities in the zone to a halt. Some people have insisted that the insurgency has a political undertone, and that the Federal Government should declare a full scale war against the sect. To these stakeholders, only such measure will stem the rise of ethnic militias across the country. Way forward Against the backdrop that most past Nigerian leaders were railroaded into positions without any demonstration of ability to comprehend the problems of the nation, analysts and stakeholders insist that such must change if the country is to make progress. It is the consensus that a country without visionary leaders would be faced with social and economic instability, as leaders with vision inspire citizens and mobilise them for nation building; employ wisdom, foresight, sense of purpose and commitment to galvanise them towards self-actualisation, and propel the national spirit in them. To this political school, Nigeria needs good leadership to conceive dynamic policies that will drive development at all levels. While it is indisputable that change is not easy to come by, the forthcoming general election, however, provides an ample opportunity for Nigerians to effect the change they desire by electing leaders that will take the nation to the next level irrespective of political leanings to avoid another era of trading endless blames on why the nation has come to a pathetic leadership crossroad.

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Chibok girls’ campaigners: We’ll not celebrate independence anniversary Etaghene Edirin, Adesina Wahab, Sola Adeyemo and Yekeen Nurudeen

he ‘Bring Back Our Girls’ campaigners yesterday said they would not be part of any rally to mark the nation’s 54th independence anniversary. This was as the group denied any plan to organise anti-Goodluck Jonathan rally in Abuja today. Spokesperson of the group, Tunji Olanre-

waju, who addressed journalists at the end of yesterday’s sit-out at the Unity Fountain in Abuja, said the group never planned any rally to mark the Independence Day. He also said that a symposium being planned to hold for the occasion was put off because speakers being expected were not available. The group also denied media reports that it was planning to sue the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN)

and President Goodluck Jonathan, over the $9.3 million arms deal scandal. Meanwhile, Ekiti State Governor-Elect, Mr. Ayo Fayose, has urged Nigerians not to lose faith in the country, saying God’s intervention in the affairs of the nation will not stop until the country overcomes all the challenges confronting it. In a message in AdoEkiti yesterday to mark the 54th independence anniversary of the

country, made available through his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Idowu Adelusi, Fayose said with God, all things are possible and that those fomenting trouble and planning evil for the nation would be put to shame. While felicitating with the people of Ekiti State and Nigeria on the occasion, the governorelect said despite all odds, Nigerians would see that they could still count their blessings and thank God.

FCT minister summons market leaders Yekeen Nurudeen Abuja

ollowing a fight that broke out on Monday at the Dei Dei Building Materials market which left four people critically injured and some shops damaged, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Senator Bala Mohammed yesterday summoned all the market

leaders to an emergency security meeting. The meeting was held in the Minister’s office with security operatives and chairmen of different associations in the market. Director of Security in the FCT, Engineer Ibrahim Jibril who spoke to New Telegraph after the meeting confirmed the incident but noted that no life was lost.

Assembly summons EEDC over power supply Steve Uzoechi OWERRI

mo State House of Assembly has summoned the Business Manager of the Enugu Electricity Distribution Corporation (EEDC) over irregular power supply in the state. The Assembly issued thesummon yesterday

following a resolution of the house sponsored by Simeon Iwunze representing Isiala Mbano in the state Assembly. Presenting the motion, Iwunze said the state has not seen any meaningful improvement in electricity supply since the corporation took over from the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN).

‘PDP didn’t rig Niger East senatorial election’ Dan Atori MINNA

T L-R: Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III; Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan and Bishop Hassan Kukah of Sokoto Catholic Diocese, during the inauguration of Holy Mother and Child Clinic in Sokoto…on Monday

ALGON wants FG’s intervention Nigerians embrace Glo Xchange Anule Emmanuel

he leadership of the Association of Local Governments in Nigeria ALGON has urged President Goodluck Jonathan to take deliberate steps that would improve grassroots administration in the country. National President of ALGON, Nnwabueze Okafor, who stated this yesterday at the presidential villa after a meeting with President Jonathan said the overbearing at-

titude of some state governors and unnecessary interference with local government administration was unnecessary. Speaking to State House Correspondents, the ALGON chairman said such interference was hampering development at the grassroots level. He also lamented the absence of elected representatives of the people at the grassroots and pleaded with the President for his intervention to change the situation.

Minister seeks NDDC partnership on development Emmanuel Masha Port Harcourt

he Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Dr. Stephen Oru has stressed strong collaboration between the ministry and the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) in order to speed

up development in the Niger Delta region. He said since his ministry and the NDDC have the common goal of developing the region, there was no need for them to work at cross purposes, and therefore admonished them to work together to deliver on their set goals.

ore Nigerians across the country are daily embracing the newly launched mobile money super-agent network, Glo Xchange, as the on-going town hall meetings, now in the third week, recorded huge turnout of Small and Medium-Scale Entrepreneurs. The town hall meetings which were held last Saturday in Aba, Kaduna, Ilorin, Osogbo and Akure saw Nigerians in

their hundreds thronged the venues where Glo and partner banks enlightened the public and prospective agents on the basic principles of the Glo Xchange agent network. Speaking during the training sessions in Ilorin, Aba, Kaduna, Akure and Osogbo respectively, the Mobile Money Specialists described Glo Xchange as a very safe business, a quick and easy way of making money with minimal risk.

