Friday, september 30, 2016

Dangote: Nigeria’s existence depends on diversification of economy lBuhari seeks partnership with MAN for industrialisation

Anule Emmanuel Abuja

F

oremost industrialist and Africa’s richest

man, Aliko Dangote, yesterday declared that the very ‘existence’ of Nigeria depends on the rapid diver-

sification of the economy.

“Since oil prices are unlikely to rebound any time soon, it would not be an

exaggeration to assert that the very “existence” of our country is now hinged on the rapid diversification of

our economy, especially in the manufacturing, agriculture and mining sectors,” he said.

This was as President Muhammadu Buhari

Obasanjo calls for NNPC reform, Opposes sale of national assets }4

explained that the manufacturing sector was well positioned to be a major driver of Nigeria’s economic growth because of the nation’s immense natural resources and the CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

Sanctity Of Truth

NIGERIA’S MOST AUTHORITATIVE NEWSPAPER IN POLITICS AND BUSINESS

Naira slides to N492/$ as foreign speculators invade market }37

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Vol. 3 No. 954

Friday, September 30, 2016

Emefiele

I'm sex starved, says man who defiled 8-yearold girl }9

Inyang

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Ohanaeze Ndigbo demands Kanu's release }41

Kanu

Assassins kill pregnant woman, husband, three children }8

N150

Owoseni

edo governorship poll:

Jubilation, protest as Obaseki emerges Gov-Elect }2, 3, 11 & 12

lPDP, Ize-Iyamu kick, reject poll result lAPC agent slumps, dies after casting vote lOshiomhole, APC leaders in victory dance Election results as declared by INEC lBuhari, Tinubu, Oyegun, Ambode congratulate Obaseki

Godwin Obaseki celebrating on the streets of Benin after his declaration as governor-elect of Edo State... yesterday.

S/N 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

LGA Oredo Orhionmwon Owan West Egor Uhunmwode Esan South East Esan West Esan North East Igueben Owan East Ovia North East Akoko Edo Ovia South West Esan Central Etsako Central Etsako East Etsako West Ikpoba Okha Result

APC 37,612 15,262 12,862 26,177 10,911 9,554 13,114 9,130 7,802 21, 233 17,561 24,545 12,820 9,781 10,373 18,078 29,199 33,469 319,483

Total Valid Votes Total Rejected Votes Total Votes Cast Total Accredited Voters Total Number of Registered Voters

PDP 30,492 16,446 10,132 19,514 8,667 11,466 16,311 16,220 7,560 12,889 13,141 13,027 8,810 10,180 8,827 12,552 10,843 26,096 253,173 582, 299 30,945 613, 244 622,039 1,900, 223

Again, militants blow up NPDC pipeline

…threaten destruction of more oil installations }3

Succour for diabetics as FDA approves artificial pancreas

}6

2

NEWS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Jubilation, protest as Obaseki emerges Edo Gov-Elect

Temitope Ogunbanke and Cajetan Mmuta BENIN

I

t was wild jubilation for the All Progressives Congress (APC), laced with protests by aggrieved Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members across Edo State, as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday declared Mr. Godwin Nogheghase Obaseki of APC as governor-elect amid tight security.

Obaseki scored 319, 483 votes to beat his opponent and candidate of the PDP, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, who polled 253, 173 votes, out of the total number of 613,244 votes cast. The total number of rejected votes in the entire exercise stood at 30 945.

Obaseki equally won in 13 out of the 18 local government areas of the state.

With the announcement, Obaseki is now the governor-elect of the Heart Beat of the Nation after the contest, which was earlier scheduled to hold on September 10, but was rescheduled to Wednesday, September 28, due to security reports by the Nigeria Police Force and the Department of Security Services

(DSS).

Declaring the APC candidate winner, INEC’s Chief Returning Officer, Professor Kayode Soremekun, who is also the Vice Chancellor of the Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, said: “Godwin Obaseki of the APC, having satisfied the requirements of the law, is hereby declared winner of the election held on Wednesday, September 28, 2016, having scored the highest number of votes and is hereby returned unopposed.”

But soon after INEC declared the results, the

entire state, particularly Benin City, the state capital, was greeted with unprecedented jubilation from joyous party leaders, members and supporters, who thronged the INEC headquarters and some parts of the metropolis, holding brooms, the symbol of the ruling party.

The outgoing governor, Adams Oshiomhole, in an ecstatic mood alongside party leaders, members and thousands of jubilant supporters, trooped to the city centre, Kings Square, in Benin to appreciate and rejoice with the people for

standing and voting for continuity.

There was popping of exotic drinks and songs of victory at the Godwin Obaseki Campaign Organisation headquarters and that of the Director General, Barrister Osarodion Ogie, as well as other leaders of APC in the state.

This was simultaneously accompanied by a heavy downpour, which in the process sacked all the protesting PDP members who besieged the head office of the INEC on Aduwawa-Benin-Auchi road in the state.

Auchi, the administra-

tive headquarters of Estako West Local Government Area of Edo, yesterday evening, came alive as hundreds of supporters of the APC lined the streets in celebration of the party’s victory in the Wednesday governorship poll.

Supporters, with trumpeters, danced through major streets, singing victory songs.

However, as the electoral umpire announced the collated results from the 18 local government areas, agents of PDP and Young Democratic Party (YDP), Barrister Chris

Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole and his wife, Iara, on a road show to celebrate the victory of Mr. Godwin Obaseki, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and winner of the September 28 governorship election in Edo State… yesterday

Protest erupts in Edo as PDP rejects results

…says poll, a sham, rape of democracy Cajetan Mmuta and Temitope Ogunbanke BENIN

T

he opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate in the September 28 governorship election in Edo State, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, yesterday rejected the results of the election as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The party loyalists stormed the headquarters of INEC to protest the outcome of the poll.

The protesters, who were angered by the results turned in from the various polling centres in parts of the state on Wednesday, chanted antiAPC slogans and called the state government unprintable names.

They also resisted initial attempts by security agents to disperse them from the Aduwawa-BeninAuchi expressway office of INEC. The party described the result as rape of democracy.

According to the protesters, the PDP won the election in all the 18 council areas of the state.

They alleged that the state governor, Adams

Oshiomhole, allegedly stormed INEC at the wee hours of yesterday to induce the electoral body to change the figures.

Some of the placards read: "INEC took bribe from APC, PDP won the 2016 election," "INEC give us our actual results," "INEC give PDP their true result', amongst others.”

One of the protesters, Mrs. Lindsay Tes Sorae, from Ovia North East council area, said the people would not accept the result.

Also, Princess Eba from Ikpoba-Okha council area told journalists that they were already in high spirit earlier this morning, noting that their hopes were dashed as the results were being announced from the various council areas.

As at the time of filing this report, the protesters were still milling around INEC office that was heavily guarded by gun wielding security operatives who demonstrated a very high level of civility while imploring them to remain peaceful.

Chairman of PDP in the state, Chief Dan Osi Orbih, who addressed a press conference yesterday, said it was “clear that they have totally disregarded the results

from the various polling units across the 18 local governments in the state and INEC decided to announce the results, which they wrote even before the elections were held.”

He said the party rejected the results as announced by INEC, pointing out that “even areas we won, they have come out to remove most of the votes on the premise that the card readers did not function in those areas, even when there are incident forms for such challenge.”

He added: “Voters should not suffer undue denial as a result of inefficient card readers provided by INEC. "I believe strongly that the incident forms are supposed to address such problems, but in this instance, it is convenient for INEC to cancel the results from all the areas where we won clearly to put it at the doorstep of the card readers.

"We did not provide the card readers they used at the election, they should take full responsibility for those card readers that malfunctioned in the course of the election.”

He observed that the results confirmed the position of the party as expressed by the party's pub-

licity secretary 48 hours to the election.

"If you put the results together, PDP is clearly ahead of APC in all the 18 local government areas, there is no way we will not win the election with a minimum of 30,000 votes.

“But from what they are announcing at the INEC’s headquarters, it is clear that they have totally disregarded the results from the various polling units across the 18 local governments in the state and they have decided to announce the results which they wrote even before the elections were held.”

On his part, Ize-Iyamu said: “For us, we give thanks to God that contrary to the claim of the Edo State governor that PDP brought 8,000 militants, Wednesday’s election has clearly shown that PDP are law abiding people and that it is not engaged in such activity.”

He noted that the delay in announcing the official results by INEC was clearly predetermined, which is to announce fabricated results that are completely at variance with what happened in the units.

According to him, the results as announced by INEC did not reflect the huge turnout during the polls.

He added: “The results, because it was predetermined, was written without taking cognisance of where people will come out.

"We have told our agents to bring all the results and in three or four days, we will have a complete record of all the results. But like I tell you from our findings, it is clear a lot of manipulations have taken place.”

He alleged that agents of the state government, during the polls, chased away security agencies at George Idah Primary School, ward two, where collation was taking place and went away with collation materials and ward collation results.

He said in all this, no one had been declared wanted and that there was so much impunity.

Ize-Iyamu also alleged that agents of the PDP were arrested in Orhiomwon by police for protesting against noticed discrepancies.

He alleged that over 300 non-Nigerians were invited to vote in Orhiomwon.

Ize-Iyamu noted: “In Abiokola Two in Orhiomwon, everybody saw nonNigerians, we have also sent the full list. Over 300 non-Nigerian names were put in the register to come and vote in Orhiomwon."

Agbonwanegbe, and Mr. Memeh Samuel respectively refused to sign the result sheet.

The PDP chieftain disclosed that he had the mandate of the party leadership not to append his signature on the result sheet because he believed that the election was trailed by irregularities while the YDP agent said his party rejected the outcome due to omission of the party’s logo in the ballot papers used for the polls.

This also may not be unconnected with the opposition parties’ stand to reject the outcome of the process over alleged manipulation

by INEC in favour of the ruling party.

In reaction to his party’s victory and refusal of the PDP and YDP agents to sign the result sheet, an APC agent, Hon. Samson Abu, said: “The outcome of the election has marked the final death of PDP in Edo State. The refusal to sign the result sheet does not invalidate the APC victory at the polls. It is usually left to people to sign or not to sign result sheets.”

Meanwhile, Ize-Iyamu yesterday accused the state of spending between N3 billion and N4 billion to allegedly induce voters during the polls.

Ize-Iyamu, who stated this at a press conference, while refuting allegation that he and other PDP leaders shared huge sums of money to voters during the exercise, said: “There was a clearly orchestrated, well arranged plan to ensure that PDP did not only win the Edo election, but do not have evidence to show how they lost."

In a swift reaction, the state Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Prince Kassim Afegbua, said Edo people had spoken through the ballot boxes and that the victory was a testimony of the fact that they cherished continuity and sustained development.

He said: “The onus of proof lies on who is making the allegation. As far as we are concerned, the election was free, fair and credible, as we commend Edo people for displaying maturity and cooperation before, during and after the election. The victory is for all lovers of democracy and good governance.”

397,300

The total area (in sq. km) of land of Paraguay.

Source: Worldfactsandfigures.com

9.22m

The capital importation of the Servicing sector of Nigeria in Q4 2013.

Source: National Bureau of Statistics

NEWS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Again, militants blow up NPDC pipeline Dominic Adewole ASABA

T

he factional Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate yesterday struck again, blowing up the Unenurhie-Evwreni trunk/ delivery line that cuts across Ughelli South and North Local Government Areas of Delta State.

The shoreline is being operated by the Nigeria Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

This came barely a week after the militia group bombed the Afiesere-Ekiugbo delivery line in the same Ughelli axis of the state.

In the past two months, the group had destroyed five major delivery lines including the major trunk/delivery line that takes oil from Isoko to the Eriemu Manifold in Urhobo land belonging to the NPDC with its "Opudo strike force."

After declaring its "Operation Crocodile Tears" to counter Nigerian military's "Operation Crocodile Smile," the militia

How Obaseki secured victory over Ize-Iyamu Temitope Ogunbanke

T

he Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Mr. Godwin Obaseki of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of the Edo governorship election held on Wednesday.

Obaseki polled 319,483 to defeat his closest rival, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who scored 253,173 votes.

The Returning Officer, Prof Kayode Soremekum, said there were 1, 900, 223 registered voters, while 662,039 of the registered voters were accredited with 613, 244 voters casting their votes in the election.

He said 582,299 of the votes cast were recorded as valid with 30, 945 as rejected votes, saying the total percentage turned out was 32.74.

Obaseki won in 13 LGAs of Oredo, Uhunmwode, Owan West, Egor, Ovia North East, Akoko Edo, Ovia South West, Owan East, Igueben, Etsako East, Etsako Central, Etsako West and Ikpoba Okha.

On its part, Ize-Iyamu won in Orhionmwon, Esan South East, Esan West, Esan North East, and Esan Central.

In Oredo, Obaseki polled 37,612 against Ize-Iyamu’s 30,492 votes while the APC candidate trounced his opponent in Owan West where he secured12,862 votes against PDP’s 10,132.

In Ego LGA, APC’s

€33.8m

The estimated transfer value of Andre Gomes of Valencia in 2016.

Source: 101greatgoals.com

N145

The average price of Premium Motor Spirit (Petrol) of Ondo State in July 2016.

Source: National Bureau of Statistics

Obaseki won with 26,177 votes while his rival garnered 19,514 votes.

The winning streak for Obaseki continued in Uhunmwode LGA where he got 10,911 votes against Ize-Iyamu’s 8,667.

Obaseki marginally defeated his opponent in Igueben LGA where he polled 7,802 against PDP’s 7,560. He, however, widened the gap in Owan East LGA where the APC candidate secured 21,233 against his rival’s 12,889 votes.

Also, in Ovia North East, Obaseki consolidated his gain by polling 17,561 against Ize-Iyamu’s 13,141.

The APC candidate recorded overwhelming victory in Akoko Edo where he garnered 24,545 against PDP’s 13,027 votes.

In Ovia South West, APC got 12,820 votes against PDP’s 8,810 while the ruling party won in Etsako East with 18,078 votes against PDP’s 12,552.

In Etsako Central, APC won with 10,373 votes against his rival’s 8,827.

Also in Etsako West, Obaseki won convincingly with 29,199 votes against Ize-Iyamu’s 10,843. It was the same story in Ikpoba Okha where the APC candidate polled 33,469 against PDP’s 26,096.

Ize-Iyamu won in five local governments. In Orhionmwon, he recorded a slight win with 16,446 votes over Obaseki’s 15,262.

The PDP candidate also won in Esan South East, where he polled 11,466 against APC’s 9,554.

In Esan West LGA, IzeIyamu secured 16,311 votes against Obaseki’s 13,114 votes.

The APC candidate also lost to PDP in Esan North East where Ize-Iyamu secured 16,220 votes against Obaseki’s 9,130.

Ize-Iyamu also won in Esan Central where he secured 10,180 votes against APC’s 9,781.

group bombed the major trunk/delivery line of the same oil firm in Udu Local Government Area of the state.

Shortly after, the group served a final quit notice on all multinational oil companies to vacate the region or risk "Operation Hammurabi Code."

The spokesperson, Aldo Agbalaja, who claimed responsibility for yesterday’s attack, which occurred around 1a.m., said the attack was a mark of his group's commitment to a just cause and "to prove to the wicked and ungrateful multinational oil companies and their Nigerian military allies, who have been forcefully taking our natural endowment

without any visible returns, that we own our lands with the Opudo Strike Team of the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate."

According to Agbalaja, nothing will prevent the strike team from bringing oil exploration activities to an abrupt end in the next few weeks.

"We want to assure the oil multinational companies that we are determined to end their operations in our lands and this we shall if they fail to show the will to change their relationship with our people and their operational attitude in our lands.

"For the avoidance of doubts, we want to say here, categorically, that no amount of military

protection/presence can stop this whirlpool, no amount of shoddily arranged military operation can quell the will of our gallant army. The same way their Operation Crocodile Smile was sunken by our Operation Crocodile Tears, is how all their schemes against our land and people will continue to be defeated," he said.

The group threatened that the destruction of oil installations would only cease when the Federal Government fails to turn deaf ears to Niger Delta questions and President Muhammadu Buhari stops travelling abroad to de-market the country and stops portraying Niger Delta sons and daughters in bad light.

3

"The Operation Crocodile Tears is not slowing down, but determined to achieve target. Until the Federal Government takes the proper steps, this song will continue to play.

"Like we have said, this will only stop when you turn a new leaf, adopt a sincere attitude, give back to our people what naturally should be theirs, advise the government rightly, stop thinking there is an army to protect you from justice.

Do these and all that you know are good. If you do these things, be assured to have a good relationship with our people and real protection for your personnel and assets across our lands," Agbalaja noted.

L-R: Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; President, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote; Minister of Trade and Industry Okechukwu and President Muhammadu Buhari during the 44th Annual General Meeting of Manufacturing Association of Nigeria (MAN) in Abuja… yesterday.

PHOTO: TIMOTHY IKUOMENISAN.

Arms scandal: Dasuki's trial stalled Tunde Oyesina ABUJA

T

he trial of a former National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd) before an Abuja High Court was again stalled yesterday.

The trial had experienced the same trend before the court went on vacation.

The trial could not go ahead as scheduled yesterday due to the failure of the Federal Government to produce Dasuki in court.

The former NSA is standing trial on charges of money laundering and breach of trust filed against him by the Federal Government.

Dasuki, who was charged along with five others before Justice Peter Affen, was granted bail when he was first arraigned, but re-arrested and had been kept in custody of the Department of the State Services (DSS) since December 2015.

Charged alongside Dasuki are a former Director of Finance in the Office of the NSA, Shuaibu Salisu; a former Minister of State for Finance, Bashir

Yuguda; a former Sokoto Governor, Attahiru Bafarawa, the ex-governor’s son, Sagir Bafarawa, and a firm, Dalhatu Investment.

At the resumed trial yesterday, counsel to the Federal Government, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN) informed the judge that he was surprised that Dasuki, who was the second defendant in the charge, was not brought to court by the federal government.

The counsel explained that on his part, he notified the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on the trial and the need to produce Dasuki in court, but regretted that communication gap between the EFCC and the DSS was responsible for non-production of the former NSA in court.

Jacobs consequently applied to Justice Affen to stand down the case for him to enable his client produce Dasuki in court.

However, he could not give a definite time within which the EFCC would bring the ex-NSA to court.

The action of the prosecution provoked reactions from Chief Olajide Ayodele (SAN), counsel to

Yuguda, who vehemently opposed Jacobs’ request for stand down on the ground that the request, if granted, would not serve any useful purpose.

He added that the failure of the prosecution to give a definite time within which Dasuki can be brought to court by either the EFCC or DSS was an indication that he has no knowledge of what was transpiring between the EFCC and DSS on the matter.

Olajide, therefore, pleaded with the court to grant adjournment in the trial as a better option so as not to keep the court and the lawyers waiting till eternity.

The position of the counsel was adopted by counsel to Dasuki, Joseph Daudu (SAN).

Daudu, however, regretted that the government, which put the ex-NSA on trial, was the one scuttling the trial.

He further noted that since June 2016 when the matter was adjourned, the EFCC, which initiated the trial on behalf of the federal government, ought to have known that it has re-

sponsibility to produce Dasuki in court as required by the law.

Counsel to Bafarawa, Chief Akin Olujimi (SAN) also opposed the request for stand down of the case without a definite time and pleaded for an adjournment.

Counsel to other defendants, Dr. Kayode Olatoke (SAN) and Akeem Afolabi (SAN) respectively prayed the court for an adjournment.

In his ruling on the stand down application, the trial judge, Justice Affen agreed that it would be unfair to stand down the case without being given a definite time within which Dasuki could be produced in court.

The court, however, urged the Federal Government to always do the needful to help the prosecution counsel by ensuring regular attendance of the ex-NSA in court.

He later adjourned till October 21.

The federal government had, in December 2015, arraigned Dasuki and five others on a 22-count charge of diversion of funds for arms procurement.

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NEWS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Dangote: Nigeria’s existence depends on diversification of economy CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

entrepreneurial spirit of Nigerians.

Buhari and Dangote spoke yesterday at the 44th Annual General Meeting of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), which held in Abuja.

The theme of the meeting is “diversifying the Nigerian Economy: the Role of Government in Manufacturing.”

The President of Dangote Group stated that in the face of economic recession confronting Nigeria, it has now become very evident for the country to urgently develop other income streams by diversifying its economy since it can no longer depend solely on crude oil exports to fund its economy.

Insisting that diversification is key to the growth and development of the economy, Dangote said: “Diversification is no longer an option, it has now become the only hope.

Diversifying the Nigerian economy can sometimes be misconstrued to mean neglecting the oil and gas sector. On the contrary, the oil and gas sector needs to be deepened and expanded to enable us unlock the full benefits in the hydrocarbon value chain.

“Even though diversification of the economy has to be private sector

driven, government has a huge role to play in creating a conducive climate for businesses to thrive. One of the biggest challenges in Nigeria today is the deteriorating macroeconomic environment. Government needs to quickly restore confidence in the economy by beefing up its external reserves while making concerted efforts to improve the overall business climate. Investors always look out for stability of the local currency amongst other factors in making decisions on whether or not to risk their investment in any economy. Needless to say, to effectively diversify the economy, the private sector would require foreign exchange to make the necessary investments in new sectors.

“To demonstrate seriousness and sincerity in its declared drive to revive the agricultural sector, government should come out with a comprehensive package of incentives and reliefs that addresses the issues of high entry cost, absence of low interest funding, long gestation periods, access to land, availability and cost of imported inputs and absence of guaranteed commodity prices,” he said.

Dangote, who was the guest speaker, also lamented the decline in the contribution of the manufacturing sector to the country’s

economy.

He told the gathering that recent figures indicate that the manufacturing sector contracted by -2.9 percent in 2015 as against growth rates of 21.8 percent and 14.7 percent in 2013 and 2014 respectively.

“The aggregate manufacturing jobs created in 2014 and 2015 was 20,535 jobs as against 53,340 jobs created in the sector in 2013 alone. These figures merely confirm what we already knew which is that the manufacturing sector in Nigeria is currently under very serious strain,” Dangote stated.

He urged the Federal Government to expand the tax base rather than increasing the tax rate as currently being advised.

His words: “The crux of our problem is, therefore, the depth and quality of diversification. To be impactful, diversification in Nigeria has to occur across several fronts. There is export diversification, which involves creating multiple streams of foreign exchange income by exporting a variety of value added products as well as services.

“Next is fiscal diversification to shore up the contribution of non-oil revenue to total government revenue by increasing tax receipts. The emphasis should, however, be

In your juicy

on expanding the tax base rather than increasing the tax rate.”

Speaking at the event, Buhari assured that his government was putting in place machinery that would encourage high patronage of made in Nigeria products.

“We are working on improving the patronage of locally made goods, bridging the gap between skills required by industry and those provided by our educational institutions and access to finance for our Small and Medium-Scale

Enterprises (SMEs).

“We recognise that MAN and the other Organised Private Sector (OPS) groups are our key stakeholders in this journey and we will continue our engagement with you,” the president noted.

Buhari explained that his government’s strategic plan to boost manufacturing activities in the country is supported by the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) and the National Enterprises Development Programme (NEDEP).

“Government is, therefore, focused on implementing necessary policies and strategies aimed at unleashing the full potential of manufacturing in Nigeria.

“A strong manufacturing sector will create more jobs and wealth for our people. It will usher in sustainable economic prosperity because we will produce what we consume as a nation and generate foreign exchange by exporting any surplus,” he said.

He further assured that government would partner the association in the task of charting a brighter future for our nation.

Obasanjo calls for NNPC reform, opposes sale of national assets Adeola Yusuf

F

ormer President Olusegun Obasanjo has tasked President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently reform the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) if he is serious about taking the country out of recession.

Obasanjo, who also carpeted President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, business mogul, Aliko Dangote and other proponents of the sale of national assets, maintained that the NNPC reform is best done to lift the economy out of recession and create wealth for Nigerians.

Instead of putting the national heritage up for sale, he said the govern-

ment should reform the NNPC, adding that selling of national assets and calls for it are wrong.

The former president spoke when the Group Managing Director of NNPC, Dr. Maikanti Baru, paid him a courtesy visit in his Presidential Hilltop, Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital yesterday.

He, however, declared during Baru's visit that he did not "understand this talk of selling of national assets."

He used the GMD's visit to call for the urgent reform of the business operations model of the NNPC by the Muhammadu Buhari-led government, maintaining that this is best done to lift the economy out of reces-

sion.

He said: “What I do understand is reform.

I believe organisations like the NNPC should be reformed. I don’t understand this talk of selling of national assets. Selling of national assets is wrong.

"But reform is what I think should be done so that we can run the business of NNPC the way it should be run.

“If there is any organisation that can help us quickly get out of recession, it is NNPC. If you work hard, you can get around the situation. I want to encourage you and hope that the little difference we have started seeing will continue."

SATURDAY

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flags on Prominent Nigerians Independence speak on journey so far Day

24 hours to glory: I'm Rangers for life, says Okala

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE OF KANO STATE OF NIGERIA

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News|NATIONAL

Soludo to Buhari: Don’t ignore calls for Biafra

...wants Kanu set free Adeolu Johnson

F

ormer Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, has advised the Federal Government to free Nnamdi Kanu as a first step of resolving the agitation for a Biafra State.

Soludo, who reviewed a Book, titled “The Politics of Biafra and The Future of Nigeria” written by former House of Representatives member, Hon. Chudi Offodile, said keeping Kanu in

prison would not do Nigeria any good as a nation.

“Kanu threw a bait and Nigeria accepted it. I think he is a most popular political prisoner today and should be released; he may be a subject of the next political campaign.

He may be like the late Obafemi Awolowo, who came out of prison after being charged for treason and embraced by all ” Soludo explained.

He said Kanu and his followers were in the main stream of the struggle and that he would be surprised if anybody tells President Mohammadu Buhari to ignore

this group of intelligentsia.

Soludo said any elite group, who goes to the government in a bid to negotiate on their behalf unjustly will be consumed by this monster they created.

“Let me agree with Professor Wole Soyinka that said the declaration of the state of Biafra is an idea which can be resolved with dialogue.”

He said what the various agitators like MASOB, Biafra Movement, new Biafra division were craving for is a fairer Nigeria with equity, fair play and even

development, adding that the Igbo land had been underdeveloped in terms of infrastructure in spite of so many political appointments given to its children.

He said that if Chief Odumegwu Ojukwu and Nnamdi Azikiwe, who died as Nigerians were alive today, they would have towed the line of the new Biafra movement.

He said Bakassi changed the map of Nigeria, the day it was ceded to Cameroon and wondered why Biafra too cannot change it.

Reviewing the book, Solu-

$6,000 and $9,000, similar to its other insulin pumps.

The FDA said it approved the device based on a threemonth study of more than 120 patients. The study reported no major adverse events, such as dangerously low blood sugar, showing that the device is safe for those 14 years and up, regulators said in a release.

The pump is about the size of a deck of cards and can be worn on a belt or carried in a pocket.

According to the Director of the FDA’s Device Center, Dr. Jeffrey Shuren, the device “can provide people with Type 1 diabe-

tes greater freedom to live their lives,” Type 1diabetes, once known as juvenile diabetes or insulin-dependent diabetes, is a chronic condition in which the pancreas produces little or no insulin, a hormone needed to allow sugar (glucose) to enter cells to produce energy. It is the kind usually diagnosed during childhood.

However, the new MiniMed 670G consists of a drug pump, a sensor that measures blood sugar and a tube that delivers the insulin. The sensor measures sugar levels every five minutes, infusing or withholding insulin as needed. Patients still have to manually

increase insulin before meals.

Doctors said they have long awaited a device that could help patients around the clock.

“I can’t wait to get my hands on it because I can think of a lot of our patients who need this,” said the Cleveland Clinic’s Dr. Betul Hatipoglu.

“Now I have a helper who is going to help me to help them.”

Presently, Type 1 diabetes patients now have to manage their insulin through multiple injections throughout the day or a drug pump that delivers it through a tube.

Their own pancreas doesn’t make insulin, a hormone needed to turn food into energy. They face increased risks of dangerously high blood-sugar levels, heart disease and many other health problems.

Older insulin pumps simply deliver a baseline level of insulin, and patients must monitor their sugar levels and give themselves more insulin to keep their blood sugar from getting too high.

do said it is a must read by all because it captures and provides essential insights, analytical comments and excellent peace of research in Nigeria’s attempts to forging a sustainable unity and a Biafran dialogue as it is impossible to hold people hostage in their country.

“The book tells Nigerians the steps it can take to save its fragile independence and way forward,” he said Also speaking on the struggles, former Governor of Abia State, Chief Orji Kalu, said it was true that the South East had

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

been neglected and marginalized in terms of infrastructural developments.

He said the area required urgent attention by the Federal Government.

Those present at the launch were former Vice President,Dr.AlexEkwueme, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah, Catholic Bishop of SokotoDiocese;formerMinister of Aviation, Hon Osita Chidoka; former Speaker House of Representatives, Ghali Na’ bba, Senator Ken Nnmani, former Deputy Speaker, Hon Emeka Ihedioha and host of others.

Succour as FDA approves artificial pancreas for diabetics Nigerians should decide

Appolonia Adeyemi

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he United States, U.S Food and Drug Administration, has approved a first-of-a-kind ‘artificial pancreas’, a device that can help some diabetic patients manage their disease.

The device from Medtronic was approved on Wednesday for patients with Type 1 diabetes and it will constantly monitor their blood sugar and deliver insulin as needed.

Quoting Medtronic, newsmax reported that the device will cost between

assets sale, says Aregbesola

Yekeen Nurudeen Abuja

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overnor of Osun State Rauf Aregbesola, has said that the decision to offer for sale some of the nation’s critical assets to raise funds to meet up with the Federal Government’s financial obligations remains with the citizens but not the government.

Aregbesola, who also affirmed that the nation was terribly challenged due to its inability to realise what it used to get from crude oil in the last 24months had not been able to produce alternative to oil, stressed that Nigeria needed to find a way out of the crisis.

While answering questions from journalists in Abuja yesterday after speaking at the National Day of Solidarity with Cuba organised by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the governor said Nigerians must be ready to sacrifice to be able to come out of the recession.

He said: “As to whether

some of our assets should be sold or not, the real problem is in the communication and I want to put it this way.

“You are challenged in your personal finances and you hold some stocks.

Would you starve to death simply because you want to hold on to survive till when you are able to improve your condition? It is a simple thing.

“I will not be drawn into the hoopla about how the communication is made.

Our nation is challenged, terribly challenged, there’s no doubt about that.

“We are not able to realise from crude oil what we were getting 24 months ago. It is as simple as that and we have not been able to reproduce an alternative to oil.

“It is either we are all ready to face the consequences of not having money for the necessary things of our nation and we dare it or we look for alternatives to meeting those things and for whatever Nigerians decide.

Buhari asks Senate to confirm INEC, NPC commissioners Chukwu David Abuja

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resident Muhammadu Buhari yesterday forwarded a list of six nominees to the Senate for confirmation as commissioners of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The list include Prof.

Okechukwu Obinna Ibeanu(Anambra/SouthEast), May I. AgbamucheMbu (Delta-SouthSouth), AVM Ahmed Tijani Mu’Azu(rtd) (Gombe/Nor th-East) and Mohammed Kudu Haruna (Niger/NorthCentral).

Others include:

Dr Adekunle Ladipo Ogunmola(Oyo/ S o u t h - We s t ) and Abubakar Ahmed Nahuche(Zamfara/ North-West) In a letter addressed to the President of the Senate, Senator Bukola Saraki and dated September 27, 2016, Buhari requested the senate to screen and confirm the six nominees for the position of INEC National Commissioners in accordance with section 154(1) of the 1999 constitution (as amended).

The letter reads in part: “I write to forward herewith the names of six National Commissioners appointed

for the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) from the six geopolitical zones for the of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

Similarly, the President also requested the Senate to consider and confirm a list of five nominees for the position of National Commissioners for National Population Commission (NPC).

The names of the nominees are: Engr.

Benedict Ukpong- member (Akwa Ibom), Gloria Fateya Izonfuo-member( Bayelsa), Barr.Kupchi Patricia Ori Iyana- member (Benue).

news

friday, september 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Reps seal off Jibrin's office •Probes N500bn owed PPMC Philip Nyam Abuja

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he office of the suspended former chairman of the House of Representatives committee on appropriation, Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin, has been sealed by the leadership.

Jibrin was suspended on Wednesday after the ethics and privileges committee found him guilty of breach of members' privileges and misconduct in the manner he carried out with his allegations of budget padding against Speaker Yakubu Dogara and other principal officers.

But yesterday, some members of the National Assembly security (sergeant-at-arms) sealed off his office, Room 1.05 located in the New Building wing of the House of Representatives.

New Telegraph gathered that before sealing the office, the Sergeant-at-arms in company with Jibrin's aide took inventory of the documents and equipment

in the office.

Also, Jibrin's staff moved out some of the personal belongings of the former chairman from the office.

Meanwhile, chairman of the House committee on Media and Public Affairs, Hon. Abdulrazaq Namdas, has said the House had nothing to do with the court over Jibrin's suspension.

Reacting to the declaration by Jibrin that he would challenge his suspension in court, the spokesman said based on the principle of separation of powers, the judiciary cannot interfere in the internal affairs of the legislature.

He said Jibrin was free to go anywhere but the House had taken its decision to punish him for what he did in line with the provisions of its Standing Orders and Rules.

Meanwhile, the House yesterday ordered investigation into the alleged debt of about N500 billion owed the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company( PPMC) by major oil marketers.

The decision was taken following the adoption of a

motion sponsored by Hon. Agom Jarigbe, alleging that it was a sabotage by some of the oil marketers.

The companies include: Oando, Forte oil, NIPCO, Total oil, Conoil, Mobil oil, Masters Energy oil, and gas Ltd;, MRS oil and Gas and Heyden Petroleum.

Others are Rahamaniyya Petroleum, Amicable Petroleum, Aiteo Petroleum, Honeywell oil, Capital Oil, Felande Petroleum, Sharon oil, and Zamson Petroleum.

In adopting the motion, the House resolved to raise a special Ad hoc Committee to investigate the alleged "huge debts and criminal act of sabotage by oil marketers in connivance with the management of PPMC." Leading debate on the motion, Jarigbe called on the House to resist the act of criminality being perpetuated within the sub-sector.

He said:"There is a connivance and compromise by functionaries of PPMC to leave government funds in the hands of these marketers, thereby putting the country in dire financial straits".

We desire to make Nigeria great –Osinbajo Anule Emmanuel Abuja

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ice President Yemi Osinbajo has assured Nigerians that President Muhammadu Buhari and himself were not in government to acquire material wealth.

The Vice President said their dream was rather to see Nigeria become a great country respected by all.

The Vice President stated this while receiving a delegation of Christian

Ministers Welfare Initiative also known as the Pastors’ Forum, Taraba State, at the presidential villa, Abuja.

He disclosed that President Buhari was ready to put everything on the line to make sure Nigeria is great.

"He has no other objective other than seeing this dream come true.

“This morning, I had a meeting with the President and he repeated to me twice, he said ‘at my age, there is only one thing I am looking for. I want to see a

great Nigeria’.

“He has no other objective and I feel very inspired by that,” Vice President Osinbajo stressed.

Speaking further, the Vice President restated the firm commitment of President Buhari and himself to a great Nigeria where peace and justice reign.

In a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Laolu Akande, Osinbajo said "It is madness for anybody in our position to be looking for money," he said.

FG to overhaul export expansion grant scheme Tony Chukwunyem and Isa Abdulwahab

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ollowing its acceptance of the recommendations for an overhaul of the scheme submitted by an inter ministerial committee, the Federal Government will soon reintroduce the Export Expansion Grant (EEG).

Executive-Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Export Pro-

Tunde Oyesina Abuja

A

former Comptroller General of the Nigerian Immigration Service, NIS, David Paradang, yesterday told the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja

motion Council (NEPC), Olusegun Awolowo, disclosed this in Abakaliki , Ebonyi State, at the ongoing seminar for Finance Correspondents and Business Editors organised by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Director, Export Development and Incentives at the agency, George Enyiekpon, who represented the NEPC boss, revealed that some of the proposals suggested for the reform of the

EEC include, the introduction of a narrower incentives band and sharper emphasis on providing incentives mainly for export of finished and intermediary goods.

