Binder1 june 2,2014 by Newtelegraphonline

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Monday, June 2, 2014 Vol. 1 No. 104

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Confab Committee seeks fuel subsidy removal Onwuka Nzeshi ABUJA

he National Conference TFinance Committee on Public and Revenue has

recommended the total

removal of subsidy on petrol and kerosene. It has also called on the Federal Government to commence the utilisation of the Solid Minerals Development Funds

to exploit the array of solid minerals across the country. The committee’s recommendations are contained in a 66-page report obtained by New

Telegraph. Its call for the removal of fuel subsidy is coming barely two-and-a-half years after the Federal Government did so but was forced to reverse it-

self following nationwide protests. The report followed extensive deliberations on the issue by the committee and the presentations of some government

agencies such as the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Nigeria Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Federal Inland CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Cameroun’s troops kill 40 Boko Haram insurgents lTerror group attacks four Borno villages lAPC: Sect not northern response to southern presidency

Chukwu David, Emmanuel Onani and Yekeen Nurudeen

he new international collaboration to fight terrorism in Nigeria has started paying off with Camerounian troops killing 40 members of Boko Haram in the northern part of the French-speaking country. A report yesterday by Reuters said the terrorists were killed during clashes with troops in Kousseri, a town bordering Nigeria and Chad. Another report by Agence France Presse (AFP) also said Boko Haram invaded four villages in Borno State at the weekend, killing scores of people. CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

2015: 500 politicians to watch

APC, PDP square up in Centre of Excellence } 13-18

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L-R: Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan; Pro-chancellor, Delta State University, Abraka, Mr. Tony Elumelu and the university’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Eric Arubayi, at the 8th convocation of the university in Abraka…at the weekend.

2015: North, South desperate for power, says Lamido ... Boko Haram not different from kidnapping, ritual killings and militancy Geoffrey Ekenna

igawa State Governor, Alhaji Sule Lamido, at the weekend dismissed the insinuation that the North is trying to under-

mine President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration because of its desperation for power. The governor, in an exclusive interview with New Telegraph in Dutse,

the state capital, said contrary to the perception of many people that the North was desperate for the presidency, there were signs that all the major tribal groups were

desperate for power. He also warned Nigerians against seeing the insurgency unleashed on the North by Boko Haram as a sole northern problem, adding that what was

As Emefiele steps in as CBN governor

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happening in the North was not different from the sale of human parts in the South-West; kidnappings in the South-East or militancy in the South-South. According to him, all the crimes are symptoms CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

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Confab Committee recommends fuel subsidy removal CO NTINUED FROM PAG E 1

Revenue Service (FIRS), Debt Management Office (DMO) and other stakeholders. In the report, the committee observed that subsidy on petroleum has become a major financial burden the nation has been made to bear over the years. According to the report, subsidy payment in 2012 rose as high as N2.527 trillion while it averaged N1.263 trillion the following year. Between 2006 and 2011, subsidy payments accounted for 30 per cent of government expenditure which is equivalent of 118 per cent of capital budget and 4.18 per cent of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The committee noted that subsidy has become a burden too heavy for the nation and its populace to bear, particularly when Nigeria has the lowest fuel pump price and the highest per capita income compared with other countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. “This situation is anomalous and encourages smuggling. Government resources which should have been used to undertake more developmental projects or programmes are being

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utilised to pay subsidy. Removal of subsidy will most certainly ensure product availability at all times and significantly mitigate against illicit cross-border activities. The poor rural dwellers to whom the subsidy scheme was initially targeted are not reaping the benefits. “Additionally, removal of subsidy will encourage investments in refineries and the downstream sector generally. The committee agrees that this fiscal and financial burden to the government is not sustainable,” the report said. The committee also endorsed the establishment of the Sovereign Wealth

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effects on the economy if left unchecked. It has therefore recommended the deployment of security and military presence to deter, detect, apprehend perpetrators of the crime. It also recommended the use of appropriate technology that will make it difficult to tamper with loading bays; the use of intelligence gathering and processing in tracking movement of oceanbound vessels on Nigerian waters and above all, the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) in the form it was originally presented to the National Assembly.

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar (left) and Gombe State Governor, Alhaji Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo, during Atiku’s condolence visit to the state over the death of Emir of Gombe, Alhaji Shehu Abubakar, in Gombe …yesterday.

‘Boko Haram not different from kidnapping, ritual killings’ o

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na and Kuwait. “The committee considered the potential impact of the fund to the country, particularly its impact on future generations in Nigeria, but noted the missions of the fund to include: building a savings base for future generations of Nigerians; enhancing the development of Nigerian infrastructure and promoting fiscal stability for the country in times of economic stress,” it added. On the revenue losses due to oil and gas pipeline leakages and theft, the committee expressed worry that this would continue to have adverse

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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

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Fund (SWF) and recommended that the fund be enshrined in the 1999 Constitution to secure it from political exigencies of future governments. It also recommended that a minimum of 50 per cent of all funds in the Excess Crude Account (ECA) should be transferred to the SWF while the balance should be left in ECA and used to augment shortfalls in the Federation Account, where necessary. In endorsing the SWF, the committee noted that the scheme was in consonance with contemporary practices in countries such as Singapore, Libya, Angola, Norway, Botswa-

FLIGHT SCHEDULE

of poverty and the failure of the Nigerian state to use public resources to cater for its people. Answering a question on the insurgency, which some analysts have attributed to an attempt by the North to regain the presidency in 2015, Lamido said there was no linkage between the two, adding that if the North is being accused of engaging in a desperate quest for the presidency, the SouthSouth is also guilty. He explained that the position of the SouthSouth that if Jonathan, who is from the zone, did not win re-election in 2015 there would be war was also a sign of desperation. Lamido said: “All Nigerians are desperate. The South-South (people) are desperate. That is why they are saying it is either their son or there will be war. That is desperation. We will not wait for election to come and choose our leaders. We are making inflammatory statements. So, all of us are desperate. All tribes and groups in Nigeria are des-

perate.” He also expressed concern about the jockeying for the presidency given the climate of insecurity in the country, saying that for anybody to have aspirations now, the security challenge has to be tackled. He said those criticising the North and its people because of the insurgency in the area were ignoring the fact that it was a national problem. He added that if the North, which is a vital part of Nigeria is sick, then the country is also sick. According to him, the failure of the Nigerian state, which he described as “stinking rich,” to take provide jobs for the youth, education and eradicate poverty, is responsible for the insecurity in the country. “Now, one, the North is part of Nigeria. Therefore, if the North is sick, then Nigeria is sick. That is the simple logic. Two, there are problems everywhere in this country. There is Boko Haram in the North; that is true. There was MEND (Move-

ment for the Emancipation of Niger Delta) in the Niger Delta, kidnapping or cultism there. There are a number of things you see that are manifestation of a failing state; where we failed to use our God-given resources to the advantage of our own people. Right now, there is this mass migration to Europe by people here. Why is that so? “If the Europeans say that Africa is very, very poor and they ignore them, Africa is part of the world. If Africa is sick, the world is sick. No matter the high walls and stringent measures you put in Europe, people will go there. “You see, we must begin to see ourselves as a single family within a committee of tribes and religions. We must begin to wish well for each other and see where we can help to assist. If don’t begin to stop this culture of kidnapping, this cultism or selling of human parts in Ibadan, now, tell me the difference between selling human parts and Boko Haram? What’s the difference? There is no dif-

ference. “If you kidnap somebody and demand money, what is the difference between you and Boko Haram? You see, we are going through a crisis, caused by poverty that is induced by us. The suffering in Nigeria, the poverty, the hardship are self-inflicted, is self-induced. We derive so much pleasure in inflicting pains and agony on ourselves. But Nigeria is very rich. Nigeria has all the resources to solve all our problems alone. But it is the application,” the governor stated. He said all the problems as manifested in the various criminal activities were products of poverty. “So, when you talk of Boko Haram, when a child grows up and there is no future, he looks around, there is no hope for the future, what do you expect? He is the same with the child who grows up in the West, cannot secure a job and is seeing people who flaunt wealth all over the place. Therefore, if they are selling human parts, he would want to sell too CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

OVERLAND AIRWAYS LAGOS-ILORIN (MON-FRI) 07:15 LAGOS-IBADAN (MON-FRI) 7:00 IBADAN-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 08:00 IBADAN-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 16:30 ILORIN –ABUJA (MON-FRI) 08:30 ILORIN –LAGOS (MON-FRI) 17:00 ABUJA-ASABA (MON-FRI) 10:00 ASABA-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 14:15 ASABA-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 11:30 LAGOS-ASABA (MON-FRI) 13:00 ABUJA-ILORIN 16:00 ABUJA-IBADAN 15:00 ARIK AIR LAGOS-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 07:00; 08:00; 09:00; 11:00 13:00; 15:00; 17:00; 19:00 (SAT) 07:00; 09:00; 11:00; 13:00; 15:00; 17:00; 19:00 (SUN) 11:00; 13:00; 15:00; 17:00; 19:00 ABUJA-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 07:00; 09:00; 11:00; 13:00; 15:00; 17:00; 19:00; 20:00 (SAT) 07:00; 09:00; 11:00; 13:00; 15:00; 17:00; 19:00 (SUN) 09:00; 13:00; 15:00; 17:00; 19:00 LAGOS-PORT-HARCOURT (MON-FRI) 07:00; 09:30; 11:00; 13:30; 15:00; 17:30 (SAT) 07:00; 11:00; 15:00 (SUN) 09:30; 11:00; 13:30; 15:00; 17:30 PORT-HARCOURT-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 07:30; 09:00; 11:30; 13:00; 15:30; 17:00 (SAT) 07:30; 11:30; 09:00; 13:00; 17:00 (SUN) 11:30; 13:00; 15:30; 17:00 ABUJA-PORT-HARCOURT (MON-FRI) 06:45; 10:10; 13:30; 16:50 (SAT/SUN) 06:45; 10:10; 13:30 PORT-HARCOURT-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 08:30; 11:50; 15:10; 18:30 (SAT/SUN) 08:30; 11:50; 15:10

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Alaafin charges New Telegraph to be the best newspaper Sola Adeyemo Ibadan

is Imperial Majesty, the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi III, has advised members of the management of New Telegraph to utilise the experience they have garnered to make the newspaper one of the best, not only in Nigeria but in Africa and the world. The first-class monarch gave the advice in his palace at the weekend when the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief

of the newspaper, Mr. Gabriel Akinadewo, formally presented the newspaper to him. The permanent Chairman of the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs, who described the former Abia State governor and publisher of the newspaper, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, as ‘my son’, expressed delight at the rate of acceptance the paper had recorded in less than four months it debuted, coupled with its rich editorial content. Alaafin said: “Fortunately for us, all the people that are in there are seasoned journalists who

are professionally credible. I have no doubt that the experience and the expertise that you have gathered all the years have been put to use.” He therefore advised that: “There should be cooperation; there should be understanding. And above all, there should be patriotism. Those are the qualities I have discovered in this set of management. By the grace of God, you should work very hard to make sure that this newspaper achieves the aims and objectives of adding more values to journalism and information manage-

Akinadewo (left) presenting a copy of the newspaper to Oba Adeyemi.

North, South desperate for power, says Lamido CO NTINUED FROM PAG E 2

because he wants to make money. “If you are in the East, you are poor because there is so much poverty and therefore, if you kidnap somebody for ransom, the person pays, you will do it. In the South-South, you go and burn the pipelines and you will kill. Therefore, all these are Boko Haram by their general character. “All these kidnapping and sale of human parts are manifestations of a failed state, where Nigerians and their people have lost that notion of selfworth because there is a life where there is no decency. They have nothing to look on to. It is a huge problem. “The earlier that we see that we as a country have a huge problem, which we have to help to solve, that’s the beginning,” Lamido added.

But the governor said despite the security challenge facing Nigeria, it had made some remarkable progress since the rebirth of democracy 15 years ago. He however said it would take some time to build strong institutions that will foster national cohesion. Lamido said: “It takes time to develop a culture which underpins you as a nation. The Americans earlier were relying on people like Eisenhower, Abraham Lincoln to be able to find their own bearings as a nation. As the time progressed, they built their own institutions. Today, the institutions are functioning and there are laws that guide everything. “In Nigeria, we had the Ziks, Aminu Kanos, Tafawa Balewas, Sarduanas, Awolowos etc, who were looked up to as role

models in the early days. They were all there and we looked at them as our icons and we held unto those ideals they professed. But the truncation of the process by the military between 1979 and 1999 undermined our capability to produce people who should be able to mentor leadership. It created a lacuna because you cannot build mentorship through the culture of military leadership.” The governor also advocated the need to build understanding among Nigerians to promote unity among the people. “What I am saying is that it takes so much in building a nation. Beyond us, we must have a feeling of pride and believe in ourselves and our country; believe in our capabilities and have mutual respect and understanding. We have different religions, different

ment in the world. “Whenever I travel overseas, I always read newspapers from all parts of the world. It is not because you people are here. I think, in the whole of Africa and even in the Diaspora, Nigerian newspapers are one of the most versatile. They are very courageous in publishing news. If you don’t want anything to come to light, do the right thing and let them support you otherwise, Nigerian newspapers will expose and humiliate you. “If you don’t know what to say, don’t open your mouth. If you have

said something two or three years ago, you must make sure you don’t contradict yourself now, especially on national issues. If not, the press will take you up and deal with you. Whatever we had said regarding education, politics, international issues many years ago had been crosschecked by journalists and they found out that we have not contradicted ourselves.” In his royal blessing, the Alaafin prayed for the company to thrive and flourish among top newspapers in the world. “I pray for the man-

agement of the newspaper to succeed. Above all, I pray for the newspaper to be a source of glory to Nigeria. I have known you, Akinadewo for years as a credible professional. You will succeed,” he said. Responding, Akinadewo thanked the monarch, asserting that “the newspaper is for everybody. It is for all Nigerians, and I want to assure you sir that we are not going to disappoint you. We are not going to disappoint Oyo State people and we are not going to disappoint Nigerians.”

Oba Adeyemi displaying a copy of the newspaper.

NDDC boss accused of assaulting NCAA, Arik workers Wole Shadare he Managing DirecTDevelopment tor of the Niger Delta Company

(NDDC), Mr. Dan Abia, has been accused of assaulting a consumer protection officer of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), attached to the Abuja airport, Idris Bashir. Abia was alleged to have slapped Bashir several times. The security detail attached to the NDDC boss, Police Corporal Califonia with service no. 382079, was alleged to have earlier assaulted one Mr. Joseph Nkayuk, an Arik staff at the Abuja Airport. Nkayuk’s offence was that on arrival of Arik Flight W3 258 from Port Harcourt on May 26, he prevented the detail and all passengers who

wanted to pick up their checked-in bags at the tarmac from doing so, insisting that they should proceed to the arrival hall to claim their luggage. It was learnt that the Arik staff, who was following the Standard and Recommended Practices (SARPs) eventually discovered that Abia’s bag had been erroneously reloaded onto another Arik flight by another handler and the plane had departed. Spokesman for the NCAA, Sam Adurogboye, told reporters that Nkayuk therefore went to the NDDC boss to explain the mix-up and promptly the police orderly pulled out his gun and threatened to shoot. He allegedly slapped and punched Joseph. According to Adurogboye, the NCAA’s Consumer Protection Officer,

Bashir, had to intervene and assured Abia that he would ensure the bag was retrieved. According to Adurogboye, “After investigation, Bashir came back to inform the NDDC MD that the bag had been mistakenly reloaded to another destination and would soon be brought back and handed over. “This response irked the NDDC boss who administered a series of slaps on the defenceless NCAA staff claiming he had done nothing.” He noted that while the NCAA was looking into these reports, “we want to reiterate that passenger belligerence and violence are certainly against aviation regulations and would attract appropriate sanctions.”

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Lagos warns residents about ocean surge Muritala Ayinla

he Lagos State Government yesterday warned residents of Alpha Beach and other areas close to the sea to vacate their premises to avert tragedy. Ocean surge had recently wreaked havoc in the state, claiming several lives and destroying properties. Speaking with New Telegraph, the General Manager of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Dr. Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, said the warning was as a result of the distress calls by residents of the area. He added that immediate vacation of such places remained the best safety measures to avert the looming danger as the tidal could wreak havoc in the night. Oke-Osanyintolu specifically warned resi-

dents of Bale Street in Ibeju Lekki Local Government Area of the state and its environs to immediately relocate to a safe abode owing to the rising level of the Atlantic Ocean. He said: “The safety of lives and properties is paramount to the administration of Babatunde Fashola in Lagos State. Therefore, residents of Bale Street and its environs in Ibeju Lekki Local Government Area of Lagos State have been advised to immediately relocate to safe abode owing to the rising sea level of the Atlantic Ocean which could impact negatively on residence owing to their vulnerability.” He noted that the surge was part of the negative impact of climate change as experienced by different regions across the globe, urging the people living in the identified ar-

eas to temporarily move to a safe abode until the surge subsides. “Our officials who vis-

ited the areas as a result of the distress calls put through have warned residents to immediate-

ly move away from the identified danger zones. We also advised the rulers in the area to talk to

their people to adhere to this warning to forestall impending disaster,” Osayintolu added.

L-R: Archbishop of Lagos, Most Rev Sunday Joseph Ajayi; Mrs. Florence Uche; Prelate, Methodist Church Nigeria, His Eminence Samuel Chukwuemeka Uche; Bishop of Lagos West Diocese, Rt. Rev. Oluyemisi Ogunlere and Very Rev. Stephen Adegbite, during a rally to campaign for the release of the Chibok girls in Lagos …yesterday.

APC: Sect not northern response to southern presidency CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

However, as part of the multiple approaches to end the insurgency, the military has placed a prominent northern leader (names withheld) under watch for his alleged role in sponsoring terrorism. The killing of the insurgents showed a sign of an improvement in Cameroun’s preparedness to assist Nigeria to end the insurgency that has claimed over 12,000 lives in the last five years. Before now, Nigeria had criticised Cameroun, which last week deployed some 1,000 troops to its northern border as it stepped up the fight against Boko Haram, for its reluctance to partner it in fighting the terrorist group. Notwithstanding the killing of its members in Cameroun, Boko Haram at the weekend continued its attacks in Borno State, killing scores of people in raids on four villages in the state. All of the targeted villages are in the Gamboru Ngala district near the border with Cameroun, where Boko Haram killed hundreds in a gruesome attack earlier this month. The latest attacks hit the villages of Nuwari, Musari, Walori on Saturday, where gunmen, some dressed as soldiers and riding in 4×4 trucks, opened fire on civilians and razed much of the area, according to witnesses. “They burnt all the villages and took away all our

livestock,” said a Nuwari resident, Bunu Kaloma. He said 15 people were killed in the spate of attacks but there were conflicting reports and it was not possible to establish the actual death toll. Last Thursday, gunmen reportedly attacked a wedding in nearby Kolma village. “They came in after dark while a wedding party was going on and went on shooting and tossing explosives into homes,” a resident, Bukar Mustapha, said. Reacting to the spate of killings by Boko Haram, the All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday said the murder of Emir of Gwoza, Alhaji Idrissa Timta, by the insurgents had confirmed that the terror group was not set up by the opposition to bring down the Jonathan administration, as being claimed by aides and associates of President Goodluck Jonathan. According to it, contrary to the belief, Boko Haram is not a northern response to a southern presidency. The party in a statement in Lagos by its interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, condemned the killing of the emir, saying his murder shows that the Jonathan administration has misdiagnosed the Boko Haram menace from the outset. It said it was deceitful and diversionary for the Federal Government to portray the insurgency as an attempt to make Nige-

ria ungovernable for the president, noting that the activities of Boko Haram started in 2002 when Chief Olusegun Obasanjo was president and worsened in 2009 under his successor, the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua. ‘’Boko Haram is not a northern response to a southern presidency, as some would have us believe. Boko Haram is an enemy of Nigeria; whether Christians or Muslims, southerners or northerners, the lowly or the elite, the young or the old, the poor and the rich. They must be seen for what they are: fringe elements who happen to have linked up with other terror groups around the world to acquire training and weapons which they are now using to terrorise a whole nation. “That emirs, who are Muslims and symbols of power in the North, can be so dastardly attacked, with deadly consequences, should convince those who would rather engage in blame game than fight the bandits that what the country faces is neither a strictly religious nor elite war, and make them to change their jaundiced mindset “If indeed Boko Haram was sponsored by the so-called northern elite against Jonathan, how come they are not even sparing the same elite? If indeed Boko Haram is sponsored by the North against Jonathan, why are their deadly attacks

concentrated in the North, where they have killed thousands and destroyed facilities and infrastructure worth billions? ‘’Let us all see Boko Haram for what it is, and come together as a people to fight the insurgents, rather than engage in denial, blame game and finger pointing that can only weaken our resolve as a nation to tackle this fringe group squarely,’’ APC added. The party explained that the insurgency has festered because the government started off by not seeing it for what it is, thus losing valuable time to combat it, adding that when it started dawning on the government that the nation’s faces a serious problem, it responded by seeking to make political gains out of it. ‘’Those who saw Boko Haram, erroneously, as a political trump card have now suffered a boomerang, and today the Jonathan administration is seen globally as incompetent, clueless and rudderless largely because of its inept handling of the Boko Haram insurgency, especially the unfortunate abduction of innocent schoolgirls which has lingered. This is what you get when you play politics with a serious national problem,’’ it said. It was however learnt yesterday that the military, as part of its efforts to tackle terrorism, has placed an influential Northern politician under watch.

A source told New Telegraph yesterday that the influential politician was placed under surveillance, as a result of an alleged secret agenda to undermine the ongoing counter-terrorism campaign against the Boko Haram sect in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states. The said prominent Northern leader from one of the states under emergency rule, was placed under watch because “he has taken it upon himself to fund the evil plot.” When asked for details about the “evil plot”, the source, a senior military officer, said: “All you must know is that no amount of blackmail will stop the military and other security agencies from carrying out President Goodluck Jonathan’s directive to the military to wage total war against the Islamist sect.” Jonathan had in his Democracy Day broadcast, ordered a full-scale military action against the insurgent group, which has held in captive over 200 students of Government Girls’ Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State since April 14, when it abducted them. Meanwhile, Equatorial Guinea and Sao Tome and Principe have joined other nations to pledge support to help Nigeria tackle Boko Haram and others terrorist activities in the country. The ambassadors of the two countries to Nigeria, Job Obiang Esono Mbengono and Antonio Correia respectively, pledged their

countries’ assistance during separate meetings with Senate President David Mark at the weekend. Mbengono said his government sympathised with Nigeria over the activities of Boko Haram that have claimed many lives and property, saying “we are ready to collaborate with Nigeria to defeat the terrorists.” According to him, his country has a lot to learn from Nigeria, pointing out that Guinea’s national legislature, which was unicameral has been made a bicameral legislature like Nigeria’s, courtesy of the 2011 referendum which endorsed the new arrangement. While also pledging his country’s support for Nigeria, Correia urged Boko Haram to release the Chibok schoolgirls. Responding, Mark thanked the envoys for the solidarity with Nigeria, saying: “We as a people are traumatised with the situation and we are doing everything humanly possible to rescue our girls.” He said Nigeria remained steadfast in spite of the challenges and the Federal Government would do everything to ensure peace and stability of the country. Mark also condemned the murder of the emir, saying “this endless bloodshed is senseless and needless.” He renewed his appeal on Boko Haram to drop their weapons and embrace dialogue.

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Chibok: Maku’s remarks confirm failure of FG, says Gbajabiamila Philip Nyam ABUJA

inority Leader of House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, has described remarks purportedly made by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mr. Labaran Maku, alleging that about 90 per cent of protesters campaigning

…As philanthropist sues for calm in Taraba

for the release of the over 200 schoolgirls abducted from Chibok, Borno State, are members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as a tactical admittance of failure of the President Goodluck-led administration. Gbajabiamila, who made this declaration in Abuja yesterday, said "Mr.

INEC extends CVR in 10 states by two days Wale Elegbede

he Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has extended the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) taking place in 10 states by two days. The commission, in a statement issued yesterday by the Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman, Mr. Kayode Idowu, said the extension was in view of the huge turnout of prospective registrants. The exercise, which was originally scheduled to end yesterday will now run till Tuesday June 3rd in Taraba, Gombe, Zamfara, Kebbi, Benue, Kogi, Abia, Enugu, Akwa-Ibom and Bayelsa states. Idowu also said the extension is intended to give a fair chance to all eligible persons, calling on eligible persons in the states involved in the exercise that are yet to register as voters to use the opportu-

nity of this extension to do so. “For avoidance of doubt, the exercise is not for everyone, including people wishing to transfer their registration data from where they previously registered. It will amount to double/ multiple registration, which is an offence punishable under Nigerian law, for anyone who was duly registered previously to present himself/ herself for registration during the CVR,” Idowu said. The commission stated that the CVR is for only persons who turned 18 years after the last registration; persons who were 18 years at the time, but did not present themselves for registration; and persons whose data were not adequately captured previously and for whom PVCs were not produced in the last distribution exercise.

Nigerian Navy promises adequate security on waterways

lag Officer Commanding, Eastern Naval Command, Rear Admiral Obiora Medani, yesterday said that the Nigerian Navy would sustain security patrol on Calabar-Akwa Ibom water ways to prevent oil theft. Medani gave the assurance in Calabar during the Nigerian Navy fleet review evacuation exercise. The News Agency of

Nigeria (NAN) reports that the exercise was part of the activities to mark the 58th anniversary of the Nigerian Navy. Medani said there was an improvement by men of the Nigerian Navy in providing security on Calabar-Akwa Ibom water ways. “The present Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Adm. Usman Jibrin, has said that oil theft would no longer be business as usual.

Maku, the Information Minister is damn right!” He explained that the remarks made by the Minister of Information are a tactical admittance of leadership failure and Federal Government is only losing confidence of many Nigerians it has failed to protect. "I am particularly

chuffed that the PDP government has finally woken up to smell the coffee and has admitted that APC is a movement and that 90 per cent of Nigerians are APC because, as far as I know, that is the exact percentage of Nigerians that are criticizing government over the handling of the terror crisis", he said

120,000

The number of newly reported displacements (IDPs) of Palestine in 2009. Source: Blatantworld.com

The lawmaker advised the Federal Government to retrace it step on handling of insecurity in the country and face reality, adding that "Conscience is like an open wound and only the truth can heal it". Meanwhile, a renowned philanthropist from Taraba State, Chief David Sabo Kente, has appealed to the warring factions in Taraba State to

801,590

The total area (in sq. km) of Mozambique. Source: Worldfactsandfigures.com

lay down their arms and embrace peace to ensure the smooth conduct of the ongoing permanent voters’ distribution and fresh registration exercise by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Kente's appeal was contained in a statement issued at the weekend in Jalingo by his Media Aide, Livinus Saint Kaior.

283,792

The total number of internet users of Oman in 2008. Source: Blatantworld.com

L-R: Vice Chancellor, University of Ibadan, Prof. Isaac Adewole; new president, Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Dr. Kayode Obembe; his wife, Olufunke, and chairman of the occasion, Emeritus Professor, Oladipo Akinkugbe, at a reception in Obembe's honour in Ibadan … at the weekend

Kwara summon Northern stakeholders' summit on insurgency

r Joseph Kaura, Board member, National Orthopaedic Hospital, Enugu, on Sunday called for a northern stakeholders' summit to discuss ways of ending insurgency in the region. Kaura made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lafia. He appealed to the Northern Elders' Forum, Arewa Consultative Forum and youths in the region to urgently convene a stakeholders meeting

to discuss ways of ending the insurgency. ``Instead of struggling for a power shift to the northern region, it is better to struggle for a lasting peace to return to the region. ``Power will come to the North at God’s appropriate time. Peaceful coexistence of the region should be our priority for now. ``Time has come for the northern governors and the elders to create jobs for the jobless northern youths,” he said.

Kaura said that the situation in which the region found itself now did not make for apportioning blames on President Goodluck Jonathan over the insurgency in the North. ``Instead, they should appreciate the efforts of Mr President and the northern governors in order to encourage them to work together and achieve the desired result. ``I will, therefore, appeal to Mr President not to be deterred in his ef-

forts to ensure the release of the abducted Chibok girls and the fight against insurgency. ``I also want to advise the northern governors to work in conjunction with the traditional rulers in the region for the immediate return of peace”. Kaura advised leaders, who were fond of establishing industries outside the shores of Nigeria, to desist and bring back such industries into the country, particularly in the North

Obasanjo decries increasing level of blindness among Nigerians

ormer President Olusegun Obasanjo yesterday expressed concern over the increasing level of blindness among Nigerians. Obasanjo expressed his feelings when he addressed hundreds of eye patients who came for free eye test/surgery organised by the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL) in Abeokuta. The former president, who noted that there had been considerable technological advancement

in the area of eye surgery, said that "Nigerians should no longer be living with blindness”. "While such situation could be permissible 50 years back, no justifiable reason can be adduced to it in the present day Nigeria," he said. ``I was once a victim because I once suffered eye- related ailment and it was the experience that moved me to assist people who were presently going through similar experience. "I will continue to as-

sist the less-privileged who have eye problems because I myself was once a victim. I had to be operated on before my eyes were restored". The former president urged eye patients to abide by whatever instructions the doctors gave them. Obasanjo's wife, Bola, who was also at the programme, called for concerted effort to assist the physically challenged in the society. The Programme Coordinator, Dr Lekan Makinde, said that over 1, 000

people had been treated with over 150 cataracts related cases. He said that the lowest cost of the kind of eye surgery being performed for the people ranged between N150, 000 and N200, 000. Makinde said that the former president insisted that the surgery must be free of charge, stressing that "eye surgery is like a magic or miracle”. "Many people, who were carried here because they could not see, had walked home by themselves after the surgery," he said.

One of the beneficiaries from Delta State, Mrs Janet Ali, 70, thanked the organisers of the programme for their assistance. Ali, who claimed to be the bread-winner of her family, said the misfortune befell her three years ago when she suddenly went blind. "I was a strong woman in spite of my age and used to travel from one city to another to do business. "My family has suffered a lot since this blindness

started three years ago as I could not travel again to trade. "I spent the little money I was given to buy drugs with little or no improvement. “In fact, I have lost hope of ever being able to see again, but thank God for this programme which has restored my sight," she said. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the programme commenced on Wednesday, May 28 and will end tomorrow, June 3.

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APOLOGY House of Representatives apologises for misleading the nation Philip Nyam

Abuja

n compliance with the directive of the court, the House of Representatives has apologised for the misinformation in the press conference it addressed, purporting a restraining order from the court on its Public Accounts Committee (PAC) from investigating the alleged expenditure of N10 billion expended on chattered jets by the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke.

23.52

N10bn probe: Reps tender apology for misreading court order An Abuja Federal High Court presided over by Justice Ahmed Mohammed, last Monday, asked the House to address a press conference to correct its earlier statement that the court restrained it from investigating the minister and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) over alleged N10 billion plane charter expenses. Deputy Chairman of the House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Victor Ogene, who tendered the apology in a press briefing at the

The number of fixed-telephone subscriptions per 100 inhabitants of Argentina in 2012. Source: Itu.int

weekend said: "We are sorry for that slip, wherever it came from." He said the House was grateful to Justice Ahmed Mohammed, "for standing on the side of justice" by clearly declaring that he never granted any injunction against the House in favour of the minister and the NNPC. Reacting to those questioning the powers of the House to embark on the investigation, the deputy House spokesman said Section 88 of the 1999 Constitution was very clear on the

21.2m

The total population of Romania (rep. 0.3% of world’s population) in 2010. Source: Blatantworld.com

matter. According to him, "The House will not at any time shirk its responsibilities. Acting in personal capacity is different from acting as an agent of government, so it is baffling to attempt to prevent agents of government from being answerable to Nigerians. "Any life not worthy of examination is not worth living, because the essence of democracy is to ensure that we examine ourselves. The position of the law is unchanged, and no man or woman is above the law."

35m

The number of people living with diabetes in Middle east and North Africa in 2013. Source: Idp.com

On the minister's alleged insistence that she can only appear before the House on the directive of the president, Ogene said the House would not join issues with the minister. He said: "When the current House was inaugurated in 2011, I don't think any member had any particular minister in mind. The House does not prosecute anybody because reports of our investigations are still passed on to the executive arm to implement. "The tendency in Ni-

L-R: President, Lincoln University, Prof. Robert Jennings; Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Diockson; Constance Ebienfa; Mr. Ferdinand Feubodei and Chairman, state Scholarship Board, Evangelist Foster Ogola, during the presentation of scholarship to students in Bayelsa State

APC prays Jonathan emerges PDP's candidate, says Boroffice

Why we support new cement quality standard, by Dangote firm

Babatope Okeowo

he management of Tclarified Dangote Cement has its position on

of the National Sofecretary Convention Committee the All Progressives

Congress (APC), Prof. Robert Ajayi Boroffice, has predicted victory for his party should the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) field President Goodluck Jonathan as its presidential candidate in next year’s election. The senator added that the APC was putting its house in order and resolving its internal crisis to confront the PDP at the national level and the Labour Party (LP) in Ondo State. Boroffice, who represents Ondo State Northern Senatorial District in the National Assembly, said it would be a walkover for

the APC if the PDP picks President Jonathan as its candidate in 2015 general elections as it would be easy to defeat him. The senator noted that all the party members were praying that Jonathan should emerge as PDP presidential flagbearer, adding that it would be a pre-victory and celebration galore for APC members if their prayer is answered. Speaking with reporters in his hometown in Oka-Akoko, Akoko South West Local Government Area during his empowerment programme for the people of his senatorial district, Boroffice said the PDP should start writing its handover notes as it is certain it would lose the next year's election.

the new cement standard as stipulated by the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), saying its position was purely motivated by the need to preserve the lives and property of Nigerians. The company said it supported the new cement quality standard as it believed that it could help in stemming the tide of building collapse. It said though it supported the recent classification of cements as necessary in the face of building collapses in the country, it was not the promoter as being insinuated by competitors. The Director of Dangote Cement, Mr Ekanem

Etim, who spoke in Lagos on the cement standard controversy declared: “It is only economic saboteurs and profiteers that would kick against the new standard for cement production as other countries of the world have moved up beyond the level and the low grade being canvassed by some of the manufacturers opposed to the new standard.” Etim said the review and the classification was coming too late after the nation and its citizens had been subjected to harrowing experience of loss of lives and property and that the regulatory body should not delay the implementation of the new standard.

geria is that when people are summoned, they are seen to be guilty ab initio, which is not correct," Ogene stated. He explained that the mandate of the House to the Public Accounts Committee over the alleged expenditure had never at any time been withdrawn, and that investigations of this nature do not start and end with the physical appearance of the persons concerned, as the constitution permits either written or oral submissions, and both as may be required to obtain the needed information.

PDM inaugurates fund-raising committee for convention, congress Yekeen Nurudeen

Abuja

of its National ConAyear,head vention in August this the Peoples Democrat-

Akure

ic Movement (PDM) has inaugurated its National Fund Raising Committee to raise funds for the activities of the party, especially its congresses and national convention. The committee is chaired by Senator Sylvester Anyanwu. While inaugurating the committee, National Chairman of PDM, Mallam Bashir Yusuf Ibrahim, noted that the fund-raising committee was set up to give all stakeholders a stake in how the party is funded and ensure that the party is not funded by a small group of financiers as is the case with other political parties in the country. He urged members of the committee to use their goodwill to ensure adequate funds are raised.

The party chairman explained that the committee was expected to oversee, coordinate and implement the fund-raising strategy as adopted by the party. It is also to identify and approach persons who share in the vision of the party for the purpose of raising funds. The party had, at a joint meeting of the National Executive Committee, National Advisory Committee and Chairmen of State Stakeholders Committees held on April 14, 2014, resolved to set up the committee in order to reach out to members, supporters and sympathisers to generate funds in support of scheduled activities and programmes of the party leading to its congresses and national convention. Committee chairman, Anyanwu, thanked the party for the appointment and pledged on behalf of members, their resolve to support the party financially through a robust fund-raising drive.

Confab: Ohanaeze restates stand on zonal structure Leo Sobechi he apex socio-cultural association of Igbo, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has restated its support for a sixzone structure in Nigeria, saying it reaffirms solidarity with the South-West, South-South and all other delegations that share “our common view on the way forward for Nigeria.” This was part of the resolutions reached by the association after the meeting of Imeobi yesterday. In a statement signed by Professor Ben Obumselu, for the communiqué-drafting committee, Ohanaeze said; “Ndigbo unanimously affirm that we stand on the six-zonal structure,” adding

that on the issue of power devolution, “Ndigbo are restating that power be devolved to the zones.” Part of the six-point communique reads: “Ndigbo insist on proper application of the secularity of the Nigerian state. We reaffirm that citizenship rights should prevail as contained in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

change of name

adebayo-david

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Atinuke Abimbola ADEBAYO, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Atinuke Abimbola ADEBAYO-DAVID. All former documents remain valid. ITF and General public should take note.

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Monarch urges unity against insecurity

Ahmed Sani Mohammed KATSINA

mir of Katsina, Alhaji (Dr.) Abdulmumini Kabir Usman, has said insecurity and economic problems faced by the North can only be addressed if northerners came together and work for the progress of the region. Kabir stated this at the turbaning ceremony of three illustrious sons of the state over the weekend in Katsina, saying that Northerners should set aside political and religious differences and consider themselves as one for the interest of the region. He said northerners should stop blaming anybody or group of people

for economic woes faced for their failure but to blame themselves for the failure to work for the sake of the region. According to him; “We should stop fighting each other, but we should set aside our political and religious differences and work for the progress of the north.” “The north can only remain in peace if we agree to come together and consider ourselves as brothers and sisters.” Usman said the emirate resolved to honour and bestow traditional title to the three illustrious sons of the state following their contributions to the development of the state and their concern to improve the welfare of the common man.

Mai of Kaltungo, Alhaji Sale Muhammed (left), and President, Dangote Group of Companies, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, during Dangote's condolence visit to Gombe Emir’s palace over the death of the Emir…yesterday

Democracy ensures justice, freedom - Yabo

US Customs arrests 11 Nigerians, others for cyber crimes

Umar Danladi Ado

Bayo Akomolafe

SOKOTO

okoto State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Alhaji Faruk Malami Yabo, has said that democracy in Nigeria had ensured justice, equality and freedom. He noted that Nigeria's democracy has brought about development, adding that the democratic form of government is the highest form of governance and it is working in Nigeria. While he argued that Nigeria is still learning

when compared to other older democracies, he urged Nigerians to collectively stand and make the nation better irrespective of the diverse religious, ethnic and political differences. Malami Yabo stated this when the members of the Correspondents' Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists ( NUJ), paid him a courtesy call. He further appealed to Nigerians to collectively embark on sustained fervent prayers which, he said, are what Nigeria needs now badly.

Elumelu lauds Uduaghan’s educational strides

Dominic Adewole ASABA

he Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of the Delta State University (DELSU), Abraka, Mr. Tony Elumelu, has commended Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan’s deft strategy in developing the education sector of the state. He maintained that the footprint of the governor in bringing education to the doorsteps of the indigenes of the state has brought total liberation to those hoodwinked by its financial implication. Elumelu, who disclosed that his Foun-

dation (Tony Elumelu Foundation) has been in the vanguard of the development of the sector, urged the governor not to relent in his effort. Speaking during the 8th Convocation ceremony of the state-owned university at the weekend in Abraka, Elumelu hailed the institution’s fast growing educational prowess among its equals in Nigeria, even as he congratulated the vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Eric Arubayi for effectively managing the affairs of the multi-campus institution for the past five years and also stamping out cultism from the school.

leven Nigerians and one South African woman have been linked to global scam stemming from cyber and mass-marketing fraud schemes in the United States of America and South Africa. They were nabbed through the joint efforts of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). So far, HSI has identified hundreds of victims of the scams in the United States, resulting in the loss of millions of U.S. dollars. It was alleged that a West African transnational organized crime enterprise was involved

in numerous complex financial fraud schemes over the Internet. The fraud also includes romance scams, reshipping scams, fraudulent check scams, work-athome scams, wire fraud, bank fraud, access device fraud, mail fraud, aggravated identity theft, theft of government funds and money laundering. It was learnt that the suspects enriched themselves with illegally obtained funds. During the operation, computers, laptops, cell phones, notebooks and documents were seized from the suspects. Other members of this transnational criminal enterprise were arrested in Canada, California, Georgia, Indiana, New

York, South Carolina and Wisconsin. The HSI investigation continues. Also, it was revealed by the Homeland Security investigations (HIS) that the U.S. Department of Justice's Organized Crime Gang Section and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia had filed related indictments in Charleston and Atlanta against five additional defendants. “The U.S. Department of Justice's Office of International Affairs assisted in the provisional arrest warrants for the 11 Nigerian citizens and one South African in Pretoria and one Nigerian citizen in Toronto, Canada. A Nigerian citizen was arrested in Indianapolis,

and three Nigerians were arrested in Atlanta. The remaining seven are U.S. citizens,” it added. The HSI Pretoria Attaché Abraham Lugo said: “.At HSI, we believe that by working with the South African Government to dismantle these transnational mass marketing criminal organizations, we will collectively bring the perpetrators to justice and wherever possible, recoup the victims' losses. "Our collaboration with the South African Police Service, Interpol and other government agencies, will also increase public awareness of these crimes and hopefully will prevent people from falling victim to these schemes in the future."

We're studying LASU students' position, says Fashola

he Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babtunde Fashola, has said that the position of the students of the Lagos State University, Ojo, on the school fees payable by students will be discussed by the State Executive Council. Fashola (SAN), who dropped the hint at the weekend, again assured that where there is need for adjustment or amendment, it would be effected accordingly. It would be recalled that following several agitations by the stu-

dents on the fees increase, the governor met with them severally and it was agreed that the students should make their independent study and present to government a position paper on the way forward. Fielding questions at a live television interactive session with media executives at the Lagos Television, Ikeja, to mark Democracy Day in the State, Fashola said the students have presented the paper which is now before the Executive Council for consid-

eration and approval. He declared, “I have passed it out to the Council. We have told the students that we are not inflexible and where we see the need for adjustment or amendment, we will do it so that they might understand it better”, noting, however, that going by the position paper, the students were not against the increase but the parameters used in calculating the fees. Fashola reiterated that the increase in fees regime was one of

the many recommendations made by a visitation panel inaugurated at the instance of the students in a petition to the House of Assembly. “There were many recommendations made by the panel, many of which we accepted. It is the school fees that have become so vexatious as it were. What we have done is that we looked across schools, federal and state and private schools and tried to stay somewhere in the middle”, the governor explained.

Blame citizens, not govt for nation's woes, says Catholic Bishop

Babatope Okeowo AKURE

he Catholic Bishop of Ondo Diocese, Jude Arogundade, yesterday said the citizens of the country should

be blamed for the problems facing the country instead of blaming it on President Goodluck Jonathan and the state governors. The cleric stated this during a sermon he de-

livered at the thanksgiving service to mark this year's World Communications Day at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Akure, the Ondo State capital yesterday. According to him,

what is happening in the country is shameful as the international community is laughing at Nigeria whenever it heard bad news about the country the media. He lamented that Ni-

geria, which is supposed to be one of the most developed countries in the world with all its human and natural resources, has unfortunately turned to a terrorist country. His words: "When I

travelled to the United States of America three weeks ago, my friends there kept asking me what was happening in Nigeria. I kept explaining until I did not know what to say again .

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HONOUR

Late jurist deserves prominent place in Nigeria's annals, says ISOPADEC boss Steve Uzoechi OWERRI

he Director of Imo State Oil Producing Communities Development Commission (ISOPADEC), Henry Okafor, yesterday called on the Federal Government to name one of the nation’s institutions or monuments after the

1.9m

Imo oil producing communities want Oputa immortalised late jurist, Justice Chukwudifu Oputa. Okafor, who led senior officials of the commission to the country home of the late Supreme Court judge told newsmen shortly after signing the condolence register that Oputa deserves a prominent place in the annals of this country in view of his contributions to the development

The total number of internet users in Kazakhstan in 2007. Source: Blatantworld.com

of the judiciary. The ISOPADEC boss, who was received by a nephew of the late jurist, Mr. Nkem Oputa, a legal practitioner, said the commission and the entire oil producing communities, especially Oguta, will liaise with the state government and the Oputa family to give him a befitting burial.

450

The numbers of agreements on international waters were signed between 1820 and 2007. Source: 382mUnesco.org

He said: “Late Justice Oputa was one of the illustrious sons of Oguta community, who through his work, brought honour to Imo State and the entire South-East and must be accorded a befitting burial. “I am aware that the state government is doing something in that direction, but we are going to work closely with the

29%

The percentage of children under age five affected by malnutrition in West Africa. Source: Worldbank.org

government and the family to ensure that he gets the burial he deserves.” Responding, Nkem Oputa described the demise of the jurist as a great loss to his immediate community and the entire nation, noting that his life and death should give direction to the younger generation. He thanked the state government, the oil pro-

ducing communities and other well-meaning individuals who have stood by the family in their moment of grief. “I want to thank every one of you who have been around the family at this time; this communal and brotherly coexistence was what our father stood for. He lived a simple life that should be emulated.”

NANS wades into Benue teachers’ strike Cephas Iorhemen MAKURDI

he National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has waded into the protracted strike embarked upon by primary school teachers in Benue State; appealing to them to consider the agony the pupils were passing through at home and suspend the strike. The teachers had been on strike in the last seven months to press home their demand for higher wages, especially the implementation of a new national minimum wage package, which they said the present administration in the state has blatantly refused to pay. Series of negotiations

held between the state government and the leadership of the relevant labour organisations, especially the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) and the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) to end the crisis have ended in a deadlock as the teachers refused to shift ground until their demands are met. The state government has equally refused to heed to the demands of the teachers, alleging fear of possible increase in the monthly teachers wage bill from N1.1 billion to N2 billion, just as it also claimed to have invested heavily in secondary and tertiary education through the provision of infrastructure.