Suit against Onyebuchi gets Nov 11 date Tunde Oyesina Abuja

he Federal High Court sitting in Abuja yesterday fixed November 11 for mention in a suit filed by Nigeria Association of Patent and Proprietary Medicine Dealers (NAPPMED) against the Minister of Health. NAPPMED had ap-

proached the court seeking to nullify, among others, the 2003 guidelines approved by the minister for the issuing of patent medicine vendors’ license. Joined as respondents in the suit are Pharmacists Council of Nigeria and the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice as second and third defendants, respectively.

he Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Niger state has denied the allegations by the All Progressive Congress (APC) of rigging the Niger east senatorial bye-election which Dr. Shem Nuhu Zagbayi was declared winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The PDP Vice Chair-

man in the State, Barrister Tanko Beji, disclosed on Tuesday in an interview with our Correspondent in Minna that though the conduct of the August 30th election was free and fair, INEC declared it inconclusive to make it more credible. He added that the reran senatorial election on September 6th declared Zagbayi as winner with 92,056 votes against his close opponent Barrister David Umaru who had 87,406 votes.

Rep dumps PDP for APGA Philip Nyam Abuja

he gale of defection in the House of Representatives continued yesterday as Hon. Chriscato Ikechukwu Ameke, representing Anambra East/ West federal constituency abandoned the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)

for the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). Only last week, Hon. Atiku Shamaki representing Magama/Rijau federal constituency of Niger state dumped the APC for PDP. With this defection, the PDP now has 174 as against the major opposition APC’s 164 members.

Clark mourns Galadima of Kano Tunde Oyesina Abuja

foremost Ijaw leader, Chief Edwin Clark yesterday described the death of Galadima Kano, Alhaji Tijani Hashim as very painful and a great loss to the nation.

The 82 year old emir died in his Abuja home on Monday. He was regarded as one of the most influential Prince of Kano, a philanthropist and adherent of culture and tradition whose influence was felt all over the country.

News

WORLD | News

I’ll complete all projects before handing over, says Elechi Charles Onyekwere

overnor Martin Elechi of Ebonyi State yesterday said he would complete all ongoing projects in the state before the end of his administration in 2015. He stated this in Abakaliki during a media chat as part of activities to mark the country’s 54th independence anniversary and 18th anniversary of the state’s creation.

Elechi, who was responding to a question on his successor, said the people of Ebonyi State will decide who succeeds him in 2015. His words: “I don’t know why we are so unsettled about these matters. Mind you, the timetable is out and actors are going to make themselves available. You give the impression that I will singlehandedly say that this is my successor”. “It has to come by way

of consensus and by election. So please, do not overheat the polity. What is important now is that we face our projects and programmes”. “What if the elections don’t come? You should pray more that we overcome the destabilizing factors that are shaking the entire nation with the probability. I am not saying that they will succeed, but with probability of stalling all elections”.

Trapped deposits: Savannah Bank customers seek Jonathan’s intervention Peter Osondu ABA

avannah Bank customers under the auspices of ‘Concerned Customers,’ whose deposits had been trapped in the bank for many years now have appealed to President Goodluck Jonathan, the National Assembly and Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr. (Mrs.) Ngozi OkonjoIweala, to intervene in the matter. In a letter signed by

Chief John Paul Okoye, Ladi Otumba and Alhaji Idi Mohammed, on behalf of other depositors, the concerned customers stated how their money had been trapped in the bank since February 2002, following the bank’s closure. The customers said they heaved a sigh of relief when some years back, after some legal fireworks, the bank’s operational licence was returned to its owners. But they were piqued that since the bank’s li-

cting Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr. Suleiman Abba, has decentralised the issuance of police permits to owners of vehicles with tinted glasses. A statement signed by the Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Emmanuel Ojukwu, yesterday said the IGP has vested the power of issuing permits to owners of vehicles with tinted glasses in the Commissioners

of Police (CPs) of the 36 state commands and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). According to the statement, the new permits to be issued by state CPs carry the same authority as those issued by the Office of the IGP. The development alters the initial arrangement, which made the Force Headquarters the sole issuing authority. It further noted that the decision of the IGP was intended to bring police service closer to

the public. The statement reads in part: “The Acting Inspector-General of Police, Suleiman Abba, has decentralised the issuance of tinted glass permit. He has delegated the power to Commissioners of Police in charge of state commands so as to bring service closer to the people. “Such permits have the same authority as those previously issued by Force Headquarters and are valid throughout the federation.

IPAC election: PPA, others floor PDP in Abia Peter Osondu ABA

rogressive Peoples’ Alliance (PPA) yesterday led other opposition parties in Abia State to defeat the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state’s chapter of the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) election held at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC’s) office, Umuahia,

over the weekend. IPAC is the umbrella body for all political parties, made up of the chairmen of all the registered political parties in Nigeria, which was established under political parties’ code of conduct in 2013 by INEC. In the election, the PDP did not win any seat out of the seven contested for as the opposition routed them.