The Federal Government introduced the EEG through the export (Incentives and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, Cap 118 of 1986 to enhance the contributions of non-oil export to the national economy.

Immigration scam: Perm sec, director not involved, ex-NIS boss tells court that the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Interior, Mrs Anastasia Nwobia and a Deputy Director in the same Ministry, Mr. F.O. Alayabami were not

involved in the 2014 recruitment scam.

The duo are standing trial alongside a former Minister of Interior, Abba Moro over alleged N676 million fraud.

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

METRO

ABIODUN BELLO abiodun.bello@newtelegraphonline.com 08023938212

...CRIME, CITY WATCH, COURTS

Assassins kill pregnant woman, husband, three children

Taiwo Jimoh

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ssassins yesterday wiped out a family of five - a man, his six-month pregnant wife and three children - at Adegbose Estate Phase 2, Igbogbo area of Ikorodu, Lagos.

The victims were identified as Mr. Kennedy Uzor, his wife, Mary, Uche (13 year-old daughter), Destiny (seven) and Mimi (three-year-old daughter).

It was learnt that the assailants scaled the fence of the victims’ house, forced their way into their room and killed them in their sleep.

Although those who evacuated the bodies said there were gunshot wounds on the bodies, sources in the community said they were stabbed to death.

A neighbour, who did not want her name in print, said the death of the family came as a surprise.

She said: “I saw them before going to work on Wednesday evening. I was still in the office when I received the sad news about the death of the family members. What could have killed them is what I don’t understand.

“Immediately I got the message about the incident, I rushed down home only to see them in the pool of their blood with stabbed wounds.

Policemen and emergency responders at the house ...yesterday. Inset: The living room of the victims

The man was not that rich; I can’t still understand why such a man with his family members could be killed in cold blood.”

Another resident, who identified himself simply as Wale, said he was going to his office when he saw a crowd at the victim’s house.

He said: “I don’t know what they could have done to deserve such death; they were not a wealthy family,

I always see the wife frying beans cake whenever I am going to work in the morning.

What surprised me most was the youngest among them.

The girl was strangled while the father, mother and the two other children were stabbed in various parts of their bodies.”

Wale said policemen from Ipakodo Division later evacuated the remains of the victims to Ikorodu General Hospital mortuary.

He added: “Some of the neighbours of the victims who were at home when the incident happened have been arrested by the police for questioning.

They were said to have claimed that they did not hear the screams of the victims when the assailants were attacking them, despite their room being closed to each other.”

A top police officer told our correspondent that Uzor was the chairman of cab operators

at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.

According to him, the election of the union is coming up in the next couple of weeks.

The officer said the late Uzor was also campaigning to be re-elected.

He said: “We are going to beam our searchlight in that direction too.”

However, when contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Dolapo Badmos, said the wife and two daughters survived the attack.

She said: “There was a report that one Celestine Nwokoye (m) attached to Taxi Park, Lagos Airport and all members of his family were found in a pool of their own blood.

“The said Mr Celestine and two male children, ages about three years and eight months old respectively, have been confirmed dead while the mother and two daughters who were also seriously injured have been taken to the hospital for treatment.”

The PPRO said the incident occurred on the premises of a church.

She added: “The command is working assiduously to unravel the occurrence. We have some leads we are working on; we are optimistic of breaking through.”

City Briefs

Abducted Catholic priest freed SARS official abducted, phone of herdsmen.

Okegwo kenechukwu Consequently, Ugwuanyi was recovered from tanker driver Onitsha said to have directed the security

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wka Diocesan Catholic Priest, Rev Father Emmanuel Dim, who was kidnapped on Tuesday by Fulani herdsmen in Enugu State, has been released.

A source close to Awka Catholic Diocesan Secretariat said the priest was released yesterday after frantic efforts by the Bishop of Nsukka Catholic Diocese, Most Rev Godfrey Onah.

Onah was said to have reached Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi on the phone and asked him to do something urgently not only to save the life of the priest but to remedy the already battered image of the state over the activities

agencies in the state, who were said to have moved swiftly to rescue the priest But another source said that the governor also made overtures to leaders of Fulani in the state, who might have prevailed on the herdsmen to release the priest.

The priest, said to have been handed over to Onah, is yet to return to his diocese as he is still recuperating But his colleague, Jude Ezeokana, was said to have returned to the diocese, where he was put under observation, while Rev. Fr Jude Chukwuneke, shot in the head is still receiving medical attention in Enugu.

Ola James Warri

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unmen have abducted a police officer, Emmanuel German, attached to the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) in a commando-like style.

The abduction of German has caused tension in Delta State as his abductors have remained incommunicado after 48 hours he was kidnapped. They have not communicated with any member of German’s family or the police.

It was learnt that the officer, who was transferred to Warri a few months ago, was the head of Operations (officer in charge) of SARS while he was in Ughelli.

However, his vehicle was recovered at Agbarho in Ughelli North Local Government Area where his laptop and other gadgets were found intact except his service pistol.

The state, Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Celestina Kalu, confirmed the incident.

She said: “The police are still in search of the offi-

cer.”

A senior police officer attached to SARS, who spoke on anonymous condition, said two suspects had been arrested in connection with the incident.

He said: “We recovered his ‘Jeep’ the next day at Agbarho with all items including his laptop and other personal belongings intact.

“Though his service pistol and phone were missing, we were able to trace his phone which was in the custody of a Fulani tanker driver in Warri. The driver claimed that the phone was sold to him by another of his colleagues.

“Both suspects have been arrested and have been taken to Asaba for further investigation.”

METRO

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

9

I wasn’t transfixed at I’m sex starved, says man who defiled eight-year-old girl shrine, says pastor Taiwo Jimoh, Merit Mbah, Endurance Evulukwu and Farida Muhammed

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Fagbare

Kunle Olayeni Abeokuta

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here was a new twist yesterday in the case of the pastor who reportedly destroyed a shrine at Ketu community, Ayetoro in Yewa North Local Government Area of Ogun State as the cleric denied being overpowered by diabolical means.

The pastor, Evangelist Wale Fagbere, said contrary to media reports that he was transfixed, he only stood still and kept mute in accordance with instructions from God. Speaking at a press conference organised by the state chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Abeokuta, Fagbere disclosed that he deliberately waited at the shrine for the traditionalists to see him.

The cleric, who allegedly destroyed the shrine last week, was arraigned by the police at Ayetoro Chief Magistrates’ Court for malicious damage and conduct likely to cause breach of peace.

But recounting his ordeal, Fagbere, who ministered at Christ Apostolic Church (OnaIye) in Ayetoro, said the traditionalists allegedly beat him with charms.

He, however, said the charms did not have any effect on him just as he expressed commitment to delivering the town of Ayetoro from “darkness”.

He said: “About what happened at Ayetoro, it was from God and direction from Holy Spirit for the deliverance of Ayetoro from darkness.

“God told me that I should go to the shrine to bring out those things for the liberation of Ayetoro. When I started what God told me, He told me to do three things in the shrine.

“That is, when I get there I should evacuate, I should step aside and watch the film. I should not say anything when people come out to see me. So, I did as instructed by God on that 20th of September.

“I got there around 5a.m. and after I took out those things, God told me to wait and stay and I did. God also told me to keep quiet. It was not their gods that held me; it was the idol worshippers that struck me with their charms.”

Camillus Nnaji

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ater from Ogun River, which overshot its bank, yesterday flooded the popular Kara market and took over the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

Traders at the Kara market were running helter-skelter with their cattle, while motorists and commuters had difficulty accessing Lagos.

The challenge faced by motorists and commuters was compounded by the ongoing rehabilitation works on long bride being handled by Julius Berger Construction PLC. The alternative road leading to Lagos, meant to ease off traffic congestion on the long bridge, was also flooded and became impassable.

Almost half of the market was taken over by flood while shanties and shops in

36-year-old father of three, Mr. Itorobong Iyang, yesterday told journalists that he was sex starved and was drunk when he defiled his eight-year-old neighbour’s daughter.

Iyang, who lives on Oyo Road at Ajegunle area of Lagos, said he had been separated from his wife for a while.

The suspect and others arrested for different criminal acts were paraded yesterday at the state Police Command Headquarters, Ikeja.

Also paraded was 31-year-old commercial motorcyclist, Benjamin Kingsley, who allegedly raped a teenage girl.

Iyang said he defiled the eight-yearold girl under the influence of alcohol.

He said: “I had just taken ‘hot drink’ (alcoholic drink) and was tipsy. So I decided to cook, when some of my neighbour’s children came over to my place to play. After they left, I went to sleep.

While I was sleeping I heard the little girl’s voice calling me. So I woke and found my neighbour’s daughter in my room. I decided to play with her. While playing with her, I told her to pull off her pants and she did without hesitation. I also asked her to insert my penis into her private part; she did and started rubbing it. What surprised me the most was that she did not cry and did not say she was in pains.”

Iyang said he was still in the act when the girl’s mother called out for her, when she noticed that she was not outside with her playmates.

When he had the girl’s name, he pulled out and quickly dressed up and the girl left to answer her mother.

But owing to her mother’s suspicion, she asked her daughter what she was

doing in Inyang’s house and the girl, out of sheer innocence, confessed to her mother what transpired.

The mother then invited the police who arrested Iyang.

On his part, Kingsley said his 19-year-old victim was his lover.

Kingsley, who hails from Abia State, said he had known the girl for over a year.

The suspect claimed that both of them had been having sexual relations since then.

He said: “We have been in a relationship for a year now. I usually take her from workplace and back to her house.

This is not the first time I had sex with her.”

According to Kingsley, the relationship ran smoothly until she called him and decided to break up with him. The suspect said he was surprised because he had been meeting her needs.

He said: “I was surprised when she told me that she was breaking up with me. I suspected instantly that she had a boyfriend but she denied it.”

Kingsley said his suspicion was confirmed when two weeks ago he found out that she had a boyfriend and talked with her via WhatsApp, to confirm if it was true.

According to him, to punish his lover for being unfaithful, he invited her to the house, to sleep with her and made a sex tape.

He said: “I found out about one Moses who is her new boyfriend. We had conversed via WhatsApp and I sought out a plan to send Moses a sex tape of her and me having sex.”

According to him, an opportunity presented itself on Wednesday last week when the girl asked him for drugs to treat vaginal infection.

He added: “I told her to come over to my house to collect the drug. From

Inyang

there, I gave her tramadol and had sex with her several times, recorded it and sent it to Moses.”

But the victim denied being in any relationship with the suspect.

According to her, Kingsley usually drops her off at work.

She said: “I am not his girlfriend. I only met him March this year when I started to learn tailoring. He usually drops me off at work and because of that I confided in him that I was sick. He sought out to help me purchase the drugs at a cheaper rate.”

The victim also explained that she visited Benjamin at his house in Okomiko since they were living in the same area.

She said: “When I got there, he threatened me with a knife that I must cooperate and he gave me Tramadol to drink. I was weak but I was conscious of the fact that he wrapped six to eight candles in a condom to insert into my private part. He raped me about two times.”

Brothel deaths: I can’t explain what happened –Sex worker Igbeaku Orji Umuahia

V

ictims of the tragedy at the 50-50 Bar, on 44 Uyo Street, Abia State Umuahia, have regained consciousness at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Umuahia, but could not say what happened.

The cause of the tragedy still remains a mystery.

On Wednesday, bodies of two persons, a man and a lady suspected to be a prostitute, were evacuated from the brothel.

Police also rushed six unconscious people to the FMC. A witness, who is also a resident of the area, said panic-stricken commercial sex workers rushed out of the brothel about 8a.m. and were shouting ‘ghost,

ghost, ghost!’

This, according to the witness, drew the attention of passers-by and residents.

He said that from what the prostitutes were saying, the residents concluded that it was an attack by ghosts or spirits.

But when our correspondent visited the FMC yesterday, one of the survivors, who gave her name as Miss Chika Obi, said she hailed from Ozubulu in Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State.

Obi, however, said she did not know how she got to the hospital.

He said: “I have been residing in that hotel for over six months now doing my hustling business to survive. We pay a certain amount of money to the owner

of the place. The owner is a fat woman.

“Honestly, I cannot remember what happened. All I can tell you is that I slept in my room as usual. I was alone that night because I did not get any client.

Then I saw myself here in the hospital.

I do not know if it is a spiritual attack or what. I cannot explain. I cannot even remember where my phone is.

“But we used a generator that night, when there was no electricity. The generator set was not very far from my room.

“I do not have any relative here, but I thank God, I survive this mysterious attack, be it spiritual or what. The night to that incident, I did not take any drink at all. Honestly, I did not drink anything.

Please, I want to be discharged. I want to go home.”

Motorists groan as Ogun River takes over Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

Kara Market...yesterday

the market were submerged.

A trader, Mr. George Adeoye, said business activities had slowed down while cattle owners were scampering for safety.

He said: “Every three years, we experience this kind of flood. This year is somehow fair because no one has lost anything to the flood; only the portion

covered by flood, the business site and some shanties where some products are kept.

“In the past one week, we have been experiencing flood. But we believe that by next week, it will subside and business will continue as usual.”

A commercial bus driver, who identified himself as Mr. Abu, asked the Federal Government and Julius Berger complete the rehabilitation works soon.

He said: “I have not encountered the kind of traffic congestion like the one we are witnessing these days. It has been on for about four months.

“Today (yesterday), the alternative route has becomes impassable, any bus that plies that route will get stuck.”

10 NEWS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

The 2016 Harvest thanksgiving of The Presbyterian Church of Nigeria was held at the church auditorium, at Wuse 2, Abuja on Sunday. Here are faces at the occasion PHOTO: TIMOTHY IKUOMENISAN.

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Solo Akuma (right) and his wife, Nnena, during the harvest ceremony in Abuja.

L-R: Elder Asanga; Prof. Udoka; Rev. Torty Okwara Onoh; Mrs. Okwara Onoh; Senator Ita Enang; Elder Mma Ogazi and Chief Iheanacho Ukaha, jointly cutting the cake to mark the harvest ceremony.

L-R: Rev. Ada Eboh; Rev. Torty Onoh; Rev. Uche Okafor and Rev. Ukoha Ukiwo

L-R: Hon. Ambassador Nkoyo Toyo; representative of the Lagos State Governor, Mrs. Mosunmola Idogesit Nkanga; representative of the Benue State Governor, Hon. Baba Acka and Senator Victor Ndoma- Egba, during the havest.

Former Director General, DSS, Mr. Ekpeyong and his wife, Temitope during the harvest

One of the church groups presenting their havest.

L-R: Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly, Senator Ita Enang; Chairman House Hommittee on Ethics, Hon. Ossai N. Ossai and the Chairman of the Harvest Committee, Chief Iheanacho Ukaha at the service.

Barrister Ukaegbu and Joy Esu

11

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Election Ondo guber puts APC on the brink

Politics The outcome of the Edo State governorship election has exposed the weakness of some bigwigs of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) hitherto seen as kingmakers, writes Felix Nwaneri

FELIX NWANERI

GROUP PoLITICAL EDITOR nwanerif@newtelegraphonline.com

© Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited

Senate in unison on way out

16

Oshiomhole retires godfathers

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esterday’s victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Edo State governorship election, is likely to mark the retirement of some political godfathers in the “Heartbeat State” by a new power bloc led by the outgoing governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole.

The godfathers, mostly of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party and who hitherto called the shots, rating ahead of the poll had presented them as men who could turn the table against the ruling party.

They include former chairman of PDP Board of Trustees (BoT), Chief Tony Anenih; business mogul and the Esama of Benin Kingdom, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion; his son and former governor, Lucky; former Foreign Affairs minister, Chief Tom Ikimi; former Minister of Works, Mr. Mike Onolememen; former Chief of Staff to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Chief Mike Oghiadome; media mogul, Chief Raymond Dokpesi and Senator Odion Ugbesia.

The party bigwigs had during the campaigns boasted that they will cut Oshiomhole, his anointed successor and APC to size. But in a twist of fate, Oshiomhole, like the Biblical David in the David and Goliath battle, led his party to trounced his PDP rivals for the third time – 2008 (through the court), 2012 and 2016 and thereby confirmed his preelection position that the political godfathers have outlived their relevance in Edo State politics.

Anenih popularly called “Mr. Fix It,” had boasted before the election that the PDP will emerge tops. He not only predicted victory for his party but assured its supporters that PDP candidate, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu will have an easy ride because his rival lacks the capacity to be governor.

But with the defeat, the former

Recession

13

Oshiomhole

Minister of Works and leader of the PDP in Edo State was forced to swallow his words and justifies appeal on the self-acclaimed godfather ahead of the poll to rather dwell more on national politics and play the role of an elder statesman, than take the captainship band of domestic politics.

In fact, some political analysts had advised him to take a final bow from an indulgence that gave him fame having stepped down as PDP BoT chairman after the 2015 elections

but he shunned the counsel, insisting that he still has what it takes to turn the table against Oshiomhole.

Another godfather who is likely to join Anenih on the retirement train is the Esama of Benin, Chief Igbinedion, and whose son, Lucky, ruled the state between 1999 and 2007. Perhaps, the people have not forgotten his son’s dismal performance in the eight years he held sway as governor of Edo State.

For Igbinedion junior, the loss is a set back to his bid to re-launch a political career that has been on sabbatical after his ordeal in the hands of the anti-graft agencies upon leaving office as governor in 2007.

He had boasted that Oshiomhole’s successor will emerge from his political family. Ize-Iyamu, the PDP candidate is his long term political ally, having served as his personal assistant when he was the chairman of Oredo Local Government Area, Chief of Staff as governor and later Secretary to the State Government (SSG).

Ikimi also joins the train despite his political sagacity. His case is made worse by the fact that he was among those who midwifed the victorious party - APC. He had hoped to lead the party to the 2015 elections as national chairman but the emergence of his kinsman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, at the party’s national put paid to his ambition as well as forced him to quit the party.

While the godfathers are grieving their loss, a jubilant Oshiomhole declared that he has demystified them and dismantled their rigging machinery as well.

His words: “Over the last eight years, we have tried to orientate our people not just the voters but

politicians that the season of election rigging, where one or two godfathers write the results is over and we were committed to dismantling the rigging machine.

“We have a rerun in 2012 with all the godfathers on one side and new forces of change on my side, I won in all the 18 local government areas.

Our people have spoken loud and clear that they believe in democracy, they just don't want to be beneficiaries, they want to be the drivers of the process. This was showed by the way they conducted themselves on election day.

“It is outstanding and remarkable that tensed as the election was with all the predictions, the APC won 15 out of the 18 local government areas decisively. Those who were loudest in making noise have been revealed where they stand in relation with Edo people.

“We have humbled Chief Tom Ikimi even in the local government he claimed to have created. We defeated Chief Raymond Dokpesi in his polling unit, his ward and his local government. In Okada, the political family that has boasted that they will continue to govern this state and even compelled the state to adopt them as the queen of England whose birthday must be celebrated was rejected.

“In Esan land, the senatorial zone of the PDP godfather, we won two out of the five local governments. We gave him a fight that he managed to escape. He used the factor of his age to play on the emotion of the people. It is a victory for the people of the state. Edo people are now proud they can now determine who rules them and no one godfathers can choose a leader for them.”

Obaseki: A journey to Govt House

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r.

Godwin Nogheghase Obaseki is indeed a child of destiny for many reasons. Aside coming from the lineage of the revered Obaseki family of Benin Kingdom, the Governor -elect of Edo State has paid his dues in both the private and public sector before throwing his hat into the ring for the plum job of the Heartbeat State.

Obaseki had his early education in St. Matthews Anglican Primary School Benin City from where he proceeded to Eghosa Anglican Grammer School, Benin City for his secondary schoool education. He attended the University of Ibadan where he obtained a BA in Classics.

He also attended the Columbia University and Pace University in New York and has an MBA in Finance and International Business. He is also a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Stock Brokers, Nigeria and an alumnus of

the Lagos Business School Chief Executive Program.

His career spans over 30 years in Investment Banking, Asset Management, Securities Trading and the Public Sector both internationally and in Nigeria. He started out in 1983 with Capital Trust Brokers Limited Lagos as a stockbroker where he excelled and subsequently worked with International Merchant Bank (an affiliate of First Chicago Bank).

In 1988 he joined AVC Funds Limited, Lagos where he served as a Project Manager and led the core team that set up two of the new generation banks which eventually reshaped the face of the banking industry in Nigeria.

Between 1993 and 1995 he worked in New York as a principal of Equatorial Finance Co, a Financial Advisory firm with a focus on Africa.

He Founded Afrinvest West Africa Limited (formerly Securities Transactions & Trust Company

Limited (SecTrust)) in 1995 as the pioneer Managing Director.

Professionally, Mr. Obaseki has served on the Presidential Committee on the Reform of the Nigerian Pension System. He also served on the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission Committee on the Re-activation of the Nigerian Bond Market and the review of the Investment and Securities Act. He served as a member of the Nigerian Stock Exchange Council between 2006 and 2009.

He also serves on the board of some companies such as Dorman Long Engineering Limited, Pillar Oil Limited, Seric Impianti International Limited.

He was the founding secretary of a New York based US Africa Chamber of Commerce in 1992, which promoted US organisations doing business in Africa. He was a Director in Junior Achievement of Nigeria - the local affiliate of the worldwide Not for Profit organisation which trains students to

Obaseki

appreciate market economy values. He also participates actively and serves as Trustee, in the Dr. Jackson Owen Obaseki Foundation, a family owned NGO which is involved in providing free educational and health services to the less privileged.

He was appointed Chairman of the Edo State Economic and Strategy Team (EST) in 2009, a position he resigned from to contest the governorship election.

He defeated 11 other opponents to pick the APC ticket.

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Obaseki promises to transform economy Temitope Ogunbanke

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he Edo governorelect, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has promised to transform the economy of the state and empower the people.

Obaseki, who was declared winner of the September 28 governorship election in Edo by INEC, made the promise in his victory address in Benin yesterday.

He said that his administration would create jobs, secure the state and ensure the welfare of the people.

He said the victory of

the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the poll underscored the people’s preference for the continuity and consolidation of the programmes of the party in the state.

“Let me say that new future beckons. I pledge to work tirelessly for the good of all Edo people, irrespective of gender, social status, ethnicity, religion or political affiliation.

“I want to call on the sons and daughters of Edo all over the world and all the friends of the state to join forces with me to build a great and economi-

APC used Eriyo to rig Oredo poll – PDP Onyekachi Eze ABUJA

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he Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has alleged that the All Progressives Congress (APC) used one of Governor Adams Oshimhole's trusted aides, Osakpanwam Eriyo, to rig the outcome of the Wednesday's governorship election in Edo State in Oredo Local Government Area.

The party, therefore, called on the InspectorGeneral Police, Ibrahim Idris, to immediately arrest Eriyo and bring him to justice.

In a statement yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, PDP said its candidate, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, secured "a massive victory over the candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) "but Eriyo allegedly invaded the collation centre along with several armed men.

"During this invasion, Mr. Osakpanwam Eriyo forcefully removed all result sheets used in collating results for the LGA," the statement added.

PDP accused security agents of colluding with him to rig the election in

the area, observing that it has severally given warnings about the plan of the ruling APC to attack LGA collation centres where it believed that the results of the elections to be unfavourable.

"Further to this, we hereby call on the Inspector-General of Police and the heads of the relevant security agencies to immediately arrest Eriyo and his accomplices.

"We also urge the IGP and other security agencies to immediately retrieve the election result sheets and return them safely to INEC to enable the electoral body complete the electoral process.

"It is imperative that the Nigerian Police Force immediately arrest Eriyo as a means of building confidence in the electorate," the party warned.

PDP governorship candidate, Ize-Iyamu had said APC could not have won Oredo LGA despite evidence of violence at George Idah Primary collation centre by suspected thugs.

He said his team would examine all the results of the election, which they collated from the field and publish in the newspaper what should have been the actual result.

APC agent slumps, dies after casting vote chieftain and agent his Abico market area A of the All Progres- within the densely popusives Congress (APC) in lated area.

Ikpoba Okha slumped and died on Wednesday afternoon during the voting exercise.

He was said to have cast his vote for Godwin Obaseki at unit 10, Ward 8 in Upper Sakponba area in Ikpoba Okha council area but had waited for the exercise to end when he suddenly slumped in the process.

Until his demise, the late Omoregbe lived at

The victim, aged 58 years, was later rushed to nearby Akugbe Hospital by his eldest son, identified simply as Charlie, but the Chief Medical Director (CMD) of the hospital later confirmed him dead.

The Permanent Voters Card (PVC) found on him during the tragic occurrence had his date of birth as 1958 and his name on it.

cally strong state.

“The success of Edo State does not depend on government alone, but on everyone of us,” he said.

The governor-elect also enjoined other contestants in the poll to join hands with him to build a more prosperous state.

“I salute my fellow contestants for putting up a gallant fight. This competitive campaign has helped us to sharpen our focus on some of the important issues affecting our people.

“The election is over and it is time to bury the

hatchet and close ranks for the good of our dear state.

“Our state is superior to all other interests and we must, as individuals, subordinate our personal ambitions to that of the entire state,” he said.

He commended INEC for the transparent man-

ner it conducted the election and also the security agencies for maintaining peace and order during the election.

Obaseki commended President Muhammudu Buhari and Governor Adams Oshiomhole for their support.

National Leader, All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu (right), congratulating the winner of the election, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, after the announcement of the result in Benin City… yesterday.

Buhari congratulates Obaseki, Oshiomhole Anule Emmanuel Abuja

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resident Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated governor-elect of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki, on his victory in the governorship election.

The president also lauded the government and people of Edo State on the successful conclusion of the election.

In a statement yesterday by his Special Adviser on

Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, President Buhari also hailed the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The president telephoned Governor Adams Oshiomhole for his wellarticulated campaign programme of the APC in the state.

He commended the doggedness of the governor, governor-elect and party members in going round the state to reach the people with records of good governance over the years and a promise

of continuity.

According to the president, the outcome of the election clearly reflected the mood of the people to sustain the pedigree of responsiveness, forthrightness and diligence that Oshiomhole brought into the service of his people.

“The victory is good for democracy, for Nigeria and the people of Edo State,” he said.

Buhari said the victory was well deserved as the campaign train, which he joined, worked hard

to sell its people-centred manifesto.

The president also applauded the conduct of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), security agencies, corps members and electorate in ensuring a peaceful election.

INEC had announced that Obaseki won the majority of the votes cast, with a total of 319,483 votes, and he was closely followed by Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu of the PDP, who polled 253,173 votes.

Tinubu, Oyegun, Ambode: Edo made a good choice Temitope Ogunbanke

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ormer Lagos State Governor and APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has commended Edo people for voting Mr. Godwin Obaseki, as their governor.

He also congratulated Obaseki for his victory in the governorship election.

Tinubu said Obaseki is a tested technocrat who is competent and experienced to take over and continue the good work done by the outgoing governor of the state, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole.

The APC leader also congratulated Oshiomhole for his achievements in Edo, which helped in retaining Edo for APC. With the election of Obaseki, Tinubu said Edo had taken after Lagos in the continuity model, which has worked assiduously well for the people of Lagos State.

The National Chairman

of the APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, thanked the good people of Edo State for the massive turnout during the election.

“The people of Edo State voted to ensure continuity and consolidation of the massive multi-faceted developments recorded under the administration of Governor Adams Oshiomhole. The party assures that we will deliver on this expectation,” Oyegun said.

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, said Edo people have made the right choice.

Ambode, in a congratulatory message signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Habib Aruna, said the development was not just a victory for democracy, but the people who he said would experience continuity in terms of dividends of democracy.

The governor, who was the Chairman, APC National Campaign Committee for the election, said the

people of Edo have voted for continuity of peoplefriendly policies and programmes.

"Like I said during the grand rally of our great party – APC, at Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin some few weeks back, Edo State, being the heartbeat of the South-South, has all it takes to become another Lagos, and the decision of the people to speak with their votes in support of Obaseki is a signpost of their readiness for greatness and a testament to the monumental successes recorded in the last seven and half years by the incumbent Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole.

"We are enjoying the dividends of democracy in Lagos today because of the decision of the people to vote for continuity of good governance and I am glad that the people of Edo have also toed that path and the result will definitely translate to improved social ser-

vices and welfare of the people," Ambode said.

Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun thanked Edo electorate for voting Obaseki, saying, “thank you for not changing the change.”

Aregbesola said this when he broke the news of Obaseki’s victory as Edo governor-elect to newsmen at the “National Day of Solidarity with Cuba.”

Mr. Anselm Ojezua, the Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC), in Edo, State, attributed the party’s victory to the goodwill of the people.

Ojezua, who was reacting to the APC victory in Benin, said Oshiomhole had served the state well and the people rewarded him by voting the party in again.

The chairman said that the party would continue to build on the goodwill, adding “to God be the glory; this victory brings to the fore the need for hard work.

Politics

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

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Ondo guber puts APC on the brink The governorship primaries of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State have produced a fresh round of infractions, putting to question the state of internal democracy within the party.

Johnchuks Onuanyim writes that the budding crisis may escalate unless the party put its house in order

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he All Progressives Congress (APC) strong point of coming into limelight and controlling governance at the federal level and many states was its emphasizes on internal democracy. It had alleged that there was no internal democracy in the opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which was as at last year before the general elections was in power.

The argument or allegations of the APC during its formation and campaigning period seemed to be obvious as many PDP members left the party for APC in search of greener pastures of democratic tenets.

To some political pundits, their leaving PDP for APC was instrumental for the victory of APC as those outside politics and willing to join the game supported APC with the believe to experience the gospel of internal democracy should they join partisan politics on the platform of the party.

However, the happenings in the last few months over the governorship primaries of APC in Ondo State that was produced the former President of the Nigeria Bar Association, Chief Olurotimi Akeredolu, has raised some moral questions on the postulations of APC on internal democracy.

The Ondo State APC governorship primaries would be a case study of how internal democracy has thrived in APC as there were so many other instances in the party to question the theory.

Some of such instances to be mentioned was what happened in Kogi, Bayelsa and Edo states.

These were states that have conducted governorship primaries since APC took the rein of political leadership in Nigeria.

Going back to the Ondo State, where the governorship primaries is almost tearing the APC apart as the leaders are almost dancing naked in the market square, many have started wondering what is the difference between APC and PDP or any other party that had controlled power even at a local government level on the theory of internal democracy.

Prof. Charles Soludo, the former Governor of Central Bank and one time governorship candi-

Odigie-Oyegun

date of PDP in Anambra state, was apt in comparing APC with PDP at the 4th Lecture Series of the Progressives Governors Forum in Kaduna State recently when he asked the question that what is it that differentiates an APC state from a PDP state. By extension, Soludo was also asking what is that differentiate APC from PDP as a political party.

The renowned economist, who did not leave his question afloat, posited that in the Second Republic, when Alhaji Shehu Shagari was the President, there was a clear cut difference among political parties, adding that, can that be said of APC as a political party?

The Ondo State political quagmire has buttressed the believe that politicians' interest and dispositions are self centered and are not rooted on collective interest of progress, development and respect for the people.

If these were not so, the kind of tantrums that have existed on the Ondo State governorship primaries wouldn't have been. From the National Working Committee of APC - the administrator of the party - to the National Leaders of the party and to the 24 governorship aspirants that participated in the September 3 governorship primaries in the state for governorship election slated for November 26, a large chunk of blame over the crisis would go to them in the state and at national level.

Everyone had skewed the governorship primaries in their favour one way or the other. The collective interest was not there and if it was there, it was not properly explained and canvassed to be bought into by any of the stakeholders.

This was made manifest when the APC National Leader and a former Lagos State governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu maintained an indifference posture when about 24 aspirants obtained the expression of interest and nomination forms of the party for N5.5 million, but only for him to allegedly come up few weeks to the primaries that the party at all levels should work to ensure that Dr. Segun Abraham

Tinubu

I will urge the NWC not to be swayed by such sentimental insinuations

should emerged. This was the beginning of the crisis.

One of the aspirants and a human right activist, Dr. Tunji Abayomi was the first to fire the first savor against Tinubu's wishes for the primaries. Abayomi, in his characteristic way, wrote a letter to Tinubu accusing him of undemocratic tendencies, as he viewed his aspiration that Abraham should be supported to emerged as candidate of APC, as insulting to Ondo State. According to Abayomi, Tinubu is not from Ondo State, therefore was not in best position to determine what is good for the Ondo people.

Expectedly, Tinubu, replied Abayomi and that widened the gulf of peace in the party at the state. Not long after, other aspirants and some stakeholders joined Abayomi to condemn Tinubu's support for Abraham and this led to the ‘coup’ against the state party chairman, Isaac Kekemeke.

Kekemeke was chased out of party secretariat on allegations that he was working in consonance with the former governor of Lagos State to subvert the wishes of the party members in Ondo State.

After weeks of the crisis in Ondo state APC, the National Headquarters of the party intervened on the possibility to douse the crisis. This intervention led to the summon of all the aspirants to Abuja and it was said that the party had no preferred aspirants and that the national leader, Asiwaju Tinubu has a right to adopt or support an aspirant. The party emphasized that his support should not be seen as the support of the party. Also, the leadership of the party in Ondo State, including Kekemeke was invited and the same position was adduced to them. But there was no record to show that the NWC reached out to Tinubu to know why he was supporting and what made him believe that Abraham was the best candidate for the party.

This earlier face-off were not resolved properly until the party went for the primaries conducted by the governor of Jigawa State,

Alhaji Badaru Abubakar. According to party source, the choice of Abubakar was to bring somebody who had no political affiliations with Tinubu.

The aftermath of the primaries is now what the APC is currently battling with. The crisis is tearing the party apart especially after the disagreement over the report of the appeal panel of the election.

The report of the Appeal Panel that was made public emboldened some persons to further feel that they were cheated or rigged out of their victory.

Unfortunately, the Appeal Committee report also agreed that the primary was peaceful and well conducted, which some members are latching on against the recommendation of cancellation.

Supposedly, these persons have said that the Appeal did not take some things into consideration with its recommendations. For instance, the time factor, the cost, and the credibility of those that conducted the primaries. The party leadership, therefore stated that the report was fraught with irregularities and that the party could not sustain its recommendations. It was alleged that they unanimously rejected it in consonance with the legal advice from the party's National Legal Adviser, Dr. Muiz Banire.

In advising the party to reject the report of the Appeal Panel Committee, Banire in his letter addressed to the APC National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, stated: "On the allegation of fake delegates voting, apart from the oral evidence of the so-called delegates, is there any other credible evidence unequivocally showing that such fake delegates actually participated in the primary election? Did the committee verify the names of such fake delegates on the Register? How did they get the accreditation cards? How did they get into the venue? How did they get the ballot papers? All these queries require answers that the committee’s report did not answer.

"Therefore, I will urge the NWC not to be swayed by such sentimental insinuations. Furthermore, as at the time of accreditation into the main hall and voting, no complaint about the status of the delegates was raised except allegations that the delegates’ list was doctored and nothing more.”

But as it is natural when something did not go your way, you see wrongdoings and manipulations.

That is what Tinubu is seeing in the whole situation and he called for the head of the party’s national chairman, Chief John OdigieOyegun.

No doubt it is assumed that the Tinubu, who is called the party’s national leader, could not even produced a governorship candidate that in his zone, the south west, while the governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole, could conveniently produce his candidate for governorship election.

With the state of things, the allegation of lack of internal democracy in PDP is assumed to be playing out in APC. Even as APC government is pointing an accusation finger against PDP, it is natural that the remaining four fingers are pointing at them.

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Recession: Senate in unison on way out The economic recession that hit Nigeria has shaken every substratum of the nation. CHUKWU DAVID reports on how the Senate waded into the matter on resumption last week

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he nation's economy is currently in serious shambles. Unemployment is galloping; inflation has astronomically skyrocketed, while the low and middle class citizens are living in penury, as the purchasing power of their earnings has been maximally eroded by scandalous rise in prices of basic needs of life.