PDP will win 2015 elections, says Aminu Wali L-R: Chief Mbazulike Amaechi; Secretary General, Ohaneze Ndigbo, Dr. Joe Nwaorgu and President General, Gary Igariwey Enwo, at a consultative meeting with delegates to the National Confab in Enugu…at the weekend

NURTW beefs up security in northern motor parks Musa Pam JOS

he North-Central zone of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) has called for better security at motor parks in the face of the insurgency in the northern part of the country. North-Central Zonal Chairman of the NURTW, Mr. Danjuma

he Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has berated the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) for its comments on the marginalisation of Muslims in the country. Christians under the auspices of TEKAN/ ECWA, a branch of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) have denied claims of marginalisation by Muslims. In a statement released yesterday, the National

Jeji, told New Telegraph in Jos that the union had beefed up security in the parks to protect them across the zones in the north, adding that there was the need for such security beef-up around the parks for the safety of travellers. According to him, the decision to ensure security in the zone followed a recent executive members’ meeting of the zone

on security. “We recently held a zonal executive council meeting of the union in Minna and we resolved that all chapters in the zone must take the issues of security more seriously,” he said. The chairman decried the spate of bombings in the country in which many of its members, like other Nigerians, were either killed or in-

jured. Jeji said many of their members were victims in the recent bomb blasts in Jos, but that he had no information on those maimed or killed in the blast. He said the zone was working very closely with security agencies to ensure that adequate security personnel were deployed to motor parks.

Muhammad Kabir KANO

inister of Foreign Affairs, Alhaji Aminu Wali, has expressed optimism that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will win the forthcoming 2015 general elections. He based his optimism on what he described as the ‘fake and artificial popularity of the opposition All Progressives Congress.’ Specifically, Wali, who was annoyed by the outcome of the local government elections in Kano State, which returned

Group berates CAN for comments on marginalisation Head of TEKAN/ECWA bloc of CAN, Rev. (Dr.) Emmanuel Dziggau, accused the Sultan of Sokoto, Mohammed Sa’ad Abubakar III, who was credited with the statement, of being economical with the truth. “We of the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) find CAN’s outbursts distasteful, disgusting and provocative. “It is most unfortunate

that a religious leader will take to whipping up sentiments instead of facing facts as they stand. There must be an anti-Muslim conspiracy at the highest level if Muslims speak of marginalisation in Nigeria and a Christian body stands up to defend the Federal Government. “The world has become a global village and the rest of the world is keenly

watching the unfolding scenario in the country. People are not fools and simple logic will reveal the hypocrisy of CAN in this matter. “Why would this body respond each time the Muslims complain to the government? When did CAN become Aso Rock’s megaphone? For the avoidance of doubts, the present Sultan

is the most moderate, most peace-loving and most accommodating leader the Muslims ever had. Sultan Abubakar has consistently advocated dialogue instead of spontaneous violence. “He has always counseled Islamic organisations to report their grudges to Nigeria’s umbrella Islamic organisation, the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic

APC as the winner of the 44 local government areas of the state, said; “Every sensible person knows that what happened was nothing, but a sham and arranged election.” The minister, who was collecting his renewed PDP registration card at his Hotoron Kudu Ward in Nassarawa Local Government area of the state during the weekend alongside former Governor Ibrahim Shekarau, added that the number of people willing to register with the PDP casts doubt about the popularity of APC in Kano. Affairs (NSCIA) and to refrain from aggressive disposition. “It is, therefore, callous and deceitful of CAN to turn around and accuse a bridge-builder like Sultan Abubakar III, of heating up the polity. Can CAN tell us how well the South-East governments have treated the Muslims in their midst? Igbo Muslims are treated like second class citizens in the South-East.

10 NEWS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

Ebonyi LGA boss denies bomb report PANDEMONIUM Council chariman accuses NSCDC men of overzealousness at venue of Children's Day celebration Charles Onyekwere ABAKALIKI

he Chairman, Afikpo North Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, Tony Ekoh Junior, yesterday described as false, unfounded and baseless the purported attempt by some individual to detonate a bomb allegedly planted at the venue of the May 27th Children's Day celebration in the Local Government Area. Speaking with Newsmen in Abakaliki, the council chairman, said that the pandemonium witnessed in the area on the that day was the handiwork of some overzealous officials of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corp posted to the venue of the celebration. Ekoh said according

to information gathered from the Afikpo Area Command of the Nigeria Police force, Ebonyi State Command, some officials of the NSCDC saw a man at the venue of the celebration with a GSM mobile phone that has an antenna trying to make a call. According to him: "On sighting the young man who is a native of Afikpo trying to dial a number with his phone, the NSCDC pounced on him, accusing him of attempting to use the phone to detonate a bomb at the venue. "The action of the men of the NSCDC immediately created tension and panic in the area as residents of the area started calling their relatives and well- wishers to find out where the attempt was made. The council boss further stated that the young man was arrested and handed over to the Police for interrogation, adding that some Police officers searched his house and were unable to find anything incriminating.

PDP lauds Nigerians’ resilience

Onyekachi Eze ABUJA

he Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has called on all its elected officials to reciprocate the trust and support shown by Nigerians by redoubling their efforts and working towards ensuring that Nigerians continue to enjoy the dividends of democracy from the PDP-controlled government. In its statement yesterday to mark this year’s Democracy Day, the party praised Nigerians for their commitment towards the sustenance of democracy in the country and said the people were true heroes and heroines of democracy. The statement, signed

by its National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, said after thorough appraisal of the contributions of the people towards the sustenance of democracy in the last 15 years, PDP came to the inevitable conclusion that despite challenges and efforts of few unpatriotic elements to destroy their sense of patriotism and truncate the process of democracy, Nigerian citizens remained resolute and committed in the defence of democracy. “Indeed, the real heroes of democracy are Nigerian citizens who daily make sacrifices for the sustenance of democratic rule in the last 15 years. It is their collective choice and resolve to support and maintain democ-

$US478.9bn The nominal GDP of Sweden (IMF) in 2009. Source: Blatantworld.com

racy as the only system of government for the actualization of our collective aspirations, irrespective of the challenges we face as a people. “Nigerians have demonstrated their commitment not only by continually trooping out in their millions to vote, defying the sun and the rains, but also in their patience, understanding and continued support for the unity of the nation and the government they love, despite the unrelenting efforts by unpatriotic elements to mislead them”, the party said. It commended them for their faith, resilience and untiring support for democracy since 1999, noting that with the support of Ni-

22.8%

The percentage of households with a computer in developing countries in 2010. Source: Itu.int

gerians, its government has “not only sustained the unity and corporate existence of Nigeria as one indivisible nation where all are free, but also achieved an uninterrupted democratic rule by guaranteeing social justice and economic prosperity through strict adherence to the principles of equality and the rule of law”. While appreciating Nigerians for voting and supporting it since 1999, the PDP said the “continued overwhelming victory at the polls remains a clear demonstration of the confidence reposed in it by the people as the only true national party and best vehicle for the delivery of democracy dividends to them.

67TWh

The annual worldwide use of geothermal energy for electricity in 2010. Source: Unesco.org

Group demands body parts of members Musa Pam JOS

group under the aegis of Bache (Rukuba) Development Association of Bassa Local Government Area of Plateau State has demanded the return of the severed heads of their slain members by the neighbouring Irigwe community. The Association, in a statement signed by the President, Dr. Aboi Madaki, and its secretary, Markus Aku Amabu and made available to New Telegraph in Jos, accused Irigwe of igniting the recent communal clashes that claimed six lives in the local government area of the state. They alleged that Irigwe people are bent on taking their land forcefully

The group which sued for peace, demanded the return of the two heads of their people taken by the Irigwe people during the clash in the council. "The Irigwe people have a long-standing ambition to criminally and forcefully take over Bache land, which our ancestors acquired and settled in centuries ago. These areas include Dutsen Kura, Adisindu, the whole of Maxwell Khobe Cantonment (Rukuba Barracks), Araru, Guni, Uwok Ugo to the boundary with Chawai, all Kice land. The Bache people, who are authentic owners of the land, have settled and farmed in these area centuries before the arrival of the Irigwe people in their current settlements," the group said.

L-R: Director, Women Empowerment, Ogun State, Mrs. Soladayo Babalola; Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Elizabeth Sonubi; Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Yusuph Olaniyonu and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Strategy, Alhaji Abdul-Fatai Opebiyi, during the ministerial press briefing to mark the three years of the Senator Ibikunle Amosun's government in Abeokuta

Chibok girls: Speak with one voice, NIPR tells FG Appolonia Adeyemi

gainst the background of government agencies issuing conflicting statements, the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) has urged the Federal Government to coordinate all information on this issue with a view

Uduaghan gives hope on job creation, urges peaceful politicking Dominic Adewole ASABA

nemployed youths in Delta State have heaved a sigh of relief after an assurance by Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan that the monster would soon be vanquished in the state. Uduaghan gave the hope at the weekend during the 8th convocation ceremony of the stateowned university, Delta State University (DELSU), Abraka. Uduaghan also used the occasion to warn those

jostling to succeed him to pursue their ambitions without disrupting the peace in the state. He congratulated the graduands and assured them that with the Delta Beyond Oil programmes, a lot of private investors were coming into the state to provide job opportunities. He said, “We have unemployment challenges in the world, not only in Delta State and Nigeria, but with the Delta Beyond Oil, our people are keying into the non-oil sector to become

employed and employers of labour.” The governor explained that the Delta Beyond Oil initiative was designed for the Delta State economy to be private-sector driven and ensure that unemployment was reduced to the barest minimum. He explained how the scheme offered job opportunities for young graduates and entrepreneurs and, in the future, guaranteed sustainable means of livelihood and addresses the challenge of unemployment.

to speaking with one voice. Also, the NIPR has appealed to all Nigerians and relevant agencies to contribute their effort to ensure that the girls allegedly abducted by members of the Boko Haram sect from their school in Chibok, Borno State are freed alive. Speaking at a press conference on ‘Bring Back Our Girls’, organised by the NIPR in Lagos, Dr. Rotimi Oladele, President of the NIPR, cautioned officials who issue statements on behalf of the government concerning the Chibok abduction and other crises in the country ‘not to go all out and in full blast while investigations are going on’. According to him, all information from the directors of information of military and paramilitary agencies should be coming together and be coordinated by the National Orientation Agency (NOA)

under the latter’s general manager, Mike Emeri. The president of the NIPR implored the Federal Government not to make information management in disaster situations a one-off step. “There is a need for us to build a very robust emergency and disaster information management team. “This team … should not be an ad-hoc one. It should be reinforced. It should be equipped and It should also be consolidated,” so that there would be an injection of ideas, materials and gadgets for us to do preventive measure, event-on-measure and post-event measure”. Similarly, Oladele urged all those involved in managing information on the Chibok disaster – whether core media, public relations managers or directors of military and paramilitary agencies, to know that “we must be like intelligent officers for

the purpose of preventing, abating or combating disasters”. He condemned the politisisation of the Chibok kidnap saga and commended the Federal Government for putting in place a good synergy of information management to address it. Similarly, he called on the Federal government to ensure that foreigners were not involved in the management of the Nigerian reputation. Oladele said, “There is no stranger that can manage your own privacy better than your very self. If you call another person to come and manage your own bedroom other than your daughters and your boys, you might be calling for an artful dodger, meaning that one may invite those who will pretend to provide service but will actually milk one”. He added, “This is what we should watch out for”.

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MONday,JUNE 2, 2014

Curatta: Home of gamblers, prostitutes A man taking a nap in one of the sheels.

Some of the shanties at the village

Camilus Nnaji

agos State, the Centre of Excellence, has many peculiarities. One of such is that the Lagos metropolis is the economic hub of the world’s largest black nation. Although the Lagos metropolis shares so many things with similar urban towns across the globe, one of its distinguishing features is that one form of crime is committed almost every second in different parts of the city of aquatic splendour. This happens despite efforts of the administration of Governor Babatunde Fashola to rid the state of criminal activities with fortified security surveillance. One of such areas where crime is committed without check is Curatta Mechanic Village located on the fringe of the metropolis. The village, which is a stone throw from the Otedola Estate on the LagosIbadan Expressway, is a house to several street urchins popularly called area boys. Not only that; women of easy virtue use the place as a professional base. So it is not out of place to see several social vices at play at the village. Men and women, including girls, indulge in gambling, smoking and pros-

Some gamblers at work.

titution at the village. When NT Metro visited the village, several young men and girls gathered, with no identifiable occupation. One of the food sellers at the village, called Memuna, who did not know she was speaking with a journalist, said that different people from different tribes gathered there on a daily basis to smoke marijuana and gamble. “Some girls are here to ‘hustle’ (look for men who will pay them after sleeping with them). There are plenty men and girls of different tribes, Igbo, Yoruba, Hausa, Niger Delta, in this village. “There are gamblers and smokers. The girls are prostitutes, some sleep inside the illegal shanties and erections they have made, while others sleep inside cars,” she said. But the Chairman of Curatta Phase 2 Mechanics’ Association, Mr Henry Obinna, described the presence of this set of people as invasion of their place of work. Obinna also described the invasion as a security threat not only to the residents in the neighbourhood but to the entire metropolis. He said: “When we see strange faces, we normally report to the police. The police arrested some boys last week. “If you are a gambler or smoker in this place and we find out, we will

Most of the people we see here are Hausa who are scavengers sleeping on their loads, but you cannot trust anybody send you out of the place. A boy who specialised in stealing car batteries was arrested by the police last week.” Obinna said that in 1999, the place was a refuse dumpsite but the mechanics cleared it with caterpillars to turn it into a mechanic village. But according to him, since then, different interests have started coming as many people are claiming ownership of the land. He added that they knew that their stay in the area was temporary, as the place was “a government acquisition.” Obinna suspected that on the other hand, those informing the government about Curatta being hideout for criminals were doing so to invite government interest to push them out of the place. The Assistant Chairman of the association, Mr Daniel Ihekwuaba, appealed to the government to come to their assistance in providing security

Photo: Camilus Nnaji

at the village. The call, according to him, became necessary because of the presence of different people who could not be identified as mechanics. Corroborating these views, the chairman of the Traders’ Association at the village, who did not disclose his name, said though gamblers, smokers and prostitutes were there, there were no robbers among them. He said: “Nobody has been arrested with gun here. But the security operatives can do their own work to fish out robbers, if there is any. “Most of the people we see here are Hausa who are scavengers sleeping on their loads, but you cannot trust anybody. You cannot know anybody working for Boko Haram or other criminal agents, as such security personnel are invited to come and sanitise the mechanic village.” The Leader of the Hausa community, Mallam Ahmed Mohammed, who hails from Borno State, said that they had lived at the village for more than five years and had not posed security threat to anybody. He admitted the invasion in the area of strange faces without identifiable means of living. Mohammed added that of January, some unknown boys came to demand money from those working and living at the village.

METRO

Monday, Ju

Female pastor burns 10-year-o niece’s face MOSAIC LAW A senior female pastor scorches a 10-year-old niece as a reprisal for what the girl allegedly did to her grandson Chris Ejim Yenagoa

he Assistant General Overseer of Heart Beat of God Bible Church, OMPADEC Road, Yenagoa, Pastor Fine Oru, at the weekend burnt the face of her 10-year-old niece, Grace Opion, with a hot spoon. The female pastor had heat up the spoon on her gas cooker before using it to scorch the girl. The 46-year-old Oru, who hails from Otueke, Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, the hometown of President Goodluck Jonathan, resides at Okpenda community, off Ox-Bow Road, in Yenagoa. The girl, who she the pastor claimed

is her younger sister’s daughter, is a pupil of Kingdom Success Academy, in the neighbourhood. Oru, who said she had been a pastor for 16 years, told our correspondent in an interview that she had left her grandson of about a year old for the girl to look after and travelled to Otueke on Friday for a burial. According to her, at night the boy was very uncomfortable and cried all through. She said early Saturday morning she noticed that part of the boy’s face was burnt. According to the pastor, the boy told her it was the girl who injured him. But when Oru asked the girl what happened, she told her that she used the spoon to slap him as they were cooking. “I said okay, don’t worry. What you did to him, I will also do to you. As I was trying to do that, she was struggling. My sister and I were telling her to keep her face steady so that the thing (hot spoon) will not touch all her face, but she refused. So the thing

sistant to Governor Seriake Dickson on Girl-Child Education, Mrs Juliet Konodufaowei, who went to see the girl. Before the pastor returned from the market, policemen from

Gunmen kidnap Ko Poly registrar Muhammad Bashir Lokoja

IG, Abubakar

now burnt her face like this,” Oru said. Narrating what happened, the girl said that while she was cooking, the boy picked the spoon where she kept it and touched his face with it. The neighbours were baffled that the pastor abandoned the girl in her pains, as well as the boy, and went to the market. It was when the girl came out crying that she attracted the attention of the neighbours. A Good Samaritan quickly alerted the police and the Senior Special As-

Delta will sustain modern health facilities, Uduaghan promises

Uduaghan (right) and others being shown one of the facilities at the Eku Baptist Government Hospital, Eku by Odunvbun W.O. shortly after the inauguration. PHOTO: GOVERNMENT HOUSE.

elta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan said his administration had put in place deliberate policies and programmes to sustain projects and modern health facilities provided by the government. Uduaghan said this at the weekend while inaugurating the newly renovated Eku Baptist Government Hospital, Eku, in Ethiope East Local Government Area. All the old structures in the hospital were renovated, while ultra-modern accident and emergency complex as well as a modern mortuary were provided. According to the governor, in-coming administration in the state will not dump or neglect the health sector and the ultra-

modern facilities put in place because the government has taken measures to guarantee their sustenance in the future. He said: “Let me assure the management of the Eku Baptist Government Hospital and the Eku community that government will sign a fiveyear contract with a company to ensure that the equipment and facilities at the hospital remain in good condition.” Uduaghan said that the hospital had a history, patronised by people from different parts of the country, adding that the reconstruction and comprehensive re-equipping of the hospital came as a result of the Nigeria Baptist Convention and the Eku community’s call on government to take

Azikoro Division w arrest her. The state Police tions Officer (PPR igbe, said he had no after Oru’s arrest.

over the hospital. The governor disclosed that the hospital was to be made the Delta State Teaching Hospital (DELSUTH) it was stopped because of complaints from some individuals in the community. He added that DELSUTH was moved to Oghara when it became impossible to make the Eku Baptist Government Hospital a teaching hospital. Earlier, the Medical director of the hospital, Dr W. O. Odunvbun, said Uduaghan’s administration ensured “comprehensive renovation of all the old structures and provided ultra-modern accident and emergency complex and a modern mortuary,” adding, “the hospital boasts of 16 slice

CT scan, ultra-modern dental unit and laboratory equipment.” He said: “Eku Baptist Government Hospital has 150 bed spaces, comprising of maternity ward; male and female wards, paediatrics and private wards, additional 20-bed space in the new accident and emergency complex. “This transformed secondary health facility with the assistance of the state government, recently, secured five years full accreditation for Family Medicine Training from both the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria (NPCN) and the West African College of Physician (WACP).” The Eku community said in an address read by Prof. Uvie Igun that the hospital, which was very dear to every Eku descendant, was very sick and near death. “We cried to you (Uduaghan) and you answered our cry and came to the rescue of the hospital. “Dr Uduaghan, Eku community welcomes you to Eku as our adopted son, adopted son because of all you have done to touch the lives of every Eku descendant,” the community said.

unmen on Saturday morning abducted the Registrar of the Federal Polytechnic Idah in Kogi State, Mr Kareem Abu. The Rector of the institution, Mr Mathew Akpata, last month escaped abduction when the vehicle used in kidnaping him got stuck and was eventually rescued in the vehicle’s trunk, where he was kept. Akpata escaped when his offi-

cial vehicle in which abducted had an ac The kidnappers f ing the vehicle and Kidnappers also Librarian of the ins time last year. The whereabout trar were not know nappers had not c family at press tim The state police tions officer could n for comment as he his calls.

‘New IG must be a refo like Abubakar’ Juliana Francis

crime analyst, Mr. Folorunsho Atta, has called on the Presidency to ensure that the officer succeeding the Inspector General of Police (IG), Mohammed Abubakar, must be a reformist like him. This was even as he argued that the immediate past Deputy Inspector-General of Police (DIG), in charge of Administration, Joel Azubuko Udah, would have been the best IG for the country. Udah was one who came up with the blueprint on giving amnesty to militants at the Niger Delta region, thus restoring peace to the volatile area. While urging the Presidency to appoint a reformist like Abubakar, to succeed the retiring IG, Atta said

that the current ins country was a produ system of ‘man-kno The analyst said able people were app es where they could performances for se the current insecu have reared its ugly He said: ‘It is Abubakar’s tenure pire, but the Preside for a honest man, w cord in the force is f ceed him. There ar ruptible officers in These few men may top because of the technocrats, traditio former presidents w pose their candidat occupies Aso Rock.

Firm sues NAFD Biodun Oyeleye Ilorin

or unlawful closure, an Ilorin-based manufacturing firm, Global Soap and Detergent Industries Limited, is seeking N5 billion compensation from the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC). In a suit instituted against the agency at the Federal High Court, Ilorin, Kwara State, the firm, through its counsel, Yusuf

Ali (SAN), argued t the alleged unconst closure of the compan 16, it had been losing a million weekly on ac maintenance, overh loss of income on pr of its various produc The company a court for injunction ing NAFDAC or an agents or officers from disturbance, closure fering with the produ tivities of the factory

POLITICS

NEW TELEGRAPH

We need to change Nigeria now and that is what the All Progressives Congress (APC) offers, and that is what I stand for. If you are not satisfied the way Nigeria is being governed now, it means that they should not be given another chance. -Rotimi Ameachi

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AYODELE OJO

DEPUTY EDITOR, POLITICS

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ayodeleojo@yahoo.com

MONDAY, JUNE 2, 2014

2015: 500 POLITICIANS TO WATCH

agos is not only the commercial hub of the nation; it is also the seat of deft politics. No matter the energy dissipated by political scientists to balance the practice of the art, Lagos politics usually has a way of producing a dramatic effect. With the scheming for the 2015 elections already gathering momentum, the two major political blocs in the state, namely, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), will be squaring it up. Interestingly, for the first time in many elections, both are expected to do so from a position of strength. The APC seems to have its hands full already with pundits gazing at the emerging troubles within the party. First, the party decided it would zone the 2015 gubernatorial ticket to Lagos East; then the use of religious criteria and afterwards, the age difference flag hoisted by the party. Analysts opined that unlike what obtained prior to the 2011 elections that the progressives were under one roof and were able to win all elective positions in the state, the brewing war songs may set some politicians against their benefactors. Some political generals would be retired, just as new political cadets will be enlisted to take over. Whether those to be retired will be given front-seat send forth reception, is a different kettle of fish. The major gladiators in this battle of wits are the predominant players that have been on the scene since 1999. For the first time in the annals of Lagos politics, the fortunes and rank of lesser political parties may swell up as aggrieved aspirants would find solace of relevance in them. For the PDP, the party appears to be in decent shape though there is a lull of activity within the party for the 2015 election. As they await signals from Abuja to initiate a proper process, some aspirants are already mapping out strategies, sneaking out for support under the cover of night, and holding clandestine meetings to garner support for their aspirations. Bola Ahmed Tinubu The former governor of Lagos State and a national leader of the APC is arguably one of the most experienced and influential politicians in Nigeria. He is regarded as the face of opposition in Nigerian politics because of the way he is assiduously working with other political gladiators to position the APC as a viable

APC, PDP square up in Centre of Excellence

For a city that doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t sleep, its politicians are awake as well. In this report, TEMITOPE OGUNBANKE and WALE ELEGBEDE chronicle the trees that will make the forest of Lagos politics in 2015, their chances, limitations and the role they will play in the state during the elections.

Tinubu

opposition to the ruling PDP. Since he ventured into politics and elected as a Senator in the aborted Third Republic, Asiwaju Tinubu has been an influential player in politics. As a member of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), he, alongside his colleagues fought tirelessly against the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election and for the enthronement of democracy in Nigeria. It was his activities in NADECO that earned him the Alliance for Democracy (AD) governorship ticket ahead of Engr. Funsho Williams and several others who had already been tipped for the position by the Afenifere leaders. He assumed office as the third elected

George

governor of Lagos State in 1999 and was re-elected in 2003, not only as Lagos State governor but also as the only man standing among the six South-West AD governors, who were elected alongside him in 1999. During his eight years as governor, Tinubu was a major force in Lagos politics. Even after leaving office in 2007, his political profile has continued to be on the rise. Jargaban Borgu, as he is fondly called, singlehandedly backed Babatunde Fashola, who was his then Chief of Staff, for the Action Congress (AC) governorship ticket in 2007. Fashola eventually became the governor. There is no doubt that Tinubu is very

powerful in Lagos politics considering how he has positioned different people, especially his associates in the past into public office within and outside the state Tinubu has so much role to play in Lagos and Nigeria at large in 2015. To a large extent, he is going to decide who succeeds Fashola in 2015. Already, there are insinuations that he has anointed a former Accountant-General of Lagos State, Akin Ambode, to succeed Fashola. He will ultimately be at the centre of decision making as to who gets what in 2015. His wife, Remi, will also be taking a shot at her re-election to the Senate. CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

14 POLITICS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

2015: 500 POLITICIANS TO WATCH

Tinubu, Fashola, George, Obanikoro CO N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 1 3

At the federal level, Tinubu will play a great role in the party’s determination to win the presidency. How Tinubu and Fashola resolve the succession issue in Lagos will to a large extent determine the influence of Tinubu and APC successes in the 2015 elections. Can the opposition cage the “Lion of Bourdillon” in 2015? This is a riddle 2015 elections will proffer answer to in the Centre of Excellence. Babatunde Raji Fashola Before throwing his hat into the ring for the governorship race in Lagos in 2007, the much that was known about Fashola in the political circle was being Chief of Staff to Tinubu. BRF, as he is popularly called, emerged as the governorship candidate of the defunct AC against all odds among many political gladiators in the state. Fashola, within his first term in office as governor proved to the world that he is an actualiser with lots of remarkable achievements, which made him to win the hearts of many Lagosians. It was the strength of his performance that gave him public sympathy amidst the intrigues that trailed his second term ticket in 2011. On completion of his two-term by May 29, 2015, it is not clear where political arrow will shoot Fashola to, but one thing is sure, he will still be an active player in the political sphere, either in Lagos or at the national level. While some say his preference for his Commissioner for Works, Olatunji Hamzat to succeed him as governor may pitch him against Tinubu and some stalwarts of the party, another school of thought postulate that he may be offered the Lagos West Senatorial ticket such that he won’t be able to rock the party’s boat especially with his influence and goodwill within the state. Fashola may not be able to push for his supporters as it happened in the past. In 2011, some of his associates including the deputy governor lost their positions in the political intrigues in the state. So, it is doubtful if any politician can stick out his neck for the governor in 2015. It seems the governor is less interested in Lagos politics in 2015. This is so given the fact that as the state leader of the party, he did not participate in APC congresses; ward, local government and state. Fashola was outside the country while the congresses were held. BRF will play a role in ensuring that he hands over to someone who will continue in his strides. He is also expected to finance the campaign activities of his party. There are two options open to Fashola: to contest for the senatorial election or be the running mate to APC, presidential candidate. The Senate is handy for him while being presidential running mate will depend on a lot of factors within the party. Bode George He is representing the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as a delegate at the ongoing National Conference. By all standards, George has enjoyed a great run of influence and recognition in politics; both in Lagos and on the national stage. A look into his political dossier, especially at the advent of the Fourth Republic in 1999, shows a template of a master political strategist who was literarily at the heart of the deft touches that brought his party, the PDP, to power in the South West in 2003. He had an interlace relationship with Olusegun Obasanjo until the former president felt the knit between them was too close for comfort and it was from that point that his political clout began to nosedive.

Fashola

Obanikoro

Orelope-Adefulire

Ikuforiji

The former National Deputy Chairman of the PDP was sentenced in October 2009 to a 30-month jail term for charges that included contracts splitting and inflation while he was the board chairman of the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA). More than three years after serving his sentence, the Supreme Court on December 13, 2013, set aside George’s conviction. Regarded as the backbone of the PDP in Lagos, Atona Oodua, as he is fondly called, supported the candidature of the late Funsho Williams’ wife, Hilda, for the Lagos PDP ticket in 2007 until the tide turned and Musiliu Obanikoro emerged as the party’s flag bearer. He was primarily involved in the choice of Dr. Ade Dosunmu as the PDP’s flag bearer for 2011 election. As the leader of the Establishment Group, a caucus within the PDP in the state, he had a running battle with former Minister of Works, Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe, who controls the Union Group. The heated battle for the control of the PDP structure between both groups resulted into the factionalisation of the

party until recently when a semblance of decorum which pundits described as graveyard peace was experienced within the party. Though many adduced the change of process and followership in the party to the emergence and influence of Buruji Kashamu, a development that many said may have whittled down the political weight of George in Lagos politics. Already, some known cult followers of George are beginning to fraternise with Buruji, who they see as the moneybag of the party in South-West. Though the state executive of the party and the local government chairmen are in the firm grip of George, analysts have reasons to believe that unlike in 2011, the choice of the party’s representation for the 2015 elections, especially for the governorship in the state, would not be a straight jacket decision by George. A factor that probably lends credence to such line of reasoning was the emergence of Obanikoro as Minister of State for Defence without the knowledge of George. As it stands, the vigor of Buruji’s inter-

est and the influence of Obanikoro to an extent may be the only stumbling block in George’s path at anointing the next gubernatorial candidate of his party in 2015. Being a master of several political strategies with well-honed formula, it would be foolhardy for anyone to wave BG aside in the thick of activities in the PDP especially with his high wired connection in Abuja. The Presidency has so much confidence in him than other politicians within Lagos PDP. But the extent to which he can continue to lead the pack against the enemies within and foes outside his party would be determined by sequence of time. Musiliu Obanikoro If there is any politician in Lagos PDP whose carriage and personality may positively rub-off on the fortune of the party in 2015, it has to be Obanikoro. For party faithful, the PDP has more hope with Koro in their fold than anyone else. From when he began his foray into politics during the National Republican Convention (NRC) era, he has been regarded as one

POLITICS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

2015: 500 POLITICIANS TO WATCH

battle for the soul of Lagos

Ambode

Solomon

Hamzat

Ashafa

Mrs Tinubu

Ajomale

of the most dutiful politicians in Lagos. After serving as the Chairman of Lagos Island Local Government, he got appointed as the Commissioner for Home Affairs and Culture in 1999 before he was elected Senator representing Lagos Central in 2003 on the platform of the Alliance for Democracy (AD). He left the AD on the premise that the party lacks internal democracy for the PDP. In 2007, Obanikoro became the PDP gubernatorial candidate, though his candidature was not without measure of controversies. Hilda Williams, widow of the murdered Funsho Williams, had been declared winner of the Lagos PDP primaries, but the PDP leadership in Abuja gave the ticket to Obanikoro. The disunited PDP lost the election to Babatunde Fashola of the Action Congress. In 2008, Obanikoro got appointed as Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana. After his diplomatic circuit, he was appointed chairman of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF). In March 2014, Obanikoro was sworn in as the Minister of State for Defence by President Goodluck Jonathan. Not long after, he was caught in the web of some controversies in Lagos and Ondo states. Whilst Governor Fashola accused him of invading and disrupting the ongoing Ilubirin Housing projects on the Lagos Island with soldiers. The Resident Electoral Commissioner in Ondo State, Akin Orebiyi also

alleged that Obanikoro soiled his hands during the Ilaje/Ese-Odo by-election by obstructing the electoral process with full compliments of soldiers. Taking the allegations with pinch of salt, PDP members in Lagos averred that the opposition is already jittery about the clout of Obanikoro, hence their reason for crying wolf few months after Obanikoro became a minister. No doubt, Obanikoro is a formidable grassroots politician with sustainable pedigree, a role he seems to have handed to his son, Ibrahim. All through the festering divisions within the PDP, Obanikoro exhibited a degree of cleverness by not pitching his tent with either of the groups but related cordially with the leaders of the caucuses at both ends. For a fact, Obanikoro has a lot on his sleeve for the PDP, but there are still various conjectures about what his priority would be in 2015. While some pundits assert that the former envoy may have jettisoned his gubernatorial ambition to lead President Jonathan’s second term bid in the South-West, others aver that his candidature as PDP flag bearer in Lagos has already been vetted from Abuja and that he was given the ministerial slot to keep him in the steam of patronage and also place him at an advantage ahead of other aspirants. From either side of the coin, the upshot would be that Obanikoro may emerge as the rallying point for the

PDP and he will use his position to accomplish results that the party was not opportune to produce in 2011. With a benefit of hindsight, the PDP in Lagos seems to have rallied around the man they regarded as a top-drawer politician and no dissecting voice bleated during his nomination and eventual confirmation as minister. Whether the new push and positioning of Obanikoro can galvanise the party’s drive for a better performance in 2015, is a different kettle of fish. But what is sacrosanct is that Obanikoro and his party must produce some new, better ideas to drive governance in the state before they can be endeared to Lagosians. Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire She is the deputy governor. Adejoke is one of the experienced female politicians in Lagos State, having served both in legislative and executive arms of government. She was a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly in the aborted Third Republic. Before she was made deputy governor in 2011, Adejoke, the daughter of a grassroots politician in Alimosho, Alhaji Saka Orelope, had earlier served as Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation during Tinubu’s second term, and held the same portfolio during Fashola’s first term. This seems to be one of the reasons she has

been enjoying cordial relationship with her boss. With the present state of things, many people are of the view that it may be difficult for the deputy governor to extend her days in Alausa Round House beyond May 29, 2015 because of the political permutations in the state. If her quest to become a deputy governor fails, the second option left for her is to run for Alimosho Federal Constituency, especially with speculations that the incumbent, Hon. Adeola Solomon is eying Ogun West Senatorial District slot. But if the two calculations fail, Orelope-Adefulire may likely go back to private business or be compensated with a political appointment. The deputy governor is one of the strong disciples of Tinubu. She is a political gladiator and a voice to be reckoned with in Alimosho Local Government Area, the most populated council in Lagos State. APC will definitely bank on the deputy governor’s political structures to deliver Alimosho for the ruling party. Adeyemi Ikuforiji He is one of the longest serving members of the Lagos State House of Assembly. He is also the longest Speaker in Lagos legislative arm, having had the opportunity to paddle the ship of the Assembly for about seven years without any interruption. He was elected into Lagos Assembly in 2003 and re-elected in 2007, representing Epe Constituency. He became the Speaker of the House in 2007 and since then has been paddling the ship of the House, which has been adjudged in some quarters as the best state Assembly in Nigeria. Prior to the 2011 election, there was stiff opposition to Ikuforiji’s return to the House from his constituents, and to save him from sinking politically, the party leaders against all odds gave him the ticket for Ikeja II House of Assembly seat. He contested, won the election and was returned as Speaker. He was among those that were believed to have been positioned to take over from Fashola in 2011 but the gang-up failed as Fashola surmounted all odds to emerge as ACN flag bearer in the last governorship election. Ikuforiji is out again telling whoever cares to listen that he will be the next governor of the state. If the report about APC zoning its governorship ticket to Lagos East Senatorial District is anything to go by, Ikuforiji will be a strong contender in the race. But political observers are of the view that the ongoing Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) case against the Speaker over allegations of corruption, may be a stumbling block to his governorship aspiration. New Telegraph learnt that Ikuforiji is not beating retreat in his quest for the Lagos governorship. But sources said if he stretches his aspiration too much and at cross purposes with Tinubu, there may be internal revolt against him in the House, which may eventually lead to his impeachment as Speaker. With the reality on ground, neither Tinubu nor Fashola is ready to support his governorship ambition in 2015. And he cannot return to the House as Speaker. Also, it is not possible for him to oust Senator Gbenga Ashafa from the Lagos East. May be the only option for him is to contest for the House of Representatives’ seat in 2015. Oba Rilwan Akiolu Oba Akiolu, the ‘Olowo Eko’ has always been a voice to reckon with when it comes to choice of who governs Lagos. In fact, while many traditional rulers sit on the fence playing fatherly role and hobnobbing with all political aspirants and candidates, the Lagos monarch, always comes out to declare support for whoever he believes in and his choice CONTINUED ON PAGE 16

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Monday, June 2, 2014

2015: 500 POLITICIANS TO WATCH

Ambode, Ikuforiji, Solomon, Hamzat, Agbaje in rat race for Lagos House

Ogunlewe

Shelle

Olusi

Agbaje

Dabiri

Gbajabiamila

Banire

Pitan

CO N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 1 5

the closest persons to Tinubu and a major force to reckon with in the 2015 elections in Lagos State. In fact, during the 2011 general election, Aregbesola rather than being in Osun State was in Lagos to coordinate the affairs of his party in Alimosho and other parts of the state. He ensured that the defunct ACN did not lose any seat to the opposition party, especially in his Alimosho base despite a tough fight from the PDP candidate for the House of Representatives’ seat, Segun Adewale. Regarded as a master tactician on the political turf, pundits in the state believe that after Tinubu, he has the second largest loyalty base in the state. Little wonder, all 57 local government chairmen in the state see him as their leader. Though he is presently encumbered with his second term re-election bid coming up in August, it is expected that he would still keep an eye on the affairs in Centre of Excellence.

1981 became a chartered accountant at the age of 24 and at the same period completed his masters’ degree programme in accounting, specializing in financial management. He started his career at the Lagos State Waste Disposal Board (now LAWMA) as accountant Grade II. In 1988, he was appointed assistant treasurer, Badagry Local Government and he criss-crossed many local government councils in different roles in a 10-year period and got a first-hand experience of the direct impact of governance on the citizenry. In January 2005, he was redeployed to mainstream public service as the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance and by February 2006, he was given added responsibility of Accountant-General for Lagos State, in charge of all financial activities of the state and directly responsible for over 1,400 accountants in the state’s service. After 27 years in the Civil Service, Ambode voluntarily retired in August 2012 and founded Brandsmiths Consulting Limited to provide public finance and management consulting services to government at all levels, its parastatals and agencies. The public finance management expert may have been anointed by Tinubu and other APC leaders to succeed Fashola in 2015. The recent endorsement of Am-

bode as the next governor of the state by the Oba Akiolu has really added credit to the aspiration of the former AccountantGeneral. Political observers believe that many factors will work in favour of Ambode ahead of other governorship aspirants. He is from Epe in Lagos East Senatorial District and also a Christian. Therefore, if zoning and religion are used as yardsticks in the choice of next Lagos State governor, Ambode is qualified on both sides. His closeness to the APC national leader and many gladiators in the party will also be to his advantage. Being a technocrat also positions him ahead of other governorship aspirants. Already, his endorsement has unsettled the camps of many governorship frontrunners. The party structures are being mobilised in his support.

usually favours the ruling party. He was very instrumental to the choice of the incumbent governor, especially during Fashola’s second term bid in 2011. Apart from the influence he wields in Lagos politics, Iga Idunganran, the official palace and residence of Oba of Lagos, has also been a Mecca to presidential candidates and political gladiators in the country during electioneering periods. Therefore, the influence of Oba of Lagos cannot be overlooked in Nigeria politics. Like his tradition, Oba of Lagos recently against all odds endorsed former Lagos State Accountant-General, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode as next Lagos governor. Though the royal endorsement generated criticisms from many quarters, those conversant with Lagos politics believes strongly that that the monarch’s position may be the true reflection of the kingmakers in Lagos. Would Akiolu’s endorsement see the light of the day and how far would he go in ensuring that his wishes come to past in 2015? Only time will tell. Rauf Aregbesola In spite of being the governor of Osun State, Aregbesola still wields enormous influence in Lagos politics. He is one of

Akinwunmi Ambode Ambode, an accountant and a public finance management expert was a former Accountant-General of Lagos State. He has also held many sensitive financial positions during his 27-year career in the Lagos State Civil Service. Ambode, who studied accounting and graduated from University of Lagos at the age of 21 in

Ganiyu Solomon Widely known as GOS, his early declaration to run for 2015 governorship ruffled feathers. He is representing Lagos West in the Senate. After learning politics through the rope from his father, late Alhaji Rafiu Solomon, who was the then Secretary of the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), Solomon is one of the few politicians in the state with a cult followership especially in his senatorial district.

POLITICS 17

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

2015: 500 POLITICIANS TO WATCH

Odunmbaku

Nelson

Akiolu

Aregbesola

Considered as an independent politician, Solomon recently opened his campaign office on Obafemi Awolowo way, Ikeja. He is a very calm, pleasant, calculative and outstanding mobiliser. Though he is seen trying to play along with his party’s zoning criteria, not a few believe that the Mushin-born legislator has marshaled out a plan-B to realise his ambition in 2015. Clearly, he has the subtle support of some party leaders in the state, but the extent to which those backing him could come out and dare the party leadership for his sake, is left to be seen. He is likely to jump ship to another party if his ambition is not realised in the APC.

Senator (Mrs) Tinubu is one of the active senators and she hosts a quarterly Town Hall Meeting with her constituents, to discuss development issues and give feedback on her official activities in Abuja. Having represented her people very well at the federal legislative arm, she is expected to seek for second term in 2015 and many believe she will have a smooth ride because of her husband’s popularity and influence in the state.

Adeseye Ogunlewe The vocal, belligerent Igbogbo, Ikorodu-born politician represents a different figure to different people. But the major portrait of him that comes to memory at the snap of the finger was his battle against the Tinubu-led government while he was the Minister of Works between July 2003 and March 2006. On return of democracy in 1999, he was elected to represent Lagos East at the Senate on the platform of the Alliance for Democracy (AD). While in the Senate, Ogunlewe defected to the PDP citing the in-fighting within the ranks of the AD at that time for his reason for jumping the progressives’ ship. His bid to return to the Senate in 2003 suffered a setback when he was roundly defeated by Senator Olorunimbe Mamowora of the defunct AC. He got a soft landing after the loss when former President Olusegun Obasanjo appointed him as the Minister of Works. He became the tormentor-in-chief for the ruling party in the state as his ministry battled officials of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority over control of federal roads. After being dismissed from his ministerial work by Obasanjo, he saw the bitter side of politics in 2006 when he was arrested and detained following the murder of Williams, one of his rivals for the PDP gubernatorial nomination. He was later released, but in February 2007 he was re-arrested. After his release, he dropped the idea of contesting as governor of the state. Subsequently, his effort to lead the state chapter of the PDP met a brick wall as his Union Group was overrun by the Bode George-led Establishment Group. After heated media vituperation, the two groups closed ranks for the 2011 local government elections and for the first time, there was no dispute on the selection of candidates. With series of makeshift reconciliatory processes being initiated by the party leadership in Abuja, the deafening war drums from both caucus ceased. With his appointment as the Pro-Chancellor of Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogunlewe became a scarce commodity in major activities of the party in the state. Though he is said to have lately become an item with Buruji Kashamu, some party members averred that his hobnobbing with Buruji, who is the chairman, Organisation and Mobilisation Committee of the PDP in South West, was for relevance ahead of the 2015 elections. Clearly, not much can be said of Ogunlewe as a rallying point for PDP members unlike in the past where he was seen as an equal option to George. Not taking anything away from him, he might not be directly involved in the choice of the guber candidate for the PDP but he sure possesses the salvo to

rock any boat when undermined. Given his political clout, he would definitely nominate pocket of candidates for other elective offices in the state. The party may, however, count on his support especially as he has become one of the leading foot soldiers for the second term bid of President Jonathan in Lagos. In 2015, it is unlikely that Ogunlewe will vie for public office, but he will play a crucial role in the success of the PDP in Lagos come February elections.

Obafemi Hamzat Also in the governorship race is the Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Dr. Hamzat. His father, Oba Olatunji Hamzat is a traditional ruler in Ewekoro, Ogun State while his mother is an Epe woman. The commissioner therefore, is capitalizing on the fact that his mother is from Epe. Hamzat is one of the vibrant commissioners in Fashola’s administration and many believe that he has learned a lot under his boss. A lot of things will definitely work in favour of Hamzat, whose father is one of the kingmakers and influential politicians in Lagos State, having held several political appointments and party executive positions for many years. Fashola is also said to be rooting for his candidacy. The Oba of Lagos has specifically said there was no way for Hamzat’s governorship ambition in 2015. As the battle for the Lagos State governorship continues, many people are watching with keen interest what would become of the commissioner’s aspiration. Would old Hamzat be able to install his son as next governor in the Centre of Excellence? Would Fashola be able to position his commissioner to replace him? These are some of the riddles 2015 election would proffer answer to. Oluremi Tinubu Prior to her election in 2011 as a Senator representing Lagos Central in the National Assembly, Remi was the Lagos State First Lady between 1999 and 2007. As First Lady, Mrs Tinubu, founded the New Era Foundation and worked tirelessly to touch lives and inspire young people to strive for excellence. Her performance as First Lady and contributions to the success of Tinubu’s administration seem to have made her win the hearts of many Lagosians during the 2011 senatorial elections, as she defeated her opponents, who were majorly males despite several opposition to her ambition on account that she is from Delta State.

Gbenga Ashafa Ashafa, Vice-Chairman, Senate Committee on Lands, Housing and Urban Development is one of those eyeing the Lagos State governorship. He is Tinubu’s close ally. Ashafa, representing Lagos East Senatorial District, joined Tinubu’s government in September 1999 as Director of Planning, Governor’s Office in charge of local government administration. He was appointed Executive Secretary, Lagos State Land Use and Allocation Committee in January 2001 and became the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Lands Bureau in February 2005. Prior to the 2011 elections, the choice of Ashafa ahead of the Olorunmibe Mamora, one of the vibrant senators on the floor of the Senate, was a surprise to many. But with Tinubu’s backing, it was not difficult for Ashafa to be elected to the Senate. He has so far sponsored 12 bills at the Senate. Like many of his co-aspirants, Ashafa is from Lagos East district and based on his relationship with Tinubu, some people see him as a strong candidate in the governorship race. But if the governorship arrangement fails, going back to the Senate may likely be a soft landing for the senator. Henry Ajomale As Lagos State chairman of the APC, Ajomale is going to play a crucial role in the choice of who becomes the next governor of Lagos State and those aspiring for legislative seats. The influence of Ajomale, a former Commissioner for Special Duties cannot be overlooked in APC, considering how he has been able to deliver the state for his party in the last three general elections. In the last 10 years, he has been the party chairman right from the AC to Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and later APC. He believes that APC has no rival in Lagos State despite the clamour by the PDP to capture Lagos. Though Tinubu and Fashola to a large extent will likely determine the future of the party and its candidates in the state, Ajomale’s input will be definitely be sought on who becomes what in Lagos in 2015.