US lawmakers scold Secret Service over White House breach

S lawmakers scolded the head of the US Secret Service yesterday over a security breach that allowed a knife-wielding intruder to run deep into the White House, and Director Julia Pierson promised to make changes to agency procedures to ensure it would never happen again. “This is unacceptable and I take full responsibility,” Pierson told a US House of Representatives committee

investigating the Sept. 19 incident in which an intruder jumped the fence, burst through the front door and ran into the East Room of the White House. “It is clear that our security plan was not executed properly,” she said, promising a complete review of procedures. She also said Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson had requested an investigation. The incident is the latest black mark for the elite agency charged with protecting the

president, which has suffered a series of scandals including a lone gunman firing shots at the White House in 2011, a prostitution scandal involving agents in Colombia in 2012 and a night of drinking in March that led to three agents being sent home from a presidential trip to Amsterdam. Lawmakers from both parties said the incident had damaged the agency’s reputation and punctured the image of invulnerability that helps protect President Barack Obama.

cence was returned by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), nothing substantial had been done to inject the needed funds or allow investors into the bank to enable it come back to life. The customers recalled that while the Societe Generale Bank, which had a similar problem with Savannah Bank had concluded the injection of funds from investors that enabled it to commence operations under the name Heritage Bank, the same could not be said to be so with the latter.

IG decentralises issuance of tinted glass permits Emmanuel Onani

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Those elected in the keenly contested election were Prince Nnanna Ukaegbu (APGA); Dr. Emmanuel Fursey Okereke (NCP); Deputy Chairman, Prince Emeka Okafor (PPA); Secretary, Onyioha Onyioha (APC); Deputy Secretary, Gilbert Chikezie (ID); Treasurer, David Kalu (CPP); Publicity Secretary and Menelik Ukpai (UPP), Financial Secretary.

Uniformed Secret Service officers

Islamist-allied militias in Libya reject UN talks

slamist-allied militias in control of the Libyan capital and the country’s top religious body yesterday rejected U.N.-led talks that have called for a cease-fire in the battered nation. The announcements reflect the difficulties facing the U.N. envoy to Libya, Bernardino Leon, as he tries to broker a truce amid a deep polarization that has left Libya torn between two rival governments and parliaments.

The statements followed the first round of U.N.-brokered talks between Libya’s rival lawmakers held Monday in an attempt to bridge the gap between the warring groups. The Libya Dawn umbrella group, which is in control of Tripoli and which is affiliated with the militia from the western city of Misrata, said on its Facebook page yesterday that the only way to end the fighting is to disarm its rivals and hunt down their leaders. Libya is

facing its worst turmoil since the 2011 NATObacked uprising that toppled longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi. The Libya Dawn’s recent takeover of Tripoli followed weeks of fighting that forced nearly a quarter million Libyans to flee their homes and prompted an exodus of diplomats and foreigners from the city. Once in control of the capital, the militias revived the country’s outgoing parliament, dominated by Islamist lawmakers.

Hong Kong protesters stockpile supplies, fear fresh police advance

ens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters filled the streets of Hong Kong late yesterday, stockpiling supplies and erecting makeshift barricades ahead of what some fear may be a push by police to clear the roads before Chinese National Day. On the eve of Wednesday’s anniversary of the Communist Party’s foundation of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, crowds poured into central districts of

the Asian financial hub, near where National Day festivities are scheduled to take place. There was a carnival atmosphere among demonstrators, in contrast to weekend clashes when riot police fired pepper spray and tear gas to quell the unrest. Nevertheless, rumours have spread among protesters that police could be preparing to move in again, as the pro-Beijing government, which has called the dem-

onstrations illegal, vowed to go ahead with celebrations. “Many powerful people from the mainland will come to Hong Kong. The Hong Kong government won’t want them to see this, so the police must do something,” Sui-ying Cheng, 18, a freshman at Hong Kong University’s School of Professional and Continuing Education, said of the National Day holiday.

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EURO Football

Nigeria @ 54

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Special feats in Nigerian Sports since 1960

Arsenal ambush Galatasaray

Atletico clash vital for Juventus, says Marchisio

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Sport

Did you know? Bulgaria was the only soccer team in the 1994 World Cup in which all 11 players’ last names ended with the letters “OV.”

Amaju wins NFF election

l Giwa vows to resume Thursday by court order

Amaju

All the presidential candidates from (left) Amaju, Umeh, Yola, Ogunjobi, Uchegbulam and Iorfa

Stories: Adekunle Salami Warri

hairman of Delta State Football Association, Amaju Pinnick, has been elected as the President of the Nigeria Football Federation. He defeated five other candidates after two rounds of voting in an election held in Warri, Delta State, on Tuesday and will now preside over Nigerian football for another four years. Amaju scored 32 votes from 44 available, beating Dominic Iorfa who got eight votes to a distant second while Taiwo Ogunjobi managed just four in the run-off after the first round of balloting had ended without any candidate scoring two-third majority of the votes cast. Amaju led the first round of voting scoring 24 votes while Ogunjobi polled nine votes with Iorfa and Amanze Uchegbulam scoring six and four respectively. Mike Umeh and Abba Yola did not receive any vote. However, in a development that shocked many pundits, one of the front runners in the race, Shehu Dikko, eventually did not take part in the election after