This pathetic state of affairs tends to deteriorate by the day, thereby compelling Nigerians to groan and grumble on daily basis.

Many who put their lives on the line to ensure the emergence of President Muhammadu Buhari are regretting why they gave their mandate to the President and the party at the head of government.

Consequently, in conformity with human nature, majority of those who showered encomiums on Buhari cum ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday, are now criticizing and condemning the President's style of governance, which they believe, has brought so much excruciating pains on the people of Nigeria.

In the Senate, the lawmakers who abinitio, were enmeshed in irreconcilable crisis, occasioned by tussle for leadership, decided to jettison their differences and come together and help proffer solutions to the worrisome economic situation.

Accordingly, the Senate on resumption from its annual recess on Tuesday last week, resolved to embark on elaborate debate on the economic recession in the country, with a view to coming up with measures, to be presented to the Executive on how to urgently tackle the problem.

The debate was actually predicated on the speech read on the floor of the Senate by the President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki as an address of welcome to his colleagues, in which he raised 14-point recommendations on how to find immediate and long term remedies to the current economic challenges in the country.

One of Saraki's recommendations was that the executive arm of government should increase the dwindling foreign reserves by selling some important national assets including part sale of the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Holdings and other resources.

However, contributing to the debate, the Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, disagreed with the idea of selling national assets to raise money to boost the country's revenue base, cautioning that such decision would be injurious the future of Nigeria.

He pointed out that other economies of the world that experienced

Saraki

recession did not sell their assets to rescue the situation, urging government to instead fall back on oil revenue and perhaps sell the nonperforming assets, in order not to harm posterity.

He said: "I have heard about the issue of selling of our assets. I need to caution that other countries are not doing the same. United Arab Emirates does not even allow you to come near the oil wells not to talk of selling them. And of course a country like Saudi Arabia, their budget each year is run by investments from their oil revenue while other countries are investing.

"I am sure we will not be fair to the next generation if we sell our assets because of the current state of the economy. So, if we must sell, we have to sell the non-performing assets so that people can turn them around and create employment."

Also Senator George Akume, kicked against this recommendation, pointing out that it would be unpatriotic for government to contemplate selling the nation's assets because of the temporary recession, which would become a thing of the past.

He said: "We are making a mistake here, what we are intending to do is to very unpatriotically ensure that those who are within the bracket of the stolen dollars will still come to buy. I believe that this is not the time to strip these assets.

"Fortunately, the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) made a very powerful statement that the worst days of the recession are over and therefore, we have to look elsewhere and not sell our assets. We should rather focus on industrialisation through agriculture and try to revamp this economy.

"I am worried because people who are telling us to sell these assets are people who have huge pockets. Our assets must remain for us, even Saudi Arabia didn’t sell part of their National Assets as alleged.”

Proffering solutions to the re-

We will not be fair to the next generation if we sell our assets because of the current state of the economy

cession, Ekweremadu, renewed his call for the restructuring of Nigeria, stressing the need to unbundle the current federation and reduce power at the centre in order to empower the states to be more productive and self-reliant.

"We need to unbundle this federal government. A situation where the federal government is in charge of everything is not helpful.

We need to unbundle this country if you like call it restructuring. It might be a long term strategy and it might be in phases but it is something that we need to do quickly," he said.

He also called on the Federal Government to inject more funds into the economy so that banks could have money to lend to producers while also cautioning those in positions of authority to be mindful of their comments within and outside the country in order not to discourage investors from committing their funds to invest in Nigeria.

He regretted that some persons in the present administration had portrayed the country in a bad light by telling the international community that Nigerians were very corrupt people, thereby scaring investors from coming to invest in the country.

The Deputy President of the Senate further called on President Muhammadu Buhari to take a critical look at his cabinet, with a view to putting square pegs in square holes, to be able to make his ministers and advisers to function more effectively, saying that the cabinet as presently constituted is defective.

Suggesting short term measures to solving the problem at hand, Ekweremadu advised President Buhari to release the money in the Treasury Single Account (TSA), and also the recovered looted funds, so that there would be sufficient money in circulation to enable people do business.

He said that there was urgent need for the government to renegotiate with the oil majors, noting that the current terms of engagement was unacceptable as the nation was being shortchanged by the multinational oil companies.

Contributing, Senator Shehu Sani, said the recession was deliberately attained and that over the years, the poor in the country had always lived under recession.

He suggested that, as part of measures to address the problem, the CBN must as a matter of necessity reduce the interest rate which is currently at 14 per cent, start diversification and empower small business enterprises to enable them invest in business, as well as create jobs.

Senator John Enoh also advised that the government and indeed all Nigerians should learn to cut costs and engage in new expenditure pattern that would encourage saving for both individuals and the country at large.

He also advised government to expand the country's sources of foreign exchange also stop paying lip service to the issue of diversification of the economy.

In their separate contributions, Senators Dino Melaye and Peter Nwaoboshi, urged the Federal Government to stop applying force

and instead hold dialogue with the Niger Delta Avengers, in order to stop the ongoing vandalisation of oil facilities in the area, thereby boosting oil production.

Senator Sam Egwu, traced the recession to lack of production, which led the country to depend so much on importation of most of her consumables, insisting that it was only when the country began to produce that the recession would end.

Senators Samuel Anyanwu, Mohammed Hassan and Rabiu Kwankwaso, Emmanuel Bwacha and Isiaka Adeleke, also urged the Federal Government to take drastic and urgent steps to address the economic crisis in the country, pointing out that the citizenry had been subjected to unimaginable agonies in the last many months of this administration.

Anyanwu advised the President to change his body language because it was making investors to run away from coming to invest in the country while Hassan called for the release of about N3.2 trillion hanging in the Pension Funds into the economy.

Bwacha called on government to commit 10 per cent of the nation's annual budget to agriculture, in line with the 2003 resolution of the African Union.

Furthermore, Senator Danjuma Goje, suggested huge investments in solid minerals and the use of natural resources funds lying waste in domiciliary account to import a lot of food items and feed the people, as well as importation of large quantities of fertilizer to boost agricultural production.

The Senate concluded debate on the state of the economy on Thursday last week, with a call on President Buhari to reverse some of his policies that contributed in plunging the economy into recession.

It was observed that some of the President’s policies were negative, as they created fears in Nigerians and investors from within and outside the country.

Also more senators urged the President to revisit the TSA policy, as they lamented that it has made it impossible for money to circulate and for investors to access funds.

Also, more senators joined the opposition to the proposal by the Federal Government and the President of the Senate, that some of the national assets should be sold to generate funds to finance the economy and also boost foreign reserves.

Senator Ben Murray-Bruce, in his contribution said that Buhari’s anti-corruption policy was harsh and crumbling the economy by threatening Nigerians and creating fears in potential investors.

At the end of the debate, the President of the Senate, Saraki, commended his colleagues for taking the debate seriously and demonstrating high level patriotism by jettisoning partisanship in their contributions.

He then set up a six-man ad hoc committee to articulate the various recommendations and come up with a report to be adopted by the Chamber on a later date. The Committee is headed by Senator Abdullahi Yahaya from kebbi State.

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Opinion Enugu Rangers in a new ranking Emissary EMEKA OBASI emobas2003@yahoo.com 0809-445-7557 (sms only)

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hout it out, Enugu Rangers changed the face of Nigerian football in the mid 1970s. The Flying Antelopes were just unbeatable. They won the Challenge Cup and League title in 1974, thus becoming the first team in the country to achieve a double. The Coal City Boys did the same in 1975 and by 1976 became the first to win the Challenge Cup three times consecutively. A year later in 1977, R angers won a continental trophy, the Winners Cup. Winning the league in 1974 was their second time but the first time the Flying Antelopes won in 1971 was a hurriedly organized competition just like the first CAF Champions League in 1965.

Eight teams featured in the 1974 League : Rangers, Lagos NEPA, IICC Shooting Stars , Ibadan, P and T Vasco Da Gama, Enugu, Bendel Insurance, Benin, Stationery Stores, Lagos, Midwest Textile Mill, Asaba and Darma United, Kano. Then, it was two points for a win and one point for a draw.

Rangers won 11 of their 14 games, drew three and lost none. That earned them 25 of the maximum 28 points after scoring 21 goals and conceding just three. Goals difference stood at plus 18. They beat every other team home and away except the Electricians. Infact , NEPA got a draw in Lagos and earned a goalless in Enugu, no thanks to keeper Joe Erico.

The East Central State owned newspaper, Renaissance, described the barren draw as ‘bad day for Rangers’. The third draw was with the under performing Flaming Flamingos.

The Enugu team would have won the League three times consecutively until they met their match in African Continental Bank [ACB]. The Bankers, also known as Lagos Rangers knew

their away round Rangers. Give it to them, they were spoilers. And Water Corporation Ibadan, the Asejire Babes laughed last.

Rangers remain the first to win the Winners Cup without losing a match. Shooting Stars had in 1976, emerged as the first Nigerian football club to win a continental title. That was the second edition of the Winners Cup. They lost two matches:0-2 to Zamalek and 0-1 to defending Champions, Tonnerre Kalara. The Camerounians were however dethroned by the Oluyole Warriors .

Tonnerre were the first champions when the competition began in 1975 but they lost woefully to El Ittihad of Egypt in the quarter finals.

In the first leg, the North Africans won 4-0. The return leg was 70 minutes old, with Tonnerre leading 3-0. El Ittihad abandoned the match and it was awarded to the lossers .

The Yaounde team had beaten Nigeria’s representatives Mighty Jets of Jos in the first round on away goals rule following a 2-2 draw at away and goalless at home. Jets went into the competition , thanks to 1974 double champions Rangers who had beaten them 2-0 in the Challenge Cup final but chose to pursue the more dignifying Sekou Toure Cup [today’s CAF Champion’s League.]

Rangers set a record in 1977 which culminated in the defeat of champions and brothers Shooting Stars. From the first round to the final, they were unbeaten, home and away. It began with Libya’s Ahly Tripoli who caused a stir with a 0-0 outcome in Lagos. The Flying Antelopes earned a 1-1 draw at away.

In the second round, Electric Company of Ethiopia got electrocuted, 4-0,2-0. Then came the quarter finals against Police of Senegal.

The Lagos first leg ended goalless. In the return game, the Policemen were thoroughly arrested,2-1 it ended. Hell was let loose. Rangers were beaten black and blue, Skipper Christian Chukwu was stripped to the pants and the team left the stadium in a Black Maria after General Olusegun Obasanjo dispatched an aircraft to bring the team back safely from Dakar.

The semi- finals were interesting. Two Nigerian teams. Yoruba versus Igbo. Tension was over the sun. CAF was as worried as the Nigerian government. Rangers had four strong play-

Rangers remain the first to win the Winners Cup without losing a match

ers in the Eagles camp: Keeper Emma Okala, defenders Skipper and Chairman, Christian Chukwu, Ignatius Ilechukwu and mid fielder Aloysius ‘Block Buster’ Atuegbu. Shooting also had four in the national team: Captain Sam Ojebode, Tunde Bamidele, both defenders, Mudashiru Lawal, a midfield dynamo and dangerman Segun ‘Mathematical Odegbami’.

There were talks of excluding the eight from the match due to national assignment. Rangers would not be in a deep blue funk because they had alternatives. IICC without Muda and Odegbami would be like Abeokuta without Olumo Rock. Odegbami was as dangerous as a lion let loose.

Government intervened through Chief of Staff Supreme Headquarters, Brigadier Shehu Musa Y’aradua. The second leg was moved to Kaduna. Obasanjo, an Egba Yoruba, was wise in his decision. After a goalless game in Lagos, the Kaduna match ended scoreless before Rangers won 4-2 through penalty kicks. I guess Odegbami lost his kick.

It is on record that CAF , for the first time, picked one referee for both matches. Ethiopian, Gebreyesus Tesfaye stayed in Nigeria and handled the semi- finals. Nigeria became significant when his last match took place in Benin City in 1979 when Bendel United lost in the Winners Cup final to El Merriekh of Sudan.

The Rangers Shooting semis also made a hero out of former school boy, Nnamdi Anyafo.

He demystified Segun Odegbami. The instruction from the Rangers technical crew was ‘if Odegbami goes to toilet, you go with him. If Odegbami dies, die with him’. Odegbami did not have need for the loo nor did he die but Anyafor almost suffocated the great Odegbami with close marking. From that day, legendary radio commentator, Ernest Okonkwo rechristened the former Academical, Policeman Nnamdi Anyafor.

Not long after, the glory days began to fade.

Rangers became double champions again in 1981, won the Challenge Cup in 1983 and the League in 1984. That was the last time they were really relevant.

Come Saturday, ife ye eme [something will happen]. Enugu will quake. Rangers are back from the dead.

Interest rate level and its effect on the economy Dele Awogbeoba

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ne of the four disastrous policies that gave rise to Nigeria’s recession was discontinued by the Nigerian CBN about two months ago. Those four policies were (a) the policy of currency controls started in December 2014 (b) high interest rate policy in a recession (c) High CRR policy by the CBN in the midst of a recession and (d) the full implementation of the TSA and the movement of trillions of naira from the economy and kept in CBN vaults after Buhari’s swearing in and before his ministers were appointed.

The policy of exchange controls through artificially controlling the demand for forex led to JPM removing Nigeria from its JPM index and with it went billions of dollars of foreign exchange from Nigeria.

It also had the added effect of dissuading other investors from investing in Nigeria.

Now that that policy has been discontinued and the foreign investors are waiting

to ensure that the new pro capitalist bent of the current CBN holds true, one can be rest assured that foreign currency will soon start to run into Nigeria at a time at which it is so much cheaper due to the massive fall in the value of the Naira to buy up Nigerian businesses or set up Nigerian based businesses with foreign capital.

The next layer of policy that needs to be attacked is the disastrous interest rate policy currently being implemented by the CBN. This issue took center stage with the debate between the finance minister and the CBN on the acceptable rate of interest for the economy in its present circumstance. The Finance minister wants growth but primarily wants lower interest rates in pursuance with her policy of giving effect to Nigeria’s fiscal policy of stimulating growth through the use of existing revenue sources as well as domestic and international borrowing at the cheapest rate possible for the FG. The CBN rationale was anchored on a number points: (a) past interest rate drops were not channeled into credit lending for businesses but directed to traders seeking to purchase limited dollars (b) lowering interest rates to allow cheaper borrowing for the FG in order to stimulate growth is

counter-productive unless the FG first takes steps to boost industrial capacity, manufacturing capacity and output (c) they want to encourage the inflow of foreign capital because between July and now they have seen an inflow of over $1 billion dollars and (d) it asked the FG to reduce taxes to the lower income earners and raise taxes on the higher income earners as a fiscal tool of reducing the tax burden and increasing disposable income.

The context within which we are playing is a situation where Nigeria is in the middle of a massive recession. We know that most of the rams brought for sale at sallah were left unsold, rental properties in Lagos are going unrented at current prices, houses are going unsold, traders at Alaba and Ladipo markets are experiencing markedly low patronage, many state government workers are owed months of salary, children are being withdrawn from private school and the tales of woes about the state of the Nigerian economy is showing no let up. In effect, there is a distinct lack of liquidity within the system and the recession is a clear manifestation of the distinct absence of demand. What is clear however is that the CBN is intent on attracting foreign capital investments into Nigerian treasuries (debt instruments). This

will encourage lazy investment managers seeking high returns to place their money with Nigeria once they are confident that they can retrieve their money from Nigeria at the market rate of exchange when they choose to exit the market. The CBN’s flirtation with exchange controls discouraged foreign investors from coming into Nigeria and raised questions about Nigeria’s commitment to the free flow of capital. That CBN policy has now changed some two months ago. It will take some time for foreign investors to get over the effects of CBN’s former and now discredited policy.

Eventually, foreign money will come into Nigeria to take advantage of the large Nigerian consumer market and the low cost of access to it by virtue of the massive fall in the value of the Naira. It is the investors that will set up business operations, hire people or that will buy up existing businesses and expand their operations that should be the sought after investors required. Their investments are more sticky and their commitment more long term. Lagos appears to have been a magnet for these types of investments in recent times.

•Awogbeoba wrote via Dele.awogbeoba@gmail. com

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

15

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Still on our roads

T

he terrible state of Nigerian roads in recent times should become a major concern to the Federal Government, not only for the fact that majority of compatriots engage in road travel for business and other purposes, but also due to the nexus between the roads and their livelihood.

Granted, a number of road are fairly mortorable, especially the Ore-Benin Expressway, the Benin-Asaba, and OnitshaOwerri Road. Also the AbujaKaduna Road, the Kaduna-Kano and a handful of others in the North.

But scores of the roads around the country have become practically impassable death traps because of their embarrassing state of disrepair, causing, in their wake, loss of man hours, damage to vehicles, loss of lives as well as destruction of badly needed agricultural produce in transit in the excess of billions of naira annually.

If the number of truck loads of foodstuffs stuck in mired roads is anything to go by, one can imagine the magnitude of the loss suffered by peasant farmers who are in dire needs of the anticipated proceed of sale to train their children.

In the same vein, for upwards three months now, the quintessential Lagos -Ibadan Expressway has been under repairs - with unprecedented daily gridlock. Worse still, the repairs have come with the closure of some portions of the road,

especially on the Long Bridge, leading to some diversions and attendant loss of man hours, stress and damage on vehicles.

Since then, it has been a daily diet of horrible vehicular traffic, running into scores of kilometers, where vehicles snake through several potholes on the road. Whereas it has been a regular incident of traffic jam on both sections of the road- inward and outward Lagos, the gridlock comes with unprecedented violation of traffic laws as many vehicles, especially commercial ones, drive against the traffic at neck-breaking speed.

Of sad particular interest is that the current repairs of the Long Bridge terminating at the Warewa end of the Lagos-Ibadan Road, has split into two, while Julius Berger nimble at the repairs without any hope of early completion.

Atop the bridge, dozens of cars overheat, break down and suffer terrible damage daily, besides the fact that hoodlums and robbers emerge from nowhere to attack vehicle owners, who are forced to crawl in the traffic.

Three weeks ago, it was a sorry situation as motorists and commuters spent more than 72 hours on the road to their various destinations. That was when the monthly Friday and Saturday monthly services of some religious organisations culminated

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in a three-day gridlock with its attendant human and material losses.

One noteworthy occurrence on the road is the millipede pace of work by the two contractors, Julius Berger Nigeria Plc and Reynoids Construction Company who won the contract for the expansion and repairs of the Sagamu-Ibadan end of the busy road. If the justification for the repairs of the bridge is worrisome since it shows

Motorists and commuters spent more than 72 hours on the road

no physical evidence of structural deficiency, the manner the contractors nimble at the contract, the observable lackluster disposition

are highly contemptuous, indicative of poor commitment.

Besides the fact that potholes have taken over many parts of the road, erosion, occasioned by indiscriminate building pattern, especially at the auditorium end of the Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries, is another major issue. While the church area has no drainage system, a major chunk of companies and private homes adjacent to the church are sitting on a canal area, thereby blocking water flow.

The road comes under great threat of erosion and damage because, typical of many constructions in the whole of the stretch, many fuel stations and companies either build without drainage or divert their drains to the express-

way, leading to percolation and gradual deterioration of the road. After every downpour, the expressway is reduced to a single lane; with attendant grueling traffic outward Lagos, dragging as far as the old toll gate at the Ketu end.

While we sympathizes with the government over paucity of funds, it goes without saying that a major cause of the problem is lack of foresight, poor road maintenance culture and failure of relevant government agencies to monitor the roads and carry out periodic repairs.

Whereas every road has a lifespan as done in many advanced economies, Nigerian government official who often travel and are familiar with their maintenance culture, have either failed to cultivate and sustain appropriate maintenance culture, or are constrained by government’s ineptitude.

Nigerians have had enough of government’s penchant for buck-passing and frequent allusion to the past as justification for the current state of our roads and other deprivations. The earlier government commences a clearly defined blueprint for rehabilitating and expanding the roads the better for the nation.

In so far as infrastructural development has multiplier effects on all sectors of the economy, the time is now for the disbursement of N350 billion promised the sector. Hopefully, this will grant Nigerians and indeed all road users safe, quick and easy road travel.

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Arts

Alao

NICO to partner organisation on unified Nigerian language

CULTURE

National Theatre, Iganmu Lagos

Review of Nigeria’s information, cultural policies imperative – Alao Tony Okuyeme

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or Nigerians to believe in this administration and its capability to build a Nigeria of our dreams, there should be a comprehensive review of Nigeria’s Information and Cultural policies, an assessment of the potentials of each of the parastatals and an understanding of the constitutional and institutional mandates of each parastatal,” notable scholar, Prof. Akin Alao has said.

He also called for clinical audit of staff to determine their competence, resourcefulness and usefulness in carrying out the mandates of their respective agencies, adding that there should be synergy in the ministry.

“The Minister should consciously encourage a workable synergy between the two arms by promoting

TONY OKUYEME Arts Editor tony.okuyeme@newtelegraphonline.com

© Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited

mutually beneficial relationship.

“For instance the Information parastatals should be structured to advertise and bring to the public domain, the programs and activities of the cultural arm. In return, the cultural arm should provide content for the programmes of the information parastatals. Every programme and activity must fit into the welldefined goals and objectives of the Ministry and ultimately this administration,” he said.

Alao, who is a lecturer in the History Department, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), IleIfe, Osun State, stated this in a statement made available to New Telegraph, noting that in view of the central role of the Ministry of Information and Culture in redefining Nigeria under this present administration, no efforts or resources must be spared to strengthen the Ministry, empower the parastatals and appoint capable and knowledgeable hands to manage the affairs of the Ministry.

According to him, “at the risk of criticising the attitude of President Mohammadu Buhari’s administration to cultural matters, we feel it behoves all scholars of society and cultural enthusiasts to draw the attention of the honourable Minister of Information and Culture to certain disturbing trends in his understanding of the mandates of the respective parastatals under his Ministerial supervision.

“It would seem that the manag-

A special extra budgetary fund must be provided to meet the needs of the parastatals

ers of the pivotal Ministry of Information and Culture are out of tune with the specific mandates and past laudable achievements of the ministry. There is a huge deficit in the way the affairs of the ministry are being managed.

There is a terrible disconnect between the country’s cultural policy and the track through which the honourable Minister is taking this central ministry. A perceptive understanding of the role of the Minister in charge of Information and Culture would reveal that the office of the Minister is central to the success or otherwise of this administration. In the first instance, the honourable minister is not a mouthpiece of government or the image maker of the President. That Ministry is not an appendage of the Office of Mr. President, but a full fledge Ministry created and funded to serve the interest of all Nigerians. As presently constituted, this administration has a Senior Special Assistant and Senior Special Adviser attached to the Office of Mr. President. Without doubt and to all intents and purposes, the two gentlemen are doing their best in protecting and projecting the image, person and office of the President.”

He also noted that the Minister of Information and Culture is a Federal Cabinet member, a high official of state who is saddled with the onerous responsibility of defining, designing and executing the

18

information and cultural policies of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“Almost two years after taking the reins of power, it is still difficult to discern the direction of this administration with respect to information management and deployment. To date, the information policy of this administration has not been spelt out, articulated or publicised. Despite the wonderful advantage it has in making a clean break from the past, the Minister has still not seen the need to develop a well thought out and comprehensive policy in response to the peculiar challenges and needs of this administration.

No comprehensive and easily digestible information policy is in place to popularise or disseminate the critical platforms and commitments of this government at all levels. The roles of media stations, practitioners and owners play in the execution of the policy have yet to be defined. We believe that it is the duty of the Ministry to regulate, coordinate and ensure standard in the industry. It is very sad to note that the information industry in Nigeria is poorly managed and not regulated in the best interest of the values and commitments of the present administration. This is best demonstrated by the rate at which the administration is losing its goodwill among the citizens of Nigeria,” Alao stated.

According to him, two factors may be responsible for this. “One, the new media option is largely free to cast aspersions on government, abuse basic rule and regulations of responsible journalism and constitute itself into a faceless opposition, revelling in rumour mongering and selling blatant lies. They equally serve unpatriotic purposes of providing cheap access to the information superhighway for enemies of the state. Secondly, many statements, defence and positions of the Ministry in support of government actions, reactions or inactions have been found to be spurious, specious or out rightly outlandish. These positions lack intellectual depth, they reflect poor understanding of the Nigerian mentality just as they demonstrate a mediocre appreciation of the mood of the country. It is rather unfortunate that the bar has been dropped and the Nigerian Information industry is generally unimaginative and seemingly oblivious of what is trending globally.”

According to him, “the present situation of disorientation, cluelessness and financial helplessness must not be allowed to continue. A special extra budgetary fund must be provided to meet the needs of the parastatals, which should begin to function more of agencies of government established to convey the policies and activities of this administration to the people of Nigeria and by extension build in them enormous hope, undilluted patriotism and great pride.”

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ART

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

NICO to partner organisation on unified Nigerian language T

need for indigenous languages, especially opined that since Nigeria has so many the three major languages and the language languages, the major three languages recof the immediate environment to be taught ognized in the Constitution of the Federal in our schools vigorously. That way, a child Republic of Nigeria should be developed and could be in Cross River and he or she can upheld for people to use. learn Hausa or Igbo and before you know it, anywhere they go, they can speak in these languages,” he said.

He decried the situation where two Nigerians, who should ordinarily be seen as brothers, cannot communicate in one indigenous language, saying despite our diversity, if Nigerians can come to a point where we speak one language, it will go a long way in unifying us as a nation.

Speaking earlier, the leader of delegation, Nze Chidi Uchendu, while presenting their request for collaboration with NICO and indeed the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture on a unified Nigerian language, stressed the need for Nigerians to learn their indigenous languages in order to effectively communicate among them and to reflect a people who are from one country, saying that it is only language and culture that can differentiate us from others.

According to him, there is no doubt that the ills in the country as we have today, emanated from our dependence on the use of foreign languages, which has kept us in the state of people from different nations, averring that unless Nigeria rises against this trend, future generations will never forgive her.

While acknowledging that establishing a new language is very difficult, Uchendu Dr Ayakoroma

he National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO) has pledged to partner Nno Sanudazuwa Ekabo, a socio-cultural organisation, which is collaborating with the Grace of God’s Schools, Mararaba, Nasarawa State, in the promotion of Nigerian indigenous languages in schools towards having a unified language in Nigeria.

The Executive Secretary of NICO, Dr. Barclays Foubiri Ayakoroma, made the pledge while receiving a delegation from the organisation and the school in his office in Abuja, last week, noting it was in line with Institute’s mandate of re-orientating Nigerians culturally and that since language was pivotal to national development, the Institute will be delighted to work with them towards finding a unified Nigerian language.

Ayakoroma, who maintained that the only way to reduce the language barrier currently existing amongst Nigerians was for these languages to be taught, especially at the primary and secondary school levels, disclosed that NICO in her modest way has continued to use its Nigerian Indigenous Language Programme (NILP) as well as NICO Cultural Clubs in Schools platforms to create a sense of cultural direction in the citizenry.

“We want to ensure that the language barrier is reduced in Nigeria to the barest minimum. For us, as an Institute, we have made a case that our children and foreigners as well should learn the language of the immediate community, where they are schooling to reduce the communication barrier.

“We will always make this case that there is

LACIFF opens call for entries

They Just Want To Go Back Home set for premiere

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T

he Lakecity Film Festival (LACIFF) has announced call for entries for the first edition of the three-day event, which is scheduled to take place from December 16th to 18th in the beautiful town of Oguta, Imo State.

LACIFF holds this year under the theme: ‘The reel is yours, show your story’. Entries, according to the organisers, will close in November.

The chief executive of Nollyflames Studios Ltd., and founder of LACIFF, Ekine Stronghold, said the festival focuses on films with themes around arts, culture, tourism and history.

“This festival welcomes films from all over the globe that celebrate indigenous film irrespective of genre. LACIFF creates an environment necessary for the global cross-pollination of cultures, boosts cultural awareness and exchange in a bid to encourage filmmakers to look more inwardly and tell their individual stories through their own lenses. Hence the pay off line, ‘the reel is yours, show your story’,” he explained.

Meanwhile, LACIFF has also announced a stellar jury of five. They are creator of the popular TV drama TINSEL and former Vice-president of the Screen Writers Guild of Nigeria (SWGN), Yinka Ogun; Former president of Directors Guild of Nigeria (DGN) and present Chairman of Audio Visual rights Society (AVRS), Bond Emeruwa; Veteran Writer, actor and producer Tari West Johnson; and Assistant professor of Film Studies at the prestigious Montana State University, kathy kasic. The Board is ably presided by Elite filmmaker of note, popularly known as the sultan of filmmaking, Alhaji Sani Muazu.

Explaining the reason for the choice of members of the jury Stronghold said “the uniqueness of LACIFF requires a competent jury with a broad base of filmmaking knowledge, experience and a well-balanced ethnic coloration due to the diversification of culture”.

The festival Advisory Board is composed of seasoned individuals in the motion picture industry, festival management and other businesses.

Ohameze

Members include Ace Producer and entrepreneur, Rogers Ofime; Former president of SWGN and Executive secretary of Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA), Tony Anih; Veteran actor, Jide Kosoko; Journalist per-excellence and jury extra-ordinaire, Shaibu Hussein. The board is chaired by festival guru and Chief Executive Officer of Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF), Ms. Chioma Ude. The festival will be resident in the beautiful town of Oguta popularly known for its beautiful lake and tourism potentials but will also pursue an all year round travel festival programme. The Lakecity Oguta Ameshi, is home to worldclass stars like legal icon Hon. Justice Chukwudifu Oputa, foremost African female literati Flora Nwapa, International Musician Dr. Alban, Revered showman Charly Boy, Nollywood veteran Camellia Mberekpe, Screen Adonis Clems Ohameze, fast rising screen sweetheart Chioma Igwe, veteran filmmaker Nevile Ossai and a host of others.

Stronghold is a content creator, writer and entertainment consultant with a passion for building credible relationships whose synergy can create innovative ideas that better the society and add value to the individuals themselves. Currently the national Public Relations Officer (PRO) of SWGN, he has written several movies and sitcoms and is one of the writers on the popular sitcom The Johnsons.

hey Just Want To Go Back Home, a documentary based on the reunion of some young girls lured to La gos through child trafficking with their families in Imo State will soon premiere.

An anti-child trafficking activist, Mr. Rotimi Vaughn, who stated this, described moder n slavery as an “evil reminder of the terribly dehumanising past of the African continent.” Vaughn, a lawyer who has made campaigning against all forms of modern slavery either within Nigeria or beyond, as a life-long objective, made this remarks while speaking to reporters on efforts being made by his group to battle the evil practice.

Being a direct descendant of the Scipio Vaughn, a for mer slave who became a prominent and respected family man in Camden, South Carolina, United States of America until his death in 1840, Vaugh is keen to draw attention to striking data available in the area of child trafficking in Nigeria and other parts of West Africa.

“I have always looked

forward to being in a position to transfor m my intriguing family historical account into a platfor m for promoting impactful socio-cultural relations and development,” he said. Through a project known as The Bond Atlantic Initiative, the lawyer hopes to establish relations the Badagry area of Lagos, Nigeria and Camden in South Carolina, United States for the development of strategic promotions, exchanges and establishment of mutually beneficial ties.

“Under the proposed Atlantic Bond Initiative, windows of opportunity now appear wide open for the establishment of mutually beneficial relations and ties between Lagos State and the government, people and State of South Carolina. Both areas are therefore positioned to enjoy remarkable investment and development opportunities in the areas of tourism, arts and culture, trade and commerce, agriculture, youth and social development, academic institutions alliances, advancing humanity while combating modern slavery,” he added.

19

FRIday, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Feminique ‘Clinton’s gender may come between her electoral success’ As the US Presidential election draws closer, indications are that Hilary Clinton’s gender may just be one of the factors coming in the way of her electoral success.

EBERE AMEH spoke to a number of US residents after the recent presidential debate and reports

P

olitical analysts are of the opinion that Americans are unconsciously, gender prejudiced and needs more than a legislation or quota system, but a radical cultural change to overcome it. That is also the view of Cultural Anthropologist and Governance Consultant, Jill Derby, who insists that Hilary Clinton’s competence to be the president of the United Sates is never in doubt but for her gender.

“We have never had a candidate so qualified as she is, but gender is coming in the way of her success.

She’s very good in policy, she’s warm and she knows the world, but she’s been under attack for a long time when she wasn’t ready to decorate the flower in the Whitehouse but want to run for electoral office.”

“Laws are not good enough, quotas are not good enough, culture change is what we need,” Derby intoned.

Associate Professor and Director of Latino Research Centre, University of Nevada, Reno, Emma Sepulveda on her part, reiterates that it is not easy to run for the president of the United States if one is female.

“Clinton has been investigated more than anybody in this country and still not found guilty to put her behind bars. She is very sound and very qualified but it is not easy to run for the president of the United States as a woman,” Sepulveda said, adding that many feel that woman are not strong enough to rule the country.

EBERE AMEH ebere.ameh@newtelegraphonline.com

© Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited

Gender sensitive terminologies like ‘power gripper’, ‘shrill voiced’, ‘terrible woman’ and so on have been used to describe Clinton by both men and women. An indication that gender prejudice is not a matter of development but culture.

Speaking with Linda Mosselmon and Carolyn Compobasso, both retired civil servants, after the Presidential Debate at the Republican Campaign Office in Reno, Nevada, also brought to the fore the fact that despite the clamour for gender parity, women are complicating the issues for themselves everywhere by being their own worst enemies.

“I would support a woman for presidency but not this woman,” Mosselmon said. “I grew up here and have heard about the Clintons and it’s so much bad history and there is no way I would ever support her. I would support a woman that doesn’t lie. I didn’t like the way she handled Benghazi, taking out troops out when they shouldn’t have. Besides, I am not pleased with the fact that Trump did not lose his cool at the debate,” she said, insisting that Trump has never lied.

Compobasso was also hard on Clinton, saying that she is headed in a wrong direction, especially with law and order and would never get her vote.

“We have a large number of our politicians lying, I don’t like it. This is not the America I grew up in. I’m republican and if I am not, I wouldn’t have voted for Hilary. She’s such a terrible thing right from college. She was once fired from her job and lost her law licence. I won’t vote a liar.

In addition, she would not be able to make tough decisions that would benefit Americans, Trump would.” she said.

“Trump has a lot of good points and we want to see change. Yes he’s temperamental but I think one deserves to be temperamental in our country of today,” Compobasso added.

One would have expected the Af-

Clinton

The whites are afraid that the country is changing. They are afraid that the blacks and other people of colour are taking over

rican American community to vote en-mass for Clinton but Monique Trotter, an African-American Poet and Songwriter is not only voting for Trump, she is a volunteer in the Trump campaign team, working for his success at the elections.

“I like his passion. When I saw the debate, I think he’s for the people. Even though Hilary Clinton holds her own, I think he made her nervous a little bit and that is what draws people to him.

I have faith in him to deliver,” she said.

“As an African American I still think he’ll be good despite what he has been saying. He wants to take gun away from the gangs and that is good. We all have our opinions and our own minds but I think he will surprise people. I have all the faith in the world that he will win and make America great again,” Monique who has not been voting says.

But John Tuomala, who works as a security man is pissed by the fact that the debate didn’t cover the social realm that he’s interested in. Though he has never voted before, he wants to vote for Trump because he believes in him.

“I have not voted before because all the people that were running for president were just professional politicians that were there for their own gain.

Trump is different. In this country many of our presidents started out as Lawyers but Trump isn’t, he’s a businessman. If he gets voted in, he will be the first one in a very long while.”

The category of people that gathered at the Trump Campaign Office to view the debate confirmed the views of many analysts that what gave Trump the momentum is the large number of uneducated folks, who never voted, and who suddenly woke up to vote for him.

Washoe County Commissioner, District 3, Kitty K. Jung, insists that

sexism and racism have become defining factors in the campaigns.

“We have never had this lack of intellectualism that we have now.