Tunji Shelle The PDP chairman in Lagos State has a pedigree of an amiable, cordial working relationship with his party members but his political grip and influence rests on the shadow of Bode George. Having served as the state secretary of the party, he succeeded Tunji Koshoedo through George’s influence. Recently, he was one of those tipped by the Establishment Group for nomination as minister from Lagos before the emergence of Obanikoro. He is a die-hard advocate of reconciliation of aggrieved members and under his leadership, the party has had more bite and sympathy from Lagos residents especially during the last local government election where his party was allegedly shortchanged in some councils. Despite the tug of war over the control for the party’s structure between the Establishment and Union groups, there was no known parallel executive to the Shelle-led group. It remains to be seen how his leadership would stimulate victory for the party in the 2015 elections. He might end up rubber-stamping George’s candidate for the gubernatorial election but he may decide who gets the party’s ticket in other elective posts in the party. Shelle is not always disposed to making cantankerous statements in public sphere and some members of his party see this as minus for him in the political sphere, just as others simply adduced his mien and refined expression to his background as a retired naval officer. However, the strength of who the party presents as its gubernatorial flag bearer, the acceptance and coordination of the candidate’s campaign would be the focal point of the party under Shelle’s leadership. Tajudeen Olusi At 77, Baba Olusi’s hands on the plough of Lagos politics is still firm. His sterling career in politics can be zoomed to 50 active years. In the Third Republic, Olusi was the chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Lagos. Considered as one of the political kingmakers in the political empire of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, CONTINUED ON PAGE 18

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2015: 500 POLITICIANS TO WATCH

Gladiators that will shape Lagos CO N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 1 7

the aborted Third Republic. He played a crucial role during the annulled June 12, 1993 election by serving as Special Adviser on grassroots affairs to Bashorun MKO Abiola, the presidential candidate of the defunct SDP. Odumbaku is a voice to be reckoned with in APC. He is one of the foot soldiers of Tinubu and as the Deputy Chairman of the Lagos State chapter of APC, he would influence a lot of decisions in the party. Odumbaku’s influence in Lagos politics cannot be overlooked and therefore, many aspirants will need his blessing to achieve their aspirations in 2015.

he is also a member of the Governor’s Advisory Committee. It is usually said that all political aspirations in Lagos Central Senatorial District are usually routed through him to Tinubu. He has influence and experience on his side. It only remains to be seen whether the recent decision of the APC to ‘retire’ some of its old hands won’t catch up with the man that has been widely acknowledged as the political dictionary of Lagos State. Olatunji Hamzat The respected leader of the APC who is now a traditional ruler in Ogun State, has one of his sons, the incumbent Commissioner for Works in Lagos, Obafemi Hamzat, battling to succeed Fashola in 2015. Though the decision by Oba Hamzat to become a traditional ruler in Ogun State is already working against his son as the criteria of indigeneship is being used to slip him down the ladder of aspirants for the plum Lagos House job. Though the elder Hamzat is believed to be an ally of Tinubu, pundits are already advising the suave and intelligent commissioner to put his ambition in his pocket and not pitch his father against Tinubu. Already, the fraternity called Justice Forum founded by the traditional ruler seems divided with the break-away of youths in the group, who recently formed the New Justice Forum. Though there are expectations of collision between the two bigwigs in the APC, what remains to be seen is where and with whom other actors in the party would pitch their tents in 2015. Abike Dabiri-Erewa The broadcaster turned politician without mincing words has paid her dues both in her career and as a lawmaker. Abike Dabiri, a former staff of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), who once featured prominently on the Newsline on NTA network. She was elected into the House of Representatives in 2003 representing Ikorodu Federal Constituency. She is presently the Chairman, House Committee on Diaspora. She is also noted for sponsoring the Freedom of Information Bill, which was applauded by many Nigerians. Ahead of 2015, there is speculation that Dabiri-Erewa is eyeing the Lagos governorship seat. There is also report that the party leaders are considering her for the deputy governorship position or senatorial slot. If the APC zoning arrangement is anything to consider, being from Ikorodu, one of the five local governments in Lagos East, may work in her favour. But if she is unable to make the governorship that means the deputy governorship is a foregone conclusion as it is impossible to pick the governor and his running mate from the same senatorial district. Hence, she may return to the House. Femi Gbajabiamila The Minority Leader, House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, is reported to be gathering his political arsenal to ensure that he succeeds Governor Fashola in 2015. The third term federal lawmaker has been representing Surulere I Federal Constituency in the House since 2003. Political observers believe that it may be difficult for Gbajabiamila to realise his gubernatorial ambition considering the fact that he and the incumbent governor, Fashola are from the same local government, federal constituency and senatorial district. Therefore, knowing the odds against his aspiration, the House of Representatives Minority Leader has retraced his root to Ikorodu in Lagos East Senatorial District.

Salis

Oba Hamzat

Anthony Adefuye Adefuye, a member of the Senate during the aborted Third Republic and former Lagos State chapter chairman of UNCP is one of the kingmakers in Lagos State politics. He is a respected APC chieftain, especially in Somolu area and Lagos Island axis of the state and this is one of the reasons politicians usually trooped to his Lekki’s house every weekend to consult with him. He is one of the party leaders, who will likely determine the fate of APC aspirants in 2015. Owolabi Salis He is a lawyer cum accountant, a grassroots politician from the fold of the PDP. He has contested the Lagos gubernatorial ticket of his party on two occasions and lost. His interest in community and human development has endeared him to the masses, but the critical challenge for him is securing a viable stable for contest. During the 2011 elections, he sponsored a handful of his party members for state and National Assembly elections. No doubt, he is one of the shining stars in Lagos PDP but the vicious point is his decision to reside more abroad than Nigeria.

Doherty

Adefuye

Presently, Gbajabiamila seems not to be enjoying the support of many politicians in his constituency. The reason is that many have alleged that the lawyer turned politician is stingy and too arrogant because of the way he treats politicians, especially some of the party leaders in the senatorial district. Therefore, many seem to be sceptical of the desirability of a Gbajabiamila governor in Lagos. The best is for him to return to the House as Tinubu won’t be ready to sacrifice his wife’s senatorial ambition for him.

many of the political gladiators in the race to Alausa. Though he is close to Asiwaju Tinubu, Pitan may not make any serious impact in the governorship contest.

Muiz Banire The present APC National Legal Adviser, Dr. Banire was a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Law of the University of Lagos for many years before he joined Tinubu’s government in 1999. He was onetime Commissioner for Environment and an ardent follower of Tinubu. Banire, a grassroots mobiliser, who has a strong base in Mushin Local Government, is one of the APC governorship aspirants in 2015. He is banking on the support of Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, but many people don’t see him as a strong contender in the race. Leke Pitan Pitan, a medical practitioner is one of the longest serving commissioners in Tinubu’s administration. He was Commissioner for Health between June 1999 and March 2006 and later deployed to the state Ministry of Education between April 2006 and June 2007. The medical doctor turned politician has publicly declared his intention to run for the governorship. But people don’t see him as a heavyweight in the race, compared to

Kemi Nelson Nelson, a trained nurse and midwife, is the Lagos APC Women Leader. She is one of the active female politicians in the state. She cut her teeth in politics as a member of the defunct National Republican Convention (NRC). She was the chairman of NRC’s Republican Electoral Committee for the presidential primaries in Osun State and also the party’s flag bearer for Lagos West Senatorial election in 1992 but lost the election to Tinubu, who contested on the platform of Social Democratic Party (SDP). After the annulment of June 12, 1993 presidential election and the dissolution of SDP and NRC, Nelson joined the United Nigerian Congress Party (UNCP) and contested for the House of Representatives seat of Ikeja Federal Constituency and won. At the beginning of the present Fourth Republic, she joined the AD and after the 1999 elections, she joined Tinubu’s cabinet as Commissioner for Establishment, Training and Job Creation and later Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation. As Lagos APC Women Leader, Nelson is going to play a major role in mobilising women for APC. James Odumbaku Cardinal Odumbaku is a man of many parts. He is a religious leader, astute politician, activist, community leader and businessman. Baba Eto as he is popularly called is a grassroots mobiliser and has been an active participant in politics since

Jimi Agbaje Regarded as the possibly-future governor of Lagos State, Agbaje candidature has been linked with virtually all the leading parties in the state for 2015. His personality and campaign in 2007 as the Democratic People’s Alliance (DPA) governorship candidate gained ascendancy but lost to Fashola. In the election, he was a leading contender and his charismatic, colorful campaign tunes is still fresh in the minds of Lagosians. The soft spot notwithstanding, Agbaje eventually came third in the election behind Fashola and the PDP candidate, Obanikoro. Though the trained pharmacist turned politician is being strategic with his ambition, his associates say he has been inundated with calls to join the PDP and become its flag bearer. Although pundits opine that Agbaje may not possess the resources to run a statewide campaign, but his goodwill, pleasantness and intelligence is expected to open doors for him whenever he decides to join the fray. Adedeji Doherty Doherty contested the PDP primaries in 2003 and 2007 but lost out. Again, he has indicated interest to contest the Lagos governorship by 2015 and he is a close ally of Kashamu. He has been in the saddle as the Acting National Vice-Chairman, (South West) of the PDP, until the recent ruling of the High Court restoring the caretaker committee. Take anything away from Doherty but not his business acumen and objective grasp of issues. He commands a retinue of followership and it is expected that the Engineer turned politician will leverage on the experience he has garnered while occupying the South-West PDP office.

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MONday, JUNE 2, 2014

Restructuring Nigeria’s tax regime

he Minister of Finance and Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has disclosed that about 30 per cent of those who are enjoying tax holidays in the country has abused the privilege. The minister, who spoke at a recent stakeholders’ engagement forum organised by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), also said 75 percent of registered businesses was not captured in the tax system. She, therefore, urged taxpayers to come forward to help in pushing government’s drive to diversify the economy by promptly paying their taxes. The capacity enhancement programme was designed to enhance the technical and human resources capabilities of the FIRS towards improving non-oil revenue collection. Okonjo-Iweala said for the past two years, 65 per cent of taxpayers has failed to file reports to the appropriate authorities. The failure, according to her, is responsible for the low tax to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio of 12 percent whereas countries like South Africa are achieving more than 20 percent. It is important to note that a country seeking to improve its revenue generation would opt for a concept enabling it to best realize its objectives with due regard to its peculiar socioeconomic structure. One of these ways is by taxation. A tax can, therefore, be defined as a means

by which an existing government appropriates part of the private sector’s income. The accumulated revenue is used in meeting recurrent expenditure. Tax occupies a unique position, because it is an important part of government policies. The ability of a government to generate revenue from this sector affects services offered by such a government. Hence, taxation is a compulsory payment levied by the government on her citizens to generate revenue and control economic activities and it is backed by law. Taxation plays an important role in influencing the country’s economy; it has also become an important instrument of economic policy. All is not well with the country’s tax system. A fundamental problem has to do with nonpayment of taxes. So many high profile companies and wealthy people in the society do not pay tax, to the extent that tax invasion has become part of the country’s culture. All over the world, nonpayment of tax is a very serious offence. In Nigeria, there does not seem to be the willingness to consistently penalize people or corporate entities for non-payment of tax. This misdemeanor is serious because it is tantamount to economic sabotage. In fact, from available statistics, many foreign companies here in Nigeria, which know the cost of such infraction in their home countries deliberately avoid paying tax. When they

even manage to pay, it is usually underestimated as there are no full disclosures. This is usually done in connivance with the tax officials. It is also important to state that taxation must be effective, functional and dynamic. The tax assessment process must be made more attractive; even getting the tax form and filling them can be very cumbersome, which necessitates the hiring of consultants. The process results in corrupt bureaucratic bottlenecks that discourage even those people who genuinely want to pay their tax. Also, the use of Best of Judgment and other negotiation procedures breeds corruption and tax manipulations. It is instructive to note that people pay tax in Nigeria not because they are willing to pay tax, but rather because they are compelled by law to do so. The reason for this is quite fathomable: people do not see any positive utilization of the taxes that are paid. Instead, they keep being shortchanged. Taxation and tangible development should go hand in hand, without which taxation will remain a burden on the generality of the people. It is time to have a tax system that must have all the attributes of a good tax system including fairness, objectivity, equity, certainty and tangible utilisation of such funds. The social democratic principles of the government are becom-

ing a mirage because all these tax initiatives are not designed to protect the downtrodden. Instead, they further reduce their disposable income. Given the scenario of low incomes and mass unemployment in our society, taxation must be done equitably. Taxation should capture every segment of the society that can pay tax, while leaving out those that cannot and should not pay tax. Another sore point in tax administration in the country has to do with the oft-repeated complaint by Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) and the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), of multiple taxation. This is a great disincentive to manufacturing and industrialization. The tax administration in the country must be restructured to be more open and transparent. A system should be in place where every taxable person or institution must be included in the tax regime through proper monitoring, and defaulters should be duly penalised. The tax system must not to be arbitrary. Besides, government must ensure that those that are appointed to handle tax matters in the country are not only professionally qualified, but should also be seen to be consistently above-board and beyond reproach. GABRIEL AKINADEWO Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief IKE ABONYI Deputy Managing Director/DEIC FELIX OGUEJIOFOR ABUGU Managing Editor, South SULEIMAN BISALLA Managing Editor, North YEMI AJAYI Editor, Daily LAURENCE ANI Editor, Saturday EMEKA MADUNAGU Editor, Sunday LEO CENDROWICZ Bureau Chief, Brussels MARSHALL COMINS Bureau Chief, Washington DC SAM AMSTERDAM Editorial Coordinator, Europe EMMAN SHEHU (PhD) Chairman, Editorial Board GEOFFREY EKENNA News Editor PADE OLAPOJU Production Editor TIMOTHY AKINLEYE Head, Graphics ROBINSON EZEH Head, Admin.

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

OPINION NAWOJ confab: The good, the bad and the ugly Dupe Olaoye-Osinkolu

he recently concluded delegates’ conference of the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ) opened the eyes of female pen pushers and broadcasters to a lot of intrigues including the good, the bad and the ugly. It also taught them a democratic lesson. Horse trading, carpet crossing, tension…all built up to a crescendo. Some contestants offered yesterday’s solutions to today’s problems. Trust Nigerian women journalists, they would not fall for deceit. The Administrative Staff College of Nigeria (ASCON) provided the stage on which the drama unfolded, while the national secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) under the able leadership of gentleman Mohammed Garba supervised a peaceful conduct of very free and fair elections. The Electoral Committee Chairman, Mukhtar Gidado, another easy going man, read the ABC of free and fair election to his 10-man electoral committee. “No rigging, no sentiment, do what is right, so that posterity will judge us right. Even if you have friends and sisters among the contestants, don’t try to influence anything, leave them to the electorate and their fate.” Each time there was power outage, Gidado who came to the hall with four big rechargeable lamps would shout, “stay where you are; no movement! Switch on the lamps! All the agents to the contestants would beam their lamps directly on the ballot boxes. Many believe the Independent National Electoral Commission, which is not doing badly, still needs to learn a thing or two from Gidado. Earlier on arrival, Friday night, women journalists from across the country (those who were not too tired from their long trip to Badagry) took to the floor, dancing to the juju rhythm of St Janet, who entertained into the wee hours of Saturday. They left the dance floor, one after the other, and embarked on their last round of campaigns. Meetings were held

in various chalets. The elections commenced at about 8pm on Saturday and were concluded at 3.45am, Sunday. Mrs. Ifeyinwa Omowole of News Agency of Nigeria defeated Alhaja Fatima Abdul Kareem of Broadcasting Corporation of Oyo State with 469 votes to 198, to emerge as National President. The number one journalist in Africa, President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists who doubles as President of Federation of African Journalists (FAJ), Mallam Garba Mohammed was sent for, to come and inaugurate the new NAWOJ national Exco. He pledged his continued support for NAWOJ, saying NUJ would always assist the association towards achieving its set goals. Garba warned the women to always uphold the ethics of journalism. The new NAWOJ President, Omowole thanked delegates and the entire journalists in Nigeria for their support. She said: “training, training, training and re-training” will be the pillars of her leadership. She assured Nawojians that the association would have its own secretariat within the next three months, for proper documentation of its activities. Other partakers of the victory include: Bilqees Oladimeji, Deputy President, Ladi Patrick, National Secretary, Helen John Udofa, Assistant National Secretary, Oluwatosin Odusola, Treasurer, Adesola Jacobs- Arawole, Internal Auditor, Halima Musa, Financial Secretary, Daharatu Ahmed Musa, Zonal Secretary, Zone A, Morenike Tony Esan, Zonal Secretary, Zone B. The turnout of the men was overwhelming. At a point, a stranger would wonder whether it was the Nigeria Union of Journalists’ delegates’ conference. They were on hand to support Nawojians from their zones and state councils. Majority of the men were just wonderful as they did all in their power to ensure a hitch-free transition, though a few of them almost scuttled the free and fair elections. The ugly side of the event! Men from some south west states took position at the entrance of the auditorium where the elections took place,

while the voting was ongoing. They chanted war slogans, sang battle songs, immediately after delegates from their states voted. They even had a premature celebration, assuming their presidential candidate would win. They threatened to humiliate another state from the south west which is noted for its numerical strength. As soon as their agent sent a text message informing them of their defeat, they hurriedly scampered towards their buses and vanished into thin air. A surprised Nawojian from one of the South West states said: “We have learnt a lot from our leaders. They are supposed to be our role models. However, we refuse to learn intimidation and recklessness. Teacher, don’t teach us nonsense.” Bob Hope once said: “The cheapest way to have your family tree traced is to go into politics.” Few hours to the elections, stories - good and bad, stale and fresh, about the two major contestants made the rounds, originating from God knows where. Supporters said complimentary things about their candidates, expectedly faulted everything concerning their opponents. Theconferencestartedonagoodnote,onThursday,May15, attheLagosSheratonHotelandTowers,whereeminentNigerians, who have proved their worth, even in the face of intimidation, were rewarded. ItwaswellhostedbyLagosStatechapterof NAWOJ,withfull cooperation and assistance of the Deji Gbolahan Elumoye-led NUJ, Lagos Council. Topping that list was Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a man who has given his all for the survival of democracy in Nigeria. TheManof Substance/Pillarof DemocracyAwardwenttohim. TheJagabandedicatedhisNawojawardtothegirls.“Idedicatethisawardtotheover200Nigeriangirlswhosewhereabouts, we do not know,” he said. He also urged President Goodluck Jonathantodeployallresourcestosecurethereleaseof thegirls. • Dupe Olaoye-Osinkolu (dupe olaoye-oshikolu)

Of anti-tobacco lobbyists and misinformation… Isa Korede

he idea of a multiple approach to tobacco control was birthed through several ‘academic advances.’ In 1993, a decision was made by Ruth Roemer and Allyn Taylor to apply to tobacco control Taylor’s idea that the World Health Organisation (WHO) should utilise its constitutional authority to develop international conventions to advance global health’. After several negotiations most of which were initially resisted, on February 27, 2005, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) was birthed and soon after gained world-wide acceptance. Similar to other UN advocacies, most of the advocacy for the adoption of the treaties of the FCTC is largely driven by local and multi-national NGOs who are heavily funded by foreign partners to ensure local adoption by governments all over the world. Tobacco control advocacy is a heavily funded activity hence an extremely attractive venture for many anti-tobacco lobbyists. Whilst majority of the stakeholders involved in tobacco control policies agree that industry regulation is extremely im-

portant, the successes recorded in the tobacco control debate over the past decade are often at variance. In some instance, studies have shown that tobacco consumption especially in the western world has decreased and focus has now shifted to the developing world, in other studies, it has been found that smuggling in tobacco has negated the effects of tobacco control policies. Even more frightening is the fact that tobacco smuggling is controlled by those who perpetuate the acts of terror. Whilst the whole world waits eagerly for solutions to the perceived issue of tobacco scourge, anti-tobacco lobbyists adopt the strategies of smear campaigns, believing that the uglier the industry looks the more difficult it is for them to operate. The concept of effective policy control, however, belies this strategy. Has it has been proven without a shadow of a doubt that industries like the tobacco and alcohol are part of the solution and not outside of it. The tactics of the anti-tobacco lobbyists, however, also belie the intent and motives and expected outcomes from their campaigns. The aggression with which they push for a cause seems totally unconnected to the need for reduction of consumer intake of tobacco.

The amount of money which has been passed into the hands of the lobbying groups is enormous. But, where is the consumer is in the middle of all these and how judiciously and ethically have such funds been utilized? It is obvious that the overriding focus of the lobbying groups is the tobacco industry and one tactic that they have sought to deploy is something they call de-normalisation. De-normalisation is apparently used to categorise all well intended activities coming from the tobacco industry as bad. While such tactics may seem good enough for some, the question is, for whose benefit is this? The lobbyists who seem to be getting more funding or the consumer who languishes away in the heat of their tobacco smoke desperately waiting for some protracted consumer education that will help empower them for better choices? The issue of regulation and the right form of tobacco in Nigeria cannot be understated. The focus is, and should never be, the tobacco industry. If this is the case then public health proponents stand the risk of not being able to identify the solution to the problem when it arrives. With so much funding availed for the sole purpose of mudslinging and truth twisting, one is

obligated to ask what the real aim of this campaign is. The loss of focus puts the entire smoking population in grave danger and this can be seen in an overriding push back to the new e-cigarettes that is said to be less harmful. One would have assumed that for such campaigns which seek to protect human health, the immediate reaction will be to put resources and efforts into testing the science of e-cigarettes, with the aim of finding harm free options for the consumer. It is, therefore, pertinent that media sensationalism should stop the use of twisted tactics, falsehood and a deliberate attempt to subvert the appropriate process of legislations through spurious allegations. There must be genuine intent to bring in and establish the right kind of legislation and this should be done in the right way. Policy that is unfavourably skewed towards one side of the divide has never worked. It is also important that all the stakeholders, most importantly the tobacco industry should sit down at the table and fashion out what is best for Nigeria, not what has been handed down by others outside of this community.

INVESTIGATION

21 NEW TELEGRAPH

www.newtelegraphonline.com/investigation

BIODUN DUROJAIYE Editor, INVESTIGATION

biodun.durojaiye@newtelegraphonline.com

Monday, JUNE 2, 2014

Some houses burnt by Fulani herdsmen in Guma local government of Benue State

Herdsmen and farmers: More clashes, less harvest

or indigenes of Gindin Dorawa, a rural community in Wukari Local Government Area of Taraba state, one Thursday in the middle of last month would remain a sad day to remember. This is because on that fateful day, the once peaceful agrarian community was allegedly invaded by Jukuns and at the end of the attack, no fewer than 25 farmers were killed by the militia who bore sophisticated weapons and only those who survived that deadly night could tell the tale of that gory tragedy. The villagers who had gone to bed at 9pm were rudely jolted awake about two hours later by booming gunshots released by the attackers. The affected areas in Taraba state are: Jibu, Gindin Dorawa, Ibi, Gidan Idi and Wukari town among others, all in southern parts of the state. Mr Yakubu Tsoho, a survivor of that invasion, had said that ‘’they first came

Clashes between itinerant Fulani herdsmen and farmers have been a regular feature in several states of the country for decades. But the intensity of these clashes has increased to the extent that farmers are becoming refugees and large expanses of farms and farmsteads burned, leading to grave concerns of food shortage. IBRAHIM ABDUL in Yola, and CEPHAS IORHEMEN in Markurdi report in the night and attacked the village. The gunmen numbered over 50. As women and children scampered to escape, they were shot and later cut with machetes. They set our homes on fire. If you stayed inside, you were burnt. If you run out, they shoot at you. The men stayed inside, so most of those burnt were men. But the villagers managed to kill some of the attackers . Some of them wore army uniform.” The story of Gindin Dorawa’s invasion is one in the litany of killings

that ensued between farmers and Fulani herdsmen across many villages in Northern and Southern Nigeria. The clashes and killings are taking a toll on food production, raising concerns of shortage. Mr Danladi Dogo, a farmer in Gindin Dorawa, said, “We normally commence the planting of our maize and rice as early as possible, but that cannot be possible now because it has become too late to prepare the fields. Our farms have been destroyed, many farmers were

killed by gunmen. ‘’For now, we don’t know where to start. No seedling, no fertilizer and we are just living in an atmosphere of fear of uncertainty.’’ Clashes reported in many states A major factor which many believe can hinder food security of Nigeria, is the incessant clashes between farmers and nomadic herdsmen. Bloody clashes between herdsmen and farmers have been reported in states like Benue, Plateau, Kaduna, Niger, Jigawa, Sokoto, Edo, Delta, Yobe and Anambra. There have also been reports in neighbouring countries, including Ghana. In Anambra, early last month, suspected Fulani herdsmen were reported to have attacked and killed two farmers in Omasi, an agricultural community CO NTINUED O N PAGE 22

22 INVESTIGATION

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

Endless battle for pasture, water CONTINUED FR O M PAGE 21

in Ayamelum Local Government Area. According to the report, during the visit of the state governor, Willie Obiano, to Anambra State Teaching Hospital, Amaku, where the injured was receiving treatment, it was gathered that the hostility began when the herdsmen invaded the farms of the villagers with their cattle and destroyed their crops. The farmers warned them to desist but unknown to them, the herdsmen were bitter over the warning and ambushed three farmers killing two and leaving one injured. The governor condemned the attack on his people for no justifiable reason and ordered that the perpetrators though on the run to be apprehended and punished accordingly. In Benue State, one of the food baskets of the country, relative peace is gradually returning to some communities which were brutally attacked by by armed Fulani herdsmen. Some residents of the attacked communities, who are mostly farmers, have become refugees. These refugees, most of whom have become tagged as Internally Displaced Tiv Persons, have appealed to Governor Gabriel Suswam and other spirited individuals to assist them with funds to facilitate their return to their ancestral homes. Speaking to NewTelegraph at the LGEA Primary School Wurukum camp in Makurdi, some of the displaced persons, Targema Kuza and Miss Joy Wua (sixteen years) recounted their ordeal in the camp, saying the attack has subjected them to psychological torture as they have lost their loved ones, their houses burnt down by the Fulani insurgents and property worth millions of naira destroyed. They expressed delight over the return of relative peace in some communities, maintaining that they are still in the camps because of lack of money to convey their families and goods back to their ancestral homes. “I am still living in the camp at LGEA primary school Wurukum because my house in the village was demolished during the crisis and to go back is difficult and this is rainy season and I cannot stay outside with my little children because of the cold weather”. “Another problem is that I don’t have the transport fare to go back to my home and I am appealing to the state government to help us with money to enable us convey our property home, to continue with farming to feed my children”, said Kuza. On her part, Miss Joy a primary five pupil said, “I want to go back now with my parents and ten siblings but the problem is that of money. The Fulani herdsmen have burnt down my father’s house and I am appealing to Governor Suswam to assist us with money to enable us get back home”. Commenting on the plight of the displaced persons, a local politician,

Displaced children of farmers preparing food in a refugee camp in Benue

Mohammed Bello

Alhaji Terngu Gyuse, commended Governor Suswam for setting up a peace and reconciliation committee led by Brigadier Atom Kpera (rtd) to dialogue with relevant authorities with a view to finding lasting solution to the crisis involving Fulani cattle herdsmen and Tiv farmers. Last week, the Ghana News Agency (GNA) reported that a large number of cattle herded by Fulani shepherds had destroyed large hectares of agricultural produce including yam, maize, and vegetables in the Kwahu Afraim Plains North District. The destruction, according to the report, was already affecting farming and food production in the district, while chiefs, farmers and opinion leaders in the district have therefore called for assistance to control the destructive activities of the Fulani cattle. The Chief of Amankwaakrom, Nana Kuntu Sakyi II who spoke at a meeting of the project management team of GNA Media Auditing and Development Tracking team with heads of department, chiefs, assembly members and

other opinion leaders at Donkorkrom, said the situation was serious. He said the vulnerable nature of the district had made it possible for large numbers of cattle driven by Fulani herdsmen from Agogo in the Asanti Akyem North District to enter the district and to create havoc for crop farmers. Nana Kuntu Sakyi appealed to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to find resources to complete the fodder banks for the cattle to be confined. The Donkorkrom District Police Commander, Superintendent of Police Kwadwo Adu Baadu, said some of the Fulani herdsmen also engaged in armed robbery, block some of the roads in the district and rob passengers in vehicles of their money and mobile phones. In the first week of April, this year, gunmen believed to be Fulani herdsmen stormed a meeting in Zamfara state and killed 30 people, police said. “Thirty people were killed and several others injured,” Zamfara state police spokesman Lawal Abdullahi told AFP. “The incident happened in Galadima on Saturday, April 5, during a meeting of community leaders and representatives of vigilante groups” who were discussing ways to thwart armed robbers and cattle rustlers, he said. He said security forces had deployed to the area. But survivors said more than 60 people might have died in the attack. “We counted 61 bodies from the scene of the attack last night, while many people were wounded,” a survivor who gave his name only as Babaginda from neighbouring Kaduna state told AFP. He said he was lucky to escape with his life and implored the security forces to stem incessant attacks by Fulani rustlers on villages in the area. In Cross River, two weeks, officials of the State Government met with Muslim

leaders in the state due to fears of unguided movement of Fulani herdsmen into different parts of the state. The meeting was convened by the State Security Adviser, Rekpene Bassey, in order to forestall the breakdown of law and order in the state. Bassey said the state was concerned about the frequent movement of Fulani herdsmen from the middle belt region into the state, especially in the Cross River North District. The state official said there was the need for Muslim leaders to take stock of the movement and sensitise the herdsmen to maintain peace in areas where they graze their cattle. “The natives of those areas are requesting for regular monitoring and sensitisation of the herdsmen in order to avoid altercation when they graze their cattle. “Our people are mostly agrarian and when these herdsmen allow their cattle to graze on their crops, the people will not like it. So, you the leaders should try and to let them know what to do because this is often the cause of friction with the locals,” he said. Speaking on behalf of others, leader of Muslims in Calabar, Alhaji Abba Lawan, said a register has been opened to record the details of any new entrant into the various Muslim communities in the state. “The days have gone when anyone will take just anybody into his house for obvious reasons and we have sensitised everybody to watch out for anybody even among the old members who could cause trouble for us,” Lawan said Also two weeks ago, in Benue State, nine suspected Fulani herdsmen allegedly gang-raped a 15-year-old girl and two housewives (names withheld) at gunpoint, in Tse Ikyuer, Yandev, Mbagwen in Guma Local Government Area. CO NTINUED O N PAGE 23

INVESTIGATION

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

Clashes lead to displacement of farmers

Some displaced Tiv farmers and their children at the St. Mary’s refugee camp in Benue State CONTINUED FR O M PAGE 22

Two of the victims, who narrated their ordeal to a newspaper reporter in Makurdi, the state capital, said after beating and raping them, the herdsmen also made away with their N60,000 and two phones. According to the women, who could barely walk, “one of us (the teenage girl) was raped repeatedly, after being thoroughly beaten by the herdsmen. At the moment, she is neither able to walk nor talk.” Before they were taken to an undisclosed hospital in Makurdi for medical attention by the Police, the women, who spoke at intervals, said: “The men with their leader came to our home in the afternoon and pleaded that we give them water to drink. “We obliged them, but they noticed the absence of our husbands, and when their leader asked of our husband’s whereabouts, we innocently told him that they travelled but would be back much later. “After drinking the water, they left, only for about nine of them to come back later in the day, armed with guns and machetes and asked us to lie down and have sex with them or they will kill everybody.” The women who wept profusely, explained that four of the armed herdsmen fired shots in the air to terrify and also compel them to submit to their demands. She said: “After defiling us, they beat us mercilessly and collected over N60,000 from us and also took away our handsets.” The women said that the leader of the gang was well known in the community but he fled from the area with his family and cattle shortly after the

incident. All about pasture and water The frequent clashes between herdsmen and farmers boils down to ‘pasture and water’, according to spokesperson of Miyetti Allah, an an association of the herdsmen. In a recent interview with an online newspaper, secretary general of the association, Muhammad Bello, said “It is a conflict basically about resource use,... It is the issue of pasture and water.” He, however, admitted the conflict has recently been infused with politics, legal issues, religion and ethnicity. But he expressed conviction that if the resource use conflict is solved, the clashes would go away. According to him, neglect of agricultural development and Nigeria’s inability to regulate influx of foreign herdsmen has contributed immensely to the buildup of the crises that now engulfs Nigeria’s arable graze-lands. He recommended the revival of the “jangali” (cattle tax) system, as well as other measures to curb the growing clashes. Threat to food security Government and analysts believe that the rising livestock population and encroachment on grazing lands were some of the causes of the clashes. Statistics have shown that in Nigeria, only 141grazing reserves have been gazetted with less than 20 equipped with resources for pastoralists. A proposed National Grazing Route and Reserve Commission, if established, would acquire and manage parcels of land across the 36 states of Nigeria for the purpose of providing

pastures for these nomads and their herds of cattle. A local farmer in Ibi area of Taraba state , Mr Musa Danladi insisted that the incessant conflicts between Fulani nomads and farmers were having a negative effect on food production in Nigeria. He noted that farmers in crisis-prone areas have deserted their villages for fear of unprovoked attacks on them by the herdsman. ‘’Many have run away for fear of attack. For instance, I lost all my farm implements, and seedlings. Definitely this will affect food production,’’ he said. Sharing similar sentiments, some irrigation farmers at Gerio Irrgation Project in Yola, insisted that unless urgent efforts were made to get farmers back to their farms, the country may experience an imminent food shortage. The farmers expressed fear that the attacks on farmers by both Boko Haram insurgents and the Fulani herdsmen, could spell doom for Nigeria’s food security. One of the farmers, Mrs Jummai Garba , said that the three states that are under State of Emergency in north eastern Nigeria, - Adamawa, Borno and Yobe - are prone to attacks by Boko Haram insurgents, adding that farming activities in the areas have been seriously affected. Mrs Garba insisted that the situation was very serious, as the affected states are among those areas which produce a lot of food. ``Anything that affects farming communities in Adamawa will definitely affect food production and the country’s food security by implication,’’ she adds. She recalled that most farmers in

the areas were unable to cultivate their crops during the 2013 farming season due to the fear of herdsmen’s and insurgents attacks. She further noted that the few farmers who planted crops in the last planting season could not harvest them because they have relocated from the areas as a result of the attacks. Mr Yohanna Fidelis, another another local farmer, corroborated this, saying that the few farmers who planted crops last year were unable to harvest them because of their relocation from their communities as a result of the attacks. `Some of the farmers are currently taking refuge with their relatives in neighbouring urban towns that are experiencing relative peace. ``They painfully abandoned their yields to waste in the farms; this portends danger to our food security,’’ he said. Besides, Fidelis stressed that the current situation may lead to an appreciable increase in the prices of agricultural produce, adding that the development would, in turn, result in a higher cost of living for the people. He suggested that as a palliative measure, state governments should buy and stockpile agricultural produce which it could later sell to the populace in the event of food scarcity. Mr. Musa Babagari, a worker in Adamawa agriculture ministry, agrees that the incessant attacks on farmers will surely make the prices of agricultural produce to rise beyond the reach of the average citizen. Babagari stressed that the prices of agricultural products could shoot up because many farmers have deserted their farms in order to save their lives. A Yola based analyst, Mohammad Ismail, corroborated the viewpoints of Babagari and Fidelis that many farmers have fled from their farms. He noted that the farmers are now staying with their relatives in towns. Mr Ismail, nonetheless, called on the state government to make alternative arrangements to ensure the nation’s food security. He emphasised the need for such measures so as to avert imminent hunger due to the looming food shortage. He also appealed to the government to buy and store agricultural produce in large quantities as a way of ``preparing for the rainy day’’. Like others, both Taraba state chairman of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association,the mother union of herdsmen in Nigeria, Mr Mafindi Umaru Danburam ,and that of Amalgamated Union of Farmers Mr Bello Sarkin Noma, appealed to the government to make pragmatic efforts tackle the incessant clashes between farmers and herdsmen so as to enable the farmers to go back to their farms. They stressed that the government should promptly address the crisis because this year’s rainy season, which CO NTINUED O N PAGE 24

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Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

Government, lawmakers seeking solution

CON TINUED FR O M PAGE 23

signals the onset of the planting season, was just around the corner. Besides, Sarkin Noma urged the government to assist the farmers by providing them with farm tools, seedlings and pesticides, as the farmers had lost most of their resources to the attacks. ``It will be good if tangible efforts are made to rehabilitate the farmers, as this will enable them to forget about their calamity and forge ahead with life,’’ he said. Moves to resolve the crises States affected by these frequent clashes are making moves to find lasting solutions, just as similar efforts are being made at the federal level. In Kwara, last month, government reportedly earmarked N220 million for the creation of grazing reserves in the state, as part of efforts to address the incessant clashes between herdsmen and farmers. The State Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Anthony Towoju, said that the grazing reserves would be created in the three senatorial districts of the state while nine stock roots were also to be spread across the state. The commissioner said that the grazing reserves would be equipped with veterinary clinics among other livestock services that would be provide. He said that the reserves would be created in Alapa, Asa local government area of the state to serve the Kwara Central, while that of Kwara north will be created at Lata, Patigi local government with the one for Kwara South to be located at Babanloma in Ifelodun local government area of the state. The new stock roots, the commissioner stated would cover several communities. Towoju said the government would also expand the existing Gidan Maigida, a settlement currently accommodating over 100 herdsmen, to accommodate more rearers. The commissioner, who expressed the hope that the measure would end the incessant clashes between farmers and herdsmen, noted that the state was the first to create grazing reserves. At the federal level, several efforts are being made, by both government and the National Assembly. Last month, the House of Representatives said it was working on a bill to facilitate an end to incessant conflicts between herdsmen and arable farmers in the country. Though he did not give details of the bill, Vice Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture, Hon Munir Danagundi, who gave this hint in Abuja in an interview with newsmen, said he was optimistic that the bill would go a long way in promoting a cordial relationship between arable farmers and herdsmen. “The House of Representative has a bill before it. We have just finished the public hearing on it.

Fulani herdsmen seeking pasture for their cattle

Herdsmen in the heat of a clash

“By the grace of God, we will soon pass it then compare with the senate and onward passage to Mr. President for ascent. “This is one of the ways through which we can resolve conflicts between farmers and herdsmen.” Danagundi said in the 1970s there were demarcated grazing reserves and stock routes across the country, which he said, helped in preventing conflicts between herdsmen and arable farmers. The lawmaker said unfortunately the stock routes and grazing reserves were encroached into resulting in the clashes between the two parties. Also, delegates to the on-going National Conference from the North-Central zone of the country have made a case for the establishment of a National Grazing Reserves Commission. The delegates in a memorandum, which was jointly sponsored by Senator Iyorchia Ayu and Magdalyne Mbadzendan Dura, both delegates representing

North Central and Benue State, said if the recommendation sails through, would specifically provide for the establishment, preservation and control of national grazing reserves and livestock routes. Ayu, a former President of the Senate, in a letter copied to the National Conference committees on agriculture, national security and law, judiciary, human rights and legal reforms, informing them of the development, however hinged the recommendation on the recent clashes involving Fulani herdsmen and farmers across the country, where several people were reportedly killed. “In recent times, Nigeria has recorded violent conflicts between Fulani herdsmen and farmers across the country, leading in most cases to loss of lives, properties and displacement of the farmers. “These conflicts have been actuated by the continuous search for green pas-

tures and water by the herdsmen for their livestock. “Cattle are the predominant livestock in Nigeria and they are reared mainly by the nomadic Fulani of Northern Nigeria. Nomadic pastoralism is characterised by movement of cattle by nomads in search of pasture and water,” he said. The memo recommended that a National Livestock Policy should be put in place to regulate the rearing of livestock in accordance with global best practices. “In the interim, arrest and prosecution of persons perpetrating and sponsoring herders-farmers conflict should be taken care off. A Transnational Trade Policy should also be put in place by the federal government to regulate cross-border movement and management of livestock and persons. The document further said that the Nigeria Immigration and Custom Services should regulate and document the entry and exit of cattle rearers and livestock from neighbouring countries. It suggested that livestock breeding states should enter into trade agreements with states that are endowed with arable land (such as Benue State) to produce grass/ fodder/ hay for exchange for cash or livestock products. According to the delegates, federal and state governments should sponsor livestock research in order to promote improved breeding, feeding, management and marketing. “The federal government and relevant states should undertake public enlightenment through radio programmes, specifically targeted at educating the nomadic-Fulani of the advantages of domesticating cattle rearing and the need for paradigm shift in their cultural approach to cattle breeding,” it said.

BUSINESS

NEW TELEGRAPH

www.newtelegraphonline.com/business

MONDAY, JUNE 2, 2014

WHAT'S NEWS $49.8 bn: No credible probe will indict NNPC –Spokesman The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) took a swipe at those who accused it of complicity in the alleged missing $49.8 billion oil revenues, declaring that no credible probe would indict the corporation.

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CBN reads riot act for authorised dealers As from today, authorised dealers are required to submit all payments for repatriated foreign exchange and unutilised Retail Dutch Auction system (RDAs), which will now be paid in bulk.

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Stock market closes stronger Notwithstanding that the stock market opened last week with bearish sentiments, the bulls maintained their grip on the market activities as bargain hunters jostled for shares on the back of earnings posted by some quoted companies.

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SEC suspends Shalom Investment Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has suspended Shalom Investment and Financial Sºervices Limited and its sponsored individuals from all capital market activities.

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

SAFETY NNPC staff evade posting to Chad basin for fear of being killed Adeola Yusuf

he dream of oil discovery in Northern Nigeria is under threat, New Telegraph has learnt. Investigations revealed that the raging Boko Haram insurgency has put exploration activities at the Chad basin on a snail speed. The geologists working on site have absconded for fear of being killed by the insurgents. Although the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) had earlier secured the site with heavily armed soldiers, investigations by this newspaper showed that the increase in attacks on military base in Borno State has left the workers with no choice but to scamper for safety. The Federal Government had last year estimated that expenditure on exploration at the Basin would hit N2.7 billion. Vice President, Namadi Sambo, said recently that oil prospecting at the Chad Basin, near Borno State, was yielding promising results, and may lead to commercial exploration of oil and gas in the region by 2014. Investors who usually provide support services for exploration activities, further checks revealed, have shuned the region, while geologists in the NNPC also evade posting to the troubled Chad basin in Borno State for fear of losing their lives. The Federal Government had in a bid to douse the insurgency, deployed soldiers on the site, while a state of emergency had since been declared in Borno State. But these measures were, according to some of the staff that craved anonymity, not enough to guarantee security of lives and property. “The Joint Task Force (JTF) is having a clamp down on the Boko Haram guys while those terrorists too have retreated to launch guerrilla warfare on the military. In all of these, do you think as a geologist one will be able to think straight? “Even those on site are not finding it funny. It is true that some of us do not want to be anywhere near that place. Do

AYODELE AMINU,

25 TITLE PROBLEM MUST BE SOLVED FOR EFFECTIVE MORTGAGE ADMINISTRATION –AKOMOLEDE }p-28-29

DEPUTY EDITOR, BUSINESS

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

N2.7 bn oil search in North threatened Explorationists desert Chad basin

not forget that we lost three of our staff to the insurgency in 2012,” the source said. The front-liner in the Chad basin exploration, the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), which had earlier

declared that activities at the basin are retrogressing, is yet to announce pick up of activities. But the Group Managing Director of the NNPC, Andrew Yakubu, said that the corporation had remobilised workers

for exploration activities after the Boko Haram threats. Optimistic on oil finds in the basin, he said: “We de-mobilsed our staff earlier, but now we are CONTINUED ON PAGE 26

L-R: Managing Director, Nokia West and Central Africa, Nick Imudia; Marketing Campaign Manager, Nokia West and Central Africa, Yetunde Ogeroju; Director, Consumer Channels Group, Microsoft Nigeria, Mark Ihimoyan and Retail Customer Marketing Manager, Nokia West and Central Africa, Olajide Adeyemi, during the launch of the first Windows Dual SIM smartphone, Nokia Lumia 630 in Lagos

Banks resort to outsourcing to maximise profits COST MANAGEMENT The urgency to reduce cost has driven banks to strategic functions Godson Ikoro

n a bid to reduce costs and grow their bottom-line, banks have resorted to outsourcing their non-care service. Outsourcing is a corporate function that seeks to reduce

costs and create efficiency in logistics in the changing competitive landscape. New Telegraph investigation reveals that almost every bank has outsourced functions such as engineering, information technology, research and development, human resources among others. According to operators, outsourcing grew out of globalisation aided by rapid technological innovation. These days, it is no longer the banks’ ownership of capabilities that matters, but

the ability to control and make most of the critical capability, whether or not they reside in the bank or not. For instance, Mr. Timothy Oguntayo, Managing Director of Skye Bank PLC, said that outsourcing is becoming more sophisticated that non-core functions of the banks, such as engineering, information technology; research and development among others are being outsourced. CONTINUED ON PAGE 26

WOLE SHADARE, Aviation Editor DELE ALAO, Brands/Marketing Editor CHRIS UGWU, Capital Market Editor ABDULWAHAB ISA, Finance Editor CHUKS ONUANYIN, Energy NNAMDI AMADI, Reporter JOHNSON ADEBAYO, Asst. Production Editor

Rates Dashboard INFLATION RATE April 2014...............................7.9% March 2014............................7.8% Feburary 2014 ........................7.7%

LENDING RATE

EXCHANGE RATE

(Parellel As at May 30)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N167 InterBank Rate . . . . . . . . . 10.50% Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N284 Prime Lending Rate. . . . . 16.93% Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N232 Maximum Lending Rate..25.83% • Foreign Reserves – $37.147bn as at 27/5/2014

EXCHANGE RATE

(Official As at May 30)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N155.73 Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N260.72 Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N212.01 Source: CBN

26 BUSINESS | NEWS VINDICATION The NNPC has said that the report of Senate committee has vindicated its innocence over the alleged fund Adeola Yusuf

he Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) took a swipe at those who accused it of complicity in the alleged missing $49.8 billion oil revenues, declaring that no credible probe would indict the corporation.

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

$49.8 bn: No credible probe will indict NNPC –Spokesman Makarfi committee report stirs controversy This came hours after the report of the Senator Ahmed Makarfi’s committee on the missing oil revenues stirred controversy in the oil and gas industry. The NNPC, which said that it was yet to receive a formal communication on the report,

told New Telegraph that there are calculated attempts to tarnish its reputation and that of the Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke. Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of the NNPC, Mr. Ohi Alegbe, who said this in a telephone

President, Ghana Association of Women Entrepreneurs, Mrs. Lucia Quachey (left), presenting the International Business Star Quality Award to Head, Corporate Brand & Strategy Communications, Dunn Loren Merrifield, Mr. Henry Ekechukwu, for the Best Innovative Investment Company in Africa, held in Accra, Ghana.