PHOTOS: SHENGOL PIX

failing to show up at the event. The chairman of the Electoral Committee, Samson Ebomhe, announced before the start of voting that the Kaduna State-born administrator had pulled out but our correspondent gathered that Dikko was actually forced to step down and prevented from coming to Warri. Amaju said, “I will be a team player. My victory is a victory for everybody. As chairman of the Delta State FA I was a team player and I will keep doing that and take it to the next level. “I want to reconcile all the stakeholders to ensure that there is peace in Nigerian football.” In other contests, the chairman of Lagos State FA, Seyi Akinwumi, emerged as the 1st Vice President while Ibrahim Musa Gusau returned unopposed as the chairman of chairmen. Barrister Chris Greene made a dramatic return to the board after emerging winner from the South-South Zone. Problems beset the build-up to the election after the electoral chairman was allegedly arrested by security operatives shortly before the time for the commencement of the process

I will be a team player. My victory is a victory for everybody

and the news of his disappearance had engendered an atmosphere of uncertainty at Golden Tulip Hotel, Warri, venue of the elections with stakeholders fearing that the event might not hold after all. Although a FIFA observer was absent, Director General of the National Sports Commission, Gbenga Elegbeleye, and the chairman of House Committee on Sports, Godfrey Gaiya, were in attendance. Meanwhile, proprietor of Giwa FC, Christopher Giwa, said his group will resume in office on Thursday when his board shall have their meeting and far reaching decisions shall be made to the nation.

NEW NFF BOARD Amaju Pinnik - President Seyi Akinwunmi - 1st Vice President Ibrahim Gusau – Chairman of Chairmen Chris Green - South South Zone Suleiman Kwande – North Central Zone Ahmed Yusuf -North Central Zone Dele Ajayi - South West Zone Rabiu Inuwa - North West Zone Modibbo Hussaini – North East Zone Babagana Kachalla - North East Zone Felix Anyansi - South East zone

Nosa Igiebor

First Ballot Amaju Pinnick 25 Taiwo Ogunjobi 9 Dominic Iorfa 6 Amanze Uchegbulam 4 Abba Yola 0 Mike Umeh 0

Money won, not Pinnick-Iorfa

The Sport Team

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

Ifeanyi Ibeh l Sport Correspondent

Ajibade Olusesan l Sport Correspondent

Charles Ogundiya l Sport Correspondent

Iorfa

ne of the Presidential candidates in the 2014 Nigeria Football Federation elections, Dominic Iorfa, has refused to congratulate the winner, Amaju Pinnick, saying the new NFF President bought his way to victory. Iorfa said that Pinnick was not a popular candidate but he wooed del-

egates with money and they in turn voted for him. He said there was no way that Pinnick would have defeated him in an election that is free and fair and lamented an electoral process that was subverted with money. Iorfa who had cried blue murder even before the start of the process

Run off Amaju Pinnick 32 Dominic Iorfa 8 Taiwo Ogunjobi 4

demonstrated his resentment by not hugging the winner even when all other contestants did. “Pinnick did not win this election because he is a popular candidate but because money exchanged hands. Maigari deserved the second term but because of his weak leadership that’s why we are in this mess. “I brought out a list of those they will vote for and you can see what is happening it means money has exchange hands,” he said.

SPORT

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

Special feats in Nigerian

2 October 1960: A day following Nigeria’s independence, the ‘Red Devils’, as the national team was known back then, beat Portuguese Guinea (now known as Guinea-Bissau) 4-1 at the old National Stadium in Lagos. Ekpe Asuquo opened scoring for the Red Devils.

23 October 1962: Five years after Hogan ‘Kid’ Bassey became the first Nigerian to win a world title Dick Tiger (born Richard Ihetu) wins the vacant World Boxing Association Middleweight title after defeating Gene Fullmer of the United States in a 15-round contest decided at Candlestick Park, California. 27 February 1963: Paul Hamilton scores three goals in Nigeria’s 4-0 defeat of Senegal in the third-place match of the Kwame Nkrumah Cup, in Accra, Ghana, to become the first Nigerian player, postindependence, to score a hat-trick in a full international. 6 October 1963: Nigeria qualifies for the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time despite losing 1-0 to Guinea, in Conakry. Although the first leg in Lagos ended in a 2-2 draw, the match was awarded to Nigeria after it was uncovered that the game had been officiated by a Guinean referee, contrary to CAF regulations 24 November 1963: Nigeria plays its first Africa Cup of Nations match, losing 6-3 to Egypt in Kumasi, with Ekpe Asuquo scoring Nigeria’s first ever AFCON goal. Almost 43 years later, on 4 February 2006, Victor Obinna Nsofor scored Nigeria’s 100th AFCON goal in a quarterfinal match against Tunisia in Port Said, Egypt.

Since attaining independence on 1 October 1960, Nigerian athletes and teams have excelled in the world of sports. New Telegraph’s Ifeanyi Ibeh chronicles some of the most memorable feats down the years. and Mali. Nigeria won the game 3-0 with Yakubu Mambo going into the record books as the first player to score at the 55,000 capacity stadium. Scorers of Nigeria’s other goals were Sanni Mohammed and Kenneth Olayombo. 7 January 1973: The 2nd edition of the All-Africa Games gets underway at the National Stadium, Lagos with sports heroes from around the world including Abebe Bikila, Pelé, Muhammad Ali, and Jesse Owens present at the opening ceremonies. Eighteen-year-old Modupe Oshikoya emerged as Nigeria’s star of the Games, winning three gold medals in the women’s 100m hurdles, high jump and long jump events. 1 February 1974: Modupe Oshikoya becomes the first Nigerian woman to win a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games after winning the women’s long jump event with a leap of 6.46m at the Queen Elizabeth II Park in Christchurch, New Zealand. She also won silver in the pentathlon and bronze in the 100 m hurdles at the 1974 Games.