Having an African American president has flared up racist and sexist tendencies,” Jung said, adding that the Trump Campaign slogan ‘Make America Great Again’ is actually a coded language for make America white again,” Jung said.

While Sepulveda thinks that Trumps victory would spell doom for women and migrants, whom she says are the people that built America and runs it, many, on the other hand, are of the opinion that Clinton’s victory means continuity of most of Obama policies.

“This country is profoundly prejudiced and racist. Trump is supported by people who have radical ideas about women’s rights and immigration reform. The whites are afraid that the country is changing.

They are afraid that the blacks and other people of colour are taking over and would be treated the way they treated the blacks. They think that Clinton presidency is a continuation of Obama administration.

“But in my own opinion, if Trump wins, the United States would be the most difficult country to live in as a woman or as a migrant. Then it would be right to call women pigs and to depot Latinos,” Sepulveda said.

Though ‘clueless’, ‘sexist’, ‘racist’, ‘temperamental’, and so on have been used to describe Trump, he is still waxing strong because of the media. According to analysts, the media made him powerful - while other candidates are raising money for adverts, he is getting free publicity because of his negative comments, a testament to the saying that no publicity is bad publicity.

20 fortherecord CONTINUED FROM LAST WEEK

Kingsley Moghalu

FRIday, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Nnewi and the industrialisation of Nigeria growth prospects for these industries. Nnewi industrialists need to open themselves up to modern management practices that range from a knowledge and application of strategy, and risk management to financial management and production efficiencies that create value. Such approaches include opening themselves up to funding from the capital market and thus reducing their ownership stakes in exchange for profitability and survivability, as well as the need for management consulting services and executive education in business schools that are increasingly available in Nigeria.

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his distorted and weakened the structural foundations of the Nigerian economy because it led to the phenomenon of financialization, in which banks made profits mainly by trading in finance itself, rather than intermediation to the real economy.

As Nigerian banks became liberalized under the SAP, they found it more profitable to engage in foreign exchange speculation than to lend funds to industrialists.

President Muhammadu Buhari’s federal government has demonstrated a noteworthy commitment to policy continuity in a number of important areas and projects, including infrastructure development, since coming into office. We all should hope, therefore, that the federal government will stay true to, and follow through, on the NIRP’s identification of Nnewi as one of three automobile clusters and industrial training centers – Lagos (Ibadan zone), Nnewi (Aba zone) and Kano (Kaduna zone). According to a policy announcement in 2013, the Industrial Training Fund was to collaborate with Brazil to develop three automobile training centers and clusters across the country which would train Nigerians in auto maintenance and spare parts production.

More broadly and from a conceptual standpoint, I am a strong believer in industrial policy as the only paradigm that delivers real growth and transformation for developing countries. According to Dani Rodrick, Professor of International Political Economy at Harvard and Princeton Universities, “development is fundamentally about structural change: it involves producing new goods with new technologies and transferring resources from traditional activities to new ones”.

Professors Howard Pack of The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and Kamal Saggi of Southern Methodist University in Dallas have defined industrial policy as “any type of selective intervention or government policy that attempts to alter the structure of production toward sectors that are expected to offer better prospects for economic growth than would occur in the absence of such intervention, i.e. in the market equilibrium”. The World Bank sees industrial policy as “government efforts to alter industrial structure to promote productivity based growth”.

Industrial policy is a controversial concept in economics. There are questions about whether it encourages rent seeking behaviors, as well as monopolies. Closer home to Nnewi, we saw this tension in the controversy between the Ibeto Group and the Dangote Group over the impact on market structure of the federal government’s decisions on incentives for the domestic manufacture of cement.

Macroeconomic Reforms Next is the need for macroeconomic reforms. Such reforms include the need for a comprehensive review of fiscal policy and trade policy by the government, as well as monetary and exchange rate policy by the Central Bank of Nigeria.

Fiscal policy needs to be reviewed to provide reasonable and consistent incentives to industrial manufacturers in Nnewi and other industrial clusters in Nigeria. This should in-

Moghalu

clude ending multiple taxations of industrial enterprises.

Import duties on the importation of raw material inputs to manufacturing need to be reduced substantially or eliminated (subject to effective verification) to make manufacturing more attractive business, especially given the problems of accessibility and high cost of forex and the weak state of existing power and transport infrastructure, all of which will take some time to fix. And concessions must never be given to specific companies, only to sectors, and even then must be time limited for five to ten years and not open-ended.

Fiscal policy incentives will have to be accompanied even more fundamentally by trade policy changes.

The federal government must address the reason why importation has once again become more profitable for Nnewi industrialists than the made-in-Nigeria products they so proudly produced in the recent past. Our macroeconomic environment is regressing, going back in time, rather than progressing.

The key is to make products manufactured in Nigeria more competitive than imports in terms of both price and standards. This requires slapping prohibitive import tariffs on luxury and non-essential imported goods to encourage local manufacturing, and differential tariffs on goods manufactured in industrial clusters such as Nnewi in particular.

This should be done by negotiating specific dispensations in the Special and Differentiated provisions of the World Trade Organization treaty that allow special trade measures to assist the economies of developing countries that can make a case for such dispensations. That Nigeria’s deteriorating and oil-dependent economy needs such exceptional treatment is not in doubt.

I completely agree with the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) that the CBN should end its restrictions on the availability of forex for the importation of 41 designated items. In my view additionally, this must be accompanied by the recommended fiscal measures that I have recommended to be taken

Development is fundamentally about structural change

by the fiscal authorities regarding prohibitive tariffs on luxury and nonessential imported goods, but not on imported raw material inputs. The MAN has recently released figures showing that the CBN policy has forced 272 firms, including 50 manufacturing companies, out of business and created a loss of 180,000 jobs. One seriously doubts that we can call any policy that results in de-industrialization and unemployment in Nigeria an optimal policy position.

Finance Addressing the problem of the cost of credit for Nnewi manufacturers, which I believe is the more specific problem for this particular cohort than access to credit, is one of the most difficult conundrums we face. This is because the cost of credit cannot easily be divorced from structural conditions such as the absence of infrastructure (which affects the business of lenders as well, and thus the cost of credit to end-users), and macroeconomic conditions such as structural inflation and money-supply induced inflation. Also included in the mix is the need to attract more foreign investment inflows to, among other things, address the dollar supply shortfall in the forex market.

This, along with rising inflation, is believed to have been the motivation behind the recent increase of the Monetary Policy Rate by the central bank from 12 per cent to 14 per cent.

Foreign Investment Nnewi manufacturers need to help themselves by actively seeking foreign investments from investors seeking yield and value from realeconomy manufacturing. There are a number of potential investors increasingly attracted to the gap in manufacturing in Africa and the potential value it represents. This sourcing of foreign and domestic investment may also take the form of private equity investments.

Modern Management Practices While the family-owned, kinship based ownership structures that are dominant in Nnewi manufacturing companies has been part of the story of their resilience, it also has been a source of weakness that cramps the

Innovation for Competitiveness In order to become more competitive against imported goods, it is vital that Nnewi industrialists embrace technological innovation in a systematic manner. I would recommend formal partnerships with academic institutions such as Nnamdi Azikiwe University in Awka, where we have seen students inventing a number of product prototypes, mostly with near 100 per cent local content. Nnewi businesses could finance the commercialization of such products and processes, domesticating them in their own firms and consistent with intellectual property laws, to create superior value and returns that beat the difficulties of the present macroeconomic environment. Necessity is the mother of invention.

Political Bargaining and Public Policy Nnewi is a force to be reckoned with in the arena of politics. Our businessmen finance election campaigns. Our community contributes very significantly to the economy of Anambra State and Nigeria, and as we have seen, holds a strategic potential for vastly increased productivity output and wealth creation in Nigeria. It is time to convert this into a strategic currency through political bargaining. Nnewi industrialists must now bargain for favorable public policy to support industrialization in Nnewi with Nigerian politicians and policymakers. This will be in the enlightened interest of all stakeholders.

Conclusion Nnewi manufacturing companies have been far more resilient in the face of macroeconomic headwinds than industrialists more broadly across the country. This demonstrates the peculiar value and potential of manufacturing in Nnewi and its implications for the industrialization of Nigeria. Our policymakers, on the other hand, need to apply objective factors that support policy investment in Nnewi’s manufacturing cluster for the overall economic progress of Nigeria. I believe that, with a two pronged approach led by Nnewi industrialists themselves, and support from the federal and state governments, Nnewi’s industrial glory will be restored against all odds.

• Moghalu, former Deputy Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is a Professor of International Business and Public Policy at the Tufts University, USA CONCLUDED

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24

Entertainment Elite Model Look to screen for international show tomorrow

Rob Kardashian Slams Kylie Jenner, posts her phone number on twitter

Gigi Hadid gushes over Zayn Malik, admits she wants to be stuck with him forever

BOBMANUEL

Nigeria is one huge film village

One of the leading actors in Nollywood, Bobmanuel Udokwu, is the Senior Special Assistant on Movie/ Entertainment to Governor of Anambra State, Chief Willie Obiano. In this interview with Flora Onwudiwe, the veteran actor explains why government needs to fund the entertainment industry. Excerpts.

As a Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Movie/Entertainment Industry to the governor, what does it involve?

It involves evolving strategies for engaging a lot of youths, discovering talents and making the state an entertainment hub through the relevance of the entertainment industry in the contemporary Nigeria and how it will impact positively on the society.

I never stole, my P.A. bought the stolen item – Ikeagwu

LANRE ODUKOYA COORDINATOR

lanreodukoya@gmail.com

© Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited

What idea have you given to the governor on entertainment that can generate revenue to Anambra State government?

There is something that happens in the creative industry. You may have plans to do something innovative.

Once you discuss it openly, people will steal the idea.

What I would like to say is that there are things we are already doing, there are things we are putting in place and these things will generate employment; they will impact positively on the society, but, then we don’t want to discuss them openly to avoid plagiarism of one’s ideas.

It has happened before and I have learnt from that experience. So we don’t want to start mentioning our ideas one by one here. Don’t forget that with the situation in the country at the moment, various

state governments are becoming more creative. We don’t want somebody else to run away with our idea before we start to implement it. I can assure you that there is a lot. The Governor of Anambra State, Chief Willie Obiano, is very much interested in developing the entertainment, culture and tourism sectors of the economy of the state. That’s why he created the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, Culture and Tourism.

Now that there is recession, how do you think the entertainment industry can boost Nigeria’s economy?

The policy of the current administration is not encouraging the entertainment industry, because the government has not even adopted any policy that will seem to encourage the entertainment.

The last administration was the first and only one so far to see the viability of the entertainment industry. Former President Jonathan actually did something by encouraging the industry through provision of different sources of funding. People seem to forget so easily that at some time during the last administration, Nigeria overtook South Africa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) due to two components: oil and gas, which is naturally given to us by God, and Nollywood, which we created virtually out of nothing. I am glad and proud that I am part of the foundation of Nollywood, so if you say given the situation of the country, what is Nollywood doing to sustain itself, I will say Nollywood has always from the beginning sustained itself till the last administration intervened. The industry is in doldrum and has gone back to self-help.

There is no more government assistance at the moment, rather government agenCO N T I N U E D O N PA G E 2 2

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‘Nollywood industry can boost Nigeria’s economy’ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 21

cies have been creating road blocks and unhelpful policies for Nollywood, but we have persisted.

Jonathan administration supported the entertainment industry and the result came out positively, so much so that it helped Nigerian GDP to overtake that of South Africa. What is the implication of what I am saying now?

What I am saying is this: let the federal government look into the entertainment sector, and call few select professionals in the industry. They don’t need to make noise or propaganda about it, but quietly convoke a meeting of core professionals in the entertainment industry for us to meet with the authorities and devise a way forward, so that Nigeria will gain. But the government is ignoring a very viable and lucrative industry which is the highest employer of labour outside the civil service. There has been a deafening silence about the entertainment sector.

Tourist sites abound here but the leadership of this country has made them unattractive to operate, so Nigerians go and buy what they have already in the house from outside. Why don’t we develop the ones we have here? That is what Nollywood has done here, to show Nigerians that we have home grown talents that are world class and recognizable. So the government should evolve a strategy where entertainment, culture and tourism sectors of the economy will be given priority in its economic recovery programme.

As rich as America is, it does not joke with its entertainment industry.

They are exporting entertainment across to the globe. If America as the first world country can see the viability of that industry and utilise it to the full, why do we always pretend as if it does not exist? The creative community here is very resilient, very hard working. The industry has nothing to fall back on; we don’t have the technology, we don’t have the funding yet, Nollywood remains number three globally in terms of output.

You have acted in more than 100 films and they were shot on locations outside Anambra State, yet there is no film village in Anambra State, why can’t the government build a film location to attract investors?

I think there is a misunderstanding of the usage of that word film village.

I think we use it in a very wrong way.

People look at film village as a place where you go to, a large expanse of land to put a sign board to say this is a film village. Did anybody see any film village before Nollywood started? We have shot movies that depicted cities, 21st century cities in Nigeria. We have also shot movies that depicted Nigeria in the 1800s in this same country, yet you cannot go to a place and say this is a film village. Hollywood, for instance, is not a film village in America, but a section of Los Angeles where a lot of film corporations have their offices.

People outside the industry talk about film village so much; the whole of Nigeria is a film village. I was the longest anchor of the Gulder Ultimate Search for more than five years. It exposed me to most spectacular topographies that this country can boast of. There were locations that we came to and if anyone had told me that they exist in Nigeria, I will not believe. The answer is, Nigeria is one huge film village, and if you are talking about Anambra State creating a film village, Anambra State is already a film state. As we speak, so many films are being shot in Anambra State like Ogbunike Cave, Owere Ezukala Cave and Water fall etc. There are spectacular sites in Anambra that are unbelievable. To answer you, Anambra State is seriously doing a lot through the newly created Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, Culture and Tourism. If I begin to tell you what Anambra State is doing about encouraging movie making in the state, you will marvel. Anambra state is indeed, “the life of the nation” in every ramification.

Why has Anambra State government not made people like Chika Ukpala, Pete Edochie and host of others as brand Ambassadors?

The government does not need to invite them and pronounce them brand Ambassadors; by the nature of what we do we are brand ambassadors of Nigeria already. I am glad you mentioned Pete Edochie and Chika Okpala.

Nigeria has already recognised them with national honours, and Anambra State holds them in very high esteem.

Two weeks ago, I was with two of them in a function in a Owerri where another colleague in the industry opened a radio station. They are people we respect and Anambra State has virtually more entertainment people than any other state in this country.

When government is having function,

they are invited, but if you say for them to be singled out for appointment that is political. That decision resides with whoever is the Chief Executive.

Their place in Anambra society and in the eyes of government is much higher than political appointment.

Your appointment with your state government has taken you away from the entertainment industry; do you still find time to act?

I am Senior Special Assistant to the governor on Creative Media (Movie/ Entertainment Industry); now with the title, don’t you think if I am not in the entertainment industry, I won’t be able to perform my job of letting the governor know what is happening in the industry? I am part and parcel of the entertainment industry, and it is what is happening there that I brief the government on what to do as regards Anambra State. We also have plans in the immediate future to help develop the next generation of young talents. It mustn’t just be only those in Anambra State. If you are talented we have plans to develop such talent.

You made a provocative statement when you said only bloodshed will improve the power sector. Meanwhile, we have not forgotten the scar of the civil war and you are drumming for another?

I was quoted out of context in the social media. The question was, do I feel that steady power supply will be back in this country? I said no, if that will be achieved there will be bloodshed. The issue of power problem in Nigeria did not start overnight. It was a gradual thing. I remember 20 years ago, those who owned generators were out of the ordinary. Today if you don’t own a generator, that is out of the ordinary. That is because successive governments failed in maintaining whatever was left for us in the power sector due to corruption. Some people became richer than the state and there was a serious decline. Today some people import very big generators, what they call “silent generators “.

I don’t want to call any brand name.

Then the small ones that are called “I better pass my neighbor”, today is no longer I pass my neighbour but “I be like my neighbor” because everybody has it. Today, people import container loads of generators every day. The problem we have in this country is that we pretend as if certain things

do not exist until things get bad and the result becomes very catastrophic.

People are spending money importing these generators and the big generators are imported by very big influential people in this country. From my research, some of them own shares in the companies that manufacture these generators abroad. How do you think the people that have been importing these generators will fold their hands and allow government to make power available 24 hours in this country?

They will lose money and their businesses may collapse because they have been tied up with foreign exchange.

Consequently, they will sabotage government’s effort, and for government to fight back that sabotage, people will die. That was what I meant, that we will have bloodshed before we can have steady power supply in this country.

It is not about warfare. It is a war you fight with the people you don’t know.

The issue of piracy is affecting the intellectual property owners that they now live in abject penury. What advice would you offer to put an end to it?

Piracy is an international problem. I was once in New York and the amount of pirated works that I saw in a place like America is amazing and I made inquiry why they can’t wipe it off. Some authorities told me “look Bob what we are trying to do is to reduce it to the barest minimum, but you cannot stop piracy altogether.” Come to Nigeria now, the problem we have is the political will power to fight piracy to a standstill, to the barest minimum. You arrest a guy pirating your work in the morning, don’t forget that we are owners of intellectual creative works; we are not empowered by law to tackle piracy.

There are those who by law are empowered to do so - the security agencies of government. You report to these people, they effect an arrest for you in the morning but before 12 noon the guy is back in his work place. What has happened?

Sometimes your life is threatened in the process by the pirates. If the security agencies empowered by law to tackle piracy work hand in glove with pirates, what hope do we have? It still boils down to the same thing: lack of political will to tackle menace. Stealing of intellectual property to me and to most of us in the creative industry is worse than armed robbery. An armed robber is attracted CO N T I N U E D O N PA G E 2 3

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‘Nollywood industry can boost Nigeria’s economy,

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 22

to you by what they can get from you. As you spend late in the night agonising over a creative project, this man sleeps peacefully every night and by the time your work reaches the public domain and is a success, he pounces on a copy for less than five hundred naira and mass produces thousands if not millions of copies. That takes you out of work and your family out of food, and in the end the period of creativity is affected, ruined.

You were appointed in the last administration under Mr. Peter Obi and now with present government; do you have any political ambition?

Sometime in 2013, like you rightly said that I was in the twilight days of former governor Peter Obi’s administration. In 2014, His Excellency Chief Willie Obiano, the current governor of Anambra State, reappointed me, but I had to resign at some point to vie for a ticket to represent my constituency in the State House of Assembly. I didn’t get the nomination but the governor graciously reappointed me.

The entertainment industry is all comers affair, a stepping stone to make quick money, do you agree?

For those who aspire to be

in the entertainment industry, first of all I advocate education. In Nollywood , most scripts are written in English which is our lingua franca.

Good education in a relevant field is pertinent. Where somebody who studied medicine or electrical engineering suddenly wants to be an actor is not acceptable. You are depriving those who studied Theatre Arts, literature, English alike.

But we have many who studied other fields and still find themselves in the entertainment industry.

I know but it’s wrong. It is an aberration. Of course for professionalism the industry is trying to put some measures in place. The creative industry is not an industry where there are strict rules.

I have seen people who are science inclined and they are talented, but it is always good to go where you can develop that talent in you. Acting is not all about reading script and dishing out the lines. It goes beyond that and the viewing public knows. We need guide the younger people who are coming into the industry.

It is not bed of roses. There are lots of challenges. We also need to evolve a system of training and retraining our talents. A lot of higher institutions offer Certificate and Diploma courses in Theatre Arts. It is a practical based to lay good foundation to grow.

If you have a degree in another discipline you should take one year off to go to some of these institutions and enroll for professional grooming. That would also ultimately help you to learn the discipline that comes with the profession.

Tiwa Savage shuns Tee Billz n birthday

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igerian songstress, Tiwa Savage is perhaps once bitten and twice shy. And that she’s treading softly as is understandable.

After her messy feud with estranged husband, Tunji Balogun, a.k.a. Teebillz, there were speculations that the embattled couple had quietly reunited.

Meanwhile, reflecting on their deeds, the duo has allegedly decided to keep their relationship away from the public eyes.

Tiwa Savage has often said in recent time that she

doesn’t want to discuss her marriage anymore as she has learnt from her mistake.

So, many were on the lookout for the first indicator of what’s left in that marriage.

Incidentally, Teebillz became a year older on Sunday, September 25. Unlike her, Tiwa Savage didn’t celebrate him on any of her social media account and this further got tongues wagging.

Anyway, this only suggests Tiwa Savage is true to her vow of being discreet about anything pertaining to her marriage.

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ncomium magazine had earlier reported that, newly married actor, Kalu Ikeagwu, was whisked away by the Nigeria Police.

The security operatives were said to have stormed his home in Ogba for his arrest on allegations of theft and homicide case which saw them taking the actor away to their office.

We learnt that the neighbours had

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he Elite Model Look Nigeria team has announced that it’s staging another edition of the modeling contest where 20 models will lock horns on the runway tomorrow, October 1, and two winners (male and female) will emerge to represent Nigeria at the international competition.

The winners would literally be following the footsteps of top models like Cindy Crawford, Stephanie Seymour, Gisele Bundchen, Sigrid Agren, Constance Jablonski, Mayowa Nicholas and Victor Ndigwe.

Aquafina Premium Drinking Water is partnering Elite Model Look Nigeria for the umpteenth time as one

tried to intervene on behalf of the actor to no avail, the arm wielded by the men made the actor succumb very politely.

On his return at night on the same day, he explained to his neighbors that his personal assistant bought a stolen phone from Computer Village in Ikeja, and the robbers reportedly killed one of the victims of the robbery.

According to him, the crime happened in Abuja, and the phone was traced to Lagos by the security agents who later came for him since his address and name were used during the purchase.

Elite Model Look screens for international show tomorrow organisation and it pledges its continued support to “celebrate inner beauty because real beauty is pure and comes within.”

The national casting for the competition held in Lagos on July 30 with over 1000 girls and boys in attendance.

A total of 60 contestants were pre-selected, after which contestants images were sent to Paris for the final selection.

The contestants were shortlisted to the final 20 finalists.

The male contestants who

would be slugging it out on the runway include, Oyinloye David, Obennebo Davidson, Korede Ayeni, Ilo Ceejay, Sodiq Ibrahim, Atewologun Ololade, Egwuonwu Chidera, Onyejekwe Collins, Nnochirionye Promise and Salami Anjola Imran. Girls in the contest comprise, Demurin Blessing, Ndah Gift, Ironkwe Amarachi, Fawaz Zahra, Duyile Titilayo, Omoh Momoh, Akele Ruth, Egwuonwu Oma, Duru Jessica and Emechebe Obianuju.

Ex-lovers, Timaya, Empress Njamah hang out in club

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ollywood actress, Empress Njamah, has proven that she has no bad feelings for her ex-lover, Timaya, whom she was once romantically linked with until the centre could no longer hold.

Empress and Timaya were lovers but went their separate ways when they could no longer handle

each other’s differences.

Recently, the former love birds were spotted together having some conversations and this got many applauding the maturity they have both showed despite how deep they both sank during their public fight.

Rather than get angry based on their past deeds, the two laughed away the bitter yesterday over the bottles of drink. Timaya shared the photo on Wednesday morning on the social media with the caption that reads; “It’s always a pleasure seeing you my dear friend. Empee.”

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Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie’s divorce latest, hubby may get 50/50 child custody W

hile Brad Pitt has been accused of allegedly abusing his children, he could still get 50/50 physical custody, according to a divorce attorney who spoke to HollywoodLife.com.

“I assume Brad Pitt would be seeking a 50/50 custody and visitation schedule,” Los Angeles Divorce Attorney David T. Pisarra of Men’s Family Law said. “Given his huge resources this should not be a real problem, the only question is whether the judge will order it as being in the children’s best interests.

“Most experts today believe that a 50/50 [physical custody] is in the children’s best interests but some judges are still biased towards the mother,” David continued. “In Los Angeles County the judges are very open to a 50/50 custodial timeshare, if the parties’ schedules allow for the children to maintain their lifestyle, school choice and access to friends.”

The mother in this case is Brad’s soon-tobe ex-wife, Angelina Jolie, 41. Angelina filed for divorce on September 19, and while she cited “irreconcilable differences” in her documents, it was soon revealed that Brad had been accused of child abuse. Brad allegedly put his hands on his son, Maddox Jolie-Pitt, 15, during an incident on their plane. Brad

Gigi Hadid admits she wants to be with Zayn Malik forever

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ow cute are these two? Gigi Hadid just can’t get enough of her boyfriend, Zayn Malik, and in a new interview, she gushed all about how she wants to be stranded with him forever.

Gigi Hadid, 21, was interviewed by Stella Jones and Lila Moss Hack, two of her biggest fans, for Dazed magazine, and when they asked her which celebrity she would want to be on a deserted island with, she gave the cutest answer. “Does my boyfriend (Zayn Malik) count?” the supermodel asked. “I’d take him, yeah.”

Oh, and she also slammed recent reports that she and the singer had broken up.

Stella asked the craziest rumor Gigi had ever heard about herself, to which she responded, “I found out online that I was going through a breakup, which wasn’t true.

So that was pretty funny.”

Many are glad to know every-

thing is okay with these two.

Gigi has been killing it at Milan Fashion Week over the last several days, and although her man joined her in her travels to Europe earlier this month, we haven’t seen them photographed together very recently. Still, the 21-year-old made it clear that she’s still as in love with him as ever on Sept. 22 after she was attacked by a man on the streets of Milan, she tweeted that the guy was “lucky” Zayn wasn’t there because he would have done even more damage.

Zayn publicly shared his feelings the week before, as well. Even though he didn’t attend Gigi’s New York Fashion Week show with Tommy Hilfiger, he sent her the sweetest message on Twitter, writing, “Good luck tonight baby. You’re about to show the world your amazing GxTH collection. I am so proud. You are an inspiration. X.”

has also been accused of having a problem with substance abuse. It appears that despite these serious claims, he could still get joint custody; Angelina asked for sole physical custody and visitation rights for Brad in her divorce documents.

This would obviously be great for Brad, who is desperately missing his children and reportedly begging to see them. Angelina has rented a massive Malibu home and allegedly barricaded herself and the children inside to escape the prying eyes (and questions) of the paparazzi, and also allegedly blocked all of Brad’s calls and texts.

Getting 50/50 physical custody might be even easier for Brad, actually. It’s unlikely that the child abuse claims will be pursued, according to Divorce Attorney and Family Law Expert Raoul Felder, who also spoke to HollywoodLife.com. This is because there was no third party evidence to back up the alleged incident between Brad and Maddox, Raoul said. If a flight attendant, for example, were to come forward, then that could be different.

Rob Kardashian slams Kylie Jenner, posts her phone number on Twitter W

hat the hell is happening?

Rob Kardashian is totally attacking his sister, Kylie Jenner, on Twitter for allegedly not inviting Blac Chyna to her own baby shower. He’s so mad he even tweeted Kylie’s phone number for the world to see. And no, the account claims it has not been hacked.

While Rob Kardashian, 29, may have grown apart from his family for a while, he has come back around to hanging with the KardashianJenner clan more now that he and his fiancée, Blac Chyna, 28, are expecting their first child.

Or at least that’s what we believe based on what we see on Keeping Up with the Kardashians and Rob and Chyna. But things may not be as great between them as we thought, as on the night of Sept. 26, Rob took to Twitter to tear into his family, especially his little sister, Kylie Jenner, 19.

“Didn’t invite the

mother of my child to a baby shower you all were trying to throw for me!!?” Rob tweeted.

“You all must have lost your damn minds.” Rob also tweeted out a phone number that was supposedly Kylie’s, saying “I ain’t hacked either this is rob dog lol.” If that’s true, Kylie probably should get a new one fast.

Earlier that day, Chyna had shared an image on Snapchat that read, “My baby shower is Sunday.” What is going on? Were Kylie and the rest of the fam planning a shindig to celebrate the arrival of Baby Girl Kardashian without planning on asking her mother to join in?

That is pretty cold. But some also believe tweeting your teenage sister’s phone number is also pretty cold, Rob. Not one of the Kardashian-Jenner clan has responded to Rob’s tweet yet, and we don’t think it’s because they haven’t seen it. We’re pretty sure they were totally blindsided by the situation and aren’t really sure what to do.

Obviously, they must feel horrible if they have caused Rob pain. But at the same time, they now have a right to be angry too. Fighting fire with fire is not always the right thing to do. Let’s just hope Kylie got a new number by now.

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FRIDAY, september 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Agric ‘Nigeria can earn N15trn yearly from cassava’

Business

Environment Experts: Nigerian rivers worst hit by pollution, climate change

29 30

What's new Fresh job cuts loom as more firms mull exit p.26

Arms contracts with Nigeria, others hit N6.3trn

L-R: Media Relations Officer, Heritage Bank Plc, Mr. Blaise Udunze; Divisional Head, Corporate Communications, Sola LongeOkenimkpe; Team Member, Internal Control Unit, Barbara Nzekwe; Group Head, Media & External Relations, Igwe U. Igwe and Group Head, Event & Sponsorship, of the bank, Ekaette Sunday, during a media interactive forum in Lagos.

IMF downplays impact of devaluation on Nigeria’s inflation

p.26

Seeks greater exchange rate flexibility ASSURANCE Exchange rate does not impact prices of locally produced foods Tony Chukwunyem

The Business Desk Ayodele Aminu

Deputy Editor (Business)

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Asst. Editor (Maritime)

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Asst. Editor (Insurance)

Tony Chukwunyem

Asst. Editor (Money Market)

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Capital Market Editor

Abdulwahab Isa Finance Editor

C

ontrary to widespread opinion, the effects of naira devaluation on inflation are limited and should not deter the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from retaining its liberalised exchange rate management system, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), has said.

The IMF stated this in a working paper issued by its African Department, which assessed the exchange rate pass-through to consumer price inflation in Nigeria and Angola over time.

The paper revealed that while the two countries share similar dependence on oil exports and until recently had adopted similar policy actions to the oil price shock, they both showed a different relationship between the

Taiwo Hassan

Senior Correspondent

Chuks Onuanyin Energy

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Asst Production Editor

N6.33 trillion Being the additional naira stock (per dollar) that would be needed to service Nigeria’s existing debt, when compared to N12.6 trillion at N197 per dollar as at December 31, 2015

which non-food consumption represents a larger share of their income. Conversely, maintaining a stable exchange rate would protect the consumption level of groups for which nonfood items are relatively more important in their total spending.”

Besides, the IMF stated: “As the exchange rate pass-through to prices in Nigeria is limited, the monetary authorities should not be as concerned with the effect of a devaluation on inflation and should allow the exchange rate to adjust in line with underlying macroeconomic fundamentals.”

It also noted that adopting a forex regime that per mits greater exchange rate flexibility would help mitigate the impact of an external shock and reduce the burden on other policies.

“Experience shows that when shocks are largely external in nature, e.g. a shock to oil prices, a more flexible regime proves more resilient. In contrast, in a more fixed regime, fiscal policy

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exchange rate and prices.

The Fund said that although food represents roughly a half of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) basket in both countries, most food items are locally produced in Nigeria compared with Angola, which imports the bulk of its food. It pointed out that as a result, the exchange rate passthrough to prices in Nigeria turned out to be smaller than in Angola, even though, according to the IMF, the pass-through in Angola has declined over time.

The Fund noted: “For Nigeria, the analysis shows that the exchange rate pass-through has short-lived effects on non-food (core) inflation. Food prices do not seem to react to changes in the exchange rate because most food items are locally produced.

That is, changes in food prices respond more strongly to local developments in supply and demand than to developments in the foreign exchange market.

Therefore, following a devaluation episode, the groups mostly affected would be the ones for

INFLATION RATE August 2016 ..........................17.61 % July 2016.................................17.1% June 2016 ..............................16.5%

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

EXCHANGE RATE (Parallel Market as at September 23)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N442 Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N560 Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N475

l Foreign Reserves – $46.82bn as at 22/9/2016

Source: CBN

EXCHANGE RATE (Interbank as at September 23)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N305 Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N395 Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N341

26

BUSINESS |news

FRIDAY, september 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Fresh job cuts loom as more firms mull exit FATALITIES In the last eight months, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) had lost substantial revenues due to the inclement working environment

Taiwo Hassan

T

he Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), has received some fresh complaints from different firms in the country of their intention to lay-off workers, shutdown production and relocate outside the shores of Nigeria.

NACCIMA disclosed this in a report obtained by New Telegraph in Lagos.

NACCIMA, which is the mouthpiece of the organised private sector (OPS) in the country, said that the complaints from the affected firm have to do with the continued foreign exchange scarcity, low production output, high energy cost and decline in profits.

A top member of NACCIMA and President, Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), Tony Ejinkeonye, said that majority of manufacturing companies and blue chip companies were groaning over the investment clime in the country, as the on-going economic recession took severe toll on their businesses.

He explained that these affected companies are not happy with the way government is handling the recession, lamenting that they may be forced to carry out their restructuring exercise, which would result in mass

IMF downplays impact of devaluation on Nigeria’s inflation

job losses and relocation of more local companies to neighbouring countries.

His words: “Several members of the Chamber have complained bitterly over the difficulty in accessing foreign exchange to procure their raw material. The situation is really quite pathetic for businesses especially those in the manufacturing sector.

“Our members are groaning over low output occasioned by non-availability of forex to get raw materials for production, which in turn has affected their turnover drastically. Just today, we received notice from different companies threatening to lay-off their workers or shut down production in the meantime if forex scarcity continues, while others are

making plans to relocate to neighbouring African countries.

“Meanwhile, one only hopes that government can come up with a strategy to address the current scarcity of foreign exchange so as to avert impending economic misfortune.”

The ACCI president states that about 70 per cent of Small and Medium scale Enterprises (SMEs) companies operating in Abuja are currently at risk, as they battled to remain in business.

He added that SMEs owners have lost huge profits to the country’s economic recession due to the economic recession.

“In the last eight months, SMEs loss to the current economic woe in value terms is substantial going by reports

contradictions that we are witnessing in the economy nowadays because once there is a slowdown in the economy, it affects virtually all sectors of the economy. You can see that profitability in the economy has declined marginally; capacity of many businesses to sustain their enterprises has also been weakened; purchasing power declined; cost of production gone up and access to foreign exchange rate a challenge.”

For example, Guinness Nigeria reported that earnings after tax fell 83 per cent in the nine months through March, while revenue dropped 18 per cent to N69.6 billion ($220 million). Also, the shares are down 17 per cent this year, compared with a 3.7 per cent fall in the Nigerian Stock Exchange All Share Index.

L-R: Representative of the United States Agency for International Development (Usaid), Mr Michael Harvey; Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh; Officials of the International Food Policy Research Institute, Mr Hiroyuki Takeshima and Mr George Mavrotas, during the lauch of a book Titled: ‘The Nigerian Rice Economy Policy Options’, in Abuja.

Arms contracts with Nigeria, others hit N6.3trn INSURGENCY The Federal Government had mooted adding 40 attack and transport helicopters to its fleet to strengthen its arsenal against Boko Haram

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 25

typically has to carry the burden of adjustment to shocks. However, fiscal policy can have limited scope to be flexible when a tightening is required. Capital expenditures are often the buffer, but this could have adverse effects on long-run growth prospects,” the IMF stated.

In addition, the Fund emphasised that the CBN’s recent efforts to move toward greater flexibility in the exchange rate: “Should be part of a consistent and credible package of sustainable policies… in particular, the need for employing an effective monetary policy framework that supports a flexible exchange rate regime and anchors inflation.”

we have received so far,” Ejinkeonye said.

He explained that the forex scarcity has continued to fuel uncertainty in the country’s real sector, especially in manufacturing sector, adding that this has adversely affected production output of manufacturers and their profits.

In his own submission, the Director- General, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Muda Yusuf, concurred that the general contradiction in the country’s economy was having adverse effect on many operating companies operations.

Yusuf said: “Again, the increase in job cuts, lay-offs and others that are happening in the country is largely as a result of the general

Sunday Ojeme

T

he widespread insecurity in some parts of Africa has increased the fortune of Russian arms exporter, Rosoboronexport, as its contracts with some countries within the continent, including Nigeria, have hit over $21 billion (N6.3 trillion).