N2.7 bn oil search in North threatened C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 2 5

working under a strict supervision of the Joint Task Force (JTF). We have acquired data and now we are at a stage where these 3D Seismic data are being processed. “We are forging ahead and we are optimistic on these serious works going on at the basin.” A breakdown of the expenditure shows that the project gulped $75 million (about N11.9 billion) in 2012, while $100 million (or N15.8 billion) is earmarked for it this year, Vice Presient Sambo said during a visit to the state last year. “I want to inform you that government is committed to the oil and gas search in the Lake Chad basin,” the vice president said at the palace of the Shehu of Borno, Aubakar Ibn Garbai. Sambo said that three blocks had been identified in the area after series of research. “These blocks have great potentials for oil and gas exploration. Our plan is that by the fourth quarter of 2013, or first quarter of 2014, commercial oil and gas exploration will commence in the basin,” he said. Oil workers under the auspices of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) have also threatened to abandon the northern part of the country over the increasing activities of the sect. PENGASSAN had, in a statement entitled: “The road to Yu-

goslavia,” said that the Boko Haram insurgency represents a dangerous descent into anomie, reminiscent of the horrific inter-ethnic and religious war that marked the violent breakup of the former Yugoslavia.” It stated that it would not hesitate to call out its members, starting from its Kaduna zone, if government does not arrest the violence against innocent Nigerians in the northern part of the country. In the statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Comrade ‘Deji Kolawole, PENGASSAN said: “Nigeria cannot afford to take this road to self-destruction, for when the rich make war, it is the poor that suffer. We, therefore, appeal to Nigerians to exercise great restraint in the face of the constant provocation and violence perpetrated on other innocent Nigerians by terrorists under the hood of religionists whose aim is, obviously, to precipitate an ethnic cum religious war in the country. We must note that an eye for an eye would only make us all blind. “PENGASSAN expresses grave concern on the deteriorating security situation in the country resulting in the loss of innocent lives and which has led, lately, to the declaration of a 24-hour curfew in two states — Kaduna and Yobe — with the attendant impact on the socio-economic lives of the citizens of those states and other neighbouring states.

chat, maintained that those who love to feast on erroneous and negative report should have learnt to desist from such an acts. He said: "Our position has been that no such amount was missing and we are sure that any credible probe of that allegation will vindicate us. "We have not received formal communication from the Senate on this report, I only heard of it from you and a few colleagues in the media. "Our position has been that our people should learn to desist from feasting on erroneous report calculated to tarnish the good reputation of the minister and the NNPC," he said. Suspended Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, had last year raised the alarm that $49 billion was not remitted to the national covers by NNPC. But while the Senate Committee on Finance last Wednesday gave the minister and the NNPC a clean bill over the alleged missing $49.8 billion oil revenues, Senator Bukola Saraki said that the committee did not clear the minister and NNPC of complicity in the

alleged missing oil revenues. Nonetheless, the Ahmed Makarfi-led Senate Committee, which investigated the NNPC over allegations of fraud, last Wednesday, submitted its report to the Senate, saying no $49.8 billion oil revenues were missing. Sanusi had spuriously claimed in a leaked letter to President Goodluck Jonathan that $49.8 billion in crude oil revenue was missing. The detailed report, according to sources at the Senate, also cleared the NNPC and the Ministry of Petroleum of any wrongdoing. The report, however, directed the NNPC and the Ministry of Finance as well as other relevant agencies to reconcile a sum believed to be around $300 million dollars. Sanusi, the committee said in its report, was hasty and got his figures wrong. The report further recommended the immediate passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB). The Senate Committee on Finance is under the chairmanship of Senator Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi (Kaduna PDP). It took the committee about five months to complete its assignment.

C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 2 6

Banks resort to outsourcing

He said that at the moment, Skye bank is sourcing for alternative power for its premises, stressing that the lender is considering going to companies, which import generators rather than through third parties. “We are looking for companies that provide turbines with big capacity, when you share capacity, the cost goes down. This would guarantee power supply to the bank and free it from the vicissitudes of diesel cost and shortage of supply,” he said. He said outsourcing has changed the way bankers and banks think about their organisations. Oguntayo said that forwardlooking banks are making their value chains more elastic and organization more flexible. Mr. Wale Abe, President of Money market Association, also shares the Skye Bank CEO’s view. He said that sequel to the declining of vertically integrated business model, outsourcing has evolved into strategic processes for banks, and tunning of their value chain. According to him, every bank needs to rigorously assess each of its functions to determining which it has sufficient and differentiated skills and in which one it does not. He said finding more qualified partners to provide critical functions usually allows companies to enhance the core capabilities that drive competitive advantage in their industries. “That is why information tech-

nology is given to consultant, Internet service providers, link provider, cabling companies among others,” he explained. “Greater focus on capability sourcing can improve a banks strategic position by streamlining the organization and improving quality. Sourcing more critical partners to provide critical functions, usually allows companies to enhance the core competition that drive competitive advantage in the sector.” Our correspondent also gathered that some banks are transforming what used to be purely internal corporate function to an entirely new outfits owned by the cronies of management. Examples of such are brand management, media relations, Internet service providers, human resources and recruitment. Investigation also revealed that some banks and other financial institution employ direct sales executive (DSE), who are not paid salaries but are based on commission from the businesses they bring to the bank. They also hire graduates as contract staff recruited by outsourcing companies. They were mandated to sell the bank’s liability products and risk assets. When any DSE gets a risk asset customer, it is taken from them and given to a core staff to take over and manage. According to an operator: “They are entitled to allowance per month, which varies from one institution to another. The

allowance from market survey starts from N30, 000 upwards. The allowance is said to be for transportation and phone calls to prospective and existing customers while they earn one per cent commission on savings/current account balance for the next six months and 0.5 per cent from the sixth month forward till the account is closed.” But New Telegraph has it on good authority that some outsourced services, may not save the anticipated costs as envisaged in some banks. Feelers from most banks indicate that outsourcing has fallen short of the expectations purely in terms of cost savings. Rather, what some of them do is to short-change the workers who toil to expand their markets and grow their businesses. For instance Biodun Ajakaiye, is a Master’s Degree holder from Ladoke University Ago Iwoye. He is working for a first generation bank, but was hired by an outsourcing company. At the end of every month; the bank pays N90, 000 to the company while the company pays him N30, 000. The remaining N60, 000 is for the company and a Director of the bank who brought in the company from outside. That is what they are called strategic hiring. He is not happy that outsourcing companies recruit young graduates, overload them with targets and pay them peanuts.

BUSINESS | NEWS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

REFORM The Pension Act being modified will ensure a smooth arrangement Sunday Ojeme

he National Pension Commission (PENCOM) has promised that the expected amendment to the law setting up the Contributory Pension Scheme will transform the Pension Transition Arrangement Department. Secretary/Legal Adviser to the commission, Mr. Sanni Mohammed, said that part of the reforms would eliminate third party participation in the payment of pension to beneficiaries being managed by PTAD. PTAD was established in line with Section 30, sub-Section (2a) of the Amended Pension Reform Act, 2004, and it will take over the management of three of the offices presently running the old pension scheme. These are the Civil Service Pension Department, the Police Pension Office and the Customs, Immigration and Prisons Pension Office (CIPPO). Accordingly, the DirectorGeneral is expected to spearhead the smooth transition of the three offices into a single pension administration and management under the su-

Amended pension law will transform PTAD –PenCom pervision of the National Pension Commission (PENCOM), which will directly report to the Office of the Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance for coordination and control. The guidelines for the operations of PTAD is divided into ten (10) sections with sections one and two giving a brief on the background of the establishment as provided in the Pension Reform Act, 2004 and the objective of the guidelines, respectively. Section three and four also set out the structure of PTAD and its functions respectively. The type of books and records the departments must maintain is addressed in the fifth section. Also, the minimum measures to be considered in the application of next of kin were discussed in section six. Sections seven and eight addressed the minimum ICT requirements and the type of returns to be rendered by the departments. The verification exercise for the pensioners and the proce-

Bayelsa-based firm to roll out computers, laptops Mike Odiegwu YENAGOA

koglobe Group of Companies, based in Bayelsa State, is set to roll out indigenous computers, mobile phones, laptops and desktops in partnership with an international Information and Computer Technology firm, RLG Communications. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the group, Chief Thompson Okorotie, said that the locally made infotech products would soon hit the Nigerian market. He spoke during the public presentation of the group’s range of franchised products in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital. In attendance at the event were representatives of Bayelsa State government; Rapido Audio Visual Company; Let’s Go Wellness Energy Drinks; EcoNutri Liquid Fertilisers; Septronic; Rig Communications; Garlico Herbal International and Tourism Today TV Show. Okorotie disclosed: “RLG ICT world encompasses broad spectrum of ICT solutions. In conjunction with RLG Communications, Okoglobe Group plans to manufacture mobile phones, laptops and desktops, among others, for the Nigerian market. “With RLG, Okoglobe offers ICT training programmes to provide skills acquisition for our teeming youths.” He noted that another subsidiary of the company, Okoglobe Tourism Company Limited, has

a travel and tours outfit and a TV reality show tagged ‘Tourism Today.’ He said that the show, which would focus on tourism had been scheduled to commence soon on Niger Delta Television and other TV stations. He said that “advertisers interested in having mileage for their products and services would find ‘Tourism Today,’ which would showcase the tourism potential of Bayelsa State and Nigeria, a veritable platform to enhance their profitability and branding. “We will continue to work hard with our experienced and qualified board of directors and management to aggressively market the top quality and rare products for which we hold sole franchise in this part of the country. “This development, we believe, will ensure the growth and profitability of our group and the empowerment of Bayelsans and Nigerians as a whole,” he said. He said that other products of the group which include Rapido Audio Visual equipment for modern teaching and learning process were designed to improve quality of education in the state. According to him, the visual equipment comprise white boards, interactive boards, high powered mobile public address systems, multimedia projectors, flip charts, notice boards, language laboratories and presentation equipment for conferences, meetings and seminars.

dure for handling pensioners’ complaints were discussed in sections nine and ten respectively. Requirements of these guidelines are consistent with the provisions of the Pensions Reform Act, 2004 and are also considered enforceable within the industry New Telegraph recalls that the Director-General of the

agency, Ms. Nellie Mayshak, recently visited the headquarters of the Nigerian Railway Corporation to collate the liabilities of pensioners over the N34.8 billion arrears being owed them. Mohammed also pointed out that the expected amendment, which had been passed by both houses of the National Assembly and only awaiting

Presidential assent, would also make the CPS become more encompassing and beneficial to more employees. According to him, whereas the Pension Reform Act 2004 limited the CPS to employers with a minimum of five workers, the new law is now expected to get employers with a minimum of three employees involved.

L-R: Marketing Manager, Dufil Prima Foods Plc, Mr. Manpreet Singh; Winner, 2014 Osun State Spelling Bee Competition, Olawale Zainab; Public Relations/Event Manager, Dufil Prima Foods Plc, Mr. Tope Asiwaju and Coordinator, Spelling Bee Competition, Akin Olu-Philips, during a courtesy visit of the winner of the Spelling Bee Competition to Dufil Prima Foods Plc head office in Lagos.

Heavy rains stem expected rise in Nigeria’s cocoa output NATURE Excess downpour will negatively affect cocoa output Siaka Momoh

he heavy rains currently being experienced in the country is affecting the purse of cocoa farmers as these have brought about decrease in the expected increase in output this season, New Telegraph learnt. Bloomberg reports that cocoa output in Nigeria, the world’s fourth-largest producer, is expected to be less than expected as heavy rains in the southern growing belt are expected to cut production, quoting Cocoa Association of Nigeria. The report says that there should be a “small increase” in output for 2013-14 from an estimated 250,000 metric tons last year, Lagos-based Robo Adhuze, Chief Operating Officer, Centre for Cocoa Development Initiative, and spokesman for the Cocoa Association of Ni-

geria, said. Adhuze said that production would be lower than the January forecast of a 10 per cent increase. It would be recalled that the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, had earlier said that plans were underway to boost cocoa production to 500,000 metric tons by 2015, adding that strategies had been put in place for the replacement of old cocoa trees and the provision of seedlings for nurseries across the cocoa producing states. This is part of the Agriculture Transformation Agenda of his ministry. Nigeria’s recent measures of distributing fertilizers and early-maturing, high-yielding, disease-resistant beans led the association to expect a bigger crop this year. Heavy rains, which increase the risk of disease spreading, are cutting expectations, Abang Neji, a farmer and association board member, said in an interview from Ondo, Western Nigeria, the report said. “The rains are becoming heavier in southeast, with the risk of spreading blackpod,” Neji said. “Output is lower for

the mid-crop.” Blackpod, which thrives in wet, humid conditions, rots cocoa pods and is the most destructive disease for the country’s cocoa trees, Neji said. Government plans to begin distribution of fungicides next week to help farmers deal with it, Neji said According to Adhuze, in the southwest Ondo State, which accounts for as much as 40 per cent of Nigeria’s cocoa, “there are stable rains and sunshine,” and farmers are expected to harvest more than last year. He also said: “Support from government, good weather in the southwest and improved earnings by farmers are helping. The farm-gate prices for cocoa beans increased 12 per cent to N470,000 ($2,892) per ton from N420,000 in January, which enables more farmers to buy agrochemicals to protect their crops.” Nigeria’s main crop begins in October and ends in January, while the smaller midcrop season usually begins in March and ends in June. The start and end dates of the seasons may vary each year depending on the weather.

28 MONDAY| INTERVIEW

Sanctity

Monday, Ju

Title problem must be solved for effective

Akomolede

Chief Kola Akomolede, a man of many parts, has a professional life spanning about four decades. He is currently the president of the International Real Estate Federation (FIABCI), Nigeria chapter; chairman, Faculty of Housing of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) and Principal Partner, Kola Akomolede and Company. In this interview with Dayo Ayeyemi, he spoke about many issues affecting Nigeria, how government’s investment in housing can revamp the economy and the need to resolve the problems of land titling for effective mortgage operations. Excerpts Many experts have faulted the United Nation’s figures on Nigeria’s 17 million housing deficit, saying it is an exaggeration. Do you think they are right? Okay, let Nigerians tell us their own figures. Do we even know how many we are? UN is not joking; it has a way of arriving at figures. What UN has done is to say okay, the population of Nigeria is N16 million, and for 150 million people at the average of four or five people looking for house, this is the number of houses you require. What is the number of existing housing stock now and by the time you deduct the figure from it you will know the shortage. It is a faithful calculation. UN does not need to count all houses before knowing the number of houses needed in Nigeria. It has been doing it in other

parts of the world and nobody has said it’s wrong. Why is it that it is in Nigeria that people will say UN is wrong? This is not even the issue. 17 million or 15 million housing deficit, we all know there is shortage of accommodation, there are squatter settlements and slums all over, and so those who are faulting the figures by UN should provide us the alternative. UN is a serious organisation, it is not frivolous in whatever it does or says. What is your take on the establishment of the Nigerian Mortgage Refinance Corporation and the Issue of land reform in the country? Yes, obviously, the issue of land, until it is resolved, even when you have good mortgage system, it cannot work with-

out having land with title because there is no Primary Mortgage Bank (PMB) that will give you loan unless you have a valid title. You need to have Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) of the land or registered deed of assignment. So it is part of the reforms that we expect government to do. So many people have land but they do not have money to build because they cannot access mortgage. This is because the land has no title and the cost of getting a title is very high. I give you an example of a client of mine that bought a large expanse of land on Lekki road; he has the plan to build houses there and sell to people. He did not have the money; he therefore approached a foreign country which was ready to finance the project. The foreign firm says he must produce title to the land, and by the time he applied to the Lagos State Government, the amount the authority asked him to pay in order to get title to the land was over one billion naira (N1 billion). And he said, ‘if I have one billion naira, why then was I looking for loan? With that one billion naira, I can build so many houses and when I sell them, I build another.’ But because of this huge demand to get a title, the project is stalled because foreign partner will not bring in money unless you have C of O. Also, Lagos state government will not give him title to the land unless he pays N1 billion. One billion naira! For what? The land does not belong to government, and he had already paid the family that owned it. So the problem of land

titling is a serious factor in mortgage administration. Whenever you launch mortgage or put money in mortgage, as long as people have land that is not easy for them to get title, they would not be able to access loan. I wrote an article about this matter some years back titled: NHF: Suffering in the midst of plenty. Primary Mortgage Banks have money that they could not lend because people did not have title and I made a recommendation. What was the recommendation? Title. I made a recommendation that okay, you can overcome or by-pass this it. Let the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) give money directly to the housing corporations like the Lagos State Development and Property Corporation (LSDPC), Oyo State Housing Corporation and the likes, because these agencies will have title to their land and issue people C of O. The C of O will be the security to give to the bank to take loan. For people who are buying from them, you don’t need to own any title again, let the housing corporations allocate houses to Mr. A, B, C and D and simply forward their names to FMBN who will now look at other criteria. Once they are qualify, they become automatic mortgagors of the property. So the issue of C of O of the property does not apply. Then what happen to people buying from private developers? You can do the same with private developers; it does not have to be government alone. Most developers in most cases used to get title to their land, so let them build

MONDAY| INTERVIEW 29

of Truth

une 2, 2014

e mortgage administration –Akomolede now is 10 years. It is still okay rather than cash and carry system. It is a commendable effort and I want to recommend the idea to other state governments as well as the Federal Government.

BIODATA Schools:

Degrees: Experience:

University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), Ile-Ife, Nigeria; University of Reading, U.K.; Administrative Staff College, Badagry; Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad B.Sc, M.SC, AMC Over 30 years

houses while FMBN gives them money to pay, and give people buying from them their own title sub-lease of the original global C of O; then you bypass that level. But individuals who buy land, again you talk about site and services, it is the same way. If a private developer or government laid out an estate on which it has the title and it is transferring the land to the third parties, issue the title to those who are buying. You do not have to give them the original copy but photocopy forwarded directly to FMBN. So there are many ways you can bypass the land issue, but then, that does not stop your question about land. It is a serious one. During the housing summit we held in Abuja, we analysed the problem, so many suggestions on what can be done were made. The problem is that nobody is listening to us who are experts. And unfortunately, people who know about housing have never had opportunity of administering housing ministry at the federal level. Most of the ministers we had were medical doctor, lawyers and administrators. Why? Government has failed to appoint experts in the housing industry. I mean people who know where the shoe pinches, who know how to fix it. I am sure not all of them are politicians. I am sure there are cases where you appoint experts. Dr Okonjo-Iwealla is not a politician, but she knows something about the economy and was called upon. So why can’t you involve experts in the housing sector? If you are looking at experts in politics, they are there, but government does not take housing seriously; the thinking is that anybody can be there. Will government appoint anybody who is not a medical doctor to be Minister of Health or post anybody who is not a finance person to be Minister of Finance? The answer is no! Why are they not doing the same thing with housing sector? So this is part of our problem. Non-professional person may even have the problem of understanding the proposals. How can he deliver and defend it before the cabinet? Part of the problem is that government does not see housing as important whereas in our individual live, housing is important after food and clothing. Do this call for a rethink? There is the need for a re-orientation

The problem is that nobody is listening to us who are experts. And unfortunately, people who know about housing have never had opportunity of administering housing ministry at the federal level

Going by your recommendation, do you think other state governments have the financial capability to do this? Many states are as rich as Lagos. I am talking of states like River, Delta, Akwa Ibom, these states get a lot of money from the Federation Account apart from the internally generated revenue. I believe it is a matter of will. The problem is that most of these governments do not take housing as priority. Lagos State government is taking it as a priority and that is why it is doing what it is doing now. If all other governments can do same, they may not have the fund, but we have always say that in housing, you may not have the fund, you can raise loan. If the state governments raise loan to build houses and sell to people, all you need do is transfer the repayment from government to the allottees over the period. I don’t see why any other state government cannot do whatever, Lagos State government is doing. But Lagos has the population which others don’t have? It may not be at the same scale because of the magnitude of the amount of money involved. And again, make it the mandate.

Akomolede

How? The shortage of accommodation we are talking about is only in the cities. We are only talking about Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and some state capitals. The shortage may be qualitative this time around; it may not be that of quantity of housing, I mean the houses that do not have good access road, no pipe borne water and drainage. Not many people in the village and suburbs are sleeping on the road like in the cities. Complaints of people about the Lagos Homes are strictly on affordability as the price for one-bedroom flat ranges between four million and six million naira depending on location. Do you think the targeted group can afford this? For any government to build houses and sell for four million, to me, that government deserves credit. Four million naira is a big money but when it comes to property it is no money. Lagos State government can actually build houses and sell for four million.

Akomolede

of people in government towards housing. They must begin to see housing as a very important asset in life and pick it as a social responsibility like health, transport, school, aviation and health sectors. If government votes N100 billlion only to housing every year, after 10 years, it does not need any vote again because the money will be revolving, creating employment for artisans, bricklayers, carpenters, masons, electricians and the rest. The number two is that, the demand for building materials like cement, roofing sheet, sand, and cable will increase, leading to increased production and more employment opportunities. When people are equipped, they will pay tax, thereby increasing government revenue. Housing

industry is like an energizer in an economy. Also people who live in good houses will do better at their work; they will put on better performance at work. Again, the amount of money spent on health will reduce, whereas if six people live in a room, if one is sick, others get affected. Provision of housing has multiplier effects. Lagos State Government has just launched a mortgage scheme tagged ‘LagosHoms’ to enhance homeownership. How do you see the programme? Lagos must be commended for what it is doing now. It is similar to what Alhaji Lateef Jakande did by building houses and giving people automatic mortgage for them to pay over a period of 15 years, but

You mean a room for four million naira? Yes, if you look at the land which government is building the houses and cost of building materials, you will consider four million naira as a reasonable price. A room you are talking about is a room with a living room, kitchen and toilet; it is not just a room or a one bedroom apartment. So it is something good. I can assure you that government is subsidising it. If only government is just covering the cost of construction or may be the land that it is contributing as an equity, the cost of construction is so high in this country that if anybody wants to build a house of his own, the cost will not be less than N10 million. It is a very small house on a very solid land, and in Lagos, most lands require special foundation. So, to come back to your question, I think four million nair is a good idea and once there is mortgage that allows people to pay over a period of 10 years, that means what people are paying back every year is less than N500,000 which is still preferable. It will just be like money people are using to pay their rent and after 10 years, the house becomes theirs.

30 BUSINESS | FINANCE

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

As CBN Governor Emefiele assumes Godson Ikoro

ll is now set for Mr. Godwin Emefiele to assume office as the 11th Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) tomorrow, following the Senate’s endorsement of his appointment last March. Ordinarily, one would have thought that he would have reported for duty today being the first working day of the month. But he has to start tomorrow because the tenure of the suspended CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, effectively and constitutionally ends today (June 2, 2014). New Telegraph gathered that all Emefiele’s aides such as special assistants, personal assistants and domestic staff had submitted their resumes/curriculum vitae to the CBN and have already been screened preparatory to resumption. A source close to the in-coming governor also said that his house has since confirmation by the Senate, become a mecca of sort, with visitors, contractors, including media consultants, which has already been “contracted” to the most flamboyant publisher, who has assured Emefiele that there would be no negative story on him as “he can always call his fellow publishers to order.”

Emefiele

The challenges But as he settles down to work, a lot of surprises and policy changes are expected at the apex bank given the fact that his predecessor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, (SLS) as he is fondly called in the financial circles, hit the ground running. Take it or leave it, no matter how you describe or whatever name you call Sanusi, his regime at the CBN was felt locally and internationally. As Emefiele girds his loins to face the herculean task of maintaining monetary and price stability, he should know that he has not reached the pinnacle of his career and realise that managing a bank is not the same as governing the CBN, which is riddled with some political colourations. He would also have altered professional relationships so as to be able to properly regulate. And the paradox of these developments is that the more power he has, the harder it becomes to use if he does not assert himself. While some of the challenges may appear familiar, he would soon discover that running the business of the apex bank is but a small part of the job. He would have to contend with challenges such as crafting strategies that create lasting economic value, building a productive relationship with the board of the apex bank, having a good relationship with the Senate and House of Representatives, communicating effectively with his deputies, who were until about four months ago, his regulator and senior colleagues in the industry. He also has to master the act of playing politics in communicating with the politicians – especially those in the ruling party (Peoples Democratic Party) and outside his constituencies as well as set the proper tone and style to create a strong culture at CBN as a regulator. His calendar would soon be filled with numerous meetings, media interviews, sessions with the national executive meetings, briefing with the president. Indeed, he will be in too many meetings and be involved in too many tactical discussions on how the economy would be run. Taken together, these surprises portend important and subtle implications for how Emefiele should define his job. He must learn how to manage organisa-

He would have to contend with challenges such as crafting strategies that create lasting economic value, building a productive relationship with the board of the apex bank, having a good relationship with the Senate and House of Representatives... tional context rather than focus on daily operation. He must set the tone and define CBN’s culture and values through his words and actions. He must perpetually earn and maintain the moral mandate to lead. The governor can easily lose his legitimacy if his vision is unconvincing and inconsistent with the values he espouses, or if self-interest appears to trump the welfare of the organisation. His success will depend on his ability to enlist the voluntary commitment rather than the forced obedience of the staff and the regulated banks. While mastering the tools of management may have won the job for him, these tools alone are not enough. Having being perceived as an introvert, this is the time he must speak as exigencies of the office demands. He, however, must not turn his speaking to showbiz, like his predecessor. Only by maintaining a personal balance and staying grounded can the governor achieve the perspective required to make decisions in the interest of the economy. Another multi-billion question on the lips of close watchers of developments in the industry is whether he would upturn some of the policies his predecessor has put in place? Expectations As he assumes duty, the new CBN governor is expected to continue and possibly build on the successes recorded by his predecessor, especially in attaining a workable monetary policy and banking reforms. The country’s currency and external reserves have not been on very sound footing in recent times. While the naira has continued to slide against the US dollar, even as it is officially said to exchange at N155.73 per dollar as at last Friday (May 30, 2014), Nigeria’s external reserves have steadily dropped from about $50 billion mid last year to less than $37.14 billion as at last Friday. Economy watchers expect Emefiele to introduce more proactive measures to help stabilise the naira and boost the nation’s foreign reserves. Banks expect a more disciplined and tamed regulation of their activities, devoid of turbulence that buffeted the sector. While his predecessor succeeded in stopping the cowboy and gangsters in the sector, he is expected to continue the risk management of the sector and offset any likely systemic shocks and failures in future. The introduction of a cashless policy was, no doubt, one of the remarkable accomplishments of the CBN under Sanusi. But Emefiele is expected to fine-tune its implementation and drive it over time to spread nationwide seamlessly. Associated with this is the $50 million biometric solution project, which was inaugurated by the outgoing CBN chief executive six days before his sus-

BUSINESS | FINANCE

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

duty tomorrow…will he rock the boat? While his predecessor succeeded in stopping the cowboy and gangsters in the sector, he is expected to continue the risk management of the sector and offset any likely systemic shocks and failures in future pension. The project aims at building a central database of bank customers in the country. It will specifically serve to identify those transacting business with Automated Teller Machines (ATM) and Point of Sales (PoS) machines. Incidentally, Emefiele, who served as the chairman, Biometrics Sub-committee of the Bankers’ Committee is expected to pursue it to a logical conclusion. So also is the completion of the sale of legacy banks to clean the system of impending capital problems and be able to streamline the activities of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) Policy direction As Nigerians wonder about his focus in terms of macroeconomic policy and banking regulation, Managing Director, Financial Derivatives Company Limited, Mr. Bismarck Rewane, said it was difficult for him to comment on Emefiele’s school of thought in terms of macroeconomic policies. Although he was pretty sure that the in-coming CBN governor would do well in terms of banking regulation, he said that Emefiele won’t tolerate risky bets and he would make sure that banks are well regulated. The frontline analyst said: “But I cannot put him in any particular school of thought in terms of macroeconomic policies. If he is a monetarist, he will control money supply and inflation. “If you are not in a school of thought of economists, you will not follow any school of thought, you will only listen to the information you get and act on it,” he said. Similarly, CEO, Economic Associates, a Lagos economic consultancy, Dr. Ayo Teriba, wants Emefiele to strike a balance between monetary tightening and employment. He said: “My message to him is that he should stop focusing on financial variables and financial markets. CBN should broaden its view to focus on the economy. It should focus on real economic growth, spending growth and household spending consumption.” Teriba advised that before tightening liquidity, the CBN should make sure that its stance does not slow employment. “A situation where the CBN just focuses on inflation and exchange rate when unemployment level has doubled, Nigeria is the loser for it,” he insisted. Former Group Managing Director, Skye Bank Plc, Akinsola Akinfemiwa, said that Emefiele is a right choice for the job considering his wealth of experience garnered over the years in the sector. Describing him a seasoned banker that has been around, he said that the new CBN governor was a team member in most decision taken at Bankers’ Committee where he had the privilege of serving in some of the sensitive committees. CBN under its suspended helmsman,

Sanusi took a firm stance on defending naira, a policy that Acting Governor, Mrs Sarah Alade, also defended with a resolute assurance that naira devaluation is never an option on the table. Emefiele had supported this stance as Zenith Bank CEO. Now that he is in the saddle, watchers expect that he do the needful. Stance on naira During his screening by the Senate, he approved of the current CBN’s exchange rate policy and told members of the Senate that any attempt to devalue naira could spell a doom for a nation like Nigeria that is import-dependent economy. He said in response to senate enquiry: “I am aware that the core mandate of the CBN is to achieve the monetary and price stability. Another core mandate of the CBN is to ensure that we have a strong naira and build strong foreign reserve. We are also expected to ensure that we have a strong financial system in Nigeria. We would ensure, if approved, that whatever monetary policy decisions taken would be those that would improve the level of employment in Nigeria because we know that employment is very important. Employment “We know today that we have an employment emergency in Nigeria. And we must ensure that whatever decision we take at the CBN in the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) would lead to improvement in the level of employment in Nigeria. We would ensure that we work with the manufacturing companies to ensure that we improve on their level of production and by extension, ensure that we improve and achieve economic growth in Nigeria.” Indeed, this is the path CBN under suspended Governor Sanusi had followed. The Acting Governor, Sarah Alade has also taking a cue. Experts say that Emefile is not likely to deviate from this path. Credentials Godwin had the pedigree for the plum job. The Delta-born Chief Executive Officer had before he succeeded Jim Ovia as CEO served as Deputy Managing Director of Zenith Bank in 2001. Prior to that, he had at various times, served as Executive Director in charge of Corporate Banking, Treasury, Financial Control and Strategic Planning of the bank. With over 18 cognate years of banking experience garnered from banking sector and a modest career in classroom as lecturer of finance and insurance at the University of Nigeria Nsukka, and University of Port Harcourt respectively, Emefiele is well suited for the top job at the apex bank. He had also served as Director of ACCION Micro-finance Bank Limited. He is also an alumnus of Executive Education at Stanford University, Harvard University (2004) and Wharton Graduate Schools of Business (2005). Zenith Bank under his watch since 2010 sticks to its robustness both in balance sheet and operational efficiency. The bank under him is reputed for maintaining the lowest non-performing loans in the industry. He holds a BSc and an MBA in Finance from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. An alumnus of Stanford University, Harvard and Wharton Graduate Schools of Business, his early career as lecturer in finance, bank management departments at the University of Nigeria and University of Port Harcourt respectively, unknowingly prepared him as the CBN Governor.

Emefiele

BUSINESS | MONEYLINE

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

CBN reads riot act for authorised dealers

ABUSE Apex bank moves to sanitise FOREX market

Dutch Auction system (RDAs), which will now be paid in bulk. Also, the dealers are required to credit the beneficiaries’ accounts within 24 hours. Any authorised dealer who fails to comply shall face appropriate sanction, Central

Stories by Godson Ikoro

s from today, authorised dealers are required to submit all payments for repatriated foreign exchange and unutilised Retail

Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Director, Banking and payments system department, Dipo Fatokun stated this in a circular sent to all authorised dealers last Friday. He said a copy of the schedule showing details of the bulk payment shall be collected by the authorised

Maths competition: Sterling Bank doles out N3.65m

he Sterling Bank mathematics competition came to a climax last weekend with the presentation of various cash awards totalling N3.65 million to the top 51 pupils. The keenly contested competition, which initially produced ties for the first position, prompting a tie-breaker test, according to a statement from the lender, saw seven pupils achieving the same score. The competition was sponsored by Sterling Bank in collaboration with Caleb International Schools. At the award ceremony, three pupils - Ogunsanwo Temilade Ayomikun, Ojo Opemiposi Esther and Ebiabkpo Abeokuta who came first, second and third respectively, went home with cash prizes of N500, 000, N300, 000 and N200, 000 respectively. They also got various branded gift items from the bank. Master Udo- Ozoagba Prosper (4th), Aromolaran Toluwase Daniel (5th), Awodola

Winnie Eniola (6th) and Onyejekwe Chima Henry who came seventh, went home with the sum of N150,000, N125,000, N100,000 and N75,000 respectively, while 44 others got consolation prizes of N50,000 each. Mr. Abubakar Suleiman, Sterling Bank’s Executive Director and Chief Finance Officer (CFO), who addressed the pupils and their parents/ guardians, commended them for putting up what he described as a superlative performance. He added that the keen competition among participants was evidence that all was not lost in the country’s education sector. The Sterling Bank Executive Director, who assured that the Bank will be willing to partner with any institution with credible initiatives to promote education in the country, commended the management of Caleb Schools for supporting the discovery of talents especially in the area

of mathematics, often considered a major challenge to students and pupils. He said: “These children have performed exceptionally well to the admiration of all. Sterling Bank is pleased to be associated with this project and their success story. As an institution that is committed to enriching lives in all aspects, we will continue to partner institutions that can add value to sustain this trend”. In her remarks, Executive Director, Caleb International Schools, Dr. (Mrs) Dolapo Ogunbanwo, extoled Sterling Bank for the initiative. She added that the Bank had demonstrated clearly that it was socially responsible and committed to the upliftment of education in the country. While congratulating the award winners, Ogunbanwo lauded the parents for investing in the future of their children as manifested in their outstanding performance at the competition.

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

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

Description

TTM

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

1.21 2.53 3.22 5.39 7.98 16.47

Tenor (Days) Call 7 30 60 90 180 365

Rate (%) 11.9167 12.3333 12.6667 12.9167 13.2167 13.5000 13.7500

NIBOR

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

FGN Bonds Bid Price 90.20 99.25 104.10 109.35 114.15 76.60

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)

Bid 163.4000

Offer 163.5000 Source: FMDQ

dealers’ liaison officers, (the runners) at the Correspondent Relations Office (CRO), Banking and Payment Systems Department. The dealers are expected to ensure that all repatriated and unutilised foreign exchange advice must have RDAS number, the date and the bank’s name on the swift message for easy identification and processing. Just recently, the apex bank warned authorised foreign exchange dealers not to sell foreign currency purchased from its regulated RDAS and autonomous market sources at a rate that is two per cent above the buying rate. It also cautioned that the two per cent margin should be applicable to all funds by bureau de change (BDC) operators regardless of the source of such funds.

Titled “Re: Development in the Foreign Exchange Market”, the circular, titled posted on its website had said: The decision was in furtherance to the provision of paragraph four of the circular ref. No TED/FEM/FPC/ GEN/01/009 dated September 26, 2013.” The banking watchdog had urged authorised dealers and BDC operators to comply with the directive. It also insisted that the selling rate by the authorised dealer to BDCs should be the prevailing interbank exchange rate plus a margin not exceeding one per cent.  The CBN stated: “Foreign exchange cash purchased by BDCs from authorised dealers and the CBN shall be sold to foreign exchange end-users at a rate not exceeding two per cent margin above the buying rate

First Bank Holdings eyes dominance of Sub-Saharan market

BN Holdings plans to be dominant in the Sub-Sahara African (SSA) market with its new strategic initiatives even as it grows its long term value. A statement from the group said that its new business model is implemented to generate revenue and sustain a profitable business operation in the region. With the tangible benefits of modified operating model and the development of segment and functional specialists, the group said it would focus on acquiring new customers along priority segments, especially corporate and retail. It also intends to establish presence in select Sub-Saharan African countries that are of interest because of business opportunities. This expansion would create greater earnings diversification and increased shareholder value through greater

returns on equity, the statement said. According to the group, its intention was to consolidate its position in Nigeria while pursuing profitable growth in non-bank financial services space and in commercial banking internationally. Given that Nigeria accounts for nearly a quarter of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in SSA, and a third banking assets and as the Nigerian market leader with a healthy balance sheet, FBN holdings said it is poised to the creation of a strong, regional diversified financial services group. Accordingly, its business strategy has been designed to appropriately capture opportunities by leveraging on its strong commercial banking platform to build other nonbanking financial services businesses, the statement said.

Interbank rates rise on liquidity tightening

igerian interbank lending rates rose last week to an average of 10.75 per cent from 10.25 per cent last week, as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) embarked aggressively mopped up liquidity to curb inflation and speculation in the local currency. "The central bank has consistently issued Open Market Operation (OMO) debt notes last week to soak liquidity from the banking system," one dealer said. Traders said the bank issued about N170 billion ($1.05 billion) worth of OMO treasury bills to absorb excess cash in the banking system, driving up interest rates among banks. The cash balance that lenders hold at the apex bank fell to N348 billion surplus last Friday compared with N411 billion penultimate Friday.

The open buy-back (OBB) inched up to 10.50 per cent from 10.25 per cent last week, 1.5 percentage points below the CBN’s benchmark rate of 12 per cent. Overnight placement rose to 10.75 per cent against 10.25 per cent two weeks ago. Call money increased to 11 per cent from 10.25 per cent previously. "We expect more liquidity tightening this week with rates rising further," another trader said. The Federal Government plans to issue N137.97 billion worth of treasury bills on June 4 at maturities ranging from three months to one year, the CBN said last Wednesday. According to Reuters, that is expected to further deplete cash in the banking system and push up of cost of lending among banks.

BUSINESS | STOCK WATCH 33

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

Wema Bank: Investors await promised dividend PROSPECT

Share price movement of Dangote Cement Plc

Return to profitability will spur investors’ interest

2013

Chris Ugwu

arket sentiments for the shares of Wema Bank Plc, Nigeria’s oldest indigenous financial institution, is expected to come alive following a gradual turnaround of the bank as investors await the dividend promised by the management, which were last paid in 2004. The bank has consolidated on its return to profitability and raised the hopes of shareholders to reap the returns at the end of 2014. Analysts have extolled the bank’s financial performance for the year ended December 31, 2013, which saw operating income up by 68 per cent and a return to full profitability by the bank. Notwithstanding the significant tightening of monetary policy, which has made it tougher for banks to deliver improved returns, Wema Bank weathered the storm with a combination of strategic focus, driving scale in its respective niches and improving asset quality. However, the share price had recorded loss year to date. The share price, which closed at N1.22 per share in June 2013, declined considerably. When the closing bell rang last Friday; the bank’s share price stood at 93 kobo a decrease of 29 kobo or 31 per cent year to date. Regional banking Wema Bank Plc, a financial institution reputed as the longest surviving and most resilient indigenous Nigerian bank, was one of the banks forced to recapitalise its operations by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the wake of a financial crisis that hit the globe. The banking watchdog asked lenders to choose whether to operate as regional, national or international with minimum capital requirements ranging from N15 billion for regional banks and N100 billion for international lenders. Wema Bank decided to meet the stringent requirements by scaling down its business to become a regional bank to comply with the CBN policy introduced as part of measures to improve governance in the industry. The bank had noted that it was going regional because it wants to work where it has comparative advantage. Explaining the rationale for the regional banking then, Oloketuyi had said: “It will be an easier model to run by newly licensed banks, going by our experience. Wema bank is a 67-year old institution that had set up a large structure to oper-

June 30

N1.22

July 31

N1.25

Aug 31

N1.04

Sept 30

N1.00

Oct 31

N1.14

Nov 30

N1.22

Dec 31

N1.22

2014 Jan 31

N1.10

Feb 28

N1.15

Mar 31

94k

Apr 17

98k

May 9

93k

Oloketuyi

ate as a national bank. We have a large amount of assets and our risk-weighted assets are equally large. By regulation, a bank’s capital must cover at least 10 per cent of its riskweighted assets. A bank with N400billion in risk-weighted assets is required to have at least N40billion in capital, but most banks are even targeting not less than 15 per cent in capital adequacy ratio. “In our own case, we certainly require more than N10billion (the minimum capital for a regional bank) to operate and meet the required capital adequacy ratio, given the current size of our riskweighted assets. National licence However, following the successful completion of its private placement, which sufficiently recapitalised the bank, it has applied to regain its national licence from the CBN. Signs of turnaround became eminent in June 30, 2013, going by the results released. The bank recorded gross earnings of N17 billion for the half-year ended June 30, 2013, up from N14 billion in the corresponding period of 2012. It posted profit after tax of N465 million, compared with a loss of N857 million in 2012. The Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Segun Oloketuyi, who said the bank, has begun the process to convert from regional banking to national banking. noted that the lender’s intention to obtain national banking authorisation was in order to exploit the business opportunities within certain locations outside Lagos, Abuja, the South-

We intend to carry out an organic expansion strategy with selective branch openings in key retail hubs where there exist potential of incremental value to the bank as a whole South and South-West regions, whilst still maintaining its retail banking focus in its areas of strength. Oloketuyi, who outlined the bank’s growth strategy, said the transformation of the bank from a regional to a national bank would help it to consolidate on the gains of the past three years where the management had been able to strengthen the balance sheet and return to profitability. Fund raising Having raised N40 billion, the CEO said the bank intends to raise an additional sum of N16 billion in tier-2 capital as a buffer to its capital and to increase working capital. According to him, the decision to go national would not affect the bank’s performance negatively. “We intend to carry out an organic expansion strategy with selective branch openings in key retail hubs where there exist potential of incremental value to the bank as a whole,” he said.

He said shareholders should expect dividend payment at the end of 2014 financial year. “In accordance with our current strategic plan, the bank intends to declare dividend payments by the end of the 2014 financial year,” he said. Financials In 2013, the bank achieved significant milestone as it returned to full profitability following its concerted efforts in implementing the first phase of the it’s turnaround project in spite of the increasingly competitive and highly regulated operating environment. The bank’s year on year growth in its total assets, customer deposits and loans and advances to customers, grew by 35 per cent, 25 per cent and 34 per cent respectively. It also recorded a strong capital adequacy ratio of 27 per cent and a profit before tax of N1.9 billion compared with loss position in previous financial years. The bank had announced impressive growth in all performance indicators during its financial year ended Dec. 31, 2013. The audited result of the bank released by the NSE in Lagos, showed that profit after tax stood at N1.6 billion compared with N5 billion loss declared in 2012. Wema bank’s profit before tax stood at N1.9 billion as against the loss before tax of N4.9 billion in 2012. Operating income rose by 68 per cent to N20.9 billion as against N12.5 billion posted in the previous year. The bank’s total assets stood at N330.9 billion or 26 per cent growth over the N245.7 billion achieved in 2012. Customers’ deposits appreciated by 25 per cent to N217.7 billion from

N174.3 billion announced in 2012. The bank’s liquidity ratio also appreciated by 77 per cent, from 65 per cent in 2012. Wema Bank also posted a pretax profit of N590.7 million during the first-quarter ended March 31, 2014 from loss position of N853 million in the comparable period of last year. In a filing with the Exchange, gross earnings rose to N10.15 billion during the first quarter as against N7.96 billion. Performance drivers Commenting on the results, Oloketuyi, attributed the growth to the N40 billion Tier one capital raising exercise concluded in third quarter of 2013. He said that the additional capital increased the bank’s capacity to do business and ability to withstand economic shocks. The Wema Bank boss said that the bank had returned to full profitability due to concerted efforts in the implementation of the first phase of its turnaround project. Oloketuyi said that the bank’s transformation plan, “Project Leap,” a short-term growth project targeting increased market share in retail banking and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), had started yielding results. “We recorded improvements in profitability and an increase in customer deposits on the back of our retail and commercial businesses,” he said. According to him, the bank remains committed to operational efficiency and focused on containing operating expense growth. Also, Chairman of Wema Bank, Mr. Adeyinka Asekun, addressing shareholders at the AGM, attributed the bank’s 2013 performance to the success of the management’s turnaround plan. He also assured shareholders that the bank was confident of achieving its growth targets whilst remaining nimble, efficient and responsive. He thanked shareholders for their unquantifiable support and contributions over the years. Oloketuyi, speaking in the same vein, said Wema Bank has emerged as a lender to reckon with especially within the Retail and SME business segments and will continue to differentiate itself in the industry by the quality of its service, product offerings and best-in-class alternative channels. “With the focused and continuous execution of our transformation plan - “Project LEAP”, we are expanding gradually and efficiently and establishing our presence in areas that have significant growth potential. We have started work on repositioning our brand, re-tooling our workforce and aggressively deploying alternative channels”, he added.

34 BUSINESS | CAPITAL MARKET REPORT HULKING Bargain hunters jostled for shares on the back of earnings posted by some quoted companies

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

Stock market closes stronger

Chris Ugwu

otwithstanding that the stock market opened the last week with bearish sentiments, the bulls maintained their grip on the market activities as bargain hunters jostled for shares on the back of earnings posted by some quoted companies. Analysts said the resurgent of the bulls to sustain market rally for about three consecutive weeks was unprecedented and a welcome development that will shore up investors’ confidence. They had forecast that the uncertainty surrounding the market following massive sell off that most blue chip companies witnessed the previous week would be over. They expected stability to return following investors’ appetite on some companies that posted impressive earnings. The market had traded for four days as the Federal Government declared last Thursday as a public holiday to commemorate the Democracy Day celebration. In light of the development, all the Exchange’s facilities nationwide were closed for business to observe the holiday. Profit taking The Nigerian stock market had last Monday opened the week on avbearish note as market sentiment dipped causing investors to lose N25 billion. Market watchers believed bargain hunters rescinded from positions to take profits from the gains recorded last week. The made the stock market to lose points and return to red territory following sell pressure on blue chip companies. The twin market performance measures - the NSE ASI and market capitalisation, dropped by 0.19 per cent as the market tempo lowered. At the close of trading, 29 stocks recorded price appreciation, while 26 others constituted the losers’ table. The twin market indicators dropped by 76.36 basis points or 0.19 per cent from 39, 831.83 last Friday to close at 39,755.47 while the market capitalisation dropped by N25 billion or 0.19 per cent from N13.152 trillion to N13.127 trillion. Further analysis of the day’s trading showed that shares of an insurance company, Custody Insurance, firmed by 5 per cent to close at N2.94 per share, while construction giant, Julius Berger rose by 4.85 per cent to close at N75.49 Similarly, conglomerate, UACN, rose by 4.83 per cent to close at N60.80 among other gainers. On the flip side, shares of petroleum marketing company, Eterna Oil fell by 9.70 per cent to close at N3.26 per share, while a leading oil and gas service firm providing marine and aviation logistics, Caverton lost 9.69 per cent to close at N6.34 per share.