14 March 1976: Nigeria beats Egypt 3-2 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to win the bronze medal of the Africa Cup of Nations. Nigeria’s goals were scored by Haruna Ilerika (two goals) and Muda Lawal.

21 October 1965: Dick Tiger defeats Joey Giardello at Madison Square Garden, New York, to regain the WBC and WBA World Middleweight titles he lost three years earlier to the American.

12 December 1976: Shooting Stars FC of Ibadan become the first Nigerian football club to win a continental title after defeating Cameroon’s Tonnerre Yaoundé 4-2 on aggregate to clinch the CAF Cup Winners’ Cup. Sixteen years later, the club also won the maiden edition of the CAF Cup, defeating Uganda’s Villa SC 2-0 on aggregate.

16 December 1966: Dick Tiger defeats Jose Torres of Puerto Rico at Madison Square Garden, New York to claim the WBC and WBA World Light Heavyweight titles. He defended the titles three times before losing them to Bob Foster of the United States on 24 March 1968. 14 October 1968: Nigeria plays its first ever Olympic Games football match, losing 3-1 to Japan in Puebla, Mexico. Samuel Okoye had the distinct honour of scoring Nigeria’s first Olympic Games goal. Two days later, the team lost 3-0 to Spain, before playing out a thrilling 3-3 draw against Brazil on 18 October. 4 December 1972: The National Stadium, in Surulere, Lagos, is commissioned with a friendly match between Nigeria

Chioma Ajunwa leaping into history in Atlanta 1996.

1 March 1976: Nigeria wins its first ever Africa Cup of Nations match courtesy of a 4-2 against Zaire (now D.R. Congo) in Diredawa, Ethiopia. Baba Otu Mohammed (two goals), Samuel Ojebode and Thompson Usiyan were Nigeria’s goal scorers.

23 October 1964: Nigeria’s Nojim Maiyegun wins the country’s first Olympic Games medal after placing third in the men’s Light Middleweight (71 kg) category at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan.

12 August 1966: Eddie Ndukwu wins Nigeria’s first post-independence Commonwealth Games gold medal after defeating Darryl Norwood of Australia in the final of the Bantamweight division. A few hours later Anthony Andeh also won a gold medal for Nigeria in the Lightweight division.

Nduka Odizor

5 December 1977: Enugu Rangers maul Cameroon’s Canon Yaoundé 5-2 on aggregate to win the CAF Cup Winners’ Cup and become only the second Nigerian club side to win a continental title after Shooting Stars. 22 March 1980: The Green Eagles defeat Algeria 3-0 at the National Stadium, Lagos, to emerge winners of the Africa Cup of Nations with Segun Odegbami (two goals) and Muda Lawal the goal scorers. 9 February 1982: Atanda Musa becomes the first Nigerian and African to win the Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships men’s singles title in Bombay, India. He had a day earlier combined with Sunday Eboh to win the men’s doubles title. 31 June 1983: Nduka Odizor becomes the first Nigerian and West African tennis star to play in the fourth round of the oldest tennis tournament in the

Dick Tiger (left) landing a jab on Jose Torres during their 1966 fight

world, Wimbledon. He however lost to Australia’s Chris Lewis, who went on to lose in the finals to John McEnroe. 8 August 1983: Ajayi Agbebaku wins Nigeria’s first ever global track and field medal at the inaugural edition of the IAAF World Championships, in Helsinki, Finland with a leap of 17.18 metres to place third in the men’s triple jump. 19 June 1984: Hakeem Olajuwon becomes the first Nigerian to play in the NBA after being drafted by the Houston Rockets with the first overall pick of the 1984 Draft ahead of Michael Jordan, who went to the Chicago Bulls. In the process, Olajuwon became the second foreign-born player to be drafted first overall in the NBA, after Mychal Thompson from the Bahamas in 1978. 11 August 1984: Peter Konyegwachie wins Nigeria’s first Olympic Games silver medal after losing to Meldrick Taylor of the United States in the men’s Featherweight (54-57 kg) category at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, USA.

12 August 1984: Nigeria’s relay quartet of Rotimi Peters, Sunday Uti, Moses Ugbusien and Innocent Egbunike win the country’s first ever Olympic Games track and field medal after placing third in the men’s 4 x 400 metres relay in a time of 2:59.32 behind Great Britain (2:59.13) and the United States (2:57.91) at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, USA. 11 August 1985: Nigeria defeats West Germany 2-0 to win the maiden edition of the FIFA U-16 World Championship in front of a record 80,000 crowd at the Workers’ Stadium, in Beijing, China, courtesy of goals from Jonathan Akpoborie and Victor Igbinoba. 7 September 1985: Nigeria defeats the Soviet Union 3-1 on penalties at the Luzhniki Stadium, in Moscow, to finish third at the FIFA U-20 World Championship. It’s the first ever podium finish by an African side at the U-20 World Championship. 4 September 1985: Nduka Odizor be-

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Sports since 1960

from the penalty spot in Nigeria’s 6-0 rout of Ethiopia in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier decided in Lagos.