According to Yuri Demchenko, an adviser to Rosoboronexport’s CEO, the arms firm will keep building up proactive cooperation with majority of countries in northern Africa and states south of the Sahara desert.

“The overall value of orders for Russian military products the African countries account far exceeds $21 billion,” he said.

Rosoboronexport, he said, had established lasting military-tech-

nical ties with Angola, Egypt, Zimbabwe, Mali, Uganda and others, adding that of late, there was good progress towards closer contacts with Namibia, Nigeria, Cameroon, Mozambique, Tanzania and Equatorial Guinea.

Demchenko disclosed in South Africa at the Africa Aerospace and Defence Expo that between this year and 2017, his firm planned to continue exporting helicopters to Nigeria, Angola, Mali and Sudan.

“Our position in the African helicopter market is solid, so we are optimistic about the prospects of cultivating it further,” the delegation chief added.

The expected choppers are the Mil Mi-8/17 and Mi-24/35 models.

Two years ago, the Federal Government had mooted adding 40 attack and transport helicopters to its fleet as part of strengthening its arsenal against Boko Haram.

In May this year, the United States government also sought approval to sell as many as 12 A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft to Nigeria to aid

its battle against Boko Haram.

Officials, who were privy to the deal, expressed confidence in President Muhammadu Buhari’s drive to reform the country’s corruption-tainted military.

The possible sale, which the officials said was favoured within the US administration but subject to review by Congress, underscores the deepening U.S. involvement in helping governments in North and West Africa fight extremist groups.

Demchenko pointed out that helicopters remained one of the most sought-after types of military hardware in Africa. In 2014-2016, Russian-made helicopters were exported to Angola, Sudan, Uganda and Rwanda.

Besides, many African countries prefer to purchase inexpensive equipment, and in particular used equipment, the Russian delegation’s head noted.

“For example, we export those Mil Mi-8 and Mi-24 helicopters to this region that have gone through major renovation,” he elaborated.

According to the official,

Russia’s military-technical cooperation with the African countries has been steady on the ascent for the past few years and a number of African countries have already joined the list of Russia’s main trading partners.

“By and large the share of Africa in the world export of weapons is relatively small. For instance, sub-Saharan Africa accounts for about two per cent, but the statistics of Russian weapons sales by Rosoboronexport in Africa showed steady growth for several years. A similar situation can be observed in northern Africa, where a number of countries in recent years considerably built up purchases of Russian weapons to have entered the list of our main partners in the sphere of military-technical cooperation,” Demchenko said.

He believes that the African market is very promising for Russia and shows steady growth. To a certain extent this is a result of soaring threats from terrorists and pirates, as well as such problems as drug trafficking and illegal production of hydrocarbons and seafood, he explained.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

COLLAPSE The major paper mills in the country have long collapsed without government making effort to revive any of them

27

LABOUR

Union decries govt’s neglect of paper industry

•Laments job losses

Sunday Ojeme

M

embers of Pulp Paper and Paper Products Printing and Publishing Senior Staff Association of Nigeria have called on the Federal Government to urgently take steps to revive the moribund paper industry in the country.

In a letter addressed to President Muhammadu Buhari, the association lamented that the once vibrant paper industry in the country had been left to rot without successive administrations doing anything to resuscitate the sector.

The union, in the letter titled: ‘Pulp Paper and Paper Industry and Nigerian Economic Realities of Today: Which Way Forward’ and signed by its national President, Comrade Dada Joseph, observed that pulp paper and paper products industry was at a time one of the key sectors in Nigerian economy, given the fact that there is no alternative to paper usage world over.

“The need for paper products in Nigeria as in elsewhere cannot be over emphasised. The paper industry is more important today as it was yesterday. The usage of paper materials today cannot be compared with that of yesterday. The industry in Nigeria is almost if not in comatose to say the least without fear of contradiction. The sector, no doubt, does not only need the government intervention and

General Secretary, Pulp Paper and Printing Senior Staff Association, B.A. Ikegbulam

President Muhammadu Buhari

attention but a financial bailout,” the union noted.

The association recalled an earlier position by a former Director General of Raw Material Research and Development, Professor Azikiwe Peter Onwualu, who lamented the state of pulp paper and paper products industry in Nigeria.

Onwualu was quoted in the letter as saying that the sector was losing over N400billion yearly to paper products importation and believed that such colossal waste could have been saved once the major operational firms in the sector were revived.

He pointed out that an industry with over 300,000 employees

and with an investment worth over N100billion, the revitalisation of such sector of the economy, to say the least, was imperative.

He also observed that the importation of finished products in the sector amounted to N500 billion a year, stressing that if the sector worked optimally, Nigeria will save up to N400 billion annually and at the same time create over 200,000 jobs for young Nigerians.

The union expressed regret that the sector, which was one of the major employers of labour in Nigeria with well over 300,000 employees in 1990s could no longer boast of 10,000 employees today, adding that the sordid

situation called for a thorough scrutiny to save the sector from total extinction.

On the way forward, the union said that Federal Government’s intervention at this point was inevitable.

It called on the government to create a conducive environment for the sector to thrive by providing the necessary infrastructure such as power supply and where this is not available, the government should, as a matter of urgency, consider subsidising the cost of diesel and gas usage of the major players in the industry especially those that employ up to 200 workers and above to enable them run their factories profitability.

‘Education is basic tool for youth empowerment’

F

ormer Commissioner of Finance in Lagos State, Mrs. Foluke Abdul-Razaq, has identified education as the basic tool for youth empowerment.

She stated this in Lagos during a leadership summit organised by Sarah Adebisi Sosan (SAS) Foundation.

The ex-commissioner also advised youths to develop entrepreneurial skills to earn more resources as part of measures to escape effects of the ongoing economic recession.

Calling on the youths to the embrace basic education as the first step to empowerment, she noted that it would not only influence value in the community but also assist to develop morals towards building a better nation.

On his part, Chairman, Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Education, Lanre Ogunyemi, admonished youths to think out of the box in order to survive the recession.

He said: “Most of our youths are roaming the streets unemployed with their certificates; we must understand that everyone cannot be employed by the gov-

ernment. The Asian tigers grew out of small scale industries, if we have small scale industries amongst our youths with great ideas that can be supported by the government and corporate bodies, Nigeria would be a better place.”

Also at the event was the Lagos Regional Head, Bank of Industry (BoI), Obaro Osah, who said Nigerian youths needed to redirect their focus to value creation.

He pointed out that every youth had the right to solicit

for funds in that regard, stressing that the bank had been playing critical role in providing grounds for small business financing.

While declaring the summit open, the founder, SAS Foundation, Sarah Sosan, said the summit was organised to empower youths and the girl child in particular.

Decrying the standard of education in the country, she said the foundation was out to fill the gap that are lacking in the country’s educational by

facilitating the youths to get access to information and where they can get finances.

She said: “I take a lot of delight when I see our youths breaking grounds. I know times are hard, many of the youths may not know, which way to go.

They should not lose hope. What is happening in the country is just for a time, things will improve if we all obey and key in to the policies of the government.

The policies might be too stringent but it is for the betterment of everyone.”

PwC parleys Lagos on entrepreneurial development

L

agos State government is set to benefit from a training and employment initiative by PwC Nigeria, which plans to absorb 10 graduating students of Ready Set Work Initiative (RSW) of the Lagos State Government.

Country Senior Partner for PwC Nigeria and Regional Senior Partner for the West Market Area, Uyi Akpata, disclosed the arrangement between the agency and the state at the graduation cer-

emony of the pioneer class of 422 students.

He said: “PwC is taking 10 of the graduating students as interns to run over a sixmonth period and I can say here from what I am seeing that those 10 people would have almost a foot in the door to get professional careers in PwC.” While commending the initiative, he called on other organisations to key into it, saying that if at the end of the day

10 per cent of the graduating students gained employment within the sponsors, it would go a long way in not only further supporting the initiative, but also help address the unemployment challenge in the country.

He said the initiative was in tandem with PwC’s objectives as it equips students with the critical skills and know-how necessary to either become employable or become employers of labour.

The association also called for reconsideration of policies that compel companies to buy diesel or gas in foreign currencies, as naira still remains the only legal tender in Nigeria.

It also demanded, among other things, a reconsideration of the policy on privatisation of the three major paper mills in the country by constituting a committee of major stakeholders and the two unions in the industry to workout strategy to revive the primary mills as such revival would improve the economy of the country.

NUPENG makes case for private security agencies

T

he Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has called on the Federal Government to reconsider bringing back private security guards to oil installations across the country.

NUPENG expressed worries over the drop in oil production in the country occasioned by bombings of oil and power installations in the Niger Delta.

According to the President of the union, Comrade Igwe Achese, the current challenges facing the oil production capacity can only be addressed by bringing back the private security agencies that were approved by the last administration.

Achese pointed out that the installations were more secure with oil production peaking at 2.4 million barrels per day when the services of these security agencies were employed by the former government.

He said it was unacceptable for our crude oil production to plummet to only 900,000 barrels per day now in view of the current recession.

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

AGRIC

AfDB, IITA to create 8m jobs in Nigeria, others CAPACITY BUILDING The two institutions will assist African youths to work in the agricultural sector

Stories: Taiwo Hassan

T

he African Development Bank (AfDB), in conjunction with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), is embarking on the initiative “Jobs for Youth in Africa,” aimed at putting an end to youth unemployment in the continent by creating eight million agribusiness jobs within five years.

President of AfDB and a former Nigerian Minister of Agriculture, Akinwumi Adesina, said this when he visited the Agripreneurs training centre at IITA, Ibadan, Oyo State last Tuesday.

He reiterated his commitment to the initiative.

Under Adesina’s leadership, the AfDB has extended support to African youth through the IITA Youth Agripreneurs programme that will be scaling up the model of youth engagement in agribusiness.

In recognition of his continuous support and commitment to the cause of African youth, IITA will be preserving Adesina’s legacy by naming after him the state-of-the-art youth training centre at IITA headquarters in

Farmers in farm

Ibadan and in Abuja.

The training centres and facilities provided by the AfDB and the IITA will assist African youths to take on work in the agricultural sector.

The initiative also seeks to encourage the many unemployed African youths to become involved in agriculture in order to make it a driving force for development in Africa.

Nigeria is not the only African country with high youth unemployment.

Youth unemployment in South Africa was estimated at 51.5 per cent in 2014; Namibia 40.1 per cent; and Algeria 28.4 per cent.

Three in every five young workers in Sub-Saharan Africa do not have the level of education required for them to compete in

the job market.

The AfDB president set forth his five development priorities for the institution when he took office in September 2015. One of these priorities is the ‘Feed Africa’ initiative, an agricultural transformation strategy that aims to unlock Africa’s agricultural potential.

The strategy also aims to boost job creation with the view of making the agriculture sector profitable and a starting point for industrialisation.

With the ‘Feed Africa’ strategy, Africa would be able to feed itself and reduce net food importation by 2025.

“There is no reason for Africa to spend $35 billion importing food when the continent could feed itself, said Adesina, adding

Lagos targets 200,000 metric tone of rice by 2017 Appolonia Adeyemi and Muritala Ayinla

T

he Lagos State Government would produce of 200,000 metric tones of rice through its collaboration with Kebbi State by 2017.

Special Adviser to the state Governor on Food Security, Ganiu Okanlawon, disclosed this in Lagos, while briefing journalists on the forthcoming maiden Lagos Food Security Summit.

He said the state through the partnership would produce 51,000 metric tone by December this year.

The government, which also promised to acquire more parcels of land, said those already acquired in Ogun, Osun States and Abuja have already been put into use.

He said the growing population of Lagos calls for pragmatic step to ensure that population growth doesn’t threaten food security in the state.

He said that the price of rice produced by the state government in collaboration with Kebbi State would be affordable since the rice is locally made without payment of duties, adding that the when produced, the rice would also be more nutritious than the imported.

The Special Adviser noted that that the summit is being organised to institutionalise a food security framework that would guarantee sustainable food security for its growing population.

The summit billed for the Lagos Airport Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos from Thursday, November

10 to Friday, November 11, 2016, is designed to realign emerging realities with new global trends on food safety, food processing, food storage, food handling, funding of agribusiness and agric insurance,” he said.

Okanlawon added that the summit with the theme ‘Actualizing Sustainable Food Security in Lagos: A New Comprehensive Agenda’ will attract major stakeholders from the agricultural sector and academia as well as prospective foreign and local investors, media, civil society and policy makers in government.

He said: “The Summit is expected to provide a veritable platform for discourse on various investment opportunities in agriculture and agro-allied business in the State with the aim of stimulating private investment in the sector and ultimately optimise its vast agroprocessing and agro-allied potentials.”

Okanlawon while stressing the need to urgently plan for sufficient and sustainable food production in Lagos noted that State being the commercial nerve centre of Nigeria with about 45 per cent of the nation’s skilled population and the tendency for increased population growth due to rural-urban migration, need to plan not just for now but for the future.

He added that in spite of its limited space, the State possesses vast agricultural investment potentials waiting to be tapped or optimised stressing that the present administration of Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode had in the last one year embarked on various innovative agricultural and agro-allied programmes and projects geared towards ensuring food security in the State.

Africa must become a global powerhouse in food and agriculture.”

And indeed, it could. Africa disposes of some 400 million hectares of agricultural land, waiting to be cultivated.

However, different laws, regulations, policies and institutions applying to each African country make it hard for local farmers to access seeds, modern technology and equipment, and to transport their goods in order to sell them on the market.

To make the agricultural sector in Africa profitable, it needs to be transformed.

African countries need to increase trade amongst each other, maximising their production and getting the food to where it is needed, instead of buying it from outside the continent.

Removing barriers to regional trade will benefit farmers, who will make more money from the rising demand, as well as consumers, who are able to buy food cheaper and have more job opportunities by engaging in the growing agriculture sector.

In order to unlock Africa’s large agricultural potential, African governments need to take collective action and produce a set of common rules, standards and taxes. Lifting the barriers to food trade could not only increase Africa’s production, eventually becoming able to feed itself, but could also contribute to decrease in the high youth unemployment. and give millions of young women and men a future in which they are able to sustain themselves.

Oil palm: PZ, NIFOR sign MoU on research, devt

A

nother strategic step towards Nigeria’s self-sufficiency in oil palm production has been taken with signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between PZWilmar and Nigerian Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR) in Abuja.

The MoU, signed by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbe and Chairman, PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc, Chief Kola Jamodu, for and on behalf of the two institutions, covered capacity building and knowledge sharing for the research institute.

The collaboration according to a statement, would devote attention to developing Nigerian climate specific high yield variety through joint development of early maturing, high yielding, and draught tolerant and disease resistant planting materials through crossfertilization.

The scope would also include study visit by NIFOR on biotechnology approach to elite oil palm planting material development in Wilmar facilities in Asia.

The exchange of visit, according to the company, would also explore end-uses of palm oil and palm kernel oil through isolation of nutraceuticals from palm oil and bio-

energy development and use from waste products.

On the Nigerian side, the shared knowledge would translate in internship of best management practices for plantations, training of out-growers and prospective investors and setting up of Agribusiness School for Young Graduates.

In his remarks at the occasion, the agric minister commended PZ Wilmar for their support and continued faith in the economy in spite of challenges.

He believed the collaboration would go a long way in getting the urgently required innovative knowhow to drive the oil palm industry.

He promised to allocate more funds to research institutes under the ministry to enable them play the needed role in improving local productivity.

Earlier on in his speech, Chairman, PZ Cussons Nigeria PLC, Chief Kola Jamodu, said the MoU was meant to promote research that would help to quicken Nigeria’s quest to attain sustainable oil palm production.

In the same vein, the Executive Director NIFOR, Dr. Omorefe Asemota, said he was pleased with the collaboration and called for more public-private sector partnership.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

R

ecently, a cassava summit was held in Abuja, as the president of Nigeria Cassava Growers Association, could you give us more insight into what necessitated the summit and what it holds for Nigeria?

The summit provided great enlightenment to stakeholders and the public on the progress, challenges and prospects in the cassava industry.

Cassava is Nigeria’s gold, even though such recognition has not been given to it. I would be bold to state that it is better for us as economy promoters to give attention to developing the full potential of the cassava industry than pursuing fuel.

Cassava can actually give us more than N15 trillion annually going by the present exchange rates.

Our association is already championing a crusade to make cassava a national product, we want all stakeholders at all levels to give priority attention to cassava.

We are trying to be above board in creating the enlightenment. Secondly, cassava is cultivated all over the country from the North to the South.

Cassava grows and lives with water but survives with heat, the fact that there is no water for three months cannot affect cassava, so it is so easy to grow and Nigeria is known as the highest producer of cassava in the world, so, it is what we have that we will promote. Cassava is the only farm produce in the world that Nigeria has been recognised globally as a leader, so it is very necessary to promote cassava.

The country is targeting $5 billion on cassava annually, is it realistic?

In my opinion, that projection is very modest. It is possible for us to actually get three times that amount if we are focused on cassava. Let me give this analysis, right now, Nigeria has up to 84 million hectares of yet to be cultivated arable land.

If we can give five million to producing cassava, we will get 200 million metric tone of cassava and that 200 million, if you look at the industrial factors, at the ratio of four tons of fetch cassava root to one ton of cassava starch, you will get up to 50 million metric ton of starch.

And the same value can also be got from other bye products of cassava, which we can process and export to earn foreign exchange.

We have had a lot of policies geared towards developing the potential of cassava and yet, appreciable progress has not been made.

What do you think that Nigeria is doing that is likely going to hinder the vision of developing the cassava industry?

Beginning from the regime of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo when cassava started receiving attention, I can tell you that what he did during his regime in the cassava sub-sector of agriculture was inspirational.

He sold the vision to us and partly implemented it though he couldn’t get the strategy to do it well.

BUSINESS \ AGRIC

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‘Nigeria can earn N15trn yearly from cassava’ Pastor Segun Adewumi, President, Nigeria Cassava Growers Association, in this interview with CALEB ONWE, bares his mind on how the full potential of cassava can be harnessed to resuscitate the economy. He also spoke on other issues in the industry. Excerpts: Akinwumi Adesina, the immediate past minister of agriculture, who did pretty well to promote cassava bread, also picked up that vision for cassava production. We were convinced that he was going to intervene, and bring about the desired turnaround, he tried, but certain things could not fall in the right place.

Regarding cassava bread, countries like Cameroun and Brazil have already achieved up to 20 per cent of cassava flour in bread baking, but in Nigeria, we are yet to achieve that.

The problem we have here is implementation of workable strategies. The last regimes did its best, but due to certain challenges, all that was desired as far as tapping the full economic value of cassava was not achieved.

And I think the present regime is trying not to fall into the same pit. For instance, N10 billion was released for the promotion of cassava bread, the money was shared between, growers and processors of cassava, the master bakers and other areas where it was necessary. In our own case, the Bank of Agriculture disbursed to us and we cultivated 29,500 hectare of cassava, however, by the time the cassava sowed matured, I think something went wrong with the processing, they didn’t have the equipment to off-take and the cassava rotted away.

That occurred due to lack of reliable facilities for processing and I think based on that, the working capital that was supposed to be given to them was not available for them, the money was a grant that doesn’t require the type of measures the banks were introducing, measures that the people could not fulfill, so our cassava rotted away. I think the present government is looking into it so that they will not repeat the same mistake.

I want you to know that the concept is that 50 per cent additional charges on import duty will be added to importation of wheat floor, and if we import N250 billion worth of wheat in a year? That means the 50 per cent added will bring it to N100 billion annually that could have been collected for the past five years. I also believe that the N10 billion that was released for cassava programme was not enough.

Now Nigeria is targeting 45 million jobs from cassava, if we must realise this what do we need to do around cassava?

We have already made our presentation to the present minister of agriculture and rural development, we recommended creation of a Cassava

Adewumi

Even the garri that is being taken offshore... those who are taking it out had to put a label that gives it Ghanaian identification

Commission or a specialised committee under the ministry to drive the cassava programme.

There is need for a commercial programme and such initiative cannot thrive under the bureaucratic system of the ministry without the private sector driving it.

We also want the ministry to establish a commercial centre for cassava that will be driven by the private sector.

Secondly, we want to promote cottage industries in the rural areas where this cassava is produced, though am aware that in 2009, about N1 billion was deposited in a certain bank to help establish the cottage industry, but the money was not disbursed, we have brought this to the notice of the present minister.

There is also the need for mechanised farming in Nigeria, if we want to create massive jobs, I will tell you those farmers in America are not up to five per cent of the population of America, yet they produce enough food for their country and also export to other countries.

So, mechanised farming is needed to trigger industrial revolution that will create opportunity for massive employment.

I will tell you this, the three major cassava industrial products, ethanol, industrial starch and cassava floor, that we are concentrating on now are raw materials to numerous industrial items with limitless market potentials, even if the entire land mass in Nigeria is used to plant cassava, it would not be enough to meet the needs of our people.

There is massive opportunity for employment in the cassava sub-sector of agriculture if we can do the needful. In our association, we are already considering youth empowerment through cassava farming, the believe that if they cultivate about 10,000 hectares of lands that will be cleared and allocated to them by the government, at least every youth

stands the chance to make up to N2 million profit annually after expenses, and if such youths decides to take it up as a career, we can form them into cooperative that can own facilities with specialised equipment. This is because. specialised equipment will bring down cost of production, like harvester that can do more than what human labour can do; planter is also one of such specialised equipment.

All these strategy will not just create employment but will help us to compete in the world market. I can also tell you that our cassava is the most expensive in the world, even in terms of quantity.

There was a time when the issue of cassava chips came up, Fadama invited me to talk about it, I told them that selling cassava chips is slave mentality like what is happening with our crude oil, which we sell and they will refine it and resell to us at their price.

We believe it will be better to process the cassava here get all the value in it and then sell them to the end users anywhere in the world.

Now Nigeria is collaborating with China to improve the economy, and China has a lot to do with cassava product; and instead of exporting raw cassava to China, government is talking about cassava chip, why can’t government invite the Chinese investors to come to Nigeria and establish processing facilities here and refrain from exporting our job opportunities.

I know that at a point, the bakers were actually brought into the cassava initiative, so that they can put at least 10 per cent of cassava flour in baking bread, but it appears that certain interest is trying to frustrate that initiative.

Can you tell us how much foreign exchange that cassava has brought into the country in the last two years?

For now cassava has not brought in any foreign exchange into the country, apart from garri that is being taken out, there is nobody exporting raw cassava out of this country, because the cost of production here is too much for the world market.

Even the garri that is taken offshore, we have a challenge with it because it has not gained international recognition, those who are taking it out had to put a label that gives it Ghanaian identification.

We are working with government to standardise the processing of our garri processing and packaging.

From what is happening to the economy now, the only option left for the country is agriculture, so government cannot afford not to give adequate attention to it.

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ENVIRONMENT WATCH

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

WHO Nigerian rivers fall below standard

Stories: Dayo Ayeyemi

W

ith many of the world’s rivers facing severe and increasing threats associated with climate change and pollution, Nigeria rivers have been described as ’worst hit’ in terms of degradation attributed to pollution and climate change impacts.

This is coming at a time stakeholders are lamenting a major case of Lake Chad, which had shrunk considerably and the prevailing signs of drying up of Niger River in some parts of country.

Head of River Ethiope Trust Foundation (RETFON) as well as Foundation for the Conservation of Nigerian Rivers (FCNR), Irikefe Dafe, led call for the declaration of a state of emergency to tackle the situation during the commemoration of 2016 World Rivers Day (WRD) celebration.

He lamented the state of the nations’ waterways, saying that urgent steps are required to reverse the trend.

The event is a global celebration of world’s waterways, observed every last Sunday in September. Established in 2005, WRD highlights many values of rivers and strives to increase public awareness while encouraging the improved stewardship of rivers around the world. More than 70 countries are participating in this year’s festivities.

Speaking on the state of water, Dafe said that Nigeria is one of the countries in the world with worst rivers degradation conditions without adequate deliberate efforts to reverse the trend.

According to him, everyday, the country loses this precious resource to pollution due to reckless industrial development, ur-

Makoko waterfront community, Lagos

Experts: Nigerian rivers worst hit by pollution, climate change ban development and climate change, among others.

He said: “Today, no river in Nigeria meets the water qualities standard stipulated by the World Health Organisation (WHO) either for swimming, fishing and drinking purpose.

Dafe added that in every community in Nigeria, the rivers that used to be a source of drinking water, swimming and other aquatic activities have seized to play the vital roles to mankind.

World Rivers Day Chair and Founder and Chair Emeritus of the Rivers Institute at the British Columbia Institute of Technology, Mark Angelo, described rivers as” integral to all life”.

He added that yet, many waterways have continued to face an array of threats and “are often impacted by inappropriate practices and inadequate protection.”

700,000 Gombe residents face water shortage

H

ard times loom in Gombe State as about 700,000 residents of the capital are liable to shortage of portable water, as their main source of supply is no longer flowing.

According to a source, despite this threat, Gombe State government claimed that it had spent about N6.3 billion to supply water to the citizens in the last two years.

Citizens, who now rely on informal water vendors, have expressed worries over their situation, saying that they risk outbreak of major epidemic if the situation persists.

General Manager, Gombe State Water Board, Isa Muhammad, in a recent report, admitted that water works in the state needed to be serviced. This situation, he said, was caused by lack of maintenance due to poor fi-

nance of the agency.

Besides, he blamed the situation on non-payment of water utility levies by the people.

He said: “All through last year, only a paltry sum of N600,000 was realised from payment of water rates. This is so because people are used to the habit of not paying for the consumption of water.”

On what the corporation is doing to get out of the wood, he said that the glaring economic slump has made it compulsory for the water board to really sit up and look inward.

It was gathered that in the 2015 financial year, the Governor of Gombe State Ibrahim Dankwambo, said government had budgeted N3.7 billion for water. This year, government also set aside N2.6 billion to provide water.

“Millions of people, dozens of countries, and numerous international organisations will be contributing to World Rivers Day. It provides a great opportunity for people to get out and enjoy our waterways. At the same time, the event strives to create a greater awareness of the urgent need to better care for our rivers and streams,” said Angelo.

Chairman of Water Security at United Nations University, Robert Sandford, an interna-

tionally recognised expert on scarcity and conservation issues, said: “World Rivers Day is rightfully hailed for its global effort to increase awareness about the vital importance of our water resources and the need to properly protect and steward them in the face of mounting pressures.”

Staing the importance of awareness, Dafe warned that the country would not progress as long as it continue to treat its

rivers the way people are doing currently.

“You will agree with me that the state of any river one sees in any community is a practical reflection of the mindset of the people and activities they carry out on a daily basis within a river catchment and watershed.

He noted that only River Ethiope in Delta State has a foundation established to promote its wise use and conservation as compared to United State of America that has all her water bodies under protection.

Nigeria’s current effort towards economic progress, aspiration and gains may be frustrated in the near future if a state of emergency is not declared on Nigeria rivers now.

Countries pledge $80m aid for rapid HFCs phase down

G

lobal efforts to phase down Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) are receiving boost, as a group of donor countries and philanthropists have announced their intent to provide $80 million in support of countries in need of assistance.

Besides, more than 100 countries, last Wednesday, called for an ambitious amendment to the Montreal Protocol.

The United States had, last week, hosted a gathering of countries in New York to provide a boost of momentum to the upcoming international negotiations to adopt an amendment to the Mon-

treal Protocol to phase down the potent greenhouse gases known as hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).

According to report from United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the event highlighted two significant announcements, as over 100 countries called for securing an ambitious amendment with an “early freeze date.”

This group, the report said, included the United States, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, all 28 countries in the European Union, all 54 countries in Africa, and several island states that are the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.

Complementing this announcement, it said that more than 500 companies and organisations and hundreds of sub-national governments also called upon world leaders to take strong action on HFCs. “Secondly, a group of donor countries and philanthropists announced their intent to provide $80 million in support to help countries in need of assistance (i.e., Article 5 countries) implement an ambitious amendment and improve energy efficiency. The philanthropic component of this is the largest-ever private grant made for energy efficiency in this sector,” the report said.

‘Carbon pricing falling short of reducing C02 emissions’

C

urrent carbon prices are falling short of the levels needed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions driving climate change, but even moderate price increases could have a significant impact, a new research from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), has said.

Effective Carbon Rates: Pricing CO2 through taxes and emissions trading systems presents new data on effective carbon rates on CO2-emissions for energy use across six economic sectors in 41 countries,

which comprised 34 OECD member countries and seven partner economies.

These seven economies, according to the study included Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Russia and South Africa.

The report finds that there is a major gap between current carbon pricing policies and what is needed to ensure that carbon is priced even at the lower-end estimate of real climate costs – EUR 30 per tonne of CO2.

The effective carbon rate

(ECR) is the sum of specific taxes on energy use, carbon taxes and prices of tradable emissions permits, where these apply. Taxes are included on the basis of their economic effects rather than their stated policy intent, meaning that excise taxes are part of the ECR. Across all sectors and countries, the average effective carbon rate (ECR) amounts to just EUR 14.4 per tonne of CO2, of which 93.1 per cent are excise taxes, 1.3 per cent are carbon taxes, and 5.6 per cent are emissions trading systems.

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

AutoBeat

FRSC appoints new head for Lagos, Ogun zone

2016 Ford Explorer

Zaki

A Interior of the 2015 Ford Ranger

Ford Escape

Coscharis now sole Ford distributor in Nigeria

Paul Ogbuokiri

F

ord Motor Company has consolidated its dealer representation in Nigeria, ending its association with local distributor RT Briscoe as of June 30, 2016, while reinforcing its partnership with Coscharis Motors Limited as the country’s sole official Ford distributor.

“RT Briscoe has been a Ford dealer since 2005 alongside the Coscharis Motors group, but having two separate dealer groups representing the brand in Nigeria doesn’t make commercial sense,” said Rob Johnston, Regional Manager Sales and Marketing, Ford Customer Services Division for Sub Saharan Africa.

“Our long-term strategy is to focus on Coscharis and continuously improve our sales, service and parts network within Nigeria. We would like to thank the RT Briscoe team

for the dedication to the brand over the past 11 years, and wish them all the best in their future endeavours.”

Ford has invested extensively in developing the Nigeria market in conjunction with Coscharis Motors, which includes the launch of a semiknockdown vehicle assembly plant for the Ford Ranger, and the opening of three Quick Lane centres and a Quick Parts outlet.

“The local Ranger SKD assembly operations and Quick Lane centres are in line with the global One Ford approach to deliver product and service excellence for our growing customer base, particularly in the important Nigerian market, while driving innovation in every part of our business,” Johnston added.

Coscharis Motors currently has 11 outlets Ford dealers located in the major centres of Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt

and Calabar, which will continue selling, servicing and maintaining Ford vehicles throughout Nigeria according to Ford’s stringent global standards.

Ford Motor Company and Coscharis have also opened three Quick Lane Tyre and Auto Centres in Nigeria, starting out in Lagos in 2013, with Calabar and Ado-Ekiti being launched earlier this year.

The Quick Lane centres are an initiative of Ford Motor Company, with facilities that offer motorists professional maintenance for minor service items in the shortest amount of time, with the emphasis on personalized care, quality and value for money.

“The expansion Quick Lane franchise reinforces the commitment of Ford and Coscharis to improving aftersales support to customers in Nigeria through improved parts and service availability,” Johnston

said.

The Quick Lane facilities are manned by qualified and highly trained Ford-certified technicians and Master technicians. The centres service and offer light repairs on Ford vehicles as well as most other popular brands, and also fit and rotate tyres, perform wheel alignment and replace shock absorbers.

Linked to the Quick Lane Tyre and Auto Centre, the Ekiti operation also opened a Quick Parts facility, which is the first of its kind in Nigeria.

Quick Parts provides overthe-counter parts and accessories sales for Ford vehicles and a wide variety of other brands.

It operates on the same high quality and professional basis as the Quick Lane centres, but allows car owners convenient access to top-quality service parts should they chose do their own vehicle maintenance and repairs.

new Zonal Commanding Officer for Zone RS2 of the Federal Road Safety Corps, comprising Lagos and Ogun Sate Command has been appointed. He is Assistant Corps (ACM) Marshal Shehu A Zaki who took over from his predecessor ACM Nseobong Charles Akpabio who is now on a course at the Nigeria Defence Academy, Abuja.

A statement by the Acting Zonal Public Education Officer, Ndidi M Frederick-Imo said that Zaki has served in various capacities of the Corps among which are Commanding Officer in over 10 Commands, Corps Provost Officer, Corps Intelligence Officer, Head Monitoring and Evaluation National Headquarter Officer among others.

According to the statement, Zaki in his maiden address to staff on resumption in Lagos Monday said that he believes in leaving legacies behind wherever he works and therefore will welcome innovations and creativity to move the Zone forward.

He remarked on the implementation of speed limiter commencing October 1, 2016 and appealed to the public to comply. Also, the last quarter of the year is usually the pinnacle of operations in the Corps and charged staff to put in more effort in ensuring a successful Ember Month Operation.

On a final note, the Zonal Commanding Officer charged every staff to be diligent in their duties, come up with new initiatives to achieve different and better results, the statement adds.

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

EXHORTATION “THERE SHALL BE NO COMPULSION IN [ACCEPTANCE OF] THE RELIGION. THE RIGHT COURSE HAS BECOME CLEAR FROM THE WRONG. SO WHOEVER DISBELIEVES IN TAGHUT AND BELIEVES IN ALLAH HAS GRASPED THE MOST TRUSTWORTHY HANDHOLD WITH NO BREAK IN IT. AND ALLAH IS HEARING AND KNOWING.” (QUR’AN 2:256)

Islam UNDERSTAND YOUR FAITH

Hijrah in Islam QUESTION

What is the place of Hijrah in Islam?

ANSWER CONTINUED FROM LAST WEEK

It was narrated that al-Bara’ (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: The first ones who came to us of the companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) were Mus’ab ibn ‘Umayr and Ibn Umm Maktoom. They started to teach us the Qur’aan. Then ‘Ammaar, Bilaal, and Sa’d came, then ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab came with twenty others. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) came, and I never saw the people of Madeenah rejoice more than that. They rejoiced so much that I saw the girls and boys saying, “This is the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), he has come.”

Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 4560.

The following hadeeth sums up many of the events of the Prophet’s migration: It was narrated that ‘Aa’ishah said: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said to the Muslims: “In a dream I have been shown your place of migration, a land of date palm trees, between two lave fields, the two stony tracts.”

So, some people migrated to Madeenah, and most of those people who had previously migrated to the land of Ethiopia, returned to Madeenah. Abu Bakr also prepared to leave for Madeenah, but the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said to him, “Wait for a while, because I hope that I will be allowed to migrate also.” Abu Bakr said, “Do you indeed expect this? May my father be sacrificed for you!” The Prophet said, “Yes.” So Abu Bakr stayed behind for the sake of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) so that he could accompany him.

He fed two she-camels he owned with the leaves of the samur tree for four months.

CONTINUE Next WEEK

27 Dhul Hijjah, 1437 AH

Recession: NASFAT calls for calm, advocates peaceful co-existence NORMS Bolarinwa says that every country goes through very bumpy and stormy ride in their journey to development and greatness Adeola Yusuf

N

asrul-Lahi-L-Fatih Society (NASFAT) has called on Muslim faithful to remain prayerful and committed to the tenets of Islam as a religion of peace during this period of economic recession and beyond.

President of NASFAT, Alhaji Kamil Bolarinwa, who said this in a statement, maintained that be the faithful should calm and continue peaceful co-existence with Christians and others.

He said: “And talking about difficulties, I wish to emphasize that every country goes through very bumpy and stormy ride in their journey to development and greatness.

The experience would test the will of leaders and the resilience of the people. Nigeria is going through such rough patch at the moment.

“At times like this, what is expected is not panic and hysteria, but a calm appreciation of where we are coming from and where we are heading.

Given the commitment of the present leadership of this country, I strongly believe we are not heading for the rocks.

“Our present development experience can be likened to a tree falling across a river, it will affect the flow of the river quite all right, but it will not change its course. We need patience and sacrifice today for a better tomorrow. May Allah wataallah not change the course of our country Nigeria from greatness.”