NSE trading floor

Also, NEM insurance - insurance company moderated by 4.94 per cent, to close at 77 kobo among other losers. On the activity chart, the Banking sub-sector dominated in volume terms with 81.1 million shares worth N798.5 in 1,241 deals. The sub sector was enhanced by the activities in the shares of Access Bank and GTB Plc. Insurance sub sector boosted by the activities on the shares of Wapic Insurance followed with 52.5 million units, worth N442 million in 234 deals. In all, investors exchanged a total of 360 million shares, worth N6.5 billion in 4,816. Market rebound Investors last Tuesday heaved a sigh of relieve as market sentiment turned green after the bears maintained stronghold on the floor of the Exchange the previous day. Trading activities on the floor of the NSE pointed northwards as transactions in the share prices of Forte Oil Plc and Dangote Cement Plc market led other gainers to lift market indicators. The key benchmark indices maintained positive trajectory to close in the green, taking supports majorly from large capitalised stock, which was particularly driven by the two companies while medium capitalised stocks also contributed to the outlook recorded. Specifically, the market capitalisation of equities appreciated by N101 billion as market sentiments remained positive. At the close of trading session, the NSE All-Share Index firmed up by 0.76 per cent to hit 40,061 index points as against a drop of 0.19 per recorded in the previous session to close at 39,755.47. Consequently, market capi-

talisation appreciated by N101 billion to close at N13.228 trillion as against depreciation of N25 billion recorded in preceding session to close at N13.127 trillion. The number of gainers at the close of trading session stood at 33 as against 30 losers. Banking sub sector led the market transaction volume with 97.4 million units valued at N1.4 billion in 1,453 deals. The volume recorded in the sector was driven by transaction in the shares of Zenith Bank and Access Bank Plc. On Wednesday the bulls maintained their stronghold on the Exchange as major blue-chip companies joined the league of gainers, causing market capitalization and the All-Share Index to remain on the green zone. The key benchmark indices maintained upward trend, taking leverage majorly from Medium CAP stocks led by Total Nigeria and UAC of Nigeria, while continuous bargain activities witnessed in Conglomerates, Financial Services, Healthcare, Industrial Goods and Services sectors also contributed to the outlook recorded on Tuesday. Specifically, transactions on the floor of the Exchange sustained growth profile as the market capitalisation appreciated by N74 billion. The value of listed equities grew by 0.56 per cent to N13.302 trillion from N13.228 trillion. Investors traded a turnover of 577.251 million shares valued at N12.264 billion in 4954 deals as against 292.137 million shares worth N3.982 billion exchanged by investors in 4813 de als. A break-down of the investment showed that Total Nigeria Plc led the gainers’ table, advancing by N2.01 kobo to close at N162.00, UAC of Nige-

Five most capitalized stocks@ May 30, 2014 Dangote Cement Plc

N4tn

Nigeria Brewery Plc

N1.3 tn

Nestle Nig Plc N880bn GTB Plc

N850.56bn

Zenith Bank Plc

N797.4bn

ria Plc followed with a gain of N2.00 to close at N65.00, while Seplat Petroleum Development Company, Ashaka Cement and Nigerian Breweries grew by N1.00, N1.00 and N0.97 kobo respectively to close at N635.00, N21.40 kobo and N174.00. On the contrary, Mobil Nigeria Plc topped losers’ chart, shedding N1.10 kobo to close at N127.90 kobo, Dangote Cement trailed with a loss of N0.89 kobo to close at N227.01 while International Breweries depreciated by N0.39 kobo to close at N25.61 kobo. Other stocks that recorded price reduction were Vitafoam and Transnational Express, which lost N0.11 kobo each to close at N4.01 kobo and N2.20 kobo respectively. Banking sub sector recorded the highest volume of activities in the financial service sector; recording 336.231 million shares valued at N7.541 billion in 1484 deals. Zenith International Bank was the most active stock in banking sub sector, exchanging 255.635 million shares worth N6.106 billion in 287 deals, FBN Holdings followed with account of 102.294 million share valued at N1.482 billion in 326 deals while GTBank sold 38.318 million shares that cost N1.074 bil-

lion in 227 deals. Custodian and Allied Insurance traded 24.728 million shares valued at N79.227 million in 106 deals, while UBA Capital exchanged 19.125 million shares worth N47.732 million in 152 deals. Dominance The bulls continued to dominate investment activities in equities last Friday as the NSE All Share Index and market capitalisation continued their upward advancement, rising by 295 basis points each. The NSE 30 Index, a sample basket of diversified equities also grew by 444 basis points. Also, all sectored gauges closed in the green - the NSE Banking Index rose by 768 bps, while the NSE Oil/Gas Index increased by 524 bps. Shares of oil and gas companies dominated the gainers’ list. Indigenous petroleum major, Seplat Petroleum, gained N23.95 to close at N658.95 per share. Also, Downstream petroleum marketers, Forte Oil, Total Nigeria and Mobil Oil Nigeria, strengthened by N19.88, N4.05 and N2.08 to close at N213.88, N166.05 and N129.98 respectively. Also, consumer personal care company, Nestle Nigeria, swelled by N3.00 to close at N1,073.00 per share. On the flipside, oil and services logistics provider, Caverton Offshore Group, moderated by N0.28 to close at N5.41 per share, while healthcare provider, Fidson Healthcare, fell by N0.10 to close at N2.80 apiece. Financial services stocks also regressed last week; indigenous banking firms, Wema Bank and Union Bank of Nigeria, fell by N0.04 each, closing at N0.93 and N10.56 respectively while insurance stocks, Aiico Insurance and Oasis Insurance, fell N0.03 and N0.02 to close at N0.82 and N0.52 respectively.

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

INCOME The Nigerian insurance sector has the potential to rise above its current financial status if Compulsory Insurance is properly deployed

Insurance

BUSINESS | INSURANCE

NAICOM: Not giving up on N1tn GPI target

Sunday Ojeme

wo years after the proposed N1 trillion Gross Premium Income target was mooted, the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) has reaffirmed the industry’s ability to achieve it soon despite the seeming slow response to insurance by Nigerians. The regulator’s confidence still stems from the operators’ ability to comprehensively deploy the provisions of Compulsory Insurance programme. The N1 trillion target, if achieved, is expected to enhance the sector’s current low contribution to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) that is dangling between 0.6 and 0.7 per cent. The Commissioner for Insurance, Mr. Fola Daniel, while keeping hope alive on the target, restated recently in Uyo, Akwa Ibom state, that he never made a cast-iron promise that the industry would hit the N1 trillion target in 2012. He, however, said even though it was yet to be achieved, considerable progress had been made given the current statistics and the role the Market Development and Restructuring Initiative (MDRI) would play in the process. According to him, there has been massive awareness about the compulsory insurances within and outside the industry. This is evident in the number of policies written by companies under this class of insurance between 2009 and 2012, which rose sharply from 72,180 to 152,181 a whopping increase of 111 per cent. He said, “The Nigerian insurance sector has great potential for massive growth. You will agree with me that the population size of the country, if adequately harnessed, gives an added advantage to the insurance industry to further develop its market. This is what we intend to achieve with the various initiatives incepted by the Commission in recent times. “I am encouraged that all of these and many other initiatives assure us of an evolving insurance model, a better insurance industry, a growing market and a brighter future. We will definitely appreciate the unflinching support and cooperation of all in this drive.” Projection As early as January 2013, Daniel had projected that the industry would hit the N1 trillion mark by 2017 from the current N300 billion GPI written shortly after the wrap up of business in 2012. According to him, the country planned to more than triple the value of its insurance market in the next four years He said then that the value of insurance contracts in the country should rise to about N1 trillion ($6.4 billion) in 2017, about three per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), from N300 billion now, or less than one per cent of GDP. Penetration should increase to 22.50 per cent of the insurable population in four years from 10 per cent currently. He said, “We have a target of one trillion naira which we believe we can achieve, and all the fundamentals that were used in packaging that are still realistic.” The commissioner noted that Nige-

Commissioner for Insurance-Mr-Fola-Daniel

Sunday-Thomas-DG-NIA

ria had a population of over 150 million people, with a larger percentage that were not in any way under an insurance cover. If just about 45 million Nigerians could be covered, he said, it would make a significant impact on the industry’s operations. According to him, the companies need to develop environmental friendly life policies that will encourage ordinary people, such as the artisans to buy life policies. Biggest customer He said, “The biggest customer that the insurance company has is the government. The government has shown leadership, they are taking insurance policies. It is the ordinary Nigerians that we need to showcase value change, so that when they see value, they need to buy it, government is very compliant.” At the ports, he observed that most marine insurance certificates were fake because people just take any kind of paper to show to the Nigerian Customs Service as evidence that they had complied with the law. He urged the insurance industry to have a meeting point with Nigerian ports, and fashion a way by which they could introduce a mechanism to block the leakages. “If you imagine the amount of

Managing Director, Consolidated Hallmark, Efekoha

Mrs. Cecilia Osipitan MD.CEO GNI PLC

We have a target of one trillion naira, which we believe we can achieve, and all the fundamentals that were used in packaging that are still realistic imports that are coming into Nigeria that should be insured and are not insured, if all of them are insured and this money is coming to the coffers of insurance companies, insurance will be richer than the banking industry,” Daniel said. At the Uyo meeting, the commissioner said a new and commendable trend was setting into the industry with the unprecedented participation by government in compulsory insurance. In one instance, a group of underwriters have come together to enforce the Motor Vehicle Third Party Liability Insurance in Imo State in collaboration with the state government and the scheme is working very well. Another group of 19 underwriters are enforcing the Occupiers Liability Insurance in

Managing Director, Goldlink,Gbolahan Olutayo.

Enugu State in collaboration with the State Government. And the Commission is working to get more states to embrace these models. Retail insurance Daniel said, “We also recognised the need to develop the retail insurance market, which has remained grossly untapped considering the vast population of the country. And as part of the Commission’s strategy of Financial Inclusiveness, the Micro Insurance Scheme and the Takaful Insurance were launched late last year. Every effort is being made to ensure they make the desired impact in the industry. I am pleased to let you know that on April 23, 2014, the Commission formally launched the Delta State Micro Insurance Scheme at a colourful ceremony in Asaba, the State Capital. Efforts are being made to replicate this model in other states. The Commission has set up an industry steering committee for Micro Insurance under the chairmanship of Mr. O. S. Thomas, Director General (DG) of the Nigerian Insurance Association (NIA). “Suffice it to say that the Nigerian insurance industry has witnessed considerable metamorphosis in recent times owing to the new reforms embarked upon by the Commission. Some of these reforms include but not limited to the introduction of Risk Based Supervision, migration to International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) from the Nigerian Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (NGAAP); Market Conduct Reforms, Claims Settlement Reforms, Financial Inclusion, Combating financial crime etc, all geared towards developing the industry and improving the general perception about insurance. “Commission commenced the implementation of section 50 (1) of the Insurance Act 2003 on January 1st 2013 to put a stop to the vexed issue of delayed or non-payment of claims. The on-going implementation of this law has significantly improved the cash flow of insurance institutions in the country. It is expected that this positive turn of events would impact on the capacity of operators to settle claims promptly, thus removing a major sore point in the relationship of insurance consumers and service providers.”

36 BUSINESS | INSURANCE

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

‘Insurance education needs urgent attention' AWARENESS Member of the public can be well protected from risks by having more knowledge on insurance Sunday Ojeme

s the scale of disaster and terrorism become unpredictable in the country, an insurance stakeholder has advocated the need to urgently embrace insurance education. In a paper presented during a recent seminar, the Deputy Director, Corporate Strategy, National Insurance Commis-

sion, Mr. Babajide Oniwinde, said risk issues such as natural disaster, terrorism, individual responsibility for health, old age and the need for protecting goods and assets as a result of increasing Gross Domestic Product had made insurance education more compelling. Oniwinde reasoned that insurance education had also become very important because of certain attitude that creates lack of trust and confidence, behaviour due to cultural disposition or habit as well as the need to understand risk exposure and manage them. He said insurance products were generally technical just as the market distribution system can also be complex. Recalling the importance the industry regulators place

on insurance education, he said the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria commenced the donation of 2000 copies of a book entitled, “Insurance for Secondary Schools” to public secondary schools in 2013, stressing that it was a significant step in the current campaign to facilitate the teaching and learning of insurance in secondary schools. Calling on the media to assist the industry in the campaign, he advised journalists to go beyond mere news reporting and commentary to uncover lack of transparency in financial products. He said, “Be investigative watchdog for the consumer. Make sense of the technicality and complexity of the products

and market for dissemination to the public in a simplified way. Full market development can be realised by awareness creation which brings about inclusive growth. There is need for ongoing coordinated action and collaboration among all key stakeholders.” In another development, Mr Sam Onyeka, who also works with the commission, called on the three tiers of government to consider insurance cover for citizens against natural disasters and terrorism. According to him, risks from natural disasters such as flooding and activities of terrorists, among others, are considered high level risks not covered by insurance. He said insurance companies did not have the capacity

Insurance fraud worth £3.5m uncovered every day

Traders urged to use insurance cover funds

nsurers have exposed a record £1.3 billion worth of fraudulent claims last year as the industry stepped up its war on cheats. The amount, released by the Association of British Insurers (ABI), marks an 18 per cent rise in value on 2012 and equates to £3.5 million worth of insurance frauds being uncovered every day. The ABI said there had also been a "significant" increase in people phoning up to report suspected fraudsters, indicating a growing acknowledgement that this was not a "victimless" crime. In 2013, 118,500 bogus or exaggerated insurance claims were detected – more than 2,000 a week. Fraudulent motor insurance claims were the most expensive and common to be exposed, with 59,900 dishonest claims worth £811m detected last year. While there was a small fall in the number of detected frauds, their value had increased. The average fraud detected across all types of insurance products was worth £10,813. The ABI said various industry initiatives were helping to "turn the screw on cheats". The Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) was created in 2006 by the industry to tackle organised cross-industry insurance scams. The IFB is supporting police forces and insurers across the UK to investigate 110 "crash for cash" scams where motor accidents were deliberately staged, which on their own represent approximately £120m of financial exposure to insurers. Investigations by the Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department, an ABI-funded dedicated specialist unit of the City of London police, have so far led to 470 arrests and 85 prosecutions since it was set up in 2011. The ABI also said calls from members of the public reporting suspected insurance frauds into the IFB's "cheatline" rose by 32% to 6,060 in 2013 compared with the previous year.

to cover those risks, urging that governments should make provisions for them. "Most people affected in situations of natural disasters such as flooding and terrorism attacks are the vulnerable in the society. To ensure that money is pooled together for such, the federal, state and local governments should make provisions to pay insurance premium to cover them. This way, insurance companies will take responsibility of ensuring that victims of such disasters are properly provided for," he said. Onyeka explained that providing insurance premium for such would relieve governments of the burden of making emergency provisions from scarce resources anytime natural disasters would occur.

L-R: Chairman, Pension Operators Association of Nigeria, Misbahu Yola; Chairman, Senate Committee on Establishment & Public Service, Dr. Aloysius Etok; Co-Chairman, World Pension Summit, Eric Eggink, Acting Director-General, National Pension Commission, Chinelo Anohu-Amazu; Chairman, World Pension Summit, Harry Smorenberg; and Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Pension, Hon. Samson Okwu; at the World Press briefing in Abuja on the forthcoming World Pension Summit-Africa Special billed to hold in Abuja in July 2004.

Insurers’ll make more money from micro-insurance –Daniel T he Commissioner for Insurance, Mr. Fola Daniel, has said that the full take-off of micro-insurance operation in the country will suddenly jerk up the industry’s gross premium income to the surprise of everybody. He said although the premium associated with the insurance model appeared small, the figure would come out significant considering the number of policyholders the underwriters are able to get involved. He said the commission’s projection to hit N1 trillion was not only based on high ticket risks but the careful coordination of micro-insurance to get as many Nigerians as possible to buy into it. The Commissioner also pointed out that Ghana with less population than Nigeria was currently making the bulk of its premium income

from micro-insurance. He also promised that the best strategy to grow the industry at that level and encourage more Nigerians to participate was to exempt it from the provisions of Section 50 of the Insurance Act. Section 50 of the Insurance Act stipulates that “The receipt of an insurance premium shall be a condition precedent to a valid contract of insurance and there shall be no cover in respect of an insurance risk, unless the premium paid in advance.” Daniel stated that the “no premium, no cover” would not be relevant under microinsurance business considering the premium being paid to arrange the covers which may be as low as N200. He also believes that microinsurance remains the most appropriate tool to achieve financial literacy among Ni-

gerians because greater population of the country lives in rural areas. Last year, the commissioner promised that development of micro insurance would occupy the time and energy of the Commission henceforth in order to ensure that Nigeria’s level of insurance literacy and awareness comes up as it is in Ghana. According to him, the main objectives of the guidelines are to provide minimum standards for the conduct of micro insurance business in Nigeria. It is also to ensure consumer protection and establish duties and responsibilities of micro insurance operators and service providers. He implored the operators to learn from the experience of Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc that has boosted its gross premium income through its micro-insurance products.

OCAL entrepreneurs were challenged to effectively use insurance cover by the African Trade Insurance Agency (ATI), to access alternative sources of funding as they strive to expand their investments. Vice-President Mohamed Gharib Bilal, opening the 14th ATI Annual General Meeting in Dar es Salaam, appreciated the key role that ATI has played in availing the public and private sectors with access to financing sources. "With the rapid economic expansion and needs for large investments in infrastructure, donor funding is becoming insufficient to meet the massive investment needs, while domestic revenue is insufficient to cope with the financing requirements," said Dr Bilal. Ten countries, including Tanzania created ATI in 2001 to fill a market gap in trade and investment risk mitigation in Africa, as well as address the misperception of most international lenders that the continent was unsafe for lending due to political and trade risks. Other ATI founding countries are Benin, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Zambia, Malawi and Madagascar. By providing insurance against non-honouring of sovereign obligations, the covers have given comfort to multilateral financial institutions, development and commercial banks as well as capital market vehicle enabling them to extend funding to a number of governments in ATI's member countries. For example, ATI has in the last few years enabled governments to issue sovereign bonds and raise capital from bond markets and from private lending institutions in excess of one billion dollars.

BUSINESS | FINANCIAL MARKET NEWS 37

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

FMDQ Daily Quotations List

30-May-14

Bonds

Price

FGN Bonds Issuer

Rating/Agency

Description 9.20 29-JUN-2014 9.25 28-SEP-2014 4.00 23-APR-2015 13.05 16-AUG-2016 15.10 27-APR-2017 9.85 27-JUL-2017 9.35 31-AUG-2017 10.70 30-MAY-2018 16.00 29-JUN-2019 7.00 23-OCT-2019 16.39 27-JAN-2022 14.20 14-MAR-2024 15.00 28-NOV-2028 12.49 22-MAY-2029 8.50 20-NOV-2029 10.00 23-JUL-2030

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

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

9.20 9.25 4.00 13.05 15.10 9.85 9.35 10.70 16.00 7.00 16.39 14.20 15.00 12.49 8.50 10.00

45.00 100.00 535.00 470.27 452.80 20.00 100.00 300.00 351.30 233.90 600.00 110.00 75.00 150.00 200.00 591.57

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE Rating/Agency

Bid Price

Offer Price

0.08 0.33 0.90 2.21 2.91 3.16 3.26 4.00 5.08 5.40 7.66 9.79 14.50 14.98 15.48 16.15

10.35 10.43 10.79 12.47 12.64 12.59 12.59 12.62 12.74 12.68 12.85 12.91 12.91 12.92 12.92 12.98

8.58 9.97 10.17 12.39 12.58 12.47 12.47 12.52 12.66 12.59 12.79 12.86 12.87 12.87 12.86 12.93

99.87 99.57 94.32 101.05 105.80 93.00 91.52 94.11 111.90 78.26 116.90 107.00 113.53 97.19 70.70 80.00

100.02 99.72 94.82 101.20 105.95 93.30 91.82 94.41 112.20 78.56 117.20 107.30 113.83 97.49 71.00 80.30

Maturity Date

TTM (Yrs)

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

4,334.84 Issuer

Agency Bonds AMCON FMBN

Bid Yield (%)

Offer Yield (%)

***LCRM

Description

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

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Issue Value (N'bn)

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

# Risk Premium (%)

Valuation Yield (%)

Indicative Price

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

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

978.35 24.56 6.00 112.22 116.70 66.49

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

0.42 0.98 1.47 2.53 2.89 3.10

1.00 2.63 2.27 2.00 3.20 1.00

11.49 13.48 13.72 14.36 15.73 13.59

95.41 87.96 104.81 95.51 88.50 90.80

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

0.18 0.38 1.25 0.86 1.15 1.16 2.89 1.72 3.59 2.56 4.35 2.56 2.56 3.14 3.21 5.48 3.18 3.89 6.50 6.59 3.90 3.93

1.56 1.34 4.44 3.23 4.46 3.48 5.59 1.00 1.79 1.80 1.00 1.00 1.21 1.00 1.00 1.94 2.74 2.74 1.00 1.94 1.44 1.95

11.95 11.81 15.61 14.00 15.51 14.54 18.12 12.76 14.40 14.18 13.63 13.38 13.59 13.59 13.59 14.62 15.33 15.36 13.73 14.68 14.06 14.57

100.28 100.72 96.52 99.70 98.51 101.36 82.30 101.73 98.88 99.81 101.12 102.46 115.04 102.27 104.87 99.54 98.62 98.34 99.02 101.30 111.21 110.89

07-Oct-14 18-Dec-14 31-Dec-14 17-Aug-15 09-Dec-15 06-Jan-16 29-Sep-16 25-Oct-16 30-Sep-17 30-Nov-17 09-Apr-18 09-Sep-18 09-Sep-18 22-Sep-18 18-Oct-18 17-Feb-19 01-Apr-19 14-Nov-20

0.36 0.55 0.59 0.73 0.81 0.89 2.33 2.41 3.34 1.95 2.11 2.28 2.28 4.32 2.39 2.47 3.59 6.46

1.00 5.21 8.71 4.88 1.00 2.63 1.00 1.34 4.52 1.88 3.48 5.20 5.06 1.00 2.29 6.11 2.16 2.76

11.47 15.77 19.29 15.56 11.74 13.42 13.27 13.65 17.12 13.94 15.65 17.45 17.31 13.63 14.59 18.45 14.77 15.49

99.95 98.82 98.73 96.29 100.35 100.90 99.42 101.17 89.80 107.95 100.86 101.33 101.97 101.11 102.42 97.56 103.37 99.02

11-Feb-18

3.70

1.00

13.61

90.29

Bid Yield (%)

Offer Yield (%)

Bid Price

Offer Price

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

1,304.32

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

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

14.00 KWARA 5-AUG-2014 14.00 NIGER 15-OCT-2014 12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015 13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015 14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016 15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016 10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017 13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017 14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017 14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018 14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018 14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018 14.00 NIGER III 12-DEC-2018 15.50 ONDO 14-FEB-2019 15.50 GOMBE 02-OCT-2019 14.50 LAGOS 22-NOV-2019 14.75 OSUN 12-DEC-2019 14.75 OSUN II 30-SEP-2020 13.50 LAGOS IV 27-NOV-2020 15.00 KOGI 31-DEC-2020 14.50 EKITI II 31-DEC-2020 15.00 NASARAWA 06-JAN-2021

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

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

17.00 6.00 8.50 16.50 13.00 18.50 57.00 50.00 25.00 50.00 9.00 20.00 12.00 27.00 20.00 80.00 30.00 11.40 87.00 5.00 5.00 5.00

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

572.90

Corporate Bonds A+/Agusto; AA/GCR Aa/Agusto Nil Bbb-/Agusto A-/Agusto BB+/GCR A+/Agusto; A-/GCR A-/Agusto A/GCR BBB-/GCR BBB+/DataPro†; BB+/GCR A-/DataPro†; BB-/GCR AAA/DataPro†; A+/GCR A/Agusto; A/GCR Bbb+/Agusto; BBB+/GCR BBB-/DataPro†; BB+/GCR BBB/GCR A+/Agusto; A-/GCR

LAFARGE WAPCO GTB µ NGC *UPDC *FLOURMILLS *CHELLARAMS NAHCO FSDH UBA *C & I LEASING *DANA# *TOWER# *TOWER# UBA *LA CASERA *CHELLARAMS# *DANA NAHCO

11.50 LAFARGE WAPCO 7-OCT 2014 13.50 GUARANTY TRUST 18-DEC-2014 17.00 NGC 31-DEC-2014 10.00 UPDC 17-AUG-2015 12.00 FLOURMILLS 9-DEC-2015 14.00 CHELLARAMS 06-JAN-2016 13.00 NAHCO 29-SEP-2016 14.25 FSDH 25-OCT-2016 13.00 UBA 30-SEP-2017 18.00 C&I LEASING 30-NOV-2017 MPR+7.00 DANA 9-APR-2018 MPR+7.00 TOWER 9-SEP-2018 MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-2018 14.00 UBA II 22-SEP-2018 15.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018 MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-2019 16.00 DANA II 1-APR-2019 15.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020

07-Oct-11 18-Dec-09 01-Apr-10 17-Aug-10 09-Dec-10 06-Jan-11 29-Sep-11 25-Oct-13 30-Sep-10 30-Nov-12 09-Apr-11 09-Sep-11 09-Sep-11 22-Sep-11 18-Oct-13 17-Feb-12 01-Apr-14 14-Nov-13

11.50 13.50 17.00 10.00 12.00 14.00 13.00 14.25 13.00 18.00 16.00 18.00 16.00 14.00 15.75 17.00 16.00 15.25

11.80 13.17 2.00 15.00 37.50 1.50 15.00 5.53 20.00 0.94 8.01 3.63 1.00 35.00 3.00 0.54 4.50 2.05

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

180.17

Supranational Bond AAA/S&P

10.20 IFC 11-FEB-2018

IFC

11-Feb-13

10.20

12.00

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE Rating/Agency

12.00 Issuer

Description

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Issue Value ($'mm)

Maturity Date

6.75 JAN 28, 2021

07-Oct-11

6.75

500.00

28-Jan-21

4.95

4.79

110.07

111.03

5.13 JUL 12, 2018

18-Dec-09

5.13

500.00

12-Jul-18

4.20

3.97

103.45

104.33

6.38 JUL 12, 2023

01-Apr-10

6.38

500.00

12-Jul-23

5.35

5.22

107.33

108.26

FGN Eurobonds

Prices & Yields

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

FGN

BB-/Fitch; BB-/S&P

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

1,500.00

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

AFREN PLC I

11.50 FEB 01, 2016

01-Feb-11

11.50

450.00

01-Feb-16

3.95

3.41

112.03

112.96

GTBANK PLC I

7.50 MAY 19, 2016

19-May-11

7.50

500.00

19-May-16

5.27

4.62

104.11

105.35

GTBANK PLC

6.00 NOV 08, 2018

08-Nov-13

6.00

400.00

08-Nov-18

6.39

6.13

98.53

99.52

7.25 JUL 25, 2017

25-Jul-12

7.25

350.00

25-Jul-17

7.09

6.65

100.44

101.66

ACCESS BANK PLC

6.88 MAY 09, 2018

09-May-13

6.88

300.00

02-May-18

8.51

8.08

94.61

96.00

AFREN PLC

10.25 APR 08, 2019

08-Apr-12

10.25

300.00

08-Apr-19

5.16

4.48

113.53

114.84

ZENITH BANK PLC FIRST BANK PLC

6.25 APR 22, 2019

22-Apr-14

6.25

500.00

22-Apr-19

6.40

6.20

99.39

100.19

B/S&P; B-/Fitch

8.25 AUG 07, 2020

07-Aug-13

8.25

300.00

07-Aug-20

7.10

6.69

104.07

105.59

B+/S&P; B+/Fitch

AFREN PLC

6.63 DEC 09, 2020

09-Dec-13

6.63

360.00

09-Dec-20

6.12

5.88

101.96

102.94

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

FIDELITY BANK PLC

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

3,460.00

**Treasury Bills DTM 6 20 27 34 41 48 55

FIXINGS Maturity 5-Jun-14 19-Jun-14 26-Jun-14 3-Jul-14 10-Jul-14 17-Jul-14 24-Jul-14

Bid Discount (%) 9.60 10.00 10.05 10.05 8.60 9.90 10.10

Offer Discount (%) 9.35 9.75 9.80 9.80 8.35 9.65 9.85

Bid Yield (%) 9.62 10.06 10.13 10.14 8.68 10.03 10.26

Money Market

NIBOR Tenor O/N 1M 3M 6M

Rate (%) 11.3750 12.5896 13.6077 14.5600

Foreign Exchange (Spot & Forwards)

Tenor

Rate (%)

OBB

10.92

Tenor

Bid ($/N)

Offer ($/N)

11.17

Spot 7D 14D 1M 2M

162.71 162.62 162.86 163.50 164.56

162.81 162.87 163.20 164.15 165.89

O/N Tenor Call

REPO

Rate (%) 11.50

16.39 27-JAN-2022 14.20 14-MAR-2024 15.00 28-NOV-2028 12.49 22-MAY-2029 8.50 20-NOV-2029 10.00 23-JUL-2030

27-Jan-12 14-Mar-14 28-Nov-08 22-May-09 20-Nov-09 23-Jul-10

16.39 14.20 15.00 12.49 8.50 10.00

600.00 110.00 75.00 150.00 200.00 591.57

27-Jan-22 14-Mar-24 28-Nov-28 22-May-29 20-Nov-29 23-Jul-30

7.66 9.79 14.50 14.98 15.48 16.15

12.85 12.91 12.91 12.92 12.92 12.98

12.79 12.86 12.87 12.87 12.86 12.93

116.90 107.00 113.53 97.19 70.70 80.00

117.20 107.30 113.83 97.49 71.00 80.30

Coupon (%)

Issue Value (N'bn)

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

# Risk Premium (%)

Valuation Yield (%)

Indicative Price

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

978.35 24.56 6.00 112.22 116.70 66.49

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

0.42 0.98 1.47 2.53 2.89 3.10

1.00 2.63 2.27 2.00 3.20 1.00

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE Rating/Agency

4,334.84 Description

Issuer

Agency Bonds

Issue Date

38 BUSINESS | FINANCIAL MARKET NEWS AMCON FMBN

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

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

11.49 13.48 Monday, 13.72 14.36 15.73 13.59

SEC suspends Shalom Investment GTB MD reiterates ***LCRM

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

INFRACTION

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

SEC strengthens monitoring capacity

Stories by Chris Ugwu

ecurities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has suspended Shalom Investment and Financial services Limited and its sponsored individuals from all capital market activities. A statement obtained by New TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE Telegraph from SEC’s official Corporatewarned Bonds website, the general A+/Agusto; AA/GCR LAFARGE WAPCO public that Shalom Investment Aa/Agusto GTB and Financial services Limited Nil NGC and its sponsored individuals Bbb-/Agusto *UPDC A-/Agusto have been suspended from all *FLOURMILLS BB+/GCR *CHELLARAMS capital market activities effecA+/Agusto; A-/GCR tive 20th May, 2014. NAHCO A-/Agusto FSDH The apex regulator said the A/GCR UBA BBB-/GCR suspension of Shalom *C & ISecuriLEASING BBB+/DataPro†; ties was as a BB+/GCR result of*DANA its refusA-/DataPro†; BB-/GCR al/failure to comply*TOWER with the AAA/DataPro†; A+/GCR *TOWER commission’s to purA/Agusto; A/GCR directive UBA µ

# #

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

*LA CASERA *CHELLARAMS# *DANA NAHCO

14.00 completely KWARA 5-AUG-2014 chase client’s shares 14.00 NIGER 15-OCT-2014 paid for since 2008, resolve the 12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015 other against it and 13.00 complaints EBONYI 30-SEP-2015 14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016 pay the penalty imposed by the 15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016 commission. 10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017 The Director General of the 13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017 SEC, Arunma Oteh, had 14.00 Ms EDO 31-DEC-2017 14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018 said that the commission would NIGER II 4-OCT-2018 do14.00 anything to compel opera14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018 tors in the market to obey the 14.00 NIGER III 12-DEC-2018 rules it. This, accord15.50 guiding ONDO 14-FEB-2019 GOMBE 02-OCT-2019the decision ing15.50 to her, informed LAGOSthe 22-NOV-2019 to 14.50 tighten noose on market 14.75 OSUN 12-DEC-2019 infractions and other miscel14.75 OSUN II 30-SEP-2020 laneous capital market crimes. 13.50 LAGOS IV 27-NOV-2020 15.00 KOGImust 31-DEC-2020 “We implement the 14.50 EKITI II 31-DEC-2020 policy in a SEC zero tolerance 15.00 NASARAWA 06-JAN-2021 decisive and far-reaching manner. I am therefore determined to eliminate sharp practices, 11.50 LAFARGE WAPCO 7-OCT 2014 deter malpractice and change 13.50 GUARANTY TRUST 18-DEC-2014 behaviours by ensuring that 17.00 NGC 31-DEC-2014 10.00the UPDC 17-AUG-2015 both institutional and per12.00 costs FLOURMILLS 9-DEC-2015 sonal of any wrongdoing CHELLARAMS 06-JAN-2016 are14.00 extremely high. 13.00 NAHCO 29-SEP-2016 “WeFSDH will ensure high stan14.25 25-OCT-2016 dards in 30-SEP-2017 regulatory oversight 13.00 UBA 18.00 C&I LEASING 30-NOV-2017 and enforcement and will name MPR+7.00 DANA 9-APR-2018 and shame where necessary. We MPR+7.00 TOWER 9-SEP-2018 areMPR+5.25 continuing to strengthen inTOWER 9-SEP-2018 spection investigation and 14.00 UBAand II 22-SEP-2018 15.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018 MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-2019 16.00 DANA II 1-APR-2019 15.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020

05-Aug-09 14.00 any operator found erring will 15-Oct-09 14.00 be suspended, issued a warn31-Aug-10 12.50 ing, or fined depending 30-Sep-10 13.00 on the 30-Jun-11 14.00the viogravity and nature of 30-Jun-09 15.50 lation. 19-Apr-10 10.00 “We hope that the various en30-Jun-10 13.75 forcement err30-Dec-10actions against 14.00 30-Sep-11 14.00 ing operators, including their 04-Oct-11 14.00 suspension from participating 09-Dec-11 14.50 in capital activities, 12-Dec-13 market 14.00 will deter other operators from 14-Feb-12 15.50 02-Oct-12rules,” she 15.50 breaching said. 22-Nov-12 Otteh noted that14.50 the com12-Dec-12 14.75 mission would also14.75 continue 30-Sep-13 to strengthen all the13.50 processes 27-Nov-13 31-Dec-13 15.00enforcerelated to investigation, 14.50 ment,31-Dec-13 prosecution and publicity 06-Jan-14 15.00 of outcomes in line with international standards. “We will also revitalise our 07-Oct-11 11.50 enforcement programmes to 18-Dec-09 13.50 ensure a focus on the17.00 cases that 01-Apr-10 are of17-Aug-10 prime importance 10.00 to the 09-Dec-10that we pursue 12.00 investors, our 06-Jan-11 14.00 programme speedily without 29-Sep-11 13.00 compromising on fairness and 25-Oct-13 14.25 that we impress on violators of 30-Sep-10 13.00 30-Nov-12 18.00 the rules of the capital markets 09-Apr-11are high costs 16.00 that there asso18.00 ciated09-Sep-11 with flouting the regula09-Sep-11 16.00 tions,” she said. 22-Sep-11 14.00

support for SMEs 17.00 6.00 8.50 16.50 13.00 18.50 57.00 50.00 25.00 50.00 9.00 20.00 12.00 27.00 20.00 80.00 30.00 11.40 87.00 5.00 5.00 5.00

0.18 0.38 1.25 0.86 1.15 1.16 2.89 1.72 3.59 2.56 4.35 2.56 2.56 3.14 3.21 5.48 3.18 3.89 6.50 6.59 3.90 3.93

uaranty Trust Bank Plc has reiterated its commitment to continue to invest in capacity building to empower and support SME’s in the country. The Bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Segun Agbaje, stated this while commenting on the launch of ‘The SME MarketHub’ Nigeria’s 1st e-commerce portal for Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) at the weekend in Lagos. He said GTBank regards SME’s as the engine room of 572.90 the economy hence; it has put in place structures to support this 11.80 07-Oct-14 0.36 vital sector. 18-Dec-14 13.17 0.55 and busi2.00The e-commerce 31-Dec-14 0.59 ness portal is part 15.00 directory 17-Aug-15 0.73of 37.50 09-Dec-15 to empower 0.81 GTBank’s strategy 1.50 06-Jan-16 and support Nigerian SMEs0.89 and 15.00 29-Sep-16 2.33 also contribute to the growth2.41 and 5.53 25-Oct-16 development of the Nigerian 20.00 30-Sep-17 3.34 0.94 1.95 economy . 30-Nov-17 8.01The portal 09-Apr-18 2.11 is designed to en3.63 09-Sep-18 2.28 able Nigerian entrepreneurs 1.00 09-Sep-18 2.28 migrate their22-Sep-18 businesses online 35.00 4.32 and vast 18-Oct-13 15.75 3.00 take advantage 18-Oct-18 of the2.39 17-Feb-12 17.00 0.54 17-Feb-19 2.47 international and local sales op01-Apr-14 16.00 4.50 01-Apr-19 3.59 portunities within this space. 14-Nov-13 15.25 2.05 14-Nov-20 6.46 SME owners will also have ac180.17 continues to evolve and inno- cess to a wide variety of business vate, investment products are tools that will enhance profit11-Feb-13 10.20 12.00 11-Feb-18 3.70 becoming increasingly complex ability as well as a community and financial services increas- 12.00 that will allow them forge relaingly diverse,’’ IOSCO said. tionships with other business Issue Date (%) unIssue Value ($'mm) Maturity Date Bid Yield (%) It affirmed thatCoupon greater owners. derstanding of key financial Agbaje said: “There is no getconcepts is required on the ting away from the fact that eco28-Jan-21 part of07-Oct-11 retail investors6.75 to under- 500.00 nomic conditions remain 4.95 chalstand18-Dec-09 and evaluate the lenging for small 5.13choices 500.00 12-Jul-18and medium 4.20 available to them and to avoid scale enterprises (SMEs) in Ni01-Apr-10 6.38 500.00 12-Jul-23 financial fraud. geria. It is however, vital that5.35 this IOSCO said strengthening in- 1,500.00 integral sector of the economy vestor education and financial gets all the support it needs to literacy programmes also is es- drive growth and development. 01-Feb-11 11.50 450.00 01-Feb-16 3.95 sential at a time when respon- 500.00“E-commerce is widely ac19-May-11 7.50 19-May-16 5.27 sibility for saving and investing knowledged as a powerful tool 08-Nov-13 6.00 400.00 08-Nov-18 6.39 for retirement is shifting from 350.00 for fully enhancing business 25-Jul-12 7.25 25-Jul-17 7.09 the employer to the individual possibilities02-May-18 as it opens 8.51 up a 09-May-13 6.88 300.00 08-Apr-12 10.25 300.00 08-Apr-19 in many jurisdictions. world of businesses to 5.16 cus-

IOSCO releases report on investor education

87.96 June 2, 2014 104.81 95.51 88.50 90.80

1,304.32

Sub-National Bonds

A/Agusto A-/GCR A+/Agusto A/Agusto Nil A+/Agusto A+/Agusto; A+/GCR A-/Agusto A/Agusto A+/Agusto; A+/GCR A-/Agusto; A-/GCR A/Agusto; A-/GCR† A-/Agusto A/Agusto; A-/GCR A/Agusto; A-/GCR Aa-/Agusto; AA-/GCR A/Agusto; A-/GCR A/Agusto Aa-/Agusto; AA-/GCR A-/Agusto; BBB+/DataPro A/Agusto A-/GCR

95.41

Sanctity of Truth

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

lobal securities regulator, a member. OrganIOSCO said it has long rec10.20 IFC investor 11-FEB-2018 education as AAA/S&P IFC isation of Securities Com- ognised TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE missions (IOSCO) has released a key strategy for enhancing a consultation report on the investor protection, promoting Description Rating/Agency Issuer ‘’Strategic Framework for In- investor confidence and fostervestor Education and Finaning investor engagement in fiFGN Eurobonds cial Literacy’’ nancial planning and decision6.75 JAN 28, 2021 BB-/Fitch; B+/S&P The report describes its role making. ‘’Investor education BB-/Fitch; in promoting investor education, is complementary the tradiFGN 5.13 JUL to 12, 2018 BB-/S&P financial literacy and its strate- tional tools of regulation, superBB-/Fitch; 6.38 JUL 12, 2023 gicBB-/S&P approach to both IOSCO. vision and enforcement, and is TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE Established in 1983, IOSCO is included in IOSCO´s principles the acknowledged international for securities regulation,'' it said. Corporate Eurobonds body that brings together the The global11.50 securities regulaFEB 01, 2016 B-/S&P; B/Fitch AFREN PLC I world's securities regulators tor said it believes the need for 7.50 MAY 19, 2016 GTBANK PLC I B+/S&P; B+/Fitch and is recognised as the global investor education and finan6.00 NOV 08, 2018 GTBANK PLC standard setter for the securi- cial literacy 7.25 has JUL never 25, 2017 been B+/S&P ACCESS BANK PLC ties sector. Securities greater than today . 09, 2018 6.88 MAY B/S&P; B/FitchNigeria’s FIDELITY BANK PLC 10.25 APRmarketplace 08, 2019 and Exchange Commission “As the financial B/Fitch AFREN PLC is Supranational Bond the International

1.56 1.34 4.44 3.23 4.46 3.48 5.59 1.00 1.79 1.80 1.00 1.00 1.21 1.00 1.00 1.94 2.74 2.74 1.00 1.94 1.44 1.95

11.95 11.81 15.61 14.00 15.51 14.54 18.12 12.76 14.40 14.18 13.63 13.38 13.59 13.59 13.59 14.62 15.33 15.36 13.73 14.68 14.06 14.57

100.28 100.72 96.52 99.70 98.51 101.36 82.30 101.73 98.88 99.81 101.12 102.46 115.04 102.27 104.87 99.54 98.62 98.34 99.02 101.30 111.21 110.89

tomers and a world of customers to businesses. The speed, efficiency and convenience with which transactions can be completed are distinct advantages that e-commerce has over traditional means of transacting business. He noted that with the introduction of the SME Market Hub, GTBank has provided SMEs an E-commerce platform that allows small and medium business owners create & maintain an online presence and expand their business frontiers to new markets and millions of 1.00 11.47 buyers that are online. 99.95 5.21 15.77 98.82 Agbaje stated that98.73 a per8.71 19.29 centage of every transaction 4.88 15.56 96.29 1.00 11.74the SME 100.35 carried out on Mar2.63 13.42 100.90 ketHub would be committed 1.00 13.27 99.42 to 1.34 the Bank’s “Autism101.17 Fund” 13.65 dedicated to the of an 4.52 17.12 building 89.80 1.88 13.94 107.95 “Autism Resource Center. 3.48 15.65 will make 100.86 it This center 5.20 17.45 101.33 easier for parents, educators, 5.06 17.31 101.97 therapists and 1.00 13.63 caretakers 101.11 to have to information 2.29 access14.59 102.42 6.11will augment 18.45 97.56 that and supple2.16 14.77 103.37 ment their efforts in providing 2.76 15.49 99.02 quality care to individuals with Autism and special disorders. “Guaranty Trust Bank has 1.00 at the forefront 13.61 been of 90.29 industry innovations within the Nigerian financial services Offer Yield (%)These Bid Price Offer Priceinsector. include the troduction of the GTBank Prices & Yields social banking; the first of its 4.79 kind by any110.07 Nigerian111.03 bank, which allows GTBank104.33 Social 3.97 103.45 Account holders transfer 107.33 5.22 108.26 money , purchase airtime, pay bills, and confirm their account balances on Facebook as well as the introduction of a ‘Fast3.41 112.03 112.96 Track’ banking system that 4.62 104.11 105.35 allows its customers deposit 6.13 98.53 99.52 and withdraw money 101.66 within 6.65 100.44 its8.08 branches94.61 using their debit 96.00 cards,” Agbaje said. 114.84 4.48 113.53

ZENITH BANK PLC FIRST BANK PLC

6.25 APR 22, 2019

22-Apr-14

6.25

500.00

22-Apr-19

6.40

6.20

99.39

100.19

B/S&P; B-/Fitch

8.25 AUG 07, 2020

07-Aug-13

8.25

300.00

07-Aug-20

7.10

6.69

104.07

105.59

B+/S&P; B+/Fitch

AFREN PLC

6.63 DEC 09, 2020

09-Dec-13

6.63

360.00

09-Dec-20

6.12

5.88

101.96

B+/Fitch; BB-/S&P

FMDQ Daily Quotations List

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

3,460.00

102.94 30-May-14

The FMDQ Daily Quotations List (DQL) comprises market and model prices/rates of foreign exchange ($/N) products, fixed income securities and instruments in the OTC market. The use of this report is subject **Treasury Bills FIXINGS Money Market Foreign Exchange (Spot & Forwards) to the FMDQ OTC PLC TermsMaturity of Use and Disclaimer Statement. Offer Discount (%) DTM Bid Discount (%) Bid Yield (%) Tenor Rate (%)