4 September 1993: Nigeria beats Ghana 2-1 in Tokyo to win the FIFA U-17 World Championship courtesy of goals from Wilson Oruma and Peter Anosike. 8 October 1993: Nigeria qualifies for the FIFA World Cup for the first time ever after being held to a 1-1 draw by Algeria, in Algiers. Finidi George shot the Super Eagles into a one-goal lead in the 20th minute before Abdelhafid Tasfout equalised for the North Africans on 66 minutes. 10 April 1994: Nigeria defeats Zambia 2-1, in Tunis, Tunisia, to win the Africa Cup of Nations with Emmanuel Amuneke grabbing both goals. Nigeria 2013 AFCON Champions

comes the first Nigerian and West African tennis player to feature in the third round of the US Open when he took on Tim Mayotte of the United States for a place in the fourth round. The Nigerian lost 5-7, 4-6, 3-6 to the tournament’s 13th seed. 4 December 1985: Nduka Odizor becomes the first Nigerian to reach the third round of the men’s singles at the Australian Open Tennis Championship but loses 6-4, 2-6, 4-6, 2-6 to John McEnroe of the United States. 6 March 1987: Paul Emordi wins Nigeria’s first ever World Indoor Championships medal with a leap of 8.01 m in the men’s long jump to finish second behind Larry Myricks of the United States in Indianapolis, USA. His compatriot, Yusuf Alli placed 9th with a leap of 7.78 m. 3 September 1987: Innocent Egbunike becomes the first Nigerian to win a World Championship track medal when he placed second in the men’s 400m event at the 1987 IAAF World Championships in Rome, Italy in a time of 44.56s, behind East Germany’s Thomas Schonlebe who finished in 44.33s. 10 March 1991: Chidi Imoh finishes third in the men’s 60m event to win Nigeria’s first World Indoor Championships track medal in Seville, Spain. 21 July 1991: Rashidi Yekini scores four goals

Rashidi Yekini

as Nigeria defeats Burkina Faso 7-1 in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Lagos. It is the highest number of goals to be scored by a Nigerian player in a full international since independence. The only other player to have achieved the feat was Elkana Onyeali, who scored four goals in a 10-1 rout of Dahomey (now Benin Republic) on 8 November 1959. 8 August 1992: Nigeria’s Beatrice Utondu, Faith Idehen, Christy Opara-Thompson and Mary Onyali become the first Nigerian women to win an Olympic Games track and field medal after placing third in the women’s 4 x 100m relay on the same day the relay quartet of Oluyemi Kayode, Chidi Imoh, Olapade Adeniken and Davidson Ezinwa won the country’s first Olympic Games track and field silver medal in Barcelona, Spain. 25 November 1992: Daniel Amokachi scores the first ever goal of the UEFA Champions League in Club Brugge’s 1–0 win against CSKA Moscow in Belgium. 13 March 1993: Sunday Bada wins Nigeria’s first World Indoor Championships silver medal after racing to second place in a time of 45.75s behind America’s Butch Reynolds, who finished in a championship record time of 45.26s. 24 July 1993: Peter Rufai becomes the first goalkeeper to score during regulation time for the national team when he converted

21 June 1994: Nigeria plays its maiden FIFA World Cup match, grabbing a 3-0 win against Bulgaria at the Cotton Bowl, in the US city of Dallas. Rashidi Yekini scored Nigeria’s opening goal with Daniel Amokachie and Emmanuel Amuneke scoring the Super Eagles’ other goals. 23 November 1994: Nigeria’s Celestine Babayaro becomes the youngest player in the UEFA Champions League when he appeared for Anderlecht, aged 16 years and 87 days, against Steaua Bucharest. He was sent off in the 37th minute to also become the youngest player to be red carded in the competition. 2 August 1996: Chioma Ajunwa leaps to a historic gold medal in the women’s long jump event to claim Nigeria’s first ever Olympic Games gold medal. Her jump of 7.12 metres remains the farthest any African woman has jumped to date. 3 August 1996: Nigeria beats Argentina 3-2 to win the men’s football event of the Olympic Games, with Emmanuel Amuneke grabbing the match-winning goal in the second half stoppage time. Celestine Babayaro and Daniel Amokachie were Nigeria’s other scorers. 9 March 1997: Chioma Ajunwa becomes the first Nigerian woman to win a medal at the IAAF World Indoor Championships after placing second behind Italy’s Fiona May at the 6th edition of the championship in Paris, France. On the same day and venue, Sunday Bada also becomes the first (and only) Nigerian to win a gold medal at the IAAF World Indoor Championships after racing to first place in an African record of 45.51s in Paris, France.