Bolarinwa continued: “We are all aware of the slings and arrows being aimed at our religion Islam by uninformed, ignorant people - in both our Nation and in the world at large; by people who have hypnotized themselves into believing that without Islam and muslims, the world will be free of sin.

“To them insecurity and terrorism are no longer byproducts of social, political and economic disconnect and discontent, and growing inequality in societies; they are being blamed on Islam. At every forum that I have had the privilege of attending, I have interrogated, and voiced my informed opinion on the subject,” he said.

“Curiously but significantly,” he said, “we have realized especially in the last one year of the present government in this country that when it has to do with shortchanging the people (Christians and Muslims alike), there are no barriers between Muslims and Christians; they all sit down,

loot and pillage what belongs to all of us, our commonwealth! Out of the window religion goes!

“But what should be our reaction as Muslims? Should we always adopt the strike-andparry approach, and remain on the defensive? Would that serve the cause of Islam? First we must remain prayerful and committed to the tenets of Islam as a Religion of Peace both as individual members of NASFAT and as a pacesetting Islamic society, more by the way we conduct ourselves than by our utterances.

“Then, we must show exemplary actions in our relationship with our friends, our neighbours, our communities and with members of the larger society. And more important, we must bring up our children to also be examples of true muslims and good behaviour, even in the face of difficulties.”

Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, with Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby in London… recently

Nigerians are architects of their own fate, says MURIC Adeola Yusuf

M

uslim Right Concerns (MURIC) has declared that Nigerians are the contributed immensely to the economic fate facing them.

MURIC said this in a statement entitled: “Economic recession is a trial for believers” expressing shock at the way some Nigerians throw their weights behind corrupt politicians.

“Though painful, we are constrained to remind Nigerians that they are the architects of their own fate. The current economic downturn did not come from the blues. It is self-imposed. We encouraged graft. We sacrificed excellence on the altar of mediocrity. We grand stood where we should be frank and sincere. Due to our strange culture of waste,

we buried our parents and loved ones by throwing huge sums of money into the dustbin,” the group said in a statement signed by its Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola.

“We awarded chieftaincy titles to rogues and fraudsters. We celebrated international thieves who jumped bail abroad. Parents hired mercenaries to impersonate their children and write examinations for them. We certified graduates who could not compose simple correct sentences. We bastardised and incapacitated the security agencies. We took religion to the height of extremism. Now it is payback time.

“Although Allah promised that mankind would have enough to eat and drink as well as shelter and clothing in this world (Qur’an 20:118-119), greed, avarice, monu-

mental corruption and other acts of man’s inhumanity to man took the center stage in Nigeria. The Qur’an gave the parable of a country like Nigeria which was secure, peaceful and prosperous but whose citizens and leaders abused the resources. Allah therefore made them taste hunger and fear (Qur’an 16:112).

“This divine punishment notwithstanding, MURIC assures Nigerians that tough times never last but tough men do. We remind believing men and women of all faiths in the country that the current economic impasse is a form of trial. Allah promised in the Glorious Qur’an that He would try us with fear, hunger, poverty and even deaths but He assured those who patiently bear the travail of good news (Qur’an 2:155).

Again Qur’an 31:17 urges man to

exercise forbearance when faced with difficult times.”

The group continued: “Interestingly, the same Qur’an went down history lane to remind us that we are not the first to be tried because many had been tried before us. It asked rhetorically, “Do you think you will not be tested just because you are believers?

We have tried many before you!”

(29:2-3).

“If doubting Thomases fail to believe the travails of Prophet Ibraheem who was thrown in a fire, Yusuf who was thrown inside a well, Ayub who was afflicted with a strange disease, etc (peace be upon them all) are we not all living witnesses of the travails of other nations of the world who survived economic strangulation by dint of determination and attitudinal change?

33

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Agony

Crime

The late Lotachukwu

‘Why I blamed my lover, his mum for my son’s death’

Accusation

34

Pastor accuses EFCC officials of extortion

Promotion SFU receives crack detective

Abubakar

35 36

Idris

Police confessed to killing my son, says father seeking justice Farida Mohammed

E

veryone, especially friends of 19-year-old Lotachukwu Ezeudu, may have come to terms with his disappearance seven years ago and moved on with their lives, but the missing teenager’s family is yet to have a closure.

This is why, exactly seven years after Lotachukwu, a 200-level undergraduate disappeared into thin air, his father, Bona Ezeudu is praying the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, to reopen the case of his disappearance and probe

JULIANA FRANCIS CRIME Editor

juliana.francis@newtelegraphonline.com

© Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited

…seven years after undergraduate son disappeared the officer alleged to be connected to his disappearance.

Bona said that the police officer, Sam Chukwu, was a Divisional Police Officer (DPO) when he allegedly kidnapped his son, but now promoted to Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP).

Ezendu said it was saddening that the Police Service Commission (PSC) and the top hierarchy of the Nigeria Police Force could even consider promoting a policeman undergoing scrutiny and declared wanted by a competent court of law.

Ezendu said that Lota, as Lotachukwu was fondly called, was a second year Accountancy student, University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus (UNN), when he suddenly disappeared in September 26, 2009.

Recollecting the genesis of his son’s disappearance, Bona said: “On September 26, 2009, Lotachukwu, left home and headed for the residence of Chukwu, then a DPO. Since then, we’ve not seen him again. Instead, we received a telephone call that Lota

He and Desmond murdered Lotachukwu and disposed of his remains after collecting a ransom from the boy’s family

had been kidnapped-and ransom demanded.”

Bona further stated: ''Nnaemeka Chukwu, the DPO’s son and a former secondary school classmate of Lotachukwu, had invited Lotachukwu to come to his father’s house to help inspect a laptop computer that one Desmond Chinwuba, who was living as a guest at the DPO’s home, wanted to buy. Much earlier, Nnaemeka had told Lotachukwu that Desmond and one Ernest Okeke, who was also a live-in guest at the DPO’s home, were his father’s police aides. This turned out to be false information. In reality, Desmond and Ernest were former policemen dismissed over alleged involvement in a prior kidnap and murder case.”

Ezendu said that the policemen obtained bail and started living in the home of Chukwu.

The two men were subsequently implicated in the kidnap and eventual disappearance of Lotachukwu.

Okeke is now in detention, undergoing trial, but Desmond has

been on the run since 2009. Okeke allegedly confessed to police and other investigators that Desmond and he murdered Lotachukwu and disposed of his remains after collecting a ransom from the boy’s family.

They knew he would recognise and implicate them.

Other suspects currently undergoing trial include one Uche Moses Amajor, whose father owns Prosper Hotel in Trans Ekulu, Enugu, where investigators discovered that Lotachukwu was kept for some time and Nnaemeka, the son of the DPO. Amajor was on the run for more than two years after the crime, before his hotelier father, who had claimed for a long time that he didn’t know where his son was, came with him and a barrage of lawyers to hand him over to the police.

Prosecutors at the Ministry of Justice, Enugu State, found evidence linking Chukwu to the policemen who kidnapped LoCONTINUED ON PAGE 35

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CRIME

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

‘Why I blamed my lover, his mum for my son’s death’ Endurance Evulukwu

T

wenty-two-year-old Miss.

Mary Adejumo was a picture of a mother in grief. She appeared to have spent the better part of the day weeping. She answered questions listlessly.

Mary’s only child, a two-year-old boy, Jesse Ajakaiye alias Eniola, drowned while in the care of his paternal grandmother.

According to Mary, since she heard the news, time and life seemed to standstill.

Every time she goes to bed, she prays to wake up from the nightmare. But every morning she wakes up, with fresh pains assailing her.

She fears she might never get used to the boy’s death.

Naturally, like any mother in pain, Mary has to blame somebody.

She blamed the child’s grandmother, Juliana Ajakaiye for his death. She said the little boy was taken from her amidst rift. She felt that if the boy had been allowed to stay in her care, he would still be alive.

When the boy died, Mary’s world crumbled like a pack of cards.

Determined to get justice and find out the true cause of death, Mary alerted the police.

She said: “ My world shattered after I received the ill-fated call from Juliana Ajakaiye, Jesse's paternal grandmother. She told me about my son’s untimely death. He was found drowned inside a drum filled with water.”

Mary said that she remembered the pains, disgrace and humiliation she suffered from the Ajakaiye family after she got pregnant for their son, Dele Ajakaiye.

She alleged that Dele’s family kicked against her relationship with him and tagged her gold digger.

When she discovered she was pregnant, Dele allegedly insisted she goes for abortion, but she refused. Dele allegedly threatened her and her family members with death if she kept the pregnancy.

Fearful that Dele would carry out his threat, Mary and her family relocated from Aboru, Iyana-Ipaja, to Ijegun, Ikotun, Lagos.

She recollected: “ Dele’s family thought I was after their money and property. All I wanted was for them to accept my unborn child and assist in his upbringing.”

She recounted the horrible experiences she and her family passed through, while hiding and nursing the pregnancy.

She said: “My family and I moved to Ijegun area of Ikotun, where we lived in a warehouse, before we moved to an uncompleted building.

Life was tough for us. I dropped out of Nursing and Midwifery school, to care for my baby.”

After she put to bed, she received a surprised phone call from Dele’s family. They attended Jesse’s

christening. The Ajakaiye’s gave her N39,000 for the baby’s dedication.

Since then, they didn’t call and didn’t appear to give a hoot.

She had already made up her mind to raise Jesse alone, when fate decreed otherwise.

Jesse was a year and four months old when he suddenly fell ill in April, 2015. He was rushed to Sumbo Hospital, Ikotun. She couldn’t afford the medical bill. She however knew Dele’s family could. She had to choose between her son’s life and pride.

She recalled: " Jesse stayed in the hospital for two weeks and the medical bill, including feeding reached an alarming rate. I was presented with a bill of N175,000. I had no other choice than go to Dele."

Mary said she called Dele’s mom, Juliana and told her of Jesse’s health condition. Juliana went to the hospital and gave her N5000 out of the N175, 000. Juliana told her that God would help her to pay the remaining medical bill.

According to her, since then, she has taken everything in good faith.

One day, Mary’s phone rang. The call was from Juliana. The woman said the Ajakaiye’s wanted to take custody of Jesse. She insisted that Mary was using the child as a means of extortion. She also allegedly said that the Ijegun environment was not a good place to bring up her grandson.

According to her, “The Ajakaiyes said that Jesse was living in poor condition, which made him to fall sick often. I felt insulted." Mary refused to give up Jesse without a fight.

Mary said: “Dele threatened to bath my mother with acid if I refused to give them custody of Jesse.”

Mary, however, grudgingly handed over Jesse to Dele’s family after a human rights activist told her it was better for the child.

She said: “The activist said that the struggle was creating bad memories for Jesse. My pastor also told me to hand him over to Dele's sister, Iya -Ibeji, where he would receive proper care and education. The woman lives at Ago 40 Estate, Aboru, Iyana-Ipaja.”

Jesse was left in the custody of the Ajakaiyes on December 8, 2015. Jesse was already settling down with IyaIbeji, when Juliana called one day to say that Iya-Ibeji was going back to school. She said Mary should come over to collect Jesse.

Mary’s mother, Mrs. Adejumo, took over the narration.

She said: “We finally decided to give the baby to them. Dele threatened to pour acid on me if I insisted otherwise. We left Jesse for them, with the mindset that when he grows up, he would look for his mother. I didn’t want him to grow up with bad memories about his parents.”

When Juliana called that Mary should come over to pick Jesse, Mary and her mother said it was okay. They however pleaded with her, that she should be assisting with school fees

Jesse

for the boy.

Juliana said that rather than foot the school bill while Jesse was with Mary, she had rather taken full responsibility of the child. She said Jesse would have to live with her.

There was an agreement that Mary would take Jesse to her place during school vacations.

Mrs. Adejumo said: “This year April, Jesse came to spend the holiday with us. The agreement was that Jesse would spend a week with us and return the following week for school's resumption. When it was time for Jesse to return to his grandmum’s place because of school resumption, I called Juliana several times, but she didn’t pick. Mary was about to go back to Ibadan at that time.

When Juliana didn’t pick her call, we went to her church and saw her there. We dropped Jesse with her.

Juliana called me that same day, threatening to hand Jesse to an orphanage.”

Life was beginning to fall into a routine, when Mary received the shattering news on September 14, 2016, that Jesse was dead. He drowned in a water storage drum in his grand mum’s apartment. Jesse was said to have fallen into the drum with the aid of a 25-litres keg.

Residents in the area said Dele and Juliana were not at home when the incident happened. Jesse was home alone with Juliana’s eldest granddaughter, Princess. The girl is 13 years old.

When Jesse drowned, Princess was not aware a tragedy had occurred. She would later tell Juliana that she thought Jesse was sleeping.

It was after Juliana returned that they started searching for Jesse and found him inside the drum of water.

Mary and her mother have alleged foul play and promptly alerted the police. Mary claimed that her suspicion of a foul play was confirmed after she heard that Dele’s family burnt all items belonging to Jesse, including his clothes.

Mary said: “ When I received the call from Dele’s family that Jesse drowned, I was shocked.”

Weeping in a broken heartedly way, Mary whimpered: “He was just two and nine months old. I didn’t believe Dele’s family account of how Jesse died. How could a two-year-old boy open a drum and fall inside? How could they even leave him with a 13-year-old girl? Can a 13-year-old girl take care of a child? When I questioned them about his clothes, they said they have burnt all; right away, I suspected foul play!"

Attempts to get the Ajakaiyes was abortive as it was discovered that Dele, Juliana and 13-yearold Princess had been arrested and detained by homicide detectives attached to the State Criminal Investigations Department (SCID), Panti, Yaba.

Know Your Rights Initiative, a nongover nmental organisation, which believed in fighting against injustice is presently assisting Mary in her quest for the truth and justice.

The lead activist of the organisation, Mr. Olusegun Adeeko, said: “KnoRights was informed that the rich Ajakaiye’s family lawyer has been intimidating the poor Adejumo family over their attempt to take the matter to court. KnoRights has resolved to stand by the poor Adejumo’s family, to ensure that justice prevailed in the murder case.”

CRIME

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Pastor accuses EFCC officials of extortion Juliana Francis

A

South Africa-based pastor has accused officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of extortion and intimidation.

The pastor, Obinna Ikenna Ezenwanne, said he and members of his family were being harassed by some officials of the anti-graft agency.

Speaking through a group, Paths of Peace Initiatives, a non-governmental organization based in Lagos State, the pastor said he committed no crime.

While attempting to arrest the pastor, the EFCC officials, from the commission’s Ikoyi office, Lagos, allegedly teamed up with some policemen from the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), to storm Ezenwanne’s Onitsha, Anambra State home, where they carted away a vehicle and other property. They also arrested his brother, ThankGod Afamefuna.

Trouble for the pastor started after he purchased a N12million Range Rover sports utility vehicle from a dealer in Lagos.

Acting on behalf of Ezenwanne, Paths of Peace Initiatives petitioned the EFCC’s chairman, Ibrahim Magu.

It was gathered that Magu has since ordered an investigation into the alleged confiscation of property, unlawful detention and extortion of Ezenwanne and his family.

A source said: “The EFCC chairman has also asked EFCC detectives to look into the involvement of two officials of the Commission’s Procurement Fraud Section, in its Ikoyi, Lagos office, concerning the alleged ill-treatment and extortion of the pastor and his brother.”

Magu's directive that an investigation be launched into the alleged involvement of the two EFCC officials and their friends into the matter followed a petition submitted to the office of the anti-graft agency's boss in Abuja by Paths of Peace Initiatives.

A copy of the petition, signed by one John Thompson and entitled, "Re: Petition against Unlawful Harassment, Detention and Flagrant Abuse of Office by EFCC Officials," was presented to our correspondent.

The two-page petition, addressed to the EFCC chairman, states in part,

EFCC Operatives

"we wish to bring to your notice, for urgent action, the gross abuse of power, intimidation, unlawful arrest, detention and illegal confiscation of vehicle and other property belonging to Ezenwanne, by the EFCC, Ikoyi, Lagos office.

"We understand that EFCC officials stormed the Enugu home of Ezenwanne, at an unholy hour with men of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the Nigeria Police, shouting and harassing anybody on sight for hours, before arresting Mr. ThankGod Afamefuna, a brother to Ezenwanne. The operatives impounded a black Range Rover (Sports Utility Vehicle), which is still in possession of the EFCC in Lagos.”

According to the petitioner, Afamefuna, who was severely beaten after his arrest for committing no offence, was in the EFCC custody for several days.

Stating the fact of the case, Thompson said that sometime in August, 2014, Ezenwanne, who visited Nigeria for a pastoral assignment, approached his regular auto dealer, SOJ Autos, with office located at No: 39 Marine Road, First Badagry Bus stop, Liverpool, Apapa, Lagos, for the purchase of a Range Rover at the rate of N12 million.

Thompson states: "When Mr. Soji,

the Managing Director of SOJ Autos, brought the Land Rover Jeep to Ezenwanne for inspection, discovered that the vehicle had a warning light, which could mean that the vehicle was having some mechanical faults.

Ezenwanne immediately expressed his displeasure at the condition of the vehicle, noting that he could not pay N12, 000, 000, 00 for such a vehicle.

The Land Rover was immediately rejected.”

He further said that two months later, Mr. Soji of SOJ Autos called Ezenwanne. He said that he had another Range Rover SUV, black in colour, to replace the one Ezenwanne rejected.

Ezenwanne inspected and found it to be in good condition. On December 16, 2014, Mr. Soji arranged for his personal assistant, known simply as MC, to assist Ezenwanne to drive the vehicle to Onitsha, where it would be in use after the registration formalities. MC was paid $400 and N30, 000.00 for his services.

Thompson states: "The vehicle, which was registered as JJJ741 DG, has been in use, especially whenever Ezenwanne was in Nigeria. It’s disheartening and shocking when EFCC operatives, with SARS men invaded Onitsha, where the vehicle was kept in the custody of ThankGod, impounded it and arrested ThankGod

35

on the excuse that Mr. Soji of SOJ Autos did not remit the purchase money to one Mr. Marcus. Mr. Marcus is the person who gave the vehicle to Soji to sell. This harassment is happening now, two years after the vehicle was duly paid for in a legal transaction.”

The human right activist said that more worrisome was the threat allegedly being issued to Ezenwanne on phone by the EFCC team led by one Mrs. Deborah Oni. "It’s important to let you know that the said Mr. Marcus, whom we suspected got Ezenwanne’s number from the EFCC, has also been calling Ezenwanne from Nigeria, telling him to pay N6m into his account. He said that once Ezenwanne pays the money, he, Marcus, would direct EFCC to release the vehicle,” said Thompson.

The petition continues: “In the same vein, one Mr. Ademola Osiyemi, who claimed to be a friend of Mr. Marcus, has been pestering Ezenwanne on phone, requesting for money to enable him prevail on the EFCC to release the vehicle. This blackmail, with EFCC’s cooperation, culminated in the payment of the sum of N80, 000.00 into Ademola’s ECO Bank account No: 3151006728 on September 23, 2016, after much pressure that he needed the money to pay for his child's school fees. Mr. Chairman, this is appalling and definitely not the EFCC you worked very hard to put on a solid footing.

“For a Nigerian, who engaged in a legitimate transaction to be going through all this with members of his family, leaves much to be desired.

"Mr. Ademola Osiyemi, Marcus’s friend, in one of the telephone conversations with Ezenwanne, confessed that money actually exchanged hands between Marcus and Mrs. Deborah Oni, the EFCC official. We, therefore, implore you to use your highly esteemed office to investigate this matter and order the release of the vehicle and stop further blackmail and intimidation of Ezenwanne.”

When the EFCC spokesman, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren was contacted over the allegations and petition against officials of the Commission, he said, he could not speak on the matter.

According to him, he was yet to locate the petition.

'Police confessed to killing my son' CONTINUED FROM PAGE 33

tachukwu.

Nnaemeka was said to have tried to mislead investigators by claiming that he made a call to Lotachukwu asking him, not to come to the DPO’s house on the fateful day of the kidnap.

This was a desperate attempt by Nnaemeka, to establish an alibi.

However, investigators determined from phone records that Nnaemeka never made the call.

Investigators also discovered that the car, which was used to dispose of Lotachukwu’s remains, was registered to Chukwu.

In 2012, prosecutors felt there was enough compelling evidence to charge Chukwu to court. But the police officers, who were sent to arrest Chukwu, claimed he escaped as they approached his home.

The trial judge, Justice Afam Nwobodo, issued an arrest warrant for Chukwu. For more than two and

a half years, Chukwu was a fugitive from justice. Police authorities claimed that they were not aware of his whereabouts. Wanted posters with the image of Chukwu were posted in Enugu as well as in his hometown in Aninri Local Government Area of Enugu State.

At the end of July 2014, outgoing IGP, Mohammed Abubakar, reabsorbed Chukwu into the police force and posted him as the provost at the headquarters of the southeast zone of the police force in Umuahia.

The PSC last year, approved the promotion of Chukwu to the rank of ACP. He was subsequently posted to Lagos where he is still an active member of the NPF. Bona said: “Till date, Chukwu has not presented himself before Justice Nwobodo, nor have his police superiors demanded that he show up in court to answer to charges of his involvement in the kidnap and murder

of Lotachukwu.”

Perhaps the most tragic aspect of the whole drama for Bona’s family is that none of them know where the policemen allegedly kept or buried his corpse to give it a final closure.

The Network on Police Reform in Nigeria (NOPRIN), a nongovernmental organisation, implored Idris, to reopen the case, especially since Chukwu, a serving ACP was indicted.

The national coordinator of NOPRIN, Mr. Okechukwu Nwanguma, said that the reopening of the case would ensure that the indicted police officer, Chukwu, who had been hiding from justice, was brought to trial.

According to Nwanguma, sometime in July 2014, NOPRIN received the disturbing information that Abubakar reinstated Chukwu.

He further said: “We were shocked that the IGP at the time, who was due to retire on July 30, just three days to go, from the Nigeria Police Force,

knowing all the facts of the case, went ahead to reinstate Chukwu.

“It is still for us and the family of the victim, a matter for serious concern that the police management, knowing about Chukwu being indicted for masterminding an extensive list of criminal activities, including running a kidnapping ring in Enugu State, and also aware that he is a fugitive from justice, could still decide to redeploy him to a position where part of his duties was to determine and ensure disciplinary actions on errant officers, rather than arraign him in court to face criminal trial for his crimes.”

Okechukwu noted that Lotachukwu’s parents were still demanding and waiting for justice for the kidnap and disappearance of their son.

“Allowing such an officer implicated in such heinous crimes to go free, and denying the victim and his family justice, will amount to promoting impunity,” said Nwanguma.

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CRIME

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Okoro being decorated with his new rank by Ali

SFU receives crack detective

lWhy people hate newly promoted ACP –AIG Juliana Francis

W

hen Sir Mike Okiro, the present Police Service Commission’ (PSC) chairman, took over as the Inspector-General of Police in 2007, he had many dreams.

One of his dreams was to ensure that the Police Special Fraud, (SFU), located at Milverton, Ikoyi, Lagos State, became a force to be reckoned with in terms of financial crimes investigation.

Okiro glanced through his arsenal of men and his stare landed on Mr. Olayinka Balogun.

Balogun became the Commissioner of Police, in charge of SFU. When he walked into the premises, he met an almost falling apart edifice, overgrown with weeds.

The environment was just not a challenge, the job was also one. Balogun smiled because he loved challenges.

Within weeks, SFU wore a new look. Several, new crops of policemen, decked out in suits were drafted to SFU. The best financial and handpicked police lawyers were also part of the parcel of policemen that joined SFU. Before Balogun left SFU, he achieved and cracked a lot of mind boggling cases. He also changed the structures of SFU and ensured constant training of policemen under his watch.

SFU bubbled back to life. After he left, the place seemed to fall into a deep slumber. It was like a graveyard; nothing was happening.

Subsequent Commissioners of Police, who graced SFU’s office, only appeared to mark time, before taking a bow and drawing the curtain.

Balogun

Balogun retired from Nigeria Police Force in 2012 as the Edo State Commissioner of Police.

Balogun was once asked to comment on the sorry state of SFU after he left policing.

He had this to say: “You people decided to encourage mediocrity instead of meritocracy. You put people that you can push around; it’s your business. I have done my bit. Everywhere I worked, I did my best. I went to the State Criminal Investigations Department (SCID), Panti, SFU and Benin, I left my marks. I did my best because I believed very much in the job. I’m a passionate

Okiro

SFU will bounce back and be at the front burner in terms of financial crimes investigations

police officer and I love security jobs.”

Soon, SFU, which for long, has been described as a slumbering, toothless bull dog, will soon wake to start barking and biting as the place welcomes the entrance of award winning crack detective, Mr. Dan Okoro.

On Monday, Okoro was decorated, with his new rank of a Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) by the Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG), Mr. Abdulmajid Ali, in charge of Zone II, Onikan Lagos State.

The promotion comes with immediate move to SFU. Okoro would be working in synergy,

not just with crack teams of trained financial investigators, but the arrow head of SFU, the Commissioner of Police, in charge of SFU. Anybody who knows Okoro and has worked with him, knows that within days, life would seep back into SFU. Just like Balogun, Okoro has a penchant for leaving his marks wherever he works. He enlisted into the Nigeria Police Force, as a cadet Inspector in 1984 and since then, started carving a name for himself in investigation and intelligence gathering.

Ali aptly described him, thus: “I decorated Okoro on behalf of the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris. And it’s on his behalf I congratulate Okoro for a promotion well-deserved.

He has long merited it. When I met Okoro, I noticed he was an astute and intelligence police officer. He’s a policeman to love and hate. You’ll love him for his professionalism and hate him because of his down-to-earth attitude. We’re living witnesses to his achievements. His promotion was not a surprise.”

Responding to questions on the marked inefficiency presently in SFU and how he and his CP hoped to revive the place, Okoro said: “I’m a serious minded police officer when it comes to crime fighting and investigation. I know my onions. I can beat my chest and say, my CP and I, would work together to revive the place.

We’ll keep it at the top, where it matters most. We’ll work! SFU will bounce back and be at the front burner in terms of financial crimes investigations.”

He further vowed to improve his present standard in investigation, to ensure quality job delivery in policing and investigations at SFU. He said it was only a matter of time before the place begins to resonate with success stories as he and his CP deploy their wealth of experiences.

He added: “The promotion comes with more commitments, hard work and demands result.

I promise to deliver.”

Okoro, who has resumed at his new duty post at the SFU, once received a medal for his courage and intelligence from former President Goodluck Jonathan, after he arrested the Internet fraudsters who killed Cynthia Osokogu, a postgraduate student of Nasarawa State University and daughter of a retired General.

Before then, he had received the IGP Ibrahim Coomasie Award for Brilliant Investigation and Courage; award from the Chairman, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), the late Gen. Musa Bamaiyi for dedication and tact, among others.

Okoro, a graduate of University of Lagos, Ladoke Akintola University, Ogbomoso, and Imo State University, Owerri, bagged a degree in Law (LLB), a Masters degree in Business Administration (MBA) and a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Administration.

He had also received training at the Egyptian Police Academy and at the Israeli Intelligence Agency, Mossad.

BUSINESS | Money Line

FRIDAY, september 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

37

Naira slides to N492/$ as foreign speculators invade market Speculation

as traders from Benin Republic, Ghana, Togo and other neighbouring countries attempt to cash in on the acute forex scarcity in the system by mopping up dollars.

A forex dealer told New Telegraph: “The demand for dollars has hit the roof, as it has become very scarce. You can’t get it anywhere to buy. As a result, people are coming from all over the country

External reserves at 11-year low

Tony Chukwunyem

T

he naira again fell on the parallel market yesterday, dropping to N492 to the dollar

and even across the border to buy what is available because they don’t know how low it will fall.”

President of the Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), Aminu Gwadebe, said that that apart from traders across the border, local importers are also scrambling for the limited supply of greenback in the system.

New Telegraph further

gathered that the forex scarcity in Nigeria has impacted the value of the CFA francs (used in Benin, Togo, Niger, Cameroun and other Francophone countries) which has depreciated by over 400 per cent in recent weeks.

According to analysts, with Nigeria’s forex reserves, hitting an 11-yearlow of $24.61 billion last Tuesday, speculators are calculating that the

World Bank: African economic growth falls to 20 year low

E

conomic growth in sub-Saharan Africa is likely to slip to 1.6 per cent this year, its lowest level in two decades, due to continuing woes in the continent’s largest economies South Africa and Nigeria, a World Bank report said yesterday.

Africa has been one of the world’s fastest growing region’s over the past decade, but a commodities slump has hit its oil and mineral exporters hard, bringing growth down to 3 per cent in 2015.

However, other countries, including Ethiopia, Rwanda, and Tanzania, have continued to record Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth above 6 per cent, according to “Africa’s Pulse”,

the Bank’s twice-yearly analysis of economic trends.

The report, which was unveiled in Ivory Coast’s commercial capital Abidjan, also singled out Ivory Coast and Senegal as top performers.

“Our analysis shows that the more resilient growth perfor mers tend to have stronger macroeconomic policy frameworks, better business regulatory environment, more diverse structure of exports, and more effective institutions,” said Albert Zeufack, World Bank chief economist for Africa.

Established and improved performers made up around a quarter of sub-Saharan Africa’s

countries, are home to 42 percent of its people, but account for just 21 percent of economic output.

Meanwhile, 40 per cent of African economies are struggling.

They contain 36 per cent of the continent’s population but contribute 62 per cent of economic activity. Nigeria and South Africa alone account for half of output.

Despite a recent timid recovery in commodities, prices are expected to remain below their 2011-14 peak levels, the report said.

As a result, growth is projected to pick up slightly to 2.9 per cent next year, the report said, and Africa’s economies are expected to expand by 3.6 per cent in 2018.

However, government spending on Africa’s agricultural sectors is still lagging behind developing regions, despite making up a third of GDP and two-thirds of employment.

“Improving the productivity of smallholder farms is central to lifting rural incomes and reducing poverty in sub-Saharan Africa,” said Punam ChuhanPole, lead economist for World Bank Africa, who wrote the report.

“But unleashing this productivity requires investing in rural public goods such as rural infrastructure, agricultural research, and use of improved technologies, as well as in availability of good data and evidence.”

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

Description 15.10 27-APR-2017 16.00 29-JUN-2019 15.54 13-FEB-2020 16.39 27-JAN-2022 14.20 14-MAR-2024 12.50 22-JAN-2026 10.00 23-JUL-2030 12.1493 18-JUL-2034 Tenor (Days) Call 30 90 180

N19,142,526.05m N18,579,219.49m 16.5

Mar, 2015 Mar, 2015 June, 2016

14 10.77 US$47.68 US$24,595,776,177

26/07/2016 Mar 2015 29/9/2016 28/9/2016 Source:CBN

FGN Bonds

TTM

Price 104.65 114.59 111.96 120.58 109.60 100.54 83.82 97.56

1.07 3.24 3.87 5.82 7.95 9.81 14.31 18.29

NIBOR

Rate (%) 4.4583 9.1071 11.0102 12.3790

Bid Yield 10.38 10.55 11.60 11.44 12.27 12.40 12.44 12.49

Change (%) -2.50 ▼ -0.74 ▼ -0.65 ▼ -0.68 ▼

Change (%) -0.02 ▼ -0.01 ▼ 0.00 ↔ 0.00 ↔ -0.07 ▼ -0.08 ▼ -0.03 ▼ 0.02 ▲

Price 104.80 114.89 112.26 120.88 109.90 100.84 84.12 97.86

Tenor (Months)

Change (%) -0.02 ▼ -0.01 ▼ 0.00 ↔ 0.00 ↔ -0.07 ▼ -0.08 ▼ -0.03 ▼ 0.02 ▲

NITTY

Rate (%) 6.9949 7.2368 8.0819 9.2061 9.5872 10.5042

1 2 3 6 9 12

Treasury Bills

Offer Yield 10.24 10.45 11.51 11.38 12.22 12.34 12.39 12.44

Change (%) 1.12 ▲ -0.27 ▼ -0.17 ▼ -0.11 ▼ 0.03 ▲ 0.42 ▲

Money Market

Maturity Date Discount Bid Yield Change (%) Discount Offer Yield Change (%) Rate (%) 7.67 7.82 -0.51 ▼ Open-Buy-Back (OBB) 3.83 30-Jun-16 7.92 8.08 -0.51 ▼ 6-Oct-16 8.59 8.34 8.71 -0.31 ▼ Overnight (O/N) 4.33 8.99 -0.31 ▼ 16-Mar-17 9.36 10.28 -0.07 ▼ 9.11 9.98 -0.07 ▼

Spot($/N)

Bid 199.14

FX

Offer 199.24

Change (%) 0.57 ▲

NIFEX

Spot($/N)

Bid 199.0000

CBN Clearing Rates of January 7, 2016 Spot($/N)

196.00

197.00

0.00 ↔

Offer 199.1000

Change (%) -1.75 ▼ -2.08 ▼

Change (%) 0.00 ↔

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) would not be able to sustain its defense of the naira.

The apex bank last Wednesday settled the 3rd OTC Futures Contract notionally at $180 million.

While the naira yesterday

appreciated to N305.31 to the dollar on the FMDQ platform, traders said the lingering liquidity issues on the interbank market would continue to fuel the local currency’s decline on the parallel market.

Eurobond: OPEC deal boosts Nigeria’s prospects

N

igeria, heading for its first full-year contraction in 25 years and in need of funding to cover a record budget deficit, may take heart from the performance of its dollar debt and the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ ( OPEC) agreement to cut oil production as it prepares to tap the Eurobond market for the first time since 2013, according to Bloomberg.

Gains in the nation’s U.S. currency-denominated securities drove yields to the lowest in 15 months, handing investors returns above the emerging market average this year. In contrast, local-currency

bonds are the worst performers among peers, according to data compiled

by Bloomberg. The dollar bonds have been helped by the clamour for yield as developed nations from the U.S. to Japan hold interest rates at or near record lows.

The performance of Nigeria’s dollar notes signals investors are comfortable the government has sufficient reserves to cover its foreign obligations. And high demand for Ghana’s Eurobond earlier this month bodes well for Nigerian Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun’s plan to issue $1 billion this year, according to NN Investment Partners in The Hague.

Skye Bank CEO rallies support for Made- In- Nigeria products

T

he Group Managing Director of Skye Bank, Mr. Tokunbo Abiru, has encouraged Nigerians to patronise made in Nigeria goods as one of the ways to reflate the economy and save the nation from the present recession with its attendant challenges.

Mr. Abiru made this call at the inauguration while delivering a paper at the Madein-Nigeria Summit titled “Empowering the Made in Nigeria (MAIN) Economy: Fostering Innovation and Leveraging Entrepreneurship”, which is holding at Eko Atlantic City, Victoria Island, Lagos from September 26 to October 1, 2016.

He stressed the need for

Nigerians to patronise made in Nigeria goods and services as a way out of the present recession. According to the Skye Bank boss, “this will help to boost local production, create more employment thereby prevent capital flight, which will eventually lead to the export of goods made in Nigeria to other countries and earn foreign exchange”.

He noted: “When we patronise locally made goods, we are invariably contributing to enhanced operations of local manufacturers and entrepreneurs; create more jobs; improve quality of products and ultimately stimulate local consumption that impact the local economy.

‘Enelamah not involved in MTN funds’ transfer’

M

inister of Industry, Trade and Investment Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah yesterday said he was not involved in any illegal transfer of funds out of Nigeria by MTN. Enelamah disclosed this in a statement signed by the Director Press, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment Mr. Greyne Anosike.

Specifically, Anosike said Dr Enelamah was never the “owner” of Celtelecom as alleged by the Senator; neither was he ever a Celtelecom shareholder.

Senator Dino Melaye had in a motion in the floor of

the Senate alleged that MTN illegally transferred $13.9 billion out of Nigeria with the help of the minister.

The motion was proposed to launch an investigation into the said illegal transfer of funds from Nigeria by MTN. But the Minister in the statement said: “Our attention has been drawn to a statement credited to a serving Nigerian Senator on the floor of the Senate on Tuesday September 27, 2016, making a number of allegations against the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah regarding improper remittance of funds out of Nigeria.