6 5-Jun-14 9.60 20 19-Jun-14 10.00 27 26-Jun-14 10.05 FGN Bonds 34 3-Jul-14 10.05 41 10-Jul-14 8.60 Issuer Description 48 17-Jul-14 9.90 Rating/Agency 55 24-Jul-14 10.10 62 31-Jul-14 10.00 9.20 29-JUN-2014 69 7-Aug-14 10.00 9.25 28-SEP-2014 76 14-Aug-14 10.00 4.00 23-APR-2015 83 21-Aug-14 10.00 13.05 16-AUG-2016 90 28-Aug-14 10.00 15.10 27-APR-2017 97 4-Sep-14 10.00 104 11-Sep-14 10.00 9.85 27-JUL-2017 111 18-Sep-14 10.00 9.35 31-AUG-2017 118 25-Sep-14 10.00 10.70 30-MAY-2018 NA NA 132 9-Oct-14 10.00 16.00 29-JUN-2019 174 20-Nov-14 10.00 7.00 23-OCT-2019 188 4-Dec-14 10.00 16.39 27-JAN-2022 223 8-Jan-15 10.00 237 22-Jan-15 10.00 14.20 14-MAR-2024 251 5-Feb-15 10.00 15.00 28-NOV-2028 265 19-Feb-15 10.00 12.49 22-MAY-2029 279 5-Mar-15 10.00 8.50 20-NOV-2029 314 9-Apr-15 10.00 10.00 23-JUL-2030 328 23-Apr-15 10.00 *from theOUTSTANDING Amortising TOTAL VALUE # bonds, the average life is Risk Premium is a combination of credit risk and liquidity risk premiums **Exclusive of non-trading t.bills

Rating/Agency

AMCON FMBN

***LCRM

Modified Duration Buckets

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE Sub-National Bonds A/Agusto A-/GCR A+/Agusto A/Agusto Nil A+/Agusto A+/Agusto; A+/GCR A-/Agusto A/Agusto A+/Agusto; A+/GCR A-/Agusto; A-/GCR A/Agusto; A-/GCR†

Description

Issuer

Agency Bonds

<3 3<5 KWARA >5 NIGER Market KADUNA *EBONYI *BENUE *IMO LAGOS *BAYELSA EDO *DELTA NIGER *EKITI

9.35 9.75 9.80 9.80 8.35 9.65 Issue Date 9.85 9.75 29-Jun-07 9.75 28-Sep-07 9.75 23-Apr-10 9.75 16-Aug-13 9.75 27-Apr-12 9.75 9.75 27-Jul-07 9.75 31-Aug-07 9.75 30-May-08 9.75 29-Jun-12 9.75 23-Oct-09 9.75 27-Jan-12 9.75 9.75 14-Mar-14 9.75 28-Nov-08 9.75 22-May-09 9.75 20-Nov-09 9.75 23-Jul-10 9.75

954.27 1,094.50 14.00 KWARA 5-AUG-2014 473.25 14.00 NIGER 15-OCT-2014 2,522.03 12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015 13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015 14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016 15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016 10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017 13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017 14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017 14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018 14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018 14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018

Volume(Bn)

923.07 951.30 591.57 2,465.94

NIBOR

Bonds

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

(N'bn)

28-Dec-11 24-May-10 03-Apr-12 09-Dec-11 20-Apr-12 Weighting by 06-Jul-12 Vol Outstanding

Rate (%) 11.3750 12.5896 13.6077 14.5600 Maturity Date

45.00 100.00 NITTY 535.00 Tenor 470.27 1M 452.80 2M 3M 20.00 6M 100.00 9M 300.00 12M 351.30 233.90 600.00 NIFEX 110.00 Current Price ($/N) 75.00 BID($/N) 150.00 OFFER ($/N) 200.00 591.57

29-Jun-14 28-Sep-14 23-Apr-15 Rate (%) 16-Aug-16 10.1750 27-Apr-17 10.2212 11.0955 27-Jul-17 11.6962 31-Aug-17 12.0436 30-May-18 12.4260 29-Jun-19 23-Oct-19 27-Jan-22 14-Mar-24 28-Nov-28 162.4825 22-May-29 162.5825 20-Nov-29 23-Jul-30

OBB

10.92

Tenor

Bid ($/N)

O/N

11.17

Spot 7D Offer14D Yield 1M (%) 2M 3M 8.58 6M 9.97 1Y

162.71 162.62 162.86 163.50 Bid Price 164.56 165.66 99.87 169.63 99.57 177.19

REPO Tenor (%)(%) TTM (Yrs) BidRate Yield Call

11.50

1M 12.47 0.08 10.35 3M 13.38 0.33 10.43 6M 14.10 0.90 10.79 10.17 2.21 12.47 12.39 NOTE: 2.91 12.64 12.58 :Benchmarks 3.16 12.59 12.47 * :Amortising Bond 3.26 12.59 12.47 µ :Convertible Bond 4.00 12.62 12.52 AMCON: Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria 5.08 12.74 12.66 FGN: Federal Government of Nigeria 5.40 Mortgage Bank 12.68of Nigeria 12.59 FMBN: Federal 7.66 12.85 12.79 IFC: International Finance Corporation LCRM: Local Management 9.79 Contractors Receivables 12.91 12.86 NAHCO:14.50 Nigerian Aviation 12.91 Handling Company 12.87 O/N: Overnight 14.98 12.92 12.87 UPDC: UAC Property Development Company 15.48 12.92 12.86 WAPCO:West Africa Portland Cement Company 16.15 12.98 12.93

Offer ($/N)

Price

162.81 162.87 163.20 Offer Price 164.15 165.89 167.65 100.02 173.14 99.72 183.83

94.32 94.82 101.05 101.20 105.80 105.95 NA :Not Applicable 93.00 93.30 # :Floating Rate Bond 91.52 91.82 ***: Deferred coupon bonds 94.11 94.41 111.90 112.20 †: Bond rating expired 78.26 78.56 116.90 117.20 107.00 107.30 NGC:113.53 Nigeria-German 113.83 Company UBA: 97.19 United Bank for Africa 97.49 70.70 71.00 80.00 80.30

4,334.84

Issue Date

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

9.62 10.06 10.13 10.14 8.68 10.03(%) Coupon 10.26 10.17 9.20 10.19 9.25 10.21 4.00 10.23 13.05 10.25 15.10 10.27 10.29 9.85 10.31 9.35 10.33 10.70 10.38 16.00 10.50 7.00 10.54 16.39 10.65 10.69 14.20 10.74 15.00 10.78 12.49 10.83 8.50 10.94 10.00 10.99

Issue Value (N'bn)

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

Risk Premium (%)

Valuation Yield (%)

Indicative Price

0.00

978.35

17.25 0.00/16.00 0.00/16.50 Weighting by Mkt 0.00/16.50 Value

6.00 112.22 116.70 Bucket66.49 Weighting

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

0.42 0.98 1.47 2.53 2.89 Implied 3.10Yield

1.00 2.63 2.27 2.00 3.20 Implied 1.00 Price Portfolio

11.49 13.48 13.72 14.36 15.73 INDEX 13.59

95.41 87.96 104.81 95.51 88.50 YTD Return 90.80 (%)

0.00 BOND INDEX 24.56 FMDQ FGN

37.43 38.58 05-Aug-09 23.99 15-Oct-09 100.00 31-Aug-10 30-Sep-10 30-Jun-11 30-Jun-09 19-Apr-10 30-Jun-10 30-Dec-10 30-Sep-11 04-Oct-11 09-Dec-11

Coupon (%)

37.84 43.40 14.00 18.76 14.00 100.00 12.50 13.00 14.00 15.50 10.00 13.75 14.00 14.00 14.00 14.50

1,304.32 0.37 0.39 17.00 0.24 6.00 1.00 8.50 16.50 13.00 18.50 57.00 50.00 25.00 50.00 9.00 20.00

19.67 39.25 05-Aug-14 41.08 15-Oct-14 100.00 31-Aug-15 30-Sep-15 30-Jun-16 30-Jun-16 19-Apr-17 30-Jun-17 31-Dec-17 30-Sep-18 04-Oct-18 09-Dec-18

12.57 12.82 0.1812.98 0.38 12.84 1.25 0.86 1.15 1.16 2.89 1.72 3.59 2.56 4.35 2.56

112.9879 126.2509 1.56 88.5899 1.34 112.2515 4.44 3.23 4.46 3.48 5.59 1.00 1.79 1.80 1.00 1.00

1,073.15 1,069.04 11.95 1,072.45 11.81 1,065.12 15.61 14.00 15.51 14.54 18.12 12.76 14.40 14.18 13.63 13.38

7.3155 6.9045 100.28 7.2453 100.72 6.5121 96.52 99.70 98.51 101.36 82.30 101.73 98.88 99.81 101.12 102.46

Daily Summary as of 30/05/2014 Printed 30/05/2014 15:20:12.012

Daily Summary (Equities) Activity Summary on Board EQTY FINANCIAL SERVICES Other Financial Institutions CUSTODIAN AND ALLIED PLC FBN HOLDINGS PLC FCMB GROUP PLC. ROYAL EXCHANGE PLC. SIM CAPITAL ALLIANCE VALUE FUND STANBIC IBTC HOLDINGS PLC UBA CAPITAL PLC Other Financial Institutions Totals

Symbol CUSTODYINS FBNH FCMB ROYALEX SIMCAPVAL STANBIC UBCAP

No. of Deals 74 516 134 5 3 41 130 953

Current Price 3.25 15.30 4.30 0.53 98.33 23.77 2.51

Quantity Traded 23,758,971 36,305,693 25,199,940 86,768 1,500,000 3,493,037 12,087,161 102,893,401

Value Traded 75,253,456.79 553,893,758.27 108,141,012.53 45,891.04 147,495,000.00 82,841,520.90 30,131,388.21 999,303,241.68

523,775,750

7,236,864,219.10

Quantity Traded 31,101,865 15,030 265,500 187,926 31,570,321

Value Traded 93,106,475.80 1,023,450.95 471,154.00 199,184.52 94,800,265.27

31,570,321

94,800,265.27

Quantity Traded 811,500 811,500

Value Traded 481,285.00 481,285.00

BUSINESS | CAPITAL MARKET 39

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, 2, 2014 Daily SummaryJune as of 30/05/2014

Printed 30/05/2014 15:20:12.012

The Nigerian Stock Market Exchange as at May 30, 2014 Daily Summary (Bonds)

Activity Summary on Board DEBT

FINANCIAL SERVICES Totals

Federal

Bond Name 14.20% FGN MAR 2024 Federal Totals

Symbol FG112024S1

No. of Deals 1 1

DEBT Board Totals

Current Price 108.50

Bond Activity Totals

Quantity Traded 100 100

Value Traded 111,626.54 111,626.54

100

111,626.54

100

111,626.54

Daily Summary (Equities) Activity Summary on Board EQTY AGRICULTURE Crop Production FTN COCOA PROCESSORS PLC OKOMU OIL PALM PLC. PRESCO Daily Summary as ofPLC 30/05/2014 Crop Production Totals Printed 30/05/2014 15:20:12.012

Symbol FTNCOCOA OKOMUOIL PRESCO

Livestock/Animal Specialties LIVESTOCK FEEDS PLC. Livestock/Animal Specialties Totals

No. of Deals 1 38 9 48

Current Price 0.50 33.10 36.00

Quantity Traded 200 572,480 67,800 640,480

Value Traded 100.00 18,902,098.38 2,482,273.00 21,384,471.38

No. of Deals 32 32 Daily Summary (Equities)

Current Price 3.16

Quantity Traded 968,524 968,524

Value Traded 2,999,402.78 2,999,402.78

1,609,004

24,383,874.16

Symbol LIVESTOCK

AGRICULTURE Totals

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

CONGLOMERATES Diversified Industries A.G. LEVENTIS NIGERIA PLC. Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © JOHN HOLT PLC. TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATION OF NIGERIA PLC U A C N PLC. Diversified Industries Totals

Symbol AGLEVENT JOHNHOLT TRANSCORP UACN

No. of Deals 4 1 198 73 276

CONGLOMERATES Totals

276

CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Building Structure/Completion/Other COSTAIN (W A) PLC. G CAPPA PLC Building Structure/Completion/Other Totals

Symbol COSTAIN GCAPPA

Daily Summary as of 30/05/2014 Infrastructure/Heavy Construction Printed 30/05/2014 15:20:12.012 JULIUS BERGER NIG. PLC. Infrastructure/Heavy Construction Totals Real Estate Development UACN PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT CO. LIMITED Real Estate Development Totals

Food Products DANGOTE FLOUR MILLS PLC DANGOTE SUGAR REFINERY PLC FLOUR MILLS NIG. PLC. HONEYWELL FLOUR MILL PLC Daily SummaryNATIONAL as of 30/05/2014 SALT CO. NIG. PLC Printed 30/05/2014 U T 15:20:12.012 C NIG. PLC. Food Products Totals

Personal/Household Products P Z CUSSONS NIGERIA PLC. UNILEVER NIGERIA PLC. Personal/Household Products Totals

Value Traded 7,811,896.70 7,811,896.70

Symbol

No. of Deals 21 21

Current Price 17.93

Quantity Traded 253,020 253,020

Value Traded 4,536,223.48 4,536,223.48

1,386,355

13,655,751.98

Current Price 13.79 179.99 26.01 176.09

Quantity Traded Value Traded 100 1,311.00 584,313Page 104,968,938.77 2 of 11 330,162 8,580,372.00 11,364,036 1,996,412,764.31 12,278,611 2,109,963,386.08

Symbol 7UP

No. of Deals 22 22

Current Price 85.80

Quantity Traded 97,230 97,230

Value Traded 8,626,746.10 8,626,746.10

Symbol DANGFLOUR DANGSUGAR FLOURMILL HONYFLOUR NASCON UTC

No. of Deals 27 101 92 61 77 1 359

Current Price 8.00 9.99 76.65 4.00 12.98 0.53

Quantity Traded 248,533 3,628,886 4,032,639 2,445,604 2,093,270 200 12,449,132

Value Traded 1,968,854.80 35,605,769.61 308,542,796.45 9,760,173.37 27,319,471.79 110.00 383,197,176.02

No. of Deals 30 100 130

Current Price 75.31 1,073.00

Quantity Traded 89,050 346,272 435,322

Value Traded 6,946,375.98 373,099,370.12 380,045,746.10

Value Traded 3 of 11 3,066.00 2,327,291.49

Symbol PZ UNILEVER

No. of Deals 40 60 100

Current Price 36.00 49.99

Quantity Traded 449,573 1,605,723 2,055,296

Value Traded 16,058,808.99 79,870,356.01 95,929,165.00

27,873,422

2,980,092,576.79

Quantity Traded 74,774,833 35,925,467 11,463,665 20,281,132 91,400,082 22,557,273 40,054,688 31,173,648 1,252,346 1,019,132 3,294,338

Value Traded 750,460,426.45 242,164,562.97 192,492,372.52 42,738,721.22 2,721,005,885.73 82,256,508.76 93,292,289.48 237,817,608.14 13,174,952.41 509,566.00 3,144,643.87

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

Page

Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ZENITH INTERNATIONAL BANK PLC Banking Totals Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services AIICO INSURANCE PLC. CONTINENTAL REINSURANCE PLC CORNERSTONE INSURANCE COMPANY PLC. CONSOLIDATED HALLMARK INSURANCE PLC INTERNATIONAL ENERGY INSURANCE COMPANY PLC MANSARD INSURANCE PLC N.E.M INSURANCE CO (NIG) PLC. NIGER INSURANCE CO. PLC. OASIS INSURANCE PLC PRESTIGE ASSURANCE CO. PLC. SOVEREIGN TRUST INSURANCE PLC UNITY KAPITAL ASSURANCE PLC WAPIC INSURANCE PLC Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services Totals Daily Summary as of 30/05/2014 Micro-Finance Banks Printed 30/05/2014 15:20:12.012 NPF MICROFINANCE BANK PLC Micro-Finance Banks Totals Other Financial Institutions AFRICA PRUDENTIAL REGISTRARS PLC

No. of Deals 368 2,272

Current Price 25.40

Quantity Traded 73,126,060 406,322,664

Value Traded 1,846,582,573.03 6,225,640,110.58

Symbol AIICO CONTINSURE CORNERST HMARKINS INTENEGINS MANSARD NEM NIGERINS OASISINS PRESTIGE SOVRENINS UNITYKAP WAPIC

No. of Deals 34 7 5 2 3 2 52 4 3 12 1 1 37 163

Current Price 0.82 1.05 0.50 0.50 0.50 2.44 0.86 0.50 0.52 0.53 0.50 0.50 0.79

Quantity Traded 2,423,483 2,507,480 693,160 3,000 100,000 65,000 4,356,593 98,998 605,000 728,924 1,000 23,000 2,921,471 14,527,109

Value Traded 2,009,785.22 2,645,365.30 346,580.00 1,500.00 50,000.00 158,600.00 3,682,558.76 49,499.00 314,600.00 387,999.72 500.00 11,500.00 2,228,931.32 11,887,419.32

Symbol NPFMCRFBK

No. of Deals 4 4

Current Price 1.12

Quantity Traded 32,576 32,576

Value Traded 33,447.52 33,447.52

Symbol

No. of Deals 50

Current Price 3.23

Quantity Traded 461,831

Value Traded 1,501,213.94

Daily Summary (Equities) AFRIPRUD

Page

Symbol CUSTODYINS FBNH FCMB ROYALEX SIMCAPVAL STANBIC UBCAP

FINANCIAL SERVICES Totals HEALTHCARE Pharmaceuticals FIDSON HEALTHCARE PLC GLAXO SMITHKLINE CONSUMER NIG. PLC. MAY & BAKER NIGERIA PLC. NEIMETH INTERNATIONAL PHARMACEUTICALS PLC Pharmaceuticals Totals

No. of Deals 74 516 134 5 3 41 130 953

Current Price 3.25 15.30 4.30 0.53 98.33 23.77 2.51

3,392 Symbol FIDSON GLAXOSMITH MAYBAKER NEIMETH

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

Symbol ZENITHBANK

Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © Activity Summary on Board EQTY FINANCIAL SERVICES Other Financial Institutions CUSTODIAN AND ALLIED PLC FBN HOLDINGS PLC FCMB GROUP PLC. ROYAL EXCHANGE PLC. SIM CAPITAL ALLIANCE VALUE FUND STANBIC IBTC HOLDINGS PLC UBA CAPITAL PLC Other Financial Institutions Totals

2,330,357.49

No. of Deals 30 11 18 9 68

Current Price 2.80 68.15 1.78 1.07

68 Symbol COURTVILLE

No. of Deals 15 15

Current Price 0.60

Quantity Traded 23,758,971 36,305,693 25,199,940 86,768 1,500,000 3,493,037 12,087,161 102,893,401

Value Traded 75,253,456.79 553,893,758.27 108,141,012.53 45,891.04 147,495,000.00 82,841,520.90 30,131,388.21 999,303,241.68

523,775,750

7,236,864,219.10

Quantity Traded 31,101,865 15,030 265,500 187,926 31,570,321

Value Traded 93,106,475.80 1,023,450.95 471,154.00 199,184.52 94,800,265.27

31,570,321

94,800,265.27

Quantity Traded 811,500 811,500

Value Traded 481,285.00 481,285.00

Tools and Machinery NIGERIAN ROPES PLC Tools and Machinery Totals

No. of Deals 30 11 18 9 68

Symbol COURTVILLE

No. of Deals 15 15

Daily Summary (Equities)

Current Price 0.60

Page Symbol CWG NCR

No. of Deals 1 1 2

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

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

SERVICES Automobile/Auto Part Retailers R T BRISCOE PLC. Automobile/Auto Part Retailers Totals Courier/Freight/Delivery Daily Summary as of 30/05/2014 RED STAR EXPRESS PLC Printed 30/05/2014 15:20:12.012 TRANS-NATIONWIDE EXPRESS PLC. Courier/Freight/Delivery Totals Employment Solutions C & I LEASING PLC. Employment Solutions Totals

Symbol ASHAKACEM BERGER CAP CCNN DANGCEM DNMEYER IPWA PAINTCOM PORTPAINT WAPCO

Quantity Traded 2,000 700 2,700

Value Traded 10,420.00 10,640.00 21,060.00

814,200

502,345.00

No. of Deals 77 13 9 34 62 4 1 8 5 56 (Equities) 269

Current Price 22.47 10.00 37.51 10.35 235.00 1.06 0.52 1.40 5.00 112.50

Quantity Traded 2,905,551 27,296 10,857 842,022 1,463,002 6,334 9,770 380,000 30,000 1,303,163 6,977,995

Value Traded 65,163,043.19 283,120.20 408,792.38 8,724,940.80 332,629,698.90 6,997.40 5,080.40 533,518.00 154,000.00 146,429,993.31 554,339,184.58

Symbol

No. of Deals

Current Price

Quantity Traded

Value Traded

Symbol CUTIX

No. of Deals 8 8

Current Price 1.82

Symbol BETAGLAS

No. of Deals 2 2

Current Price 16.22

Quantity Traded 219,490 219,490 Page Quantity Traded 110 110

Value Traded 400,443.80 400,443.80 7 of 11 Value Traded 1,762.50 1,762.50

Symbol NIGROPES

No. of Deals 1 1

Current Price 7.46

Daily Summary

Quantity Traded 30 30

Value Traded 212.70 212.70

7,197,625

554,741,603.58

280 Symbol JAPAULOIL

No. of Deals 3 3

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 103,500 103,500

Value Traded 51,750.00 51,750.00

Symbol OANDO

No. of Deals 312 312

Current Price 18.21

Quantity Traded 12,961,551 12,961,551

Value Traded 239,643,185.16 239,643,185.16

Symbol BECOPETRO CONOIL ETERNA

No. of Deals 1 46 27

Current Price 0.50 48.41 3.51

Quantity Traded 80,450 359,386 427,248

Value Traded 40,225.00 17,582,892.64 1,479,648.22

Symbol FO MOBIL MRS TOTAL

No. of Deals 80 40 1 33 228

Current Price 213.88 129.98 51.49 166.05

Quantity Traded 446,939 674,286 3,000 1,331,430 3,322,739

Value Traded 95,259,622.12 84,888,120.44 146,760.00 220,905,953.75 420,303,222.17

Symbol SEPLAT

No. of Deals 51 51

Current Price 658.95

Quantity Traded 234,632 234,632

Value Traded 150,903,850.79 150,903,850.79

16,622,422

810,902,008.12

Daily Summary (Equities)

Page

594

Symbol RTBRISCOE

No. of Deals 15 15

Current Price 1.04

Quantity Traded 139,113 139,113

Value Traded 141,465.85 141,465.85

Symbol REDSTAREX TRANSEXPR

No. of Deals 4 3 7

Current Price 4.55 2.20

Quantity Traded 118,226 57,500 175,726

Value Traded 534,517.00 120,175.00 654,692.00

No. of Deals 3 3

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 550,200 550,200

Value Traded 275,100.00 275,100.00

Symbol Daily Summary CILEASING

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

Current Price 5.48 15.99

OIL AND GAS Totals

Current Price 2.80 68.15 1.78 1.07

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Totals

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

Quantity Traded 100Page 557,731 557,831

Current Price 10.10 6.70 16.80 2.10 29.92 3.53 2.40 7.67 10.56 0.50 0.93

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials ASHAKA CEM PLC BERGER PAINTS PLC CAP PLC CEMENT CO. OF NORTH.NIG. PLC DANGOTE CEMENT PLC Daily Summary as of 30/05/2014 DN MEYER PLC. Printed 30/05/2014 15:20:12.012 IPWA PLC PAINTS AND COATINGS MANUFACTURES PLC PORTLAND PAINTS & PRODUCTS NIGERIA PLC LAFARGE WAPCO PLC. Building Materials Totals

Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © OIL AND GAS Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors FORTE OIL PLC. MOBIL OIL NIG PLC. MRS OIL NIGERIA PLC. TOTAL NIGERIA PLC. Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors Totals

Current Price 32.27 4.22

Symbol FIDSON GLAXOSMITH MAYBAKER NEIMETH

ICT Totals

Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors BECO PETROLEUM PRODUCT PLC CONOIL PLC ETERNA PLC.

No. of Deals 1 21 22

Symbol No. of Deals ACCESS 296 DIAMONDBNK 83 ETI 122 FIDELITYBK 130 GUARANTY 484 SKYEBANK 181 STERLNBANK 146 UBA 328 UBN 82 UNITYBNK 7 Daily Summary (Equities) 45 WEMABANK

ICT IT Services COMPUTER WAREHOUSE GROUP PLC NCR (NIGERIA) PLC. IT Services Totals

Integrated Oil and Gas Services Daily Summary as of 30/05/2014 OANDO PLC Printed 30/05/2014 15:20:12.012 Integrated Oil and Gas Services Totals

Symbol ENAMELWA VITAFOAM

3,392

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Electronic and Electrical Products CUTIX PLC. Electronic and Electrical Products Totals Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © Packaging/Containers BETA GLASS CO PLC. Packaging/Containers Totals

No. of Deals 1 74 26 191 292

925

Daily Summary as of 30/05/2014 HEALTHCARE Totals Printed 30/05/2014 15:20:12.012 ICT Computer Based Systems COURTEVILLE BUSINESS SOLUTIONS PLC Computer Based Systems Totals

Electronic and Electrical Activity Summary on BoardProducts EQTY

Symbol CHAMPION GUINNESS INTBREW NB

CONSUMER GOODS Totals FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ACCESS BANK PLC. DIAMOND BANK PLC ECOBANK TRANSNATIONAL INCORPORATED FIDELITY BANK PLC GUARANTY TRUST BANK PLC. SKYE BANK PLC Daily Summary as of 30/05/2014 STERLING15:20:12.012 BANK PLC. Printed 30/05/2014 UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA PLC UNION BANK NIG.PLC. UNITY BANK PLC WEMA BANK PLC.

Value Traded 1,238,657.00 68,974.80 1,307,631.80

Quantity Traded 101,715 101,715

Symbol

Household Durables Totals

Quantity Traded 1,026,600 5,020 1,031,620

Current Price 75.49

NESTLE

CONSUMER GOODS

118,039,645.28

No. of Deals 40 40

DailyCADBURY Summary (Equities)

15,179,441

Symbol JBERGER

Beverages--Non-Alcoholic 7-UP BOTTLING COMP. PLC. Beverages--Non-Alcoholic Totals

Value Traded 162,150.00 1 of 11 6,325.00 54,015,254.56 63,855,915.72 118,039,645.28

Current Price 1.29 14.46

DailyUAC-PROP Summary (Equities)

CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Totals CONSUMER GOODS Beverages--Brewers/Distillers CHAMPION BREW. PLC. GUINNESS NIG PLC Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © INTERNATIONAL BREWERIES PLC. NIGERIAN BREW. PLC. Beverages--Brewers/Distillers Totals

Quantity Traded 115,000 Page 5,500 14,075,233 983,708 15,179,441

No. of Deals 17 2 19

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

Food Products--Diversified CADBURY NIGERIA PLC. NESTLE NIGERIA PLC. Food Products--Diversified Totals Activity Summary on Board EQTY

Current Price 1.41 1.15 3.90 65.00

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

(Equities)

Page

Hotels/Lodging IKEJA HOTEL PLC TOURIST COMPANY OF NIGERIA PLC. Hotels/Lodging Totals

Symbol IKEJAHOTEL TOURIST

No. of Deals 12 1 13

Current Price 0.90 3.88

Quantity Traded 315,848 50 315,898

Value Traded 280,977.20 184.50 281,161.70

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

Symbol LEARNAFRCA UPL

No. of Deals 3 16 19

Current Price 1.75 4.04

Quantity Traded 18,900 158,697 177,597

Value Traded 33,828.00 649,739.68 683,567.68

Road Transportation ASSOCIATED BUS COMPANY PLC Road Transportation Totals

Symbol ABCTRANS

No. of Deals 11 11

Current Price 0.82

Quantity Traded 614,910 614,910

Value Traded 500,777.10 500,777.10

Specialty SECURE ELECTRONIC TECHNOLOGY PLC Specialty Totals

Symbol NSLTECH

No. of Deals 4 4

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 40,000,700 40,000,700

Value Traded 20,000,350.00 20,000,350.00

Transport-Related Services AIRLINE SERVICES AND LOGISTICS PLC NIGERIAN AVIATION HANDLING COMPANY PLC Transport-Related Services Totals

Symbol AIRSERVICE NAHCO

No. of Deals 3 46 49

Current Price 2.09 5.00

Quantity Traded 150,300 2,182,757 2,333,057

Value Traded 314,630.00 10,894,536.98 11,209,166.98

Symbol CAVERTON

No. of Deals 36 36

Current Price 5.41

Quantity Traded 924,279 924,279

Value Traded 5,006,632.89 5,006,632.89

Daily Summary as of 30/05/2014 Support and Logistics Printed 30/05/2014 15:20:12.012

CAVERTON OFFSHORE SUPPORT GRP PLC Support and Logistics Totals

Daily Summary (Equities)

Page

Activity Summary on Board EQTY SERVICES SERVICES Totals

157

45,231,480

38,752,914.20

EQTY Board Totals

5,869

671,260,020

11,872,735,203.48

Equity Activity Totals

5,869

671,260,020

11,872,735,203.48

Daily Summary (ETP) Exchange Traded Fund

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

Symbol NEWGOLD VETGRIF30

No. of Deals 1 3 4

Current Price 1,977.00 19.12

Quantity Traded 20 31,010 31,030

Value Traded 39,540.00 589,191.20 628,731.20

ETF Board Totals

31,030

628,731.20

ETP Activity Totals

31,030

628,731.20

Page

40 BUSINESS | INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

Nigeria fertile for business, investment Emmanuel Excel Ogbeide

o doubt, several business and investment opportunities abound in Nigeria – from education to agriculture, to construction and real estate, travel and tourism to name a few. Even though the Federal Government has a lot to do in the area of peace and security as well as favourable trade policies that will improve business climates; still, opportunities abound for businesses to flourish in the country. Please keep in touch with this column for insightful analysis of several business and investment opportunities that are available to both local and foreign direct investors. There are quite a number of reasons anyone should consider investing and doing business in Nigeria. One is the fact that Nigeria is a virgin land for lucrative businesses and of-

fers good return on investment to investors across all sectors; the largest economy in Africa and one of the fastest growing economies in the world, according to the Statistics Bureau of Nigeria. No wonder it is a choice destination for smart companies from other countries of the world like South Africa, and Turkey, among others. Also, the market is large as there are over 150 million people in the country who are potential clients/consumers for products or services, and the number is still growing daily. Another very good reason Nigeria is fertile for business activities is the fact that there are yet many challenges (problems) begging for solution, but business is all about creating solutions. There are several needs in the country; for instance, farmers need help to enhance their production processes, companies now find it more profit-

people to see business opportunities around from the micro and small scale to the medium and large scale enterprises. It pays to do business in Nigeria.

Ogbeide

able to outsource tasks; the education sector needs serious revamping; the export industry is under-served, and so on. In my consulting sessions over the years, I have helped many

The challenges As a matter of fact, investing in and doing business in Nigeria has its own attendant challenges. Some of them include inadequate infrastructure, poor power supply, security of lives and property, inconsistent government policies and lack of government support, inadequate transport system and lack of access to finance, to name just a few. But then, these challenges do not completely override the possibility of doing business and making profit in Nigeria. While on the investor’s and business person’s part, there are measures that could be taken to minimize the negative impact of these challenges on the business, economic re-

forms are also currently ongoing at both the federal and state levels to ensure that the business environment gets better for all. With time, better business climate would evolve and profit from business would increase. Doing business in Nigeria, whether it is at the micro, small, medium or large scale is a venture in which all stakeholders win because government will earn tax, the investors will make profits, many will get employed and earn a livelihood and everybody will be happy. Hence we encourage everybody to start up new business ventures in Nigeria. Even though there are few challenges, the challenges do not absolutely override the profitability factor in the businesses you have in view if you consult widely enough. Ogbeide, who writes from Lagos, can be reached at excelogbeide@yahoo.com

GLOBAL NEWS

Siemens to save $1.34bn, lays off 11,600

L-R: Music entrepreneur and Beats co-founder Jimmy Iovine, Chief Executive Officer, Apple, Tim Cook, Beats co-founder Dr. Dre, and Apple senior vice president, Eddy Cue, at Apple headquarters in Cupertino, Calif.

Japan inflation rate at 23-year high

onsumer prices in Japan rose at their fastest pace in 23 years in April, following an increase in sales tax. Prices rose 3.2 per cent compared with the same period last year, beating analysts’ forecasts of a 3.1 per cent jump. Government raised its sales tax rate from five per cent to eight per cent on April 1. Japan has been battling deflation, or falling prices, for best part of the past two decades, and policymakers have said that ending that cycle is key to reviving the country’s economy. Falling consumer prices hurt domestic demand as consumers and businesses tend to put off purchases in the hope of getting a cheaper deal later on. Consumer spending has declined as expected in April, but this is likely to be minor blip and will not affect the on-going

recovery. The Japanese government has taken various steps over the past few months to try and reverse this trend, and have set a target of a two per cent inflation rate. The measures, which include boosting the country’s money supply, have started to have an impact and consumer prices in the country have now risen for 11 months in a row. It is hoped that once prices start to rise, it may force consumers and business to spend more money and not hold back on purchases, as they may have to pay more later on. But there have been some concerns that higher inflation may trigger a decline in spending. Data released at the weekend showed that household spending fell 4.6 per cent in April, compared to a year earlier.

That follows a 4.4 per cent decline in retail sales during the month. However, analysts said that the decline in spending was in part due to consumers rushing to make purchases ahead of the tax rise. That had been evident in March, when sales surged 11 per cent - the fastest pace of growth since March 1997. Martin Schulz of Fujitsu Research Institute said: “Consumer spending has declined as expected in April, but this is likely to be minor blip and will not affect the on-going recovery. Both consumer spending and retail sales will start rising in the latter half of the year.” Schulz added that government needs to introduce reforms in every sectors of the economy for the recovery to sustain in the long run.

hief executive officer, Siemens AG, Joe Kaeser, has said that the Europe’s largest engineering company will eliminate at least 11,600 positions as it cuts about 1 billion euros ($1.34 billion) in costs. The planned cuts which represent as much as three per cent of the workforce, include 7,600 that will go as the company aims to create a leaner divisional structure. “Another 4,000 positions will be cut as the company simplifies regional operations,” he said. Some of the employees will be assigned other roles. Kaeser said: “A certain amount of people do stuff for coordinating things, analysing things. About 20 per cent of those we believe can be put to work

elsewhere, but not there. They can be taken out of the system because the work goes away.” Kaeser’s plan to cut jobs at Munich-based Siemens may anger German unions after he promised French government this month that he would guarantee jobs there for three years if the company buys the energy assets of Alstom SA. US rival, General Electric Co. (GE), offered $17 billion for the maker of France’s power grid and promised government that it will create 1,000 jobs in the country. Siemens which plans to make a counterbid by June 16 has proposed swapping its train-making business for Alstom’s energy assets to create two leading European companies in rail and energy.

South Africa trade gap widens, exports decline

outh Africa’s trade deficit widened in April as a wage strike in the nation’s mining industry limited exports and vehicle shipments dropped. The trade gap reached 13.03 billion rand ($1.2 billion) compared to a revised 11.9 billionrand shortfall in March, the Pretoria-based South African Revenue Service said. The median estimate of 15 economists surveyed by Bloomberg was for a deficit of 11.3 billion rand. South Africa’s government is leading talks with platinum companies and the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union to end a stoppage that’s halted production at the world’s biggest producers. Over 70,000 workers at Anglo American Platinum Ltd. Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. (IMP) and Lonmin Plc (LMI) have been on strike over pay since January 23.

Mining output in the first quarter plunged 24.7 per cent, the biggest drop in almost half a century, dragging the economy to its first contraction since a recession in 2009. The value of platinum exports, largely from company stockpiles, of 5.03 billion rand in April was 15 per cent lower than same month a year earlier. Head of South African research at Renaissance BJM Securities, Thabi Leoka, said: “The number is quite bad and we expect the trend to continue because the first quarter numbers did not reflect the full extent of the mining strike as companies were still operating on inventories. “We are worried now of an impact on a worsening current account and the risk of a downgrade in December due to disruptions in the platinum sector and slower growth,” she said.

ENTREPRENEUR

MONDAY, JUNE 2, 2014

rom fresh faces to billionaires, entrepreneurs make up 20% of this year’s 100 Most Powerful Women list. Their impact reaches business, media and philanthropy, and over the last year, many have leveraged their top-tier status for the greater good of social causes. The list is FORBES magazine’s definitive annual guide to the extraordinary icons and leaders, ground breakers and ceiling crashers who command the world stage. These Power Women are setting an strong example for the 8.6 million women-led businesses in America, a perfectly timed model as female entrepreneurs are feeling better than ever about their business outlook. But it’s a combination of their risks, rewards and remarkable talents have landed these 20 ladies among the power elite, and they’ve built more than few successful business models while making their climb to the top.

Melinda Gates (No. 3) Since founding the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation with her husband, Melinda has pushed for giving in its greatest numbers. With more than $3.4 billion in giving for 2012 and $26 billion in grant commitments since 1998, her work has inspired big donors and global collaboration.

Beyonce Knowles-Carter (No. 17) Thinking “we should all be feminists,” Beyonce used her voice over the last year to push for gender equality and empow-

newtelegraphonline.com/entrepreneur

BIODUN DUROJAIYE 08023015582 biodun.durojaiye@newtelegraphonline.com biodunduro@gmail.com

The world's most powerful female entrepreneurs of 2014 erment. On top of a successful music career, the icon previously launched fashion label House of Dereon (2004) and shop.beyonce.com (2012).

Laurene Powell Jobs (No. 29) Jobs has her sights set on education, founding Emerson Collective, which helps underresourced students, and College Track, a nonprofit college completion program.

with a 242% profit spike in the first half of 2013. Diane von Furstenberg (No. 68) Von Furstenberg’s designs are sold in more than 55 countries today, but the billionaire didn’t stop there. Along with her husband, Barry Diller, she runs the Diller-von Furstenberg Family Foundation, offering grants to various organizations. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw (No. 92) Mazumdar-Shaw became India’s first biotech entrepreneur in 1978 when she founded Biocon. Now, worth $655 million, she’s also the first female chair of the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore.

Cher Wang (No. 54) Wang is taking a more active role in the day-to-day at HTC in the hopes of turning around the company’s sales figures. She cofounded the company in 1997 with Peter Chou, and debuted the company’s first phone, HTC One (M8), to launch with all four major carriers this year. Tory Burch (No. 79) Burch’s impact goes beyond her well-known line of readyto-wear. Along with Bank of America, the billionaire fashionista recently launched Elizabeth Street Capital to help women entrepreneurs get access to low-cost capital.

Sofia Vergara (No. 32) Vergara’s Latin World Entertainment, a talent management and media company, pulled in an estimated $35 million in revenue. She also launched a social networking site, NuevoWorld, to help Latino celebrities better connect with their fans. Wu Yajun (No. 41) With more than 10,000 employees, Wu’s Beijing real estate firm, Langfor, jumped in contracted sales to $7.9 billion last year. Revenue climbed nearly 5% to $2.5 billion.

Oprah Winfrey (No. 14) While still supporting the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa, Winfrey has also guided double-digit growth for her OWN network so far this year. Bringing in $77 million in earnings for 2013, Winfrey still owes most of her income to her TV show and Harpo production company.

NEW TELEGRAPH

Arianna Huffington (No. 51) Huffington Post welcomed a Japan edition this year as the media mogul’s news site continues to grow. It has also seen international expansion in Canada, U.K., France, Spain and Italy.

Shakira Mebarak (No. 58) The “most liked” person on Facebook, Shakira founded the Barefoot Foundation and opened its eighth school this year for early education. On top of a successful music career, the Colombian singer has served as a UNICEF ambassador and on the President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics.

Aung San Suu Kyi (No. 61) Aung San Suu Kyi brought democracy to military-ruled Burma, now Myanmar, and has been outspoken about plans to run for president in 2015. Zhang Xin (No. 62) After confounding real estate development firm SOHO China in 1995, Zhang and her husband boosted their net worth 43% last year. The billionaire-couple’s company also skyrocketed

Judy Faulkner (No. 84) Faulkner is at the helm of Epic System’s $1.7 billion (revenue) private healthcare company. She is one of 26 self-made women billionaires ranked by FORBES and coded the original software for Epic in 1979. Hu Shuli (No. 87) Head of one of China’s leading independent news organizations, Caixin Media, Hu has boosted web traffic 37% over the last year and sold a 40% of her media behemoth to China Media Capital in December.

Gisele Bundchen (No. 89) Between gracing the most sought-after glossies, Bundchen designs a collection for Ipanema, an inexpensive flip-flop line. The bombshell has served as a Goodwill Ambassador for the UN Environment Program and on the Rainforest Alliance. This year, Brazil-based lingerie company Hope will launch its first Gisele Bundchen Intimates store.

Sara Blakely (No. 93) Blakely is the world’s youngest self-made entrepreneur, thanks to her line of shaping underwear. She took Spanx from a $5,000 life-savings investment to a one-product powerhouse with more than $250 million in annual revenues. Weili Dai (No. 97) The only female cofounder of a major semiconductor company, Dai added president to her title in July 2013. Marvell saw a 7% increase to $3.4 billion for the fiscal year ending in February, and Dai earned a Gold Stevie Award for Woman of the Year in Technology in 2013.

Folorunsho Alakija (No. 96) Alakija is Africa’s richest woman, founding tailoring company Supreme Stitches, and has worked with high-profile clients like former first lady Maryam Babandiga. Alakija owns a 60% stake in Famfa Oil and founded The Rose of Sharon Foundation to help widows and orphans. -Culled from: Forbes.com

42 BUSINESS | ENTREPRENEUR

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

Young entrepreneurs turn their backs on textbooks Janet Murray

new generation of business people pick up the skills they need at an enterprise academy Despite passing 15 GCSEs with top grades, Harry Day wasn't keen on the idea of academic study. He dropped out of school after one year of doing A-levels in maths, further maths, physics and chemistry to pursue a one-year BTec course in Entrepreneurship and Enterprise at the Peter Jones Enterprise Academy at Solihull College. Two years on, with the backing of an investor, the 19-year-old is about to launch his own fashion label, Harry Day Tailoring, which will specialise in suits and formal wear for young men. "Sitting around looking at textbooks was never my thing," he says. "I feel like I've found my true calling in life." The academy – founded by the entrepreneur and Dragons' Den star Peter Jones – aims to give young people the skills they need to set up and run their own businesses via a range of entrepreneurship courses delivered at around 30 UK colleges. Students are assigned a mentor from the local business community and are encouraged to work on "real life" business ideas. The value of mistakes "We adopt a 'learning by doing' approach and, with business masterclasses, enterprise competitions and work experience placements, the academy allows students to leave

Peter Jones Enterprise Academy students, including Katie Buckingham (third from left) and Harry Day (far right)

college prepared for the 21stcentury workplace," says Alice Barnard, chief executive of the Peter Jones Enterprise Academy. As 20-year-old Katie Buckingham found out, this can be about making mistakes – and learning from them. She initially started a pet supplies business while studying at the academy in Solihull, but realised that if she wanted to build a successful business, it should be rooted in something she was passionate about. So, building on her experience mentoring young people, she set up her company Altruist Enterprises and now provides training to businesses and organisations to help them support employees with mental

John Manning

hether you’re a startup entrepreneur or a seasoned one, you’re probably aware that employee engagement is critical to supporting your company’s immediate and long- term health. But it might surprise you to learn that in a recent Gallup poll of approximately 100 million Americans who hold fulltime jobs, only 30% of workers are truly engaged in their jobs. Meanwhile, a whopping 50% are passively not engaged, and an alarming 20% are actively disengaged or causing detriment to their workplace. In your company, do you know where your employees’ levels of engagement stack up to these Gallup findings? If not, it’s your role as an entrepreneurial leader to do the proper due diligence and find out. If your company’s engagement levels are strong— great! Simply reinforce what you’re doing right. But if there’s room for improvement, strive for greater engagement by aligning your company’s mission with its vital strategies and goals. And then back that corrective action with a commitment to these fundamental strategies for growing employee engagement: Be a leader who effectively inspires. Enthusiasm in the workplace starts with you, but sheer charisma isn’t the only thing you need to get your employees engaged. You need to

I learnt that if you want to succeed, you have to put yourself out there. A lot of people fall at the first hurdle, but the people who get the most out of [the academy] are the ones who get out of their comfort zone health issues. "I learnt that if you want to succeed, you have to put yourself out there. A lot of people

fall at the first hurdle, but the people who get the most out of [the academy] are the ones who get out of their comfort zone." In five years, she'd like to be offering training and consultancy across the UK and has no regrets about not going to university. "It's saved me £40,000 … I don't think you can learn business from a textbook. You have to do it," she says. And as Jan Hodges, chief executive of the education charity Edge points out, helping young people develop enterprise skills – even if they don't end up setting up their own businesses – is still invaluable. "People with an entrepreneurial mindset are

often self starters, creative thinkers and good at problem solving. These are exactly the kind of skills employers are looking for." A can-do attitude Vikesh Mistry started to hone his entrepreneurial skills in his teens. Having noticed that his friends were sneaking out of school to buy fizzy drinks, he started buying cans of coke in bulk and selling them during breaktimes. "The unit cost was about 17p and I sold them at 50p a can, which was quite a tidy profit," he recalls. "I was just fascinated with the idea of making money and creating an enterprise." After completing A-levels in business, 3D design and accounting, Mistry was keen to gain more knowledge of business, but the idea of being "tied down" to a three-year university course didn't appeal. So when he heard about the Peter Jones Enterprise Academy at nearby Leicester College, he jumped at it. By far the best part of the one-year course was being mentored by young entrepreneur Rhys Woodfield, he says. "I'd typically think in terms of what I wanted from my business," says Mistry, "but Rhys helped me change my mindset to become much more customer-focused. He also helped me put things into perspective in terms of what was important and what wasn't." Two years on, Mistry is working full-time on his business – an online service that matches learner drivers with instructors – and loving every minute. He has no regrets about not going down the university route. "I'm making money, I'm happy with my business. I just want to keep on going and put all of my time, effort and energy into making it a success." -Culled from: TheGuardian.com

Creating engagement in the workforce

communicate your company’s goals and the strategies for achieving them with clarity and consistency, too. All of these things combine to create the necessary buy-in of your workers, not to mention their trust in you. When that buy-in takes root, you will successfully grow engagement for individuals and teams alike. Drive decision-making down into the company. Your company’s engagement levels will grow if everyone feels like they play an important role in the decision-making process.