Blessing Okagbare

3 April 1999: The 12th edition of the FIFA U-20 World Youth Championship gets underway in Lagos with Nigeria playing out a 1-1 draw with Costa Rica in the tournament’s opening match. Julius Aghahowa was the scorer of Ni-

geria’s goal. 20 June 1999: Nigeria records a first ever win at the FIFA Women’s World Cup with a 2-1 win against North Korea in the US city of Pasadena. Scorers for the Super Falcons were Mercy Akide and Rita Nwadike. The Super Falcons went on to reach the quarterfinals where they lost 4-3 to Brazil. 8 April 2003: The National Stadium, in Abuja, is commissioned three years after its ground-breaking ceremony. The 60,491 capacity stadium was constructed at a cost of $360 million and was the main venue for the 8th edition of the All-Africa Games, which got underway on 5 October 2003. 12 December 2003: Enyimba become the first Nigerian club to win the CAF Champions League despite losing 1-0 to Ismaily in Egypt. The Nigerian champions had two weeks earlier defeated the Egyptian side 2-0 in the first leg tie played in Aba. 23 August 2004: Mary Onyali becomes the first Nigerian to compete at five Olympic Games when she appeared in the fourth heat of the women’s 200m event at the Athens Olympic Stadium, Athens, Greece. She first appeared at the Olympic Games in 1988, in Seoul, South Korea. Her feat was equalled by table tennis players Bose Kaffo and Segun Toriola four years later in Beijing, China. 9 September 2007: Nigeria defeats Spain 3-0 at the end of a penalty shootout to clinch the FIFA U-17 World Championship with goalkeeper Dele Ajiboye stopping three spot kicks. Nigeria’s Macauley Chrisantus finished as the tournament’s leading scorer with seven goals. 8 March 2008: Samuel Peter becomes the first Nigerian to be crowned heavyweight champion of the world after knocking out Russia’s Oleg Maskaev in the sixth round of their 12 rounds contest in Cancun, Mexico to claim the WBC Heavyweight title. 24 October 2009: The thirteenth tournament of the FIFA U-17 World Cup gets underway in Abuja with Argentina defeating Honduras 1-0 in the tournament’s opening match. 10 February 2013: Nigeria wins a third Africa Cup of Nations title after beating Burkina Faso 1-0 in Johannesburg, South Africa, with Sunday Mba scoring the game-winning goal. The team’s coach, Stephen Keshi, in the process became the first Nigerianborn coach to win the AFCON title. 31 July 2014: Blessing Okagbare, three days after winning the Commonwealth Games women’s 100m title, wins gold in the 200m, becoming only the fourth woman to win the 100m and 200m double at the Commonwealth Games.

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH

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NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Arsenal ambush Atletico clash vital for Juventus, says Galatasaray Marchisio

fter suffering a disappointing 2-0 defeat away to Borussia Dortmund in their opening Champions League clash, Arsenal will be desperate to get off the mark when they welcome Galatasaray to the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday. Arsene Wenger’s men have won just one of their last six matches but are favourites to earn a precious victory at home. Having lost four and won none of their last five European fixtures on the road, the visitors are outsiders to spring a shock this evening. There have been no

draws in any of the last 12 matches on this ground in this competition. While Arsenal midfield will be deprived of the services of Aaron Ramsey and Mikel Arteta, the defence is perhaps the most weakened area as Laurent Koscielny struggles for fitness in time for Wednesday’s match.

Champions League fixtures Atletico

Juventus

Malmo

Olympiakos 7.45pm

7.45pm

Basel

Liverpool

7.45pm

Ludogorets v Real Madrid 7.45pm Zenit

Monaco

Leverkusen v Benfica

5.00pm 7.45pm

Anderlecht v Dortmund 7.45pm Arsenal

Galatasaray 7.45pm

laudio Marchisio believes Wednesday’s clash against Atletico Madrid could prove to be vital for Juventus’ Champions League ambitions. The Serie A champions recorded a 2-0 win over Malmo in their Group A opener to start their European campaign on a high, while the Vicente Calderon side was somewhat surprisingly beaten 3-2 by Olympiakos. Both sides meet in Madrid this week and Juventus are keen to get a good result to open up a sixpoint gap over Atletico. “We haven’t been able to make the step up in Europe over the last three years, but we started well in our first game at home this time around, where in previous seasons we missed important opportunities,” Marchisio told Sky. “Now we’ve got a tricky game in Madrid. We need to also try and pick up a result there because we’d gain a lot of confidence from beating a great team like Atletico.

Sanctity of Truth

On Marble

In order to succeed, we must first believe that we can. – Nikos Kazantzakis

World Record

Oil was discovered in Nigeria in 1956 at Oloibiri in the Niger Delta after half a century of exploration.

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Nigeria at 54: Gridlocks and the illusive El Dorado Guest Columnist Bobson Gbinije

ith peremptory magistracy and awesome gallantry, our founding fathers fought with dogged obduracy for the political independence of our glorious country, Nigeria, They clamoured with no-holds-barred, like the Roman hero Horatius, who fought with Spartan intrepidity, defending Rome from the Etruscan invaders. Horatius asked like our founding fathers; “And how can a man die better than facing fearful odds, for the ashes of his fathers, and the temples of his gods”? Our founding fathers invested their dreams on Nigeria, but whither goeth Nigeria today? After 54 years of political independence, Nigeria is still silhouetted in the sordid saga and tapestry of progressivistic labyrinth. We are still rumbling in the cabbage of unthinkable corruption, arrant poverty, HIV–AIDS, malaria scourge and arrested development. We are submerged in the cocoon of human rights violations including politically motivated assassinations, extra-judicial killings and excessive use of force. The arrest and detention of people for political reasons, restriction on freedom of the press, speech and assembly, prolonged pre-trial detention and aiding and abetting of electoral malpractices still constitute some dark characteristics of our nation. We are still sunken in blatant illegalities, tragic criminalities, prebendalistic graft and wallowing in unmitigated sleaze. After 54 years of independence, Nigeria still remains shipwrecked in the island of gloom and doom, leadership doppelgangers, political gridlocks, socio-economic cliffhangers, tribal jingoism and utter planlessness. We have no functional hospitals, no roads, no affordable houses, no jobs, no food security, no light, no effective transport system, no water, no affordable education and no road map and viable blue print for strategic repositioning of our country, Nigeria. The statesman, Alfred Rewane, captured the scenario thus ‘yesterday, we yearned for a better tomorrow. Today, we mourn the loss of a better yesterday. How sad”? Whither goeth Nigeria after 54 years of political independence? The politicians and their military cohorts have completely bastardised our psyche. We are crestfallen and despondent. They have made and continue to make halfhearted efforts aimed at salvaging