38

BUSINESS |Financial Market News

FRIDAY, september 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

BUSINESS |Financial Market News

FRIDAY, september 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

39

MSCI adds Nigeria indexes to 2017 review list CAVEAT Introduction of restrictive measures on capital or forex may result in the re-classification of the Nigerian indexes to standalone status.

Stories by Chris Ugwu

M

SCI Inc. (NYSE: MSCI), one of the leading providers of research-

•Retains country in frontier market index

based indexes and analytics, announced its decision to formally add the Nigeria MSCI index to the review list for a potential reclassification to Standalone status during its 2017 Annual Market Classification Review in June 2017.

In the interim, MSCI Inc. opted to retain the Nigerian indexes as part of the frontier market.

According to an online

CIS seeks sale of national assets via capital market

T

he chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS) has advocated that if the federal government must sell some of the national assets currently being debated in various quarters, it should do so through the capital market.

The President of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers, CIS, Mr. Oluwaseyi Emmanuel Abe, stated this at his investiture as the president of the institute and the presentation of a paper titled” Nigeria’s economy: a Growth the only imperative.

He noted that it was worthwhile for the sale the national assets to be done through the nation’s capital market.

Abe noted that selling the assets through the capital market would allow for the much-needed transparency and also help deepen the stock market.

He said there was nothing wrong in selling the national assets especially those that are under performing to save the economy, adding that the country will surely come out of the recession if actions and measures being taken by the government are properly executed.

“I see us coming out of recession latest from the first quarter of next year,” he said.

He noted that capital market was having its share of economic blues and also going through challenging times.

Abe listed the major factors responsible for the challenges to include, adverse macroeconomic scenario, which according to him, prior to the recession, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate was contrary to the capital market, which did not encourage investors. This he said was because most people were preoccupied with barely feeding.

He further said that the negative public sentiment, which was compounded by low level of capital literacy and retreat

medium, the MSCI however, emphasised that it would continue to apply the special treatment announced on April 29,2016 until further notice. The major implication of the special treatment is that the MSCI will not implement selected changes

for any securities classified in the Nigerian indexes.

The index provider noted the positive efforts by the Nigerian authorities to enhance FX liquidity and also understands that more time might be needed for the authorities to significantly im-

SEC bans two market operators for life

T

he Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has handed over life bans to Mr. Taofik Lawal and Mrs. Iyabode Lawal from operating in the Nigeria capital market for mismanagement of stocks and unauthorised sale of shares.

In a statement obtained from SEC’s website, the Commission noted that in the exercise of its powers under Section 13 of the ISA, 2007, it investigated complaints against WT Securities Limited and its Directors (Mr. Taofik Lawal and Mrs. Iyabode Lawal) and found them culpable of mismanaging the stocks of Mrs. Opral Mason Benson, and the unauthorised sale of the Nigerian Breweries Plc. shares belonging to Ngozi Onyekwere Nwachukwu.

“The actions of WT Securities Limited and the afore-

mentioned Directors are in violation of Section 110 of the ISA 2007 and Rule 65 (1) of the Commission’s Consolidated Rules and Regulations 2013.

“Consequently, in accordance with Section 13 (bb) of the ISA 2007, Mr. Taofik Lawal and Mrs. Iyabode Lawal have been banned and blacklisted from operating in the Nigerian Capital market for life.

“In view of this, the investing public is hereby advised to desist from dealing with the named persons in any capital market related capacity,” the commission said.

SEC had recently banned the Managing Director of BGL Plc, Mr. Albert Okumagba and his deputy, Chibundu Edozie, from carrying out capital market activities for 20 years, and ordered his companies to restitute investors over N2 billion.

Stock market advances on resumed bargain hunting

T

he Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) yesterday resumed its gaining streak as overall performance gauges, NSE ASI and market capitalisation, increased by 0.04 per cent.

Market watchers attributed the resurgence of bulls to investors taking position on low prices of stocks.

Consequently, the All-Share Index grew by 11.33 basis points or 0.04 per cent to close at 28,247.56 index points as against 28,236.23 recorded the previous day, while the market capitalisation of equities appreciated by

prove liquidity in the foreign exchange market.

Nevertheless, it warned that any introduction of restrictive measures on capital or foreign exchange, which can lead to material deterioration of equity market accessibility, may result in the re-classification of the Nigerian indexes to standalone status.

N4 billion or 0.04 per cent from N9.699 trillion to N9.703 trillion.

Meanwhile, a turnover of 365.4 million shares in 2,905 deals was recorded in the day’s trading.

The banking sub sector of the financial services sector was the most (measured by turnover volume) with 66.1 million shares exchanged by investors in 909 deals.

Volume in the sub-sector was largely driven by activities in the shares of Access Bank Plc and Fidelity Bank Plc. Also, the premium sub sector, boosted by activities in the shares

of Zenith Bank Plc and FBNH Plc followed with a turnover of 22.03 million shares transacted in 441 deals.

The number of gainers at the close of trading session was 25, while decliners closed at 18.

Shares of Wema Bank Plc led the gainers with 9.09 per cent to close at 72 kobo per share. Law Union and Rock Insurance Plc rose by 8.96 per cent to close at 73 kobo per share, while the Oando Nigeria Plc added 6.92 per cent to close at N5.25 per share.

The ban also followed complaints from investors against Okumagba and his company over failure, refusal and or/neglect to liquidate their investments in both the Guaranteed Consolidated dated Notes and Guaranteed Premium Notes, two investment products run by the company.

SEC had suspended Okumagba and BGL from operating in the market a year ago, and has since been investigating the complaints. He was also removed as the President of Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS).

According to SEC, in a bid to obtain justice for the complainants and grant all parties fair hearing, the matter was presented before the Administrative Proceedings Committee (APC) of the commission, which sat on February 6, 2016.

During the proceedings various parties tendered testimonies and documentary evidence.

SEC said upon the conclusion of the proceedings, its APC arrived at a decision, which has been approved by the relevant authority.

The APC decided that by their actions and/or omissions BGL Securities Limited, BGL Asset Management Limited, Okumagba, Edozie, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th, 21st and 22nd respondents engaged in acts capable of adversely affecting the investing public’s image of, and confidence in the capital market.

40

NEWS | south-west

friday, september 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Buhari is too distanced from Nigerians, administration rudderless –Olanipekun

Sola Adeyemo Ibadan

F

ormer President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN) yesterday expressed his worry about the present deplorable socio-economic condition in the country, blaming the Federal Government for its rudderlessness, improper

governance and undue distance of President Muhammadu Buhari from the masses.

The legal guru said this while speaking with journalists after the inauguration of a multi-million naira Vice Chancellor's Lodge he built and donated to the management of the Ajayi Crowther University (ACU), Oyo where Governor Abiola Ajimobi, the Alaafin of Oyo Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi III,

CONFIRMATION/change OF NAME

Joseph

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Mbamalu Nneka Joy now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Joseph Nneka Joy. All former documents remain valid.

The general public should please take note.

Sule-Sabo

I, formerly known and addressed as Yahuza Suleman Sabo now wish to be known and addressed as Sule-Sabo Yahuza. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

Ogbodiye

I, formerly known and addressed as Augustine Stephen Funkeyi now wish to be known and addressed as Ogbodiye Funkeyi. All former documents remain valid. UBA Plc, Sterling bank Plc and the general public should please take note.

Nwagu

This is to notify the general public that my name was wrongly written as Prince Donmartins Nweke instead of Prince Donmartins Nwagu which is my correct name. Henceforth, I wish to be known and addressed as Prince Donmartins Nwagu.

All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

Ayeni

I, formerly known and addressed as Obafemi Ajibola Victoria, now wish to be known and addressed as Ayeni Ajibola Victoria. All documents bearing my former name remain valid. IITA, BANKS and general public please take note.

Usman

This is to confirm that my name was wrongly written as Usman Olobo-Ojo Elijah instead of Usman Elijah Hassan. Henceforth wish to be known and addressed as Usman Elijah Hassan. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

Tamarabrakemi

I, formerly known and addressed as Ogullah Beauty Oyindoubra, now wish to be known and addressed as Ogullah Beauty Tamarabrakemi. All documents bearing my former name remain valid. The general public please take note.

Onwumere

I, formerly known and addressed as Romanus Samson Ikechukwu now wish to be known and addressed as Onwumere Samson Ikechukwu. All documents bearing my former name remain valid. The general public please take note.

Onyemelukwe

This is to notify the general public that the names Ugochukwu Onyemelukwe and Ugochukwu Kingsley Onyemelukwe refer to one and the same person. Henceforth, I wish to be known and addressed as Ugochukwu Onyemelukwe. All former documents remain valid. Skye bank Plc, Federal Teaching Hospital (FETHA) and the general public take note.

Daniel

I, formerly known and addressed as Gbaranbri Stella Daniel now wish to be known and addressed as Daniel Diepreye Deborah. All former documents remain valid. FCMB Plc, Skye bank Plc and the general public should please take note.

Olaiya

I, formerly known and addressed as Saka Sikiru Adeyemi now wish to be known and addressed as Saka Sikiru Olaiya. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

Ogungbola

I, formerly known and addressed as Adeleke Suzan Adepeju now wish to be known and addressed as Ogungbola Suzan Adepeju All documents bearing my former name remain valid. IITA, BANKS and general public please take note.

Sele

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Ben-Korre Ebikiri, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Sele Funware Ebikiri. All documents bearing my former name remain valid. The general public please take note.

David

I, formerly known and addressed as Janet Obasi, now wish to be known and addressed as Janet David. All documents bearing my former name remain valid. The general public please take note.

Akindele

I, formerly known and addressed as Oluwatobi Anthonia Shodimu, now wish to be known and addressed as Oluwatobi Anthonia Akindele. All documents bearing my former name remain valid. The general public please take note.

Hephzibah

I, formerly known and addressed as Orisaji Elizabeth Olubunmi now wish to be known and addressed as Orisaji Elizabeth Hephzibah.

All documents bearing my former name remain valid. The general public please take note.

PUBLIC NOTICE

POBUNA SECONDARY GRAMMAR SCHOOL OLD STUDENTS ASSOCIATION

The general public is hereby notified that the above named has applied to the Corporate Affairs Commission for registration under Part “C” of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, 2004.

The Trustees are: 1. Otunba Abiodun Ogunfowora 3. Alhaji Moruf Wahab 5. Mr ‘Bode Oyedele 7. Mr Olaide Adelagun Ogundipe

2. Mrs Temitope Alausa Ogunkoya 4. Mr ‘Laja Adekoya 6. Mrs Taiwo Adebiyi Davies

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES ARE: 1. The Association shall be an independent social entity 2. The purpose of the Association shall be to bring together all old student of POBUNA Secondary Grammar School Poka, Epe and to foster the spirit of brotherhood and comradeship among the members 3. It shall direct its policies towards the development of the social and academic status of the alma mater.

Any objection to the registration should be forwarded to the Registrar-General, Corporate Affairs Commission, plot 420 Tigris Crescent, off Aguiyi Ironsi Street, Maitama, Abuja within 28 days of this publication.

SIGNED: TRUSTEES

the Bishop of Lagos Most Reverend Dr. Adebola Ademowo, Emeritus Professor Ayo Banjo, the ACU Vice Chancellor Professor Dapo Asaju and many other eminent personalities were in attendance.

Olanipekun who described the idea of selling the nation's asset as uncalled for, urged those angling to buy the assets to loan the Federal Government money to turn the assets around.

Besides, he said he was uncomfortable with the way President Buhari had created a wide gulf between himself and the Nigerians.

To the Senior Advocate of Nigeria, the nation was not being governed properly in line with the type of change agenda the ruling All Progressives Congress sold to Nigerians before the 2015 election, arguing that President Buhari was dabbling into some affairs that were irrelevant to his administration.

He said: "We need to plead with Mr. President that he needs to engage

with Nigerians more. Me I don't want to be hearing what the president says through the aides every time. I want to hear the President myself. And my children and grandchildren want to hear what the President is telling them. That was how people like us grew up. I listened to and heard the likes of Awolowo speak; I heard Akintola and others, not the tales from Femi Adesina or Shehu Garba.

"The President must engage and feel the pulse of the people. I insist again that there is too much distance and too much gap between the government and the governed.

"You cannot teach an old man how to use a left man. I am not interested in any political office and I am not begging for any position, but I insist and I have a right to insist that Nigeria must be governed properly. I am saying that today, Nigeria is not being governed properly. There is rudderlessness on the part of the government both at the federal, state

and local government levels. They are leaving things that they should do undone.

"The other day I heard Mr. President saying he would support the National Assembly to make the local governments independent of the state government. What is the business of the Federal Government in that? Local Governments are under and belong to the state government. Why is the Federal Government that is overburdened not concerned about its plight?

"We are not even running a federal system.

What we are running is hydra-headed unitarism. So, why is the Federal government now saying we have a lot of items on the exclusive legislative list like tourism, fishery, agriculture etc? What has the Federal Government got to do with that? So, why is the Federal Government not encouraging the States to be more independent?

Why is the Federal Government not going to the

real definition of real federalism? That is donation of residual powers by the federating units through the Federal Government, not the other way round.

"Why is the Federal Government not talking about security and to that extent, I am talking of state police, university police. Why is the Federal Government not talking about liberalising INEC and making it more independent? Why is the Federal Government not talking about building institutions more than individuals?"

What we have in Nigeria today is powerful individuals not powerful institutions. And the powerful individuals, if care is not taken, they are already becoming lions and when lions roar, they will lionlise and you know what will happen. They will devour. And I hope those individuals who are richer than Nigeria, don't devour us. A time will come when Nigeria will start borrowing from them to survive.

A time will come.”

Ondo poll: INEC releases candidates' list, shut out Jimoh Ibrahim Babatope Okeowo Akure

T

he Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), yesterday shut its door against the AliModu Sheriff faction of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) by publishing the name of Mr Eyitayo Jegede SAN as the candidate of the party for the Ondo State governorship election.

The Chairman of Global Fleet, Mr Jimoh Ibrahim emerged as the factional candidate of the PDP in the primary election held in Ibadan, the Oyo State without the presence or supervision

of INEC officials. He had boasted that his name would be published by INEC as the authentic candidate of the party.

But yesterday, the electoral umpire released a list of candidates for the November 26 governorship election with the name of Ibrahim conspicuously missing in the list pasted at the INEC Secretariat around 6.30 pm In the list, 28 political parties and their candidates were cleared by the INEC to contest the election.

The commission in the list named the former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in the state, Jegede

Unpaid deductions: Ogun NLC, TUC give Amosun 21-day ultimatum Kunle Olayeni Abeokuta

T

he Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC) and Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (JNC) in Ogun State yesterday issued a 21-day ultimatum to the Governor Ibikunle Amosun-led administration over unpaid cooperative deductions and pensions.

The organised labour declared that the state government must either offset its indebtedness to the workers or risk an indefinite strike.

This was part of a resolution reached at an extraordinary state executive

council meeting of the unions held in Abeokuta, the state capital.

In a communique issued at the end of the extra-ordinary meeting, the three bodies observed that the non-payment of the deductions had adversely affected workers.

The communique was signed by Akeem Ambali, Olubunmi Fajobi and Abiodun Olakanmi, the chairmen of NLC, TUC and JNC respectively.

"It was unanimously agreed at the meeting that 21-day ultimatum should be given to the state government to address the above stated agitations, commencing from this day 29th September, 2016," the unions said.

of the Ahmed Makarfiled Peoples Democratic Party as the party’s authentic candidate for the election.

Also Mr Rotimi Akeredolu, SAN was recognized as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC with Hon. Agboola Ajayi as the deputy governorship candidate of the party.

In his reaction, the Publicity Secretary of PDP, Prince Banji Okunomo congratulated the candidate and asked aggrieved members of the party to join hands to deliver the state to the party in the election.

Okunomo the party’s candidate would now go full swing in campaign-

ing for the election saying there are no legal or political encumbrances on the party of Jegede as the candidate of the PDP. The candidates and their parties released are as follows: Accord (A): Pastor Oladare Amuda, Action Alliance (AA): Barrister Yinka Oloyede Orokoto, Alliance for Democracy (AD): Dr. Akin Olowookere, African Democratic Congress (ADC): Mrs Modupe Ogunyoku, African People Alliance (APA): Mrs Helen Folasade, Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN): Chief Adetuwo Ogunjumelo and All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA): Prince Samuel Ayo Adegbite.

Ogun communities celebrate SNG for schools’upgrade

P

eople of Ewupe, Isorosi and Ijaliye communities in Ota, Ogun State rolled out the drums at the opening of multimillion naira new school facilities donated

by Shell Nigeria Gas (SNG), the downstream subsidiary of Shell in Nigeria.

The projects, executed in co-located Ebenezer African Church Primary School and African Church Community Secondary School in Ewupe within SNG’s operational area included new and upgraded blocks of classrooms, football field, toilets and water facilities.

Speaking at the ceremony, SNG’s Manag-

ing Director, Mr. Toyin Adenuga described the investment in the two public schools as part of the broad social investment programme of the company.

“We recognise education as the topmost need of the people of our neighbouring communities and what we have done is a progression of our longstanding support to these schools and to the communities.”

He noted that SNG was committed to supporting initiatives aimed at closing the opportunity gap between students in rural public schools and their counterparts in private schools.

News|SOUTH-EAST

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Orji didn’t make me, says Akwukwaegbu Igbeaku Orji UMUAHIA

T

he Traditional Prime Minister of Ibeku Kingdom, Chief Uche Akwukwuegbu, has dismissed the claim of the immediate past Governor of Abia State, Chief T. A. Orji , in a newspaper publication that he made him rich through state contracts.

Akwukwuegbu said that Orji couldn’t have made him rich when he was al-

ready a millionaire when “T. A. Orji was a mere desk officer in the Ministry in Owerri.”

He said he could remember when Orji used to run errands to his house for his master and predecessor, Dr Orji Uzor Kalu, whom he latter betrayed.

“Then, Orji would send him to my house, and while going, I would dash him some money and he would beggarly receive and prostrate for me. Without the Abia money he coveted to himself, can he claim to be

rich? He is rich with Abia State money.

He explained that as a notable business man with chains of businesses across the shores of Nigeria as far back 1985, T.A. cannot claim to have made him, “unless he is sick.”

“I have been an independent oil marketer since the year 2000, the Chief Executive Officer of GEO James International S.A.R.L Abidjan, France, which deals on importation of fabrics.

He was made governor in 2007, and by then, I already

had Bawas Oil Nigeria Limited and Bawas Investments, these facts are verifiable.”

He said that in 2007, he bankrolled T. A.Orji’s political campaigns with his money while he was still in detention as his Campaign Director, adding, “When he was released through the efforts of his master OUK, he came to my house first to thank me for the assistance.

Also, in an enlarged meeting at Isieke of Ibeku clan, he told them to thank me for piloting the course

of his being made a governor, this is verifiable also.

Before 1994, when I was made the traditional prime minister of Ibeku ancient kingdom, I had already built my house here and many other houses scattered all over.

My children were attending good private schools, home and abroad, Secondary schools and universities, so how did T.A.Orji make me?”

He stated that the contract which Orji gave him was with a motive of si-

41

phoning his resources and bring him to the same level with himself, saying he gave him contract, and he spent his money, but Orji refused to pay him till today.

“When he said that I was nobody, I laugh at him, because the day he was released from detention, it was me that Dr Orji Uzor Kalu handed him over to, and said Bawas, I have done your wish, and left, because I was the one that asked him to make him a governor because Orji is my friend.”

Ohanaeze demands Kanu’s release

Charles Onyekwere ENUGU

A

L-R: Former Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha; Chairman, Capital Oil, Ifeanyi Uba; Chief Presenter, Dr. Emmanuel Egbogah and former Abia State Governor, Dr. Orji Uzo Kalu, at the presentation of a book, entitled ‘The Politics of Biafra and Future of Nigeria’ in Abuja…yesterday PHOTO: ELIJAH OLALUYI

Uchenna Inya ABAKALIKI

E

bonyi State Governor, Chief Dave Umahi, has said that the current economic recession in country will make hardworking and determined leaders to do great things for the people.

Speaking in Abakaliki, the state capital, while laying the foundation for the construction of an ultra-modern government house at Centenary City, Umahi said the recession will make the country to plan well and tackle various challenges confront-

Umahi: Mighty things are done in economic recession ing the nation.

“We want to allow legacies to stand in Ebonyi State, we want to put something for our children and there is no great nation that didn’t plan ahead. If we want to have a future Ebonyi State, this is the time to plan.

“It is only in time of recession that great things are done because you plan outside your purse. I love money, I like to get money but it is not stolen money I

Herdsmen’s attacks: Stakeholders task Ugwuanyi on security Charles Onyekwere ENUGU

E

minent stakeholders in Enugu State have expressed concern over the porous security situation in the state while calling on the government to take urgent steps in addressing the trend.

Some of the stakeholders who spoke with New Telegraph yesterday on condition of anonymity, blamed the government for not providing the necessary apparatus to the security agents to fight crime, especially the issue of herdsmen.

According to them, since the herdsmen massacre in Nimbo community,in UzoUwan Local Government Area of the state, last April, the state of security has deteriorated in Enugu, adding that kidnapping ,armed robbery and killings by Fulani herdsmen have been the order of the day.

“We are appealing to the state government under governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi to save us from the hands men of the underworld simply known as(herdsmen)we are not save. Our children are not safe. Our farmlands also not save.

like. I like to work hard because the Bible said that ill gotten wealth can diminish. This is the reason why politicians will continue to steal to continue to have and it will continue to diminish.

“Today, I want us to support our infrastructural development to attract investors. We have human resources, culture of love, culture of acceptance and culture of hard work.

“Very soon, I will send a bill to the House of Assembly and it will become an offence to be idle in the land of Ebonyi. That is the only way we can succeed. We have launched ‘One man, one hectare.’ Let him that steal, steal no more. In China, there is no one that is not working but when we come to Africa, we replace hardworking with excuse. So, today I want us to dream together,’’ he said.

Anambra IPAC in disarray over interim committee election Okegwo kenechukwu Onitsha

A

ll is not well with the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) in Anambra State following the crisis that emanated from the recent constitution of committees to pilot the affairs of the umbrella body of all the political parties in the state.

IPAC, which at the end of its meeting in Awka on Tuesday, constituted some committees to champion their course pending when they will organize election, said it was a unanimous decision taken for their common goal.

While the seven man interim management committee has the chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Sir Norbert Obi as Chairman, another seven man political summit committee was led by the Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Hon. Ken Emeakaye.

Emeakaye, who made known the position of IPAC, also dispute the allegation that they collected bribe from the ruling APGA to perfect any plans, noting that the group had never met for a formal meeting due to its factionalisation from national to state level.

pex Igbo socio- cultural organnisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo has given the Federal Government a matching order to release the leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu unconditionally, saying that his continued incarceration may escalate more damages in the South-East zone of the country.

The organisation made their position known yesterday on the occasion making the World Igbo Day celebration held at the Ohanaeze national headquarters in Enugu with the theme”OJEMBA CHETA KWA ULO”meaning a traveler should remember home.

The President General of Ohanaeze, Chief Gary -Enwo Igariwey, whose address was read by the Deputy President General, Sir O.A.U Onyema, urged the Federal Government to obey the order of a High Court which earlier granted him bail.

“Ohanaeze feels that there should be a critical look at the reasons why the young man who was agitating without arms or element of violence should be incarcerated,” urging the federal government to re-evaluate the circumstances which made the court of law to earlier grant him bail and see to which extent it can be useful in putting things straight.

“Mazi Nnamdi kanu’s incarceration til now does not seems to be palatable and does not seem to be pass a positive message.”

Porous borders, bane of insecurity – Duru Steve Uzoechi OWERRI

A

former Deputy Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Eze Vincent Duru, has bemoaned the porous and poorly manned Nigerian borders, stating that the effect of the porous borders opened the gate for diverse migrants to flood Nigeria unchallenged.

Vincent-Duru, who is now the traditional ruler of Okponakuma community in Njaba council area of Imo State, stated that the government should effectively equip security agencies especially the border patrol units of Nigeria Immigration Service, saying, ‘Nigeria’s porous borders have further compounded the country’s woes’.

The former Deputy Comptroller General of Immigration, said he introduced the border patrol unit of NIS and headed a number of NIS commands but regretted that due to the lead-

ing role Nigeria is playing in ECOWAS, immigrants from neighbouring countries now have a free run of Nigerian borders, abusing ECOWAS protocol, treaties, and conventions by flooding into Nigeria from all corners.

“It is too late for Nigeria to opt out of ECOWAS, my advice is that government should adequately fund the security agencies so as to enable them fish out foreigners residing illegally in the country with a view to deporting them’’, he said.

Eze Vincent Duru, who is also the chairman, Njaba LGA Traditional Rulers’ Council, also called on the National Assembly to come up with a legislation that will adequately address the welfare needs of Nigeria workers.

According to him, “The issue of disparities in salaries must be resolved; the insurance scheme which addresses the housing, car, and other essential needs of workers should be properly designed by government.

42

News|SOUTH-SOUTH

Wike discusses investment with UK Minister for Africa

Emmanuel Masha Port Harcourt

R

ivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, yesterday held discussions with the United Kingdom (UK) Minister for Africa, Mr. Tobias Ellwood, on investment opportunities in the state, especially in the area of agriculture.

The governor said his administration had created the right platform for foreign direct invest-

ment by concentrating on the development of basic infrastructure across the state.

The governor also said that the state government has started the process for the construction of a specialist tertiary hospital in the state.

Speaking at the Government House, Port Harcourt, yesterday when he granted audience to Ellwood, who is the Minister for Africa, United Kingdom Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the British High

£72.09m

The total aggregate payments received

by Crystal Palace for the English 2015/2016 season.

Source: Goal.com

Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Paul Arkwright, Wike pledged to always cooperate with the United Kingdom to enhance the state’s development.

He also noted that his administration will grant access to land backed with certificate of occupancy for willing investors.

He said: “We are promoting partnership in the area of agriculture because we believe that it will create employment opportunities for our youths.

1,747m

The number of individuals using the internet worldwide in 2009.

Source: Itu.int

“The current economic recession requires that we look inwards.

We have improved the security architecture in the state and it is the best investment environment in the region and the country.”

Earlier, Ellwood said the United Kingdom will assist the Nigerian Government in its bid to diversify her economy, adding that the visit was also aimed at improving the relationship between the UK government and the Rivers State.

58

The life expectancy of men at birth of Ethiopia in 2010-2015.

Source: Un.org

L-R: Head of Politics, Information & Communications, European Union Delegation to Nigeria, Pauline Torehall; Deputy Head of Political Section, British High Commission, Mr Andrew Fleming and Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole, during a courtesy visit of Foreign Observers of the Edo State governorship election to Governor Oshiomhole… yesterday

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Dickson reiterates need for training in public service Chris Ejim Yenagoa

B

ayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson yesterday reiterated the need for regular training and re-training in the state’s public service in order to reinvigorate and strengthen the service in the state.

Governor Dickson spoke while declaring open a three-day retreat/ seminar for permanent secretaries, directors and chief executives of parastatals and agencies

Okowa: Sell your starter-packs, sell your future Dominic Adewole ASABA

D

elta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, yesterday warned the 500 graduates under the state’s Skill Training and Entrepreneurship Programme (STEP), the Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurs Programme (YAGEP) and the Graduate Employment Enhancement Programme (GEEP) against selling their starter packs, saying doing so will spell doom for the future.

ASABA

D

elta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa yesterday listed inadequate funding and the use of incompetent contractors in the execution of projects in the Niger Delta region among other factors militating against the speedy development of the region.

The governor, who played host to the Senate Committee on the Niger Delta, led by Senator Peter Nwaoboshi, made the observation in his office in Asaba, the state capital.

Okowa, who decried the poor state of infrastructure in the Niger Delta and the attendant unrest in the region, called for proper funding of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) that had been saddled with the responsibility of execut-

He said the government has spent a fortune of the state’s resources to package the programmes and so should be taken seriously by the participants, adding that they were being empowered to be self-sufficient to become employers of labour.

No fewer than 1,000 youths have benefited from the three schemes since the gover nor’s job creation schemes were adopted to fix unemployed youths into entrepreneurship in 2015.

World Heart Day: NMA chair canvasses behavioural changes in eating Tony Anichebe Uyo

T

he World Heart Federation has set aside September 29 every year to

Okowa decries poor funding in N’Delta Akwa Ibom Assembly to Dominic Adewole

of the government at the Public Service Training Institute, Yenagoa, organised by the Office of the Head of Service in collaboration with the Administrative Staff College of Nigeria (ASCON), Badagry.

Represented by his Deputy, Gboribiogha John Jonah, the governor advised public servants, especially those in the top echelon of the service to be apolitical while discharging their duties and focus on delivering efficient and quality service.

ing projects for the region.

He said: “The terrain of the Niger Delta is very bad and it is very expensive to execute projects, especially roads.”

According to him, to tackle the problems bedeviling the region, budget should be prepared in line with the quantum of oil produced by communities in the region.

He flayed a situation where some communities, which contributed a lot to the national purse, had little or nothing to show for it.

“This oversight function of the Senate Committee will stimulate activities that will encourage a win-win situation for everybody,” the governor said while commending the committee for carrying out its oversight functions of visiting projects sites of the NDDC. He described the amnesty programme for ex-militants

as a laudable programme, but observed that there was still a lot to be done for it to make the desired impact on the people.

The governor said it was wrong for beneficiaries of the amnesty programme to be left idle without being properly engaged after their training.

Nwaoboshi told the governor that the committee was in the state to carry out its oversight function on the NDDC and inspect the amnesty committee, ‘to give a holistic report to the Senate.’

He recalled that since the inception of the NDDC, a total of 1, 674 projects have been awarded in Delta State, which represents 20 per cent of the total number of projects awarded by the interventionist agency, but decried the fact that more than 50 per cent of the projects have been abandoned.

partner NHIS on insurance law Tony Anichebe Uyo

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he Speaker of the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, Onofiok Luke, has said that the state legislature will partner the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in its quest to pass the state health insurance scheme law.

Luke spoke yesterday when he received a delegation of the NHIS who paid him a courtesy visit.

He said the house decided to grant audience to the NHIS team ‘because we need to have more of experts’ opinion on what we are doing,” referring to the state health insurance scheme law which he said had reached a significant legislative stage.

Luke, who used the

opportunity to inform the NHIS team that Governor Udom Emmanuel passionate about good healthcare delivery in the state, said healthcare was a primary component of government’s social services responsibility to the people.

He noted that it was in this light that the house ensured that provision was made for free medical care for pregnant women, children, and the elderly in the 2016 Appropriation Law. The speaker said the current effort would be strengthened as ‘the only way to support it is with necessary legislation.’

Emphasising on the need for universal health coverage, the speaker said ‘the cost of healthcare is borne totally by individuals and it is not supposed to be so.’

celebrate World Heart Day. The World Heart Day was founded in 2000 to inform people around the globe that heart disease and stroke were the world’s leading causes of death, claiming 17.3 million lives every year and expected to rise to 23 million in 2030.

As the world observed the day, Chairman, NMA Akwa Ibom State and South-South Zone, Dr. Aniekeme Uwah, urged Nigerians to change their behaviour towards food consumption in order to live longer.

According to him, Cardiovascular Disease (CVD), the world’s number one killer can be prevented by simple behavioural changes like eating healthy and drinking more water, taking part in regular exercises and quitting smoking.

He maintained that failure to take care of our hearts could lead to risks of Cardiovascular Disease (CVD), which includes heart disease and stroke.

“We must all commit ourselves towards keeping our hearts charged by engaging in walks, runs, sporting events, concerts, public talks, screenings and other activities geared towards enlightening our people.

News|NORTH

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Ortom commends police fighting spirit in Benue Cephas Iorhemen MAKURDI

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enue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, yesterday showered encomiums on officers and men of the police over their relentless fighting against criminal elements in the state, urging them to sustain it.

Ortom, who gave the commendation during a courtesy call on him by

the Assistant InspectorGeneral of Police in charge of Zone Four, comprising Benue, Plateau and Nasarawa states, Mr. Agboola Oshodi-Glover, at the Government House, Makurdi, said the police had stopped criminals from making governance a difficult task.

The governor alleged that a notorious criminal, Terwase Akwaza, alias Gana, has been killing and abducting

$360.59m

The capital importation of the Servicing sector of Nigeria in Q1 2013.

Source: National Bureau of Statistics

people, adding that the police have been looking for him.

He said anyone who shields Gana would be doing a disservice to the nation and urged the people to support and cooperate with the police.

Governor Ortom congratulated Oshodi-Glover over his recent promotion to the rank of AIG and assured him that Benue would, win inspite of the difficult times, ensure

2.17m

The total oil production (bpd) of Nigeria in Q3 2015.

Source: National Bureau of Statistics

that Zone Four and the state police command receive the desired support.

Earlier, Oshodi-Glover had lauded the governor for regularly keeping in touch with the police.

He said from the briefing he received from the Police Commissioner, Mr. Bashir Makama, he saw that the governor has been doing great things for security agencies in the state and urged him to keep it up.

€247m

The total money spent on players’ transfers by English Championship clubs in 2016 summer.

Source: Goal.com

A cross-section of widows celebrating the International Widows Day at Government House in Yola … yesterday

Kogi PDP suspends chairman Zacchaeus Ozovehe Lokoja

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ogi State Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Samuel Uhuotu, has been suspended from office by some aggrieved members of the State Executive Committee (SEC).

The suspension came after a vote of no confidence was passed on the chairman as contained in a letter dated September 29 and signed by 30 of the SEC members and addressed to the state chairman.

The letter reads in part; “The underlisted members of the state executive committee of the party wish to bring to your notice that we no longer have confidence in your ability to lead and carry the party to its desired destination due to your constant and deliberate violations of the provisions of our party’s constitution.

“You have deliberately refused to pass any information to members of the state executive committee, which has led to lack of party activities in the state, local and at ward levels. The party as it is today in the state un-

der your leadership, has remained stagnant.

“You have constituted yourself into a one-man executive, where you take and implement decisions without following the laid down provisions of the party. After the loss of the party in most of the elections, you didn’t deem it fit to call for meetings to discuss the supplementary election to make the party strategise for those elections and assistance can be rendered to our various candidates involved.”

The members at a meeting held at the secretariat of the party in Lokoja, the state capital,

accused the chairman of violating the provisions of chapter 10, Section 58 (1a, b, c, d and h) of the constitution of the party.

According to the members, the embattled chairman had deliberately refused to call a meeting of the SEC since assuming office, adding that he hardly come to the office in Lokoja as he prefered to stay in Abuja.

The SEC members also lamented that the local government and ward chapters of the party had been completely cut off from the party, leading to loss of popularity at the grassroots level.

We’ll intensify agriculture to I’ll reposition ITF, says new DG cies appointed last week complement FG allocation – Gombe Musa Pam

by President MuhamWillie Danjuma

GOMBE

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ombe State Governor, Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo, has reiterated his administration’s resolve to engage the people of the state in massive agriculture as a way of complementing the dwindling revenue allocation from the Federal Government.

This, he said, would be through increased provision of agricultural facilities, including farming implements, seedlings, by which

the administration aims to boost agriculture as a diversified means of improving the state’s economy.

He spoke in Biliri during the Agricultural and Cultural Exhibition organised to mark the 20th anniversary of the state.

Dankwambo, who was represented by his Deputy, Dr. Charles Iliya, expressed the government’s determination to provide enabling environment to support and attract investors into the state.

Jos

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he Director General of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Sir Joseph Ari, yesterday assumed duty at the headquarters of the agency in Jos with a promise to reposition the agency to effectively contribute for the development of the Ministry of Trade and Investment of the country.

The Director-General, who was among 13 other chief executives of agen-

madu Buhari to head the Industrial Training Fund, said Nigeria would get out of the current economic recession through faithful implementation of the ITF mandate.