From your top managers on down to the front-line personnel, consider giving everyone decision-making responsibilities. Empower them to develop solutions that are either planning-oriented or that relate to their own challenges. When you assign more of this meaningful type of work (the kind that shows you trust and respect them), employees will start to care more about what they do— and engagement will follow. Put an accountability system in place. Accountability is all about

putting the right performance measurements in place and monitoring those regularly so that you can get timely vitals on all aspects of your company’s health. And while it’s one of the most challenging tools for an entrepreneurial leader to start using, an effective and fair accountability system provides transparency relative to many aspects of the company, including employee engagement. Implemented correctly, the system will naturally reveal what works and what’s broken, who and what needs help, and ultimately, who is and is not engaged. Getting a firm grasp of the latter fact will enable you to address and improve any poor engagement issues. Using these three strategies, make it a goal to inspire, motivate and grow your team by leveraging their talents, experiences and abilities every chance you get. Remember, most people want to do a good job and be recognized for their contributions. They want to feel good about what they’re doing and know that they’re making a difference. If you can create a culture in which all of this is possible, you will reap the rewards of a better workplace, better results and a better you. John Manning is the president of MAP

BUSINESS | ENTREPRENEUR

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

Lessons from the Startup Journey I t was a stereotypical small business startup. The year was 1993. The business idea was to provide presentation-skills training to professionals who believed that competitive advantage was due, at least in part, to the ability to communicate persuasively and confidently. The bank required US$200 to open a business account. That was the startup capital. My first office was a spare bedroom in our Iowa, USA, farmhouse. My two house cats, who I named vice presidents of the company, were my constant companions (at least as constant as you can be when you sleep 16 hours a day). It has been a long time since Tero was about two cats, US$200 and an idea. The Tero International that was flattered with an invitation to join the Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) is a recognized leader in corporate training and boasts a state-of-the-art learning center. The cats are retired, and I am privileged to lead a team of professionals who have delivered training programs in 13 countries. We are proud to include professionals from more than 40 countries among our graduates. Like all leaders, there have been valuable lessons learned on the journey to business success. Here are three: Do things for others when there is “NIIFY.” When we are keenly focused on our goals, we can easily fall victim to self-centered tendencies. We allow the question, “How can this person help me now?,” guide how we spend our time. This narrow perspective can close us to opportunities that might be cleverly hidden in front of us. We never know where our next client, next key employee or next business partner may hail. Many members of the Tero Team, who have shaped

After all, trust is an essential business practice... Trust until you have a reason not to

the business in ways I could not have imagined, came into my life in ways I could not have imagined. Whether serving on an EO committee, volunteering for a service project or facilitating an introduction, each time we are helpful to someone, the law of reciprocity tugs on the other party to be helpful in return when the opportunity arises. Do things for others when there is “Nothing In It For You.” Trust is Earned. Leaders are encouraged to build a culture of trust. Evidence of this was revealed through a casual Google search on the words “trust” and “leadership” that yielded more than 198 million hits. Books, articles, classes and speeches on the subject extol the virtues of trust, remind leaders that employee surveys reveal a deficit of trust, and encourage leaders to trust more and assume the best. After all, trust is an essential business practice. Or is it?“Trust until you have a reason not to.” I treasured this belief until it was challenged by clients who did not fulfil their commitments, employees who misused company resources and people who edited stories to exclude the parts where they did not look good. Too many situations proved financially and emotionally expensive, and led me to shift my philosophy to “trust is earned.” Handshake deals that were common in the early days are now rare, replaced by contracts that detail consequences when agreements are breached. Checks and

balances are now an integral part of process improvement efforts at Tero. Most importantly, individuals entrusted with key responsibilities have earned that trust. The business is stronger because of it. These Things Happen. One of the greatest gifts from my father was an attitude I found frustrating in my youth. Whenever I ranted about something being unfair, I was met with my dad’s reasoned “these things happen.”It was much later that I not only understood this lesson, but I came to embrace it as an outlook on life. Like every business owner, there have been times when I wondered if the company would survive. In spite of my efforts to do everything just right, bad things happened. Similarly, Tero has been the beneficiary of many good things. Dad’s timeless lesson is a reminder in humility and a caution not to credit myself too heavily for the good outcomes. Good and bad. These things happen.This lesson has also been important in my personal life. When my dad was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s, I was reminded of his wisdom. When he died, his phrase “these things happen” helped me find comfort in the celebration and warm memories of his life, instead of getting lost in the sadness, the anger and the unfairness of his tooearly departure. Today, the economy is improving in many parts of the world. Leaders are increasingly viewing employee development as an important investment for the future. The members of the Tero Team are excited about being a part of a business that is poised for tremendous growth in the decade ahead. The future looks bright. These things happen. Thanks dad. - Culled from Entrepreneurs' Organisation's publication

What You Need to Make Business Work With Your Spouse

Doug and Polly White

here are approximately 5.5 million family-owned businesses in the U.S. Of these, about a third are owned and operated by husband-and-wife teams. These partnerships can form a powerful force and winning strategy for many entrepreneurial ventures. However, managing a relationship that becomes 24/7 isn’t all romance. It can have its challenges. We know. We have been married for 12 years and have worked together in different roles for over 20 years. We would never presume that we have the one and only formula for a successful partnership. However, we have found that the five traits listed below make our time together more joy than job. 1. Compatible strengths, goals and the “ambition factor.” Polly’s strengths are human resources, people management and organizational effectiveness. Doug’s are strategy, operations and finance. We joke that, taken together, we almost make a complete executive. Having different strengths makes us more compatible. Goal alignment is critical. You can’t be a team with different goals. Ours are written and we see them every day. The willingness to work hard and sacrifice is what we call the “ambition factor.” It’s essential to have similar levels of ambition. Without it, partners can become resentful. The partner with more ambition may feel that the other isn’t carrying his or her weight, while the less ambitious partner may find it difficult to support the long hours of his or her mate. 2. Respect for and trust in each other. We have tremendous respect for each other’s skills, knowledge and work ethic -- but perhaps more importantly we respect each other as human beings. Because of this, we trust that the other is working in the best interest of the firm and our family. We

are willing to give our partner the benefit of the doubt, even if we don’t completely understand their actions. We assume positive intent. 3. Humor. We have a good time. We laugh often. We try not to take ourselves too seriously. Humor makes good times better and bad times bearable. 4. Consideration. Each of us is considerate of the other. We know each other’s hot buttons. Consideration means not doing those things that trigger irritation. It also means doing little things that the other appreciates. Doug often brings Polly a much-needed cup of coffee in the afternoon. Polly listens to Doug’s articles and emails for content, structure and tone. He reciprocates. Consideration also means doing things you don’t enjoy. Polly does the filing and handles the difficult communications with clients. Doug pays the bills and does the taxes. 5. Honest communication and conflict management. Being considerate does not mean avoiding difficult discussions. Conflict occurs. It’s normal. Avoiding conflict allows issues to fester. Left long enough, these unaddressed issues can poison a relationship. We find that it is much better to get disagreements out in the open and clear the air before this happens. Of course, when we discuss tough issues, we’re honest, but also polite, considerate and respectful. Because we know we love and are loved by the other, we can discuss shortcomings, hurt feelings, irritations, needs, wishes, etc. without demoralizing and hurting our partner. This can take practice, but is worth the effort. Working with your spouse can be rewarding, but being together 24/7 can be challenging. We’ve found that the traits above can ease the stress. Culled from , Entrepreneur.com

44 BUSINESS | ENTREPRENEUR Martin Zwilling

very entrepreneur I know is short on resources, including time, money, and skills. The last thing they can afford is to waste any of these, but in my mentoring and coaching activities, I see it happening all too often. Waste in a startup is any activity that absorbs resources, but creates no value or competitive advantage in the eyes of customers. Much has been written about this subject in the world of manufacturing, stemming primarily from the 1990’s work by Taiichi Ohno, called the Toyota Production System (“Lean”). More recently, the concepts have been applied to the general business management context, in a new book by Certified Turnaround Professional, Thomas H. Gray, titled “Business Techniques for Growth.” While his book goes well beyond controlling waste as an element of growth and success, I was struck by how relevant the waste points are for every startup and every small business. Thus I am morphing the points here, with specific focus on the entrepreneur, who would never think of themselves in the context of automobile manufacturing: Offering too many products and services concurrently. In the startup world, this is often seen as a lack of focus. Trying to do too many things with too few resources, usually means the startup will not shine at anything, and will not survive the competition. That’s a deadly waste you can’t afford. My advice is to keep it simple, and do it well. Inventory and features added too soon. Inventory is money sitting idly by, adding no value. For market changing products, build first a minimally viable product (MVP), and never build products for sale until you have real orders in hand. More features and inventory added early will be wasted as you will need to pivot to match the real

8 deadly wastes that every entrepreneur must avoid

market. Bottlenecks to team productivity. Time utilization inefficiency is wasted time. Make sure you are not the bottleneck for your team. Many entrepreneurs insist on making every decision, and spend too much time working in the business, rather than on the business. The result is lower productivity all around. Hire real help and learn to delegate. Lack of communication. Communication is the fuel that controls the speed of startups. Delays in sharing, or lack of communication from the top, result in time and effort wasted, adding no value to the business. As an entrepreneur, you need a visible business plan and weekly team meetings, so everyone is working on current issues and real goals. Poor or too many business processes. Business processes can be your biggest time saver,

Cultivating the mindset of a successful entrepreneur Murray Newlands

n entrepreneur doesn’t need an MBA to be successful but there is a certain mindset an entrepreneur must cultivate to grow, understand and lead their business.Business leaders who attain this mindset are the ones who ultimately succeed. This mindset has four, intertwining aspects. Anticipate failure. In a study conducted by Duke University and the University of Southern California, 549 successful company founders said the most important reason for their success was their ability to learn from mistakes. Learning from failure is how we succeed. An entrepreneur who makes it big on the first try is a rare story. The path to success is not straight. The road is full of potholes, the journey has many detours. No matter how meticulously you plan, you’re going to make a mistake. Maybe more than one. Some entrepreneurs, fixated on the idea that they’ll succeed on the first try, give up without a second try. By not an-

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

ticipating failure, they failed. Let go and delegate. Richard Branson, one of the world’s best known entrepreneurs, relies on a team of top managers to keep his businesses on track. He encourages them to pursue their ideas and provides the tools to succeed. He attributes Virgin’s growth during the early days to his ability to delegate and let go. Your business won’t grow as much as it could before you admit to yourself that, no matter how hard you work, you can’t run it on your own. A great idea can turn into a great business only when you find and trust the right people to help make it happen. Entrepreneurs need help accomplishing their goals. Hire great people to work in the business so you have the time to workon the business. Stay curious, learn new skills. Studies of Stanford alumni have shown that people with a greater variety of roles in in previous jobs are more likely to become entrepreneurs. Not all entrepreneurs are experts, but successful entrepreneurs always have a broad skill set.

or your biggest waste. Productive processes start with a plan, and end with metrics that measure value delivered. Entrepreneurs have to embrace creativity and change, yet move quickly with trained teams who can deliver repeatable processes. Focus on activities rather than results. Too many entrepreneurs confuse action with

momentum and results. Focus on the 20% of your important tasks that will deliver 80% of the results. Judiciously apply 20% of your energy where it will achieve 80% of the momentum you desire. Then always measure customer results, not work. Defective products and services. Poor quality products and poor customer service

are doubly deadly wastes. You lose the customer you paid to acquire, and the unhappy customer spreads the word to potential customers that you are spending marketing resources on, but will never win. Recovery efforts are wasted resource which rarely succeeds. Underutilizing people skills. When people can do more than they are asked or motivated to do, the money spent on others doing that work is waste. The solution is to maximize your own staff productivity first. Recognize and reward the people who excel, provide training, and challenge the team to invent new methods for significant change. Entrepreneurs and small business always operate on the edge. There is no cushion. Waste means death. Are you as an entrepreneur really ready to deal with the new technology, new regulations, and a new workforce schooled in the digital age? How much time have you spent learning to use the practical techniques and new tools available? It won’t be wasted. -Culled from Forbes.com

7 life lessons from my entrepreneurship journey John Rampton

ntrepreneurship can be a tough and long journey for many people. Some get lucky and succeed the first time. For me, that wasn’t the case. I continue to learn and grow. Along the way I picked up the following lessons that I now apply to each new business or project I am involved with: 1. Innovation can be simple. For a long time I thought I had to develop something that had never been done before to be successful. While that is somewhat true, sometimes an innovation can be quite simple. Dollar Shave Club offers men an alternative, affordable way to purchase razors. Pillows.com was started after its founder could not find hotel pillows anywhere to purchase. The creator of OraBrush wanted an alternative to help people with bad breath and fashioned a simple tongue scraper. These ideas are basic and without any super innovative technology. They fulfill a basic need. Success can come from simple ideas with a twist. 2. Test and do it now! Too many times I’ve thought of an idea and then contemplated various scenarios and how it could play out. I analyzed every aspect and tried to guess and estimate all the contingencies. That's needed to some extent but the best approach is to just start building and testing an idea. Brainstorm a quick way to put together the most basic form of a product to send to potential customers. Jason Fried of 37signals calls this building a “minimum viable product.” This process will result in the best estimates of how the product might fare in the marketplace and provide real feedback to help

you polish your idea. 3. Think for the short-term and adapt. In school I was taught to create five-year business plans and outlines. But how can you plan for five years when the landscape changes so rapidly? Make plans, but stick to the short-term and near future. I now like to plan for six months or a year ahead, depending on the venture. I also do not waste valuable time drafting plans that could be overwritten as circumstances change. 4. Work hard, play hard. Stories of extremely hardworking entrepreneurs abound. One hears of 80-hour weeks and the notion that those who don’t work all the time are not serious entrepreneurs. Yes, entrepreneurship is difficult and you must put in work long hours, more than many other people do. But don’t sacrifice family, social life and fun. I strongly suggest not sacrificing those things if you're unwilling to. What if you put in the long hours, neglect your personal life and the business fails? Then you've lost your business and relationships. Even if your business skyrockets, you may feel locked into work (as I did) and obliged to devoting long hours to its continued growth. Ultimately, this leads to burnout. Can you effectively grow a business if you’re burned out and want out? Manage your time and grant yourself breaks and days off. Take time to socialize and spend time with family and friends. This can help clear your mind so you'll make better decisions or arrive at realizations that you wouldn’t have otherwise. 5. It’s not all about you and your idea. Take time to serve and help others. My focus on my early businesses

led to just me, me, me. This was a lonely experience and it negatively affected me and my businesses. I've since changed and now continually make time for others. I look for opportunities to assist people and serve. This not only makes me feel better about myself but it helps my business. Karma may exist -- or not -- but definitely more businesses and people are drawn to you when you help them. Don't expect anything in return. The act has to come from the heart and be completely selfless. Sometimes people you've helped will help you. Other times they will not. No matter what, keep helping and making the time to provide a favor -- or two or 10. 6. Don’t be a pancake. I used to describe myself as a pancake: My broad set of skills kept me low and flat. I knew a little about a lot of different industries and expertise. This is great for managing teams but I consistently found myself being mediocre and not excelling in any area. I wasn’t known for anything. When it comes to business, don't try to be good at everything. Keep yourself abreast of other industry practices and skills aligned with your focus and push to develop your skill, product or service to be the best in area that's needed and sought after. Then build out from there. 7. Celebrate small wins. Starting a company is hard, growing one is hard and running a one is hard. Doing this day in and day out can be tiresome. Sometimes I feel like I’m not winning or getting anywhere. Many people celebrate the big wins (when the needle really moves), but what about the small wins?

METRO

une 2, 2014

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Five arrested for killing during cult clash Four-year-old Babatope Okeowo

picked up at various locations in the ancient community. However, the clash, some people claimed, was a reprisal attack a rival cult group to avenge the death of one of its members recently killed by yet-to-be-ascertained assailants. A police source said one of the residents of the area notified the police of the clash, which took place about 10pm on Friday at Akinjagunla area of the town. The resident told the police that he was standing in front of his house when some boys invaded a relaxation centre in the area. During the invasion, the suspected cult members fired several shots into the air apparently to scare people away,

Akure

olice in Ondo West Local Government Area of Ondo State have arrested five persons in connection with a cult clash in the town which left one person dead and many others injured. The police at Funbi-Fagun Divisional Police Station confirmed the arrest of the suspects after a clash between two suspected rival cult groups. Although the motive behind the clash is yet to be ascertained at press time, the suspects, who were apprehended on Saturday by men from the anti-crime unit of the police division, were

before they started attacking one another with various weapons, including guns, axes and knives. The attack, which the source said lasted several minutes, resulted in the death of one person believed to be a cult member. Another police source said that as soon as the incident was reported, policemen were drafted to the area and five members of the suspected cult groups were arrested. When reporters visited the scene of the incident about 7:30am on Sunday, the whole area was deserted. Also, the door of the drinking joint invaded by the suspected cult members was destroyed while broken bottles littered the place. There were also blood

stains in front of the place. The Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in charge of Funbi-Fagun Divisional Police Station, Mr Emmanuel Okoi, a Superintendent of Police (SP), could not be reached for comment. Meanwhile, a senior police officer at the station, who did not want his name in print, confirmed the report. He said the suspects would be transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) at the state police command headquarters in Akure, the state capital. The officer added that the remains of the victim had been deposited at the morgue of the Ondo State Specialist Hospital, Ondo town, as investigation had begun on the matter.

Bring killer cop to book, group urges Manko Juliana Francis

Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) has called on the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr Umar Manko, to check policemen now mounting roadblocks under dubious pretences. The organisation, the Network on Police Reforms in Nigeria (NOPRIN), which made the call, also asked Manko to ensure a prompt, impartial and exhaustive investigation of all the police officers involved in the illegal operation of a checkpoint at Alakija area of Festac Town, where 33-year-old Oyoma Edewor was allegedly shot dead by Sergeant Otene Godwin. The incident occurred about 11pm on May 10. Godwin was alleged to have abandoned his duty post as the Station Guard at Area ‘E’ Command and left for Alakija area. NOPRIN’s National Coordinator, Okechukwu Nwanguma,

DAC for N5b

that since titutional ny on May about N60 ccount of head and roduction cts. sked the n restrainny of its om further e or interuction acy premises

at Asa Dam Road, Ilorin. In the originating summons, the company argued that NAFDAC did not provide any proof of any contravention of an Act or regulation, and asked the court to order the agency to lift the closure of the soap company and open it immediately. In an affidavit in support of the originating summons, the factory/plant manager of the soap factory, Mr Julius Adediran, averred that the unlawful

Manko

said the organisation noted that the Lagos State Police Command confirmed the arrest of Godwin with Force Number 355272. He said: “We also wish to urge that investigation into this case must be prompt, impartial and exhaustive, and must lead to justice. “The fact that the sergeant in question abandoned his duty post as the station guard and joined with others to set up an illegal ‘roadblock’ or

closure of the company had thrown about 200 staff among others who derived livelihood from it into economic crisis, adding that they had been rendered economically inactive. The affidavit further argued that “without any prior notification, the defendant through its officers and agents, in a commando manner, stormed the plaintiff ’s factory at Asa Dam Road, Ilorin on May 16, 2014, disrupted the plaintiff ’s operation/production, took away some of its workers and ultimately shut down the factory and all the production lines.”

‘checkpoint’ clearly indicates that they were on an illegal duty to extort money.” Nwanguma expressed concern over the resurgence of ‘police checkpoints’ across the state. He added: “To the best of our knowledge, the directive of the Inspector General of Police (IG) banning police checkpoints across Nigeria is still in force. “We are, however, worried that police officers in many parts of Lagos State hide under different dubious pretexts to continue to flout the IG’s directive. Many of the documented and undocumented incidents of police abuse take place at these illegal checkpoints which are nothing more than avenues for

extortion, harassment and extrajudicial killings. “While we do not encourage citizens to disregard police lawful orders to stop for checks when necessary, we say emphatically that police officers shooting to kill citizens for disregarding such orders even when such citizens pose no threat to them or to others cannot be justified or excused on any grounds. “The fact that the driver of the commercial van towing the victim’s ‘accidented’ vehicle ignored the orders of the police officers at the checkpoint to stop did not warrant or justify the reckless abuse of firearms and excessive use of force by the police officer to murder an unarmed citizen.

boy drowns

Biodun O yeleye Ilorin

fo u r- ye a r- o l d b oy, i d e n t i fied as Gideon, fell inside a river and got drowned at Atileke area of Ilorin, Kwara State. This came barely two months after flood swe pt away two kids in the same area. This was on his way to church in company with his g randmother and three siblings. The incident took place around 7.30am, according to witnesses. One of the witnesses said the old woman was taking four of her g randchildren to the church bu t o n g e t t i n g t o t h e n a r row par t where steel was laid across the river for passers-by, the boy slipped inside the river which had overshot its bank because of rainwater. “I saw them when they were coming. I was on the other side o f t h e r ive r. T h e o l d wo m a n w a i t e d fo r h e r g r a n d ch i l d re n to pass one after the other, but the boy in front of all of them slipped inside the river. I think the steel laid across the river for people to pass was slippery due to the early mor ning rain,” the witness said. When our cor respondent visited the house of the victim, the g randmother was wailing u n c o n t r o l l a b l y, a s k i n g s y m pathisers to help search for the boy’s body. “A h , wh e n my s o n s l i p p e d inside the river he was calling my name. God, I’m doomed. Who do I tell this and how do I explain this to anyone? You people should go and help me look for his dead body,” she cried.

Lawmaker disburses relief, empowerment materials Babatope Okeowo Akure

ver 300 people from six councils in Ondo North Senatorial District, Ondo State, at the weekend benefited from the about N600 million empowerment tools distributed by Senator Robert Ajayi Boroffice. Some of the items included 20 cars and buses, 50 tricycles, 45 grinding machines, 15 sewing machines, 12 wheel chairs and 45 petrol generators. Similarly, relief materials were distributed to those affected by rainstorm in the six councils. Flanked by leaders of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), Boroffice distributed 150

Some of the disbursed tricycles

bags of rice, 150 bundles of roofing sheets, 150 bags of cement, 2,000 pieces of planks, 100 bags of nails, 300 mosquito nets, 300 blankets, 300 nylon mats and 100 pieces of mattresses. Speaking during the presentation of the materials to beneficiaries in Oka in Akoko South-West Local Government, Boroffice said the gesture was to help his constituents. The legislator said the materials

were to help alleviate the suffering of the people who were affected by natural disasters. He, however, said the tools were for members of his party who had been helping in mobilising for the next election. Boroffice said the neglect of the people of his constituency by both the federal and state governments made him to intervene in the plight of the people. He appealed to those yet to benefit from the gesture to wait as all the people of the senatorial district would benefit from the empowerment programme. One of those who got wheelchairs said he was happy that the lawmaker helped in alleviating his suffering. He said he crawled to the venue only to be given a wheelchair.

46 NEWS

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

Firm seeks N5bn from NAFDAC for illegal closure COURT RELIEF Soap company seeks court's order retraining agency from interfering in its production Biodun Oyeleye ILORIN

n Ilorin, Kwara Statebased manufacturing firm, Global Soap and Detergent Industries Limited, is seeking N5 billion compensation from the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) for alleged unlawful closure of the firm.

40.7m

In a suit against the agency at the Federal High Court, Ilorin, the firm, through its counsel, Yusuf Ali (SAN), argued that since the alleged unconstitutional closure of the company on May 16, 2014, it has been losing about N60 million weekly on account of maintenance, overhead and loss of income on production of its various products. The company asked the court for injunction restraining the agency or any of its agents or officers from further disturbance, closure or interfering with the production activities of the factorylocated at Asa Dam Road, Ilorin.

The total population of Argentina (rep. 0.6% of world’s population) in 2010. Source: Blatantworld.com

In the originating summons, the company argued that NAFDAC did not provide any proof of any contravention of an act or regulation, and asked the court to order the agency to lift the closure of the soap company and open it immediately. In an affidavit in support of the originating summon, the factory/ plant manager of the soap factory, Mr. Julius Adediran, averred that the unlawful closure of the company has thrown about 200 staff, among others who derive livelihood from it, into economic crisis, adding that they had been rendered economically inactive.

4.79

The number of fixed-telephone subscriptions per 100 inhabitants of D.P.R Korea in 2011. Source: Itu.int

The affidavit further argued that "without any prior notification, the defendant, through its officers and agents, in a commando manner, stormed the plaintiff's factory at Asa Dam Road, Ilorin on May 16, 2014, disrupted the plaintiff's operation/ production, took away some of its workers and ultimately shut down the factory and all the production lines." The affidavit alleged that NAFDAC's conduct had opened the plaintiff to unquantifiable loss in terms of goodwill, reputation and ability to meet up its obligations to members of the public. The factory/plant man-

276

The number of international river basins in the world. Source: Unesco.org

ager also said that it may become practically impossible to fully resuscitate machines and resume production if the soap fac-

tory is allowed to remain unused for long, "due to the complex configuration and layout of the machine and factory lines."

2015: Igbo Group sues Jonathan, PDP ...demands party endorses him for second term

n Igbo Socio-Cultural group, Igboezue, has dragged President Goodluck Jonathan and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to a Federal High Court in Abuja asking an order to compel the party to endorse the President for a second term in office. The group is also seeking a declaration that the party's failure to endorse the President for a second term in office and President Jonathan's reluctance to declare his interest for a second term in office is unacceptable to wellmeaning Nigerians. They also asked for an order directing the party to endorse President Jonathan for a second term in office, having

regards to his good performance in office. In the suit filed through their counsel, Thomas Ajia, the group averred that it strongly believes that it is in the national interest for the President to be encouraged and persuaded to continue rendering the good leadership to the people of Nigeria. The plaintiff further averred that a letter was served on the 1st and 2nd defendants (President Jonathan and the PDP) by the association demanding an immediate action on the second term project, adding that the said letter, dated July 2nd 2013, which it said is attached would be relied on during trial.

Governorship not for only moneybags, says Oyo aspirant Sola Adeyemo IBADAN

F L-R: Dr. Emeh Njoku; Okenze Obinna and Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Emeka Ihedioha during a consultation visit to the leaders of PDP in Ngor Okpala LGA, Imo State…at the weekend.

eaders of the Yoruba Socio-Political Group, Afenifere have endorsed the candidature of former Osun State Head of Service (HOS), Mr. Olusegun Akinwusi as the Social Democratic Party (SDP) flag-bearer in the August 9, 2014 Osun Governorship election. Those who gave their backing to Akinwusi’s nomination as SDP candidate were the Afenifere leader, Pa Reuben Fasoranti, the party’s National Chairman, Chief Olu Falae and the party’s state leader, Chief Oladipo Olaitan. The former HOS had emerged as the SDP governorship candidate after winning the party’s primary election conducted in Osogbo, the state capital on Friday, May 30, 2014. Reacting to Akinwusi’s victory, Falae, who led him and the state party chairman, Ademola Isola, with his executives to the Afenifere leader in his hometown, Akure at the weekend stated that the

Osun 2014: Fasoranti, Falae, others endorse Akinwusi

former HOS possessed the qualities to take Osun state to greater heights. “I have heard about him. He is equal to the task and he will pursue an agenda for a better Osun State and Nigeria. Awolowo’s ideal was not about going around with brooms, but it is a philosophy and that is why Yoruba people are far ahead in the country,” he stated. Falae explained that SDP is an offshoot of the Action Group (AG), Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), SDP of Third Republic and the Alliance for Democracy (AD). “Yoruba people are back again in SDP because we need to serve our people. Awolowo believed in service and was not carrying money everywhere as we are experiencing it now. SDP

is a third force that will lead Nigeria better and out of trouble waters,” he added. Fasoranti, in his reaction, explained that he joined AG in 1951 and has remained committed to Awolowo’s philosophy till now, “and I have no regrets about it”. The octogenarian prayed for Akinwusi’s success and advised him to remain committed to his programmes and the manifestoes of his party and serve the people of Osun diligently. Earlier, Olaitan, a chieftain of Afenifere and a former member of the National Assembly noted that Akinwusi is a technocrat who served the state for 35 years as a civil servant without any blemish. He called on all Osun

indigenes to vote for the ex-HOS in the forthcoming polls, saying, “with Akinwusi, Osun will be freed from the shackles of poverty ravaging the state and from the warlords presently occupying the state. “I have observed that all our leaders in Afenifere are enjoying peace. This is not about money, but about satisfaction and service to humanity. These are the kinds of leaders we want. In his remarks, the SDP candidate thanked Afenifere leaders and informed them that he would not let them down. “You have brought us forth and I share your views and aspirations for a better Yoruba nation and Nigeria. I will do my best to deliver quality services to Osun people.”

ormer Deputy Governor of Oyo State and governorship aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Hazim Gbolarumi, has said that huge financial ability was not the only criterion to qualify anyone for public elective position. The aspirant noted that those doubting his ability due to financial constraint got it wrong because some former governors were not stupendously rich before being voted into office. Gbolarumi, an aide to the late Ibadan politician and 'Garrison Commander' of the PDP, Chief Lamidi Adedibu, made his formal declaration at the

weekend at the party secretariat. He vowed to surprise the doubting Thomases as his past political exploits would assist him to emerge as the successor to incumbent Governor Abiola Ajimobi of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Gbolarumi, who was received by party members led by its Chairman, Yinka Taiwo, noted that those ruling the state had always leveraged on financial supports from loyal party members and other well-wishers to win the race to Agodi Government House. He disclosed that he had consulted widely among party elders, traditional rulers and notable king makers in the state, stressing that he had the backing of many of them.

I will use my experience to lift Benue, says deputy gov Cephas Iorhemen MAKURDI

enue State Deputy Governor, Chief Steven Lawani, is among 20 People's Democratic Party governorship aspirants wishing to succeed Governor Gabriel Suswam in next year's general election. Chief Lawani's quest is anchored on his argument that the Zone C Senatorial District where he hails from and which is dominated by Idoma people, has never pro-

duced a governor since the creation of the state in 1976. If given the mandate, he said he would deploy his rich experience acquired as deputy governor in the last seven years to make the state great. Addressing the people of Ogbadibo, his local government during this month's local government congresses of the party, Lawani said he wished to break the jinx as the first Idoma son to occupy the position.

NEWS 47

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

NOT TRUE APCON chairman says board does not need Maku's endorsement to work Yekeen Nurudeen

Abuja

hairman of the Advertising Practitioners’ Council of Nigeria (APCON), Prince Ngozi Emioma, has refuted the statement credited to the Minister of Information, Labaran Maku, that he was yet to endorse the new board appointed by

APCON chairman carpets Maku on endorsement President Goodluck Jonathan in April 2013. He said the board does not need the minister’s endorsement to function. Addressing newsmen in Abuja at the weekend, Emioma said the first meeting of the board at Maku’s office on May 26, was not meant to endorse, approve, certify or confirm the APCON board,

440,000

The number of adults and children estimated to be living with HIV in Ukraine in 2007. Source: Blatantworld.com

but to inform the minister that the board was set to carry out its mandate. He said if any person was aggrieved over Mr. President’s appointment, such was free to go to court and seek redress. Emioma urged stakeholders to cooperate with the new APCON board in its efforts at building a viable advertising industry, which would fast-track

382m

The number of people living with diabetes worldwide. Source: Idp.com

the economy and deepen the nation’s democratic process. “We further urge the Information Minister to facilitate the smooth takeoff of the board as APCON has no other board to run its affairs except the Prince Ngozi Emioma-led leadership appointed, endorsed, approved and authorised by President Jonathan,” the chairman said.

44.9%

The estimated percentage prevalence of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) of Chad in 2004. Source: Blatantworld.com

Union bemoans N5.2bn unpaid benefits to ex-DSCL workers Yekeen Nurudeen

Abuja

orkers under the auspices of the Iron and Steel Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ISSSAN) have expressed displeasure over the delay in the payment of the N5.2 billion terminal benefits to former staff of Delta Steel Company Limited (DSCL). Global Steel Holding Limited (GSHL) took over DSCL under the Federal Government’s privatisation programme on May 5, 2005. The Economic and Financial and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had in 2011, arrested four senior officials of GHSL in connection with an alleged N25 billion domestic debts incurred by the company, following a petition presented to the commission by S. G. Kekere-Akpe on behalf of R. O. Egwere and O. J. Okari (representing disengaged staff of Delta Steel Company Limited). The GHSL officials were arrested over alleged violation of terms of acquisition of DSCL, conspiracy, economic sabo-

tage and tax evasion; diversion of public funds and money laundering as well as alleged use of N182.168 billion assets and debentures of Delta Steel Company Limited as security to raise funds for Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited. But the national executive committee of ISSSAN called on President Goodluck Jonathan and the Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to, in the name of God, order the settlement of this outstanding debt to save the lives of the disengaged staff who are already dying of poverty. This was contained in a communiqué issued at the end of the ISSSAN National Executive Council meeting held in Lagos at the weekend. The union expressed disappointment that nine years after the privatisation of Delta Steel Company Limited by Federal Government that N5.2 billion of their terminal benefits was still left unpaid, calling on President Jonathan to intervene in the matter.

PDP picks former Speaker as Omisore’s running mate State chapter of the very wide consultations. Otysun Peoples Democratic Par“We have finally (PDP) yesterday picked agreed that Adejare Bello L-R: Benue State Deputy Governor, Steven Lawani; Senator Joseph Waku and Benue State Governor, Gabriel Suswam in Makurdi…at the weekend

Stakeholders tasked on Group urges political Ekiti, Osun elections harmony in Abia Sola Adeyemo

Ibadan

head the June and Aelections August governorship in Osun and

Ekiti states, a North American cultural group, the ‘Egbe Omo Yoruba,’ has urged stakeholders, government at all levels, the electorate, security forces, political parties and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to join hands and ensure free and fair elections to promote democratic ethos. The organisation, in a statement by its National President, Bolu Omodele, counseled political gladiators and their supporters to eschew do-or-die politics and be conscious that the interests and well-being of the people are paramount. The statement reads: “To the electorate, there is an urgent need to be

alive to our duties and responsibilities as citizens, so that we can protect our democracy and nurture our democratic institutions. “We should be vigilant and not mortgage the future of our children for short-lived pecuniary gains, rather we should vote for people with track records, who identify with our legitimate aspirations and also hold them accountable at all times. “Our participatory democracy should be based on identifiable party philosophy, realistic deliverables and government that lift people out of economic doldrums and sustainable communal development.” The group also called on INEC to take steps that will ensure that Ekiti and Osun elections are credible, being mindful of the integrity of the process.

Juliana Francis group which identifies itself as Odinma Ochichi Abia has appealed to Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirants in Abia State to work in harmony with the party to avoid any ill-feeling in the run up to the primaries. The group’s spokesman, James Nwosu, noted in a statement that since Governor, Theodore Orji threw his weight behind the zoning of the governorship seat to Abia South, in accordance with the Abia Charter for Equity, ‘which states that power shall rotate among the component constituents of Abia State,’ most governorship aspirants from zones other than Abia South have become jittery while a whole lot are folding their camps. Nwosu observed that several camps had consti-

tuted themselves into opposition to the governor because they fear that he may not support them. He said: “They have constituted themselves into National Assembly group, ministerial group, Abia Government House group, and some private candidates,” adding that ‘most candidates claim they have the support of the governor.’

a former Speaker of the House of Assembly and former Governor Isiaka Adeleke’s kinsman, Hon. Adejare Bello, as the running mate of Senator Iyiola Omisore for the August 9 governorship election. The party also said its governorship campaign will be flagged off on June 9, explaining that the choice of the former speaker was arrived at after a marathon meeting held by the leadership of the party. In a statement made available to newsmen in Osogbo after the meeting, the party chairman in the state, Alhaji Ganiyu Olaoluwa, said: “Bello was picked by the elders’ caucus of the party after two days of serious deliberations, brainstorming and

should be the running mate of Senator Omisore because of his political strength, ability and capability.” The statement added that “The party has absolute confidence and belief that the combination of the two will win the August 9 governorship election.” Olaoluwa said the governorship campaign of the PDP will be flagged off on June 9, adding that the party’s candidates for the post of governor and deputy governor are people well known by the people of Osun state.” Bello hails from Ede, where the former governor of the state, Senator Isiaka Adeleke, who decamped from PDP to APC at the weekend, also come from.

Disregard smearing text messages, Fayemi tells workers State governor, Ehaskiti Dr. Kayode Fayemi, told workers in the state to ignore speculations making the rounds and being circulated through text messages and the social media that he was planning to sack workers and cancel payment of leave bonus on re-election. The governor gave the advice in Ado Ekiti

at the weekend during a quarterly interactive session held with civil servants in the state. He said the masterminds of the text messages often take Ekiti people as fools, who could be tossed around by lies and baseless claims; describing them as enemies of Ekiti progress. Fayemi said it was ri-

diculous that some could peddle lies that government was planning to cancel leave bonus, which was part of the emolument of the workers as well as retrenched workers. He said no worker has been sent parking since his administration came on board, except those who have retired or were ghost workers.

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Kwara to partner FG, foreign firms on power POWER SUPPLY Better days ahead in Kwara State as residents may soon enjoy uninterrupted power supply Biodun Oyeleye ILORIN

he Kwara state government at the weekend said it is partnering with the federal government and some foreign firms to tackle the challenges of power generation and distribution in the state. Governor Abdulfattah Ahmed, while commis-

sioning a N42.8 million rural electricity project to serve 36 communities around Agunjin in Ifelodun local government, explained that the partnership is focused on the exploitation of alternative energy sources. The commissioning of the 2.5MVA/33/11KV injection sub-station was part of activities set aside to mark Ahmed’s administration's third year in office. Ahmed, who was represented at the event by his deputy, Elder Peter Kisra, stated that the state government will continue to collaborate with the federal government to holistically address the parlous energy

200,019

The total number of people in refugee-like situation in Burma in 2010. Source: Blatantworld.com

supply to improve power supply to all and sundry in the state. In addition to this, he said the foreign experts are expected to carry our pre-feasibility studies on power generation in the state. His words: “This is intended to improve power supply in the country and bring tremendous development to the state. We equally believe that it would go a long way in assisting government to generate clusters of employment opportunities for our teeming youths in various towns and villages. “We are conscious of the importance of energy in facilitating integrated

61,170

The number of pending asylum seekers of Canada at the beginning of 2010. Source: Blatantworld.com

rural development. To this end, attention will be focused on the exploitation of alternative energy sources. Efforts in this regard are not only to reinforce power supply, but also to promote agro-processing ventures and cottage industries, especially in off grid locations. Earlier, the Commissioner for Energy, Alhaji Muse Abdullahi, had explained that the installed transformers would serve 36 communities of the Agunji/Abayan District. Also, the governor, while commissioning the Obbo-Aiyegunle reconstructed Waterworks in Ekiti local government,

1:4

The ratio of Afghanistan refugees to the world’s total number of refugees. Source: Unhcr.org.uk

said that water supply in the state had witnessed phenomenal improvement in the last ten years. According to him, the state government’s huge investment in the sec-

tor has brought about a radical improvement to the extent that water accessibility gap had reduced from 700m in 2011 to 3,500m across the state.

RTEAN seeks FG, states' assistance in fight against unemployment, insecurity Cajetan Mmuta BENIN

he national leadership of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) has appealed to the federal and state governments for financial assistance to enable the body embark on creation of about 200, 000 jobs for youths in the country. Chairman of the transporters association, Alhaji Musa Isiwele Shehu, who stated this yesterday in an interview with newsmen in Benin, Edo State capital, said the assistance is expected in form of a loan. Shehu said the loan would further help the as-

sociation procure foreign and local loans as well as land space towards meeting with set target in capacity building and empowerment processes, expressing concern over the high interest rates charged by the nation’s banking sector. According to him, the loan would be injected into the construction of three modern parks in each of the 36 states of the federation and for the establishment of a training academy for drivers in each of the six geo-political zones. He said that the nation is in dire need of modern parks as what obtains in most developed countries of the world.

2015: Wada promises free elections Muhammad Bashir LOKOJA

Six winners of 2013 Be Road Friendly (BRF) competition at London Transport Museum, during a transport education tour in London…recently

Amosun's govt has done well, says Lai Mohammed

he Interim National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has described the Senator Ibikunle Amosun administration in Ogun State as focused and determined. Mohammed said this when he paid a courtesy call on Amosun at the Government House in Abeokuta over the weekend. After inspecting various infrastructural and developmental project sites in Abeokuta, the state capital, the APC scribe submitted that the projects were massive, rapid and had impacted on the populace. "Having gone round some projects, about three housing estates, 15km expanse of land to be developed, the new city project that is planned along what we

have in Malaysia, Singapore and Dubai, I see a very focused government and I am very impressed. I have also been assured that all these projects would be ready for commissioning in June," he said. On how to curb insurgency, Mohammed said the APC has always supported dialogue, stating that government should not only use the military tactics in solving the problem but also explore political, economic and social options. He advised that government adopt a well thought-out amnesty programme to ensure that the militants are trained to become employable and engaged gainfully when they lay down their weapons if it wants to achieve results just as in the case of the Niger Delta militants.

Ekiti monarchs are rare breed - Fayemi lPresents Staff of Office to Attah of Ayede

he governor of Ekiti State, Dr Kayode Fayemi, has said that the supportive roles being played by traditional rulers for the rapid transformation of the state make Ekiti monarchs rare breed of honourable royals. The governor said this at the weekend while presenting the Staff of office and Instrument of Appointment to the new Attah of Ayede, Oba Adebayo Orisagbemi. He said that traditional rulers have stood side-byside with government in promoting sustainable development. Fayemi stressed that the achievements of his administration are, to a large extent, "a function of our governance agenda which promotes the inclusion of critical stakeholders in the administration." He stated that the quest

to build a greater Ekiti is progressing and his administration will not relent in the pursuit for the Ekiti of "our dreams". His words: "I want to seize this opportunity once again to thank all our royal fathers for being there all the time to support this administration in our bid to develop this state. Your efforts and love are highly appreciated. Good health, sound mind, prosperity and long lives shall continue to be yours by the special grace of God." The governor, who said that there is a huge responsibility placed on traditional rulers to ensure a peaceful and free electioneering, urged the monarchs to mobilise the people "against the enemies of democracy who try to subvert the will of the people in the coming polls through rigging and violence".

ogi State Governor, Captain Idris Wada, has said that his administration will ensure a violence-free political activities in the state come 2015 general elections. He said this at the weekend during the constituency briefing/commissioning of various community projects/empowerment programme initiated by a member of the House of Assembly, Hon. Michael Folusho Daniel, representing Mopamuro constituency. The governor, who was represented by his deputy, Yomi Awoniyi, said he would ensure peaceful coexistence among political parties in the state, adding that politics must be people oriented and usher in devel-

opment instead of destruction of lives and properties. He explained that his administration has worked within the recommendations of the Think Tank Committee as contained in the blueprints developed for his administration by stakeholders. The governor said that he has made the state attractive for investors, adding that over 15 reputable investors have signed Memoranda of Understanding with the state government towards ensuring it’s agricultural and industrial revolution. While admitting that the challenges of governance for the administration has been tasking, he however said the administration has met the yearning and aspiration of the generality of the State by uplifting their living standard.

Lagos gives civil servants N119m housing loan Muritala Ayinla

he Lagos State Gover nment has disbursed N119.7 million as housing loan to its workers to help them solve problem of shelter. The Head of Service (HOS), Mrs. Oluseyi Williams, made this known to newsmen at a briefing to mark the activities of the state government in the last one year. Mrs Williams said a total of 555 officers benefitted from the facility within the period, adding that the government had also allocated apartments

to some workers at the various staff quarters, to ease their accommodation problems. She explained that the loan was to enable the beneficiaries acquire land and build their own houses. Williams added that no fewer than 100 brand new cars were procured for use of directors in the state`s civil service within the period, adding that the government was passionate about the welfare of its workforce and would continue to initiate programmes that would guarantee their comfort in service.

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Lafarge wants adequate cement labelling policy

Tambuwal, Umar urge lawyers to support judicial reforms

Siaka Momoh afarge Cement Nigeria has asked that adequate cement labelling policy be introduced in the cement industry in the country to address the issue of wrong cement application. Lafarge’s General Manager, Industrial Performance, Lanre Opakunle, who said this during an interactive session at the weekend, said there was need to review how cement products were labelled to avail end users proper information and directions for right application and results. “We discovered that the labelling was inadequate today and we made some proposals, but those proposals have not been taken

Taraba State Acting Governor, Alhaji Garba Umar, have called on lawyers in the country to support judicial reforms. The duo also led others to donate to the building of the Nigeria Bar Association’s centre in Jalingo, the capital of Taraba State. This was part of activities marking the end of the week-long NBA week in the state. Tambuwal also used the occasion to extol the contributions of legal practitioners to the development of the country over the years. Represented by a member representing Gashaka, Kurmi and Sardauna constituency

285.12m

on-board, but we will keep making efforts to see that they are taken on-board,” he said. “Lafarge is the only cement manufacturer in the Nigerian market that puts the uses and specifications of cement on its bags. In our technical submission to SON, we said we want to do more than that; we want to really put it in a way that the lay man can understand the uses and what the mix should look like,” he said. He noted that issues of cement application should not dwell on the grades of cement; rather it should be about knowing the right mix as cement does not work in isolation, but with concrete. Opakunle said Lafarge was the first to produce

The number of fixed-telephone subscriptions of China in 2011. Source: Itu.int

42.5 grade cement in the country and was duly certified by SON in 2012 in that regard. “Our customers know the value we are giving to them and the value we are adding to their businesses. We really interact with the end users of our products to really understand what they need and how products can be tailored to meet their expectations through innovations from our research centre in Lyon France,” he said. He said Lafarge’s researchers were capable of meeting any desired product behaviour specified by its customers to give them a value added product, noting that it was important to build structures that would represent lasting legacies and also promote

2-4

The number of times women are more likely than men to become infected with HIV during intercourse. Source: Unwomen.org

environmental sustainability. “The most widely used individual application of cement in the world is 32.5 and it is important that a user understands how to use whatever grade of cement that is available on the shelf because of certain risks, which may be associated with these grades whether it is 32.5 or 42.5 and the information should be properly labelled on the bags,” he said. Opakunle said Lafarge was starting two new plants - one in Ashaka and another one in Calabar. “Lafarge also has plans to increase knowledge capacity for artisans and train about 20,000 block makers in 2014. So far, about 6,000 have already been trained since January.”