Abubakar Tafawa Balewa

Goodluck Jonathan

our prostrate fatherland from the abyss of consummate despair. We have seen endless constitutional reforms, adjustments of economic policies based on the Breton institution’s conditionalities like FEM, SFEM, Economic Liberalisation, Deregulation of the Petroleum Downstream Sector, Operation Feed the Nation (OFN), Green Revolution, school to land project, privatisation, liquidity Mop-up, cash squeeze, devaluation, Universal Basic education scheme, Civil war, MAMSER, KAI, War Against Indiscipline, subsidy removal, industrial revolution etc. These weird economic, socio-political policies successfully bedraggled and befuddled our Nation. It asphyxiated our people and manacled them in the epicenter of parenthetical placidity. After 54 years of independence, Nigeria is still gallivanting and rigmaroling on an undulating political topography interjected with complex volcanic rocks. We

are steeple chasing on a horrendously deadly political land mines and cannons that will explode to consume our country, Nigeria. We are tired of perambulating in the concentric circles of backwardness, buck-passing and trading of blames. What is the way forward? Hence a Chartered Member of the Nigerian Institute of Management, Chief L.E.A. Aimiuwu, once said: “first, we blamed the colonial masters, Next, military blamed military. Then politicians blamed military. Now, party blames party, Legislature blames Executive, Executive blames Legislature, Tribe blames tribe, zone blames zone, private sector blames public sector, public sector blames private sector, followers blame leaders, leaders blames followers”. Who blames self ? Now we turn round and say “Nigeria has failed us’ But who makes up Nigeria? Nigeria has not failed, we have failed ourselves! Working together, mission driven, with shared passion and vision-focus NIGERIA SHALL RISE AGAIN. Things work only if we make them work! They work only as we make them work. So, LETS WORK THE WORK!!” This could be a peripheral and simplistic overview of Nigeria’s problems, but it bears a ring of the horizontal and vertical integration which Nigeria needs to move forward as a nation. It is sacrosanct truism that after 54 years of independence Nigeria needs surgeonisation of a moral rearmament, ethical revolution, attitudinal re-orientation, leadership altruism, political re-evaluation, policy screening, patriotism and change of psyche with everything and anything that has to do with Nigeria and Nigerians to enable our country make palpable progress. We must don the toga of true democracy, rule of law, dialogue and constitutionality. We must realise as a

After 54 years of independence, Nigeria still remains shipwrecked in the island of gloom and doom, leadership doppelgangers

nation that our rancid preoccupation with monocausality merely hardens our positions, fossilises debate and limits the boundaries of intellectual discourse. Our search for the panacea to our ever illusive EL Dorado will be brought to near fruition, if we adopt a more responsible and constructive focus on: 1. Leadership by example: It is a quintessential fact that good leadership has been the bane of the Nigerian nation right from 1960 till date. We need leaders that can carry the vast majority of Nigerians along through policies that will alleviate the agonies and travails of the people. Nigeria is a nation formed as a result of the agglomeration of different and myriad groups of heterogeneous peoples and the geo-political setting is complex. We need leaders who understand the political calculus inherent in the system. Leaders that can build on this melting-pot foundation by self- abnegation and patriotism. A leader that understands that Nigeria is a microcosm in a global macrocosm and that Nigeria must hold and take an enviable seat in the comity of nations. A leader that calls the totality of Nigeria his or her main constituency. A detribalised and cosmopolitanised leader. A leader who understands that leadership is all about people’s welfare through committed and honest leadership. The essayist, ALENG G. WHITE, said: “the greatest need of the world today is the want of men, men who will not be bought or sold, men who do not fear to call sin by its right name, men who in their innermost souls are true and honest, men whose conscience is as true to duty as the needle to the pole, men who stand for the right though the heavens fall”. We need such men as leaders in a new Nigeria. As the 2015 election approaches, we hope and pray that our leaders will not resort to thuggery, political assassinations, vote rigging etc. to get power. It is clear that the political antecedents of our politicians remain hideously ghoulish, but we call on them to put Nigeria first before exercising their pathological quest for power. The political algebra glaringly shows that the next president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria should come from any of the geo-political zone. We hope that through co-ordinated dialogue, the elections will go on without ethnic cleansing, genocide, social schism and the break-up of our country. Our leaders must hold their vaulting ambition in-check. Psychotically corrupt and indicted politicians must not be part of the presidential race in 2015. If they try, it will be a devious attempt and epochal tragedy for the PDP, APC and other contesting parties and our dear country, Nigeria. • GBINIJE is the Chairman of MANDATE AGAINST POVERTY (MAP)

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