While addressing management and staff of the agency after taking over from the outgoing Acting DG, Mr. Dickson Onuoha, Ari appreciated President Buhari for the confidence reposed in him to serve the country and promised not to fail in his responsibility.

He also promised that the police would give the state more than 100 percent cooperation so that crime would be reduced to the barest minimum.

Meanwhile, Governor Ortom yesterday shifted his fight against corruption to the church, where he appealed to Christians to support the initiative to fight corruption, which he insisted, was aimed at reducing the malady to zero level.

He said all those whose fingers were stained with looted funds should return them for the development of the state.

He spoke at St. Athanasius Catholic Church, Gbajimba, in Guma Local Government Area of the state at a retreat organised by priests of the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi.

Governor Ortom said he took up the fight against cor ruption with the active support of the Catholic Church, which he said offered regular and consistent prayers against the malaise. He added that church members prayed and actively supported

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his emergence as governor, hence his resolve to take up the fight.

In another development, a group under the auspices of Benue Polity Watch, yesterday called on Governor Samuel Ortom not to spare any sacred cow in his quest to recover the looted funds.

They called on the governor to carry out a holistic probe in order to bring others omitted during the last probe exercise to justice.

Besides, the group also criticised the governor over what it referred to as ‘victimisation of members of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.’

The group in a statement signed by its Chairman, Denen Agbande and Secretary, Echikwu Adams, expressed concern over the omission of the name of the former Minister of State for Niger Delta, Sam Ode, a one-time adviser at the Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, from the report of the commission and viewed the development as a vendetta.

Adamawa assures widows of govt’s support Ibrahim Abdul Yola

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damawa State Governor, Muhammadu Bindow has assured widows in the state of sustained government’s support towards their welfare and of women in general.

Bindow gave the assurance yesterday in Yola while addressing widows in commemoration of this year’s International Widows’ Day. He said his administration was committed

to the welfare of vulnerable groups, particularly widows, adding that the recent tour of local government areas by his wife to interact and support widows with capital to start businesses, was part of such supports.

In her speech, the governor’s wife, Hajiya Maryam Bindow, also reiterated her commitment to continue to collaborate with local government councils in assisting widows with startup capital that would launch them into small scale businesses.

Bello tasks Obaseki on Oshiomhole’s legacies Zacchaeus Ozovehe Lokoja

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ogi State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, yesterday congratulated the people of Edo State and the All Progressives Congress (APC) over the victory of the party’s candidate in governorship poll, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, saying the victory was a further confirmation of Nigerians’ belief in the change agenda of the party under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The governor, who stated this through a press statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Kingsley Fanwo, lauded

the conduct of INEC, the Edo people and security agencies, who ensured a hitch-free exercise.

“I salute the gallantry of the Edo people who conducted themselves peacefully throughout the election. They spoke with a united voice in support of the change agenda of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

“The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) also used the Edo poll to prove to the outside world its efficiency, ingenuity and neutrality, the security agencies, poll observers and all stakeholders who made it possible to conduct a free, fair and credible poll in Edo State.

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NEWS

Buhari, Jonathan mourn ex-IGP Inyang Anule Emmanuel Abuja

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resident Muhammadu Buhari and former President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday expressed sadness over the death of former Inspector General of Police Etim Okon Inyang.

Inyang died at the age of 85.

In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, President Buhari acknowledged that the former IGP served meritoriously as the head of the nation’s police force for three years, 1983-1986.

The President commis-

erated with the family of the late Inyang and also friends and community of the deceased.

"As a member of the National Security Council and Vice Chairman of the Constitution Review Committee in 1987, the President believes the former Inspector General contributed immensely to the reforms and structuring of the nation’s security, and the processes that heralded good governance and democracy," Buhari noted.

Jonathan described the former Inspector-General of Police as a dedicated officer, who did his best to reform and refocus the Nigeria Police. In a statement of condolence to the family of the de-

ceased, Jonathan emphasized that the late Inyang would be remembered for his modesty and civilised disposition, both in and out of service.

A press release issued by Ikechukwu Eze, the former President’s media aide, quoted Jonathan to have further said: “Elder Inyang was a well respected police chief who served his country to the best of his abilities, and made a difference in the milestones he recorded towards reforming and refocusing the Nigeria police. “His time as the Inspector-General was quite eventful as he gave the task of fighting crime and protecting Nigerians his best shot.

WORLD \ NEWS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

New Jersey train crash kills three, injures more than 100

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hree people were killed and more than 100 injured, some critically, when a commuter train derailed and plowed through Hoboken station in New Jersey during the morning rush hour yesterday, US media and a transit official said.

Citing medical officials, US media reports said three people were killed.

Well over 100 people were hurt, many of them critically, Jennifer Nelson, a spokeswoman for train operator New Jersey Transit, told reporters at the scene.

She did not confirm any fatalities.

Dramatic pictures posted by commuters showed a train carriage that appeared to have smashed right through the station concourse, collapsing a section of the roof, scattering debris and wreckage and causing devastation. ABC News said on its website that New Jersey Transit was reporting many passengers were trapped. Fox News said the engineer, or train driver, had to be extricated from the front car.

Hoboken lies on the west bank of the Hudson

River across from New York City. Its station, one of the busiest in the metropolitan area, is used by many commuters traveling into Manhattan from New Jersey and further afield.

There was no word yet on what caused the crash.

Federal investigators were en route to the scene. Linda Albelli, 62, said she was sitting in her seat in one of the rear cars when the train approached the station. She said she knew something was wrong a moment before the impact.

Equal Opportunities Bill passes second reading Chukwu David Abuja

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ix months after it killed the Equal Opportunities Bill for allegedly contradicting some provisions of the 1999 Constitution, the Senate yesterday passed the same proposal for second reading.

The Senate had on March 15, 2016, rejected the bill seeking to empower women politically and economically, as well as guarantee equal opportunities to women folk with men in diverse fields of human endeavour.

The bill entitled, "A bill

for an Act to incorporate and enforce certain provisions of the United Nations Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women, the Protocol of the African Charter on Human and People's Rights on the rights of women in Africa, and other matters connected therewith, 2016 (SB. 301), was sponsored by Senator Abiodun Olujimi (PDP, Ekiti South).

Olujimi, who lamented the rejection of the bill that time, accused some male members of the Upper Chamber of deliberately killing the bill because they wanted to continue to rele-

gate and subjugate women in the scheme of things in the society.

She however, vowed to represent the document and expressed optimism that it would one day pass into law, so that women could have their rightful place in every area of human operation.

Presenting the lead debate on the bill when it was brought up for second reading in plenary, Olujimi pointed out that it made provision for the adoption of temporary special measures to eliminate discrimination and ensure equal opportunities for majority of Nigerians.

FG declares Monday public holiday Emmanuel Onani Abuja

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s part of activities to mark the country's 56th Independence Anniversary, the Federal Government has declared Monday, October 3, as public holiday.

This year's anniversary fell on Saturday, a non-working day.

The declaration was

made on behalf of the Federal government, by the Minister of Interior, Lt.Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau (rtd).

In a statement by the Acting Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Muhammadu Maccido, the Minister congratulated "Nigerians at home and abroad on the commemoration of this year’s independence anniversary and assures them that government is

working assiduously to put in place various palliative measures to cushion the effects of the current economic challenges."

Dambazau further enjoined "all Nigerians to continue to support President Muhammadu Buhari in his avowed determination to build a strong, virile and united country in line with the dream of the country’s founding fathers."

World’s largest volunteer beach cleanup comes to Eleko today

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arine and Coastal Conservation Society of Nigeria in conjunction with Nigerian Institute for Oceanography and Marine Research, Victoria Island, Lagos among others would today organise a clean up of the Eleko beach in Lagos .

A statement from the group said that the event would be attended by about 200 people as part of Ocean Conservancy’s 31st International Coastal

Cleanup, the world's largest single-day volunteer effort to clean up our waterways, beaches, lakes, rivers and local parks.

The statement said that Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup has become the world’s largest volunteer effort for ocean health with 11.5 million volunteers from over 152 countries having cleaned 225 million pounds of trash from the shores of lakes, streams, rivers, and

the ocean on just a single day each year over the last 30 years. More than 18 million pounds (eight million kilograms) of trash was collected by nearly 800,000 volunteers during the 30th International Coastal Cleanup in 2015 globally.

The statement said: “They have recorded every item found, giving us a clear picture of the manufactured items impacting the health of humans, wildlife, and economies.

Passengers fleeing the wrecked carriages.

Somalia seeks explanation after US' 'friendly fire' strike

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omalia's government yesterday requested an explanation from the United States after Somali officials said a US "friendly fire" air strike killed at least 22 soldiers and civilians in the Horn of Africa nation.

Officials in the semiautonomous, northern region of Galmudug said a US air strike killed members of its forces this week and accused a rival region, Puntland, of duping the Americans into believing those tar-

geted were Islamist rebels. Washington said the United States carried out a "self-defense air strike" after Somali troops faced fire from militants. It said nine al Shabaab militants had been killed but that it was looking into reports others may also have died.

"The cabinet requests the US government give a clear explanation about the attack its planes carried out on the Galmudug forces," the government statement, signed by Mohamed Omar Arte, said.

It also urged both Gal-

mudug and Puntland, which have often clashed over territory in the past, to mend fences. Protests erupted in Galkayo after the US strikes, with demonstrators burning US flags and chanting antiAmerican slogans.

The United States, a major donor to Somalia's government in Mogadishu, has often bombed al Shabaab militant positions and commanders in its bid to support the government and help the nation rebuild after two decades of war.

Obama: Congress' veto override of 9/11 lawsuits bill, 'a mistake'

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S President Barack Obama has said Congress made a "mistake" by overriding his veto and pushing through a bill that allows legal action against Saudi Arabia over the 9/11 attacks. He said the bill would set a "dangerous precedent" for individuals around the world to sue the US government.

Wednesday's vote was the first time Mr Obama's veto power was overruled.

CIA Director John Brennan agreed that the bill carried "grave implications" for national security.

He added: "The downside is potentially huge." The Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism (JASTA) legislation opens the door for victims' families to sue any member of the Saudi government suspected of playing a role in the 9/11 attacks. Fifteen of the 19 hijackers were Saudi nationals, but the oil-rich kingdom - a key US ally has denied any role in the attacks, which left nearly 3,000 people dead.

While US intelligence raised suspicions about some of the hijackers' connections, the 9/11 commis-

sion found no evidence that senior Saudi officials, or the government as an institution, had funded the attackers.

Almost 3,000 people were killed when they deliberately flew planes they had seized into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Another hijacked plane was brought down in a field in Pennsylvania.

Reacting to the congressional vote on Wednesday, Mr Obama told CNN: "It's a dangerous precedent and it's an example of why sometimes you have to do what's hard. "

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

Did you know?

Sport

That Chelsea’s Diego Costa has received four yellow cards in the opening six EPL games of the season and he is only one card away from suspension.

Sport News Obienu hails Rangers, Gov Ugwuanyi

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Iheanacho, Iwobi nominated for Europe’s young best Ugochi Akwueze

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uper Eagles’ duo of Kelechi Iheanacho and Alex Iwobi has been nominated for best U- 21 players in Europe.

The list was compiled and released by the organisers of the prestigious Golden Boy award.

19-year-old Iheanacho has displayed a wonderful performance so far scoring 14 goals in 35 appearances last season and has three goals in seven matches this season for his club Manchester City.

A similar feat has been achieved by Arsenal’s youngster Alex Iwobi who recently won the man-of-the match after the game

against Chelsea and has one goal and three assists in 5 appearances in the EPL. Also included, was also another Nigerian born player, Dele Alli, who plays for the English national team and Tottenham Hotspurs.

The trio will however compete with highly rated youngsters in Europe like Kingsley Coman and Renato Sanchez of Bayern Munich.

Iheanacho’s teammate Leroy Sane was also nominated for his exploit while at Schalke 04.

Other players on the list, from the English Premier League include Demarai Gray of Leicester City, Ruben Loftus-Cheek of Chelsea and Liverpool’s Marko Grujic.

Team Nigeria’s athletes on arrival after Rio 2016 Paralympics

Three countries chase Paralympics coach ...after Team Nigeria’s consistency over the years Athletes also in the rader of Singapore, Congo, Mali and not giving up on me but I told them my ultimate was to lead Nihe superlative performance geria to victory at the Rio Paralymof Team Nigeria at the Rio pics.

Paralympics is already “Even in Brazil, the Singapore having ‘effect’ on the coun- team approached me but because I try as power-lifting coach Are Fey- wouldn’t want to leave Nigeria and isetan, is being sought after by three start training them at the tournacountries ahead of the 2020 Tokyo ment after investing so much in my Paralympics. team.

Are is one of the coaches that led “Right now, Singapore, Congo Nigeria to finish the competition and Mali are still interested but my with a total of 12 medals as Team love for Nigeria has been my Nigeria won eight gold, two silver staying power and I can say and two bronze medals to finish what might happen next,” in 12th place overall. he said.

Speaking in an exclusive inNigeria competed powterview with New Telegraph in erlifting, athletics and Lagos on Thursday, the Osun table tennis with 23 athState born coach revealed letes and as expected, that he was yet to the team claimed make up his mind most of their gold on the offers. medals in power“I had three lifting. Nigeria countries at the picked six gold 2015 All African medals in the Games that event and wanted me to athletics train their athprovided letes. These two. countries were Six Paralympics coach, Are Feyisetan very serious o f

Emmanuel Tobi

Iheanacho (left) and Iwobi

The Sport Team Adekunle Salami Group Sport Editor

Emmanuel Tobi Assistant Sport Editor

Ajibade Olusesan Sport Correspondent

Charles Ogundiya Sport Correspondent

© Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited

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the athletes broke the world records in their events – in some cases they did it twice or thrice and won gold but Are is unhappy that the country is not investing much in coaching.

“After the All African Games, the then Director General of the Sports Ministry and the defunct National Sports Commission, Alhassan Yakmut promised to give me an employment but I should go for a coaching course.

“With the support of Yakmut and the Secretary of Nigeria Para-Powerlifting Federation, Dapo Akinyele, I completed the course but the transfer of Yakmut stalled the process and this is making me sad anytime I remember all my effort for my country,” he added.

New Telegraph also scooped that top countries had set machineries to poach most of the athletes that represented the country at the Rio Games in order to include them in their plans for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games.

At the last Paralympics in London four years ago, they returned with 13 medals which consist of six gold, five silver and two bronze medals finishing 22nd on the medals table.

MFM set for victory, says Ilechukwu

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SPORT NEWS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

NBBF salutes Ogwumike over MVP award

CAF’s Nyantakyi, Camara elected to FIFA council

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wesi Nyantakyi and Almamy Kabele Camara have been elected to fill two new Confederation of African Football seats on the FIFA Council.

Nyantakyi is president of the Ghana Football Association and Camara, from Guinea, is a CAF vice-president.

They will complete a sevenmember African delegation at a meeting of the expanded FIFA Council on 13 -14 October.

The meeting in Zurich should begin talks to expand the 2026 World Cup to 40 teams and start the bidding process.

Caf confirmed on Thursday the pair had earned enough votes in a four-candidate contest during its Extraordinary General Assembly in Cairo.

Nyantakyi received one more vote than third-placed Ahmad of Madagascar in the election, which was decided by the 54 Caf member federations.

Camara and Nyantakyi will hold their seats only until 17 March, when they face re-election at the next CAF Congress, which is being held in Addis Ababa.

Also on Thursday, the assembly rejected a proposal from the Djibouti Football Federation to end the rule, introduced just four years ago, that restricted potential candidates for the CAF presidency only to members of its 15-man executive committee.

The rule has been seen as an attempt by long-serving president Issa Hayatou to hand pick his successor.

MFM set for victory, says Ilechukwu ead coach of Mountain of H Fire and Miracles Ministries Football Club of Lagos Fidelis Ilechukwu has said his side is 100% ready for victory over Ifeanyi Ubah Football Club of Nnewi in their last game of this season’s Nigeria Professional Football League campaign.

The Anambra Warriors will be guest of MFM FC in this weekend match day 38 fixture of the Nigerian top league at the Agege Township Stadium.

Ilechukwu who sounded very optimistic of a resounding victory said while speaking to the clubs official website mountaintopfc.com that his wards were fully ready for the maximum points when they take on the Anambra Warriors.

“Sunday’s match against Ifeanyi Ubah is more than a football match for me and my players, a lot of things are tied to it, my career as a coach, the players careers and that of our fans and supporters because failure to beat the visitors means we are relegated and we can’t afford to let that happen.

“We have been doing our best in training, working very hard and our management led by Mr Godwin Enakhena has been very supportive and the players too are ready to fight with the last drop of their blood because it’s more than a football match for them. I’m very confident that we will beat Ifeanyi Ubah,” Ilechukwu stated.

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Rangers midfielder, Obinna Nwobodo (right) against Rivers United’s Guy Keumian

Obienu hails Rangers, Ugwuanyi Ugochi Akwueze

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former member of the Nigeria Football Federation, Richard Obienu, has congratulated Rangers of Enugu for having ‘one hand’ on the 2016 Nigeria Professional Football League title.

The former Super Eagles coordinator said the victory did not start with the current governor of Enugu State Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi but was a product of continuity

as the foundation was laid by former governor of the state Sullivan Chime.

Obienu said: “The achievement of Rangers is a result of continuity. Ugwuanyi helped to actualize chime’s dream for Rangers. They both did well. If the current governor did not show interest, all would have been lost.

“Rangers as a team is a big movement. The club is for the people. What is about to happen on Sunday will be a massive event. To win the title after 32 years is a big deal. ” He advised the team not to

NCC Tennis League:

Champions clash in Port Harcourt, Onitsha he NCC Tennis League matches taking place T on Saturday October 1 and Sunday October 2 at the Port Harcourt Club and the Onitsha Sports Club will feature four teams parading current and present national tennis champions.

This will meet one of the objectives of the league which is to take top level tennis to cities which otherwise will not host such tennis tournaments.

In Port Harcourt, Team Kalotari led by former Nigeria No.1 Sunday Maku and current No. 4, Nonso Madueke will be hosting 2015 CBN Senior Tennis champion, Thomas Otu and national No. 8, Sunday Emmanuel who play for Team FCT. The clash in Onitsha will be between Team Anambra which has reinforced with former Nigeria No. 1 Clifford Enosoregbe and Team Offikwu from Kaduna which is coming to the tie with Sylvester Emmanuel, Nigeria’s No. 2 player and defending champion of the Dala Hard Court, former national champion Sunday Emmanuel as well as doubles specialist, Albert Bicom. Matches are scheduled to start at 10 am on both days.

The ten teams participating in this year’s edition have been divided into two round robin groups, the White and Blue groups, with the top two teams from each group qualifying for the semifinals The NCC Tennis League, the first of its kind in Africa, is offering N17m in price money with the champion team taking home N7m, runnerup N5m, third place N3m and fourth place N2m.

relent in their efforts but to go into the continent and win laurels in the CAF Champions League.

“We all saw what Enyimba did and I believe Rangers can take inspiration from that. With good planning, Rangers can build on this success,” Obienu added.

Rangers International are on top of the table in the 2015/2016 NPFL and close to ending to their 32-year NPFL title drought. With three points above title rivals Rivers United, it is almost a done deal for the Flying Antelopes.

he Nigeria Basketball Federation, has sent a warm message of congratulations to Nigerian-born Los Angeles Sparks forward, Nneka Ogwumike, who was Tuesday voted the Most Valuable Player in the WNBA for the first time.

In a one-paragraph message forwarded to her, the federation which expressed joy over her feat said: “The Nigeria Basketball Federation, on behalf of your teeming fans in Nigeria, congratulates you for attaining another milestone in your career – being named the WNBA Most Valuable Player,” as it also added that “we wish you and your sister, Chiney, more success ahead.”

Ogwumike who received 31 of the 39 first-place votes from a national media panel, shot a league-best 66.5 percent from the field, the second highest mark ever and averaged a career-best 19.7 points and 9.1 rebounds to help Los Angeles secure the second best record in the league.

She also set a WNBA record when she made 23 consecutive field goals during one stretch, including going 12 for 12 in a game against Dallas. She is the eighth individual to win the award over the past eight seasons.

Ogwumike said: “This season has come together quite nicely and this award is reflective of that,” adding, “It’s funny because you strive for doing something like this.

You don’t think of that as being your goal as you’re playing, but it’s an honour to receive it.”

Abuja Rubicon, others shine at MTN/Kano Polo

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buja Rubicon, Ibadan Jericho and Kaduna DeeBee Farmers, have emerged as first set of winners at the ongoing MTN/Kano International Polo Tournament.

The Dantata Cup, the first major cup of the prestigious event was decided before a full house at the legendary Usman Dantata polo ground, as the resilient Abuja Rubicon team won the gold, defeating six other opponents.

The Abuja Boys, powered by the Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, were clearly the stars of the tournament, as they added the Ado Bayero Cup played in honour of the immediate past Emir of Kano, His Royal Highness, Alhaji Ado Bayero, to their

trophy haul.

Before clinching the royal crown, the Abuja Rubicon team, made up of the quartet of Lado Aliyu, Idris Badamasi, Malik Badamasi and Jamilu Mohammed, had put themselves in pole position after overcoming tournament favourites, Kano Titan, 412-3 in their opening game of the Dantata Cup cracker before facing defending champions, Lagos Marina in the final.

While Rubicon easily eased past the Lagosians 9-1 for their double titles win, Bashir Dantata, the legendary Chairman of Kano Polo pivoted his Kano Dantek squad to runners up finish after out placing Kaduna EMC side 8-61/2 in the Dantata Cup series.

Participants at the MTN/Kano Polo

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 NEW TELEGRAPH

The naked dancers of Abia Daniel Egwu

W

ith quite a heavy heart and tears in my eyes I continually watch the events developing and unfolding in Abia State and I begin to ask myself, why so much money is being wasted on fighting opposition and people trying to liberate our dear state. When did mediocre minds become our mouthpiece in God'ss own state. Why has it become the order of the day to try to shut down notable men who have continually emphasised and identified the issues hindering our state democracy. Why has tyranny and blackmail become the order of the day. While perusing the shameful and atrocious rubbish piped together as an article by one of such mediocre agents known as Obinna don Norman, I begin to wonder how our Gods own state has become so deplorable, that a nuisance will keep putting out lies and stringing together uncouth words in his bid to blackmail the notable traditional prime minister, who even to the surprise of many has continually called out the atrocious activities of the past governor who disgracefully parades himself as ochendo when evidence and events have portrayed him as ocheonwu.

I persistently ask my colleagues everyday if Abia state is now devoid of intellectuals that some terribly dense individuals are now being portrayed as media advisers. Without much ado I would like to move forward with why I decided to write this article. Firstly, I will like to clearly state to the mediocre minds who would probably want to insinuate that this article was sponsored. I write this article today of my own free will as I have watched events unravelling in our state given rise to other states categorising our state as a stupid and useless state. Now I wish to correct that notion. Our state is not stupid and useless, rather we have been forced to accept mediocre and motor park touts as our leaders in Abia State.

Back to the tomfoolery of Obinna don norman, I have an advice for you; they say who the Gods want to kill, they first make mad. You are already getting there. A second advice to you, please stop lifting words you barely know their meanings off the dictionary and stringing them together without even making sense. Reading your incoherent and disjointed article merely points to the fact that you are already raving mad. Do you know the first rule of communication? Well I will like to educate you more, so you don’t keep making a fool of yourself all over the media. The first rule of communication is to convey messages in a clear, unambiguous and effective manner. If you are going to say anything at all, then it should be as clear and as concise as possible.

Secondly please I advise you visit your closest book shop and pick up brighter grammar so your writing will be polished and you won’t have to make yourself look so dense. Only unintelligent and uneducated individuals will be impressed with the words you lifted from the dictionary and google only to use them wrongly.

Whoever told you self-acclaimed was a dictionary word. Self-proclaimed you mean?

For someone who claimed to be a former editor of new telegraph and a current editor of realm. Your command of English language is very poor. You termed an individual as characterless yet you called him an arrogant individual in the same article, your flagrant use of words without knowing their meanings exposes your Intellectual quotient level as below zero. It is very sad that touts who pass themselves as intellectuals now pose as media advisers for a state which can easily pride itself on producing intellectuals who have con-

Akwukwaegbu

tributed to the development of our dear nation Nigeria.

Now back to your obtuse article, you stated in your own words that: Only children born in the year 2000 will applaud this twaddle as every adult in Abia State knows what the name Bawas symbolizes. Bawas should have been bold enough to complete his insipid braggadocio by telling us how fraud related matters led to his arrest and subsequent incarceration in Abidjan prison until his rehabilitation by Sen. Orji few years ago when he escaped back to Umuahia.

This part of your article is the most laughable of all the garbage and hogwash you tried to pass off as valuable information. Now I put it to you that I was not born in year 2000 and all you have written in your article are hogwash and garbage stringed together to try to blackmail an individual for calling out your corrupt principal. Go back to your principal and his predecessor and ask questions about this hogwash you just passed. Any Abia person in Abidjan at the time you claimed he was prisoned would remind you that Chief Uche Akwukwaegbu hosted the Enyimba football team when they came to Abidjan at the time you were claiming he was incarcerated. The same incarcerated individual received, threw a party and hosted the football team, Felix Avanti and the ex-governor when they came to Abidjan in his personal residence in Kokodi. Now how can a man who was supposedly incarcerated be able to throw such an event. You call yourself a journalist yet you pass hogwash and lies in your bid to blackmail an individual from calling out your principal’s corrupt activities. You also talked about your principal T.A.Orji rehabilitating Chief Uche Akwukwaegbu, now I will like to use your own words. It is only a child who was born in the year 2000 that will believe such hogwash. Who in umuahia did not know that Chief Uche Akwukwaegbu had thriving businesses and was more comfortable than your principal who could only claim ownership of just one house which was his official residence as chief of staff in Afara. Anybody who visited that one story building knew the appalling state of that residence before he was made governor. Did your principal spend or have any dime for his election? Was his election not sponsored

by Orji Uzor Kalu and the same Bawas you said he rehabilitated? Should I begin to recount the many times Odochi Orji came running to Bawas residence to seek assistance anytime she was impoverished when her husband was incarcerated. A simple search on google will show you who the criminals are. You can never produce an evidence to back up your claims against Bawas as being a criminal rather you will see his achievements. He is not a looter like your principal who embezzled tax

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payer’s money.

Who in Abia state does not know how your principal conveniently ejected people from their personal residence, without compensation, razed the buildings down and then built an estate with each house belonging to each of his children.

Should we even begin to consider the land that was given to catholic church by the previous Abia state governor which T.A.Orji forcefully repossessed and built a spa for his sons wife on st finbarrs road. He relocated the market they rely on for their livelihood and built a personal estate there for himself and family. Do we talk about the Timber Market which was given to an individual for a personal estate because of PDP ticket? How about the Old Spare Parts Market; whose property is it now? Can I talk about Garki, which he took to build what he called Abia Mall/Shoprite, but which is now his personal property? No compensation whatsoever was paid to their owners.

The new Timber Market, which he took from Ndume people, he used part of it to build his personal estate or the cemetery which he turned to a warehouse. You termed this same characterless human being as being insolent yet throughout your write-up, you were the only person pervading and coming-off as insolent.

Furthermore, you also stated in your hogwash in your own words as copied; So Bawas remembered all these so called Orji Kalu’s congeniality and reverence for him, still he went ahead to rain abuses on him in support of Sen. Orji during the 2010 fallout that led to the liberation slogan?

This lends credence to why we referred to him as fair weather politician who kowtow individuals in power for loaf of bread. I will like to point you back to your article that you wrote to Sahara reporters and posted on some blogs in July 26 2013 which rightly state; Abia state Governor has failed by Don Norman Obinna. Attached herein are the links to the article you circulated round the media: http:// clemsdebest.blogspot.co .uk/2013/07/abiastate-governo r-has-failed-by-don.html> In your own words you stated that : Contrary to what was propagated on the traditional and social media, we saw a State characterized by conspicuous abysmal dividend of good governance,” Obinna reports.

“Dilapidated school buildings, deplorable roads, and infrastructures pervade the entire state,” he further said.

“Aba, commercial nerve centre of the state is the worst affected with flood, heaps of refuse, decomposing corpses, deplorable streets and roads and dilapidated school buildings common sights.”Seeking an official statement, Obinna then contacted the governor’s office on July 5th in order to gain some clarity from the governor on the claimed developments and use of citizens’ resources. The inquiry, which also included an 18-question questionnaire, was never answered.

You also falsely stated that: When it became clear that Kalu has lost his political relevance in Abia State, Bawas pitched his tent with Sen. Orji and when his lobby to get his wife become ASUBEB Chairperson could not materialize, Sen. Orji became the worst thing that happened to Abia State. Only a wicked and duplicitous person would deny the good deeds Hon grace Nkem Uche did for her constituency during her tenure in Abia state house of assembly. Your principal and his son came crawling, to that woman and begged her to step down for them, and endorse the son knowing anything otherwise would make him lose the election owing to the woman’s popularity as the woman had become more popular in Umuahia central constituency even more than your principal.

She garnered the highest votes at elec-

47

tion booths even in your principal’s ward.

They promised that the reason they wanted this was to be able to put back things in order in the state and clean up the mess they had done in the state. Your principal was scared of being incarcerated which was why he was pitching his son as speaker but thankfully their plans failed. The same woman I remember when I followed Mercy Odochi Orji to Port Harcourt to see Patience Jonathan when her husband was the vice president as one of the personal assistants. Who paid for a hotel for all the workers, pressmen, journalists, security personnel that your principal’s wife asked to sleep in the bus and cars while she conveniently slept in a presidential suite in the presidential hotel Port Harcourt. The same woman lodged and paid for all the personnel to be able to sleep in a room rather than in a car which your madam wanted them to stay in. This same woman donated over 30 vehicles to Umuahia residents as one of her constituency projects funded with her own personal money.

This woman gave out scholarships, put a lot of Umuahia indigenes in universities, she built boreholes, distributed keke napep, transformers, built and refurbished houses for widows, paid hospital bills and so many more.

Your principal’s son leveraged on this woman’s achievements when he was campaigning for the Abia state house of assembly. He virtually begged this woman to go round Abia state and endorse him in front of her constituents. Ask your Principal’s son if he passed any election? The constituents were angry with the replacement and massively voted against your principal’s son. Herein also is an attachment of some of her achievements: https://ugbogubright.wordpress .com/i-donated-transformers- that-restored-light-to-your- communities-engrchinedu-orji- challenges-other-politicalparties-says-their-candidates- should-be-ofpractical- relevance-to-their-communities /> http://nigerianewsflight.com/a rticle/ ibeku-egwu-asaa-honours -prominentindigenes> Firstly, I thought you claimed he is self-acclaimed, now you claim his title was given to him by traditional rulers, Oga please pick a trade. Do you even know the meaning of self-proclaimed? I think I have been able to prove here who the chameleon is. You see the great Bob Marley once said; The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively. Also Michelle Obama in her own words once stated that; We learned about honesty and integrity - that the truth matters... that you don't take shortcuts or play by your own set of rules... and success doesn't count unless you earn it fair and square. A man without integrity is a sad story. A brief interview of people who knew Hon Grace Nkem Uche when she worked at Federal medical Centre queen Elizabeth specialist hospital umuahia will attest to her popularity there as a saint who catered and paid off bills for people who could not afford to pay, she paid and offset people’s hospital bills with her personal money. This was how she was already popular before she got into the Abia state house of assembly.

Your principal leveraged on this to win elections in her constituency. So you see how you continually expose your stupidity in your reports. You said your principal liberated ibeku land how? By selling off their assets or relegating most umuahia indigenes to keke napep drivers. How many baby factories were exposed in Abia state owing to the flagrant poverty in that state? Please try to come off as less dense next time. Have you even seen the deplorable state of Abia state?

• Egwu wrote in from Aba, Abia State

Sanctity of Truth

On Marble

"Love is an untamed force. When we try to control it, it destroys us. When we try to imprison it, it enslaves us.

When we try to understand it, it leaves us feeling lost and confused."

—Paulo Coelho

M

en are different from women and that’s why this thing called communication in relationship is not as easy to maintain as it sounds. How many times have you been told that you must keep communication lines open between you and your man?

Tonnes of time. Communication makes sense. It works. So, how come it’s so difficult to do such a simple thing as communicate? Simple: you are a woman and he’s a man. Talking, bonding, where and when, mean different things to both of you.

Biola and her fiancé had just a big tiff and I didn’t need to be told that my friend was mighty upset. I wasn’t exactly in a counseling mood but my friend I know would most likely end up in a psychiatric ward if her current relationship doesn’t end at the altar. And one look at her face, I knew it was about Paul.

They had gone to Motherland in Lagos for the monthly gig of Lagbaja and Biola had so looked forward to spending the evening with Paul that she felt every moment at the show belonged to her. Now, I must tell you few things about Paul. He’s one helluva hardworking guy who’s scrounged and laboured to make good success.

He was born without any spoon in his mouth but what he has made of himself today makes him look like he wasn’t even born in Nigeria. He works hard, very hard, and sees business opportunities in everything.

You know those kind of guys who think money round the clock? Well, he’s Okoro to booth! He’s loaded and good looking too.

So, according to Biola, that evening was supposed to be special. “He’d been away for two whole weeks and I’d missed him so much. When he suggested Lagbaja’s show, I was so excited because that meant a whole night with him and perhaps a few hours in the morning before his phones would start ringing non-stop.

I spruced myself up, bought a new nightwear and fantasized about all the things I was going to do to him all night after the show. What did I know? Paul didn’t spend one hour by my side in Motherland and we were there for four hours! He’d give me a kiss and go dance with somebody. Then he’d see another friend and they’d start a mini AGM. “After some time, trust me I became withdrawn. Eventually, he noticed that I was sulking and then I announced that I wanted us to leave. I guess he got angry too. When we got to his place, I expected him to at least apologise for ignoring me most of the evening but he just showered, jumped into his pyjamas and straight into bed. He even ignored my sexy nightwear and nothing happened that night, after all my careful planning.”

As far as my friend was concerned, Paul must have been in an affair and slipping right through her well-manicured fingers. How could he ignore her gloriously shapely body? If he had no sex like her for two weeks, he wouldn’t have been able to ignore her. So, she

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Letting him be

Sweetie, dudes talk less but do more, get that right PHOTO: WWW.static1.squarespace.com

Adam’s Apple

FUNKE EGBEMODE egbemode3@gmail.com 0805-506-9066 (sms only) left his place and he traveled without telling her. She wanted to die.

The problem with a woman in love is that she can’t think straight, a condition worsened by the fact that all women want their men to pay as much attention in public as they pay us at home. But it doesn’t work that

way with a man. Since he spends most of his out-of-work life with you, when he’s out and bantering with friends he doesn’t think he’s ignoring you. You don’t have to be joined at the hip to feel connected at a party. Tell him you love him each time he periodically returns to you. Let him have fun. He belongs to

you, remember?

So, I told my dear friend to call Paul and tell him a few things on the phone that can do ‘things’ to him late at night. I told her a few home truths about hanging on to her fine-boy-nopimples hardworking man and how not to push him into another woman’s arms. I guess I did a good job because the last time I saw Biola and Paul, I knew he had seen Biola's sexy night wear and done his duties.

Men don’t talk like women and you must acknowledge that watching the sun set with your guy doesn’t require you to provide a running commentary.

Sure, it’s beautiful, but saying to him, “isn’t it so beautiful, honey?” really exhausts the point.

When you want to know what your man is thinking, give him room to say what’s on his mind. He’s more likely to talk if you are not sharing every thought, because it just annoys him.

Printed and Published by Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Ltd: Head Office: No. 1A, Ajumobi Street, Off ACME Road, Agidingbi, Ikeja-Lagos. Tel: +234 1-2219496, 2219498. Abuja Office: Orji Kalu House, Plot 322, by Banex Junction, Mabushi, Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Advert Hotlines: (Lagos 0902 928 1425), (Abuja 0805 5118488) Email: info@newtelegraphonline.com Website: www.newtelegraphonline.com ISSN 2354-4317 Editor: AYODELE OJO.