3.2m

The total population of Jaipur, India in 2010. Source: Blatantworld.com

Sabiu Mustapha JALINGO

peaker of the House of SAminu Representatives, Hon. Tambuwal, and

in the House of Re presentatives, Alhaji Ibrahim El-Udi, Tambuwal urged lawyers to support the ongoing judicial reforms to foster development in the country. On his part, the state acting governor commended the NBA for its role in nation building, saying that democracy would not survive without the rule of law. Umar, who was represented by Mr. Musa Tende, called on legal practitioners to redouble their efforts in their service to humanity. Earlier, NBA Chairman, Jalingo branch, Mr. Ibrahim Effiong, said time has come for legal practitioners to put in place a befitting place, where lawyers can come together to assist in nation building.

Corruption: Nigerians own 70% of London luxury homes Joe Ezuma

Port Harcourt

hairman of New Nation, CGroup, an Empowerment- focused Mr. Charles Dukwe,

yesterday, alleged that 70 per cent of the most expensive houses in London, United Kingdom, are owned by Nigerian leaders, who corruptly enriched themselves with the country’s resources. Dukwe disclosed this in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, while speaking at the unveiling of the Queen of Compassion and Kill the Killers Initiative (KKI), a grassroots anti-diabetes and high blood pressure campaign. The campaign has Nolly-

wood stars including Uche Jombo, Monalisa Chinda, Ini Edo, and Desmond Elliot as its brand ambassadors. Dukwe alleged that past and present political leaders of the country steal from the public coffers and invest same in Europe and other Western countries, lamenting that corruption has brought decay in the system and called on Nigerians to embrace compassion. “The most missing thing in Nigeria is compassion. We want to use compassion as a value and drive it through people so that people can help each other in the society. Our aim is to make compassion a core-value in the society'', he said.

Malaria: Ogun distributes two million treated nets gun State government Makinde, said the Central Omillion has distributed two Medical Store has been Long Lasting computerised while drug L-R: National Vice President, Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria, Alhaji Tojosi Raheem; Assistant Secretary, Abdulsalam Yakubu; President, Dr Godswill Okara and National Secretary, Mr Robert Ashi, during the Association's National Executive Meeting in Enugu …at the weekend

Uduaghan fires LG caretaker boss Joe Obende

Warri

elta State governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan, at the weekend fired the Caretaker Chairman of Burutu Local Government area, Deinne Buckman, over alleged incompetence and misappropriation of council funds. News of the sack was first picked last Thursday, but was confirmed by Commissioner for Information, Mr. Chike Ogeah, on Friday. He added that

the sack was with immediate effect. Buckman’s sack, the second in recent times, is coming some five months to the state’s local government elections fixed for October 25, 2014. Ogeah said Uduaghan had appointed one Chief Julius Takeme in Buckman’s place. But, Buckman's wife defended her husband's integrity, saying the purported sack was a rumour and a ploy by some politicians in the local government to tarnish his good

image. A police officer, Mrs. Buckman, claimed the said sack had not been communicated to her husband. Reeling out her husband’s outstanding qualities, she described Burutu council area as dirty and the worst local gover nment area in the country with corrupt civil servants, who tender fictitious claims to swindle the government on a regular basis.

She said she and her husband had grown past pilfering public funds as they had been comfortable even before her husband was appointed a caretaker chairman. “Burutu is the worst local government area in Delta State. Politicians there steal from the local government. The civil servants are so corrupt that they have all sorts of fictitious papers to collect claims. Burutu smells, it is a carcass,” she fumed on the phone.

Insecticide Nets (LLIN) to all local government areas. The gesture was meant to reduce the prevalence of malaria among the citizens. Commissioner for Health, Dr. Olaokun Soyinka, who disclosed this during the ministerial press briefing to mark the third anniversary of Governor Ibikunle Amosun’s administration in Abeokuta, said the nets were distributed in partnership with the Society for Family Health (SFH). He further revealed that over 57,000 rapid diagnostic test kits were procured by the government and distributed to primary health facilities to curb the disease. Soyinka, in a statement by the ministry’s Press Officer, Mrs. Seun

procurement has been reorganised, thus saving millions of naira from the annual drugs bill. He disclosed that the state has also partnered with various local and foreign non-governmental organisations to provide over 5,000 free medical, surgical, treatment and diagnosis for the residents at the state hospitals in Ota, Ijaiye, Abeokuta and IsaraRemo. Soyinka said some of the Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) were resuscitated and provided with medical equipment, boreholes and generators to enhance service delivery, adding that six stateof-the-art ambulances were procured while the four that were inherited from previous administrations had been refurbished.

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Kidnapped Italian priests, Canadian nun freed in Cameroun

wo Italian priests and a Canadian nun kidnapped in northern Cameroun nearly two months ago by suspected Boko Haram gunmen were released on yesterday, smiling and apparently in good health as they arrived in the capital. Giampaolo Marta and Gianantonio Allegri, missionaries from the diocese of Vicenza in northeast Italy, and Canadian Gilberte Bissiere were seized on the night of April 4 from the parish of Maroua, close to the border with Nigeria. There has been no claim of responsibility for their kidnapping ,but Camerounian officials

have pointed the finger at the Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram, which has become active in a region that it had, for some time, used as a logistical base. State television showed images of the priests and the nun arriving at Yaounde airport yesterday in the company of heavily armed Cameroonian special forces. The Camerounian presidency said the captives had been “handed over last night to Camerounian authorities”, and thanked those who had worked for their release. Authorities declined to give further details of the release, or to say whether any deal had been

done to secure it. The clerics, looking tired but smiling, were greeted by the ambassadors of Italy and Canada, local church authorities and an envoy sent by Pope Francis, state television said. They were taken to their respective embassies and were expected to meet Camerounian President Paul Biya later yesterday, officials said. In Rome, Vatican spokesman, Father Federico Lombardi said the pope had been informed immediately of the release, which “fills us with joy”.

The priests had been working on improving water supplies and fighting the spread of HIV/AIDS in the impoverished region, as well as their religious duties, according to their diocesan website. One of the priests had said in a letter to his diocese - posted on its website - that local authorities had advised him to travel with a police escort due to the deteriorating security situation in northern Cameroun. Countries across West Africa are increasingly concerned that

Boko Haram, which has killed thousands in a fight to carve out an Islamic state in northeast Nigeria, poses a threat to the entire region. Boko Haram, whose name means ‘Western education is sinful’ in the Haussa language, stirred an international outcry with the kidnapping of more than 200 schoolgirls in northern Nigeria on April 14. Camerounian security forces killed some 40 Boko Haram militants in clashes in the country’s far north, state radio said on yesterday.

Egypt stock market plunges on reports of new taxes

gypt’s stock market witnessed a sharp plunge yesterday that forced a temporary suspension of trading after reports of a newly proposed government tax on capital gains which experts said was hardly explained to investors. The half-hour suspension on the first day of the trading week at the Egyptian Exchange failed to cool a frenzy of selling by investors. The EGX30 benchmark index closed 4.22 percent lower, or at 7,894.73 points, continuing its slide after trading was suspended after the broader EGX100 index fell by 5 percent. Egyptian Finance Minister Hany Kadry Dimian announced the new tax on capital gains Thursday, fuelling the market slide. He said the government will impose a 10-percent tax on net realized portfolio profits at the end of the year. Stock market profits are currently tax-free. Wael Ziada, the head of research at EFG Hermes, one of the Middle East’s largest investment banks, said the proposed law wasn’t clearly explained or discussed, causing the “extreme reaction” in the market. “A lot of brokerage firms had no response to their clients” on how the law will be imposed, when it will take effect or how to calculate the tax, he said. “This is a case of total chaos.” Ziada said the gains from such a tax don’t justify the “damage” that occurred in the market because it will be a challenge to collect it. The Exchange said in a statement Sunday the law has been sent to the interim president for approval. “In my view, until we see the law and if this is the way decisions will be taken going forward, there will be damages,”

Ziada said. A dozen Egyptian investors gathered outside the exchange yesterday to protest the law. “We came here to protest those random decisions by the government,” said Aly Youssef, one of the investors. “Investors have lost huge amounts due to those random decisions.” The sharp drop also followed Egypt’s presidential election last week, which saw retired army chief Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, who led the July military overthrow of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi, reportedly trounce his only competitor. Official results are expected in the coming days. “Following Egypt’s elections, we expected a positive impact on the stock exchange. We predicted that benchmark will exceed the 9,000-point mark but the proposed draft tax had a negative impact on the benchmark,” said Amir Youssef, a stock exchange broker. The current interim government and el-Sissi have said tough measures will be taken in the coming months to reduce a crippling budget deficit, internal debts and ease unemployment, officially estimated at 13 percent.

Egyptian traders work on the floor of the stock market in Cairo, Egypt yesterday

Iran executes man despite international pressure

ran yesterday hanged a man said to be affiliated to an exiled opposition group, state media reported, despite international pressure on the Islamic republic to halt the execution. According to the official IRNA news agency, Gholamreza Khosravi Savadjani was convicted of “waging war against God” (moharebeh) by helping the People’s Mujahedeen Organisation of Iran (PMOI). The announcement of the hanging came just hours after Amnesty International said

Khosravi Savadjani’s trial in 2010 had been unfair. The rights group said the condemned man’s family was informed by prison officials on Saturday that they must go to a jail west of Tehran, sparking fears his execution may be imminent. Khosravi Savadjani was, until then, being held in solitary confinement at Evin Prison in the capital. Death row prisoners in Iran are generally transferred to isolation units before their executions take place. Prior to his death, Amnesty said the execution would be a breach of domestic and international law, as Khosravi Savadjani

-- held since 2008 -- should have benefited from a subsequent law that imposed lighter penalties for the crimes he was convicted of. The PMOI was founded in the 1960s to oppose the pro-western shah. After the 1979 Islamic revolution that ousted the shah, the PMOI took up arms against Iran’s clerical rulers and Tehran holds it responsible for murdering thousands of Iranian civilians and officials. Iran says PMOI members currently in exile in Iraq should be extradited to face charges. Khosravi Savadjani was arrested in 1981 and jailed for several years.

U.S. soldier flies to freedom after Afghan prisoner swap

he sole American prisoner of war held in Afghanistan was flown to a U.S. military hospital in Germany yesterday, after he was dramatically freed in a swap deal for five Taliban militants who were released from the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba. Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl had been held for nearly five years and his release, following years of on-and-off ne-

gotiations, suddenly became possible after harder-line factions of the Afghan Taliban shifted course and agreed to back it, according to U.S. officials. A U.S. defense official said Bergdahl was able to walk and became emotional on his way to freedom, after being handed over to U.S. special forces in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday.

“Once he was on the helicopter, he wrote on a paper plate, ‘SF?’” the official said, referring to the abbreviation for special forces. “The operators replied loudly: ‘Yes, we’ve been looking for you for a long time.’ And at this point, Sergeant Bergdahl broke down.” U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said he hoped the successful prisoner exchange deal might lead to breakthroughs in rec-

onciliation with the militants. “We had been working to find ways to open up some possibilities with the Taliban to try to get Sergeant Bergdahl back. This didn’t just start,” Hagel told reporters traveling with him on a routine visit to Afghanistan. “This has been an ongoing effort that our government has been involved in at every level. We found some openings that made sense to us,” he added.

Eagles are World Cup dark horses -Amokachi Ajibade Olusesan

uper Eagles assistant coach, Daniel Amokachi, has declared that Nigeria is one of the dark horses of the World Cup. He said that it was an advantage to the team that they are not one of the countries rated ahead of the competition, as they will

not be under intense pressure. But he added that the African champions have the capacity to shock some of the more established sides when the tournament takes centre stage. Amokachi who was in the Nigerian team to the 1994 and 1998 editions of the World Cup, says the players are very ambi-

SPORT

AUTHORITATIVE VOICE IN GLOBAL SPORT

tious which makes it easy for the technical crew to work. The Super Eagles have not gone beyond second round since they first appeared in the competition 20 years ago, but Amokachi said the team might go further this time. “We are optimistic that the team will

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ADEKUNLE SALAMI, DepUTY Editor, SPORTS kunle.salami@newtelegraphonline.com adekunles@yahoo.com

go far in the tournament. We have a bunch of talented and ambitious players. We are not going to set a particular target really, but I can assure Nigerians that we are going to go far in the tournament. We are not considered as one of the favourites but we might be the dark horse of the tournament,” Amokachi said.

Nigeria in new match-fixing scandal

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Brazil: Keshi unveils final list today

Adekunle Salami

ead Coach of the Super Eagles, Stephen Keshi, faces a tough task as he is expected to drop seven players Monday (today) out of the 30 named in his provisional list for the forthcoming World Cup holding between June 12 and July 13 in Brazil. On Saturday, the coach told journalists in Philadelphia, USA, that his list was ready but it was strategic to keep it till the

last minute. Today (June 2nd) is FIFA’s deadline for submission of the final 23-man list and Keshi is only waiting to be sure of the fitness of those he has picked to represent Nigeria at the Mundial. Spain, Holland, Colombia, Uruguay Brazil Portugal England Greece Iran and Croatia

named their final list at the weekend for the global football showcase. “All the players have worked really hard but it is unfortunate we have to comply with FIFA’s directive on number of players. The list is ready and it will be made public on Monday (today). If there will be any surprise in Keshi’s final

Eagles celebrating a goal

Keshi

list it would be the inclusion or exclusion of one or two players. The starting line -up in the friendly against Scotland which ended 2-2 in London was the final chance given to the players not sure to make the cut. Eagles Media Officer, Ben Alaiya, told our correspondent on the telephone at the weekend that the team psychologist Dr Robinson Okoson has been speaking to the players on the need to accept the final verdict in good fate. “I must confess there is tension in camp because every player wants to be at the World Cup, but we are working hard to make them embrace the reality. Some people have to be dropped and it will happen on Monday,” Alaiya said. NFF’s technical committee member, Paul Bassey, said there were further consultations with Keshi on the final list. “Keshi has the final say we only advised him further in the interest of the country,” Bassey said. Except miracle happens, players like Daniel Akpeyi, Joel Obi, Azubuike Egwueke, Micheal Uchebo, Micheal Babatunde Gabriel Reuben and Nnamdi Oduamadi are not expected to make the final cut. Nigeria will compete for honours in group F of the World Cup along with Iran, BosniaHerzegovina and Argentina.

Diamond League: Okagbare ranked world best in 200m Charles Ogundiya

espite coming second behind unknown American sprinter, Tori Bowie, in the 200m event of the IAAF Diamond League held in Eugene, United States at the weekend, Nigeria’s Blessing Okagbare has shot to the top of the Diamond League race ranking in the 200m with

six points. Okagbare posted an impressive new personal best time of 22.23s to place second behind Bowie who returned in a world leading time of 22.18s, ahead of the well-known stars on parade. Okagbare’s former personal best time in the 200m event was 22.31, which she achieved in April 2013 at a Meet in Walnut, California.

In the Long Jump event, she is currently ranked second with four points and she will be looking forward to another impressive performance on Thursday to strengthen her position at the top as she continues her chase to have a share of the jackpot prize on offer. The next leg of the IAAF Diamond League, the fourth in the series, will be taking place in Rome, Italy on June 5. Okagbare

SPORT

Monday, June 2, 2014

Countdown to Fifa World Cup 10

Days To Go

Fresh Dengue fever alarm for Eagles

Emmanuel Tobi

L Papastathopoulos (right) in action against Germany

Nigeria in new match-fixing scandal

igeria has been implicated in yet another football match-fixing scandal, with the revelation that the friendly match between the Super Eagles and North Korea on the eve of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa was rigged. The allegation, published by the New York Times, opens a fresh can of worms in a series of claims that Nigeria has featured prominently for years in the dubious act match-fixing. Nigeria won the friendly against the North Korean side by 3-1. Besides the result, that match also grabbed the headlines over a stampede that occurred before the commencement of the exhibition game, as hundreds of South Africans and other fans trooped to the stadium to catch a glimpse of the Eagles. It turned out they were served a script worked out by a gambling syndicate. The New York Times said South African officials allowed a notorious Singaporean syndicate, Football 4U, to pick the referee for that match. Quoting from FIFA investigative report, the New York Times said FIFA investigators found that the referee in the Nigeria-North Korea match made sev-

eral questionable calls. But investigators could not confirm whether the referee was a rogue Nigerien referee, Ibrahim Chaibou. The investigators said they were however, certain that the referee who officiated was not the Portuguese who had been assigned. Such replacements are part of the trick, and do happen in fixed games presumably without FIFA’s knowledge. The referee took “a very harsh stance” in giving a red card for a seemingly lesser infraction, and he later took “a very liberal stance” in awarding a suspicious penalty kick, the report was quoted by the New York Times as saying. Mr. Chaibou had his hands soiled in many other matches adjudged to have been fixed, including the South Africa Vs Guatemala game in which South Africa won 5-0. The referee was said to have received $60, 000 for his role. It was also Mr. Chaibou who officiated the Nigeria – Argentina friendly in Abuja, also adjudged to have been fixed as the Eagles triumphed 4-1. Even Nigeria’s friendly with Scotland last week which ended in a two goal draw is under investigation for suspected fixing. Officials of the Nige-

ria Football Federation, NFF, have consistently denied all the allegations.

atest reports emanating from Sao Paulo, one of the venues Nigeria will be playing their World cup matches, reveal that fresh cases of the dreaded dengue fever have been reported. Workers in Campinas have embarked on a huge operation to eradicate mosquitos, which spread the disease, before the Portuguese and Nigerian teams arrive. Some 32,384 people have been infected by Dengue this year in the southeastern city about one hour

from Sao Paulo. At least three people have died. “It’s a record epidemic. It’s bigger than the 11,500 cases registered in all of 2007,” said Andrea Von Zuben, who coordinates the Campinas Dengue control program. Dengue is a viral infection carried by the aedes aegypti mosquito. But she said the areas where the Nigerian and Portuguese squads will be are a mosquito-control priority for health officials. “We put larvicides and anti-mosquito poisons at the airport, in the training centers and in the hotels, so the teams will run a

much smaller risk than the local population,” she said. The fever is like chronic influenza with severe headaches, muscle and joint pain, vomiting and a rash. Severe cases can be deadly. Three people have died of Dengue this year in Campinas; women aged 27, 69 and 81 were the victims. Three other deaths are being investigated to see if they were caused by the disease. There is no cure for Dengue, so prevention is the best medicine.

Queiroz trims Iran squad to 24

I Carlos Queiroz (middle) addressing Iranian players

Brazil: Eagles must not concede early goals –Temile Mercy Jacob

ormer Nigeria International, Clement Temile, has advised the Super Eagles to avoid conceding early goals if they want to go past the group stage of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. “The Super Eagles will excel in Brazil, in fact I see them getting to the quarter final stage of the World Cup, but they have to guard against conceding early goals as they may not have the opportunity of recovering from a goal down as was the case in South Africa,” said Temile, in an interview with New Telegraph.

The Super Eagles, four years ago, lost by a lone goal to Argentina with the South Americans grabbing the game’s only goal as early as the 5th minute. “Conceding early goals in the World Cup is very dangerous. This is the biggest football event in the world and conceding early goals could make a team lose confidence and end up playing under pressure,” stressed the former winger. Temile, now a UEFA licensed coach, also warned the Super Eagles not to throw caution to the winds when taking on any of their group stage opponents – Iran, Bosnia and Argentina.

Greek star to miss Nigeria friendly

reece defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos will miss his country’s next World Cup warm-up friendly with African champions Nigeria, after suffering a biceps injury. The 26-year-old Borussia Dortmund player - who has been capped 47 times and played at both the 2010 World Cup

and Euro 2012 - had to go off during the first half of Saturday’s 0-0 draw at Portugal. Medical examinations have revealed the injury will keep him sidelined for several days, including when the team faces Nigeria in the United States on Wednesday.

ran coach Carlos Queiroz on Sunday named a 24-man squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil, pending the elimination of one player from the official final line-up because of injury worries. The list published on the Iran Football Federation website contained few surprises, but Queiroz dropped Mohammadreza Khalatbari, the Persepolis striker who was a first team regular during qualifying. Iran are in Group F against Argentina, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Nigeria in the first round in Brazil. Team Melli’s final 23-man squad has been delayed because a medical report is awaited for defender Hashem Beykzadeh, who hurt a calf muscle in a warmup match against Montenegro. The final list is due to be made public Monday, but according to the federation even if Beykzadeh is declared fit his potential replacement Mohammad Khanzadeh, of Zob Ahan Isfahan, will also travel to Brazil.

SPORT | EURO FOOTBALL Transfer Updates

Monday, June 2, 2014

This is the best England team in over a decade - Rooney in at national team level. Roy Hodgson has picked inexperienced Luke Shaw, Ross Barkley and Adam Lallana among the 23-man roster for the tournament in Bra-

Rooney(left)

ayne Rooney has admitted he has “no idea” how England will perform at the World Cup but says the current squad is the best he has ever been

zil. Although Rooney feels this is the best national team he has played with since his debut 11 years ago, he is unsure how the

more inexperienced members of the squad will handle the pressure when they meet Uruguay, Italy and Costa Rica. “This is the best England squad I’ve ever been involved with,” he told the Daily Mirror. “The one weakness is that we have a lot players who haven’t got any real experience of tournament football. “I don’t think anyone can predict what will happen to England in Brazil – and that’s why I am really excited about this World Cup.”

Pele son jailed for money laundering

he son of the Brazilian football legend Pele has been sentenced to 33 years in prison after being found guilty of laundering money for an alleged drugs cartel. Edinho, himself a former professional footballer for Pele’s old club Santos, was accused of using his father’s name to provide an air of legitimacy to businesses which handled money made through trafficking. Tried under his full name of

Edson Cholbi do Nascimento, the 43-year-old was given an identical sentence to four other members of the alleged gang, including the fugitive cartel boss Ronaldo Duarte Barsotti, known as Naldinho. Naldinho was accused of controlling a large proportion of the drugs moving through the country’s south-east region, including the supply of cocaine to the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, but has been on the run from police for more than five years.

Ronaldo

ortugal coach Paulo Bento has no issue relying on Cristiano Ronaldo after Saturday’s scrappy 0-0 draw with

32-year-old Swiss into a record 42nd major quarter-final. Gulbis, seeded 18th, goes on to face sixth seed Czech Tomas Berdych in the last eight. The temperamental 25-year-old gave a typically unpredictable performance, big serving and brilliant shot-making interspersed with racquet smashing and

anchester United are hopeful that they can land Atletico Madrid midfielder Koke in a £48m move that would smash their current transfer record as the Louis van Gaal era begins to take shape. Having identified Koke as a potential summer target, United were originally hopeful that they could negotiate a move for the 22-year-old, but Atletico’s reluctance to sell one of their brightest talents has led to the Premier League club considering a move to activate his £48m release clause.

Immobile confirms Dortmund move

taly striker Ciro Immobile confirmed on SundayheisjoiningGermangiantsBorussiaDortmundfromhisSerieAoutfitTorinofor a fee reported to be 19.4million euros “Itisdecided.Ionlyhavetoputmysignatureonthe contract. On Monday, I’m going to Germany,” he said. Representatives from Immobile’s former club Juventus, who still part own the striker, and their city rivals Torino have met to discuss the details of the transfer, according to Italian sports daily Gazzetta dello Sport.

Pele (right) with his son, Edinho

Ronaldo was crucial to Portugal reaching the finals, scoring all four of his nation’s goals in their play-off win over Sweden. And they face a tricky test, having been drawn against Germany, Ghana and USA in Group G for the showpiece in Brazil. Though Bento recognises the need for his side to step up if Ronaldo is not fit, he will happily lean on the 2013 FIFA Ballon d’Or win-

Federer knocked out of French Open

oger Federer failed to reach the French Open quarter-finals for the first time since 2004 as he lost in five sets to Latvia’s Ernests Gulbis. The 17-time Grand Slam champion led by a set and a break, but went down 6-7 (5-7) 7-6 (7-3) 6-2 4-6 6-3. Fourth-round victory would have taken the

Man United set to activate Koke clause

Lampard, Villa join New York City

Portugal coach happy to rely on Ronaldo Greece in his absence. The Portuguese captain was hampered by thigh injuries at the back-end of last season with Real Madrid and is yet to train fully after reporting for international duty. Without their talisman on the pitch, Portugal laboured to a stalemate with the Greeks in Oeiras in both sides’ final game on European soil before heading to the United States.

verbal exchanges with spectators. There was no doubt where the crowd’s affections lay on Court Philippe Chatrier, with 2009 champion Federer given the support of a home player. The Swiss looked in control when he served for a two-set lead, but he inexplicably failed to put away a smash on

ner if need be. “Whoever we have in the team, we’ll have to compete. The national team, Real Madrid or Manchester United were always stronger when they had a player with Cristiano Ronaldo’s ability. “If teams that train every day together depend on him, why should we be afraid of saying he has an enormous influence on our team?” Banto said. set point, and the afternoon took a very different turn.

rank Lampard has agreed to join new MLS franchise New York City on a free transfer, after being released by Chelsea. The former Blues man will also be joined by Atletico Madrid and Spain striker David Villa who is set to be another high-profile signing for the franchise. Lampard and Villa were both at Manchester City’s Carrington complex Saturday as they looked to complete the formalities of their moves, with the former breaking from his England preparations to sort out his transfer.

Fabregas to replace Toure at Man City

achester City are set to bid for Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas. The Daily Star Sunday says they will move for Fabregas if Yaya Toure keeps up his apparent campaign to quit Manchester City. Initial talks have already been held between the Premier League champions and Fabregas’ representatives. Thatcouldsparka£25millionbattlebetweenCityandtheBarcelona midfielder’s former club Arsenal.

Juve, Napoli vie for Janmaat

uventus and Napoli are locked in the battle forFeyenoordfull-backDarylJanmaat,according to Tuttosport. The 24-year-old has developed into a key player for both club and country and he is widelytippedtoleavetheDeKuipoutfitforgreener pastures this summer. Italian Serie A appears to be the most likely destination, with Juventus and Napoli expected to go into a real bidding war for the Netherlands international.

Injured Nadal, Murray cruise

afael Nadal shrugged off another bout of back pain to charge into the last 16 of the French Open on Saturday (Sunday in Manila) with an imposing 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 win over Leonardo Mayer of Argentina. Seeking to become the first man to win five straight

titles in Paris and the first to win nine times at the same Grand Slam, Nadal has lost just 19 games in getting to the last 16. At the same stage last year en route to his eighth French Open title, Nadal had dropped two sets and lost 48 games.

Meanwhile, Wimbledon champion Andy Murray won a five-set marathon spread over two days against Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany to reach the last 16 of the French Open on Sunday. The seventh seed from Britain won 3-6 6-3 6-3 4-6 1210 after 40 minutes’ play on Sunday.

54 SPORT

Monday, June 2, 2014

Kanu: South Africans must emulate Nigerian players S

Ambrose hopes for Chibok girls’ return

Charles Ogundiya

Mercy Jacob

uper Eagles legend, Nkwankwo Kanu, has decleared that South African players must emulate Nigerian players who never aspire to stay in the country, but are always aiming for Europe. He added that South African players were in a comfort zone playing in the League noting that this was the reason Bafana Bafana struggle on the international stage. “I believe South African players tend to do more when play-

ing for their clubs than for the national team. I think the players are maybe too comfortable when they are in South Africa playing for their clubs. They’re maybe in a comfort zone,” he told South African magazine, Soccer Laduma. “Every player needs to have this dream of conquering the world, not just where they come from. When they have that mentality of wanting to go out there and do something in a different place, when they follow their dreams to be the best in the world, then I think you may see

South Africa start producing more players. “No player in Nigeria wants to end up playing their soccer in the (Nigerian) league. Every player that you see there… Even me when I started… Our dream is to play in Europe to play with the best in the world. Our dream is not to stay there (in Nigeria). We are not happy to stay there (Nigeria) and be comfortable because they give us what we want, because we are not mixing with the best in the world. You want to mix with the best in the world to know how good you are.”

Oluyole Warriors’ Akeem Suleiman (right) trying to dribble Union Bank’s Godwin Ikonshul of during the 2014 Nigeria DStv Premier Basketball League held at the Indoor Sports Hall of National Stadium at the weekend. Union Bank won by 75-64 points.

Zenith/NBBF Basketball League: Stage set for final-phase Ifeanyi Ibeh

he Nigeria Basketball Federation, has released plans for the final-phase of the 10th Zenith Bank Women League slated for June 12 to 22 in Lagos. Sixteen teams took part in the first two phases of this season’s championship in Abuja and Ilorin, from which eight teams made it through to the final-phase. They include defending champions, First Deepwater, who topped group A, and former champions, First Bank, who led group B. Others are last season’s runners-up, Dolphins of Lagos, Sunshine Angels of Akure, Customs, IGP Queens, Delta Force of Asaba and FCT Angels of Abuja. The teams are expected to hit Lagos on June 12, while the championship’s technical meeting

holds same day with the opening games slated for June 13. In a release from the Secretariat of the NBBF, the body applauded the sixteen teams that participated in the opening two phases of the league, while praising the eight teams that made it from the groups to the finals to be held at the Indoor Sports Hall of the National Stadium, Lagos. The federation singled out the six new teams that joined the league last season for substantially raising the standard of the competition and urged them to be proud of themselves for making tremendous progress since their debut. An All-Star Game, the first of its kind since the history of the women’s league in Nigeria, will precede the grand finale.

didas, the FIFA partners, has introduced a World Cup awareness programme in Nigeria tagged ‘All in Nigeria’ Radio show on the Super

Glo Premier League Dolphins 3-1 Lobi Bayelsa 3-4 Heartland FC Taraba 1-0 Sharks Sunshine 3-2 El-Kanemi Abia W 2-1 Gombe Rangers 1-0 Kaduna Akwa Utd 2-1 Crown Kano Pillars 1-0 Enyimba W/Wolves 2-1 Nasarawa Giwa 3-0 Nembe (WO)

SuperSport plans massive World Cup coverage Emmanuel Tobi

“We are Brazil” theme, will be a multi-platform offering with TV, digital, social, Catch-Up and Video-on-Demand on the DStv Explora - all featuring great FIFA World Cup elements. “We’ve invested heavily in the latest technology. It’s a multifaceted facility that offers a range of broadcast options. Plus we’ve revamped the adjoining studioentertainment area that now includes a fan zone and his multipurpose.” He added that SuperSport

has pulled out all stops for the event, which starts on June 12, to uperSport’s General ensure that viewers need never Manager, West Africa, leave their television screens. Felix Awogu has reiterCharles Anazodo will anchorthe show that includes global ated DStv’s commitment to icons such as Ryan Giggs who showcase the 2014 World Cup in Brazil to Nigerians while will be just one of many expromising an excellent coverperts who will share their insights with DStv subscribers. age of the competition. Cool sports show on Cool FM in conjunction with Africa’s content Awogu who revealed that Other football heavyweights syndicator, TransAfrica Radio. SuperSport’s state of the art who will add to the package According to Astrud Meintjes, HD studio, built for the 2010 ediinclude Jay Jay Okocha, Sunthe Senior Business Develoption, has undergone extensive day Oliseh, Sammy Kuffour, refurbishment, added that the ment Manager of Adidas, ‘All in John Barnes, John Dykes and Colin Udoh who will offer flyNigeria’ will bring Nigerian fans the on-the-wall coverage and enexciting build-up to sure viewers enjoy a unique the greatest show on perspective of the Super Eagles. earth with breathSuperSport will boast two 24-hour channels – one in HD taking analysis and weekly chances to (SS3HD), one in SD (SS3) on DStv win spectacular priz– for the duration of the tournaes, including the offiment. For the eight matches that cial Brazuca match run concurrently, in the lastball, Nigeria’s Super round round-robin stage, SS2HD Eagles jersey and the and SS4 will feature these fixtures. latest football boots A selection of matches, including L-R: Martin Mabutho, General Manager, Marketing and Retention, MultiChoice Nigeria; Nomsa courtesy of Adidas the Super Eagles’ matches against Mazibuko, SuperSport Marketing Director and Felix Awogu, General Manager, SuperSport, West and Mopheth Sport Africa, during the SuperSport launch of the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil Campaign tagged “WE Iran and Argentina, will be broadNigeria Limited. cast live on DStv’s GOtv. ARE BRAZIL” in Lagos.

Adidas brings World Cup fever to Nigeria Mercy Jacob

uper Eagles defender, Efe Ambrose, has said that he hopes the team’s performance in Brazil will aid the return of over 200 schoolgirls kidnapped from their boarding school in the northern town of Chibok some weeks ago, by militant Islamist group Boko Haram. Ambrose expressed the hope that the African nation’s passion for football can help bring peace and stability to the country. A campaign to release the girls based around the slogan

‘Bring Back Our Girls’ has developedintoaglobalcampaign on social media. AccordingtoAmbrosewho grewupintheNortherntown of Kaduna; “The area where the girls were taken from is not too far from where I grew up. “When we’re playing, nobodywillforgetaboutthegirls or what is happening elsewhere in Nigeria, but we can use it to bring peace and calm to the country.” Ambrose was a substitute in Nigeria’s 2-2 midweek friendly match against Scotland in London.

NEWS 55

Sanctity of Truth

Monday, June 2, 2014

Ekiti 2014 E-Eleven threatens libel suit against group Adesina Wahab

Ado-Ekiti

socio-political group AEleven, in Ekiti State, the Ehas described as

a blatant lie, the claim by the Ayo Fayose Campaign Organisation (AFCO) that it defrauded the state government in its handling of the lease agreement it has with the state over Fountain Hotel, Ado-Ekiti. The group is running and maintaining the hotel on behalf of the owner, the Ekiti State Government. According to a statement by the Chairman, Mr Femi Ajiniran, in Ado-Ekiti yesterday, the group said it had not defrauded the state government in any way. The group chided AFCO Director General, Chief Dipo Anisulowo, for accusing it wrongly. The E-Eleven added

that it would challenge the claim that it was not handling the facility properly and that it was short changing the state government on the matter. The E-Eleven, seen by some people as pro-All Progressives Congress and its candidate, Dr Kayode Fayemi, has been having a running battle with AFCO and the opposition in the state. Some members of the group have gone to court to challenge the eligibility of the PDP candidate, Mr Ayo Fayose, for the election. This is after the group and AFCO have traded words over sundry issues relating to the election. AFCO and PDP have maintained that whatever the E-Eleven says is tainted because it is not apolitical as it is claiming.

Fayemi promises more work for Ekiti overnor Kayode Fayemi Gassured of Ekiti State has Ekiti people that

his administration will deliver more dividends of democracy if re-elected in the June 21 poll. The governor gave the assurance while receiving the Knights of St John’s International, Lagos Commandary, led by its former President, Sir Kole Olowu, on a courtesy visit in Ado Ekiti at the weekend. Fayemi said contrary to insinuations that second term governors usually relapse into non- performance, he is in service to God and Ekiti people and has no reason not to provide accountable service to the people who voted him as governor. The governor asserted

that he sees politics as a means to serve the people and make a positive difference in their lives. That, he said, he has been doing since he assumed office in 2010 and evident in the massive road construction, transfor mation of the education system, succour to elderly citizens through the Social Security Scheme, which is being replicated in two other states, and the free health programme, among others. Fayemi said the people of the state should expect more people-oriented programmes when he is re-elected as he is dedicated to providing selfless service that will bring about the Ekiti which all and sundry will be proud of.

Group happy with preparations Adesina Wahab

Ado-Ekiti

group, the National Youth Vanguard, which is also an arm of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has expressed satisfaction with the level of preparation of the party and the wide support its candidate in the Ekiti State governorship election, Mr Ayo Fayose, is enjoying in the build up to the poll. Speaking in AdoEkiti at the weekend, the Zonal Coordinator, Hon. Dele Dumiye, said the development showed that the PDP remained the leading political party in the state. "Apart from that,

our candidate, former Governor Ayo Fayose, is the choice of the people and has wide support across the state and we are ready to mobilise for him. "We are not going to be deterred by the antics of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the people of the state, by their huge turnout at rallies, are telling us that our party is their choice, "he said. Dumiye also said the recent meeting of leaders of the group had with the National Youth Leader of the PDP, Hon. Abdullahi Maibasira, had opened a new vista for the group on how to work with the party's leadership to achieve set goals.

L-R: Ekiti State Labour Party (LP) Chairman, Akin Omole; Onikun of Ikun, Oba Timothy Oluwagbohunmi Ibiyinka and LP governorship candidate, Michael Opeyemi Bamidele, during a courtesy visit to the Oba…at the weekend

2.98m

The number of fixed-telephone subscriptions of Hungary in 2010. Source: Itu.int

236,040

The total area (in sq. km) of Uganda. Source: Worldfactsandfigures.com

775m

The number of adults that are illiterates worldwide. Source: Un.org

Late payment of Ekiti pensioners wicked – Fayose lYou’re confused - Fayemi CONTROVERSY

Ekiti State PDP, APC governorship candidates bicker over welfare of pensioners

he Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Ekiti State, Mr Ayodele Fayose, has described as an act of wickedness, the promise by the governor, who is also the All Progressives Cong ress (APC) candidate, Dr Kayode Fayemi, to clear all the arrears of pension owed workers in the state. Fayose said that "only a wicked governor will

wait till three weeks to election before realising that pensioners have not been paid since 2012." Fayose, who promised to pay pension and gratuities of retired government workers as at when due, added that Fayemi must tell Ekiti people what happened to the billions of naira deducted from local government allocations for the payment of pension and gratuity. Fayemi had pledged last week to clear the nine months arrears of pension totalling N181 million owed some retired primary school teachers between January and September, 2002. In a statement yesterday and signed by the

Director General, Ayo Fayose Campaign Organisation (AFCO), Chief Dipo Anisulowo, the PDP governorship candidate said; "when PDP was in government in the state, pensioners received their gratuity within 60 days of retirement, while pension was paid on the 22nd of the month. We will restore that when we get to government on October 16, 2014 by the grace of God." However, the Head of Media and Publicity, All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr Segun Dipe, said Fayose was only talking from the point of an ignorant fellow. "Both the PDP and its candidate, Ayo Fayose, are talking rubbish and

should get their facts right. The arrears being mentioned piled up during the PDP-led administration in the state. "The arrears were not from the time we came to office. We run a humane government and would not toy with anything having to do with the welfare of our people. All dues of workers serving and retired are paid as at when due," Dipe said. However, AFCO statement reads; "It is a fact that Fayemi cannot contest that not less than N150 million is deducted every month from the Joint Account Allocation Committee (JAAC) for the payment of gratuity, and another N140 million for the payment of pension.

APC is stockpiling arms – PDP lYou are only diverting attention - APC Adesina Wahab

Ado-Ekiti

he Ekiti State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) of stockpiling arms preparatory to the conduct of the June 21 governorship election. In a statement in AdoEkiti by the Publicity Secretary, Pastor Kola Oluwawole, the PDP alleged that the APC was trying hard to breach all security procedures being put in place for the election. The PDP added that the leadership of the

APC in the state was distributing guns and other lethal weapons to fight opposition against the second term bid of Governor Kayode Fayemi. Oluwawole, in the statement, added that a meeting was held at the Government House, AdoEkiti where a top notch in the administration gave the order that arms that had been stockpiled be distributed to APC youths and members to unleash mayhem on PDP members. In his reaction, the Head of Media and Publicity of Ekiti APC, Mr Segun Dipe, said PDP and its

leaders were only trying to divert attention from their dubious activities. "We know them and their antics. They are only trying to divert attention from the evil acts. You know it is their style to test waters and feel the pulse of the people when they are planning evil. "They are the ones that should be probed. If they say we are stockpiling arms, let them tell security agencies where those arms are and who are keeping them. "We are the ones in charge of the security of the people and we are too serious-minded to be drawn into frivolous

allegations by the PDP. "People of the state should watch out. With this coming from the PDP, it means they are up to serious mischief and God will not allow them to succeed," Dipe said. However, the PDP also alleged that a marching order was given to the participants at the meeting that thugs assigned to them should be used to cause confusion across the state with specific instructions that some members of PDP should be attacked prior to the election to scare them away from the state so as not to mobilise their members for the election.

World Record

On Marble

Don’t watch the clock; do what it does. Keep going.

Sanctity of Truth

– Sam Levenson

w w w. new tel eg rap ho nl i ne. co m

Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon and the truth – Buddha MONday, JUNE 2, 2014

N150

The greatest distance run by a relay team is 5,639.6 km (3,504.28 miles) and was achieved by Keep on Running (Ireland and UK) at St Colmans Sports Complex in Newry, County Down, UK, from 21 July to 8 August 2012.

Africa rising—Building to the future

frica’s achievements are remarkable, and the overall outlook for the continent is optimistic. This is an exciting time for Africa. And the theme of the conference, Africa Rising, captures this excitement. Mozambique’s Journey In many ways, Mozambique epitomizes this positive spirit. Over the past two decades, Mozambique has posted one of the fastest growth rates in the Sub-Saharan region—an average of 7.4 percent per year. Major steps have been taken to reduce poverty and raise life expectancy. These are the fruits of years of institution-building and sound economic management. The recent discovery of natural resources offers a unique opportunity to further build on these gains and make growth more inclusive. An African proverb says: “If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Mozambique has come far—and the journey continues; the IMF has been and will continue to be by its side. We have been working together providing both financial support and policy advice. We have also supported Mozambique’s reform agenda with stepped-up technical assistance and capacity building efforts, which continue today. I would like to commend Mozambique—and indeed the region—on this impressive performance. Africa has taken its destiny into its own hands. Now is the time to build the future. This conference offers a unique opportunity to reflect—together—on the lessons learned from Africa’s success and the challenges ahead. There is still much to be done. The continent is very diverse, and some countries risk being left behind, especially those faced with recurring conflict. In others, the rapid growth is yet to be widely shared across the population, with many Africans failing to see the fruits of economic success. In that spirit, I would like to share with you three perspectives: (i) Where we stand— taking stock of Africa’s achievements; (ii) What near-term and longer-term challenges are emerging; and (iii) What are the key policy priorities to address these challenges and help deliver on the promise of Africa’s future. 1. Where We Stand—Africa’s Takeoff Let me start with where we stand. Sub-Saharan Africa is clearly taking off— growing strongly and steadily for nearly two decades and showing a remarkable resilience in the face of the global financial crisis.

Guest Columnist Christine Lagarde

Economic stability has paid off. More than two-thirds of the countries in the region have enjoyed ten or more years of uninterrupted growth. This growth has delivered a more educated population, with significant declines in infant mortality. In Benin and Madagascar, for example, primary school enrolment has increased by more than 50 percentage points. This may be from low levels, but it is still a huge improvement. And for good reasons, Africa is now a growing investment destination for both advanced and emerging economies—with a record $80 billion inflow expected this year. Indeed, it is no surprise that ‘frontier economies’ such as Kenya, Uganda, and Botswana are challenging old stereotypes and roaring loud as Africa’s lions. And yet, the tide of growth has not lifted all boats. Poverty remains stuck at unacceptably high levels—still afflicting about 45 percent of the region’s households. Inequality remains high. And some countries, still facing recurring internal conflict, are struggling to exit from fragility. Africa’s success journey has been truly remarkable. But if the global crisis has taught us anything, it is the importance of making the benefits of growth more broadly shared. When everyone benefits, growth is more durable. Over the years, the IMF has been a close partner in Africa’s journey—including during the crisis. We have listened, we have learned, and we have responded. We have reformed our lending instruments to increase access and flexibility to countries in need; extended our zero-interest policy; and streamlined conditionality. We have tailored our policy advice to better address the very specific challenges facing the region. And we have supported this advice with five regional technical assistance centers—in Gabon, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Mauritius, and Tanzania. Today, the largest share of the IMF’s capacity development services is devoted to Africa. We look forward to continuing—and strengthening—this fruitful partnership. 2. Challenges Ahead—Near-term Worries and Longer-term Challenges Africa’s future lies with itself and its people. True—the outlook for the region

is very positive. Africa is expected to grow by about 5.5 percent this year and next, and the poorest countries even faster— close to 7 percent. But it must keep a firm eye on what’s going on beyond its horizons. Globally, even as the world turns the corner of the Great Recession, the recovery remains weak and uneven. What does this mean for Africa? Near- term worries In the near term, the region’s outlook could be clouded by three main worries: (i) slower growth in advanced economies, and in particular emerging market economies which are major trading partners for Africa; (ii) lower prices for some commodities; and (iii) tightening external financial conditions and potentially increased market volatility as monetary policy is normalized. Policymakers will no doubt have their hands full. But they know what to do. The IMF stands ready to help with its policy advice, its technical assistance, and if needed, financial support. Longer-term challenges Beyond these more immediate worries, there are a number of longer-term challenges that can dramatically affect the outlook for Africa. Some for the better; others—not so much. Demographic challenges: Africa is the youngest continent in the world. By 2040, the continent is projected to boast the largest labor force in the world—1 billion workers strong—more than China and India combined. Channeling this increasing reservoir of human capital to productive sectors offers unrivalled economic and social opportunities. To take full advantage of them will require skillful management and vision. Technological challenges: Technological innovation offers great possibilities. It can help support global integration, improve productivity, and foster inclusion. Harnessing its power effectively and efficiently is the challenge. Environmental challenges: Climate change and sustained demand growth press on the sustainability of natural resources—further exacerbating inequality and exclusion. The challenge is to implement policies to foster growth that is, in turn, inclusive and environmentally sus-

tainable. 3. Building to the Future—Three Policy Priorities So what are the policy priorities to ensure that these challenges become opportunities? I see three: build infrastructure, build institutions, and build people. Build infrastructure First, build infrastructure—energy, roads, and technology grids. These are the foundations of any strong and durable edifice. What does this mean in practice? Closing Africa’s infrastructure gap. Over the past three decades, per capita output of electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa remained virtually flat. Only 16 percent of all roads are paved, compared with 58 percent in South Asia. These shortfalls represent huge costs to businesses—and to people. Many countries in the region are taking encouraging steps to close this infrastructure gap. In Ethiopia and Mozambique, for example, investments in the energy sector are being scaled up, including through projects that promote cross-border trade in electricity. Kenya and Côte d’Ivoire are also initiating regional infrastructure projects in electricity, and road and railroad networks. These investments are critical for growth to be sustained—and broadened. High quality infrastructure can be a magnet for foreign investment. It can accelerate diversification and employment creation, and support further regional integration. •Christine Lagarde is Managing Director, International Monetary Fund

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